------A year ago

She had come in as a overseas worker with her bestfriend. Having finished a course in commerce, she worked for a hotel chain that was doing well in Korea. But besides work, she and her friend had enrolled in Kyunghee University to futher their studies as well. They were youth filled with the excitement to reach the most in life. 

It wouldn't seem that their worlds would meet,- the ordinaries versus the celebreties- but they did. Somehow, in some way, their paths had crossed.

It happened on the rare occassions when he visited Kamong, relatively late at night but just a couple of hours before closing. It was that one time he brought Chanyeol, Junmyeon and Jongdae along. She and her friend were there. They had become regulars, his sister explained.

She liked it better when not much people were around, so she and her friend had decided to come during those hours to study. They both knew EXO, though her friend was the one who was very much excited to have met them...well, especially Chanyeol. It was a funny sight to see as her friend dragged the reluctant her along to greet the EXO members. Her friend's energy matched well with the always enthusiastic Chanyeol and Jongdae. And since it was that time and day, and the shop about to close (the blinds had been brought down, covering the windows, the artists felt a tad bit more happy to chat. He didn't speak much with either of the females though. She was quiet, but seem to be a bit more lively when Junmyeon (who had been practicising his English for quite a while) and Jongin's sister were able to find a common interest in literature and languages.

They bid their farewells not so long later. 

His sisters had a good command with English, while both her and her friend had been learnt basic Korean before coming to Korea. In time, they had blended well into the Korean society, notwithstanding the fact that they had shared so much with their Korean peers. Korea had become another extension of what they called, home.

After a couple of months, the younger of his sisters had texted him that she was coming with them for a visit to EXO's dorm. Apparently, they had become good friends. However her best friend had to fly back home, after some urgent family matter. 

Her initial reserved demeanor, earned high points with the rest of the members. But as time passed during their visit, she had started to smile and laugh along Chanyeol, Jongdae, and Baekhyun's jokes. She had brought along one of her mother's recipes that she had learnt over the years, and it delighted everyone. Needless to say, she got along well with Kyungsoo and Junmyeon and talked with them the most. 

More months passed and nights like those, when the members could relax with more or less of each of their respective family members, and she started to be like part of the troop. Though she didn't speak much with Sehun, the latter had established a shy noona-dongsaeng relationship. She was only a year and a half older than EXO's maknaes anyways. The reserved demeanor she had towards them was still there, but just slightly. She had become like that friend who was at the same time, a mother to all of them. Or the elder sister to whom even the managers left the members to.

Even towards  the always diligent leader, Junmyeon, who tried to take care of everyone she had become a sort of sister figure. One time, the latter had caught a cold and she kept sending fruits and brewed ginger ale that she made, despite knowing Junmyeon could already have what he needed within arms reach. It wasn't much, but it turned out she had that character of mothering all of her friends, especially when they got sick.

Sometimes she cooked at the dorms with his sisters- plus Yixing and Kyungsoo at times. After hearing of her eclectic taste for music, Yixing, Chanyeol and Jongdae would come to her at times to ask on her opinion for songs they were composing. She enjoyed coffee as much as Minseok did. She called her bestfriend at times, and would teasingly hand the phone over to Chanyeol. The "Beagle Line" liked to play "gentle" pranks on her, and did it more often than they did on Kyungsoo.

"She has the glare as intense as Kyungsoo, but she doesn't hit as hard as he does!" Baekhyun explained jokingly, as the de facto EXO's part -time noona shot him another glare to which the other flinched in response, but laughed with the others right away.

Jongin on the other hand, couldn't remember when the wall between them had gone down. 

Maybe it was that day, similar to when they first met, when she had approached him and asked him to look at something she had been working on- a novel.

"I've always wanted to write a novel based on stories of different people coming together and learning together and some, maybe finding a future  beside each other," she explained.

"But why business then?" he asked. It might have been too direct, but she wasn't fazed.

"Well, finances weren't always stable. I didn't want to see my family suffer, just because of my dream. Later on, I realized...well, there are more than one way to reach one's dream. So..."

Jongin could only nod. It wasn't because he didn't understand. Quite the opposite, actually. And he was moved. But there was one question he still had in mind.

"Why me? I mean, Junmyeon-hyung and you are closer-"

"That's precisely the point," she cut me off, smiling, "I want an objective opinion. And I noticed the books you had in the dorm...they were good...so...I feel that you're the one who could give me an honest and quality opinion. That, and you being very popular for being blunt. I sorta need...blunt. For the novel. "

She smiled even wider then, embarassed. Jongin laughed at the awkwardness of the situation, but it was more because he could feel that they were both happy to be having an actual conversation. More "actual" conversations followed after that. Initially they were conversations  revolved around the novel (which Jongin had become equally enthusiastic about). Gradually they talked about other things. It would seem then that they had already became close friends. 

Maybe, if Jongin hadn't been seeing someone else he would be interested in getting to know her for reasons beyond friendship. He wasn't the type to look at others while having himself comitted to a relationship. Despite his image, he was one who took these kinds of things seriously.

Strangely though, despite becoming close friends with Jongin's siblings and the members she hadn't once asked about their love life. She didn't see them beyond the group's gatherings too.

Turned out that it wasn't only Jongin who thought of this.

Baekhyun had asked her suddenly one evening while they dined at the living room over some home-made tteobeokki. His sister had to go home earlier, so it was only their not-so-foreign-anymore friend that had come with what had become a must everytime they had more than three days of rest.

"Well, I didn't want to pry," she stated rather coolly, shrugging her shoulders.

"I mean...if you guys trusted me enough already, you'd tell me right?" She chuckled.

They all smiled at the remark.

"Aigoo, our noona-dong," the eldest, Minseok, expressed with much fondness. She smiled at the term. It was Junmyeon's (questionably) funny petname that he coined for her, a combination of noona and dongsaeng, which she what she was practically for the entire group. Though some found it less than funny, it somehow did stick. 

"You could've asked at least one of us! " Minseok laughed, ruffling her hair before taking another bite piece of the spicy rice cake. 

"Okay, to prove our, EXO's, trust for our dear noon-dongiee," Junyeond exclaimed, "We'll share it voluntarily with you, right now! Eldest to the youngest!

"You... guys okay with that?" she asked, still unsure, looking at each of the members who nodded in return.

However Chanyeol, had more curiosity on her love life and asked her rather playfully "Before I start with the stories of my own heart, why don't you tell us yours dear chingu?"

She seemed slightly shocked at the redirection, but laughed it off.

"Only if you promise to tell me yours after!" She said, playfully pointing back at Chanyeol. 

"Deal!" The giant said crossing his arms, smirking, "So what's our noona-dong like in love?"

"Well..."she began, trailing off for a moment as she chose the words to use, "I'm the serious type that will only say 'I love you' to someone I have deep trust with, that I can see a life spent with him."

The EXO members responded only with "ooohhhh" and "ahhhh" as they nodded for her to continue.

"But I don't tell anyone about my feelings until I'm sure! I feel it's best to get to know someone deeper through just being friends.I believe if you can cherish someone without the need to get physically intimate, then a more sincere kind of love can develop....so..."

Sehun gasped, "So does that mean, there's a possibility of you liking one of us here?"

The others saw the sense at what the maknae was saying and gasped as well. Jongin glanced at the lady beside him whose eyes were wide. She laughed nervously.

"Maybe?" she seemed to say jokingly. That only piqued the curiosity of the rest of the members. 

"Ya! Noon-dong! You know I'm happily in love right? You can't like me! Not me!" Exclaimed Baekhyun with a sense of alarm.

She laughed, "Don't worry Baekkie, I don't look at someone who I know is committed at the first place or someone who my friend likes as well."

"So, it's not me," said Chanyeol rather in a matter-of-fact tone.

She nodded. "Besides..."

"What?" Baekhyun asked.

"You really are not my type," she teased, pretending to be disgusted at the idea.

"Aish, noon-dong!" Baekhyun said, pretending to be offended.

The rest laughed. The rest of EXO who did have a relationship or were pursuing one, revealed theirs to her that night.  She had known about Junmyeon's interest since he once asked her for advice. She seemed caught up when Jongdae's story was revelead, not suspecting the other to like a certain person. Others seem to have forgotten that Jongin had yet tell her his own story, since they all had funny accounts to tell about Jongdae's relationship. When all laughter died down, and the tteeobokki was done, some were talking about themselves while others helped clean. They had let her sit back this time, since she had done all the cooking earlier.

Jongin and her had come to talk about the novel that she was close to completing. It was about two people coming from very different background but had the same heart towards their dreams, and soon realizing that kindred spirit towards each other. It wasn't a cheesy romantic novel- she had wanted it that way. It was one of the reasons she also was thankful for Jongin's help. He had become the consciousness that drove the development of the novel's main protagonist, and Jongin felt quite honored that she chose him for that.

They were laughing at some crazy antic that Chanyeol and Baekhyun had done to Jongdae, when Jongin remembered that he hadn't shared that important part of his life with one of his closest friends.

"Hey," he softly called her out of her spell of laughter.

"Mm?" She turned to him, as she calmed herself down. "What is it?"

"I still haven't told you my part of the talk earlier."

She raised an eyebrow, "What....? Oh!"

There was a change in her eyes when she remembered the conversation earlier, as she tensed slightly and shifted in her position. Jongin couldn't tell why, but he presumed it was because the topic was a sensitive one for her. He could tell from the way she carefully spoke earlier.

"Ah, but you could know already," Jongin playfully whined. "My noona could've told you already!"

She shook her head. "Aniyo. I didn't ask,  so she didn't have to tell me," she chuckled.

"Well, noona don't fall for me araseoyo?" Jongin said grinning.

"W-why?" She looked shocked. Jongin laughed, find her expression adorable and ruffled her hair.

"Aish, our noon-dong! You seriously couldn't think an awesome guy like me was always single now, could you?" he said jokingly. Sehun had overheard them, and threw one of the pillows lying on the floor towards the slightly elder male.

"Yah, Jongin-ah! Don't be too conceited! You're making noona want to throw-up!" he laughed.

"A-aniyo. I'm fine Hun-ah~!" She said laughing. 

She wasn't.