|who i am|

|twenty-three|

|Aera's POV|

"Behave yourself, okay? I don't want to get a call because you did something you shouldn't have. I will not be going anywhere to pick you up either. You need to be home by midnight. If you're late, I'm putting you on lockdown." NaHee instructs as I stand in the doorway.

"I know—I know. I'm not a baby. I can handle myself. Mark will have me back by eleven. We're just going to a movie with Mina and MoMo." I insist as NaHee stares at me intently as if trying to decipher some hidden intentions.

"Behave." NaHee states one last time before motioning for me to go.

I hurry away from the door as she closes it. I quickly climb into Mark's car and lean over to kiss him.

"We clear?" Mark asks as he starts the car up.

"Yeah. We're in the clear until eleven." I chirp as I grab Mark's hand.

"What'd you tell her we were doing?" Mark questions as he pulls away from the house.

"I said we were going to a movie with Mina and Momo. They both already know the story." I reassure him as we make our way to the JYP building.

"I still don't know why you don't want to tell them. I don't think they'd be mad. In fact, they'd probably want to help you." Mark mumbles as he adjusts the heat.

"I don't want them to know until I know it's good. If it's a bad song and I show them, I'll look stupid. I want to be able to prove myself to them, not make them question me." I sigh as I stare out the window.

"You're worrying about nothing. They'll love it either way. As long as it's something you made, they'll love it and support you no matter what." Mark explains as he glances over at me.

"I know you're right, but it's not that easy to accept. Let's just go meet up with the girls and start recording." I glance down at his hand in mine. I turn it over and begin trailing my fingers over the thin lines of his palm.

"We can record the demo today and find some other time to work on the rest. I know the others have to practice tonight, so they can't stay long." Mark mumbles as he turns into the parking lot beside the river.

"Mark—what are we doing here?" I ask as I lean forward to look out at the water.

"You'll see soon, just get out of the car and don't move." Mark instructs as he quickly climbs out. He rushes around the car to grab my door for me.

"Mark, you said we were working on the song. Why are we here? We have a lot of stuff to do." I glance around as Mark grabs ahold of my wrist to keep me from wondering too far.

"Don't move." Mark pulls me back toward him as he covers my eyes with a blindfold.

"Mark—really—what are we doing?" I reach out for him, unsure as to where he disappeared to.

"Stay put, I just have to grab something out of the trunk." Mark explains as two sets of footsteps approach us.

"Mark, who's here?" I bump into the car as someone grabs ahold of my arm.

"It's no one. I promise—just follow us—I mean me." Mark stumbles over his words as someone leads me after him.

"I don't like being blindfolded. I don't know where I'm going. I feel like I'm going to trip. I swear to god if I trip, I'm going to hurt you." I complain as I struggle to keep my balance.

"Okay, stop whining. We're here. You guys can go. Thanks for the help. I owe you." Mark bids farewell to his secret helpers before untying the blindfold.