AND  THEN  THEY  ASK  ME   ⠀. . .                                ⠀how   love   blooms   in   hearts?

KO  SARANG  ( 고사랑 )  is  a  fictional  added  member  of  korean  girl  group  LE  SSERAFIM.  she  is  known  for  being  a  former  volleyball  player  but  also  for  her   warm  and  sweet vocals,  as  well  as  her  dance  skills.

Love  has  always  been  a  central  theme  in  Sarang’s  life—if  you  couldn’t  already  tell by  her  name.  Many  have  come  and  many  have  gone,  leaving  the  media  to  piece  together  the  rumors  of  her  chaotic  dating  history.  But  behind  every  flower  hides  a  hidden  meaning:  a  ghost  of  her  past  or  a  hope  for  her  future.  Now,  LE  SSERAFIM’s  Ko  Sarang  is  finally  taking  control  of  the  narrative.  Welcome to  the  brand-new,  unprecedented  talk  show,  LOVE  OVER  FLOWERS,  hosted  by  the  one  and  only  Ko  Sarang, herself ! Featuring  exclusive,  unfiltered  interviews  with  the  men from her past, her present flirts, and the chaotic situationships in between —no  scripts,  no  edits,  just  the  beautiful  disaster  of  love

✿⠀ ⠀⋯⠀ ⠀›⠀⠀AHN  JIHOON ! July  2020 – October 2020; July  2021 – April  2022. 

jihoon  was  her  first  long-term  relationship.  at  only  seventeen,  sarang  thought  she  knew  what  love  was  and  desperately  wanted  to  experience  something  mature.  in  reality,  it  was  anything  but.  their  days  were  made  of  long  conversations  about  books  she  had  never  heard  of,  walks  through  places  she  had  never  been,  and  secret  dates  hidden  in  secluded  spots.  she  was  completely  obsessed  with  him,  willfully  ignoring  every  single  red  flag.  in  reality,  jihoon  was  just  a  lonely,  29  years  old  man  who  sought  validation  in  a  teenager  to  feel  good  about  himself.  she  idolized  him,  and  he  craved  it.  she   gave  him  the  kind  of  devotion  no  one  else  cared  to  give,  and  he  soaked  it  up  until  she  became  too  much  for  him.  it  was  easy  when  they  were  isolated  in  that  small  town  in  daejeon.   but  seoul  was  a  completely  different  story.  in  the  capital,  jihoon  gained  power,  respect,  and  authority  through  his  job.  he  didn't  need  her  validation  anymore.  yet,  sarang  was  still  there,  lingering  in  his  shadow.  even  when  he  tried  to  push  her  away,  she  kept  holding  on.  so,  he  entertained  her  for  a  while  longer,  for  ten  months,  to  be  exact,  until  he  decided  that  their  situationship  was  no  longer  worth  the  risk  to  his  career. sarang  took  the  breakup  horribly.  but  after  a  painful  period  of  grieving  and  longing,  a  shift  occurred.  she  decided  she  was  done  protecting  him.  she  walked  straight  into  management  and  exposed  everything.  jihoon  lost  his  job  the  following  week.  she  never  saw  him  again.

[TRANSCRIPT — AHN JIHOON] Q: Word is she completely ruined your career out of spite. What actually happened between you two? "She’s a liar. Completely crazy! Did she tell you that she told me she was 18 when we met? Right. There are always two sides to a story. Now, I’m good with myself, I’ve got my life together but I really wish I had never met her."

[TRANSCRIPT — KO SARANG] Q: He claims you lied about your age just to entrap him and ruin his career. Is that true, or did he bring this on himself? "Did I? Anyway, that's completely irrelevant here. I’ve always been honest with him. He never cared about me, so I decided I wouldn’t care about him either. I didn't exactly ruin his career, I simply told the truth when management asked me questions. Like I said… I'm a very honest person."

✿⠀ ⠀⋯⠀ ⠀›⠀⠀HWANG  HYUNJIN ! October  2022  –  February  2023. 

he  wasn’t  even  her  first  choice,  but  oh  well.  they  met  backstage  at  music  shows  while  filming  tiktok  dance  challenges  for  ANTIFRAGILE  and  CASE  143. soon  after,  they  started  talking  in  DMs.  she  couldn’t  even  remember  who  reached  out  first,  must  been  her  though,  she  loves  a  good  situationship. to  be  honest,  it  was  kind  of  a  mess.  she  wasn’t  looking  for  anything  serious,  and  he  was  far  too  busy  to  give  the  relationship  the  attention  it  actually  required.  but  at  least  they  had  fun  while  it  lasted.  plenty  of  late-night  dates, hours  spent  talking  on  facetime,  and  randomly  soft-launching  each  other  on  social  media  just  to  watch  the  internet  go  crazy  over  them. they  never  officially  broke  up,  just  like  they  had  never  put  a  label  on  whatever  they  were  in  the  first  place.  she  simply  started  seeing  someone  else,  and  things  naturally  dried  up  on  their  own.  they  still  talk  casually  from  time  to  time, reconnecting  whenever  they  both  find  themselves  single  or  bored.

[TRANSCRIPT — HWANG HYUNJIN] Q: You guys never officially put a label on it, but looking back… do you have any regrets about how it ended? "A bit, I guess. I think we looked really good together. We had that chemistry, that spark that hasn't died, even today. Maybe if we had cared enough, we could have lasted longer."

[TRANSCRIPT — KO SARANG] Q: He just confessed there's still a spark between you two. Be real… did you actually fall for him, or was he just a fun distraction at the time? "I think I did have feelings for a time and I still do, I guess. But it was also just so great, and sometimes that's exactly what you need, you know? A little fun, zero pressure, just us being… us."

✿⠀ ⠀⋯⠀ ⠀›⠀⠀JEONG  YUNHO ! February  2023  –  January  2024. 

they  met  quite  a  few  times  at  random  events  here  and  there,  and  he  always  left  a  great  impression  on  her.  eventually,  sarang  took  the  initiative  and  asked  for  his  number  under  the  guise  of  just  wanting  to  be  friends.  at  that  time,  yunho  wasn’t  really  looking  to  date  anyone;  his  group  and  his  career  took  up  almost  all  of  his  life.  but  with  time  and  a  little  persuasion,  sarang  got  him  completely  hooked,  and  he  finally  asked  her  out.  they  took  things  slowly,  which  was  a  brand-new  experience  for  sarang,  given  her  habit  of  falling  too  fast  and  too  hard.  in  every  way,  yunho  was  the  ideal  partner.  he  was  gentle,  attentive,  and  affectionate.  he  always  made  sure  to  carve  out  time  for  her  and  gave  her  his  undivided  attention  whenever  they  were  together.  it  was  easily  her  healthiest  relationship  up  to  that  point.  she  loved  him  deeply  and  wanted  to  be  someone  he  could  rely  on.  the  thing  is  that  she  wanted  so much  more  than  he  could  physically  or  emotionally  give  her  at  that  stage  in  his  life.  sarang  could  be  overly  demanding,  expecting  to  be  loved  with  the  same  intense,  suffocating  energy  she  pours  into  people.  to  make  things  worse,  she  constantly  avoided  the  difficult  conversations  he  tried  to  initiate. their  breakup  wasn't  caused  by  a  loss  of  love,  it  was  the  result  of a  lot  of  miscommunication.  looking  back,  she  knows  she’s  the  one  who  messed  up. she  simply  wasn't  ready  to  receive  a  healthy  kind  of  love  back  then.

[TRANSCRIPT — JEONG YUNHO] Q: Do you feel like she just used you to heal, only to walk away when things got too real? "Maybe? I’m not sure... I think she had a lot to figure out, and… I just wanted to be someone she could count on, you know? A safe place when she needed one. Walking away hurt, sure, but I think what we had was genuine, and I don’t regret it." [TRANSCRIPT — KO SARANG] Q: Rumor has it there was an overlap… Everyone wants to know, did you cheat on Yunho? "Okay, to be clear, there was no overlapping. We were done. Completely done by the time I started dating again. I have never cheated on any of my boyfriends, and I never will. Yunho is a good person and I love him dearly. I respect him and want the best for him, always."

✿⠀ ⠀⋯⠀ ⠀›⠀⠀KANG  GUNWOO ! January  2024  –  June  2025.

this  was  kind  of  unexpected.  she  met  him  through  his  brother  when  she  went  to  watch  one  of  his  swimming  competitions.  at  first,  sarang  wasn’t  interested,  but  gunwoo had  an  agenda  and  kept  pushing  for  them  to  go  on  a  date.  she  finally  agreed  just  to  get  him  off  her  back.  and  he  was  very  cute,  too  cute  to  ignore  so  they  kept  hanging  out  and  texting.  right  from  the  start,  there  were  signs  that  they  wouldn’t  work.  both  of  them  had  explosive  personalities,  very  passionate  and  deeply  stubborn.  mix  that  with  how  fast  they  fell  for  each  other,  and  it  was  no  wonder  things  eventually  went  sour. their  relationship  only  had  two  modes. one  where  they  were  extremely  clingy  and  head  over  heels  in  love  and  another  where  they  were  overly  jealous  and  demanding.  they  would  fight  intensely,  only  to  make  up  the  very  next day  and  this  cycle  continued  for  months.  neither  could  bring  themselves  to  walk  away  because  they  loved  each  other  so  much,  maybe  too  much.  the  breakup  happened  after  more  than  a  year  of  mutual  suffocation,  suffering  in  a  relationship  that  brought  them  more  pain  than  joy.  taking  advice  from  her  closest  friends  and  members,  sarang  decided  to  end  it.  it  was  the  most  painful  heartbreak  she  had  ever  experienced.  she  had  a  hard  time  moving  on  from  this  and  honestly  thought  she  would  never  love  the  same  way  again.

[TRANSCRIPT — KANG GUNWOO] Q: I heard that you were quite a challenge. Do you take any responsibility for how messy it got? "She wasn't a saint either,it takes two to tango. I have my flaws and she did too. I think we were just in a dark place back then. The love was definitely there, but we couldn't give it enough space to express itself correctly." [TRANSCRIPT — KO SARANG] Q: That relationship seems… intense. Is there still any possibility for a rematch in the future? "He put me through hell. But I've never loved anyone the way I loved him and he was so hard to replace. I don't want to go back, he's in the past now, but I don't think we could ever just be friends or platonic in any way."

✿⠀ ⠀⋯⠀ ⠀›⠀⠀CHO  SEUNGYOUN ! December  2025  –  May  2026. 

she  was actually  the  one  to  contact  him  when  he  was  discharged  from  his  military  service,  pretending  she  wanted  to  learn  about  producing  and  stuff.  he  was  surprised  at  first  but  he  ended  up  inviting  her  to  his  studio.  even  before  that,  she  had  mentioned  a  couple  of  times  in  interviews  and  live  streams  that  she  enjoyed  his  music. they  started  seeing  each  other  every  time  they  had  free  time  and  texted  daily.  things moved  pretty  fast  between  them  and  they  officially  started  dating  about  three  weeks  after  meeting. this  relationship  was  a  “safe  haven”  for  both  of  them,  he  brought  her  so  much  comfort  and  serenity  during  a  complicated  time  in  her  life.  the  problem  was  that  it  was  too  much  in  such  a  short  amount  of  time.  they  were  always  together,  and  while  those  moments  were  incredible,  it  also  led  to  arguments  as  they  both  wanted  different  things  for  their  future.  it  quickly  became  suffocating  for  both  of  them,  especially  with  the  public  eye  constantly  on  them.  dating  rumors  sparked  when  dispatch  published  pictures  of  them  leaving  a  movie  theater  the  very  same  month  they  started  dating.  both  of  their  agencies  refused  to  comment.  her  guest  appearance  on  his  youtube  channel  only  fueled  the  rumors,  which  seungyoun  later  denied  on  a  live  stream,  claiming   they  were  “just  friends.”  still,  that  didn’t  stop  the  media  from  photographing  them  whenever  they  stepped  outside,  or  netizens  from  speculating  about  the  true  nature  of  their  relationship. they  decided  to  break up  after  six  months,  choosing  to  remain  friends.  as  of  now,  it’s  working  out  for  them  despite  the  feeling  that  they  would  have  been  so  much  more.

[TRANSCRIPT — CHO SEUNGYOUN] Q: We know how messy her relationships can be. Be honest… what is the real reason for your breakup? "She’s really… remarkable, you know? She came into my life like a hurricane, and after the military, it was so refreshing. But the truth is, I wanted something more concrete for the future, and our visions just didn’t align. That's all it was." [TRANSCRIPT — KO SARANG] Q: A "safe haven"… it feels… familiar. Why did you think this relationship could have been any different from your last one? "I don’t know… it felt different. He was so good to me, and I just wanted to be happy. We clicked almost immediately, so maybe I wanted it to be different. Going semi-public didn’t help, though. I still think we could have been more or at least lasted longer."

ICONIC  BY  MISTAKE  is  a  collaboration single  by  girl  groups le  sserafim,  illit  and,  katseye. it  was released  under  hybe  labels  on  june  12,  2026.  here  is a  breakdown  of  ko  sarang  during  this  era:

˚ ✿ ˖ ࣪ . ❛ ˖ OUTFITS  ›

˚ ✿ ˖ ࣪ . ❛ ˖ HAIR & MAKEUP  ›

˚ ✿ ˖ ࣪ . ❛ ˖ LINE DISTRIBUTION  ›

[ 0:13 – 0:16 ] Thank you for the comments, it's because of all your hate

[ 0:58 – 1:00 ] I-I-I-I-I-I-I am iconic by mistake

˚ ✿ ˖ ࣪ . ❛ ˖ SARANG'S GALLERY  ›

■ ۫ SAKURA + SARANG. KUROMIZ : 🌸🐈‍⬛ ✶⋆.˚ ⌕ 92% – may sakura find peace

• take a while to get close. • in fact, sarang initially thought sakura hated her. • sakura is overstimulated by sarang 99% of the time. • sakura judges sarang's decisions all the time, but always proceeds to listen and give advices. • sakura really can’t have a moment of calm when sarang is around. • sarang is just like her little sister. like the annoying one. • very different, with contrasting views on things. which leads to occasional arguments. • will fight each other but will also fight for each other. • always want sakura to knit her something and proudly show it off. • sarang always goes in for physical contact just to be shoved away. but sakura let her lean on her sometimes. • long paragraphs vs. one-word responses. • since they are roommates, they always end up eating together. • tries to play video games with sakura but gives up after the first try. • sakura may have influenced her to play at tomodachi life tho. • sarang always crashes sakura's lives by surprise, annoys her, and just leave.

■ ۫ CHAEWON + SARANG. CHAERANG : 🐯🐈‍⬛ ✶⋆.˚ ⌕ 96% – baby cheetah and her baby cat

• chaewon made sarang comfortable right from the beginning. that is why they have such a strong bond. • even when chaewon just wants to lay down, sarang can easily convince her to go out. • they are together very often, constantly hanging out and eating out somewhere. • they can talk for hours and never get bored. • they often call each other by cute pet names. • always attached at the hip. • they often stay up late together just to practice. • spontaneous late night dates in random places; which means they will, of course, vlog it or start a live. • talk in dialects together. • amazing synergy in stage. • chaewon teases sarang whenever she cries – which happens a lot. • sarang always seeks chaewon's validation whenever she is choreographing or working on other professional projects. • sarang is an absolute fan of chaewon. that’s her mother right here. • but she also find her cute, and want to hug and kiss. and be all over her. • chaewon always worrying about sarang so they need to stay together.

■ ۫ YUNJIN + SARANG. MOCHAZ \ PSYCHOZ : 🐶🐈‍⬛ ✶⋆.˚ ⌕ 100% – hot girlz being hot together.

• absolute besties. it was practically love at first sight. • the extroverts of the group. • they just yap endlessly. • gossipy and noisy; nothing can get past them. • also very loud. • their secondary ship name is psychoz … • yunjin tries to teach her english, she fails miserably. • jokes aside, she did get better at it! • very flirty with each other. • lots of inside jokes; will laugh and nobody will have any idea why. • will do the stupidest things together but always have a blast. • sarang is basically yunjin's spiritual animal. • know absolutely everything about each other’s lives. • will burst into tears together over the most random things. • completely codependent; they will facetime each other at any given moment. • yunjin constantly recommend books to her, and sarang actually reads them and give her a full review. • may have kissed for funsies. • yunjin is sarang's personal cheerleader. • constantly roasting and teasing each other.

■ ۫ KAZUHA + SARANG. HARANGZ \ NENEZ : 🦢🐈‍⬛ ✶⋆.˚ ⌕ 98% – they make you hate l ove

• the couple. • sarang absolutely adores kazuha and is so clingy with her. • workout buddies. • sarang really bring out kazuha's chaotic side. • kazuha's favorite word in korean is love, it does says a lot… • sarang actually help her learn a lot of korean and used to translate everything for her when she didn’t understand. • have the most pictures of each other on their respective phones. • sarang thinks kazuha is the prettiest member of the group and reminds her of it constantly. • sarang gets jealous whenever she doesn’t have kazuha's full attention. • make a great team. • love to go on long walks together. • say they're going to work out together, then proceed to talk and never actually work out. • watch k-drama together; never actually finish them. • makes long-term plan for their future together.

■ ۫ EUNCHAE + SARANG. PPUDDINGZ : 🍒🐈‍⬛ ✶⋆.˚ ⌕ 94% – sweethearts

• the group's most underrated duo. • eunchae loves to tease sarang, and she just let it slide–eunchae can get away with anything. • always munching something in the corner. • they frequently go shopping together, which mostly consists on eunchae asking sarang for styling advice. • always cheering eunchae on and is very supportive. • sarang loves to bake for her on special occasions. • deeply considerate and protective of each other. • they tend to argue about domestic things; like sarang scolding eunchae for not cleaning up after herself. • pretty much like blood-related sisters. • sarang constantly brag about being eunchae's favorite unnie (eunchae has never said that). • they love to do joint live streams where they randomly dance to other group's songs. • frequently exchanges cute gifts based on their current shared obsession like sanrio, sonny angels etc • eunchae showed interest in sarang's volleyball past, so they now occasionally play together for fun.

ONE.ㅤ   ⠀✿ㅤ   ⠀⸺ ㅤ    UNTIL NEXT  TIME

characters  :  ko sarang & ahn jihoon.  set :  pre-debut.  word  count : 2.8k.  trigger  warnings  : power  imbalance,  grooming,  significant  age  gap,  emotional  manipulation / gaslighting,  brief  mention  of  eating  disorders,  angst. let  me know  if  i  missed  anything  else! note : this  is  my  first  ever  piece  on  this blog!  i'm  not  completely  satisfied  with  it  but  i  guess  i  never  would  be,  so  here  it  is.  english  is  not  my  first  language,  so  there may  be  some  awkward  phrasing  &  mistakes.

One thing about Sarang is that if she sets her mind to something, she goes all the way. Training for hours until she can barely stand up? Nothing new. Being told what to do, what to say and who to be? Her whole life had prepared her for this. However, this was never the plan. Graduating, quitting volleyball (because it was hell), getting a well paid job, making her parents proud, that was more in line with what she had envisioned for herself since she was 8.Maybe she was too naive or simply stupid. There wasn’t much of a difference anyway. Now, she was sitting there wondering what would have happened if she had never met him…

JULY 10, 2020 : DAEJEON, SOUTH KOREA

He was there, in the perfect place, at the perfect moment. Like a gift sent from heaven, a rock in the middle of the road. Late afternoon, in the middle of summer.

Sarang had stayed late after volleyball practice. As usual, she wanted to train a little longer before the big game. She hadn’t eaten much that day, you know, she was on a diet, again. A strict one, you could say and one she had lovingly designed herself! No breakfast, a light meal for lunch, and if you’re hungry during the day, a piece of fruit or some nuts. For dinner? We go all out! But no sugar, no flour, or anything that would make her look puffy the next morning.

Yes, being Ko Sarang wasn’t easy every day, and that day, of all days, was proving to be one of the toughest.

She skipped lunch entirely and was literally starving. She had stolen an apple and a few rice cakes here and there, but right now, her sheer willpower was the only thing keeping her upright.

As she stepped outside the training facility, a light rain started falling. The kind of late summer afternoon rain that amplified the smell of flowers and grass, the kind that makes you want to run under it, holding the hands of your loved one.

Sarang stretched her hand out to feel the water on her palm. She stood before the view, though it was becoming blurry by the second. She felt flushed and unsteady, pondering if her vision was darkening because of the weather or her dizzy feelings?

One thing or the other, her bus wasn’t going to wait for an answer. So, screw the rain.

She only took one step into the downpour, when her head spun violently, her vision definitely blurred and a sudden urge to throw up hit her. She was going to pass out right there in the middle of the street. Suddenly, a hand grabbed her by the elbow, pushing her against a firm torso and preventing her from hitting the ground.

Still dizzy and flustered, she didn’t realize right away that someone was talking to her.

"Are you okay?”

She raised her eyes to meet those of a man. He was in his mid to late twenties, a head taller than her, with pretty brown eyes. It’s always the eyes. He gazed at her with genuine worry. Well, she had almost collapsed in a street full of people running away from the rain.

She didn’t remember exactly what he said to her that day, but she remember perfectly what she felt that day. A warm and comforting sensation. Also a recurrent one in her life: a big fat crush.

He held her up and stayed with her until her bus arrived, making sure she was completely fine after buying her a snack and a bottle of water from a nearby convenience store.

Back then, she kept replaying this moment, over and  over, annoying her friends about her mysterious savior, claiming that this kind of thing only happened in Seoul. It was  silly. They  had only met  once. But she was seventeen.

Two weeks later, he showed up outside the facility, looking completely out of place, dressing much more casually than the day they met. But he was there. And Sarang  was  over  the  moon.

Maybe that was the first mistake: believing that this relationship could actually work. He was 29, had a stable job, his own apartment and he was so freaking pretty. He was so perfect. Ahn Jihoon. The name suited him. Plenty of men had been in Sarang's life back then, but none had ever had this kind of impact on her.

And that was her second mistake: thinking it would be different.

He left her in the fall, a job opportunity in Seoul he couldn’t refuse. She graduated months later, and the story could have ended right then and there, if it weren’t for that funny little thing called the irony of life.

JULY 27, 2021 : SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA

The stars aligned, the universe played its part and maybe there was a God. Sarang didn’t know for sure, but when  she saw him crossing the streets and ducking into a café in Seoul, a year after they had first met, she followed him inside without a second thought.

He was still the same. A year older, and he was wearing glasses now. Her abrupt entry to the coffee shop went unnoticed by the crowd of bustling people.

She headed straight for him, quickly checking her hair and makeup beforehand. Her heart was racing faster than she would have expected. She hadn’t thought about him in months.

"Jihoon? ” 

He spun around sharply, eyes wide. The  sudden movement sent a splash of coffee onto his  brand new suit.  Sarang offered him a sweet smile, watching him quickly avoid her knowing gaze by dabbing at the stains with a napkin.

“I didn’t mean to scare you,” Sarang giggled softly. He looked so much better than in her memories.

“It’s okay,” he cleared his throat, a sudden flush creeping up his cheeks. Sarang blinked, her eyelashes fluttering softly, her smile deepening in tandem with the blush on his face. “W-what are you doing here?” he asked, warily darting his eyes around the room.

She gasped, feigning total innocence. “Oh, I just saw you from across the street and wanted to say hi! Is that okay?”

He shook his head slightly, still looking tense. "I mean… in Seoul? You’re not living in Daejeon anymore?" He was clearly on edge.

Sarang bit her lower lip and hummed, still trying to lock eyes with him. “I just started college actually. Psychology! You know, like the book you gave me last summer? It inspired me!”

Mentioning last summer seemed to spark something in him. A visible shift in his posture. Maybe he was still thinking about them?

“Yes, last summer." he repeated, his voice dropping an octave. "So… you’re done with volleyball ?”

As he spoke, he placed a hand on the small of her back, naturally guiding her toward an empty, less crowded table. The gesture felt so familiar so natural and she instantly melted into his warmth. The pungent smell of coffee and the background chatter of strangers felt comforting. That made her remember how it used to be so simple between them.

“Yes. It wasn’t something I saw myself doing my whole life," she responded, shyly, earning a sympathetic smile from Mr. Ahn. "But I still dance !” she exclaimed, regaining her natural candor.

That definitely caught his attention. "Really?"

She nodded happily. "Two times a week! It’s not the same as back in Daejeon, obviously. I don’t dance with the same people but I've made new friends here and at college too–"

He  locked his eyes onto her, analyzing her face as she yapped away about her new life in the capital.

“Sarang?” he cut her off right in the middle of a sentence about how things are much faster in Seoul.

She paused, a bit confused. "Yes?"

He straightened in his chair, his tone dropping all his previous nervousness. "Have you ever thought of doing that professionally?”

She blinked. "Um, what are we talking about exactly ?" She frowned.

"Dance. I'm currently working in entertainment, and we have this group project… well, it’s a bit of a deadlock right now, " he explained, his words coming out faster, eyes scanning her features with a new interest. "But maybe… You could work. I mean, you perfectly match the concept, and the other girls," he rambled.

"Wait, I don’t understand, " She interrupted, trying to make sense of it.

Jihoon took a slow breath, leaning forward to look her dead in the eyes.

"How do you feel about debuting as an idol ?"

APRIL 11, 2022 : SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA

When a rumor drops, people don’t care to check whether it’s real or not, they are just there for the drama. Sarang would love to be the type of person who doesn’t care about what others think, but the truth is, she cares way too much.

Ever since the article came out, a suffocating atmosphere had settled over the HYBE building. It felt like every single person she passed by knew. Every whisper was about her and every look was judging her. Her name was indeed mentioned. Damage was done. Everyone knew.

The girls hadn’t said anything about it yet. Maybe they were trying not to hurt her feelings, they weren’t exactly close yet. For the most part, they just worked together and to be honest, Sarang had been far too focused on Jihoon to actually make an effort to get closer to them.

Chaewon did make an effort, though. She would practically force her out of the building to grab lunch with her and the other girls. But to be fair, the lineup had changed so much over the past months. Sarang had been added barely two months after becoming a trainee, and the current lineup had only been finalized in January with the addition of Kazuha.

Anyway, she didn’t have anyone to talk to about it. Most of the other trainees couldn’t even stand her. They had been there when she showed up out of nowhere, with her giddy expression and a dream that was completely different from theirs. The truth was she had never actually believed she would end up in a group.

Everything had happened so fast, too. One day she was half-heartedly practicing some random song, and the next, she was shooting her official profile pictures. She had just gone with the flow, keeping up with her studies to reassure her mom, while looking around eagerly like a puppy just to catch a glimpse of the very man who dragged her into this.

When she first signed that contract, she honestly thought she would stay for a week or two, according him this favor, get his attention and they would go right back to being all lovey-dovey.

That was 9 months ago. Right now, all she had to show for it was being completely ghosted, stuck in this massive practice room, waiting for her teammates to show up.

While she was stretching, Sarang thought about what would happen next. They were debuting in less than a month, which still felt entirely surreal. Was this what her life was going to look like from now on? Performing on stage, and more importantly pretending that this was what she had always wanted?

Of course, she loved dancing. More than she had ever loved volleyball. This life seemed full of excitement, yet she couldn’t shake that knot in her stomach whenever she thought too much about it.

Maybe she could just quit. She had thought about it a couple of times before, but she liked to think of herself as more mature than that. Besides, a part of her would rot if she ever disappointed someone. Her parents were probably already disappointed in her, and the other members were undoubtedly resentful because of that stupid article.

Guess that's why she felt like dying.

Sarang was too deep in her own head to hear the door open. It was the sharp squeak of sneakers on the polished floor that finally made her look up.

Jihoon walked toward her. She stood up, her chest tightening with a mix of confusion and excitement. She hadn't seen him in weeks. He was always making excuses about work and how she needed to focus on her training. Boring.

She smiled, drinking him in, from his delicate features and messy hair down to the way his fists were clutching and unclutching in a rhythmic way. Cute. He still looked devastatingly good.

Jihoon stopped a few feet away, seemingly searching for his words. Eager and oblivious, Sarang beat him to it.

"Jihoon! You’re good? I saw what they posted yesterday," she said, her voice rushing out. "I wanted to text you, but I didn’t want to bother you, since…"

She reached out, her fingers brushing the sleeve of his jacket, but he stepped back at the last second, smoothly shifting out of her reach. Sarang, blinded by her own excitement, didn’t even notice.

"… since you seemed… Are you mad at me? "

Jihoon finally looked at her, catching the slight quaver in her voice. He sighed, shifting his gaze back to the floor between them.

"We need to bring this to an end", he said quickly, as if spitting the words out as fast as possible would make it over with. This relationship.

"What?" She frowned, taking a tiny step toward him, but stopped midway, as the weight of his words sank in. "End what exactly? There is nothing to end!" she exclaimed, visibly offended.

Literally, what were they supposed to "bring to an end" when all she desperately wanted was for something to finally begin? Again. Besides, all she had received from him up until now was a barely covered avoidance. He was the one who had dragged her into this shitshow in the first place, leaving her to deal with endless practices and meetings and shoots, and–

"I just got summoned by management because of that article," Jihoon snapped, raising his trembling voice, his eyes locking onto something on the wall behind her. "They asked me about us, Sarang. They’re thinking of terminating my contract."

She stared at him, flabbergasted. Had she misunderstood his intentions all along?

"Listen," he breathed out, his tone suddenly softening as his eyes scanned her glossy gaze. He hesitated before taking her trembling hands in his. His touch felt completely unfamiliar right now. Cold.

His voice dropped to a low, intimate whisper. "I really care about you," he paused, the hesitation clear in his eyes. "And what happened last summer was great. But there are bigger things on line right now. This is serious. You are incredibly talented, Sarang. You’re about to debut in one of the most anticipated groups of the year. This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance. For you. And for me. "

She shook her hands away from his grip. Her breath quickened, her heart squeezing so hard it was physically painful. Her eyes filled with unbidden tears. She couldn’t even bring herself to look at him right now.

"I don’t understand…", she choked out, her throat tightening. The words struggled to come out; instead a harsh sob did. "Why did you bring me here then? I- You– I– I don’t want this!"

Jihoon looked at her with an expression of pure pity.

"Sarang.."

"No !" she cried, the sorrow twisting into blinding anger. "I don’t care about this group! They can  give my spot to someone else! I just want to be with you! I thought… I thought you loved me…"

Jihoon bit his lip, taking a cautious step toward her. "I did! I mean, I do. But I can’t lose this job, don’t you understand?"

He was a coward. A freaking coward.

He reached out, his hand hovering over head, trying to soothe her by stroking her hair. She violently stepped back, preventing him from touching hair.

"N–No! You don’t love me," she stuttered, her vision completely blurred by thick tears. "You love this job."

The words came out as a brutal realization. Immediately, a massive wave of shame wrapped itself around her. This was definitely not the plan.

Her knees buckled, and she let herself collapse onto the cold floor, burying in her hands. She was right back there, crying over a man, once again. She felt physically sick with anger, shame, sadness. Of course, it would end up like this. How stupid had she been to let the delusion settle in? Even when he canceled their meetups, responded hours or days later, he had still let her get close. He had let her get attached.

Was this all he saw her as? A checkmark on his paperwork? Another line on his resume? A hollow way to gain credit with the executives?

They stayed like that. Her sobbing, him watching her silently. Eventually, he left and she stayed.

“HOW LOVE BLOOMS IN HEARTS?” Character Study, Ko Sarang [ . . . ] she would just fall in love, over and over again. no lesson learned.

LE SSERAFIM WRAPPED UP IN ALLEGED FAVORITISM RUMORS AHEAD OF DEBUT April 10, 2022 by E Nam

amidst  the highly  anticipated  debut  of  source  music  &  hybe  first  girl  group, le  sserafim,  the  group  is  already  facing  its  first  major  controversy  following  rumors  of  favoritism.

on  april  9,  source  music  revealed  the  final  member  of  the  new  girl  group,  le  sserafim.  on  the  same  day,  claims  started  to  surface  online  that  a  member  of  the  group  had  her  spot  rigged  by  a  high  ranking  boyfriend.

one  netizen  (referred  to  as  'A')  who  claimed  to  have  trained  alongside  the  group  member  (referred  to  as  'B'),  stated  that  despite  B's  short  training  period,  she  was  added  to  the  final  debut  lineup  due  to  her  connections  to  an  industry  insider.  'A'  added  that  while  they  would  not  speculate  on  the  exact  nature  of  their  relationship,  the  two  seemed  close  enough  for  him  to  give  her  rides  and  engage  in  close  physical  contact.

the  alleged  former  trainee  stated, ‘I  don’t  have  anything  against  her  personally.  But  I  think  it’s  unfair  that  she  gets  to  debut  while  not  putting  in  half  the  effort  of  other  trainees.’

following  investigations  led  by  netizens,  the  name  of  ko  sarang  surfaced  as  the  rumored  'rigged'  member,  with  users  pointing  out  her  unusually  short  training  time  and  her  sudden  departure  from  a  promising  volleyball  career.

source  music  hasn’t  yet  replied  to  these  allegations.

COMMENTS.

USERNAME    4  years  ago   'I  would  not  speculate'  then  proceeds  to  speculate 💀 537 ↑ | ↓ 12

USERNAME    4  years  ago  maybe  she’s  just  really  good  at  her  job 🤔  why  are  women   always  subjected  to  these  kinds  of  allegations? 273 ↑ | ↓ 183

USERNAME    4  years  ago  ngl  quitting  a  sports  career  just  to  debut  a  few  months  later  is  kind  of  suspicious 412 ↑ | ↓ 45

USERNAME    4  years  ago  source  music  not  beating  the  bad  management  allegations 😭 189 ↑ | ↓ 8

USERNAME    4  years  ago  i  would  be  mad  too if  some  khia  showed  up  out  of  nowhere  and  took  my  spot 412 ↑ | ↓ 45

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