Kim Minjeong

I storm down the hallway, my grip tightening around my phone as I burst into the practice room without warning.

"Yu Jimin how dare you move on so fast?!" I practically yell, my voice bouncing off the mirrored walls.

Jimin, Minnie, and Minji all freeze, staring at me like I've lost my mind. Minji's half in a squat, and Minnie's holding a water bottle mid-sip.

Jimin wipes the sweat off her forehead with a towel, blinking at me. "What...?"

"You heard me!" I stomp up to her, shoving my phone in her face. "Why were you with a guy at the club?! Huh?! Are you trying to embarrass me?!"

Jimin squints at the screen, brows furrowing. "Minjeong... does it look like I'm at a club right now?" She gestures to her messy bun, drenched clothes, and the fact that she's panting from running through the choreography.

"Don't deflect!" I snap, waving my phone again. "Explain this!"

She stares at the picture for a second, then... starts laughing.

I scowl. "This isn't funny, Jimin!"

She wipes a tear from her eye, holding up a finger as if she needs a second to catch her breath. "Minjeong, that's... not even me. That's literally a blurry girl."

I squint at the image, and okay, maybe the lighting is weird, but— "It looks exactly like you!"

Jimin sighs dramatically. "Look at the hair, Minjeong! Remember I wear wigs at clubs!" She points at it like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

Minji snorts. "Told you it wasn't her."

I cross my arms, refusing to let this go. "Then why weren't you answering my calls, huh?" I raise an eyebrow. "I called you, like, fifty times!"

Jimin slowly turns toward Minnie and Minji with a glare. "Because someone—" she points accusingly at them "—turned my phone off."

Minji whistles innocently while Minnie sheepishly raises her hand. "In my defence," she says, "it was blowing up with notifications, and I panicked."

"You PANICKED?!" I throw my hands up. "Jimin, your reputation is literally hanging by a thread!"

Jimin groans, rubbing her temples. "Minjeong, you're being dramatic."

I jab a finger at her chest. "You better march yourself to the higher-ups and clear your name before this becomes a scandal!"

Jimin smirks, clearly enjoying this way too much. "So... you were worried about me, huh?"

I freeze. "What?"

She takes a step closer, lowering her voice. "You've been calling me nonstop. Sounds like jealousy to me."

I glare at her, heat rising to my cheeks. "It's not jealousy, it's damage control, you idiot!"

Minji and Minnie exchange amused glances, and Minji whispers, "This is better than Netflix."

I groan, shoving Jimin toward the door. "Go fix this, Jimin!"

Jimin sighs and walks out dramatically, mumbling, "I can't believe my own social media manager doesn't recognize a fake scandal..."

Minji pats my shoulder. "Hey, at least you care."

Minnie grins. "Yeah, that whole barging in and yelling her full name thing? Peak jealous girlfriend energy."

I shoot them both a glare. "Shut. Up."

 I exhaled in relief, ready to make my escape too. But before I could even take a step—

"Not so fast, heiress," Minji's voice rang out, and suddenly, I felt a hand latch onto my arm.

I groaned inwardly. "Minji, please, I have things to do—"

Minnie crossed her arms, leaning against the mirror with a smirk. "Nope. Sit."

I blinked. "Sit? I'm not a dog—"

Minji pulled me down onto the floor with zero hesitation, grinning like she was about to enjoy this way too much. "First of all, you hurt our friend," she said, poking my forehead. "Second of all... those 100 red roses? Whewww, you did your big one with that."

Minnie nodded dramatically. "Seriously. I almost cried for her."

I rolled my eyes. "It wasn't that big of a deal—"

Minji cut me off with a knowing grin. "Oh, don't even try to downplay it, heiress. You had her blushing all morning with that bubble tea. But the thing is, flowers aren't enough. You really want to get her back?"

I hesitated, biting my lip. "And... what if I do?"

They both exchanged a look, then turned to me with matching evil grins.

"Oh please," Minnie said, leaning in closer. "You think we're just gonna give you such useful info for free?"

Minji wiggled her eyebrows. "You know how valuable Jimin-related intel is in this economy?"

I narrowed my eyes. "What do you want?"

Minnie tapped her chin in fake thought. "Hmm... how about your black card for a month?"

"A month?" I gaped. "You're funny."

Minji shrugged. "It's a fair price for Jimin, don't you think?"

I groaned, rubbing my face. "Fine. Deal. Just tell me what I have to do."

Minnie grinned. "Good choice, heiress. Now, listen carefully..."

Yu Jimin

I dragged my feet down the hallway, dreading the conversation I was about to have with my manager. The fluorescent lights buzzed overhead, matching the dull ache in my head from the sheer exhaustion of the past few days. Just as I was about to turn the corner, I heard it—soft sniffling coming from one of the storage closets.

I paused. I could've walked away, and pretended I didn't hear it, but something told me to check. Pushing the door open gently, I peeked inside.

There, crouched against a stack of spare chairs, was Hana. She looked up at me, wide-eyed, like a deer caught in headlights. She was wearing a fancy outfit, something too nice for just being around the company building.

"Hey," I said softly, stepping inside. "What's wrong?"

Hana quickly wiped at her eyes, shaking her head. "Nothing."

I leaned against the doorframe, crossing my arms. "Come on, you can tell me."

She swallowed hard, avoiding my gaze. "I was... I was in the club," she admitted in a shaky voice. "I don't know how the paparazzi got there, and I—"

I held up a hand, cutting her off as realization hit me like a brick wall. "Wait... they thought it was me?"

She bit her lip, nodding slightly.

I huffed out a laugh, shaking my head in disbelief. "That's ridiculous. We don't even look that similar."

Hana looked at me then, guilt swimming in her eyes, and it clicked.

"You're... you're not planning to correct them huh?" I asked slowly, and when she didn't answer, I sighed, running a hand through my hair.

"I can't!" she burst out. "It happened so fast, and my career is over before it even started." Her voice cracked, and I could see the panic settling deep in her chest.

I stared at her for a long moment, my mind racing. If they thought it was me... they wouldn't press further to find out who it actually was. They'd assume it was just another idol letting loose, and the story would fade out eventually. But if they found out it was a trainee—A woman, of all people—it could ruin her before she even got the chance to debut.

I exhaled slowly. "Okay, listen," I said, crouching down in front of her. "If I don't say anything... they'll keep thinking it's me."

Hana's eyes widened. "You'd... you'd do that?"

I shrugged. "It's not like it's the worst thing they've said about me. If it keeps them off your back..."

She shook her head, tears brimming again. "But you have a career, Jimin. People actually care about what you do."

I smiled a little, trying to lighten the mood. "Yeah, well... people also think I don't know how to park my car straight, and yet here I am, thriving."

A small, watery laugh escaped her lips, and I felt a pang of sympathy for her.

"Look," I said, standing up. "Let me handle this. Just... stay out of trouble, okay?"

She nodded, sniffling. "Thank you, Unnie. I mean it."

I nodded, turning to leave, but not before glancing back at her. "Next time, maybe stay away from public places with flashing cameras, yeah?"

Hana gave me a weak thumbs-up, and I sighed again, mentally preparing myself for whatever damage control was coming my way.

...

I walked into the office where Sae was pacing back and forth, phone in hand, looking like she hadn't slept in days. The moment she saw me, she groaned.

"We tried calling you a million times!" she snapped, tossing her phone onto the desk.

I forced a laugh, rubbing the back of my neck. "Yeah, well... ha ha ha, I was busy at the club."

Sae deadpanned, her lips pressing into a thin line of pure disgust. "Who do you think you're lying to?"

I sighed in defeat, flopping into the chair across from her. "Look, I don't need damage control for this, okay? Just let people assume it was me. It'll blow over."

She looked at me like I had grown two heads. "Are you stupid?"

Before I could protest, she grabbed my phone off the desk and shoved it into my hands. "Look at your Instagram comments, Jimin."

I hesitated, then reluctantly scrolled through them. My heart sank immediately.

"Disappointed, but not surprised."

I swallowed the lump forming in my throat, forcing my expression to stay neutral. "It's... not that bad."

Sae crossed her arms, giving me an incredulous look. "Jimin."

I set the phone down with a sigh, staring at the table. Despite the backlash, I still didn't want Hana to be dragged into this. She didn't deserve it.

Sae studied me for a moment, her eyes narrowing. "Are you protecting someone?"

I bit my lip, then nodded slowly.

She exhaled sharply, rubbing her temples. "Jimin, you know we can easily just blame it on a random girl. Some nameless club-goer, someone outside the industry. It'd make things so much simpler."

I shook my head immediately. "No. I'm not throwing some innocent person under the bus just to clear my name."

Sae groaned, dragging a hand down her face. "You and your damn morals. Do you know how much of a headache this is gonna be?"

I smirked slightly, despite the tension. "That's what you love about me, right?"

She rolled her eyes. "Not right now, I don't."

I leaned forward. "Just... let me handle it, Sae. I promise it won't get worse."

She looked at me for a long time, then sighed in defeat. "Fine. But if this explodes, you're on your own."

I nodded, grateful. "Thanks, Sae."

"Don't thank me yet," she muttered, already typing furiously on her phone. "And for God's sake, stay out of trouble."

I stood up, feeling the weight of everything settle on my shoulders, but I was determined. I just hoped I wasn't making the biggest mistake of my life.

...

I walked into Ning Ning's practice room, the tension thick in the air as we both stood there in silence for a moment, just staring at each other. Neither of us really wanted to be the first to speak, but I finally sighed and crossed my arms.

"I'm still mad at you," I said flatly, "but I thought I should let you know—keep an extra eye on your trainees."

Ning Ning raised an eyebrow, leaning against the mirror with her arms crossed. "I'm doing a great job, thank you very much."

I scoffed. "Then why was one of them at the club with a guy?"

She blinked. "Which one?"

I rolled my eyes. "Hana."

Ning Ning paused, thinking for a second. I could practically see the gears turning in her head before realization hit her. "Damn it," she muttered. "She's a good one... Goodbye to her."

I smirked. "You can thank me, though, because they think it's me, and I'm not gonna correct them."

Ning Ning looked at me like I had lost my mind. "Jimin, you do realize you have male fans, right? They're going to riot."

I shrugged. "I don't care. They don't have a chance with me anyway."

That made her laugh, and despite everything, I found myself laughing too. For a brief moment, it felt like old times, before all the drama and secrets. I turned to leave, but just as I reached the door, Ning Ning's voice stopped me.

"Well, I guess I'll keep an eye on Yu Hana more," she said casually.

I froze mid-step. Slowly, I turned around to face her. "Yu Hana?" I repeated. "Hana Yu?"

Ning Ning nodded without thinking. "Yep."

My mind started racing, the dots connecting way too fast for my liking. Yu. Yu Hana. My father's last name. My last name. My chest tightened, my heart pounding in my ears. Her father was a doctor. Her age isn't far off from mine. She looks like me.

No way. No fucking  way.

Ning Ning must have seen my face, because she tilted her head. "Jimin? You okay?"

I swallowed hard, trying to keep my voice steady. "Ning... Don't hate me for this."

I left the practice room in a daze, my legs moving on their own while my mind spun out of control. Yu Hana. The name echoed in my head over and over again, like some cruel joke the universe decided to play on me.

But she's not my sister. She'll never be my sister.

Sister. The word itself felt foreign, like it didn't belong to me. Like she didn't belong to me.

I thought back to when we talked in the bathroom, the way she smiled nervously and said, "My dad... he's just protective, you know?" She had looked so... soft. So sure. The way she talked about him, the warmth in her voice, the way her eyes lit up like she actually believed he was someone worth admiring.

She was explaining a different man. That wasn't my dad. That was never my dad. I didn't know my dad.

I clenched my fists, my chest tightening with something between rage and heartbreak.

Hana was lucky. She got the version of him I could only dream about. She got the "protective" dad, the one who cared enough to tell her to stay out of trouble, to be careful, to stay safe.

I felt sick.

I don't even know why it hurts this much.

Maybe because some part of me still stupidly wishes he'd been that way for me too. That I was enough to make him try. That I didn't have to grow up feeling like I was a mistake.

And Hana? She doesn't have to try at all.

I pushed open the door to Sae's office without knocking, my heart pounding in my chest. She looked up from her laptop, startled, probably not expecting me back so soon. I stood there for a moment, gripping the doorframe so hard my knuckles turned white. My mind was racing, but my voice came out cold.

"The girl in the club," I said, my throat dry. "It was Yu Hana. A trainee here."

Sae blinked, processing my words, her eyes narrowing in disbelief. "Yu Hana?" she repeated, like she needed to hear it again to believe it.

I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat. "You can report that."

There was a beat of silence. A long, tense pause where the weight of what I'd just said settled in the air between us.

Sae leaned back in her chair, folding her arms. "Jimin," she said carefully, like she was afraid of what might come next, "are you sure you want to do that? Once this is out, there's no taking it back. Her career—"

"I don't care," I cut her off, my voice sharper than I intended. 

Sae studied me for a long moment, and I could see the gears turning in her head. She knew me well enough to know something was off. "This isn't like you," she said, tapping her nails against her desk. "You're protecting someone again, aren't you?"

I forced a laugh, but it sounded hollow. "I'm protecting myself."

I turned to leave, gripping the doorknob, but before I stepped out, I heard her voice behind me—soft but firm. "Jimin... what's going on?"

I didn't answer. I couldn't. Instead, I walked out, shutting the door behind me with a quiet click.

And as I stood in the hallway, the weight of it all hit me like a freight train. Hana. Yu Hana. My sister. No. I shook my head. She will never be my sister.

Now, the whole world was about to know her name for the wrong reasons.

And I couldn't fucking wait.