In Nine Days

Chapter 1 - Sober

It wasn't pride. She knew it wasn't pride. It was just that when she had finally become sober, Momo had come to her door, demanding that she uphold her honor and not back out of the bet—because if she so much as dared, the punishment would be that she run around Seoul for one whole day.

Naked.

Well not totally naked but with granny undies on.

And then, to top it all off, she had to scream at the top of her lungs that she was a loser, too.

She remembered oppa Bambam challenging oppa Jackson the same thing one year ago, and fortunately, Jackson had won that. But the image of a losing Bambam running around naked was still fresh in her mind, and it kind of well, made her sick. Ugh.

She was so not going to do that.

Maybe there was a way to talk her way out of this.

"Listen, Momo," Sana started, after having drunk her first cup of coffee for the day it was her only cure for hangovers, "About last night, maybe we—uh—you know overdid it...the bet, I mean..."

Momo remained silent—a rare occurrence which had Sana rambling.

"I mean, it's not like it's that big a deal...my word is good enough, right? And it's a stupid bet, anyway, it's childish and immature and I'm sure we're both too grown up to even bother dwelling in stuff like that, if you know what I mean. And I swear—"

"I'll sleep with Eunha if I lose, Satang. Or Heejin. Or Yeonjung."

It was too surprising to even process.

Sana stared at Momo, a look of shock on her face. Momo looked determined, and a bit shocked at what she'd just said, too—it was obvious she had blurted the whole thing out, probably without thinking first.

But however tempting it was, it really wasn't enough. Sana sighed.

"Sorry, Momo, but—"

"And I will run around naked, too. For two days. With the sign 'pervert' painted all over me. And screaming 'Sana is the best' at the top of my lungs."

And there it was. The magic key.

Call her crazy, but somehow, that she couldn't resist.

Okay, so maybe it was pride. Darn it.

Stupid, stupid pride.

But who wouldn't want her best-friend-but-sometimes-rival-still to have a dose of her own mischievous medicine?

Momo so deserved it.

When the shorter brunette left that day, with the deal shaken with firm hands, she didn't deal Momo into sleeping with those girls anymore, because that was too much, and she knew Dahyun would get hurt if she so much as found out her girlfriend actually proposed that, Sana simply sat on her cozy kitchen chair, tracing distracted patterns on the old wooden counter. Waiting for her second batch of coffee to brew. Letting time fly by.

And of course, thinking of how stupid she was. Yes, it was pride.

But how the hell do you win such an impossible bet anyway?

It wasn't the leaving-her-part that was a problem—no, of course not. She was being honest with Momo when she said she wasn't in love with Tzuyu. She never was. It was just infatuation, and it had, in a way, died years ago. As for leaving her...well, she was Ms. Unemotional. It wouldn't exactly bother her or anything like that.

The problem was something else.

How could she make Chou Tzuyu want her, need her, love her, if until now she didn't even so much as acknowledge her worth? Or worse, treat her as an equal?

To her, she was just some comrade—maybe one who could be easily replaced. The only thing that mattered to him was her training, her friendship with Chaeyoung, and proving she was worthy to be welcomed back as part of JYP agency once again.

She was nothing to her. And she had long learned to accept that.

When nothing came to Sana's usually brilliant, strategic mind, she let time fly by more, and let her thoughts wonder. Wonder, until she felt her brain grow sleepy again. Until her head dropped on the counter, and her eyes were all but ready to close.

Until suddenly, out of the blue, she remembered the one thing Tzuyu was. And the one thing her kind always, always wanted. Needed.

With a snap, Sana instantly became alert once more, the answers finally processing in her brain.

She's still human.

And human needed...sex.

And when you came to think of it, great sex made you want more. Wanting more made you need.

And needing might make you...love.

It was a long shot, but it happened. It did, there was no denying that.

Sana's eyes widened, as she realized exactly what she had to do. Exactly what was on stake.

Exactly how she was going to win.

She was going to have to seduce her.

Ms. Ice Cube herself.

And she had only nine days to do it.

..............

"Hey bud?"

Silence.

"Your fangirls are following you again."

Still silence. Then...

"... I know idiot."

There was a grunt, then the short blonde glared—which, of course, the taller girl ignored, like she always did. Chaeyoung sighed, scratching her head.

"Can't you find a way to get rid of them?"

"They'll keep coming back."

"Not if it's a good plan," Chaeyoung insisted. She glanced behind her warily, and almost winced at the sight of heart-filled eyes stalking their every move.

And lovingly screaming the most irritating name in the world at least it was, in Chaeyoung's opinion.

"Tzuyu-ah, please go out on a date with me—"

"Tzuyu-ssi, you're so handsome! You're the best!"

"Tzuyu, why don't we go back to my place and have some loving..."

"Tzuyu, MARRY ME!"

They kept on coming. Whether it was a shy declaration, or a bold one—or a seductive proposition that sometimes bordered on...well, downright dirty. It was all Chaeyoung could do not to cover her ears and scream back at all of them—she tried that before, and it didn't exactly work.

Maybe something else would.

"Man.. we need to find you a girl."

Dark brown eyebrows rose at the statement. "...that's idiotic. And here I thought we were trying to avoid them."

Chaeyoung waved a hand impatiently, not bothering to be shocked anymore on what the latter had actually spoken that much words in one sentence. Rare occurrence, yes—but there were, in her opinion, more important matters to ponder on at the moment.

Such as the fact that monkey was a bastard, and really shouldn't have that much women falling all over her feet.

And they really were annoying, to say the least.

"I didn't mean it like that! What I meant was we need to find you a non-fangirl to get rid of those girls. A pretend girlfriend. You know, to drive them away, knowing that you're taken."

As her thoughts formed, hazel eyes widened. Sparkled.

Then she grinned, showing foxy, almost-sharp teeth.

"And I know exactly who'd be perfect for that."

The grin widened, positively reaching Chaeyoung's ears. As her doe eyes stared, only one thought entered Chou Tzuyu's mind.

It wasn't a grin to be trusted.