it girl

~ part five ~

In the morning, I wake up and immediately run to the bathroom. It's a miracle I made it to the toilet in time before all that fried chicken came back up.

Wiping my mouth, I flush the toilet and cough a few times before standing up to brush my teeth. I should've known that after restricting myself for that long, I wouldn't be able to hold that much of anything.

When I freshen up and come out of the bathroom, I don't see anyone but So-hee on the floor by the couch.

"Is no one else awake?" I ask her. She shakes her head.

"Your schedule is pretty loose today, but ice does have a workout class at 2:00."

I groan. Workout classes are the worst. I like working out, but with our diet, we don't have much strength to do anything besides our dances, which are already hard enough.

"You've gone viral again." So-hee doesn't look up from her laptop.

"For what?"

"Mice loved your stage presence. Your chorus was the most replayed part in the performance."

I smile a little, pleased with myself.

"The other girls got good reviews?"

My manager nods. "ice was praised for not lip-syncing. I told them to make you girl sing live."

I nod. It's more difficult to sing live, obviously, but it's worth it.

"I think I found a choreographer. Come look."

I sit with So-hee as she turns the laptop towards me and plays a video. Its a collage of different dance routines that are up-beat, smooth, and entertaining.

"Perfect."

So-hee turns the laptop back to her. "I'll give her a call in a few minutes. Try to have her here by tomorrow."

Just then, a door opens and I look up to see Windee coming out of her and So-hee's room.

I smile at her slightly, just because she's staring at me, but she groans and goes right back to her bed.

"...Okayyy." So-hee laughs. I shake my head, getting up to do the laundry.

A few minutes later, I see Dee-Dee rushing towards me. Her eyes are wide.

"Hana, Erin's burning up."

I quickly dry my hands and follow Dee-Dee to their room, So-hee joining us.

I see Erin in her bed, her eyes dark despite the rest she's had. I put a hand on her forehead and immediately notice the warmth.

"I said something to her and she didn't respond, so I pushed her a little to see if she was awake and noticed she was really hot."

"I'll call the doctor." So-hee leaves the room. She's not calling an actual doctor, of course, more like one of the ones we have in the company, ready for dance injuries, freak accidents, or random sicknesses like this.

I get a small towel from the main bathroom and pour some cold water on it before wringing it out and placing it on Erin's forehead. She stirs, but settles back onto her pillow.

When the doctor comes, Dee-Dee lets him in and he comes over to Erin's bedside. She wakes up, but is still groggy. After he checks her temperature, blood pressure, and pulse, he nods.

"Keep her in bed. She just needs to rest for a day or two."

He hands me a couple bottles of pills and instructs me to give them to her if needed. One is for headaches, one if for an upset stomach.

So-hee and I thank him as he leaves and soon, everyone's awake except Erin, who's fallen back asleep.

"Is she okay?" Ginger frowns at Erin.

"She'll be alright." I assure her.

I spend the first half of the day caring for Erin, but finally So-hee convinces me to let her take over.

"Hana, you really need to go outside. You've been so worried with the comeback and the performances, and now you're taking care of someone else. I've got Erin. Go out in the city for a few hours."

I decide she's right, so, after making sure Erin is alright, I put on a cute outfit (a cream, cropped sweater and baggy jeans), makeup, and jewelry. I then  head out, grabbing my purse and sunglasses on the way.

I can't drive, so a bodyguard takes me in a private car to the middle of Seoul. I tell him to park at the mall, and I go inside, him and another bodyguard (who must have followed us) close by.

I make sure my face is covered with my sunglasses before entering the first outlet.

About an hour later, I've got a few bags on my arms and I'm on the escalator.

How is Erin?, I text So-hee.

Okay, She replies, But not good. She's awake, but she's been throwing up everything she eats. I'm afraid she won't recover in time for the stage in Tokyo.

I groan. MAMA is the day after our performance in Japan, which is in two days, so she probably won't be able to attend with the rest of ice.

I get off the escalator and start walking, still looking at the message from So-hee. Before I know what happened, I run into someone and fall down.

Well, I almost fall down. The person I ran into has caught me. I look up and see a familiar face, but I don't know who it is. He helps me up and I hear about a thousand camera flashes.

I bend to pick up my sunglasses and purse, and the boy helps me. I realize that everyone knows who I am. My bodyguards are close to me now, and I should probably leave soon.

I look back at the boy. "I'm sorry. Thank you."

His gaze is fixed on me, and there's something young and attractive about him. I swear I know him from somewhere, but I can't quite put my finger on it.

"Of course." he says. I smile and back away, walking swiftly to the car parked out front. I tell one of my bodyguards to stay by the boy until he leaves the mall so no one harasses him. No doubt people will be jealous.

In the car, I tell the driver to go back to the dorms. I pull out my phone and go to twitter, clicking on my name and scrolling.

Sure enough, there's a picture of me standing next to the boy, wide-eyed at what just happened. He's not looking at the cameras, but at me, and I'm doing the same. I read the caption.

Hana from ice is dating Huening Kai from TXT!!!!!! *NOT CLICKBAIT* *REAL PICTURE*

I gasp loudly, and the driver looks back at me. I ignore him and keep scrolling. More pictures and comments are coming in every second.

Kim Hana and Heuning Kai?? Who would've thought?!

I bet they've been secretly together since her debut, they're only now showing it because she's legal.

"She's legal". I shiver at the sound of that.

I throw my phone down on the other side of me and bury my face in my hands. I had no idea it was another idol. His bodyguards must have been further away.

Just then, my phone buzzes. It must be a text, It's set to only recieve notifications from my email, messages, and calls.

I pick it up. It's So-hee.

Do you realize what you've done?

(1,230 words)