After I’d finished packing up at the YG building, I returned to my apartment, but not before there was some confusion as I left the building.

Upon exiting the main entrance, I had heard screaming. I reflexively ducked down to avoid whatever craziness was happening when the screaming had suddenly died down.

I looked around and found three or four girls across the street staring at me in confusion. When I stood up, they had looked harder and then waved me off and turned their attention away.

Nope, not a YG artist. Just a behind-the-scenes guy.

I’ve been in my apartment, reading on the balcony and eating sliced apples, ever since.

Sometime around six, I have my eyes closed and am enjoying the sounds of the city when I receive a text message.

I reach over to the table beside me and grab my phone. Opening it, I see a text from an unknown person. 

“Oppa! It’s me, Minji! So we’ve all decided on a club for tonight. It’s called ‘Blue’ and we’ll be heading over around 23:30.” 

She also provides the address and another round of begging for me to join them tonight.

I chuckle. “How can someone be so enthusiastic even in text message form?”

I grab my book and empty bowl and head back inside. Dropping off the bowl in the sink, I continue on to my bedroom.

Opening my closet door, I begin to twirl my phone through my fingers as I try to decide on what to wear. I don’t want to be too fancy for the club, but I also don’t want to be too casual. But I also want to make a good impression on all the artists!

“Well, ,” I mumble to myself. This is becoming decidedly more complicated than I had expected it to be.

Eventually, I settle on my favorite pair of dark jeans. I used to be told that they fit me like a second skin; that I had the best-looking legs on the whole East Coast.

I shake my head to rid myself of these thoughts. “That’s in the past, Seunghyun. Let it go.”

I turn my attention back to the closet and decide on a light blue button-up shirt and black loafers.

With that decided, I set an alarm on my phone and crawl under the covers.

Four hours later and I’m shutting off the blaring noise of my alarm. I roll over in bed and let it sink in that I’m about to casually meet Big Bang and 2NE1.

A smile slowly spreads across my face and I shake my body in pure excitement. Getting up with a bounce, I head over to my bureau and connect my iPod to my speakers. I turn the volume up, start the music on my iPod, and head into the bathroom.

When I look at myself in my closet mirrors afterwards, shirt tucked in and my hair parted on the side and slightly gelled back, I smile at the end result.

Looking at the time, I curse that it’s already eleven o’clock. I quickly grab my maroon leather jacket, my keys and wallet, and head out.

When I get down to street-level, I begin walking in the direction of the nearby busy intersection where I’m sure to find a taxi.

A little while later and my driver is pulling up in front of a three story building. I can already hear the pounding of the music from within.

Stepping out onto the sidewalk, I see a long line of people waiting to get in. At the entrance, two bodyguards are checking ID’s and stamping hands. I head toward the end on the line as I shoot a quick text to Minji asking her where she and the others are.

Just as I get to my place at the end of the line, I receive a phone call from Minji.

“Yeoboseyo?”

“Oppa!”

I immediately smile at her happy voice. “Neh. I’m here. Where are you guys?”

“Arasso. This is what’s going to happen. We’re pulling up now to the club. We’re in one car and my Oppas are in the second car. When you see our cars, come join us and we’ll go in together. We have to rush into these places so don’t be slow, Oppa!” she giggles into the phone.

“Arasso,” I say on a chuckle. “I’ll see you soon.”

I remove myself from the line and walk towards the front of it. Just then, I see the two black YG vans pull up and the doors open quickly. The girls are all looking down, their faces covered by their hair.

The third figure to step out of the car looks up and catches my eye. Minji grins and beckons me over. She wraps her hands around my arms and continues to follow the others in front of us into the club. They all wave and smile to the second row of bodyguards, clearly having been here before.

As soon as we’re inside the sound of voices and music drowns out everything else. My eyes quickly adjust to the blue lighting and I see several tables in front of me, all surrounding the crowded dance floor beyond.

We’re met by a short man who gives us a friendly smile and a signal to follow him as he begins to walk away. We head left and make our way past several empty tables. I lean down closer to Minji and speak directly into her ear. “Why aren’t we sitting at one of these tables?”

She pulls on my arm as she leans up to speak into my ear. “We have a table on the second floor that we use. Less crowded and more table and couch space. That man is the owner and always knows to expect a lot of us because YG artists like to go out together.”

We arrive at a balcony table on the second floor, overlooking the dance floor. I stand to the side to allow the women take their seats first.

I feel the presence of others behind me at the same time that I see CL’s eyes light up as she beckons someone over to her. I turn to see Yang Seungho slide his way across the seat to CL’s side.

An arm is thrown over my shoulder.

“Yah!” shouts Jiyong, getting everyone’s attention. “This is Choi Seunghyun. He’s working with us now as an English instructor. You ers better treat him well, or you’ll answer to me!”

I see CL and Park Bom and Yang Seungho give me appraising looks and happy smiles.

CL throws her hands up. “Welcome to the family, Oppa! I’m Chaerin.”

I bow in return and give her a shy smile.

Yang Seungho nods his head to me as Jiyong slides onto the couch next to him. “Nice to meet you, Seunghyun,” he says in perfect English.

My eyes widen in pleasant surprise. “Oh! You speak English!”

“Yeah, so if ever you wanna complain about these lazy kids, just come to me.”

I laugh, feeling my remaining nerves ease.

“Yah, yah, yah!”

Seungho and I turn our attentions to Park Bom.

“I do speak English, you know! Don’t think you can pull that around me!”

My mouth drops open. She looks over at me with a smirk as she switches back to Korean. “And don’t think I don’t know how to curse. Call me Bom. Are you my Oppa?”

Seungri pops his head out from behind my arm. “Oh, please. You’re his Noona, just like for everyone else!”

A hand smacks the back of his head.

“Yah!” shouts Taeyang from Seungri’s other side. My eyes go wide once more. “Don’t be rude, you little brat.” His attention turns up to me with a warm smile. “Nice to meet you, Choi Seunghyun. I’m Dong Youngbae.”

I bow in return. “It’s a pleasure, Dong Youngbae.”

He chuckles and makes his way over to where Jiyong is sitting and talking with Seungho and Chaerin.

Dara and Bom are looking over the drink menu and Minji is looking at me expectantly. “Are you going to stand there all night, Oppa?”

I startle out of my daze and sit down next to her. She chuckles as I say, “I just casually met all the Big Bang members today.”

“What? Does nobody want to dance?”

Everyone’s attention is directed to Seungri, who dances in place as he stands next to me. “C’mon, Seunghyun! Let’s see what dance moves you learned in Vegas!”

I chuckle. “Believe me when I say that you don’t want to see me dance.” I look to my other side at Minji. “Why don’t you go? You’re the best dancer in Korea, aren’t you, Minji?”

She links her arm with mine. “Oh, but I want to hang out with my new Oppa!”

I laugh. “I promise that I will still be here when you get back! Go keep Seungri company before he finds some stranger on the dance floor.” At this, Jiyong’s eyes shoot to Seungri with a look of pure suspicion. I hide my smile into my hand.

“Arasso, arasso!”

I scoot out of the couch to let her out. My eyes follow their figures until they disappear down the stairs.

The waiter comes then and takes our extensive order. Lots of soju and rum is ordered, as well as a plate of kimchi pancake.

Feeling slightly protective, I peer over the balcony to keep an eye on the Maknaes. I find them in the center of the dance floor. Minji’s dancing is clearing a bit of space around her as people look on, impressed with her skills.

The beat finally ends, but quickly changes to another, faster one. Minji uses the beat change to pause for a moment and the crowd suddenly surrounds her, people clapping her on the back and offering smiles. As Seungri continues to dance, the crowding people are widening the space between him and Minji. When I see her head turning to look for him, I’m out of my seat and moving towards the stairs.

The heat is more noticeable amongst all the dancing bodies. I squeeze my way through all the gyrating until I find Minji, looking calm, but obviously uncomfortable. I reach for her arm and she flinches away until she looks up and sees me, then she rushes to my side and wraps her hands around my arm.

“Do you want to go back upstairs?”

She shakes her head. “Ani, I want to keep dancing with Seungri Oppa, but I can’t see him anywhere.”

I look over the many heads surrounding us, trying to find Seungri based on where I had last seen him from upstairs. I find his bouncing head and go in that direction, Minji’s grip firm on my arm.

When we get to Seungri, we find that Youngbae has joined him and the two are clearly having a dance competition, which Youngbae is clearly winning.

Minji and I laugh at the sight.

Seungri is doing something that makes his leg look like it has a major twitch and his arms are flailing all over his head. Youngbae is doing…well, what he does best.

Minji starts doing a similar dance as Youngbae and the competition switches over to the two of them when Seungri stops dancing, a pout gracing his features. I step over to his side and say into his ear, “Yah. Don’t worry about it. It’s impossible for anyone to beat these two!” He smiles in agreement and feeling a sudden surge of boldness, I add, “Plus, I’m sure there’s someone who still loves all your moves.”

Seungri’s head whips up to look at me, his eyes going wide.

“Uh.” I suddenly wish I hadn’t said anything.

“Could you tell already, too?” Seungri asks me in disbelief.

Thinking that maybe I didn’t completely stick my foot in it, I say, “Just to be sure, we are talking about Jiyong, neh?”

Seungri bursts out laughing. “We always swear we don’t do anything in public to warrant suspicion, but somehow everyone at YG seems to know.”

I laugh partly at what he said and partly in relief. “Seungri, you two adore each other. Plus, VIPs already talk about you two. Basically, the whole world knows, or at least suspects.”

We laugh for a moment and then Seungri asks, “You want to head back up to see if our drinks have arrived yet?”

I nod my head and Seungri leans to speak into Minji’s ear, who then leans into Youngbae’s ear. They all smile and nod and Youngbae leads the way across the dance floor.

Minji grabs onto my arm once more as we climb the stairs behind Youngbae and Seungri. When we approach the table, a new person has joined and is picking at what’s leftover of the kimchi pancake, but is not yet sitting down with the others.

“Yah! You made it!”

At Youngbae’s happy exclamation, Kang Daesung turns around with a grin on his face.

I stop dead in my tracks.

Minji squeals by my side and runs over to Kang Daesung, throwing her arms around him. “Oppa, I’m so happy you made it!”

He laughs and I almost whimper at the sound. “I had to come! It’s been so long since I’ve seen you all, I was starting to forget what you look like.”

Minji lightly slaps his arm. “Yah! Oppa, that’s too close to being true for it to be funny!”

Kang Daesung’s gaze travels up from Minji’s face to mine and his gaze quickly looks me up and down. I feel lightheaded.

Minji, noticing Kang Daesung’s attention is no longer on her, follows his gaze and she gives a noise of surprise.

“Oh, Oppa! This is Choi Seunghyun. He’s the new English instructor at YG and he practically loves you.”

Just because I am distracted by the major heart attack I’m having, Minji is saved from a punch to her pretty face.

Kang Daesung chuckles. “Loves me, huh?”

I continue to stare at him in disbelief. Vaguely, I’m aware of the others now giggling and laughing at my continued state of frozen shock.

Kang Daesung is standing right in front of me. Staring at me. Laughing at me.

Kang Daesung.

Kang. Daesung.

“KANG DAESUNG, SARANGHAEYO!”

There is silence for a moment as myself and the others process the fact that I just said that.

Then everyone bursts into laughter.

I feel my face flush in mortification.

Minji rushes to my side, tears falling from her eyes. I dazedly look down at her. “Did I just say that?”

She bursts into a new fit of giggles. “Oppa...Oppa, that w-was the fun-niest thing I’ve ever seen!”

I cringe at my own humiliating behavior, but look up as Kang Daesung walks over to me. He places a hand on my shoulder.

“Kamsahamnida, Choi Seunghyun.”

“Holy , you just said my name.”

He looks at me in confusion until Yang Seungho translates for him, then he chuckles at me again.

“Are you alright, Choi Seunghyun?”

I suddenly come out of my daze and my mental filter disappears.

I just barely remember to switch to Korean as I say, “Kang Daesung. Kang Daesung, I am an Angel and have followed you since your debut. I think you have the loveliest voice in all of K-pop and I think you are wonderful and I can’t believe I’m meeting you right now and I love you.”

Kang Daesung’s eyes had widened at my verbal onslaught, but now they warm over as he smiles at me. “Kamsahamnida. You have no idea how much that actually, truly means to me.”

I want to hug him, but I realize how much of a fool I’ve already made of myself. “Kang Daesung, may I shake your hand?”

Charmed, Kang Daesung says, “Only if you call me Daesung.” He holds out his hand and I stare at it for a moment before taking it into my slightly larger one.

His hand is a little rough, but very warm.

“Am I your Hyung?” Daesung asks.

I chuckle. “Ani. I’m yours.”

Seungri scoffs from where he’s seated next to Jiyong, pouring the two of them another shot of soju. “Neh, in more ways than one.”

Everyone laughs as Jiyong hits him on the back of his head.

I feel my face flush once more.

Finally, we take our seats. I am seated between Youngbae and Minji. Daesung is seated on her other side at the end of the couch.

We all pour ourselves shots of soju, a tipsy Jiyong piping in that he’d like to make a toast. “To the family being together after such a long time. To Dae’s successful concerts. To our new YG family member, Seunghyun. To being young and crazy.”

We all cheer and toss our shots back.

“I have a toast, too” Seungri says. When we all have our shots ready and arms raised, he says, “To me!”

His happy face is met with a mixture of groans and laughter from the rest of us.

Gradually, I feel myself calming down, and although I still cannot believe I am here right now, I do not stop being aware of Kang Daesung’s presence at the end of the table. His laugh is unmistakable amongst the others’.

It’s this same awareness of him that has me being the first to notice when he gets up from the table. “I’m going to dance. I’ll be back.” I see Dara flash him a knowing smile. The rest of us continue to drink and talk.

Someone’s large order of ddubokki and noodles arrives at the same time that our waitress brings more soju to our table. Soon after, once I’ve received directions from Youngbae, I excuse myself to the restroom.

When I push open the door, the sight that greets me has me stopping in my tracks and my mouth falling open.

Kang Daesung is pressed against the wall next to the sink, face flush, eyes hazy, and lips swollen from kissing. There is a stranger pressed close with his hands on Daesung’s hips and a leg stuck between Daesung’s two open ones.

Daesung’s gaze meets mine and his eyes harden. It’s so different from the happy, pleasant look I’d received earlier that I’m shocked into silence a moment longer than I’d wanted.

I bring my hand up to scratch at the base of my skull as I let out an awkward chuckle. “I…uh, I’m going to find another restroom. Sorry to interrupt.”

I back out of the restroom and stand there for a moment. “I had no idea…” A smile tugs at my lips as I begin to walk away from the scene behind me.

But before I can get too far, a firm grip on my elbow is steering me towards the stairs leading up to the third floor. I look over to see Kang Daesung with a steely look on his face as his focused gaze leads us up and away from the blaring music.

When we get to onto the third floor landing, Daesung leads us to the back of the room where another set of stairs awaits us. In my hazy state, I say nothing as Daesung leads us up, his grip still firm on my elbow.

At the top of the stairs, Daesung pushes the door open to reveal the rooftop of the club. City lights shine all around and below us; the club music is drifting up from the open doors below.

I turn around to face him when I feel his hold on my arm disappear. “Kang Dae—“

“What do you want?”

His face is hard as stone, his voice angry.

“I don’t think I understand.”

He huffs in frustration. “What do you want so that you don’t say anything about what you just saw?”

I give him a long blink. What business is it of mine what he does romantically?

And then it hits me.

I look him in the eye when I say, “Kang Daesung, whatever preferences you have and whoever you choose to love is not my business.”

He scoffs and rolls his eyes. I press on, knowing that he still doesn’t understand.

“Please understand that I’m more American than I am Korean, Kang Daesung. Homouality is not a big deal for me. I have no problem with you being gay.” The hard lines on his face lessen somewhat. “In fact, I’m gay, too.”

Kang Daesung frowns once more and he looks like he’s about to yell, so I quickly cut him off. “Ani, ani. I really am.” I chuckle for a moment. “I guess it seems like I just said that to say it, but I am. I forgot what the culture is like here in Korea, but it’s so commonly accepted in the States that I didn’t even think to mention it.”

I take a step closer and Daesung takes a step back. I sigh. “Please don’t feel like you have to hide who you are from me. And please don’t think that I would betray your secret. If you don’t want others to know, they will not find out from me. I promise you that, Kang Daesung.”

I stop talking and look on as he turns quiet, eyeing me with a suspicious look. He’s silent for so long that I figure he’s just going to walk away and head back to the others. But he speaks.

“I thought I told you to call me Daesung?”

My eyes widen a bit. “I—um, mianhe?”

Daesung chuckles a bit, then his face turns serious. He looks up at me and takes a step closer. I feel myself tense. Am I about to get punched?

“Komawo.”

Daesung must be getting tired of my face because I feel like I have been giving him the same wide-eyed look all night. “Komawo?”

Daesung chuckles once more and takes a step away from me. “Mm. It’s refreshing having someone so easily accepting. I’ve never had anyone not hesitate or look at me differently once they found out. And not too many people do know, at that.”

There is a bitter undertone to his words and I feel a pang of sympathy for him. “Daesung, I know it’s not my place since we only just met tonight, but please know that you have a confidant in me. If ever you need to talk about anything, don’t ever hesitate with me.”

I offer him a small smile and his return one is quite sincere. I also sense a bit of relief in his smile.

“Komawo.”

There is a bit of an awkward silence, which Daesung finally breaks. “Should we go back to the others?”

I smile. “Mm. And someone ordered ddubokki. I love ddubokki!”

Daesung chuckles at my excitement and turns to head for the stairs. “How can you like that stuff? So fattening. You should have soup!”

“Soup? At a nightclub?! Are you a grandpa?”

We continue to bicker like old friends all the way back to the table, a comfortable feeling settling between us.

___________

A/N: So what do we think so far?

I'm not getting too much feedback, but I hope the direction I'm taking is satisfacatory or even just 'meh, it's okay.' Please, oh please let me have your thoughts and opinions!

I'm sorry for these long periods of time between updating, but I hope to be more consistent now!

I'm on holiday in Malaysia right now, so know how much I love you all that I still updated! ^_^

And for those of you wondering: I have NOT forgotten about Kindle. I just haven't had the time to do research for the next installment. That will most likely be when I return home...so anytime after the 21st of July.