3. Celebrate

My story behind: Track 4. Celebrate

Characters: Seungho, Christy, Hyunsoo, Mirae

Plot: When Seungho finds out that his crush's boyfriend has forgotten her birthday, he decides to take her out to dinner to make her feel special.

A/N: I recommend listening to the song (with subs for non-Korean speakers) then reading the oneshot. They go hand in hand. Also, go ahead & listen while you read. Enjoy! : )  

This is Part I. It is more of a background story, whereas Part II will be the portion that goes with the song/plot. ^.^

“So, what are you going to do for your birthday?” an excited Mirae asked her best friend.

“Hmm, I don’t know yet. I was hoping to do something with Hyuksoo,” Christy replied.

“Ooh, like a romantic getaway to an exotic island?”

 Mirae’s voice became even more excited and chirpy. She scooted forward in her chair and grinned as if she was about to be told a deep dark secret.

“Ehh, that sounds expensive. If he plans one, that’d be cool. But I wouldn’t want to burden him so no, I won’t ask him.” Christy honestly told Mirae.

“Uh, but he’s your boyfriend. You should treat each other. Spoil each other, you know.”

Mirae’s voice toned down to a childish whine. She pouted.

“Hmm, we’ll see when the day comes. Can I get the check please?” Christy called out to the waitress.

 She poked her best friend’s puffy cheeks and smiled. Mirae smiled back. Then for the next ten minutes, they argued over who’d pay for the lunch. And no, they didn’t want to just split the bill. Typical!

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“Mirae-ssi, how’s Christy doing?” Seungho asked his hoobae^*.

Surprisingly, the two of them had become good friends even though Seungho was her senior and a potential candidate for the head of the law firm.

It was lunchtime. He came into her office and sat on the faux leather seat in front of her desk.

She turned her attention to him.  

“I want to say she’s alright but then I’d be lying,” she replied in a serious tone.

Mirae was one of those people who couldn’t keep things to themselves, so she began to talk, telling it all to Seungho. She knew how much he liked Christy. And deep inside, Mirae always thought that Seungho was the best match for her friend. She’d waited for the day Christy would move on from Hyuksoo and onto someone who’d treat her well, someone like Seungho.

“Well you see, today’s her birthday. And last week we were talking about how we would celebrate. But she just wanted to spend some time with Hyuksoo, her boyfriend.”

Seungho continued to listen patiently but at the word boyfriend, his face tensed up and he frowned.  

Mirae continued, “Problem is her boyfriend left for a business trip to Hong Kong yesterday evening. He left her a short message saying he had to urgently go and he’d be back in a week. No heartfelt goodbye, no happy birthday, and most definitely no plans for her birthday. So, Seungho-sunbaenim^*, besides that she’s somewhat okay.”

He was shocked. The girl he cared so much about would be sad on her birthday. Just the thought of that irritated him deeply.  He had to make this a special day for her. Some way he had to make her forget about her lacking boyfriend. He began to wonder, right in Mirae’s office, if his crush’s boyfriend even loved her. Maybe he was cheating. Maybe their relationship was full of lies. He contemplated why he even started liking someone who was already taken. He felt silly but he couldn’t deny his emotions and thoughts.

“Seungho-sunbaenim, are you alright?” Mirae asked him, noting how he hadn’t replied for minutes.

“Oh, yes, yes. But, what do you think Christy will be doing this evening?” he asked.

“Well, nothing as of now since Hyuksoo’s gone. She thought he’d have plans for them so she didn’t prepare anything” she said.

“Could I take her out to dinner you think? Just as friends. I’d like to treat her,” he softly proclaimed.

Deep inside, Mirae became excited. She’d been waiting for the day the Christy and Seungho would interact and really get to know one another. She didn’t condone cheating or anything and even Seungho himself had said:  just as friends.  Therefore she notified her approval.

“I suppose, Seungho-sunbaenim,” Mirae answered with a smile.  

“Mirae-ssi, please drop the formalities,” Seungho chuckled. “So, can you come with us?”

“No, I have plans with my parents. They just came to Seoul to visit my sister who’s in university so we have to go to dinner as a family,” she lied.

“I’ll give you her phone number so you can contact her and make plans now. It should be her lunch hour as well but hurry up before she makes other plans,” Mirae continued.

Part II will follow up as soon as possible. : )

Footnote: Hoobae is a Hangul word meaning colleague with less experience in the job field, usually a younger person. Sunbae is the older, more experienced colleague. The suffix "-nim" is added to make it a more formal command of speech, such as in sunbaenim. I like to use these words to make the story feel more realistic and interesting. If they cause incovenience or confusion, I apologize. ^.^