They’ve shared many memories together. Many “firsts” as he would put it. She wasn’t sure if his feelings were sincere, but she knows she truly loved him. He was real to her. For her, it wasn’t just a show. But she didn’t know how he felt.

            They’ve said their goodbyes at the station in Korea. He had said that if they were to meet again, it should be at a train station. Was it sincere or was it only for the show? After the camping trip, when Taec left for Seoul first, she looked away as she silently cried. Then as his train was leaving, she debated with herself whether or not she should run after him. To make him stay. Of course when she arrived in Donghwa Train Station, he hid there and prepared a last event. But after that shooting was over, they said goodbye casually as she held in her tears. After he left the shooting location, she broke down and cried again. The staffs thought she was too in character, but the truth was that she didn’t want to let him go.

            After years have passed, she dared not pick up the phone and call him or get on the computer and email him. She did, however, kept up with news written about him. Around six months after their “marriage” ended and she was back in Taiwan to shoot a movie, rumors of him dating a girl group member surfaced online. After she saw the news, she did her own research of all the women he had been rumored to have dated: Girl’s Generation YoonA, Girl’s Generation Jessica, Miss A’s Suzy. There was also a video clip that Gui Gui saw in which Taec admitted to have dated many Jessicas before his debut. That was just the beginning, of course.

            Two months after the scandal broke out, Taec made an appearance where he admitted to having a romantic relationship with someone but he refused to elaborate. He said both sides wished to date silently, even if it had to be a secret. Some reporters asked if it was Gui Gui, his virtual wife. He denied and claimed they were friends and they talked often. Lies. But the next day he called her to apologize. She made her manager answer the call while she sat and listened quietly to everything he said. After he was done explaining and apologizing, he made sure to leave a message for Gui Gui, to call him. She heard the message loud and clear, but she never called him back.

            After staying in hiding with his relationship for a year, Taec finally made everything public by preparing a public event to celebrate his girlfriend and his one year anniversary. It was, as it was revealed, Jessica from Girl’s Generation. Upon seeing the news, Gui Gui’s manager advised her to start seeing someone else. That way she won’t be the lame party who got dumped. So she did start to see someone. She met with her ex co-star Aaron Yan, with whom she shared on-screen chemistry with. He was also the actor whom Taec was extremely jealous of when they were married because of the kiss scene she had with him. She never planned it to be Aaron. She would have been fine with anyone, but Aaron was there with open arms.

            They started with hanging out. Casually, they strolled through the street with friends, getting ice cream. Then they started to go out just the two of them together. Pictures were taken and posted on the internet. And much like Taec’s scandal with YoonA, this scandal spread like wild fire. Both Gui Gui and Aaron denied the rumors, but admit to being close friends. Gui Gui thought that Taec would not have seen the news, or, at least, if he did saw, he wouldn’t care much.

            But that was two years ago. And now, Gui Gui has returned to Korea to be in a fashion show. In two years, she had perfected both her English and her Korean. She had also changed physically. She was no longer the cutesy girl Taec was married to, she changed to be a beautiful and y young woman.

            “Why isn’t anyone here yet?” she asked to the person on the other line. “I’ve been here for about two hours and no one has picked me up yet. No signs or anything.” She paused while the other person asks another question, she then looked around the café she was in and around the part of the airport she could see. “Nope, there are no reporters anywhere. Why? I thought we were going to keep it quiet.” She paused once more. “I know that! I said quiet so there would be no reporters, not quiet that no one in the whole country knows and no one’s picking me up, are you crazy?” Again, she paused. “Alright, I’ll just take the subway. At least I know for sure my hotel’s reserved . . . Right?” The other person answered her question. “Seriously?! Are you kidding me right now? Ugh, whatever, I’ll just go and check. If there’s no reservation, I can just check in or go to another hotel for tonight.” She hung up on the person before getting up with her suitcase behind her, sunglasses on and scarf tied around her neck.

            As soon as she walked out of the café, reporters swarmed the place. She kept her head down, hoping they wouldn’t notice her. But they weren’t there for her. They ran past her and waited in front of the gate. She stopped an excited looking girl and asked what was going on in perfect Korean.

            “There’s a really famous member of a boy group that’s landing from America today,” she replied excitedly. “And there were rumors that that Oppa broke up with his girlfriend of three years, so of course the reporters would wait for him.”

            “Three years?” Gui Gui pondered. “Do you know who it is?”

            “You don’t know?” the girl asked, shocked. “It was all over the news since yesterday. Unnie, have you been living under a rock?”

            “Uh, I’ve been out of the country for three and a half years,” she replied honestly.

            “Ahh, that explains it,” the girl responded. “Anyways, they’re waiting for 2PM’s Ok Taecyeon. You know who he is, right?”

            “Ok Taecyeon? Broke up with his girlfriend?” Gui Gui said again to herself.

          “Unni, what are you doing?” the girl demanded in a hurry. “Ah, molla. I’m leaving; I don’t want to miss this.” The girl left Gui Gui to join the reporters and the rest of the screaming fan girls. Just as she was going to turn around and continue on her way, she saw him walking out of the gate with his beanie-covered head down. She stood among the reporters as they threw questions at him concerning his failed love life. He just smiled at them and said nothing. Before his eyes could land on her, Gui Gui turned her back and started to get out of the crowd.

            Then someone said, “Isn’t that Gui Gui?” Of course one of the reporters heard and turned. In addition to Taecyeon’s name being called by the reporters, her name was also called. She kept her head down and made her way outside as fast as she could with half of Taec’s reporters following her. Taec’s attention was on her as she walked away with the other half of his reporters. His manager came just in time to her to his van. One the way out, he noticed Gui Gui was headed towards the Subway station while still being followed by the reporters. She held her phone to hear ear and seemed to be talking to someone.

            “Hyung,” he said to his manager. “Do you know Gui Gui’s phone number? Or her manager’s?”

            “Gui Gui?” his manager replied. “Why do you need it?”

            “Never mind that, do you have it or not?”

            “Yeah, it’s right here,” he scrolled through his contact list quickly without taking his eyes off of the road. “Here,” he handed his phone to Taec.

            “Pull over, Hyung,” Taec ordered, dialing the number on his phone.

            “Ah, wae!?” the manager complained, all the while pulling over on the curb. The manager could then notice the herd of reporters surrounding Gui Gui not far behind them. “Oh, is that?”

            “Oh, Gui Gui, it’s me, Taecyeon,” Taecyeon said when Gui Gui answered.

            “Wae?” she said over the phone.

            “Do you see that black van in front of you?”

            “Yeah.”

            “I’m going to hide in the back seat, and get in. No questions ask, okay?”

            “Okay.”

            Taecyeon went to the back and hid himself behind the clothes and suitcases that trashed the car. “Hyung, keep your face hidden!” He threw his manager a hat and sunglasses to wear and resumed hiding. He could hear the reporters getting closer to their van through his pounding heart. He prayed he was hidden enough. He prayed they wouldn’t be discovered.

            The door to the van opened and her scent filled the car. She first put her suitcase and purse in the car before getting on herself. She shut the door and Taec’s manager began to drive again. After about ten minutes, Taec came out of his hiding spot and sat next to Gui Gui.

            “Thank you,” she said to him without looking.

            “You’re welcome,” he replied.

            Silence filled the air. “Gui Gui,” the manager interrupted the silence, “where should I take you?”

            “Park Hyatt in Gangnam,” she replied politely to the manager.

            They drove in silence again.

            “Gui Gui,” Taec finally said in that wanting voice he used to do all the time. She said nothing back. “How have you been?”

            “I’ve been okay,” she replied shyly. “What about you?”

          “I’ve been . . .,” he paused and looked at her—really looked at her—for the first time. “I’ve been alright, too.” Awkward silence filled the air again. “Your English seemed to have improved a lot.”

            “I’ve had lots of overseas activities, so I had a chance to practice.” She paused to think of what more she should say. “You . . . You still seemed tense,” she managed.

            “You haven’t even looked at me properly,” he laughed a hearty laugh. “But I am still tense. Not as much as before, though. I’ve been working on being more flexible.”

            “That’s good,” she looked out of the tinted window to avoid his eyes.

            After he finally looked at her, he couldn’t seem to let go. His eyes were stuck on her like glue. There was something different about her, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it. It couldn’t have been her more revealing and tight-fitting clothes. He refused to believe that was the case. The atmosphere around her was different for sure. There was no bright and cheery atmosphere that followed her; it was more cold and reserved. But that could have been because she was tired from the flight.

            “We’re here,” the manager informed them, peaking at the two from the rearview mirror.

            “Thank you,” she bowed. She turned to get her bags only to meet Taec’s searching eyes. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

            “Huh?” he snapped back to reality. “Nothing, nothing; it’s nothing”

            “Okay, then.” She put on the straps of her back pack and put her purse on her arm. She put her sunglasses and scarf back on before opening the door. Taec helped get her suitcase out without getting out himself.

            “Do you need any help?” he offered before closing the door.

            “No, thank you, it’s alright,” she grabbed her suitcase and smiled lightly at Taec. “Thank you.” She started to walk towards the door.

            “Gui Gui!” Taec called from the van.

            She turned without saying anything.

            “Can I come see you sometimes?” he asked, hopeful.

            She thought about it for a moment before nodding her head. She then turned back and headed inside the hotel leaving Taec with an unrecognizable smile on his face.