Italics for conversations in English. Blue for Chinese.

August 23: 1:20pm, Capital Indoor Stadium, Beijing

“Hi, everyone!”

Her team is happy that Hayaley is looking and sounding cheery.

“Did you all have lunch yet?” They all groaned. “Great!”

Right then, one of the security personnel swings open the door to the arena. “Did someone order Chinese delivery?”

“That’s me!” Hayaley yells out enthusiastically.

Five minutes later, the groans have turned to ecstatic “Whoa!”, “Wow!”, “Yum” and “Yes!”

“Don’t thank me. Thank June. She ordered them.” Her team busts out their phones and started texting June and taking pictures to post on Instagram. There was a variety of dim sum and a number of Chinese dishes. More than enough food to feed her team. Of course, June being the ‘mama’ she is, always goes overboard when ordering food.

Hayaley has always had a hard time developing very close relationships with females. Her male friends have saying it’s because girls find her a threat since she is confident, direct, and usually surrounded by male friends. June is one of the few girls she can call her best friend. 

June looks like Du Juan

The first time she met June, it was in PreCalculus class at USC (University of Southern California). Hayaley always sat in the back of the class and June always sat right in front. That day, June had been late and took the seat next to her, not wanting to cause any distraction to others. Hayaley had given her a quick glance and June had shot her a wide smile.

Math comes relatively easy for Hayley so she was getting bored when the professor had to go through a second similar Math problem that was assigned as homework yesterday. She started working on the homework she knew would be assigned after today’s class. June’s sigh made her turned to look at her. The girl was frowning, biting her pencil, troubled eyes fixed on the whiteboard in the front of the class. Hayaley tried to get back to the problem she was working on but heard another sigh…and another…and another….  

After class, Hayaley had stopped June, “Do you need help with Math?”

“Huh?” The girl stared at Hayaley, looking a little frightened.

Okay, maybe not. “Never mind.” Hayaley walked out of the lecture hall.

“Wa..it.” The girl had run after her and is now standing in front of her. “Do…do you mind helping me? Math is not my best subject.” She let out a big sigh. “Actually, it’s my worst subject and if…if I don’t pass it this time, I mean it’s my second time taking it, my parents will be very upset.”

Hayaley rolled her eyes. What is wrong with parents nowadays? “Okay.”

“Huh?”

“I said okay. I’ll help you. Do you have a class now? I don’t have another class till later this afternoon so we can work on it if you want.”

For the rest of the semester, they would spend time together after their Math class. And soon, they would hang out every free time they had together. June had admitted that she found Hayaley intimidating at first. She was always told by her mum that only ‘bad’ kids sit in the back of the class so she should avoid them. Besides, Hayaley always sounded so annoyed when the professor asked her a question.

Hayaley thinks the reason they are best friends is because they are such polar opposites. June is very motherly while Hayaley is more fatherly. June is super sensitive, cries easily and wears her emotions on her sleeve. Hayaley is more stoic and prefers to hide her emotions. June is super cautious while Hayaley tends to be more rebellious. But these differences create a balance relationship.

“Thank you for the humongous spread,” she texts June.

Lee Da Hee

Hayaley invites the rest of the concert staff to join them though most have left for lunch. Lee Da Hee is one of them who have stayed back. Hayaley and Da Hee had gotten closer since the Hong Kong concert. Like Hayaley, she is new to the JYJ concert team. Everyone already has a team or clique they hang out with during off-time, so she often feels left out. Her position as the Protocol Director also means she’s usually busy escorting the JYJ members or dealing with her local counterparts, leaving little time to make friends. Hayaley had introduced her to the audio team in Hong Kong. Being fluent in English helped her get close to the team quickly. So when Hayaley announced the lunch, she had no qualms about joining them.