“T, are you alright? What’s up with your eyes?” asks Sunny.

“Ah, I think there’s something in my eye.” Sunny, get the hint!

“Hi, I’m Sunny! Tiffany’s friend. Are you here for Ho Un Dung too?”

Yuri holds up her banner. “Kim! Tae! Yeon!”

Sunny raises her brows as her eyes meet with Tiffany’s with questions unasked. In a last ditch attempt, Tiffany winks at Sunny, hoping desperately that she will get the hint. Sunny’s face changes imperceptibly as she turns back to Yuri and smiles. “Do you like the UnYeon couple?”

Yuri scrunches her face. “She could do better. He’s too old for her.”

Tiffany’s nostrils flare and she has to bite on her tongue to stop an instinctive return insult to defend her man’s honour. “He’s not that old actually.”

Yuri gasps. “There’s an eight-year gap between them! I’m praying hard there aren’t any kissing scenes between them. Poor Taeyeon unnie will have to kiss an ajussi if there is one.”

Ajussi? Ajussi?! Tiffany is close to wrapping the banner around Yuri’s neck and strangling her. “He is very handsome though. And he is top. Taeyeon has lots to gain by being around him.”

Yuri stares at her. “For a moment, it seems like you’re more of Ho Un Dung’s fan than Taeyeon’s. But I can’t deny his popularity. I suppose you’re right. It’s a good thing too, since the burden of sales for the musical will not be on Taeyeon’s shoulders and she can focus on playing her part properly.”

All Tiffany can do is squeeze Sunny’s arm as she swallows all the things she has to say about Kim Taeyeon and puts on a smile instead. “Yeah, I agree.”

The conversation comes to an abrupt end as cheers and screams fill the air. Kim Taeyeon has arrived and Yuri is jumping and waving her banner in the air. Fans from everywhere squeeze towards the paht and Tiffany finds herself up in front for some reason. She clings on to her camera and stands stiff as the pale, kiddy-faced shorty girl walks up to them, smiling and waving. Thinking she should put on an act, Tiffany raises her camera and takes a few half-hearted shots.

“Hey, remember to share the photos you take, okay?” Yuri’s voice is in her ear.

“Okay,” Tiffany yells back over the screams for Kim Taeyeon. She takes aim and snaps one at a time instead of the burst shot mode she usually uses. There is really no need to take that many pictures of this stinky shorty. She snaps and snaps and snaps, then a big nose is right in front of her lens. She looks up from her camera, blinking. The short singer stopped right in front of her!

“Hi.” Pale kiddo who can’t sing to save her life is smiling, reaching for a hand that stuck out from behind. “I love you too,” she says in reply to the declarations of love from behind and Tiffany is trying her best not to roll her eyes when the smile is directed at her. “Did you like the cookies?”

Tiffany blinks, caught unawares and her jaw drops onto her camera. “Huh?”

“You are the fan who fell as the airport. I remember you. Were the cookies to your liking?”

“Uh . . . I, er, I,” Tiffany stutters as a flood of shock, surprise and guilt submerges her mind. “T-Thank you for the cookies. They were very nice.” At least, I think they look very nice sitting in my drawer.

“That’s good,” says the singer with a smile. Then, she’s gone like the wind and Tiffany is left staring into blank space. She is still distracted moments later when Ho Un Dung arrives and for the first time in a long time, she is less enthusiastic about taking his pictures than usual. This is utterly strange and she blames the midget singer for it.

[o]

“What are you up to? Explain!” Sunny hisses at Tiffany once they’re safe in the toilet inside the theatre.

“Remember when I went the airport and Kim Taeyeon gave me cookies?”

“Mhm.”

“Well, this Yuri girl congratulated me apparently and earlier on, she recognised me and started talking to me about her banner.”

“Oh . . . so she really thinks you are a fansite master for Kim Taeyeon. What are you going to do when she finds out you’re just the opposite?”

“I don’t know.”

“She’s going to want to know your fansite name and everything sooner or later. Or your Twitter handle.”

“Okay, what if I were to make one up?”

“What, you’re going to make a fansite for Kim Taeyeon for real?”

“Just a pretend one.”

“How do you make a pretend fansite? You would still need a website and a Twitter account and Instagram and—”

“I don’t have to put a lot of effort into doing this. I’ll just create a page with tabs and post the pictures I’ve taken so far. As for Twitter, I don’t see the need for it. Just Instagram will do. I’ll just post some previews there.”

“But your first post can only be today.”

Tiffany shrugs. “I’m a fansite master. I can drop my first post whenever I want. Don’t worry. I won’t get caught.”

Sunny casts a doubtful glance at Tiffany. “I hope not. It will reflect very badly on you and the fandom if you get caught. You will be proving all the haters right.”

“My fansite will be convincing enough. I’ll even make a logo. How does Smiling Petals sound?”

“Smiling Petals?”

“Yeah. It’s simple. All I need is a flower with a smiley on one of the petals. Oh my God, I’m such a genius. I’ll do it as soon as I get back.”

Suddenly, one of the cubicle doors open. “I’ll look forward to your pictures of me then.”

Tiffany stares at Sunny in horror. Tell me Kim Shortae did not just hear everything we said! Sunny is just as frozen as she is and they stand side by side, speechless as the singer smiles, washes her hand and says, “Smiling Petals. I like the name. I’ll be looking out for it.”

Tiffany grabs Sunny’s hand and squeezes it hard as Kim Shortae walks out of the toilet. “I’m dead. I’m so dead. Why didn’t we check all the cubicles before talking?”

Sunny sighs from the bottom of her grumbling stomach. “Because we don’t watch enough Korean dramas, obviously.”

Tiffany palms her face and groans. How is she ever going to face Kim Shortae again? The singer who can’t sing must be so angry, especially since she overheard the conversation after being so kind to Tiffany. Was Kim Shortae being sarcastic when she said she would look out for the fansite? Or is it a low-key-passive-aggressive form of punishment? Whatever it is, Tiffany will have to make the fansite. And she will have to make it good.

[o]