I know I promised not to abandon the story, but to be honest, it is quite difficult to keep that promise now. A lot of things happened and, well, let's face it, EXO will never be the same again. I don't have new chapters to share with you and I probably won't write anything in the future, but I do have a snippet from an unfinished chapter called "What Teas Love?" that I wrote ages ago so I'll just leave it here. I haven't edited it or anything, so I'm apologizing in advance if there are any mistakes or whatever.

Sorry.

Okay. So, uhm, this takes place inside the bubble tea shop. Jaemi, of course, was on duty that day and the only other people there are Minseok and Jongdae, who were watching a bunch of Mandopop music videos on YouTube. This was inspired by the song "To You" by Seo Taiji and the Boys and I wrote it after watching an episode of Reply 1994 (Team Chilbong!). Here's a link to the Sung Sikyung version with English translation in case you're interested: click. If you have any questions about how the story was supposed to turn out or anything, just leave me a message and I'll try to answer them for you.

Sorry again.

"What are you guys watching?"

"Mandopop music videos," Minseok answered.

"We figured that if - IF - we get chosen to be in the sub-unit that's going to promote in China, it would be best to familiarize ourselves with the kind of music they make," Jongdae added. He then held up a piece of paper and said, "The Chinese hyungs already gave us a list of the artists we need to check out, so we're going to watch their videos now."

"Ooh~ that seems interesting," you replied. "Is it alright if I watch them with you? Luhan constantly talks about Chinese singers and I kinda feel bad not knowing who they are. He always teases me because I only know the guys from Meteor Garden and they're not even Chinese."

Minseok pulled out a chair beside him. "Have a seat," he smiled, urging you to join them in their favorite corner of the bubble tea shop. "We're the only people here, so I think it's okay if you take a little break. C'mon. I'm about to click on the first video."

You walked out of the counter and sat on the chair beside the older Korean boy. "What are we watching first?" you asked, adjusting the violet hair tie to fix your ponytail.

Jongdae leaned in closer to read the description on the screen.

"Wo Bu Pei by Jay Chou."

Watching the music video was a big mistake.

The Wo Bu Pei music video that Minseok chose wasn't hard-coded with Korean subtitles, so you really did not understand any of the Mandarin lyrics. It wasn't surprising, however, that you somehow figured out what the song was all about even before it reached the chorus.

The video started off with a phone call... a phone call from a girl that the boy was forced to ignore because he was in the middle of a meeting. The boy, according to Jongdae, was Jay Chou himself. "Aside from being a singer, he's also an actor, a composer, a writer, a director, a multi-instrumentalist, and all sorts of things," he said, obviously proud that he has done his homework. "I bet he even directed this music video himself."

Jay Chou, you realized, was playing himself in the music video. His superstar self. "How modest of him," you thought sarcastically as you let out a somewhat disgusted sigh. In the next scene, he was shown to be surrounded by a group of black suit-clad, sunglasses-wearing bodyguards who keep the fangirls and paparrazi at bay, just so he could walk towards his car unscathed. Before he got in, however, he eyed a girl from the crowd, gave her a smile, and made an awkward-looking V-sign. The girl, who turned out to be the same person whose call he rejected just moments ago, returned his simple gesture with a cute little wave.

In the next scene, Jay Chou was seen riding a motorcycle, and in true celebrity fashion, he attempted to disguise himself by covering half of his face with a mask. When he parked in front of a restaurant, you noticed that what he was driving wasn't a motorcycle. It was just a scooter. The girl from the previous scene, who was apparently waiting for him to stop by, suddenly came out and handed him a drink. She seemed so happy to see him. The way she looks at him made it seem like Jay Chou sipping on a straw while wearing a goofy helmet, is the most amusing thing in the world. Unfortunately for the girl, three fangirls must have figured out that someone famous what right outside, so they gathered by the door to gossip and giggle. Upon noticing this, Jay Chou handed the drink back to the girl, fixed his mask, and drove off to who knows where.

The video then cuts to a dark theater where Jay Chou is seen stuffing his mouth with popcorn. He then turns to his right and the camera reveals that the girl, who was also holding her own box of popcorn, was situated just a few seats away from him. That was when your chest started feeling heavier. Jay Chou and the girl were clearly on a date, but since he was famous and therefore cannot be publicly involved with anyone, their relationship is kept secret. It was quite funny because there was an actual lovey-dovey couple situated between them, but you were too affected by the depressing narrative to even crack a smile. To make it worse, Jay Chou had to leave the cinema earlier than everyone else because it was too risky for him to be seen in public without the protection of his bodyguards.

Despite everything, you still couldn't help but be critical of Jay Chou's actions. For instance, in that scene where he was strolling along the park with his girlfriend to show off their matching couple T-shirts, he drew attention towards himself by wearing that mask again. When the girl urged him to take it off, and he did, he then resorted to covering his face, which only caught the eye of the students who were passing by. When he was bombarded by the students with pens and paper, Jay Chou let go of his girlfriend's hand and proceeded to sign autographs. The girl, of course, just went on walking as if she has nothing to do with him.

"Is this how my future would look like?" you thought to yourself. "After he debuts, am I going to be like the girl in the music video? Tuning in to radio shows just to hear his voice? Watching television just to get a glimpse of his face?" You looked at the girl on the music video again. She was jumping on the couch after seeing Jay Chou win something on TV. She then clutched her Teddy bear closer to her heart as she watched her boyfriend accept an award onstage. She was happy. Ecstatic. Proud of him. Yet you felt bad for her. There she was, overflowing with emotion as the love of her life achieves another milestone in his career, but the only one she can celebrate it with is the blue stuffed toy in her arms.

They soon went on a dinner date. For dramatic purposes, you pretended it was their anniversary. She looked genuinely elated to be with him. He seemed happy too. He even removed the black-and-white mask off his face voluntarily. It was inevitable that someone in the restaurant would recognize him and what started off as a romantic candlelit dinner suddenly turned into a run-for-your-life moment with the paparazzi. If it wasn't for the sassy bodyguard with an umbrella, Jay Chou and his girlfriend would probably be mobbed by those shutterbugs.

When they were finally inside the car, safe and away from flashing cameras and screaming fans, it was clear that the girl has had enough. Submission was written all over her face. She loves him, yes, but their set-up was too difficult for her to handle. She couldn't deal with it anymore. It wouldn't even surprise you if she was actually contemplating the idea of leaving him.

She did.

In that dark living room whose only source of light is the flickering bulbs wrapped around the Christmas tree, the girl placed what you can only assume to be a farewell note on top of the grand piano where Jay Chou composes his songs. Then, pulling her luggage, she walked towards the door and never looked back.

It wasn't until you heard Minseok and Jongdae simultaneously mumble "Jaemi..." - in hush tones, you noticed, which seemed kinda strange since you didn't know that Jongdae was capable of speaking softly - did you realize that your cheeks were already wet with tears.

Embarrassed that the boys saw you like that, you wiped off your tears as fast as you could. For a moment there, you have forgotten that you had a handkerchief inside your pocket, so you just used your hands instead. "I, uh, I... I just remembered that I, ah, I, uhm, I had to prepare a... a new bunch of tapioca. Yes! I have to prepare some tapioca," you said, just to break the awkwardness. You quickly got up from your seat and added, "I'll just go and boil some water" before disappearing to the kitchen.

"MIMI! MIMI!"

Luhan came running to the bubble tea shop screaming your name. He was in such a hurry that he even bumped into the front door before entering. Although Minseok and Jongdae burst into laughter in his expense, Luhan was too excited to see you to even notice them.

"MIMI! MIMI!" he repeated.

"What is it?" you asked softly, your voice slightly cracking. It wasn't long before you finally came out of the kitchen when Luhan arrived. You ended up preparing not only a new batch of tapioca pearls, but also a new batch of jelly cubes, red beans, and black bricks. You were trying so hard to get your mind off the Jay Chou music video that somehow you ended up preparing two days worth of sinkers just to keep yourself preoccuppied.

Luhan beamed. "I MADE IT, MIMI! I'M GOING TO DEBUT SOON!"

Now, the natural reaction for this, as you know very well, was to jump around or flail your arms in joy. Girly screams are expected too. When Jongin told you a similar news, you reached for his hands and clasped them with yours. You were so happy for him that for a moment there, you have forgotten the whole issue about Moonkyu. But somehow, Luhan's announcement that he made it to the final cut of SM Entertainment's upcoming boyband made you feel so weak that you couldn't even bear to move an inch.

"They just told us. Sehun made it too," Luhan informed. "There are four of us so far," he added, raising his hand as he counted the first four trainees who made it to the final list of members for SM Entertainment's next boy group. "Me, Yixing, Jongin, and Sehun. I think they're going to announce more names in the following days and-"

"Well, that's... that's..." you stuttered. "Congratulations, I guess."

Something was off and Luhan noticed it right away. He just couldn't put his finger on it. "What's wrong? Did something happen?" he asked, a worried tone in his voice. Afraid that words might reveal what you're truly feeling, you decided that not saying anything is the best thing to do at this moment, so you just shook your head lightly and forced a polite smile.