Chapter 17 - Follow Me

I stood in front of the floor length mirror trying to recognize myself.  I could sort of see my face under all the makeup.  My hair was down and the makeup team had flat ironed it straight.  They painted my face with the palest shades, with the exception of the deep red lipstick and dark eyeliner.  My eyelids felt heavy with the false eyelashes they glued on.  They adorned my neck and ears with ruby red jewelry.  But all of that wasn't the most shocking part.

My cleavage. 

I was never very curvy, so how they magically made my s into a D from a B was pure magic.  The costume team had dressed me in a burgundy satin gown with two sleeves draped off my shoulders.  The dress was so long, I had to hold it up to move anywhere, and it had a train that must have been three feet long.  If I turned to the left or the right, I risked twisting myself into the hem of the dress and falling over.  Even all of that wasn't the piece de resistance.  Built into the dress was an honest to God corset.  The boning pressed against my ribs and the ribbons cinched up the back in a very cruel way.  Breathing was nearly impossible.  Who's stupid idea was this anyway?

"I knew it!" It was the photographer.  Right, it was his idea. "I have an eye for these things you know.  The moment I saw your face, I knew you were the one!  Didn't I say that?"  His assistants all nodded their heads vigorously, commenting on what a genius the photographer was.

The photographer took my hand and led me out onto the set.  The boys turned towards me and seemed to take in a collective gasp.  I blushed when my eyes met Seung Hyun's.  He was looking at me intently.  It was the most he had looked at me in days. 

"Wow, Ha Na!"  Seungri walked over and took my hand from the director.  "You look amazing."

I pinched his cheek, "I always look fabulous."

"But right now I bant to your blood."

If I could have bent over, I would have done so in a fit of laughter.  Seungri hadn't mastered the English V.

Seung Hyun walked over and smacked him upside the head. "Vant, dummy.  I vant to your blood."

"Hyung!  That hurt!"  Seungri held the back of his head and pouted in the cutest way he could muster.

I opened my mouth to say something, anything, to Seung Hyun, but he kept walking past me towards the monitor that displayed all the photos.  I felt like a ghost.

The photographer clapped his hands together, "Okay!  We've already done the main shots with the band members.  Now, we're going to do the individual shots with Miss Ha Na."  I stood there fidgeting.  I was not a model.  I had no idea what I was going to do.  I knew for sure that I would mess everything up.  If I didn't have a pound of makeup on, I probably would have cried.

"G-Dragon, you're up first."  Ji Yong stepped onto the set.  "Okay," the director began, "I want you to sit on the fainting couch."  He pointed at Ji Yong.  "And you," he said staring at me, "all you have to do is lay there."

"L-lay there?"

"Can someone help them with their positions?"

Two assistants rushed over.  One sat Ji Yong in the corner of the fainting couch.  The other helped me sit down and then encouraged me to recline my upper body over Ji Yong's lap.  Everyone on the set was staring and I felt completely self-conscious.  Embarrassment ran down my spine.  Once I was laying across his lap, the assistant took my one arm and placed it along the length of my body, with my hand resting on top of my hip.  The other arm was positioned to hang to the floor on the other side of Ji Yong's lap.  I guess they were going for a sultry-swooning-damsel-in-distress look.  I looked up at Ji Yong.

"Are you okay?"

"Totally uncomfortable."

"Is it me?"  Well, it kind of was, but I wasn't going to tell him that.

"No, the boning in this corset is killing me."

"Ah," he sounded relieved, "relax as much as you can."  Easy for him to say.

"Okay," the photographer began, "the concept of this photo is simple.  Ha Na, you have been completely mesmerized by G-Dragon but you are now drained of blood.  Your vision is out of focus.  I want you to lay there as languid as possible.  G-Dragon, I want you to look satiated.  y, yet menacing.  Be sure to aim your appeal right here."  He pointed to the lens of the camera.

The makeup assistants rushed up and applied fake blood to the corner of his mouth and bite marks on my throat.  Shortly after, I heard the sound of the camera shutter.

"Miss Ha Na, when I said to lay there languid, I meant to lay there as if you're completely spent.  But make sure it's y.  I want you to give the most unfocused y stare you've ever given.  Stare beyond the camera ily."

I swear, if this guy said y one more time, I was going to lose it.  My nerves were taking over.

"Just relax, Ha Na," Ji Yong looked down at me, "you've got this."

At that moment, I saw Seung Hyun standing towards the back, just to the right of the photographer.  I focused my eyes on him. 

"Perfect!  Hold that!" The photographer resumed his photo taking.  Throughout the shoot, I kept my eyes steadily on Seung Hyun.  Ji Yong had to reposition himself around me a few times, touching my arm or my hair, and I could see Seung Hyun's adverse reaction to that.  Still, I kept my eyes on him.  I wanted him to know, I needed him to know, that even if I was this close to Ji Yong, I was only thinking of him.  At some point, Seung Hyun's features softened as he gazed at me. 

"Okay!  We can work with these.  Thank you G-Dragon," the photographer shook Ji Yong's hand as the assistants ushered him off the set.  "TOP, you're up."  I took a step towards the dressing room. "Miss Ha Na, we still require you on the set."

"Oh.  I'm sorry." I still had zero idea of what I was doing.

"Next scene!" The photographer called out and assistants swarmed the set.  The fainting couch was removed and a makeup artist came over to wipe the fake bite marks off my neck before reapplying more pale powder.  A fog machine was set up, and while I thought the idea was corny, I certainly didn't utter a word.

Two more assistants came up to Seung Hyun and I.  After a short explanation from the photographer, they positioned us.  Seung Hyun stood behind me, and I stood with my back to him.  They took his right arm and wrapped it around my waist.  I could already feel my temperature rising.  The assistants swept any hair from the left side of the neck and then tilted my head to the right. Finally, his left hand was placed on my left shoulder. 
I was suffocating.  This was going to be the death of me.  My body reacted immediately to his touch and I leaned back into him. 

"Great expression, Ha Na!" the photographer exclaimed, "Now, TOP, you are poised ready to bite."

I wouldn't have cared what he did just as long as I was with him.  I could feel his heartbeat and his breathing slowed down. 

"I want you two to face each other, now."

Seung Hyun let go of my waist.  As I turned to face him, my heel caught in the hem of my dress and I tumbled backward.  Seung Hyun caught me.  I was bent backward in his arms; his face just inches from mine.  Our eyes met and my heart smoldered.

"Good!  Hold that!"  I barely heard the sound of the camera as I stared intently into his eyes.  I didn't have this chemistry with Ji Yong.  I knew Seung Hyun felt something for me, too.  His lips were coming dangerously close to mine.  I allowed my eyes to close, anticipating his kiss.

"Alright!  Let's break!"  My eyes flew open at the sound of the photographer's booming voice.  Seung Hyun stood me upright, then let go of me.  He quickly walked off the set.  Ji Yong was heading towards me, a slight look of jealousy on his face.  As Ji Yong moved closer, Seung Hyun was moving farther away.  He opened a door and walked out.  I couldn't stay still any longer.  I gathered the skirt of my gown into my hands and ran past Ji Yong.  I didn't look back to see what his expression was.  I needed to see Seung Hyun.  I bolted through the door but I didn't see Seung Hyun.  I continued to jog down the hallway in ridiculously tall heels.  I heard Ji Yong's voice calling me from behind the door.  I had to find Seung Hyun. 
At the same moment, the door behind me swung open, a steady hand shot out and grabbed my arm.  I was pulled into a room and pushed against the wall.  A hand was placed over my mouth.  Seung Hyun was standing there with his finger to his mouth.  Ji Yong called my name as he raced down the hall, completely passing the room without realizing I was there.  Once Seung Hyun was convinced he was gone he pulled his hand away from his mouth.

I exhaled, "Seung Hyun, I-" 

Suddenly I couldn't speak.  His lips covered mine and he pulled me into a strong embrace.  We kissed each other urgently.  I winced when one of his fangs caught on my lip.  He stopped only to pull them off and throw them to the ground.  He found my lips again and buried his hands in my hair.  I wrapped my arms around his back, moving my hands up and grabbing onto his shoulders.  I felt him tugging at the ribbons at the back of my corset.

"Wait!" I said breathlessly.

Stopping abruptly, Seung Hyun gave me a puzzled look.

"Don't untie the corset!"

And there it was.  Seung Hyun's laughter.  My eyes nearly welled with tears.

"You stopped me because you didn't want me to untie your corset?"

"You don't know the hell I went through to get this thing on."

"It couldn't have been any worse than the hell I've been through these past few days."

"No," I agreed, "It wasn't nearly as bad."

"They're going to be looking for us soon." He reminded me.

"I know." My heart sank.  I wondered if he would return to the way he had been acting.

"Ha Na..." He gently held my hands.

"Yes?"

"I'm not going to stay away from you anymore.  I just can't."

"Then don't."

He pressed his lips to mine once more.  "Go on, I'll catch up in a minute." He did his best to smooth my hair out with his hand and then opened the door for me.

I turned back, "Is my lipstick smeared?"

His laughter tickled my ears once more, "No, now get going."

In the movies, this would be the point where the credits would roll and everyone would have their happy ending.  Our story wasn't near over yet...