“Sweetie?”

Sunny barely registered the melodic voice that seemed to tumble it’s way into her dreams. Who was this honey-voiced culprit that was trying to tear her away from this large tub of strawberry ice-cream she was currently swimming in? All Sunny knew was that she wasn’t in a sharing mood right now.

“Sunny Bunny? It’s time to wake up.”

She felt herself being shaken and the massive tub of ice-cream disappeared before her eyes into a mess of sheets as her eyes strained to open. Who was this evil villain that took her ice-cream away from her?! She didn’t want to wake up. She didn’t want to live in a world that did not have massive tubs of strawberry ice-cream for her to swim in.

“Mmmph 5 more minutes…” Sunny grumbled, trying to shield her head with a pillow, only to have it forcefully yanked away. Oh the humanity.

“That’s what you said 20 minutes ago sweetie. It’s time for work.”

Sunny could feel tender hands press onto her back and she was scooped up into a position that had her sitting up in bed. She slowly tried to pry her eyes open, and when she did she saw the most beautiful sight she had ever seen. Hyomin didn’t look any different than she usually did, dressed up in a plain white tshirt and her hair pulled into an elegantly messy bun but the way her girlfriend looked right now was enough to make Sunny fall in love all over again.

In a way Sunny was blessed, because every single moment she looks at Hyomin, Sunny gets to feel that world-shifting feeling of first love repeatedly, no matter the occasion, no matter how often. Sunny was lucky. Hyomin was divine.

The bunny wanted to reach out to caress her girlfriend’s cheek but something was wrong. Her brain was sending signals to her arms to move, but the signals seem to be taking its time, almost as if they were lost in translation. When her arms finally did obey her commands however, the slightest movement caused the SNSD member to wince and grunt as a shooting pain shot through her system.

“I can’t move.” Sunny said simply.

“Does your body still hurt from practice?” Hyomin looked at her worriedly. She herself knew the pain all too well, it was the anvil that dropped on their bodies the morning after a tough dance practice. Knowing the pain, Hyomin felt guilty for rushing her girlfriend to wake up but she didn’t want Sunny to be late for filming. Not while she was under her watch.

“Chop my legs off right now, it’ll be a blessing for me.” Sunny grunted as she struggled to get off the bed. Hyomin immediately got up to her side of the bed to help her girlfriend stand, almost as if she was assisting an elderly person with walking. Hyomin often joked that Sunny had the grace of a 70 year old, but she wasn’t happy with being right sometimes.

“Cmon sweetie. Lets get you into the bathroom for a hot shower. That will help with the aching joints.” Hyomin instructed as she guided the shorter girl towards the bath, hand pressed onto the small of her back.

“Will you be joining me Minnieee?” Sunny cooed and Hyomin turned to look at her girlfriend as the shorter girl tried her best to shoot the brunette a seductive stare, but in her half awake state it just looked like she was squinting.

“I already took a shower sweetie. I’m all cleaned up.” Hyomin replied, trying to brush off Sunny’s advances.

Sunny always had a way of getting Hyomin to do what ever she wanted though. Whether it be by giving her the most adorable/annoying aegyo she could muster, looking at Hyomin with those big eyes and pleading, gently tugging at Hyomin’s wrist like a little kid until Hyomin gave in, or just like she’s suddenly doing now by kissing Hyomin with such reckless abandon that it short circuited her brain, effectively making anything and everything she was thinking of at that moment nothing but Lee SoonKyu.

It was unfair. Hyomin gave her the keys to her heart not to be manipulated this way, but the way Sunny’s tongue insistently sought entry past the taller girl’s lips made her forget about that injustice and she could only groan as the shorter girl pressed her entire body onto Hyomin’s. Eventually giving in the way she always does, Hyomin could only slowly disintegrate into a mess as Sunny expertly led on her tongue and even in her half-awake stupor Sunny could make her girlfriend tremble the way only she could. Hyomin struggled to keep balanced as her legs started to slowly quake under the weight of her girlfriend and the effects the kiss was having on her, and she was half sure that Sunny was only putting this much of her body weight against her because the bunny was too exhausted and her own legs were too weathered and beat to support herself.

As Sunny’s small arms that have encircled around the back of Hyomin’s neck pulled her closer to further deepen the kiss however, Hyomin realized she didn’t mind it one bit. She would gladly be the pillar that kept the girl standing if this intense kiss she was being subjected to was the outcome of it.

One last tiny nibble on her bottom lip, and Sunny separated from a breathless Hyomin. Sunny’s eyes were wide awake now, or more like something had woken up inside the bunny. Their eyes stayed connected even as their lips drifted further and further apart.

“You don’t look that clean to me.” Sunny breathily whispered, tiny arms wrapping around Hyomin’s waist, coming to a stop at the hem of the taller girl’s tshirt, deft fingers barely slipping underneath the fabric, leaving teasing feather-light caresses on the skin underneath.

“Mmmm I think you’re right. I think I missed a spot…or a few.” Just like that, Hyomin admitted defeat. She knew they didn’t have time for this and that Sunny was probably going to be late for Pansori class with the rest of her family, but she couldn’t bring herself to say no as the bunny led her into the shower with her with a new-found spring in her step, their clothes stripped and left in an untidy heap outside the bathroom door.

Everything else could wait. 

*********************************************

“Don’t over-exert yourself alright Sunny?” Hyomin said to her sole passenger as she pulled over her white Porsche in front of the Roommate house.

“Relax, they’ll never even know that I can barely even shrug my shoulders right now.” Sunny waved off, one hand on the handle of the door. She was about to step out when she felt her girlfriend pull her back into the seat gently.

“That’s not what I meant. You tend to overdo it sometimes you know? I’m worried about you. Please don’t give me any reason to be even more worried.”

Sunny was about to make another nonchalant reply but the furrow in her girlfriend’s brow and the expression that was rooting her to the seat, more so than the hand softly holding her shoulder down advised her against it.

“I get it mom. I’ll have you know that today’s agenda was either eel-farming or Pansori. I was scripted to go eel-farming by the producers because they wanted to see an SNSD member covered in mud. Nana knew I was exhausted, so she volunteered instead. I guess seeing the second most beautiful woman in the world covered in mud would make for better tv.” Sunny explained while gently reaching out to caress Hyomin’s cheek, trying to smoothen out the crinkles in her expression manually.

“Wow. Nana did that for you? Like, willingly cover herself in mud for you?” Hyomin wondered in disbelief.

“Yes, and that’s what sisters are for. So you don’t have to worry Minnie. I have people in the house trying to make sure I don’t over-exert myself too.” Sunny smiled as she saw the smile on Hyomin’s face return. That megawatt smile that she couldn’t get out of her mind and stops her heart every time she sees it. Good God her girlfriend was beautiful.

“I’m happy you’re surrounded by such good friends sweetie.” Hyomin stated, releasing her grip on Sunny’s shoulder and allowing the girl to exit the car, but Sunny didn’t. Instead, she leaned in and gave Hyomin and small peck on the lips. It was brief, but it was enough to make Hyomin miss the taste of her girlfriend’s strawberry-flavoured lip tint as they separated.

“I know. I’m blessed.” Sunny said with a wink, and exited the car. Today was going to be a long, but enjoyable day.

*******************************************

“Oppa! Get your off that couch and help me out with this eel! It’s still alive! How do I make it NOT alive?!” Nana’s panicked voice could be heard coming from the kitchen, addressing one Lee Dong Wook who was comfortably seated next to Sunny on the living room’s couch, trading rousing stories about what they used to do in their spare time.

“Try killing it Nana. That usually helps.” Dong Wook lazily answered back, obviously hesitant to leave the plush white couch that seemed to mold perfectly to the shape of his body.

“With what?!” Nana screeched, followed by a yelp and the sound of metal utensils being dropped onto the floor.

“Try wishing very, very hard.” The actor responded and Sunny burst out laughing at his reply, kicking her feet in the air from laughing too hard.

“Oppa I swear I don’t know how to kill an eel but I’m really, really good at hurting another human being.” Nana threatened and Dong Wook sighed before getting up from the couch to help the diva. A faint smile on his face betraying the feigned look of annoyance he tried to put up.

Sunny just stayed on the couch, exhausted from Pansori and preparation for their guests tonight. Pansori was like vocal training but set on high, and it was more exhausting than it seemed. She watched as Dong Wook’s broad shoulders disappeared around the corner as he rounded into the kitchen.

“I swear, they make fun of the kids but those two bicker so much I wouldn’t be surprised if they ended up dating as well.” Spoke a voice from above Sunny.

She looked up and saw Min Woo leaning over the backrest of the couch, His handsome figure casting a shadow over her as his eyes trailed to the kitchen with a glint of amusement.

“Everyone is dating everyone these days. It must be that season.” Sunny chuckled while tugging at the sleeve of Min Woo’s sweater playfully.

“It’s winter. People get especially lonely don’t they? How’re you and Hyomin doing?” He asked her, playfully swatting her hand away from his sleeve while muttering something along the lines of ‘you’ll pull the stitching out.’

“We’re good. She’s perfect, and I’m so far away from perfect. Perfect plus mediocre equals good. It’s a math equation I made up.” Sunny said while trying to poke his side now. Min Woo just laughed in response.

“If you're just mediocre it sounds like you need to step up your game SoonKyu-ya.”

“Oh please teach me your ways Love Guru Min Woo.” Sunny said and she yelped when Min Woo retaliated by pinching her cheek.

“You should plan a surprise event for Hyomin or something. That’ll bring you a few steps north from mediocre. It’s what’s expected these days isn’t it? Surprise events?”

“Yah. How can it be a surprise if she’s expecting it you doofus?”

“Just trust me Sunny. It’s a great way of saying thanks to her for all she’s done for you.” Min Woo said with a wink and Sunny nearly reached for the cushion next to her to smack his face. What was he doing winking at her for?!

“How many surprise events have you thrown for Eunjung, Love Guru-ssi?”

“Not that many. But I’m going on a holiday with her soon, only she doesn’t know it yet. I’ve checked her schedule and cleared it with her manager, so it’s all good. We’ll go someplace warm. That’ll be fun.” Min Woo said with a warm smile and a faraway look in his eyes, his head probably already gone to where the seas crash against the sandy beaches.

“I want pictures of Eunjung in a bikini.” Sunny said while pointing at him threateningly. Sunny was jealous slightly at hearing the fact that her brother is going on a holiday with his girlfriend. She wished that she could just as easily pack up and leave this hectic life with Hyomin, if only for a few days.

“Pfft. Keep dreaming kiddo.” Min Woo laughed and ruffled Sunny’s hair, causing the girl to whine helplessly because she was too exhausted to retaliate physically.

******************************************

The barbeque was going well so far, with Gook Ju’s brother proving to be almost as equally entertaining as his comedienne sister, and Hara’s arrival serving as a backup battery that energized everybody who was there. Her spunky attitude and bright smile immediately lifted the moods of the exhausted members.

The atmosphere in the backyard party took a somber turn as a result of an emotional conversation Young Ji had with Hara, her senior group member. There was barely a dry eye around as Young Ji had confessed how nervous she was when she first got into the group, and how grateful she was when Hara and the other Kara members willingly accepted her as a new younger sister for them to take care of, instead of as an inadequate replacement for Ji Young and Nicole.

Sunny understood Young Ji’s feelings. It must have been scary and conflicting for her to join a famous group like Kara so late into their life-cycle. On one hand she was basically opening herself up to attacks and scrutiny from all the existing Kamilias and on the other hand she was living her life long dream of being an idol. It musn’t have been easy, and Sunny knew from her conversations with Hara that the doll-esque idol took it upon herself to ensure that no harm will befall Young Ji if she could help it. The Kara members cared for each other, and the entire industry knew it.

“Okay guys, we’ll take a short break to switch the camera batteries.” Their PD notified them, and all of them nodded in understanding.

The brief pause gave them some time to catch their breath and stretch their legs. Sometimes these long shoots with guests can be so eventful that they forget that they are being filmed. Coupled with how energetic their guests were, the break reminded them how long their day had been and Sunny found herself slumped into her chair beside Hara, body hurting from sitting straight for so long.

“I’m surprised you’re not upset that your boyfriend is fawning over Hara so much Young Ji.” Dong Wook teased as he approached their side of the table. He had been sitting on the far end of the table entertaining Seho and he looked almost as exhausted as Sunny felt at the moment. His walk was more akin to a shuffling gait, and Sunny knew that he too was suffering the after effects of sitting in front of a camera for several hours.

“He’s just a big fan of her, a lot of people are and understandably so. I don’t mind it too much. My unnie is just so prettyyy!” Young Ji cooed as she wrapped her arms around her laughing groupmate, who was taken aback by the sudden show of affection and had Dong Wook not reacted as quick as he did to support her back, the dainty singer would have been taken off her chair.

“Woah you took that one in stride. I guess you must get teased with the “boyfriend” thing a lot huh? For a second there I actually believed that you and Jackson are dating.” Hara said with a laugh, giving a mischievous scowl at Jackson, who was sitting behind his girlfriend. The expression on his face suddenly mirrored the face of everybody else within earshot at Hara’s words.

“Wait you mean….” Dong Wook began, voice full of confusion and uncertainty.

“You didn’t tell her Young Ji??” Sunny asked incredulously despite herself. Everybody assumed that Hara knew, and based on the questioning look Jackson was throwing Young Ji, its safe to say that he thought his girlfriend's groupmate knew as well.

“Tell me what?” Hara asked, expression turning a bit more serious as she looked to Young Ji, who slowly released her embrace around the shorter Hara.

“Err, unnie there’s something we have to talk about.” Young Ji hesitantly said.

‘Well, this ought to be good.’ Sunny thought. Her instincts and intuition were screaming at her to move away from there as the atmosphere suddenly grew heavy but it was almost hilarious how her legs were doing their best impersonation of jelly right now.

It must have been a woman’s instinct because Nana suddenly came out of nowhere and grabbed Dong Wook by the elbow and gently dragged him away. “Come here ahjussi. You keep getting yourself into trouble.” Nana could be heard muttering to a confused Dong Wook.

Young Ji proceeded to tell Hara about her relationship with Jackson, with Jackson staying mum beside her, unsure if he was supposed to interject or not. Frankly Sunny could tell that the Got7 rapper was terrified and really did not want to be there right now but Sunny admired the fact that he stayed beside Young Ji as the Kara maknae fought back some tears. The kid had been crying a lot today, but the expression on Hara’s face warranted a few worried tears.

Hara looked…angry? No it wasn’t anger. Sunny has never seen Hara even remotely close to angry throughout all the years of knowing her. She has a personality that was so bright that Sunny wouldn’t ever want to see that brightness dim out because bright things always cast the darkest shadows. The expression on her face was more of a mixture of confusion, frustration and was that disappointment?

Sunny figured that she really shouldn’t be sitting here and through sheer force of will and survival instincts she managed to get up to leave. Jackson’s eyes following her as if wishing that he could physically do so as well but his fingers were noticeably antsy, almost as if he wanted to take a hold of Young Ji’s hand to assure her he was there for her but he was too scared of what Hara might do to him.

Sunny really didn’t want to be a part of this though so she needed to leave before she missed her window.

“Sunny. Did you know about this?” Hara’s cold voice called out to her, rooting her to the spot.

Crap. She missed it.

“Yeah. Yeah I did.”

Sunny turned around and sat back down on the chair, realising that she wasn’t allowed to be excused just yet.

“Sunny…! You know how bad this can look if this information gets out! She’s just starting her career! How can you support this?” Hara turned to Sunny with exasperation on her face. Sunny couldn’t answer her, because Sunny herself knew that she shouldn’t have supported the maknae’s decision.

“She was against it as well unnie! Don’t blame her!” Young Ji cried out, but Hara wasn’t done yet.

“You were supposed to guide them and protect their careers, not play matchmaker. Arghh Come on Sunny! What if my management finds out! What if Gyuri finds out?!” Hara kept the rhetorical questions coming because there were no answers to be given. Hara still didn’t seem angry, more like she was trying her best to try and get a grip of the situation. Sunny knew how tightly Gyuri ran the Kara ship as their leader.

“Then I’ll handle it when that happens unnie.” Young Ji answered determinedly.

“That’s a very childish way of thinking!” came Hara's huffed response, sounding like a mother berating her daughter.

“I am a child unnie! But aren’t you at least happy to see me this happy? Look! I’m going to be okay.” Young Ji said and allowed her fingers to intertwine with Jackson’s, snapping him back into reality.

Hara’s eyes seem to soften and her shoulders seem to lose their tension at her maknae’s words. She scratched the back of her silky hair and closed her eyes in contemplation.

“I am. It’s just…I’ve known you since you were a trainee. I know how important this is to you and I didn’t want your career jeopardized over some boy.” Hara reasoned, half chuckling at herself and at Jackson who seemed to take offence at her words.

“I’m not just some boy noona. I’m her boyfriend, and I’ll protect her from any dumb rumours. The public will never know it’s true.” Jackson spoke up after a long period of silence. His voice was serious, and even Hara could tell that it wasn’t a tone that came naturally to him.

“Relax Hara. Remember how we joked about getting into a relationship at the start of our career because we thought it would make the grueling practices easier? This could be a good thing for her.” Sunny reasoned, placing a hand on Hara’s shoulder.

“I did get into a relationship, if you recall. We broke up and that took a turn for the worst didn’t it?” Hara said sadly, reminding Sunny of her very public break up with B2ST’s Junhyung.

“Jackson loves Young Ji. Let’s just give them the benefit of the doubt yeah? They might be kids, but I think they know what they’re doing. Let love win instead of the media for once.” Sunny replied, trying to coax the petite girl to give in. She could tell Hara was being swayed by the way she sighed in defeat.

“I love him unnie, and he loves me. Even if you didn’t give us your blessing you know we’ll probably still end up dating anyways.”  Young Ji laughed as Jackson brought the back of Young Ji’s hand against his lips. They were all looking at Hara expectantly, and Sunny knew she had no more fight left in her.

“Well, if you put it that way, guess I don’t have much of a choice then do I? Just be careful okay?” Hara finally said, and she nearly fell off her chair a second time as Young Ji leapt forward to embrace the girl, dragging Jackson along with her.

“Thanks unnie! I love you!” Young Ji sang.

“Thanks Hara noona! I love you as well!”

“Yah Wang Jackson! That is NOT okay!” Young Ji berated her cheeky boyfriend.

Hara could only sigh. “If Hyomin had passed her audition and gotten onto this show she probably would have stopped you two though. You're just lucky you have Sunny the softie here.”

“Wait what? What audition?” Sunny asked suddenly, her attention brought back into the conversation at the mention of her girlfriend’s name.

“Unnie!” Young Ji’s immediately began to signal to her groupmate to not say anymore in a way that she must have assumed was subtle, but Sunny grew even more suspicious. Young Ji knew about this audition as well? What were they talking about?

“Hey, that’s right! Now I remember! Hyomin-noona was there during the Roommate audition wasn’t she? She was crying when I bumped into her though but I—oof!” Jackson was cut off by Young Ji elbowing him in the ribs. What was Young Ji trying to prevent them from saying?

“Hyomin auditioned for this show? Why didn’t she tell me? And there’s no way she wouldn’t have passed the audition right? She was made for variety.” Sunny asked aloud. There was no way Hyomin wouldn’t get the part for this show if she auditioned for it, that much Sunny was sure. But what happened?

“Wooo boy everyone is letting everything slip now. I really thought you knew she auditioned, what with you two being in a relationship right now. I’m sure she had a perfectly good reason for not telling you though?” Hara said apologetically because she realized she must have accidentally let slip something important.

Sunny’s mind was in a panic. She barely registered the PD telling them that they were going to resume filming in 2 minutes. Why did Hyomin keep an audition a secret? Not just any regular audition, but an audition for a show that changed Sunny’s life. How come Hyomin didn’t pass the audition? Could that be the reason why she didn’t tell Sunny? Was she embarrassed? Wait, how did Sunny herself get on the show? Didn’t her manager tell her that somebody recommended her to the producers? Sunny didn't give much thought about that before because there are a lot of people who had the influence and interest to recommend an SNSD member onto a TV show. 

The bits and pieces of the puzzle began to slowly click into place forming a picture of the situation. It suddenly hit her like a house of bricks when she realized what Hyomin had done for her. Sunny couldn’t breathe and tears began to fill her eyes as realization sank in.

“Oh Minnie…” Sunny breathed out in disbelief.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Oho! And the truth has come out! The next chapter: The confrontation! Or something that seems like a confrontation. I've already finished writing it and even I'm not sure what it is. You'll just have to wait for the next update to read all 5200 words of it! hahaha

As for this chapter...man I wrote and rewrote so many parts of it but I'm actually happy. It's been awhile since I was happy with a chapter that I wrote, but this one did it for me. My favourite part was writing the whole Min Woo and Sunny interaction. You would wonder "Gee is this part even necessary?" and I know because I wonder the exact same thing when I'm writing it but it will be necessary! Soon! I promise!

I had to write about the whole Young Ji telling Hara about Jackson thing so that I could try to seamlessly bring the subject of Hyomin into the conversation, and I hope that was conveyed well. I liked the idea of Hara and Jackson spilling the beans to Sunny, so that's why I made them bump into Hyomin back in Chapters 3 and 4. I had an initial plan as to how they were going to let Sunny know though, but that was months back and I've forgotten. Oh well.

My writing style can seem pretty long winded, but this is like Chapter 21 so I'm pretty sure y'all are aware of that. Take you so much for being patient and taking the time to read through my horrible wall of text. Thank you all for the constant support and for all the comments and upvotes! Means so much to me! I'm not sure when the next update will come because assignments are catching up to me. hahaha

P/S: Sunny's vocals in You Think doeeee SLAYYYY she ain't even my main bias in the group but she SLAYYYEDD

P/P/S: I get most of my inspiration to write mushy fluff from songs. Usually it's either Go Radio, Mayday Parade, or Pierce The Veil songs. Anybody can recommend other bands/singers with good lyrics to get inspiration from? :D