Chapter 0: Totally cool

"Hahaha welcome, Elise! Thank you so much for making an appearance on Brightest Star tonight!" Grinned the host.

"Thank you for having me." Eunmi smiled softly.

"It's a pleasure really! Elise, you are Asia's hottest sweetheart at the moment, being nicknamed the 'R&B princess' and 'Asia's muse'; your popularity is no joke! We've been swamped by fan mail requesting you on our show!"

"Oh wow that's incredible." She chuckled.

"Please don't be so modest! To my knowledge, you are currently preparing your next album here in Korea am I right?"

"Yes that's right."

"I'm sure your Korean fans are excited about it! You have been incredibly popular here despite your debut in Japan, what are your plans for life in Korea?"

"Well nothing is settled yet, I'm not sure how long I'll be staying in Korea but I'd like to spend some time off with friends and family." 

"Family in Korea? Oh yes your ethnicity has been a hot topic amongst netizens online. A lot of them are claiming that you are half Caucasian? What's your take on this?"

"Oh haha I get that a lot. Since my stage name, 'Elise' is French, so it's understandable that people would make that assumption. But yeah no I'm 100% Asian as far as I know. My mother is Korean and my dad is Japanese."

"And you've been living in Japan since you were 16 am I right?"

"Yes I grew up in Korea and I was actually a trainee here until I was 16, sadly I had to leave my company because we were moving to Shibuya."

"That would explain your excellent Korean! My researchers tell me that you are some sort of a linguistic genius, how many languages can you speak exactly?"

"Um six haha." Eunmi laughed shyly.

"Well there we have it, a beauty with a brain!" They chuckled. "So please tell us about how you came about picking your stage name?"

"Elise comes from the first song I learnt on the piano, 'Fur Elise'. After I started playing the piano, composing just kind of followed naturally and that's how I got into singing as well."

"So many fans praise you on your trendy R&B music but they also love your down to earth personality, you have been voted by Course magazine as the number one 'Perfect girl'. So tell me, what do you look for in a man? Does he have to be just as perfect?"

"Um well... I don't know about perfect. Especially since I'm so far from that myself, but I guess I'd like him to be handsome? Haha um it would be nice if he had an interest in music."

"Handsome and musical, I see I see. Has anyone caught your eye here in Korea?"

"Oh course haha! But I'm still painfully single at the moment."

"There are enough men to form several nations, lining up to date you, Elise. Don't give me that 'I can't find a boyfriend' nonsense!"

"But it's true! Hahaha!"

"If you say so. So anyway let's talk more about your album! Are there going to be any Korean artists featuring on it?"

"Well I don't want to give too much away but yes. I'm working on a couple of songs with a pretty well-known artist at the moment."

"Oh well I won't keep you, and I won't pry anymore! Thank you once again for coming onto the show! This has been Saturday night's Brightest Star!~"

"And cut!" Shouts a producer. The host and Elise immediately stop smiling. A staff member comes sprinting onto the set with water, a mirror and a compact powder for the host.

"You did well tonight. A bit stiff but okay." Said the host before taking a sip of his mineral water.

"Thanks." Said Eunmi with a straight face.

"You know you're really good at faking a smile. You almost seemed genuinely happy to be here."

"Well I have to, right?" Eunmi ruffled her hair and slumped down into her seat. "I'm 'Asia's muse' apparently." Eunmi rolled her eyes and walked off set. 

"So moody." The host said to the makeup artist who was powdering his nose.

"Elise! Elise!" Cried Soojung, who was chasing after Eunmi backstage.

"Soojung, I know you haven't been here a while, but please call me Eunmi. No one calls me Elise and it makes me feel so uncomfortable." Eunmi said, speed walking to her dressing room.

"Sorry, Eunmi. Manager Kim wants to see you. He says tha-"

"Why's that?" Eunmi interrupted.

"I um..." Soojung scrolled through her text messages. "He wanted to talk about... Inside with you?" Soojung stared wide eyed at Eunmi. Both of them didn't understand what was meant by this talk of 'inside'.

"Huh?" Eunmi scrunched up her nose.

"Umm I don't know..."

*brring!*

"Oh um... Manager Kim says it's that song that you and Zico were working on."

"What?!" Eunmi screamed.

"Shh! Please don't shout Miss Eunmi people are staring!" Hushed Soojung. Eunmi looked around and smiled half heartedly, nodding at everyone who was glaring at her. "Zico is with manager Kim right now, he wants to see both of you!"

"That son of a ." Eunmi cursed.

"Shhh! Please!" Soojung stomped her little feet in frustration.

"I'll kill him. I'm not singing a song called 'inside'." Eunmi crossed her arms. "It sounds so dirty!" She shuddered.

"I know, I know Miss Eunmi, but please meet with manager Kim right now. The car is outside, he's adamant!" Soojung pleaded.

"Tell him I'm not going." Eunmi opened her dressing room door and slammed it shut behind her.  "I need time with my family! And my car is outside!" Shouted Eunmi from inside her dressing room.

"Aiishhhhh he's going to kill me!" Soojung whined.

*meanwhile*

"What do you mean she's not coming?!" Shouts Johyun. "That little-" Johyun grits his teeth before slamming his iPhone on the table. "She's such a brat! Why'd I get stuck with her? Why couldn't she bring her Japanese manager with her?"

"Well it could be worse,hyung." Chuckled Jiho. "Just chill."

"You're all too relaxed! All you R&B, hip hop kids you're all the same. You don't care about the business behind your... your 'music'." Johyun spat before he downed a shot of soju. "And you're probably all on drugs too."

"That's it, drink away your problems because that's healthy." Jiho nodded.

"I don't need your sarcasm right now. Look at me! Two weeks with her and I'm balding! I think my hair line has receded an inch since I've been stuck with that brat!" 

"That's just old age."

"I'm going to call her myself! Show her that I'm not easy! She can't just waltz up in here and step all over me!" Johyun sloppily reached for his phone.

"Woah! No." Jiho snatched his phone away before he could grab it and held it up. 

"Ow." Said Johyun who fell over the table with his arm extended.

"You're just going to piss her off even more. You know what she's like about drunk people. And you don't want to get on her bad side." Jiho chuckled.

*meanwhile* 

"That littl-umph!" Eunmi grunts as she kicked a pebble out of her way. "It's probably all official now! What does inside even mean?! Do what inside?"

"Hahahaaaa!" Laughs a croaking, breathy voice. Eunmi frowned and raised a brow.

"Hello?" Eunmi looked around cautiously. She thought about what would happen if she were to get kidnapped or molested.

"H-uhahaha..." The voice laughed again before bursting into a coughing fit.

"Are um... Are you okay?" She crouched down and patted around the floor until her hand met a long, thick stick. "Do you need help?" Eunmi said, clasping the stick tightly. "Ahhhhhh!" She screamed. Eunmi peered over the bush to see a long man in baggy clothing lying on the floor. 

"Mmmhahahahaa." He laughed, a charming smile emerging from under his blue bucket hat.

"What are you doing?!" Eunmi dropped her stick and ran her fingers through her hair in frustration. "I felt my guts drop just then." She sighed. "I asked if you were okay?"

"Ha?" He looked up at her with half closed eyes. "I'm per-rrfect!" His speech was slurred but soft. Eunmi squinted and frowned at the smell of alcohol on his breath. She was mildly disgusted by the fact that she could smell his beer breath from where she was standing. "I'm Dean! I'm perfect! And everyone knows that!" He shouts. "I am gorgeous! Handsome! Totally cool!" He flails around on the floor.

"Um yeah okay..." Eunmi smiled awkwardly. "So, Dean was it? Um please get yourself together and make your way home? It's pretty late an-aaahhh!" She squealed as he dragged her leg towards him, causing her to topple onto the grassy floor with him. 

"Shhhh! They'll hear us!" He said, one hand around her waist and the other lazily used to shush Eunmi.

"Oh my God get off me!" She screamed. "You stink of cigarettes and vodka!"

"Shhh!" 

"Mmmmffpphh!" She cried as he cupped . Eunmi was thinking for sure that she would get attacked and took the opportunity to elbow this Dean guy in the ribcage. "What is wrong with you?!" She stood up and stared at him, writhing on the floor.

"I told you!" He groaned. "Nothing is wrong! I'm perfect!" Eunmi sighed and took a few steps back. 

"You need serious help."

"Ugh that hurrt..." He whined. Somehow he managed to sit up straight, letting his lopsided bucket hat fall off his head of sweaty hair. 

*burp!*

Eunmi looked at him in disgust.

"Excuse me." He said. Eunmi's eyes widened at his surprisingly handsome face. He had strong features yet soft-looking eyes. He had a chiselled jawline and thick straight eyebrows that framed his perfectly proportioned face. His left eyebrow had a slit across it, shaved, supposedly.

"You need help." She sighed, crossing her arms. "Ugh come on, stand up. I'll take you home." 

"No! Lady! I'm fine! I can do that on my own." The pounding in his head grew stronger and he began to nod slowly, feeling faint. "Ooh." He shook himself back to his previous state and smiled lazily up at Eunmi. "You've got a very pretty face." He said, framing her face with his long fingers held to his eye.

"Yeah thanks." She smiled briefly. "But back to you. I don't think you can make it home." Eunmi walked a couple of paces to her car and clicked her keys. "Get in." She commanded, opening the back of her car door.

"Yes m'am." He saluted before completely passing out, his head disappearing into the bushes behind him. 

"I swear to god..." Eunmi groaned, slamming the car door shut angrily.