***

Hyunjin's POV

"Hey Hyunjin, stop moping around and come out! We got vocal practice this morning!" Seungmin's voice echoes through my closed door.

I keep on painting, ignoring his calls.

Seungmin jiggles the doorknob and finds it unlocked. "Well, look at that. The door's been open this whole time," he remarks, stepping into the room.

I steal a glance at him before returning to my canvas, focusing on my painting.

"Hyunjin, I know you're upset, but you can't just neglect your responsibilities. You haven't even taken a bath yet," he says, moving closer to me near the window.

"Seungmin, please just go," I finally speak up.

"No," he sighs. "Listen, you've already warned Chan, and that's enough for now. If he keeps it up, we might have to intervene, but for now, please get ready so we can go to the company together. We've got a group IG live tonight, announcing our sponsorship from Samsung to STAY."

"What do you expect me to do? Pretend everything's fine, especially in front of the fans?"

"I know you care about STAY, but the only thing—"

"Seungmin, just go," I interrupt, dropping my brush onto the tray. "You're only making me more upset."

"This isn't how adults handle things, Hyunjin. Stop sulking and get to work," he scolds before slamming the door shut.

Seungmin can be like an annoying older sister sometimes, always nagging. I need to get ready and head to the company. Liliana will probably be there today, and with Chan's anger issues, it's best I go to protect her.

Liliana's POV

Mariah and Chloe always stick by my side, even when I need to use the bathroom. They're convinced that Chan's followers are lurking, waiting for a chance to attack me.

"Regarding the performance in front of management, what should we wear?" I inquire.

"I think we should coordinate our outfits, maybe not identical but similar colors," suggests Chloe.

"What colors are you thinking?" I inquire further.

"Baby pink and grey," Chloe responds.

"I love that idea," Mariah chimes in. "I'll announce it in the group chat," she adds, pulling out her phone and typing away.

"Isn't that your friend, Liliana?" Chloe points out, noticing Hana by a poster, staring at a picture of 3racha's performance in France.

"Oh, Hana!" I call out.

She turns around, visibly nervous, especially upon seeing Mariah and Chloe.

"It's the plastic bitch, right? Are you happy my friend is getting attacked because of you?" Mariah lashes out at her.

"Mariah," I interject firmly, "can you please excuse us?"

"No, I want to—" Mariah tries to argue, but Chloe intervenes, leading her away.

"See you at Mr. Yang's office. Later!" Chloe calls out as they leave.

"Bye," I wave with a smile before turning to Hana, who's nervously playing with her purse strap. "Hi. How have you been? They're not bullying you, right?"

She shakes her head no. "That's a relief," I say, genuinely concerned.

"What are you doing now? Should we—" Before I can finish, Hana nervously glances behind me and rushes off.

"Wait! Huh?" Confused, I turn around to see the bullies approaching.

"We've been waiting for you. Looks like you've got some bodyguards today," their leader sneers.

"What do you want?" I try to sound defiant, refusing to show fear.

"Get her, boys," he commands, and his followers move forward.

Reacting quickly, I sprint in the opposite direction down the hall.

***

Chan's POV

They drag her to the center of the hall, a space often used by JYPE for hosting events.

"Nice to see you again," I smirk at her struggles to break free. "Hold her steady!"

What Hyunjin said yesterday angered me deeply; I just want to make her pay for coming between me and my best friend.

"You enjoy a good struggle, don't you? Just give up already!" I taunt.

"Never!" She retorts fiercely. "I won't give you that satisfaction."

"Fine," I shrug nonchalantly, lifting up a scarf that had fallen from her earlier. "See this?"

"Give that back!" She thrashes against her captors. "Don't do anything to it!"

"What gives you the right to order me around, hon'?" I smirk, enjoying her annoyance. "What should I do? Tear it apart? It's obvious this means something to you."

"Don't touch it. Leave it alone!" she pleads desperately.

I pull out a lighter from my pocket. "Should I just burn it?" I tease, relishing her frustration.

"Don't you dare, Chan."

"No honorifics, huh? Well, maybe I will," I say, lighting the lighter. But before I can bring it close to the scarf, I notice someone running towards me.

It happens in slow motion. Liliana breaks free from her captors and charges towards me with an enraged expression. She snatches the scarf from my hand, and her palm connects with my cheek in a loud slap, the sound echoing through the hall.

A stinging sensation burns my left cheek, and I'm sure her fingerprints are still visible in bright red.

It takes almost a minute for it to register that she just slapped me.

"Don't mess with me, Chan. You picked the wrong person to mess with. I'll handle your mess," she declares fiercely.

"Hey! What's going on here?" The event manager enters the hall, breaking the tension.

Everyone scatters out of the hall, leaving behind an atmosphere thick with tension and animosity.

***

"Damn!" IN laughs at the video on his phone for the umpteenth time. "She's one tough cookie. Fearless. She really got you good."

"Shut up, IN," Lee Know scolds him, applying balm to my throbbing cheek. "Does it hurt badly?"

"Like hell," I groan in pain. My left eye is swollen and throbbing, and the entire left side of my face feels hot.

Lee Know fetches an ice pack from the fridge and places it on my lap. "Ice it," he advises.

"Thanks," I mutter.

"I'll find out who uploaded that on YouTube," Lee Know assures me, determinedly.

Hyunjin strolls into the lounge, clad in a baggy black shirt, black sweatpants, and black slip-on slippers, topped with a beanie to conceal his messy hair.

"Who died?" Lee Know jokes about his appearance.

"Chan's pride," Hyunjin smirks at me.

"True," IN chuckles.

Lee Know playfully slaps him on the back of his head.

"Watching the video gave me enough strength to come to work today. Isn't that wonderful?" Hyunjin stretches happily and flops onto the beanbag.

I remain silent, glaring at his infuriating demeanor.

"Oh, Chan, you might want to ice that quickly before it melts," he points at the ice pack resting on my leg.

"You shouldn't celebrate so much," Lee Know interjects. "The video is circulating on YouTube and causing a stir in the entire K-pop community. People are trying to figure out who this girl is. If they discover she's about to debut, they might cancel her. That slap was brutal. She just ruined her chances of making it in this industry with one action."

A sense of satisfaction washes over me, but now the concern shifts to what the people within the company are saying. Some may sympathize with her defiance, which could lead to a loss of respect and fear towards me.

I need to redeem myself.

***

Liliana's POV

"We left you alone for just a few moments, and you ended up slapping Chan. This is a huge deal. We need to address this issue," Mariah paces back and forth in the room, her words filled with urgency.

"It's the talk of the town. Fans, non-fans, and even haters are all discussing it," Luana remarks, scrolling through the internet.

"There are articles, videos, all speculating and creating theories. Fans are outraged," adds Chloe.

"The video only captures you slapping him. What's our next move?" Eliška massages her temples in frustration and anxiety.

I calmly sift through the comments on the most-viewed videos.

"2 million views in under an hour. This is insane," Mariah peeks over my shoulder at my phone.

"Uh-oh," Chloe stands up suddenly.

"What's wrong?" I inquire.

"We have a meeting with JYP right now," she informs us.

"Damn it," Mariah curses under her breath as she rushes to grab her bag.

"Let's go," Eliška urges, leading the way out of the room.

***

Song recommendation for the chapter

Get you - Daniel Ceaser ft Kalli uchis

***

Ooooooo Liliana just made a terrible mistake.
How can she save this? Do you have any suggestions?

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