Since the first accidental chats (not really an accident), Winter had kept a mind note to be extra careful with her phone. Who knows, one day, Winter wants to send a "You dumbass!" to Aeri, but somehow she sent it by mistake to Karina, that would be hell.

After that one eventful day, Winter never actually chats with the older girl anymore, to make sure she doesn't make her uncomfortable. Despite being a regular replying to Karina's KakaoTalk profile story, Winter never goes beyond that.

Thankfully, Karina had promised the singer that she would keep Winter's contact number a secret, which Winter felt extremely grateful about.

It was another week when Winter was scheduled for a live concert event together with some fellow singers on Thursday. The singer's makeup artist is currently decorating her face, which fits Winter's song concept as the singer calmly scrolls down her phone. She sent her mom a "Wish me luck" to her mom and a "Stop asking me money!" to her older brother before her eyes somehow stuck onto Karina's profile story that day.

Uh-uh. Winter didn't like this.

Furrowing her eyebrows, Winter called for her manager as soon as her make-up was done. "Aeri! Get your ass here!"

Confused, the manager came running to the singer while sipping on her protein chocolate milk with one brow lifted. "What? Why?"

"Karina's here," Winter stated, only to make the manager lift both her eyebrows as WInter's voice sank between the loud booming of music in the background. "Who's here?"

"Karina!" Winter kept furrowing her eyebrows with her usual pouts as she flashed her phone screen to her manager. "She works for Haechan today!" Winter's eyes start to fall from how she dislikes the picture.

On her phone screen was a picture of Winter's favourite one-day sign language translator, making a V sign with her hand with the other singer right beside her, signing the same thing. "Oh! It's Karina and Haechan!" her manager simply says.

"Does his performance today contain anything sign language-related? How the hell did he get her to work with him?"

"How the hell did he what?" Aeri scrunched her nose deeper. Seriously, this loud music in the background makes it worse.

Winter pulls her phone away from her manager with her disappointment. "Gosh, I hate you!" Winter spun her chair back, facing the mirror again as she slammed her phone gently on the dressing table in front of her, giving up on telling Aeri about her frustration.

Aeri keep scrunching her nose, mouth half opened with the same confused expression. Chocolate milk still in her hand, "What did you just say? How the hell did he— hate you? Does he hate you? Haechan hates you, Winter? I don't understand!"

*****

Winter couldn't argue much on how she didn't like Karina and Haechan in the same frame because the moment Aeri walked away from the dressing table, the TV on the walls started to play the male singer's VCR videos, signalling that he would come up to the stage anytime sooner. Curious about Karina's role on the stage, Winter keeps her eye stuck on the TV, doesn't want to miss a glimpse of the taller girl's presence.

It didn't take long enough that as soon as the VCR ended, Haechan were lifted up to the stage floors, and not far behind him was the taller girl that Winter's eyes had been stuck to since last week.

Karina was in a pink fringe woollen jacket with dark grey pants. Her hair was let loose, and Winter guessed she may permed her hair a bit as it looked slightly wavy, different from the way Winter saw her on her daily 'stalking'. Instead of Haechan who started to sing his new, mellow song, Winter's eyes were stuck on the taller girl that starting to make sign language to the audience.

Gosh. Karina Yu looks so adorable in pink, Winter couldn't deny that.

No, she won't deny that at all.

Winter's face slowly overturned into a proud smile as she studied the taller girl's movements from the TV screen. Every hand gesture and finger movement she made was more than endearing. It was delicate, soft, and smooth. Winter didn't even realize that she started to smile so wide, too distracted from anything except Karina. She didn't even realize the presence of Aeri taking a picture of her smiling like a fool to the TV screen.

"Smitten," Aeri scoffed silently.

After Haechan ended his song, Karina went out backstage first before him, of course. His next song is not a 'Karina-related' song anymore, which means her role is done for the day and Winter could meet her now.

"I'm going out," is all Winter says as she jolts from her seat, grabbing her phone with her before storming out of the waiting room. Aeri watches her silently between her milk sipping, waving her good luck.

The hallway towards the backstage is full of other great singers. Some would bend down for Winter in respect, while the others would just smile at her. She met her singer-friend, Yunjin as they walk passing each other with a slap on the butt.

Winter shrieks for a second because of that.

Her eyes scan for every human being near the backstage area, and when she catches a glimpse of the taller girl, Winter automatically smiles to her ears. She was thankful that Haechan were still performing, or else she wouldn't have time alone with Karina here.

Loud music wasn't a problem for Karina since she was deaf. But with a lot of staff at the backstage walking by, Winter had difficulties reaching the taller girl before she could finally poke Karina's shoulder from the back. Thankfully, Karina didn't react to anything big except an "Ah?" coming out of her mouth.

Winter immediately waved her hands happily as their eyes met. "Hi," is everything her mouth could say between all this ruckus. Short words like a 'hi' were easy for Karina to catch, so the taller girl just smiled back and waved her hands in reply.

Winter quickly pulled out her phone and started typing. "I'm surprised to see you here! Why didn't you tell me that you were here? My performance will be in the next twenty minutes."

After she flashed the phone screen to the taller girl, Karina smiled back with a low chuckle as she took Winter's phone away from the owner politely, typing back her reply. "Haechan was a friend of mine at college. He just asked me for a favour to do the job, also I'm sorry that I don't know that you are performing today as well."

As Karina flashed the reply to Winter, the singer just shrugged it off playfully. "It's okay," she said despite the taller girl having a hard time catching on that one.

The music is too loud for Winter, to be honest. With the staff walking in and out, passing them, it makes it even more uncomfortable. Winter wants to have a comfortable conversation with the taller girl, and she thinks the backstage isn't for them.

So she grabbed Karina's hand gently by the wrist, taking the taller girl by surprise as she led their way towards the singer's waiting room. Karina was confused and flustered at first, not until she saw Winter's name in front of the waiting room's door. With some thinking, she could guess Winter's intention.

Aeri almost choked her milk the moment Winter harshly banged the door open, bringing another familiar girl along her.

Winter gestured for Karina to sit on one of the comfy couches, which Karina was extremely thankful for. The singer didn't just stop there. She ran across the room to fetch one bottle of mineral water with a pack of snacks and ran back towards the taller girl with happy feet. "Here for you!" she shoved the two items towards the taller girl before Karina started to let out that tiny soft chuckle again.

"Thank you," she signed with a wide smile as she opened the bottle cap, taking a sip from her thirst. Winter intently watched her like a proud girl-friend. Karina's eyes shifted between her bottle of water and Winter's, exchanging a few smiles and soft chuckles.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" the girl signed only to get blinking eyes from Winter. Confused, Winter tried to pull out her phone once again before her manager beat her. "Karina asked why are you so cute today?"

Winter immediately glared at her manager in disbelief. "Are you telling me to believe what you are saying?"

"I learnt some of the sign language," Aeri lifted her shoulders proudly. "You know the weekly sign language class I took two days ago. I know some things now, girl. You should believe me."

Winter scoffed, "Is that really what she's saying to me just now? Really, Aeri?"

"Yeah," Aeri sips her milk again. "She asked you why are you so cute today, that's what I've been telling you, Winter."

Winter wasn't fully trusting her manager's word, but seeing how Karina kept smiling sweetly at her until now, somehow Winter was slightly convinced. In the end, she shrugged it off and started to type a reply on her phone before showing it to the girl in front of her.

"You are cuter, Karina," is what is written on her phone screen, choking the taller girl from drinking her water before Karina starts to cough harshly, enough to send Winter into panic mode. "Gosh! Are you okay? I'm so sorry."

Winter gently hits Karina's back as the girl coughs, offering her more water to drink to ease the pain in her throat which Karina gladly accepts. Winter realised how Karina's cheek started rosing in a pinkish hue but she didn't question much, thinking that it might be from the coughing.

"Aeri! I don't think that's what she's trying to tell me!"

"I just took the class once, mistakes are unavoidable buddy. Sorry," the Japanese lifted her hand in defeat innocently as she took her leave of the room. "Enjoy your time alone. You got ten minutes, Winter."

After the Japanese finally disappeared from the room, Winter's attention was back toward the taller girl as she apologetically knelt down in front of her, startling Karina from her thoughts. "I'm so sorry!" Winter said before she snapped her head, frantically typing on her phone again.

"I'm so sorry I misinterpreted that one. Aeri lied to me!! Are you okay?"

Karina's coughs decreased as she hit her own chest lightly, sipping down another round of water as she typed her reply on the same phone. "It's fine. Maybe she just trying to be playful, that's understandable." She adds a reassuring smile to Winter as she hands the phone back, making the pinkish hue even visible to the singer.

Winter sighed in relief, "Are you done with Haechan? How will you go home later?"

"Yup. I'm done with him, but maybe he would like to meet me a bit after this. I would take the bus home. Why?"

Seeing Karina's reply, Winter immediately shook her head, disagreeing. "No!"

"No?" Karina voiced out verbally in confusion. "No... No?"

"Yes, you can't go home by bus. I won't allow that, Karina," the singer pouted to the girl as Karina only blinked her eyes in confusion, getting no idea what the 'no' Winter meant to tell her.

The singer quickly typed, "It's a no for you going home by bus. It's a yes for me to send you home, yeah?".

After a quick second Karina read the reply, she quickly voiced out a stern "No!" with a pleading face. She pointed her finger to Winter, "You", and then a verbal "No."

With the same cute pouting face, Winter repeated the same action as she pointed to herself this time, "Going home with me," before she nodded her head eagerly, "Yes."

"No!" Karina argues back, her own version of pouting started to flash on her face, and Oh? Winter kinda likes that.

"You don't need to, Winter. Really. I can go home on my own, I'm used to it. You don't have to—" Karina stopped typing when Winter suddenly took the phone away from her hand mid-typing. The singer placed the phone on the couch (almost like tossing it) before both her hand was placed on Karina's cheeks out of the blue. Karina didn't know what just happened as her eyes were wide open, looking towards Winter's desperate pleading face she could feel how her heart started to beat rapidly.

Winter tilted her head to the right, pouting. "Yes? Please, Karina."

A soft whine escapes Karina's lips, debating her decision before she finally surrenders. "Okay," she voiced that one too.

Karina made it so easy for Winter to flip her switch from a pouting and pleading girl into a wide silly happy grin. Seeing how happy Winter became, a soft chuckle escaped the taller girl's lips before her face turned into a beautiful happy smile.

Karina somehow realizes she didn't hate pouting Winter.