Ember was wide awake well before they needed to be on Wednesday, so she decided to repay the other girl's kindness by fixing the two of them an extravagant breakfast.

She stepped out of the shower and bustled around their perfect little kitchen, frying eggs and sausage and tossing her homeade breakfast bagel-pizzas in the oven as she spread icing on the now cooling cinnamon rolls.

Right as she was finishing everything, Hye-ji stepped out of the bathroom with her towel on her head and her nose searching the air.

"Ah, what smells so good?" she exclaimed, hurrying into the kitchen and promptly gasping at the feast her roomate had prepared for them.

She turned to Ember, grabbing the hand that wasn't spreading icing and dropping to her knees.

"Marry me child! You can have boyfriends if you want, I could care less as long as I wake up to this in the mornings!"

Ember burst out laughing at her best friend's antics, pulling her to her feet and giving her a quick hug.

"You've done a lot for me lately, I just wanted you to have a good start to our first day," she told her sincerely, ushering her to a stool and setting a loaded plate in front of her before fixing her own and pouring them both a glass of orange juice.

"Yah, well you definitely gave me that! The only thing better would have been to wake up to it in bed," she replied with an exaggerated wink, making Ember laugh again.

"Ah, I'll have to remember that for next time."

"Next time?" Hye-ji echoed, pretending to swoon. "Be still my heart!"

After the dishes had been cleared, the girls pulled out Ember's schedules to go over them together.

Monday-Wednesday

8a.m. English Literature, room 09

(Professor Kim Namjoon)

9a.m. Classical Composition, room 27

(Professor Min Yoongi )

10a.m. Drama Society, auditorium 2

(student led, Kim Taehyung)

11a.m. Art Society, room 13

(student led, Jeon Jungkook)

12 p.m. Break

1p.m. Creative Writing, room 09

(Professor Kim Namjoon)

2p.m. Piano, studio B

(Professor Min Yoongi)

3p.m. Contemporary Dance, studio D

(Coach Jung Hoseok)

Thursday

10a.m. Piano, studio B

(Professor Min Yoongi)

12p.m. Break

1p.m. Contemporay Dance, studio D

(Coach Jung Hoseok)

"Ah, you're lucky, you got classes with Taehyung and Jungkook! The jeaolusy is real."

Ember looked at her questioningly.

"They're both friends of mine, they're great. Not to mention ridiculously pretty, so just prepare yourself ahead of time. And oh my god! You got Jung Hoseok for dance!"

Hye-ji closed her eyes and clasped her hands to her heart, pretending to pray. "Dear lord, please save my child so that she doesn't die from the sudden onslaught of attractive men in her life."

Ember laughed, playfully smacking Hye-ji on the shoulder.

"So what's the deal with Jung Hoseok, is he another friend of yours?"

The look Hye-ji cast her said plainly that she wished that were the case.

"No, I don't know him personally. He graduated from here 2 years ago, when I was just starting. He's an amazing dancer, and this is only his second term back. He got the job in January, but he didn't have an actual class of his own because it was already halfway through the school year. He's super nice though, makes an effort to make friends with the students and even attended a few parties last term. He's just so... fun. Most of the students here are half in love with him."

She glanced back down to Ember's schedule.

"Ah, and you have Professors Min and Kim, with me! Those classes should be fairly easy. Professor Kim is one of my favorites. He's really nice and lenient, as long as you do your work. He never assigns homework because he doesn't want to interfere with anyone's practice time, and his classes are really relaxed."

She paused.

"Professor Min... hmm. Well, it's kind of hard to describe him. He acts like he doesn't really want to be here, but he's really passionate about music, so he's an amazing teacher anyway. He just doesn't take any shit. He was my instructor last term, too. He's a bit of an... aquired taste, but I like him."

Ember nodded slowly, taking it all in. It didn't sound too bad. She seemed to have gotten pretty lucky, based on what Hye-ji was saying.

The two girls threw on their clothes and grabbbed their bags, getting to the campus a little early so Hye-ji could show Ember where the classes they didn't have together were located.

Ember noted that while each classroom was fitted with the latest technology, they weren't large at all, which Hye-ji explained was because the school insisted on keeping classes small and intimate, to offer more one-on-one interaction between instructors and students.

There were no classes with more than 10 students, and even that was on the higher side compared to most and usually only occurred in the general studies classes.

Ember supposed that made sense for a school that only accepted two to three hundred students a year.

Finally the two made their way to their first class, sliding into comfy chairs by the window and pulling out their English textbooks and notebooks.

They'd still managed to be the first people in the classroom, beating even the teacher, and were so busy chatting about the movie they'd seen the night before that they didn't notice the tall man who stepped into the room until he came up behind Hye-ji and ruffled her pretty red hair.

"Yah!" she exclaimed, spinning around to confront her attacker. "Oh, Professor Kim!"

To Ember's suprise, her friend enveloped the handsome, grinning blonde in a tight hug before reclaiming her seat and turning to introduce him to Ember.

"Professor Kim, this is my new friend and roomate, Ember Rhodes."

Ember found it suddenly very hard to breathe as the beautiful man turned his dimpled, full-lipped smile on her, his warm brown eyes sparkling behind the lenses of his black-framed glasses.

It was obvious he wasn't that much older than her, mid twenties at the most, dressed in a fitted white dress shirt and simple black slacks. She couldn't stop her eyes from trailing over his solid frame and lingering on the sinful way his button-down hugged his strong, toned arms and broad shoulders.

She felt her face heat and her breath catch in her throat as she tore her eyes away and bowed her head in greeting.

"Nice to meet you Miss Rhodes. I believe I saw you on my roster for Creative Writing as well? Seems we'll be seeing each other rather often."

His dimples were really making it difficult to focus on his words.

"Yes sir, it looks that way," she smiled, hoping her flustered state didn't show on her face. "Pleasure to meet you."

Professor Kim cocked an eyebrow slightly, smiling a bit broader, if that was possible. It gave Ember the impression that her current condition was probably a bit more visible than she'd hoped.

"Ah! Yes, it nearly slipped my mind! I glanced over your transcript from the college you've been attending until present. We have a student-led tutoring group here for general studies classes. Would you be interested in helping fellow students?"

Ember knew she had a lot on her plate. She knew she was taking more classes than most of the students on campus. She knew she was already going to have it hard trying to keep up with her clients at her photography job on the weekends without adding anything else to her schedule.

Which is why she opened her mouth with every intention of politely declining the suggestion.

"You would be a great help. Your marks in your past classes are honestly outstanding, and I would very, very much appreciate it if you'd consider tutoring some of my students."

His genuine expression and the gentle, hopeful smile on his face had Ember shutting her mouth and nodding without even realizing she'd changed her mind.

"Great! I'll sign you up!"

Professor Kim clapped his hands together in delight. He straightened from the desk, reaching out to ruffle her hair like a child on his way up to his own desk at the front of the classroom, and Ember finally noticed that a few other students had started filing in and taking seats.

She took a deep, calming breath and turned to glance at Hye-ji, who was watching her with a highly amused expression.

"What's funny?" she whispered to the girl, who broke into a wide grin.

"Oh, nothing. Just your face."

Ember narrowed her eyes and smacked her friend, who just laughed hysterically before leaning close to whisper in her ear.

"He's only 24, and he's a sweetheart. Also, just so you know... there's no policy here against students and professors... you know."

She leaned back in her seat, smirking, as Ember slowly caught on to what the girl was implying and turned a pretty shade of cherry red.

Ember glared at her for a moment before turning to the front to pay attention to Professor Kim, only to meet his curiously amused gaze for a second before he faced the class and began his introduction to the course.

Ember tried to focus on his words, she really did, but she found her eyes wandering from his stylishy arranged blonde hair, down the length of his handsomely dressed body. She closed her eyes and raised a hand to rub at her temple, suddenly getting the feeling that this class was going to be more of a struggle than she'd anticipated.

Roughly one excrutiating hour later, the two girls filed out of the classroom, Ember clutching the tutoring schedule Professor Kim had printed and passed to her during class.

Hye-ji had already pried it from her fingers once, squealing with delight when she realized Ember's first charge for the Thursday sessions was her friend Jeon Jungkook.

The two made their way quickly to their next class together, Classical Composition.

The professor was already there, his all-black attire providing a stark contrast to his pale skin and silver-blonde hair. He was propped up with his feet crossed on his desk, flipping slowly through music sheets with one hand while the other tapped a rhythm on the arm of his chair.

He didn't look up as they quietly took their seats (again by the windows) and Ember couldn't tell if he'd even noticed them walk in.

"Good Morning Professor Min," Hye-ji called brightly, and he glanced up momentarily, nodding politely at the two before immediately returning to whatever he was studying.

Ember found herself entranced by the way his fingers played along the armrest. It was as if he were playing an imaginary piano.

She watched as he stopped tapping, shook his head abruptly and grabbed a pen to cross something out on the music sheet before scribbling something in its place and resuming his tapping with a slightly different rhythm.

Ember shot a glance to Hye-ji who was transfixed with it as well.

"Is he composing? Without music?" she whispered, and her friend smiled and nodded.

"He does that a lot. He's played long enough that he's memorized all the keys and their notes, so he doesn't really need a piano to compose a piece. He's brilliant."

Ember nodded in agreement, definitely impressed. She wondered what the piece he was imagining sounded like, and tried to keep track of the imaginary keys he was playing. She quickly lost track.

Soon the other six students had found their seats, and the Professor finally set his

music down. He made his way to the front of the class, leaning back against the podium and lazily scanning the small class.

His bored gaze landed on Ember. "I see we have a new student. Name?"

"Ember Rhodes, sir."

He nodded as if the name was to be expected. "Welcome. I hope you will dedicate yourself to this class as much as your preforming arts. It is just as crucial, if you don't want to be playing unoriginal crap shoved at you by mainstream producers for the rest of your life. But that is, of course, for you to decide."

Ember nodded, not really sure what to say to that.

Professor Min turned to address the class as a whole.

"You were each asked to prepare a track of your own to give me a feel of where you stand on this subject. Bring them up."

Hyeji glanced at her in a panic, realizing Ember hadn't been aware of that request. Luckily she still had her track from her audition tucked safely into her bag. She pulled it out and walked with Hye-ji to drop their flashdrives on Professor Min's desk as he took his seat again, starting his computer and grabbing a track at random.

Oh. So he was going to play them for the whole class.

Ember supposed she shouldn't have been suprised, but still found herself nervous to see the slightly intimidating man's reaction to her music.

He played through three of them in silence, asking only which student it belonged to and jotting down notes.

Ember found herself captivated by the way he tapped his pen against his pretty bottom lip, head cocked slightly to the right, eyes closed in concentration.

His face was flawless, not a blemish or mark in sight, and his long, feminine lashes contrasted enticingly with his milky skin tone.

Ember wasn't sure when she had decided that he was beautiful, but the thought was definitely there now.

Judging by Hye-ji's appreciative smile, the other girl had long since come to terms with that fact herself.

The track came to a close and he opened his eyes, nodding to himself and scribbling more notes in his book.

Without pause he popped in the next one, which was a beautiful mix of violin and piano layed over each other.

A small appreciative smile played at his lips, mirroring Ember's own.

She turned to smile at Hye-ji. She felt, rather than guessed, that this was her piece. It was saturated with her optimism and energy.

"Ah, Hye-ji. You've grown."

The girls both beamed, Hye-ji out of happiness for the stoic professor's reaction, and Ember out of loving pride for her friend.

He gave one last appreciative nod and jotted down a couple notes as the beautiful piece drifted to a close before popping in the next one.

Ember recognized her green flashdrive and tensed involuntarily, knowing it was a ridiculous reaction. He obviously wasn't going to ridicule her. She just found herself caring a hell of a lot about what he would think of what was a very important piece to her.

The first few notes drifted into the room, and there was that slight head tilt again as he reached for his pen. The intro ended then and the real piece began. His fingers stopped just shy of the pen and settled gently on the desk instead. His eyes remained closed and his body stilled through the remainder of her track, betraying no emotion except his intense concentration.

Ember found herself loving the enraptured look on his face more than she probably should have. He'd had the same expression with nearly every track he'd heard so far, but that didn't matter. This time it was her music he was immersing himself in. She had his undivided attention.

She heard a slight sniffle and glanced to Hye-ji, finding her friend with a shaky smile on her face as she gently swayed to the music.

Her eyes landed on Ember and she smiled wide, mouthing "Beautiful" as the final notes lilted through the room.

There was silence, no scratching of a pen on paper, and Ember turned to face the front again, gazingly expectantly at the man who sat with his hands now folded, staring out the window. He hadn't even asked who it belonged to yet, hadn't written any notes.

Without a word, he turned back to the computer and played the track again.

Ember felt oddly numb as she watched him lean back in his chair, head nodding almost imperceptibly as his fingers started to play along his armrest as they had before. But it wasn't his music he was playing in his head this time. It was hers.

The music once again rose and peaked and fell away, and he sat up and pulled out her track. His eyes found hers immediately.

"Miss Rhodes. See me after class, if you will."

Ember nodded mutely, not sure what to make of the situation. She looked to Hye-ji, but her friend seemed just as taken aback as she was.

The rest of the class passed in a blur as she grew steadily more nervous of what he had to say. He listened to the remaining songs and went over the basics of what they would be covering this term before going off subject to discuss the vast array of talent competitions the students should look forward to over the next several months.

Ember drank it all in, scribbling down notes and ignoring her nerves.

Finally, the hour ended, and the students rose from their seats and filed out of the classroom. Hye-ji cast her a reassuring smile and hugged her quickly before letting her know they should meet for lunch and hurrying to her next class.

Ember went to stand but Professor Min simply raised a hand slightly, signaling for her to remain seated as he answered questions from the last remaining student.

As the boy left, the professor stood and made his way to the desk Hye-ji had vacated, spinning the chair around and straddling it backwards, folding his arms across the back of it.

He simply looked at her for a moment, and Ember felt her cheeks starting to burn as she stared at her own hands.

"Why are you in this class?"

Ember's eyes snapped up to meet him, suprised.

"To learn how to compose my own music."

He cocked his head.

"Hmm? It would seem to me you already know."

Ember flushed.

"I-I know some. But I can't... I don't really know," she struggled to explain. "I don't know the process. I don't know how to explain what I do. I just.. do it."

"Ah. I see," he replied, realization dawning. "You've never studied composition have you? You just play until you like what you hear."

Ember nodded. "It's what I've always done. But sometimes I can't even do that. Most of the time, if I'm being honest."

Professor Min was nodding, a small smile on his face. "You have to feel it. You can't force it."

She nodded again, relieved that he understood without her trying to word it.

"Hmm. Well, I'll be honest with you Miss Rhodes. I was going to have you removed from my class."

wmber

Ember froze, not knowing how to react to that confession at all.

"This is a class for students who need it, not students just looking for an easy A on their transcript. There are limited spots, and for a moment I thought yo. u were the latter. I see that's not the case."

He pondered something for a moment.

"What are your majors here Miss Rhodes?"

"Dance and Piano. I'm also in Drama and Art Society."

He nodded, eyebrows raised slightly.

"That's a lot on your plate. Make sure not to overwork yourself. I, for one, do not play favorites. I expect to see you trying your hardest in this course."

Ember nodded, grabbing her books and standing as he did, following him to his desk to accept the note he wrote for her next teacher.

She exited the classroom as he turned back to his computer, and as she walked quickly away, she heard the soft notes of her track begin again behind her.

A fierce blush crept across her face, though she wasn't exactly sure why.

She didn't have long to ponder the reaction though. As she rounded the corner she smacked hard into a very solid something, her books tumbling to the ground as she fell against the wall.

"Shit."

"Sorry, I'm so sorry," she groaned as she realized it wasn't a solid something but a someone that she'd plowed into in her daze.

"Don't mention it," came the clipped reply as her books were abruptly dumped back into her arms. The boy hurried past her without a second glance. She barely caught a glimpse of his tall frame, unamused expression, and curly brown hair before he disappeared around the corner, leaving her stunned by his sudden departure.

Wow, rude.

She shook her head indignantly and made her way to the auditorium, trying to shake off her sudden bad mood. It was only 10 in the morning, and this was already beginning to feel like a very, very long day.