CHAPTER 2

TH

       I lay lazily on my bed, with my chest against the bed, facing a magazine I bought yesterday. In front of me was a questionnaire page, and between my two fingers I clutched a pen, which was the one I flinched it occasionally while reading through the page.

       Are you in relationship?

1. Yes     
2. No      
3. Almost
4. Already over

I smirked and definitely crossed “yes” answer then my gaze turned down, to the next question.

Are you “literally” in a relationship?

1. Yes
2. No
3. Don’t have any idea

       My eyes widened in surprise found this question. What the xxxx… I unconsciously bit my pen and shook my head afterward. This was ridiculous. Whoever created this quiz was a lame one. But, still I kept going on.

      I was about to cross “yes” answer again when suddenly a random thought agitated my mind.

      Was I??? Was it proper to be mentioned as “literally”? I meant my relationship with him…

      Was it… I was the one who gave up during this time?

       Was it like… I closed my eyes and covered my ears whenever he played around with other girls??

      Did it seem like I was the one who struggled hard to maintain our relationship? Bloody hell.

(What am I thinking about? This is ridiculous)

       I quickly snapped all those things out from my mind and in a blink, crossing another “yes” answer again.

       I gritted my teeth even harder when I discovered third question.

       Did you felt upset or like something “tickled” your mind when you discovered the 2^nd question??

1. Yes (Go to question number 4)
2. No (Go to question number 5)

       I shook my head again and just crossing a. Yes reluctantly. How could someone seem like able to read my mind?? Damnit.

       Aha… So am I right if I say you’re not sure with your relationship? Oh, I’d make it easier for you by letting you choose the statement you think it matches with your condition now.

1. I’m the one who looked like desperate in our relationship

I blinked my eyes few times and realized it was right… I really looked like a desperate one… But what could I do? I didn’t even beg to God to make me fell in love into a bad guy like him… Hiks… Halfheartedly I crossed “a” choice then I peered down to read the next options.

b.  I found myself still fond with him despite of his bad attitude

OH MY GOD… This option was… so damn TRUE as well… I crossed it again since there wasn’t any regulation to choose more than one options… I heaved a huge sigh and went on to the next choice that made my eyes almost jumped out from the socket… (It’s absurd, I know)

c.  I don’t think he’d the same feeling as I felt toward him

Yes. Enough. I crossed this option again. Look at yourself, Tiffany. How will your parents feel if they discover their beloved daughter seemed so pathetic like this?

Oh, of course they wouldn’t know, unless you, the readers of this fic… spill it out to my parents!!!! Please don’t let them know, okay?

d.   It’s hard to tell, but I have to admit that…  all the statements above are TRUE

ARGHHHH???? This time I quickly crossed “d” point but afterward finally I dumped the magazine and squeezed my hairs like a breakdown mental experiencing-person in stress state… in time when my cell-phone was ringing…

Eh? Who’s calling? Was it Sindong Oppa? He’d confirm about the “cancelled date”? I briskly grabbed my cell-phone and greeted him.

KTY

       “Yeoboseyo…,” I heard husky voice greeted me over there. I was felt like dumbfounded for a moment. The voice was out of my expectation… I thought the “mushroom” voice was like a heavy bad one… But this voice… somehow felt like… dunno. I couldn’t describe it properly; however all the things I could tell you now were… I felt really curious about this person. Really. Her voice was… ehem… already made me stunned for a moment.

       “Mushroom?” I replied cool without even greeting back. You knew me well, rite?

       “Huh?” I could imagine this mushroom jolted in surprise discovering I was a woman.

       There was a short pause; I guessed she just checked the name on display screen.

(No… You weren’t false, Baby Mushroom. The caller was really the one once you considered as “Sindong Oppa” hehehe…)

       “W-who is it?” finally I could her spoke up again. I grinned. Jessica was still folding her arms on her chest, stayed silent but still, paid attention on what I was doing.

       “I am a big boss,” I said cockily. “You don’t need to know my real name. I bother to share it with random people,” I uttered again, earning a glare from Jessica. But I just smiled dorkily and kept going on.

       “WHAT???” she seemed like got caterpillar on her ears.

       “You’ve heard me clearly, mushroom. Oh yeah, note that. I didn’t accept any ‘what’ or repeat what I had already said.”

       She seemed so shock, I guessed. So I decided to be proactive one.

       “Listen to me well coz I won’t repeat it again. First, I absolutely not the one who you called as “Sindong Oppa” and it’s your fault anyway, to send the text to the wrong number.”

       “Second,” I briskly continued before she had any chance to chime in. “I’d like you to do my favor.”

       “Wh~…,” she was about to say another what but finally she just cut her own word off. I struggled hard to suppress my giggle finding her silly action. This mushroom was really funny!!! And dumb, if I could add.

       “Wait… wait…,” she seemed manage hard herself. “I don’t get it, big boss!” Her husky voice seemed slightly annoyed and stated “BIG BOSS” firmly.

       But once again, it wasn’t my first time hearing that kind of tone. Don’t forget, I was arbitrary so it was so make sense to hear sort of respond like that – at the first time of course. Because in the end, all of the people who had already spilled that kind of tone toward me, finally would ask for apologize as they knew who I was and how I would totally influence their life.

       “Huh?” I responded briefly, in arrogance tone.

       “First, sorry if I sent the message to you. You’re right, I dialed a wrong number. And second, as you knew we were strangers each other, I don’t think I have to do…”

       “I didn’t ask you to think, mushroom,” I quickly cut off. “I asked you to do my favor,
 I stated once again.

       I heard her laughed sarcastically and somehow this was my first time I didn’t burst into anger finding someone laughed at me that way… I didn’t really know what happened to myself today but… really… I thought… I had already connected with her in some way… I thought… I’d like this person… I wanted to know her more…

       “You wish!” finally she said again, this time she raised her pitch up.

       “No, I didn’t,” I replied calmly and started to take my chewing gum again and opened it up while clutching my cell-phone between my ears and shoulder.

       “Oh, so confident,” she said sarcastically again. “It’s nice to meet you but I don’t have time for this…” She stated “nice to meet you” in such a way that I was sure just to irritate me, but wonderingly I wasn’t even provoked by her. I just felt amused… really.

       “Just make it, then,” I chimed in again in casual tone while chewing my gum.

       “Make what???” this mushroom raised two pitches up.

       “Aigooo,” I uttered. “Are you singer? You kept raising your tone. Be calm, please,” I said. “I told you to make time for me, as you said you don’t have time for this.”

       “And if I don’t do it?”

       “I’m sure you gonna do it,” I replied briefly.

       “Oh yeah? Try me, Big Boss. You even don’t have any idea about me!” she said indignantly.

       I giggled, making her wonder.

       “I won’t ask someone that I had no idea about,” I uttered in a diplomatic way. “At least… hmmmh…”

       “At least what?” she asked me in “daring” tone. I deliberately paused for a moment, making her laughing in victory.

       “Huh! I know you had no idea about me. You just bluffed me!”

       “Ah yeah,” I said again, widened my grin. “You’re right. I don’t really have any idea about you,” I continued and paused momentarily.

       “But I really want to know what gonna happen to such a desperate girl if I forward the text to someone called as ‘DongHae’ Oppa. Good luck and bye,” I ended the conversation in such a way that I was really sure had already sent the shivers up and down through her whole nerves.

       Afterward I burst into laugh and hit the desk few times to control my laugh. Jessica, once again shook her head as if witnessing an idiot one and maybe wonder “how could someone like her” be a president director of such a huge company like this… And how could many people give their respect toward her… and even being so freakin’ out of her… If only they knew the dorky side of her…

TH

       No. No. No. It couldn’t be happened, Tiffany. NO!!!!

       I was panic. Super panic. Stupid me. How… could I send the text to the wrong number. And… “lucky” me… how could the receiver was such an annoying person like her???

       And now she had a control on me??? Oh, God, how could this happen to me?

       She had threatened will forward the text to DongHae Oppa and oh God, I couldn’t even imagine it… Dong Hae Oppa must be really angry discovering her girlfriend planned something stupid like that…  Dating someone behind your boyfriend back, whatever the reason, literally could be considered as “cheating”, rite????

       And moreover, it wasn’t impossible for him to just break his relationship with me? How could on this earth I caused all the tragedy that eventually been boomerang toward myself? Stupid you, Fanny. Stupid you…

       But wait, wait… Don’t be panic, Fanny. How could the “big boss” know the number of Dong Hae Oppa? She wouldn’t know, rite? Oh, yes, that’s right. She wouldn’t know. She only bluffing, rite?

       But… But… what if she really known? In such a way… What if she didn’t bluff only???

       Shoot!

       Reluctantly, I dialed back the number.

KTY

       When my cell-phone rang again not long afterward as I had predicted, I couldn’t help but winked cockily to the blonde one.

       “See? How the Great Taeyeon did her magic?”

       “Just wish she wasn’t daughter of mafia or assassin, Tae,” she shook her head but this time she displayed smile toward me. I knew, actually she had admitted my brilliance.

       “Yeah, Mushroom?” I greeted in such a mocking tone.

       Wonderingly, she answered me with calm tone, not raising her pitch at all. I guessed she had already been surrender. Hahahaha.

       “How could I believe you that you’d forward it to DongHae Oppa?”

       Oh my God? What kind of question was it? I almost burst into laughter again hearing the question. I knew my bluff had already scared her, but why she didn’t seem that easy to give up?

       “Oh,” I trailed off. “You don’t have to believe me,” I smirked. “Just try me if you don’t believe me… Good luck,” I quickly added good luck in such a way that seemed like I was about to hung the phone again. I heard she hastily spoke up.

       “Jamkan! Jamkan!” she yelled.

       “Huh?” I asked again, pretended to not interesting at her anymore.

       “Okay, I believe you. Please don’t do it. I’d do what you want. Afterward we’re tie. Would you?”

       “Hmmmh…,” I mumbled. “Rephrase your remarks.”

       “W-what?” she seemed confused.

       “First, my name is Taeyeon. You could call me Sajangnim,” finally I revealed my real name and asked her to call me “Boss”. “Second, you need to remember that nobody will be able to make any kind of deal with me, unless I am the one who desire it.”

       “If you got it, please, rephrase your words,” I said in victory.

       I heard her heaved huge sigh before finally piped in.

       “I’d do what you want, Sajangnim,” she said halfheartedly, without any additional remarks. The way she talked making me really burst into excitement. Call me crazy, it’s up to you. I felt like a child gets a new toy before Christmas, actually.

       “Good job,” I smiled complacently. “Now before I tell you what you have to do, I’d ask you some basic questions about yourself. Just answer what I ask, got it?”

       “Yes, Sangsanim,” she replied tamely, making me even being more satisfied.

TH

       I felt like been kicked out from the seventh sky and landed on the bottom of the world… Hell… How could I been as “unlucky” as this? I thought afterward I’d go to temple and do some ritual to “clean up” myself… so I could get my fortunate again… Hiks.

       “Okay, Mushroom. First, who’s your real name?”

       “Tiffany,” I replied briefly as she told me to answer what she asked only. Rite?

       “Oh, you just emerged on the surface of earth like that?” she asked in such an irritating way, discovering I didn’t fire away my family name.

       I inhaled deeply. Be patient, Tiffany… Be patient…

       “Tiffany Hwang Mi Young,” I said again.

       “Good,” she sounded complacent enough, like got a new toy. And for adding my horror, the toy was ME.

       “Address?”

       “Apgujong-ro.”

       “Age?”

       Ah. It’s sensitive. But…

       “Twenty one,” I said. I had no choice.

       “Can dance?”

       “Yes, I can.” I was actually a leader of cheerleaders when I was in high-school. I learnt some hip-hop dance as well.

       “From 0-10, where are you if you have to asses your own self?”

       I squinted my eyes for some moment, trying to figure out where all of these conversation was about heading to; however, still I wasn’t able to decipher it yet.

       “Eight,” I replied briefly and caught she’s chuckled over there.

       “Can sing?”

       “Yes,” I replied again. I was actually a member of choir in my church. And I had learnt singing since I was child as well.

       “Score?” she shortened the question.

       “Seven,” I replied again. I heard she mumbled something to someone nearly. But in a second she was back to me.

       “Hmh… Height and weight?”

       WHAT THE??? Was it kind of interview to be striptease dancer???

       Suddenly an absurd thought just engulfed my mind. Oh no…

       Or… was she kind of member of woman trafficking syndicate? On my mind, suddenly I visualized she was looked like a fatty ahjumma with her chubby cheek and wrinkle skin, sitting on her moving chair near the fireplace while holding her paper fan, surrounded by her abettors… Damn… I should not reveal any truth about me.

       Quickly I turned out the wheel…

       “170 pounds / 160 cm,” I lied in hope she’d let me go of.

       “WHAT THE~?” I could caught her was jolted in surprise. I struggled hard to conceal my giggle. Giggle in victory. Afterward, I was sure she would not be interested on me anymore.

       But I was wrong. She still, seemed interested on me as she kept going on with the next question, after (I guessed) managing herself again.

       “You… overweight?” I heard she asked dubiously.

       “Owh!” I pretended to be surprised as well. “Actually I’m OBESE,” I stated the last word firmly.

      Let me go. Let me go… I mumbled the mantra silently. Let me go… Let me go…

       “Owh,” I heard her cleared the throat. “Doesn’t matter,” she said again.

       WHAT?????? She didn’t even seem disappointed at all. It looked like my Height/weight didn’t affect her at all.

       “Uhm… Last question,” she said. “How you describe your appearance?”

       OH… This was my last chance, I thought. I had to use this one best!!!!

       “Hmmm…. I was shy to tell you this,” I tried to sound dramatic. “But… as you’d already known about my H/W, you must have already imagined what I’m looked like… Yeah… I’m fatty girl, lack of confidence, so out of date, unfashionable, and…,” I trailed off. “ugly.”

       Gotcha Tae Yeon! I smirked. You must be lost of your ‘appetite’ on me!!!! Just search around and try your luck on another one!!!

       But…

       But…

       I like felt hitting by hammer on my head when I heard her uttered complacently…

       “Got it. You’re absolutely the one I was looking for. Just come here NOW. As soon as possible. I’d give you thirty minutes to reach here. I’d text you the address and make sure don’t be late or…” she trailed off in purpose.

       “Believe me you don’t wanna make any mess with me. See you soon, Tiffany,” with that she ended the conversation.

to be continued...