the charm | winrina

four

The second the words, "We're going to play a little game," left Hyoyeon's mouth, Karina panicked.

She shouldn't have, not really. Everything went fine for the first day, with the contestants filming individual segments separately while others explored the villa or got to know their cast members on camera. Karina filmed her segment, and when the cameraman encouraged her to let out her real feelings about Haechan, she simply said that she was looking for a little more than what he was currently giving her.

Karina felt guilty after, knowing that Haechan would say only glowing things about her. But he had gotten them both into it, so he would have to face the consequences of her feelings, right?

Hopefully.

She'd only seen Winter a little bit the first day, but the redhead was always with Chaehyun. Either that or she was smirking. It seemed that Winter had a perpetual smirk painted onto her pretty features, and Karina couldn't say that she was complaining; Winter was undeniably beautiful, and the playful expression just made it better.

Chaehyun's first impression on Karina had not been a good one. From what Karina saw, Chaehyun was a little bit conceited, always clicking her nails and commenting about her modeling excursions in exotic destinations like Prague and Monaco, where she spent most of her time. Since Monaco's official language was French, she and Winter exchanged lengthy back-and-forths in the language. This made Karina angry for one reason mostly.

Chaehyun was a model, and Karina was a photographer. The status difference was as big as the Grand Canyon, and it was painfully obvious in Karina's simplicity and Chaehyun's elitism. Models posed and looked pretty, while it was up to people like Karina to make sure they captured the exact moment of perfection in the lens. Chaehyun was a walking example of what Karina rued.

She was too perfect- not just her looks, but her life, the way she spoke, the way she acted. Everything. Karina was trained to capture a unique life in a single frame, but Chaehyun took up multiple frames, determined to fill every single one with the exact same picture of herself. That pissed Karina off, and even though Karina knew she barely knew the girl, she could tell that Chaehyun was an instant rival.

Karina wanted to win. She wanted to slide out of her old life, and into a new one, and she had decided that with that money, she could. But Winter and Chaehyun seemed to be going strong.

Meanwhile, Rei and Riki weren't really her problem. They seemed to get along well enough. Karina wasn't too concerned with them.

She was concerned with WinHyun, though- the name she'd given them inside her head because she was sick of thinking of them like "Winter and Chaehyun"- which was why she panicked when Hyoyeon spoke.

"Here are the rules, lovelies," the tall blond woman grinned at the confused contestants. "This challenge is to test your bond with your partner, since you'll need it for the next day, until the recoupling arrives. All six of you will be given work phones, and once your prompt is received, you must answer it within the next ten minutes. Answer it to the letter, or there will be consequences. Got it?"

Everyone nodded, and the staff members came around handing out the shiny phones. Karina had owned work phones before, but none as fancy as this one. It was sleek and fit perfectly in her palm. She looked up and found Chaehyun checking herself out in the black screen.

Karina rolled her eyes.

"All right, everyone! A staff member will lead you to your designated locations. Go, go!" Hyoyeon shooed them off.

Karina's designated location was a small gazebo in the gardens ringing the villa, so there she sat, a camera focused on her, her legs pulled up underneath her chin and phone in hand. Today, she'd put her hair up, and was wearing a tube top and small denim miniskirt. Her feet were bare, and her eyes were glued on the screen.

The phone dinged.

Please send the name of the member who made the best first impression on you, and explain why.

Karina bit her lip, looking at the gazebo ceiling, knowing the camera was fixed on her. Shit. She hadn't thought this far ahead, and she sure as hell wasn't putting Haechan, because their first impressions had been a year and a half ago. The other contestants didn't make big impacts on her either- Chaehyun seemed shallow and materialistic, while Rei and Riki seemed too technical.

That just left Winter Kim.

Karina wouldn't lie. The girl was undoubtedly gorgeous, and her first impression had been unique. She was a flirt and a playgirl, and those kinds of people always made for interesting first impressions. They made you want to know more.

Before Karina knew it, her fingers were moving, and she was typing. Winter Kim made the best first impression on me. She automatically clicked with everyone, although the majority of us don't know each other, and managed to flirt and get on everyone's good side before the show even officially kicked off.

She sent it, and the unsent words lingered on the tip of her fingers.

Flirts always get on everyone's good side.

I'd like to see exactly how the little rich girl will get to mine.

Hyoyeon's mischievous grin would haunt Karina's dreams, she swore to God.

The older woman was holding a paper and smiling deviously. "Well, the results are in, Charmers. Here's how this works. The couples will be randomized based on who you picked. If the person you picked for the best first impression picked you, you will be paired with this person for the next three hours. Your mission is to go on a date with them and learn about exactly why they picked you. When we reconvene, you have to give the exact reason why they picked you, plus three facts about the other person. Got it?"

Karina instantly panicked. Being paired with Winter? Oh, God. Well, she could always not have gotten picked by Winter, which she was hoping.

"What happens if our picks aren't mutual?" Rei wondered, and Hyoyeon's grin only widened.

"Well, love, you'll have to stay at the villa alone, isolated in one section of the house. Keep in mind, this raises your chance of getting eliminated next recoupling, and losing the chance for the money prize. Does that answer your question?"

Rei gulped. "Yes."

"Okay, then!" Hyo smirked, waving her hands. "I'll read out the couples, and you stand by your partner."

Karina twitched her fingers, not daring to look at Haechan. She prayed he hadn't picked her, because oh God, she would be absolutely fucking screwed if he did.

"First up!"

A long pause.

"Rei and Riki."

Relieved, the two Japanese went to stand by each other.

"And our next and last couple," Hyoyeon said, and the four remaining looked at each other anxiously. However, Karina noticed Winter didn't look concerned.

In fact, she was looking Karina dead in the eye, a shit-eating grin on her face (it looked all too good on her pretty features).

Next and last meant two people hadn't gotten picked, yet Winter didn't look at all concerned. She had the same look in her eyes from the day before.

Challenge accepted.

"Karina and Winter."