“Mom’s excited though.”

“Why? I thought she wanted to travel with us…”

Hannah looks up when hearing Julia and Carolina’s conversation. She is drinking water from a straw, sitting on the stage resting during the rehearsals for tomorrow’s concert here in Vietnam where they arrived earlier today, and after going straight for rehearsals they are now taking a few minutes break to gather strength to finish the rehearsals. Julia’s mother stayed in Korea to, as planned; to take care of the three pets of the group, but Carolina has apparently thought she was going to come with the group as they travel around here and there for their schedules. While Julia explains it again to Carolina, Hannah gives a glance to see where Emelia went – she is seen sitting on the side, tying her shoes or something while talking to some of the dancers. Hannah is surprised how fast this tiring week has passed; Julia’s mother has been in Korea for five days already, and Hannah has met her … two-three times? The youngest has been busy with her drama filming and she has been avoiding the comments about Life of Pieces that are still hot from last week’s episode and Kim Jaejoong asks her from time to time on set how she is holding on with that and then it is her boyfriend who texts her forty times a day to tell her half the time that he misses her. Jonghyun has expressed many times how surprised he was over the anniversary event she had prepared, and she can just imagine the smile on his face each time he writes a text message about it to her. Her ladies have for it; “you are head over heels for him” they tell her, and that is true too.

“Wouldn’t it be totally awesome if our families all came to live with us in Seoul?” Carolina says with a big smile, her words making Hannah look back at them.

“Sure…” Julia rolls her eyes with a chuckle. “We would have to rent the whole building to do such a thing.”

“But it would be so awesome!” Carolina laughs. By Julia’s face-expression to tell, Hannah wonders if Carolina is the only one who thinks that would be awesome; to have their families together in Seoul. It would be chaotic. Though there are only five members, what they call “family” is a lot of people. Parents, siblings, their siblings’ boyfriends/girlfriends and both Julia and Emelia’s sisters have children, there are uncles and aunties with their own children as well, grandparents too and there is just a big family all together…

“Hannah, how do you think it’s been going with my mother staying?” Julia wonders, looking at Hannah who is sitting a few meters away from them.

At first she is surprised to be questioned, and automatically she shrugs her shoulder. “I have barely met her.”

Because of her drama filming, Hannah really hasn’t met Julia’s mother other than the first day when she was doing the event for Jonghyun, and when they were packing for Vietnam last night. Because when Hannah comes home after midnight and leaves early in the morning, all of the others have been sleeping beside from Maria who has been working on her solo album.

“Ah… Yeah, mom did wonder if you always come home that late and have to leave so early – one night you didn’t even come home! Mom is freaking out worrying if that is how we usually have to work…”

“But it’s only with the drama going on now,” Hannah tells, stretching her arms back.

“Ladies!” Emelia’s voice is heard from the front of the stage and they all turn to see her stand below the stage, holding her cell phone up. Hannah gives a v-sign, thinking she is taking a picture, and Carolina lies down crazily on the stage to make a weird pose too, but Emelia chuckles and says she is filming. Hannah waves her v-sign, smiling shyly and with her other hand makes sure her hair hides more of her face. “How’s the weather in Vietnam?”

“It’s hot!” Julia and Carolina answers loudly together and Julia continues to brightly say; “We love the hot weather here. Too bad we’re stuck inside.”

Emelia turns her cell phone around to charismatically film herself. “Let’s run outside later.”

Hannah gets up on her feet the moment she reacts to that Emelia is filming herself, so in case Emelia turns the camera (aka cell phone) back around to film them, Hannah won’t be there. But Emelia still captures Hannah when she walks across the stage, walking by the others in her try to sneak away and she begins to run to get out of the frame. Carolina laughs at her.

Working with the drama is really fun, Hannah learns something new every day and everyone on set is really fun to be around, but being surrounded by 5 Pieces and the staff who works with them for the BLACK & WHITE concert can never be compared to a drama filming, or anything else to that matter. It’s like coming back to your core, the thing that made you begin in first place and make you love to live your life. Her body is tired from all the action scenes they have been filming for episode 6 this week, but her mind is eager for the concert to begin. Over 18.300 people will be in the audience tomorrow evening to watch 5 Pieces’ concert in Vietnam. 5 Pieces spends the whole evening finishing up the rehearsals and preparing for tomorrow before they are heading to the hotel.

In the buss with the dancers and staff going to the hotel, 5 Pieces is loud way in the back. They are laughing and shouting while playing the simple game rock-paper-scissors to decide who share room with whom. Whenever 5 Pieces are staying at a hotel, they play this game; and since they go abroad quite often, they play the game often too. Hannah and Maria starts cheering and singing a victory song when the two of them are chosen to share room; Maria is standing up, almost hitting her head in the ceiling several of times, singing loudly for the whole buss to know (some of the others laugh at the childish girls) and Hannah stood up just briefly before she sat down, laughing. Carolina starts cheering too when she will get to share room with the stylist Mi Young, and for the final two ladies they give a brief cheer and high-five, satisfied with the room-decision this time.

“So baby,” Maria pushes her way to sit on stylist Yong Hyun’s lap to sit next to Hannah. “Could you wake me up tomorrow right before we have to go tomorrow morning? Because I need my beauty sleep and I don’t want to wake up too early.”

Hannah smiles widely, maybe because the stylist is hugging Maria while she sits in his lap or maybe because Maria talks so funny, or maybe because she is just happy to take a break from all her lines and her character, from being around people she have to be super polite too that she can’t relax for a second; she is relaxed now, able to laugh without caring how she sounds or looks doing it. Tomorrow’s concert will be great; she knows she will do well, just because she will love to go through the concert.

 

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Sweaty, out of breath, body and mind exhausted after a three-hour long concert with insane dancing and nonstop singing, 5 Pieces comes off the stage with smiles even if they are sad that their BLACK & WHITE concert in Vietnam just now have ended. Hannah stumbles on Julia’s feet getting backstage, laughing when almost falling forward but takes support on Julia’s shoulder, and they both laugh with their hearts still beating loudly through their bodies and with sweat rolling down their necks. Hannah gives the microphone to a staff, thanking the person and bows simply while following the line of members heading backstage. They do high-fives along the ways with some dancers and staff, everyone happy for ending a successful concert. Their fifth stop for this tour.

“Thank you for your hard work,” the girls are repeating on their way to the room backstage, and Hannah hasn’t even gotten inside the room until she sees her manager pointing at the watch on his arm.

Hannah cheers with the others, not minding the manager but she take off her shoes and head to the side to get changed right away. she gets out of the concert clothes and quickly pulls on a pair of black denim distressed shorts and a black tank top with the concert’s logo as well as a zip-up sweater (also with the concert’s logo) and she is chatting with the others who are sitting down to rest and relax after the concert while she gets a towel to wipe the sweat of her neck and body.

“You’re really leaving right away?” Julia mutters, drinking from a bottle of cold water.

“Yeah…” Hannah answers, looking for her sneakers, spotting them under a table.

“We have to be in the car in five minutes, so we better get going,” the manager adds.

Stylist Mi Young gives Hannah a fresh bottle of water. “Don’t forget to eat on the flight,” she reminds the youngest. Hannah smiles. She can’t be still, she has so much adrenaline from the concert and she can’t stop smiling even if she is in a hurry to go back to Korea for the drama filming. The other members are going to Manila, the Philippines, for a Samsung event that Hannah can’t go to because of the drama filming. The day after, the members are going to Jakarta, Indonesia, also for the Samsung event and once again Hannah won’t attend it because of the drama filming.

Grabbing her bag, making sure she has her cell phone in the pocket of the zip-up sweater and that she has everything else too, Hannah takes the bottle of water she had put down on a table, ready to leave now. She says her goodbyes and keeps bowing and doing the usual polite phrases to everyone they pass by when going with her manager out of the concert arena.

On the way to the airport, Hannah thinks through the concert with a smile. Even when remembering the few mistakes she did in the dances, she can’t stop smiling; it was so much fun. The fans were going crazy, the ladies were going crazy, and the dancers were going crazy – even the staff were going crazy. It could be the heat in Vietnam, but 5 Pieces told their fans during the concert that they travel a lot, but no place is like Vietnam; it is always crazy going to Vietnam. In a good way. Fans are always amazing, but for some reason the ladies always get impressed and surprised in the best way when they come to Vietnam. Not just because their fans had sent gifts and food to the arena, feeding the whole crew both for the rehearsal day and for the concert day (that is a lot!) but because they gave so much time and effort to show 5 Pieces all of these things. A few days ago, 5 Pieces were told by the agency that one girl (ONE 13-year-old Vietnamese fan) had walked around on the streets to get donations for a child hospital she was helping out at during her free time just to let some of the children go to 5 Pieces’ concert. Over 500 people had donated, but it of course wasn’t easy; she had spent hours and days trying to get donations. When 5 Pieces heard the story, they were really touched, and at the concert tonight they had talked about it on the stage in front of all these 18.300 fans in the audience. 5 Pieces said that the moment they heard it, they had gotten in touch with a lot of people before reaching this child hospital, and at a special section in the audience, all the children from the hospital who wanted to come, were there. This girl who had worked so hard on the streets for the hospital was brought up on stage. She had been shaking, barely able to talk but she didn’t cry at first. The ladies were really nice to her, and when asking who her favourite member is, she pointed at Emelia. When Emelia gave her a hug; the girl started to cry. It was just as touching as her story. The ladies gave her a signed poster, their concert logo t-shirt with their own signatures, some more things from the concert and also another hug from Emelia.

It is only one way Hannah can describe the whole thing; touching. The fan was adorable; she was so considerate of others and had cried even more when thanking the ladies for bringing the other children along to the hospital. 5 Pieces had sent a lot of donation to the hospital (through their agency) to send their thanks for the girl’s hard work and to show how grateful they are to have fans doing such a thing.

Hannah glances at her manager when they are checking in at the airport. She thought all fans in Vietnam (all the people recognizing her) would be at the concert or about to leave it or going home, but there is a bunch of fans at the airport and she knows that because they are the only ones giggling and calling after her. Most of the time she can’t hear a single thing of what they are saying other than her own name until one of the girls in bad English asks why Hannah is going back without the group, though Hannah can’t answer because she is being directed to keep walking by her manager. Now when she has reached the airport the adrenaline from the concert is leaving her body and mind so she is getting tired now.

“It would be great if you could get some sleep during the flight,” her manager suggests as they walk through the gate to the plane.

“Mm…” Hannah mumbles, busy putting her passport and ticket in her bag. “I’ll have to wash off the make-up first… -According to my schedule, I have an interview tomorrow, or today it is… What’s that about?”

“You’re starting to talk about that when the concert ended an hour ago?”

“I like to know what I’m going to do,” Hannah answers with a tiny little pout on , walking after the manager inside the airplane, “so what kind of interview is it?”

“Just about the drama; how it’s like going back to acting, about your character, how you get along with the cast… It’s mostly just repeats from the press-conference last week.”

 

The trip back to Korea goes by fast, and before she knows it she is back on set with the cast and staff for ‘미스터와 미스’. As soon as she had landed in Seoul, she sent a text message to Jonghyun to say that she is back and heading straight to work, and before she has reached the set he texts her back to ask how the trip went, if she has slept and telling her to do well on the filming.

Once the filming begins for the day, Hannah slightly wish she had slept more on the plane because it is nonstop working through the whole day, a brief break for an interview with the crew in the evening before continuing. It’s a rough filming but everyone is doing such a good job that Hannah is just panicking in worry she won’t be near their level of professionalism. After all, most of the cast knows how rough a drama filming can go like while Hannah is still a rookie. The drama she filmed with 5 Pieces a few months back was a mini-drama, simple and not as serious as this current one, and though Hannah seems to like a challenge, this drama is such a big challenge for her. Every hour she is tested for the drama, through Korean words or some action scenes or just the whole acting part. Hannah hasn’t studied like a real actor; she took acting classes before and after her acting debut in Japan, and last year for her Korean acting debut she had some help too as well as not but she isn’t taking classes anymore because of her schedule. No one complains that she is bad, she doesn’t make more mistakes than the rest, but for Hannah to know she is far from their level, she really needs to work better and harder.

During the interview they had done, each member of the cast doing the interview was asked individual questions. One question that each one of them got was how they practiced for the drama, and they all were taking turns explaining the training they went through. Another question they received was if they have any diet tips or diets they are currently doing, and after listening to the others stories it is Hannah’s turn to say hers.

“I have this thing I do that I eat whatever I want, but I don’t eat much of it. It works, with a good workout to it as well.”

“Control what you eat and work out,” Shin Minah had agreed.

To have Hannah talk about dieting feels wrong but at the same time right. Her dieting her been successful; almost two weeks ago she was chosen as one of the most dramatic celebrity weight losses. It was an article about it as well as comments, all saying she had made a successful change going from the chubby cute one to the y s-line cute one, complimenting since she did it after debut while working so everyone could see the change. It is all good on that front, she did succeed and do better, but what feels wrong is that her fans is aware of that Hannah stopped eating for a while, that she fainted for the dieting and had to be brought to the hospital more than one time. That’s what makes it feel wrong to be asked about good diets; Hannah had visited a talk show with her personal trainer two years ago, giving advice to the viewers asking her questions that you need to try different diets and work outs until you find something that fits you because everyone is so different. That is her best advice ever and she got a lot of praise for it back in the day, others also knowing it is a great advice to follow.

What Hannah is happy the interviewer doesn’t ask anything about Jonghyun, as during the press-conference they had sneaked in a question what Jonghyun thinks of Hannah acting as Kim Jaejoong’s wife in this drama, and she had been at loss of words at first as she was not prepared for it. She had awkwardly answered “he knows I am a big fan of Jaejoong, and wished me good luck to not be too much of a fan during the filming”, and Jaejoong had actually helped her by saying a few words too, saving her as he also managed to get another question that did not involve Hannah or her love-life.

Hannah has just been at the bathroom and when she comes back she sees Jaejoong and some others sit on the side, watching something on a laptop screen on the table. She walks up behind them, trying to see what it is, and to her surprise it is the music video for Maria’s [Princess]. This video comes out after midnight, and Hannah panics at first thinking it has come out too soon but then sees at the time that it’s already way over midnight. Time passes quickly!

“It’s really cute,” Jaejoong comments on the video.

It’s weird how the staff sees the music video of Maria before Hannah. She hasn’t seen it yet! She knows the song because Maria listens to it all the time preparing for her comeback, but other than the teasers and pictures, Hannah hasn’t seen the whole music video. When the video ends, most of the people head off to go take some coffee or use the bathroom, but Jaejoong stays as it seems to be his laptop.

“Can I see it too?” Hannah wonders in a low voice, taking the seat next to him that a staff just left. Jaejoong puts the video on replay, starting it all over again and glances at Hannah to see how she focuses.

“I have texted Maria; told her it’s really good. But she hasn’t answered, but she has told me she will give me a personal signed album when it comes out.”

“It comes out on Thursday, the album,” Hannah mumbles, smiling when seeing the video. Maria is such a princess diva in the video, completely awesome and perfect. The leader of 5 Pieces can never do anything bad.

“It’s Tuesday now,” Jaejoong randomly comments.

They watch through the whole video, and when Hannah sees it for a second time, Jaejoong is talking to others and some more have come to see what the music is.

By breakfast at six in the morning, Hannah laughs hearing the staff walk around singing or humming to [Princess].

“Hey, Hannah! Your members do pretty well without you, don’t you think?” one of the guys asks as a joke when Hannah is waiting for the scene to begin. She smiles for answer, knowing her members do really well without her. The staff just can’t stop teasing her and Hannah really don’t mind as she just feel proud that they like Maria’s song so much. She can’t wait for them to hear the full album; they will spend the next weeks singing to each song on that album because all the songs are great.

“Are you ready?” Hannah asks with big eyes when the female supervised professional fight trainer Kwan Eunki walks inside the corridor they will film the next fighting scene. The woman gives a laugh at her eagerness, puts her hand on Hannah’s back to go through the scene.

Compared to all the fighting scenes with kicking and punches, they have used guns too, Hannah is more nervous for this one where she is supposed to fight with a knife – two knifes, to be precise. And though she did practice this at the combat training, Hannah is still nervous like she always is yet excited to take on another challenge. According to the fight trainer, Hannah is eager to do the scene; they always say she is eager to take on the challenges in acting, and Hannah just smiles, ready to begin.

“Hannah is hard-handed,” Jaejoong jokes as he is also rehearsing for the fighting scene with her and the ‘bad guys’. Hannah laughs but doesn’t stop practicing, her smile disappears as she focuses. She does know what ‘hard-handed’ means in Korean as the trainers said that during the combat training; they were surprised by the strength in her punches when they started training. Hannah isn’t sure if they say these things just to give her confidence, but it puts her in a good mood.

It’s early in the morning and she has barely gotten any sleep tonight because of the filming, so Hannah gets tired quickly when the rehearsal of the fighting scene is done and she goes to change clothes for the actual scene. It takes time to prepare for her character. The clothes are simple; black pair of pants, high heels and a black fitting top. Then she has this belt around her thigh for the knives that she uses. But the trick with her character this time is that Hannah is wearing a wig; if you are a secret agent, it is important to change appearance, and that is what takes time to change into. Her long blonde hair disappears and instead sitting in front of a mirror is a dark-haired agent, her hair down to her shoulders. Hannah loves it. It isn’t her style at all with the colour or hairstyle because it is really everyday kind of look, but it is hilarious to see her in a wig. Of course she takes pictures of it; she sends the picture to her members, to Kyung Ho and Manager Lim. No one has time to respond before she has to go out to do the actual filming.

First to go is Hannah, who with two knives is fighting against three guys. She and Jaejoong are supposed to be on a mission together, fighting their way out when the mission is done. They will film it in parts to then put it all together, like they always do, and first to film is now Hannah’s fighting scene. She is smiling at the three extras she will fight against, the three she has been rehearsing the scene with, and they smile back thinking she is excited.

Hannah will probably never get used to how others see her. As a cute girl, someone who smiles a lot and is polite and hardworking all the time; cast and staff here on the set that she never had met before has said she is such a social girl, not as shy and y as she is seen in 5 Pieces but the one who takes the first step to introduce herself and open up a conversation, to make everyone feel part of the work and not knowing when she is working all too hard. Hannah doesn’t think she is that. She sees herself as the shy one, never sure how to react on things or how to talk, but others can’t seem to notice those parts. That’s probably good because that means her try to not show that she is shy and uncomfortable around people is working, but at the same time she can not lack off and show a bad side or people might get a different thought of her.

The scene is intense. There is choreography in how to punch your left and then right hand, how to protect from the others’ fists, their kicks and if you miss to protect yourself it is barely seen because they are moving as fast as they can for the scene, barely touching each other. And since it is Hannah against three guys, it is a lot to keep an eye on even if she knows exactly what she is supposed to do. It is like dancing; once you have learned the moves your body follows them almost automatically. But with so many acting scenes this past week, Hannah’s head is messy, and with the tiredness it is difficult to keep your mind on what is the new moves and what is the old ones.

Out of nowhere a foot is in front of her, exactly where Hannah’s left fist is going. She sees it half a second before her hand crashes against the foot, the man who was doing the high kick changes his whole face-expression both when hearing and seeing the crash but Hannah notices nothing from the others as she right away gives out a painful sound and turns away with her hand pressed against her chest. The filming is interrupted right away and though Hannah really don’t want to stop, it is impossible to hide the pain given from her fingers.

“Are you okay?” the man asks. The director has come up to Hannah along with a woman, both asking if she got hurt and saying they heard the sound from afar.

“I’m okay, I’m sorry,” Hannah mumbles. She looks up at the ‘bad guy’. “I wasn’t focusing enough, I’m sorry.”

She don’t want him to feel bad because she is tired and for making a mistake, but he apologizes again when Hannah is lead to the dressing-room to make sure her two fingers aren’t broken. Hannah sits down and bites together, shaking her head when the female nurse asks if she can bend her fingers. Nothing’s broken, the nurse says after two minutes, but she still puts some ice on them and tells Hannah she wants her to wear some kind of bandage around the fingers to not make them swollen up too much or hurt more. Hannah presses the fingers down with help of her other hand to have her hand put in a fist (the nurse doesn’t like that), coming with the suggestion to the director when he comes inside the room hat she can continue filming if she doesn’t have to move her fingers much during the fighting scene.

“Is that alright?” the director asks the nurse.

The nurse pursue her lips and for several seconds Hannah is worried she will say Hannah can’t do the scene because of her two fingers, but eventually the nurse says it is fine as long as it doesn’t swollen up and that she will put on the bandage as soon as the scene is done. The director loves that idea and claps his hands telling Hannah they will hurry up and finish the filming.

Once back in front of the camera, the three ‘bad guys’ makes sure she is alright and goes through the scene with her again before they continue filming. Hannah knows it isn’t anything serious, but she also knows that the guys on set are always super careful with the girls, and though she personally is too naïve to notice or admit it, most of the staff on set is a fan of 5 Pieces. If she is hurt, their hearts hurt as a fan caring for her. The ‘bad guy’ is just the same, feeling honoured that he gets to do a fighting scene with the strong and cute actress of 5 Pieces, and deeply apologetic for hurting her. He keeps saying between each cut for the scene that he is sorry and that he will make up for it somehow. Hannah says it was her own fault, some thinking she is just polite but Hannah really feeling bad for all the attention she is given now. Her fingers hurt badly during the scene, each time she tries to move them it hurts and her fingers doesn’t really move anything at all without her other hand moving them the way she wants (it’s weird but true) and though there is an endless pain in her fingers, she does her best to not show it at all during filming. Even when being asked she hesitates before saying she is alright. Well, she is alright, but she is longing so badly for the scene to end.

The moment the scene for Hannah ends, she gets to put on the bandage by the nurse who had been waiting and Hannah apologizes in a low voice when hearing the nurse muttering and pointing at Hannah’s lightly swollen finger. As a nurse she tells Hannah to have the bandage on as much as possible for the next two days, and she need to make sure her fingers don’t swollen and make sure she can move them after two days or she will have to visit the hospital.

“Always making others worried,” Jaejoong teases her, sitting in the room waiting for his turn to film. Hannah pouts at him, still having the nurse fix the bandage. “Are you bringing your pets later? You mentioned it last night.”

“Um… I don’t know. I thought of bringing Ace with me,” Hannah answers. From now to lunch she has about three-four hours without filming where she will go home and take a walk with the puppies and see how it’s going for Julia’s mother who still is there alone as the other members of 5 Pieces are in Indonesia for the Samsung event.

“Does he run around a lot?” Jaejoong wonders with a smile; as he has a cat of his own he is interested.

Hannah smiles, forgetting about the muttering nurse and instead focusing on the curious co-worker and hero of hers, “He is like Maria; active at times but so lazy you got no idea. He’ll probably lie in the middle on the floor during filming.”

As Jaejoong prepares his filming, Hannah changes clothes and during that time the nurse is back next to her to tell Hannah to go for an X-Ray just in case; because the director wants her to do it. Hannah do go to the hospital and check her fingers, being told it is a very light sprain on both fingers and she is suggested to wear the bandage for a week (she is allowed to take it off during filming if she can’t manage to film with it) and she is told to slowly try to bend her fingers whenever she takes off the bandage for that. She is given a lot of advices, her manager too because neither the doctor nor her manager seem to trust she will do it otherwise. After that, she can finally head home.

Julia’s mother hasn’t had any problem at all being alone this weakened. The managers have dropped by to check on her, the ladies have kept in touch with her and she do know when Hannah returned to Korea in case she wanted to talk to someone speaking Swedish or something. According to what Hannah knows; everything has gone well.

She can’t wait to get a shower, to get into a big sweater and cuddle with the group’s pets. Hannah longs for it the entire ride home and she is restless in the elevator, only thinking of hugging the pets the moment she gets indoors.

“Hello!” Hannah calls out when stepping out of her shoes in the hall, and she laughs brightly when the white puppy Ryo comes running inside the hall in such a speed that he almost runs in the wall around the corner. Hannah laughs and gets down on her knees to pat him, laughing more when hearing him happily whining. Michin comes hurrying inside the hall with a bunny toy in his mouth. Hannah greets them both and looks up when hearing Julia’s mother come.

“Hi, how has it gone for you?” Julia’s mother warmly asks, and it is like really coming home after a day in school or at work and your mother is smiling, wondering how the day has been like. It is a weird feeling. Hannah shakes the feeling off and keeps smiling hearing Ryo continuing his happy whining.

“It went well-” Hannah begins to answer but is cut off by Julia’s mother asking what happened to her hand. For a second, Hannah had forgotten she got hurt. “Ah, it’s nothing. I hurt my fingers during the filming, no big deal. Have you taken them out today?”

“I took them out in the morning, but not for lunch since you said you were coming home. And I keep forgetting the Korean words you use on them, but them listen well when I say things in Swedish too.” She sounds surprised.

“We use Swedish sometimes; Julia thought it would be good to teach them to obey in Swedish too, though it is tricky,” Hannah answers, getting up on her feet to try get inside. She has never seen the two puppies this happy before. Even Ace is coming, not in a hurry at all, and Hannah thinks of what she told Jaejoong now when she sees the boss Ace walk up to her – he really is like Maria. Julia’s mother follows Hannah inside the apartment, talking about how the weekend has been for them and saying some funny things that have happened. Apparently she didn’t know that Ace disappears in to the play room filled with boxes, to sleep in there, so she had panicked one day when he had disappeared but lucky the maid who comes at times was there that day and showed where the cat had disappeared to.

Hannah lies down on a blanket on the floor in the living-room while listening to Julia’s mother talking about the weekend. The reason she lies down on the floor is because Michin and Ryo are so happy to see her (no wonder, Hannah has been away for four days and the other ladies haven’t come back) and both puppies joins her, wanting her attention and to be caressed and it’s adorable to hear Ryo whine happily. Julia’s mother laughs at how happy the pets are. Hannah had carried Ace in her arms, the cat satisfied to just be rolled around in the end of the blanket.

The stories continue and Hannah comments on some of them, as she is aware of the habits and funny things the pets do. Julia’s mother is shaking her head when saying that the pets (all three of them) begs for food whenever someone around them is eating, and Hannah do say that it is a problem.

“Emelia feeds them all the time, so they apparently think they get a bite whenever someone’s eating,” Hannah comments. “They don’t do it when I eat though, because I never give them anything.”

“Julia said she doesn’t give them anything either,” she is nodding.

Hannah leans her head down on her arm stretched out on the blanket, lying on her side with Ryo cuddling in under her chin with a paw on her arm and Michin is almost stepping on the white puppy to try reach over to Hannah’s face to her cheek. The pets seem to have missed the ladies; she wonders how they will react when the others come home later today. But this is her moment and with her recent love to Instagram, Hannah tries to take a good picture to show the attention she gets from them, ending up taking several of them together lying like this before making up her mind on which picture to take. It is still an adorable picture with Hannah cuddling with the two puppies that barely were still for the picture.

{Instagram, bunny92hannah: In the middle of schedule I have come home briefly for this♥}

“Could I get a quick shower before we take the walk?” Hannah wonders as she sits up, holding Ryo down as he wants to get up with her. Julia’s mother nods and Hannah head upstairs; followed by both puppies to the stairs but only Ryo follows her up.

He lies down in her bed when noticing Hannah is going to the bathroom, and he stays there while Hannah showers, when she get dressed and re-packs her bag. She falls down on her bed to hug Ryo again, closing her eyes tiredly.

“I’m tired,” she mumbles against his fur, breathing calmly. She can fall asleep any second, not thinking she can survive working for another twelve hours. To promise Julia’s mother to take a long lunch-walk with the puppies feels outrageous when she could just lie here in her bed and sleep instead, but she wants to take the chance to go on a walk outdoor without being followed by people or filming for something. She doesn’t know what Julia has showed her mother on the walks they have taken so far so she is curious about that too.

What feels like seconds lying there with her eyes closed turns out to be fifteen minutes, and Hannah only wakes up when Julia’s mother knocks on the bedroom’s door and peeks inside.

“You want to rest instead?” she asks when seeing Hannah lying on the bed.

Hannah gets up, shaking her head. “No, its okay,” she mumbles, rubbing her eyes before asking Ryo if he wants to go out on a walk. He is quickly jumping down from the bed and getting out the room, waiting there for them to come along.

“It must be tiring… filming the drama,” Julia’s mother comments when seeing Hannah grab her things, “do you even get to sleep at night?”

“Yes, of course,” Hannah smiles softly, lying as she doesn’t want to worry her friend’s mother. “The first episode will air on Thursday; I only appear a little in the first episode but you’ll get to see that it is worth it.”

“I was wondering,” Julia’s mother says when they are heading down the stairs, “you said you are taking Ace with you on set. The girls have visited you on set too. Would it be alright for me to come as well? Could I go with you; I won’t be in the way, I can keep an eye on Ace if it’s needed. It would be fun to see what you are up to.”

Hannah bites her lip, not sure if Julia’s mother will find it enjoyable on the set.

She is unaware of the motherly worry Julia’s mother has for the ladies, being the only family member who actually has stayed in the apartment and seen their daily lives. Every day staying here she has been worrying over them, if they like the food, if they work too much, if they get any sleep, how they react to comments about them, how the Korean fan-base behaves, how the rest of the Korean people sees them, if everything is just going alright. Sure it has been five years, but to actually be there in the centre of the action and see 5 Pieces work from close, it is a completely different experience for a mother and parent. And during her one week in Seoul, she has seen Hannah three-four times; even at night, Hannah isn’t sleeping in her own bedroom because she is working on the drama. And as the only mother for the members being around, Julia’s mother wants to show all five ladies that she cares for them.

The sun is shining brightly outside. Hannah is wearing sunglasses and a cardigan to a top and shorts, enjoying the walk with Julia’s mother and the two puppies. It’s like the sun makes her smile. She is in a good mood as they talk about what Julia has showed her mother for the past week in Seoul, what stories she has told  and Hannah is just being caught up with what Julia’s mother has been up to. Along with Emelia, Hannah is closer to Julia’s mother than the other ladies. They have met many times, Hannah used to spend a lot of time with Julia and her mother during their short trips to Sweden for school in the past before graduating. Hannah is always grateful to know that her members’ parents treat her like one in the family, and it was before she had any trouble with her family. For as long as she has known her members, their families have been nice to her.

An hour and a half they are out on the walk, talking and catching up. This is what Hannah needed. A grown-up who doesn’t know her as 5 Pieces’ Hannah, not someone who speaks the polite language of Koreans but instead a mother with the natural Swedish language who is totally unaware of everything that is about music, the idol life and everything 5 Pieces have gone through for the past five years. The mother she talks to during the walk is the past Hannah think she would never experience again; someone from home caring and doing something as easy as taking a walk. Hannah is more relaxed in one way than before even if she can’t relax enough because she need to make sure they aren’t followed by a crowd of fans.

 

“Julia really love that you are here,” Hannah says an hour later when they are sitting in the car with Manager Lee on the way to the set. It’s weird talking in Swedish to Julia’s mother when her manager is there. “All of us like it, actually.”

Her mother smiles at Hannah. Though Hannah barely even has met her during her week in Korea, Hannah is really happy she is here because Julia has gotten such an energy knowing her mother is waiting in the apartment for their schedule to end for the day. Julia’s mother has the same sweet aura that Julia has; a more mature and calm presence though but Hannah can clearly see that this one day will be Julia – the calmness that doesn’t change throughout the storm.

“I know from my daughter that it can get lonely here for you girls, always working and having to keep your mind on the different things you do – Julia tells me all kind of things whenever we talk. Even if I know you are all bus, I wanted to come here and at least see you a little more than what I am able to do in Sweden,” her mother is saying in a low voice. “I know I have only been here for a week and I haven’t really seen anything, but you all have really grown and changed – you are still little girls, I think that is the mother in me talking – and I have seen letters and gifts fans have sent you girls, and it is really touching to know that you are working this hard within music and being able to change people lives by doing that. During my time here I have gotten the chance to talk to each one of you, to see how you are all doing; that is why I wanted to come with you today, Hannah. I hope that is not a problem.”

Hannah smiles softly at her. “It’s no problem at all,” she assures. Her smile fades the moment Julia’s mother looks out the window. Hannah is really tired; usually the time in the van is when she gets to close her eyes and get a little rest but with Julia’s mother being there, talking and probably wanting some company, Hannah can’t really close her eyes and go into her own world to relax.

“Julia really likes the part of her life she has here,” Julia’s mother comments, a little distant when looking out the window at Seoul, South Korea.

The youngest keeps looking at her, wondering if she sounds sad or happy for her daughter. Julia’s mother forces out a smile when looking back at Hannah. She looks like she is crying. Hannah is fast to put a hand in her bag to pick up a tissue for her.

“I’m sorry,” she apologizes and accepts the tissue, lightly holding it under one eye and then the other. Hannah never knows how to react when someone cries. “I am very happy for you, all of you girls. It’s just that for these five years I feel that I barely have met my own daughter, and I miss her. It has brought back a lot of memories this past week; watching movies together, cooking… I know nothing about the Korean food so your whole kitchen felt alien to me, but Julia knew about everything there. It has been very emotional spending time with you girls here in Korea; it’s like entering a different world where my daughter is the mother.”

She talks just as Julia, and Hannah is smiling when listening to her. She can’t help it; this woman in her early 50s is the mother of Hannah’s best friend, she is currently crying because she misses her daughter and is surprised by the life 5 Pieces are living here in Korea because it is so different from the life they have lived in Sweden. Hannah shared room with Julia for three years; they shared bed during that time, and Hannah knows that Julia every week and at times more often, cries for the same reason.

“You shouldn’t apologize,” Hannah whispers when looking down at her hands, smiling wider when realising that she is touched by the sight. “I think Julia feels exactly the same as you.”

Julia’s mother releases a sigh when thinking of that. “I think so too.” She smiles at her own words. “I know my own daughter I guess, even if we live across the globe away from each other.”

The rest of the ride they are both having a low conversation about the Samsung events that 5 Pieces are going around doing, both in Asia and Europe. Today the rest of the group has been in Indonesia for the event and they were in the Philippines yesterday. The girls will be going to Sweden and England at the end of the week; when they go to Sweden, Julia’s mother will come along and spend the day with them in the capital before going home as 5 Pieces will go on to the next place.

Hannah smiles when they are on the set, introducing Julia’s mother to everyone while preparing herself for her filming. Everyone is like always friendly, and several tries to greet her in Swedish after asking Hannah how to say ‘hi’ in Swedish but Julia’s mother succeeds them by greeting them in Korean. It’s only Carolina’s mother among their families who have learnt to speak Korean, but to say ‘hi’ in Korean isn’t that difficult to learn.

Out of everyone on set, no one gets as bright as Kim Jaejoong when greeting Julia’s mother. Hannah explains to mother who he is even if she knows it already, and they exchange an awkward exchange of both Korean and Swedish greetings that both parts have learned and Hannah keeps having this forced smile when hearing them trying each other’s language. Jaejoong has never met the parents for 5 Pieces, but he as many others have heard a lot from the ladies and been curious to meet the parents of the unique ladies, and he has many questions to ask as a senior and friend of Julia and 5 Pieces. Julia’s mother has never met him before either but do know who he is because she isn’t completely clueless about the reason her daughter went to Korea to begin with; she has seen all DBSK music videos and she has heard many stories too from the ladies at their early years in Korea because the best thing 5 Pieces knew at that time was whenever DBSK were around them.

After a short time into the filming, they take a break and Julia’s mother shows an article that Carolina had sent to the manager who showed it to the mother who felt proud to show it to Hannah.

It’s about some pictures that came out yesterday to promote the drama, and the headline is that Hannah is a y and tough agent in the new still cuts from the drama set filming. It is really good pictures, a mix of her posing during some fighting scene they had filmed and a really nice picture of her greeting the “agent boss” that Hannah do admit is good. Julia’s mother had just looked at the picture and said she looks absolutely stunning, while Hannah takes a minute to look at the article’s comments.

‘Amazing how she just sits there and looks fabulous; did Maria teach her? xD’, ‘OMG I will definitely watch this drama! Hannah and Minah are adorable and y and yeeeeeees this will be great!!!’, ‘I have fallen for the cast of this drama because they seem to have such chemistry, and Hannah in these pictures looks really hot. Can’t wait to see it ;)’, ‘is this 5 Pieces’ Hannah? She looks so different… Either way, Kim Jaejoong is in the drama; I will watch!’, ‘Did you guys know that Hannah and Jaejoong will act like a married couple but there are no kissing scenes? I don’t know about you, but my heart goes two ways because they are both hot and I would want to see them kiss other than in my imagination, but the other part leans towards SHINee’s Jonghyun and I wonder if he had a say in this to make this not happen………’, ‘Hannah is fading before our eyes! Absolutely stunning but please, pretty please, dear darling, don’t loose weight you look absolutely beautiful when you aren’t skinny~~’, ‘the actress of Pieces is making a comeback! She is awesome on the screen when acting, I bet everyone is just drooling after her, obeying her every command on the set xD I will look at the drama for Hannah!’, ‘I love Hannah because she lives into her characters, and I really look forward to this character where she will play a secret agent, a wife and what more is there and she looks so y and there will be rivalry between her and Shin Minah and I can’t wait to see those two y, curvy women fight O_O’, ‘Looking forward to this drama, Mr and Miss will be awesome’

In the middle of all these comments, Hannah finds one reading ‘the drama better be good (her acting better be good) because Hannah looks worn out these days, not even promoting with 5 Pieces… I’ll wait for the drama to begin before commenting anything good’, and Hannah’s tiny smile disappears. She better be doing this drama well; she better do her character the way people expect her to.

She don’t want to feel a pressure to do well because others expect her too; she wants to do well because she likes to act and she enjoys filming with the staff and the cast, because this is something she loves to do. Reading the comments, Hannah has to take several deep breaths to clear her head before she can continue. She has lost weight (not much, but her body is definitely not looking like it did half a year ago), she can’t go abroad on the Samsung events with her ladies; she is tired and all too aware of what is expected of her as 5 Pieces’ “actress” Hannah… What she need to get a good night sleep and she need to mentally get her head out straight to do what she love, and that is working with this; to sing and perform, to write, to take on challenges within acting and grow every single day by doing these things she would never have dared five years ago.

She need and love her life.

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Headline 14th: ‘We Got Married’ Hyunsuk Visits Maria Practicing [A Better Day] + Special EXO Appearance

Headline 14th: Maria & EXO’s Friendship Makes Hyunsuk Ask For Attention On ‘We Got Married’

Headline 14th: 5 Pieces Share A Cute & Natural Video From Concert Rehearsals In Vietnam

 

Headline 15th: Maria Solo Comeback Teaser #5 - Medley

 

Monday, Headline 16th: 5 Pieces Surprised A Fan In Front Of 18.000 People On Stage During Their Concert

Headline 16th: Emelia From 5 Pieces Has A Tattoo?

Headline 16th: 5 Pieces Promotes Samsung In The Philippines Without Hannah

Headline 16th: 5 Pieces’ Hannah Is A y & Tough Agent In ‘미스터와 미스’ New Still Cuts

 

Headline 17th: Full MV For Maria’s [Princess] Is Out!

Headline 17th: 5 Pieces Continues Their Samsung Promotes In Indonesia Without Hannah

Headline 17th: Hannah Cuddles With 5 Pieces’ Puppy Between Her Tiring Schedule

Headline 17th: NTV Japan Airs The Last Episode Of 5 Pieces’ ‘Run Out’ Drama

Headline 17th: 5 Pieces’ Japanese Mini-Drama ‘Run Out’ Ends With Bright Summer Scenes From Okinawa

Headline 17th: NTV Japan Airs Special ‘Run Out’ Episode With Hilarious MAKING OF Clips From Set

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X. devonalias