Chapter 11 - Normal... right?
Ian's gaze was fixed on the bench.
Harin shot up from the bench like she'd been launched.
"No, it's not like that!"
Her voice pitched up an octave. She pulled her hand away from Nari's forehead and waved both arms in the air.
"Nari suddenly—like, I was practicing my walk, came to the break room for coffee, and she out of nowhere asks if I have a boyfriend. I said no, and then girlfriend talk came up, and it was just the flow of conversation... Argh...!"
Her words were tangling.
Ian stood frozen by the door. The corner of her mouth curved up in that soft smile she always gave Harin.
Except for her eyes.
"Oh yeah?"
Her tone was chillingly gentle.
...Scary.
But another thought flashed through Harin's mind at the same time.
Wait. Why am I even explaining myself?
Ian was just a friend. Nari was just messing around. No matter how she thought about it, there was no need to justify anything.
So why am I doing it? Apologizing? To Ian?
It didn't make logical sense. But in front of Ian's soulless smile, human instinct was defaulting to excuses.
Nari stood from the bench and turned toward Ian.
"Ah! Sunbae, earlier with unnie!"
Harin whipped around to Nari.
Please shut up...!
"I asked if she had a girlfriend since she said no boyfriend, right?"
Ha...
"And unnie got super flustered! Like, normal people don't jump to that, right?"
Nari...
"So I tested her type a bit? Grabbed her chin, got close, held her hand. And unnie's face went beet red! Ears too!"
Harin squeezed her eyes shut.
...It's over.
Nari kept going, all excited.
"And guess what she said? The AC's weak and she's hot! At 22 degrees! Ahaha!"
Nari's laughter echoed through the break room. She hadn't noticed Ian's expression at all.
Ian's smile held steady, one corner lifted. Her head tilted ever so slowly.
"So..."
Ian's voice dropped lower. The smile stayed.
"Harin got all flustered like that. Face turning red. Because you were messing with her."
Harin flinched.
She said 'messing with.' Not even 'joking'—'messing with.'
"Yep, totally!"
Nari bounced on her toes. She looked utterly thoughtless. Harin briefly wondered if Nari's IQ was rodent-level.
"What's your name again?"
"Aigoo~ Sunbaenim! I'm Kang Nari! The super rookie who joined a week ago~!"
"Kang Nari... Got it memorized."
Harin glanced at Ian. Ian's gaze was locked on Nari. Warm smile. Cold eyes. The pressure from that combo was squeezing the air out of the room.
This can't go on.
Judgment hit Harin's brain. It was pure survival instinct.
She squeezed her eyes shut tight.
Marched right up to Ian.
"Huh? Harin-ah?"
Ian's expression wavered. A puzzled look.
Harin's hand rose. Thumb and index finger lightly gripped Ian's chin—the exact angle and pressure Nari had used on her. She turned Ian's face toward her own.
Ian's eyes widened.
Harin stepped in closer. Their noses were a palm's width apart—the same distance Nari had created earlier.
"H-Ha-Harin-ah...?!"
Ian's breath hitched.
Harin opened her eyes. Stared straight into Ian's.
No trace of the earlier chill.
Ian's pupils shook. The casual curve at her lips vanished. Her mouth parted slightly, and her neck pulled back just a bit, hyper-aware of Harin's fingers on her chin.
And the tips of her ears started turning red.
"You too."
Harin said.
"Do this, and your face gets red."
"......"
"So don't complain when someone does it to me. Got it?"
Ian couldn't close her mouth. Gone was the resolve she'd shown facing Sia in the exec office, or the calm she'd mustered begging Harin over the phone. The 18-year-old girl's face was utterly disarmed by the fingers on her chin and the space between their noses.
"O-Okay..."
Her voice leaked out ant-sized.
Harin's hand dropped from Ian's chin.
Ian stepped back, turning her head aside. Red flushed from her earlobes down her neck. She covered her mouth with one hand. Panic showed through her fingers.
Survived. It worked.
Nari watched from the bench, hands clasped at her chest.
"......"
"Kyaaaaah!"
Pure awe. 100% admiration.
Nari's eyes darted between Harin and Ian. Her mouth hung open.
"Whoa!!!! For real!!!! Unnie, where'd you learn that?"
"From you."
"Whoa~ You're a genius, right? Flirting genius? Von Neumann of flirting?"
"You know Von Neumann?"
Harin meant it sarcastically. Half was genuine shock that this girl even knew the name.
"Yep!"
Another innocently pure reply. Harin sighed inwardly.
Then the break room door opened.
It was Chae-ah.
She walked in, binder under one arm, phone in hand—and froze.
On the bench, Nari had her hands clasped like she was stargazing. By the door, Ian covered her mouth with one hand, head turned, ears red. Across from her stood Harin, whose ears were also red.
Chae-ah's eyes swept over the three of them.
What the hell is this?
Chae-ah asked nothing.
She switched the binder to her other arm, straightened up. Her face flipped to business mode in record time.
"Harin-ssi."
"...Yes."
Harin looked at Chae-ah. Her voice was still a bit shaky.
"Orientation ends Thursday, right? We're doing a test shoot Friday."
"Test shoot?"
"Yes. Per the CEO's request. She wants basic profile shots secured first. It'll be in the in-house studio, Friday at 10 a.m."
Chae-ah pulled a memo sheet from her binder and handed it to Harin. It listed the shoot date, time, location, and prep items.
Ian lowered her hand from her mouth and turned. Her earlobes still held a flush, but her voice was back to normal.
"Chae-ah unnie. I'll go Friday too."
Chae-ah looked at Ian.
"You have a CF reading Friday morning."
"We can move it to afternoon."
"...The director wants morning."
"I'll call the director. Say I'm not feeling well, afternoon's better."
Chae-ah's eyes lingered on Ian.
Ian's face was calm. But casually shoving a director's schedule for a rookie's test shoot? That wasn't a casual remark. It was the actor's side dictating terms, and "supporting a newbie" wouldn't fly as an excuse.
"...Ian-ah."
"It's Harin's first shoot. She'll be less nervous with me there."
Ian smiled at Harin. Not the cold one from before—the usual warm expression.
"That's not a good reas—"
Chae-ah trailed off.
"Me too!"
Nari popped up from the bench.
"I'll be there Friday too! Cheering for unnie!"
Ian looked at Nari.
That smile returned.
"Don't you have lessons Friday, Nari?"
"Afternoon! Morning's free!"
"Don't you need morning rest before afternoon lessons?"
"Unnie~ We're 18! What's the point of stamina if we don't use it~!"
"...Right."
Ian's smile didn't budge, but anyone could tell she was holding something back. Anyone but Nari, probably.
Nari grinned straight into Ian's gaze.
"Two cheerleaders are better than one, right, sunbae?"
"...Guess so."
Ian's reply lagged a beat.
Chae-ah held her binder to her chest and exhaled.
"...I'll try rescheduling Friday."
She added softly to Ian as she turned.
"I'll call the director. It'll get messier if you do."
"Thanks, unnie."
Chae-ah left the break room.
As the door clicked shut, Harin collapsed onto the bench.
Ian and Nari stared down at her from either side. Nari with sparkling eyes, Ian with a gentle smile.
Harin gazed at the ceiling.
I thought stuff between girls was normal. Holding hands, some skinship... cringey talk...
Today: Nari she'd just met grabs her chin, holds her hand, leans on her shoulder. Ian gets jealous. Harin does the same to calm her, and she blushes. Chae-ah walks in, sees it, has a weird reaction.
Normal... right?
No conviction.
RASCA Entertainment, 7th floor. CEO's office.
The June sun dipped outside the window. Orange light seeped between western buildings, streaking across the desk through the blinds.
Sia sat before her monitor. The screen showed this week's schedule sheet, with "Yoo Harin: Test Shoot (Studio A)" added to Friday morning.
Her phone buzzed. A message from Chae-ah.
Sia read it and set her phone on the desk.
"Send me all the originals right after the shoot."
She recorded the voice message, sent it to Chae-ah, set the phone down, and turned back to the monitor.
Below Friday, next week's slots were empty. Sia's hand hovered over the mouse.
"...Better do it soon."