Today, the journey from my dorm to my apartment didn't go as smoothly as before.
It was as if every traffic light was out to get me; what should have been a less than 20-minute drive took me over 40 minutes to reach the familiar underground garage.
After hurriedly parking in my spot, Bae Juhyun sprinted into the elevator.
After pressing for the 17th floor, she caught her breath, thinking about how she was going to settle accounts with those two later!
The elevator doors slowly opened, and Bae Juhyun bolted to her apartment door, quickly keyed in the password, and flung the door open while, at the same time, a roar exploded from her mouth.
But the quiet inside her home gave Bae Juhyun a bad feeling.
Had these girls run off?
She took out her phone and called Kang Seulgi.
The call was answered in a flash.
"Where are you guys?!"
"Ah, we're at your neighbor's place."
As Kang Seulgi sipped the water Liu Xin'an had prepared for her, the sound of the doorbell brought out a heroic smile on her face.
She wasn't afraid of death, she just hoped to finish her melon before Bae Juhyun blew up.
Of course, Son Seungwan sitting beside her shared the same thought.
Liu Xin'an, oblivious to the girls' strange expressions, knew it must be Bae Juhyun at the door when he heard the bell and quickly stood up to let her in.
Because she had come over in a rush, Bae Juhyun hadn't worn a mask.
Her beautiful face was thus fully exposed to Liu Xin'an, whom she hadn't seen for two days.
"Yo, long time no see."
Her beautiful face showed an expression that was far from warm; he could tell that she was holding back anger.
Though unaware of the reason for Bae Juhyun's annoyance, Liu Xin'an obediently pointed towards the living room.
"Sorry to disturb you."
After leaving those words behind, Bae Juhyun stepped out of her shoes and, without bothering to put on slippers, ran across Liu Xin'an's floor in her socks straight to the living room.
The next second, Liu Xin'an heard two cries of agony.
Accompanied by that were the pitiful pleas for mercy from Kang Seulgi and Son Seungwan.
"We were wrong, really wrong, Juhyun unnie."
"We came because we were worried about you! Easy, easy, easy."
Bae Juhyun was genuinely angry, but not at the sisters for sneaking off to her place—she was mad they'd so brazenly run off to Liu Xin'an's house.
Having lived together for many years as close sisters, she knew all too well what was going through their heads.
They were simply too curious about her relationship with Liu Xin'an.
But...such behavior was ultimately too rude. What if Liu Xin'an got the wrong impression that they were impolite?
Even if her identity hadn't been exposed...
Bae Juhyun subconsciously thought her identity must have been revealed, then frowned and gradually let go of the girls' ears.
"...Come back with me."
She said with a drained voice.
Kang Seulgi, finally free from Bae Juhyun's clutches, rubbed her own ear and whispered to Bae Juhyun, "We didn't reveal anything about you, you can relax."
This whisper reignited the light in Bae Juhyun's eyes, and she quickly perked up, then pinched Kang Seulgi's chubby cheek without good humor.
"You still have the nerve to say that?"
At her sister's cry of pain, Bae Juhyun instinctively released her grip and then looked up at Liu Xin'an, who had approached them, with an embarrassed smile on her face.
"So, um, sorry to have troubled you..."
"Not at all, but don't be mad at them. They ran over here because they were worried about you," he said.
"Yes, at first, I thought they were people coming to trouble you, and they thought the same of me, that I was the one troubling you."
Bae Juhyun fell silent. What an unexpected turn of events.
Luckily, Kang Seulgi, who was happily eating her melon, suddenly spoke up to complete the story for Bae Juhyun.
"Did you not tell Liu Xin'an about your issues, Juhyun unnie?"
Her issues? What does she have?
"That's right, unnie. It's just being chased by a man, is it really that embarrassing to talk about?"
Son Seungwan chimed in from the side. Since Bae Juhyun was lying anyway, once the two realized this, they simply blurted out the lie they had concocted for Bae Juhyun right in front of her.
They hadn't mentioned it before because it wasn't fun without Bae Juhyun herself present. Now, as long as they spoke up first, Bae Juhyun would have to play along.
Unless she wanted to expose her "fraudster" identity.
Being too close as girls isn't good either, as it leaves no room for secrets between them.
Bae Juhyun clenched her teeth, grasping Kang Seulgi and Son Seungwan's intent, and reluctantly joined the conversation.
"Because I find it embarrassing..." Fine, she admitted it!
At least being chased by a man was better than being in debt.
"What's embarrassing about that? Our Juhyun unnie is so beautiful, isn't it normal for men to like her?"
The brazen Kang Seulgi wrapped her arms around Bae Juhyun, and as she saw Bae Juhyun was about to explode, she lowered her voice and ducked her head, using her long hair to hide her expression.
"We can't expose ourselves, Juhyun unnie~"
The girl's words, like the low chant of a demon, made Bae Juhyun take a deep breath.
She held in her anger.
Liu Xin'an actually didn't doubt this explanation.
Indeed, Bae Juhyun's looks were so stunning that even he couldn't help but admire them.
Such a beautiful person, appearing in real life, would be pursued no matter where they were.
Having suitors was only natural.
"So that's it. Is that why you've been hiding out these days?"
"Is that person really bad?"
Gossip was a universal trait, and Liu Xin'an was no exception.
He didn't want to miss out on such an amusing situation.
"...It's, well, so-so."
"Then they must be the kind that doesn't understand boundaries, right? I can really relate to how you feel."
Indeed, an overbearing suitor has always been a headache, something the ever-popular Liu Xin'an since high school knew all too well.
Bae Juhyun managed a forced smile.
"We should get going then. Sorry for disturbing you today."
Liu Xin'an nodded, smiling as he stood up to escort the three girls to the door.
Only after all three had left did he close the door and then rubbed his eyes in confusion.
Why did he feel that Kang Seulgi and Son Seungwan had looked at him with such pitiful eyes just now?
Was he seeing things?
"Alright, time to think about your last words?"
Once she led the two girls back to her place, Bae Juhyun's voice was icy cold.
This unnie already had a face that could be frighteningly world-weary when expressionless, so right now Kang Seulgi and Son Seungwan were somewhat apprehensive.
"We were just worried about you. You've been under such pressure recently; we thought it would be bad if you started having issues mentally."
"What issues could I possibly have!"
The sincere look in her younger sisters' eyes made her soften a bit, and she sighed resignedly before looking at the two close sisters.
"I won't do anything stupid, and I'm actually feeling alright; you don't need to worry that much."
"Oh~ so, why has Juhyun unnie's mood suddenly become so good, especially when you were down all the time just a week ago?"
Actually, the answer was clear in the minds of everyone present.
The reason was quite obvious by now.
It was Liu Xin'an, who was currently next door.
"Enough already. I have nothing going on with him. We barely know each other for less than a week, so don't get any weird ideas."
"Really, Juhyun unnie?"
The definitive answer somehow managed to disappoint the two girls.
"It feels like it would be a good choice for you to start dating now, Juhyun unnie."
"Date? Are you crazy? How could I possibly date right now?"
"That's true. But, Juhyun unnie, do you plan on keeping this from your new neighbor forever? If he keeps living over here, you won't be able to hide it for long."
Had Son Seungwan not mentioned it, it would have been fine, but after she did, she received an annoyed eye roll from Bae Juhyun.
"You know the situation, so why say those strange lies?"
"We didn't lie on our own, we only lied because we had to, to go along with you, Juhyun unnie!"
The reasons were skewed, but Bae Juhyun unexpectedly couldn't find a retort.
When she thought about it, it was quite true.
"He seems pretty decent, does Juhyun unnie know what he does?"
Kang Seulgi asked curiously.
Bae Juhyun, with her legs crossed, replied in a languid tone, "A video blogger, with over 4 million followers."
"Over 4 million? Oh my gosh, isn't that a super famous Internet celebrity then!"
4 million was already a significant number in their country, given that their entire country had a population of only about 50 million.
To put it bluntly, it was hard to say whether their own fans numbered 4 million.
"Not bad, huh? His work is quite similar to ours. Seriously, Juhyun unnie, have you really not considered getting to know him better? He's totally your type when it comes to looks."
"You're cutting off the possibility just like that?"
Bae Juhyun answered definitively, but after she said that, the image of Liu Xin'an with a smile on his handsome face flickered through her mind.
Her heart skipped a beat for just a moment, but soon returned to normal.
"What a shame. If you don't want him, Juhyun unnie, then give him to me!"
"Stop trying to provoke me; it won't work."
Kang Seulgi shook her head, a serious expression on her face.
"I'm serious, Juhyun unnie."
Bae Juhyun was flabbergasted.