Gloomy Clock--IU ft Jonghyun

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Recap: Seunghyun kisses Ji Eun.

 

How are things going?

 

I spread a photo of them kissing on facebook. Now everyone knows about him and Ji Eun.

 

You what?! Why did you do that? I asked you to keep an eye out for trouble, not bring them trouble!

 

He's not right for her. The sooner the spell is broken, the better.

 

What's gotten into you? There's no other way to break the spell except Ki Bum learning by himself how to love others properly. And in the first place, I am the only one who can break the spell.

 

You're forgetting something. You're not the only one.

 

Don't tell me... No, it can't be. No! You can't do that!

 

It's for her own good, Joo Rin. There's no other choice.

 

Wait! You'd better not do anything rash! I'm warning you! Hey! Hello? Hello?!

 

 

---

 

 

Jonghyun charged forward, the sound of his steps echoing in the huge enclosed area. He loomed closer and closer to both of them with every step. How he wanted to push Choi Seunghyun, or whoever he was, as far away from Ji Eun as possible! Who did this guy think he was? He saw him kiss Ji Eun once; he wasn't going to let it happen the second time.

 

Just when he was a few steps away from the both of them, Ji Eun pushed Seunghyun away herself. She wiped her lips against the back of her hand, glaring at Seunghyun.

"What's your problem?! How could-- Why did-- Ugh!" She shouted frustratingly, frowning as she wiped several times more.

"That's right, you punk! You--" Jonghyun shouted upon reaching them, but was interrupted by Seunghyun.

"I asked you, didn't I? And since I'm the guy, I took the initiative!"

"But I didn't even agree to it!" Ji Eun said in bewilderment.

"Yeah, she didn't--" Jonghyun butted in between them, only to be shoved aside by Seunghyun.

"Everyone knows that silence means consent! And you were acting all shy, so I thought..." Seunghyun said, his voice trailing off.

"I wanted to say 'NO'! But you.. " Ji Eun fumbled for words, "you kissed me... before I could even say anything! That was my first kiss, you idiot!"

"Why? Are you angry that I'm not TOP?" Seunghyun shouted. Jonghyun could only watch the two argue, standing with his arms limply at his sides

"So you knew it and purposely took my first kiss away!" Ji Eun shot an accusing finger at Seunghyun.

"Well, I'm sorry I'm not him! Kissing the fake TOP must be hard on you, huh!" Seunghyun said sourly, crossing his arms.  "Do you think I wanted to kiss you? I merely wanted to break this stupid curse!" Seunghyun continued on, glaring daggers at Ji Eun.

"Well I don't see any flashing lights or sparkling glitter, so looks like it didn't work!" Ji Eun said, raising her voice.

 

 

The both of them breathed heavily, catching their breaths as they stared at each other. Their stare-off continued for a full minute, before Seunghyun broke the silence. And well, lost the stare-off in the process.

 

 

"Ji Eun..." Seunghyun said softly, bending down to meet her eye level.

"What?" She asked tentatively, staring into his eyes.

"Maybe it didn't work because there was no tongue involved." He said in all seriousness, secretly enjoying Ji Eun's reaction. He placed his arms on her shoulders and tilted her head slightly forward. He his lower lip, and smirked. Ji Eun's eyes widened and in a frenzy, she looked down.... at his lips, making her face turn even redder.

"Ahem..." Someone cleared his throat, saving Ji Eun from the awkward situation as she struggled free from Seunghyun's grasp and gaze.

"Jonghyun!" Ji Eun said in surprise. Seunghyun glared at him. 

Jonghyun sighed. Apparently his presence had been completely forgotten the entire time. 

"You," Jonghyun said to Seunghyun in a low voice, pointing a finger at him, "Have a lot of explaining to do."

Seunghyun rolled his eyes with a laugh.

 

---

 

 

"So you're saying that he's your boyfriend?" Yoseob shrieked, earning a light slap from Ji Eun. She hushed him, and looked frantically around. 

"As if I would allow that guy to be her boyfriend!" Jonghyun said crossly, as he took a seat across Ji Eun. "Here, your favourite," Jonghyun said as he transferred the piece of cake onto her plate. Ji Eun smiled in appreciation. 

Jonghyun... You know..." Ji Eun tried to hint to him about what they had previously discussed, but he refused to listen.

"That Choi Seung Hyun thinks that he can do whatever he wants to her. He thinks he's some kind of Oppa? Ha. Well, guess what? I'm her real Oppa." Jonghyun said to himself, more than to anyone else.

"So... Ji Eun... You like him?" Yoseob said once again to Ji Eun.

"No. No. No. Absolutely not," She said, shaking her hand vigorously.

Yoseob laughed, ruffling her hair. Jonghyun scowled at him.

"Erm, what about this guy?" Yoseob whispered to Ji Eun, not-so-discreetly pointing at Jonghyun.

"Ji Eun, who is this guy?" Jonghyun said, trying to sound as kind as possible even though he didn't hide his glare.

"I'm her classmate." Yoseob said, his face still lighting up despite Jonghyun's glare.

"Well, I'm her Oppa. You'd better not..." Jonghyun said, as Ji Eun whispered back to Yoseob, "He's my cousin."

Yoseob nodded with a grin and took a huge bite of his breakfast.

"Jonghyun, at that time yesterday, there was no one else around when Seunghyun 'kissed' me right?" Ji Eun asked, putting up air quotation marks.

"Why do you ask?" He said in between chewing his food, "There was only you, that Choi Seung Hyun, me, of course, and...."

"Hi everybody!" A voice said brightly. "And good morning pretty Ji Eun~" he added on with a sticky and sweet tone.

"And who are you?" Jonghyun said, staring at the boy from head to toe.

Zico's smile faded, and he muttered something under his breath.

"Let's just say I'm a random passer-by," he said with a smirk, as he sat down on the seat beside Ji Eun.

"Zico," Ji Eun said seriously, turning to him. Jonghyun registered the name. "You were there yesterday when I fainted right?"

"What's wrong, Ji Eun? Are you still feeling unwell?" Zico said, studying her face carefully for any sign of fatigue.

"It can't be you," she said, looking at Jonghyun. "Right? You promised me that you didn't pass that photo around. Jonghyun, if you did it it's okay for you to just admit it." She said, to which Jonghyun immediately showed a mock hurt and offended look.

"Then... It must be you," she said, turning to Zico. "Why did you do it?"

Zico choked on the rice he was eating, almost spitting it out. He gulped down huge gulps of water, and looked at Ji Eun, his mouth still full with rice. "What did you say?!"

"Why did you do that? It's all because of you that everyone knows!" Ji Eun said crossly.

"Do what?!" Zico said, eyes wide open.

"Spread the photo around on facebook! If it's not Jonghyun, then who else could it be?" she said, narrowing her eyes at him.

"I didn't!" He said, shocked. "Why would I do that?"

"I don't know! But it has to be you!" Ji Eun said, furrowing her eyebrows.

"Ji Eun ah..." Zico said desperately, "It really, REALLY, wasn't me. This guy can be my witness!" he said, pointing at Jonghyun.

"I didn't witness anything," Jonghyun said calmly, continuing to eat his food. Zico stared at him, his mouth wide open.

"Believe me, Ji Eun! I wouldn't do anything that would harm you!" He pleaded earnestly, making the other two boys shudder in disgust.

 

Unwilling to admit it, Ji Eun believed him. But if it wasn't him... Then who? The username of the person who uploaded it was some random name, and it didn't belong to anyone in the school. Who else was at the scene?

The issue of "TOP OF BIGBANG AND A HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT?" was somewhat solved when Ji Eun commented on the picture, explaining that Seunghyun was only... her boyfriend... and not the actual TOP. It was what they had settled on in the room when Jonghyun demanded Seunghyun to explain everything. How else were they supposed to explain Seunghyun kissing her? Speaking of which, why did he pretend to kiss her anyway? She scratched her head slightly, deep in thought.

 

"Oh, look, your boyfriend is here," Yoseob said, nudging Ji Eun playfully.

Ji Eun watched Seunghyun enter the dining hall, dressed in a casual v-neck and jeans. How did anything look so good on him? Of course, he had TOP's face, and pretty much TOP's "figure". But more importantly...

What was he doing here?!

Seunghyun made eye contact with her, and when he saw that she was already sitting with other people, his footsteps halted. He looked slightly alarmed, and Ji Eun wondered why.

Suddenly, a few girls from a nearby table called out to him, "Seunghyon oppa~"

He turned around, and smiled, taking a seat with them. Ji Eun gaped at him, as Seunghyun shot one last glare at her before turning his attention to the girls. She was about to go over to where he was sitting to tell him off, when suddenly Yoseob tapped her shoulder.

"Ji Eun, ahhhhh~" he sang cutely, and shoved a spoonful of rice into when she turned to face him. She chewed it carefully. "Is it good?" He asked, tilting his head.

Ji Eun nodded uncertainly. A hand slammed on the table, and Ji Eun turned to see Jonghyun glaring at Yoseob. His frown quickly turned into a smile when he saw Ji Eun looking at him.

"Ji Eun, your favourite~" He said, scooping a bit of his cake and circling the spoon till it entered her gaping mouth. He smiled, watching her chew the cake with her cheeks puffed up.

"Aigoo~ Look at how cute my Ji Eun is when she is eating~" Zico cooed, pulling at her cheeks and laughing. Ji Eun felt her face heating up, as she stared at Zico.

Seunghyun watched from afar, biting a piece of bulgogi furiously. He didn't even realize that his grip on the spoon was so strong that he had practically clenched his fist over his spoon, to the point where it was shaking.

Ji Eun was now eating her food as Yoseob fed her. She smiled embarrassingly, tugging at her spoon so that she could feed herself. Just as she did so, Jonghyun used his own spoon, to scoop a portion of her rice, and hovered it in front of Ji Eun. She looked alarmed, unsure of what was going on.

"Ji Eun, here~" Zico said in a muffled voice and when Ji Eun turned to look at him, she almost jumped in surprise. He had a piece of bulgogi dangling in his mouth, as he motioned closer and closer to her.

 

"Hahaha that's enough. Thank you for reserving my seat for me." Someone said, as he lifted Zico by his shoulders, and out of his seat. He sat down at the seat beside Ji Eun with a plop, crossing his legs elegantly. "Honey, let's sit somewhere else okay? We should have a little privacy." Seunghyun said, lowering his head so that he was at eye level with Ji Eun.

"Come on, let's go," he said, taking her hand and standing up.

"Where are we going? I haven't finished eating." Ji Eun said, alarmed.

"Awww, don't be like that," Seunghyun said in a baby voice, and leant his head on Ji Eun's shoulder. "Please honey?"

A few girls who were watching the scene closely squealed in delight, and fanned themselves.

"A-alright. Where do you wanna go?" Ji Eun said, looking at the floor.

"That's my baby." Seunghyun cooed, patting her head. He interlocked their fingers and yelled happily, smirking as he looked behind his shoulder at the three boys, "Your room!"

 

---

 

Jonghyun mutely walked to his room, with Zico trailing beside him. He had no idea why he was following him, but he didn't want to start a conversation with him either. He seethed in anger at he thought back to the scene he witnessed earlier, and made it a point to teach that Seunghyun a lesson. "Choi Seunghyun... You'd better watch out..." he muttered under his breath.

"Oh? Looks like you and Ji Eun have reconciled huh?" Zico said, breaking his chain of thoughts.

Jonghyun continued walking without a word, looking straight ahead.

"Hmm... But I heard that you were bullying Ji Eun all this while... What is your motive of getting close to her?" Zico asked innocently, though the underlying message was clear.

Jonghyun stopped in his steps and faced Zico. Zico put his hands into his pocket casually and smiled at him.

"You can tell me, Dinohead." he said with a grin.

Jonghyun frowned. The only person who called him that was Ji Eun.

 

"You disappoint me, really. Now I know how little significance I hold in your heart." Zico shook his head sadly. "Princess Ju, Dino, ZEE-GO?" He looked at Jonghyun expectedly.

"Wait...Zico? Zeego. Zeego!" Jonghyun exclaimed, as realization dawned upon him.

"You actually remember me!" Zico said sarcastically.

"Yah! Whoaaa... Who would have thought you would grow up into such a..." Jonghyun paused, looking at Zico from head to toe. "An ugly guy."

Zico's smile faded, as he raised his fist towards Jonghyun. Jonghyun chuckled and tackled him into a headlock.

"Since when have you been in our school? Why didn't you tell me earlier?" Jonghyun said, slinging an arm around Zico's shoulder.

"Since the start of this year, idiot. Do you know how hurt I was when I realized that you and Ji Eun don't remember me?" Zico said, clutching the left side of his chest in pain.

"Aish, it's just because you look SO different from the past! So you came back from Seoul? Why?" Jonghyun asked.

"I even kept my name the same! Zico! You guys always got it wrong. In fact my real name is Woo Jiho." Zico said, shaking his head.

"Whoa really? Jiho. Sounds like that actress' name.. Haha we've been friends for so long but I never knew that! But why haven't you told Ji Eun?" Jonghyun asked.

Zico scratched the back of his head bashfully. "It's not the right time yet."

Jonghyun raised his eyebrows.

"Well Dino, why did you bully her all these years? And now, suddenly want to ammend things again?" Zico said, with a smile.

"Did you think I enjoyed myself? Those were the worst years of my life..." Jonghyun said, lowering his head in shame.

Zico guided them to the steps nearby to take a seat.

"I.. I thought that I had to get revenge for my parents.. So I bullied Ji Eun... But each time.. It was so difficult..." Jonghyun mused, covering his face with his hands.

"What about that time when Ji Eun fainted?" Zico challenged.

"Yah, did you honestly know how worried I was when she suddenly started shaking? I didn't know what to do! One side of me knew that it wouldn't be right if I help out this girl who has harmed our family. But the other side, the bigger side of me, wanted so much to help her! Just because she's Ji Eun." Jonghyun said.

"Oh really?" Zico said disbelieving.

"I'm telling the truth! If I didn't call you guys, you and that Choi Seunghyun may have continued fighting without even knowing that she fainted!" He blurted out. "At least now, I can openly treat her well, and no longer need to bully her. I've found out the truth now." He smiled with determination.

"Oh, so I was right huh?" Zico laughed, punching Jonghyun playfully.

"If you knew all along, why did you have to ask me that?" Jonghyun said, his face darkening.

"To see you make that flustered expression! Aigoo~ So cute~" Zico teased, before quickly running away.

"Yah, Zico! Or Jiho! Whatever! Get back here!" Jonghyun shouted, chasing after him.

Zico stuck his tongue out at him and continued running.

---

 

[Seunghyun's POV]

I glance at the girl beside me, wondering why she is being so insistent on following. I've just decided to go to the library nearby since it's about time that I do some proper research on this curse I'm stuck in. These few days I have been recording down the time I turn into a plushie and the time at which I turn back into a human being. It seems like the time span which I become human increases by approximately five minutes everyday. Perhaps... One day the time span will become 24 hours a day, and I will become human permanently!

But if that is true, that means that I'll be stuck in this curse for... a while... And besides, even if I become human permanently, will I be able to become whoever I was before, and regain my memories? Or will I be stuck like this? Looking like TOP for the rest of my life, and never being able to find out who I really am?

I sigh.

"Seunghyun ah, I think you should have put on your mask," Ji Eun says, tugging at my arm.

I raise my eyebrows quizzically, and realize that as we walk down the pavement, people are staring at me in wonder and amazement. I spot a few girls staring at me.

"Why, jealous? Honey~ You know that I love you only~" I say, linking my arm through hers.

"No... I'm just worried since you look so much like TOP Oppa..." her voice trails off, but I know what she means.

I sigh again.

"Whatever! I don't care! We've already given me an identity. Your boyfriend, remember?" I smile sweetly at her.

"Speaking of which, why did you kiss me that time?" she frowns at me.

"I thought that maybe if I did that, Jonghyun would go away. It always works on shows." I shrug. "But! I didn't really kiss you, so don't scold me again okay?" I say with a wink, but my smile fades when I suddenly remember kissing her this morning.

I am suddenly very conscious of my arm linked in hers, and my whole body stiffens. I stifle a laugh, and look straight ahead.

"Why are you laughing?" Ji Eun eyes me suspiciously.

I shake my head, the laughter finally escaping my mouth. I wonder how those three jerks would react if they saw Ji Eun and I now!

"By the way, what if my time span for becoming a human everyday increases per day by five minutes? How long more would I need before I can permanently become a human?" I ask her, changing the topic.

Her eyes widen. "Is that how it works?" She repeatedly slaps my hand excitedly.

"I think so..." I say, massaging the places where my arm has been hit. Is she that excited to get rid of me?

"Hmmm..." she murmurs to herself, and I can see the numbers floating in her head. "Five minutes everyday... That would mean for 24 hours... Two hundred... Two hundred and eighty eight days!" She says brightly.

My shoulders droop in disappointment. "How long is that?!"

She starts counting on her fingers. "41 weeks. 10 months." She smiles.
 

"Fine... Your mental calculation is very good." I say with a weak thumbs-up. It's what she obviously wants to hear, and her grin broadens. "That's actually not so bad..." I mutter to myself.

"So, you mean after 41 weeks, you'll become a human forever?" she asks happily.

"Yeah, you just have to endure me for 41 weeks more." I snap at her.

"But does that mean you remain as TOP, or you become your real self?" She questions, frowning.

"That's what I'm worried about too..." I mumble. I look up, to see the library. "Oh, we're here already, come on."

"You came here just to research on this curse? But how?" She laughs exasperatedly. "What do you search for? Magic?"

I look at her for a few seconds, and sigh. "You're right, we should go back. This is pointless."

"Nope, too late." Ji Eun says, grabbing onto my arm before I can leave. "This is the first time I've seen you trying at something, Oppa. Come on, it's better to try than not at all."

I survey the numerous shelves of books spanning in front of me. What have I gotten myself into?

---

[Seunghyun's POV]

I secretly glance around, and once I see that Ji Eun isn't around, I relax. I hide myself in a corner between two bookshelves and immerse myself into the manga. I just need a break from all this mind boggling spells, curses and fairytales! But knowing Ji Eun and her enthusiasm, I know that she won't allow such a thing to happen. I flip through the pages of the comic book and immediately I am sick with disdain.

A shoujo* manga. I just grabbed any book, but to think that I grabbed a shoujo?

It'll just have to do. I don't want to risk going back to the comic section. What if Ji Eun catches me this time? She's sure to give me a huge lashing on perseverance and stuff like that.

Having a manga book is better than nothing.

Apparently this story is about a girl. And then she meets a guy. Wow, isn't that original?

I look at the picture of the two main characters. The girl is some ordinary girl. Two pony tails, spectacles, bookworm. The typical ordinary girl you see in a story.

I stare at the picture, and suddenly I can't feel myself. I don't feel the book in my hand, I don't feel my back against the wall, I don't feel my brain think. It's as if I'm suddenly struck by a coma.

My brain aches painfully, and I don't even feel my hand clutching onto it.

It feels like I'm in a body that's not mine. Everything feels surreal. I start to hear voices swarming in my head, an eerie echo and ring with them.

"Kim Kibum... you're really disgusting. Be happy I'm here to teach you a lesson that will change your life. Its giving you a chance to start over. To be honest, I really hate that filthy attitude of yours, no respect whatsoever. You think you're such a big deal, huh? "

What's going on?

"You're cursing me mentally. Well, if there's really a kind soul somewhere in your heart, you'll definitely be free."

The pain is excruciating. It takes over my ability to think.

"My name's Joo Rin, by the way. You're welcome."

My breath hitched painfully, caught in my throat. The pain was excruciating beyond words! My eyes bulged out and I felt as if my body exploded. I fell to the floor, my head hitting the surface with a sickening thud. I felt my energy being drained out of me rapidly as I just lay on the cold floor, mouth still wide open, eyes catching that girl's figure walking away.

What...what is going..on?

And then I plunged into a world of pitch darkness.

"Seunghyun! Seunghyun! You're scaring me... Seunghyun!" a bright voice calls out, like light piercing through darkness.

My eyes start to see properly, and I stare wide-eyed at Ji Eun.

"Seunghyun! Seunghyun!" She continues to call me, as she shakes my shoulders. I stare at her dumbly, unable to respond. I notice the sheen of sweat of my forehead, and my hands shaking uncontrollably.

"Ji Eun," I cry, trapping her in an embrace. My heart races as I clutch her tightly.

"He's okay now. I'm sorry for the disruption." She says, as she looks behind her, and only now do I notice a number of people standing behind her, looking at us queerly. The small crowd disperses, and Ji Eun holds my face in her hands.

"What's wrong? You were screaming just now." She says worriedly, dabbing away my sweat with her sleeve.

"I... I... I remember who I am..." I say, breathing heavily.

 

---

*shoujo manga: Manga written for girls

 

[Author's Note]

Hi there! Thank you new subscribers for subscribing! Do comment and subscribe if you haven't! :)

I'm really sorry about the irregular updates. >-<

Hahaha you can you imagine TOP doing aegyo?? It's actually pretty funny, but definitely adorable!!! :D

 

Alrights bye for now! :)

-Notelights