“Why are you here? Are you following me? No, rather, are you stalking me?”, Hyun Hae said then squinted her eyes until it’s almost a line of black. She has rounder eyes than an average Korean, or Japanese, in her case, thanks to her Filipino blood, but she can squint it to a line when the situation asks for it.
 

“Woah, you’re scary when you do that!”, he said while lifting his hands, palms out on his chest to signal that he doesn’t have any intention to fight. “I, the great Bang Minsoo, will stalk a girl? No way, must be the other way around. You know beforehand that I am coming here so you pretended to walk before me and arrive here first so it wouldn’t be so obvious that you are stalking me!”, he emphasized the last word, then point his chest with his left index finger.
 

Hyun Hae is about the say something to rebut the man in front of her who’s so full of himself but decided not to. She won’t let anybody, especially someone who doesn’t know even a bit of humility in his system to ruin her good mood.
 

“I won’t get caught. I’m not talking to you anymore”, she said then turn her attention to the products inside the store, still hasn’t decided what to give her grandmother.
“Oh, so you admit that you are stalking me? Haha, I knew it!”, he said smiling even bigger now. He looks like a weirdo to Hyun Hae. Again, she ignored the man. “So, Missie, what did you like most about me? My great body?”, then he showed off his biceps and triceps. “My pretty face?”, holding his chin up. “Or my overflowing charisma?”, he finished with slightly leaning on one of the shelves, content with how he describes his self.

Okay, he looks like an idiot now, thought Hyun Hae. She just rolled her eyes and grabbed a hand fan. It’s a hand fan made of cloth with intricate embroidered designs of leaves by the sides and a beautiful ornament right at the middle.
“Ahjumma, I’m taking this one”, she said as she approached the counter.
 

“So, what do you like most, hmm? Answer now while I’m being good, you might get a little…” he raised both his eyebrows before completing his sentence, “reward”, says Minsoo, still on with his own ‘come on, praise me’ game.

Okay, he’s grossing me out, Hyun Hae thought before concentrating on her purchase.
“Ahjumma, how much is this?”, she asked totally ignoring Minsoo who is now standing by her side at the counter.
“Oh, Hyun Hae-ssi, no need to pay for that anymore, consider it as my thank you gift for helping me out earlier”, smiled the store owner.
“Oh, chinhayo? Komawo, ahjumma!”, she said smiling.
“That’s for your grandma?”
“Dae.”
“You’re visiting her?”
 

For the years that she have been her loyal customer, Hyun Hae have already told the store owner to whom she gives the gifts she purchased from her shop.
“Dae, it’s her birthday two days after tomorrow”, she smiles.
“Chincha? So, you’re flying?”
Hyun Hae nods. 
“When?”
“Tomorrow evening.”
“Ohh, good luck on your flight then.”
“Dae, Komawo, ahjumma, and, thank you so much for this”, meaning the fan she got for free.
“Cheonmanye, now, you should go, you must still be packing.”
“Oh, yeah, thanks again”.
 

Hyun Hae then waved goodbye and got out of the store leaving a totally ignored Minsoo behind.

He can’t believe it! He’s ignored! This is new. He’s used to having girls make moves on him. Well, he never really do anything as to flirt with them, they just, came. They always hover around him, though he didn’t ask for them to.

He is totally, totally ignored! Wow, this is new. He looked at the girl that’s about to exit the shop. She had already stepped out when he decided to follow her, yet again.

The sun is setting now. Hyun Hae thought of buying something for her eomma and appa back home, so she decided to go and buy them some milk tea. The couple loves milk tea, well, they all love it, it’s one of their little bonding as a family. As she continues to stroll along the street, she saw Hara entering a museum-like shop, she called for her.
”Eonnie!”, Hara then turned and saw Hyun Hae running towards her, smiling and waving.

Eonnie? Thought Minsoo who is still lagging behind.

“Hyun  Hae-ah, what brings you here? Where are you going?”

“Hmm… I’m off to buy eomma and appa some milk tea across the street but I saw you”, she answered while looking at the things her sister are carrying. “What are these?”, she said pointing to the umbrella-like thing on Hara’s hands.
”Oh, these? These are used for a better lighting whenever a photo shoot is ongoing, I use this a lot”, she explains. “By the way, who’s that man?”, she asks after seeing Minsoo just steps behind, looking and listening to the two of them talk.
”What man?”, she turned and immediately saw who her sister is talking about.

If she squinted her eyes the first time she suspected him of stalking her, this time it’s different. She rounded her eyes the biggest they could get, put her hands on the either side of her waists, face the man, and say; “I knew it! I knew you were stalking me! Well, stop it, you’re not my type”, she said then turned to face her sister again who now has questioning but teasing eyes. She knows her sister well; Hyun Hae can tell what her sister is thinking. And to answer her, she said, “he’s the man I was telling you about.”
 

Hara’s eyes widened and then show off a more obvious teasing smile, “Oh, the book-man?”

“Yeah, that’s him, I don’t know what he’s doing here though, but I don’t wanna know.”

Right then, Minsoo stepped in, he heard the exchange of words between the two ladies in front of him, he’s now to voice out his defense.

“I am so not stalking you, lady, it just happens that this is my way home, and what did I find? You are talking about me with your sister? I knew it! You fell for me the first time you saw me at the book store, didn’t you? From then on, you kept thinking about me, and when you can’t contain it, you’re going crazy over so much thinking about me, you share it with her, am I right? On the spot?”, he’s smirking now, convinced of his own little dialogue.

Hyun Hae looked at him with eyes of disbelief. What is wrong with this man? He definitely has lots of lose screws inside of his head to be able to come up with those crazy ideas.

“Here you are again, ranting how awesome you are and how you are a gift to women, what was your dialogue inside the gift shop again?”, she asks then pause for a bit to mimic Minsoo’s words of self-praise and actions earlier, “my body?”, then stretched her arms, “my face?”, lifts her chin up, “or my overflowing charisma?”, then folding her arms across her chest, lifting it up a little—she said all of this while trying to sound like a man, therefore slightly pouting her lips.
 

Hyun Hae then heard a slight chuckle from behind her, and saw Hara almost tearing up trying to hold her laughter in. Hyun Hae glared at her which made her laugh out loud now, she can’t contain her laughter any longer, and the irritated face of her dongsaeng didn’t help at all.

She’s still laughing her hardest when a man approached her and whispered something on her ear. Still laughing a little, she nods her head and turn to talk to Hyun Hae.

“Hyun Hae-ah, I gotta go work now, Kim Heechul is almost ready, so we are starting the shoot anytime now”, she said then runs inside.

Hyun Hae’s eyes followed Hara entering the shop with the name K-Story. She immediately knows that it’s Kim Heechul’s sister’s shop, which sells CDs of different Idol Stars and some memorabilia; it also houses a coffee shop inside.

Hara is now inside the said shop, talking to a tall lady working on Heechul’s tie, while the two are chatting and occasionally laughing with each other. She later found out from Hara that that lady is Kang Min Ah, Heechul’s one and only stylist—the only one that the idol star allows to touch his things and take care of the clothes he’s going to wear.

Hara is gone now but Minsoo is still staring blankly in front of him. Something must have happened to shut this man who seconds ago is on the roll, boasting about his self. Oh right, Hyun Hae’s imitating of him, left him staring. He couldn’t explain it but when she started flexing her arms in front of him, then lifting his chin up, he is captivated. He finds this woman rather amusing and amazing at the same time. He’s still not over the fact that she can speak different languages; make that, three different languages, and now this? What’s with this woman? Well, what is wrong with him, why has he let himself fall for her? Huh? Who’s falling for whom? Not me! And certainly not to this woman!

Hyun Hae then faced Minsoo, who immediately cut his thoughts and focus on the woman in front of him.

He clears his throat and is about to say something when Hyun Hae speak first.

“Okay, so you say this is your way home?”
He nodded.

“Which way, really?”, she asks intently looking at him.

That stare, he thought then said, “Why’d you ask? So you can follow me to my house?”, he asked though the idea makes him smile inside.

“You’re really so full of yourself, huh? I just wanna know so I can go the opposite direction. That way, we will get rid of each other, I don’t like having you around”, she said which disappoints him. “So, where?”

He doesn’t know what to say so he absent-mindedly points to the direction in front of him.

“Oh, so there, okay, great”, she then turned right and cross the street to buy milk teas.

Minsoo saw the receding figure of Hyun Hae and he quickly walks on her direction. He saw that the milk tea stand is her destination so he immediately thought of a great excuse. He smirks.