"What's with that necklace?" 

Gabriel pointed at the necklace Milan was wearing. It had a ring on it. She smiled at him before caressing the ring. 

"It's special," she mused," Like how special your engagement ring will be. Anyway, what kind of style does your girlfriend like?" 

"I don't really know," Gabriel scratched the back of his neck," But I told you about her already. I also showed you pictures of her. So I thought you might make a guess from them."

"I never knew your girlfriend personally so it's hard to say," Milan looked over the countless rings in the counter. "But I think girls like her would love this."

"Girls like her? How about a girl like you? I didn't expect you to accept that kind of ring. Is that from that tall guy?" Gabriel asked. 

"You talk as if you're not tall yourself," Milan laughed," Yeah. He 'proposed' or something to me."

"Does he know you're wearing that?" Gabriel asked," He does, right?"

"He doesn't," Milan quickly said with a teasing smile," I just realized a lot of things and just... Everything was so fast. And he was the only person who was still there, slowing down for me. I might tell him later."

"Wait, the album you're helping with, Taemin's right? Why not do it then? You're free after all right?" Gabriel suggested. 

"Ooh," Milan's smile grew wider," I like how you think, Gab. So this is why I used to have a crush on you."

"I am nervous," Chanyeol told Kyungsoo. The shorter member raised an eyebrow and seemed to show an expression of 'And I care, how?'

"I'm sure she likes you back," Kyungsoo said without looking at him," You should have confidence in yourself. You're an idol, Yeol. Aside from that, you're her best friend. She's supposed to like you."

"No! Not like that. I want something more," Chanyeol bit his lower lip," I want to date her. I want to experience a lot of things with her."

"You will," Kyungsoo looked up to the ceiling," I have some kind of sense in this. I think I'm better than Baekhyun anyway. She's not leading you on, she's leading you to her answer."

"And that answer is?"

Kyungsoo stared at him, disappointed. He sighed and thought that Chanyeol was an idiot. Even though Kyungsoo only watched from the sidelines, he saw how Milan reacted when Chanyeol was with another woman. He saw how Milan stole glances and how she looked at Chanyeol. He noticed how embarrassed Milan could get if it mattered Chanyeol. Kyungsoo wondered how stupid Chanyeol was not to notice anything. 

"Figure it out yourself," Kyungsoo said before looking at his phone," Anyways, I have a schedule to attend to. You're lucky enough the manager let you rest for a few days."

"I worked my life off while Milan wasn't in Korea after all," Chanyeol pouted," But Kyungsoo, come on, tell me. What's her answer?"

"It's either you figure it out yourself or she'll tell you before you do. I'm sure she'll clearly answer you the next time you see her," Kyungsoo said before showing his phone screen to Chanyeol," I think this'll give you a heads-up on what the answer is."

On his phone was a blurry picture of two people, one man and one woman. They were in a jewelry store, looking for rings specifically. Once Chanyeol managed to recognize who the woman was, he felt nervous. Why was Milan shopping for rings with Gabriel?

"There, bye," Kyungsoo said before going out of the room. Chanyeol twitched a few times before he brought out his phone. He then realized it would be a bad move if he called Milan. She'll remind Chanyeol that they weren't dating. He had no right to question Milan's decision to hang out with Gabriel. At least they weren't kissing or anything. That'll send Chanyeol to the hospital. 

Chanyeol contemplated about it for a while before reaching to a conclusion. He'll ask for her answer after Taemin's showcase. Surely, it would be the right time to ask by then. She wouldn't stress over anything else but that decision. She might not think about his proposal since she's thinking about Taemin's comeback. Of course she'll prioritize Taemin over him. As Milan always told him, it's Lee freaking Taemin, of course he comes first. Chanyeol was just lucky enough that Taemin didn't like Milan back or else, he'd practically give up. Milan gave up almost her whole life to Taemin and SHINee. EXO was just 4 years too late to snatch her heart from SHINee. 

"I think I should buy feng shui stuff to double my luck."

"Thank you for your help, Milan," Gabriel said as they waited for a bus to take Gabriel to the hotel he was staying in," I hope she likes it."

"She'll love it, Gab. Aside from that, she would care less for the ring. The important thing is that you're the one proposing to her," Milan smiled at him," Aside from that, you treated me to food so how can I resist? And I liked you before. You have a special space in my heart."

"You too," Gabriel looked at the incoming bus," You also have a special space in my heart. Anyways, good luck with that K-Pop idol of yours."

"Good luck with that teacher of yours too," Milan waved her hand," I won't be able to go to the airport in time for your flight."

"I'll just tell Maddie that," Gabriel went on the bus, still waving in Milan's direction. She felt a slight pinch in her heart. She did love Gabriel but that was all in the past. He was the reason why she changed for the better, why she was able to perservere like that in South Korea. He might've even won over Taemin's place in Milan's heart. But that was all in the past. Milan looked forward to a future, a future with someone special. She thought he might be able to win over her heart better than Taemin ever did. What Milan felt for Taemin was different compared to what she felt for that special person. She would sacrifice her life for Taemin's sake but with him, with that best friend of hers, she would rather have them both executed than have one live longer than the other. 

For the first time, Milan could tell herself that it was true love. And she let herself fall for him.