AUTHOR POV

 

Chanyeol let out a small sigh as he stared at the pair of drumsticks he was holding in the air above his head. He had been staring at the wooden sticks for the past hour, wondering about the girl whom had given them to him as a gift. He smiled as he remembered the way she looked as he played his song for her. He could remember the way her hands moved to the rhythm, and how she had even began humming to the song. Her humming had also matched the lyrics in his head, something that startled him but was also very amusing. He sighed contentedly and set the drumsticks on his bedside table before sitting up from his bed and gathering his things to take a shower. As he walked to the restroom he decided to send a text to Eunyoung to see if she got home safely. Just before he was going to send the message his phone rang. The caller ID showed that it was his older sister Yura. He immediately answered.

 

"Noona, what's up?" He grinned. He hadn't spoken to or seen his sister in two weeks. He really missed her and was happy she called him despite her busy life as a reporter.

 

"You need to get on the nearest computer, Chanyeol. Immediately." The tone in her voice frightened him to a frigid state. He swallowed the lump in his throat and nodded as he made his way to the media room in the dorms. Somehow, everyone was out doing some kind of schedule except me, so I did not have to fight for the computer.

 

“What am I looking for noona?” He set his phone down and put the call on speakerphone so that way his hands were free.

 

“Type in your name.” He was confused by her words but opened up a web browser window and did as she asked. Immediately, link upon link appeared all titled “Cheating idol caught on camera” or “Chanyeol (EXO) seen on a date with an unknown girl”. All of the color drained from his face as he became speechless. “Click on the first link.” His sisters’ voice brought him back from what was surely going to be some kind of permanent comatose. He did as told and waited for the page to load. The first things he saw were the pictures from the day in Cheonggyeocheon stream. His heart didn’t know how to react. “Would you like to explain those?” His sisters’ voice sounded more tired than judgmental.

 

Chanyeol cleared his throat. How would he explain this to his sister, no. How would he explain this to the company!? He took a deep breath and looked away form the screen. “She is a fan of ours. She was the one that saved me at the airport. She had left her luggage and I had gotten for her. I gave it back to her and then we decided to meet again… Obviously, I should have been a lot more careful on the… location.” Chanyeol felt so small at this moment. He felt out of control of his very own life. How would the fans react after seeing this? How would the other members react?

 

“Chanyeol… Your image reflects mine… You cannot be going out doing this! What about Dara? Do you not care how she feels about all of this? Have you even talked to her? Chanyeol… are you actually seeing this girl?”

 

All of the questions hit him like a brick, each time more forceful than the previous one. His head began to feel like it was spinning and he had to set his head against the desk he was sitting at. He sighed and then looked at his phone. “Noona… I know I have done something that may seem terrible to you and to the whole world… But I want you to know that I never did this to hurt anyone. I will fix this. Don’t worry. I love you, bye noona.” Before she could respond, Chanyeol ended the call. He turned back to the computer screen and inspected the pictures. Luckily, they did not show Eunyoung’s face so she would hopefully be safe from other fans and the media. He began reading the article and almost choked as he read things like “they shared loving kisses” and “gentle caresses”. Though he liked the idea of those things, he knew better than anyone that they were not true.

 

He groaned and felt anger surge through his body and he banged his fists onto the desk. Damn media, screwing everything up!

 

He looked down at his phone and decided to call Eunyoung and make sure that she was okay. She must have seen this already, right? He grabbed his phone and plugged in her name, dialing the number instantly.

 

Eunyoung stared at her phone from where it lay on her sofa. She knew it was Chanyeol. How could she talk to him right now? How could she even think of ever talking to him again? She had pretty much ruined his life for her selfish ways. She looked away from her phone and cradled the pillow in her arms, shutting her eyes to prevent any tears from escaping. How could she be so stupid as to actually ask to see him again?

 

Chanyeol groaned as he heard the woman through the phone telling him that the person he was calling was unavailable for about the twentieth time. He had been pacing back and forth in the dorms living room, his free hand balled into a tight fist. He knew that at this moment she must have been feeling ridiculously guilty and even depressed. She is going to blame herself… I just know it!  He let out a frustrated sigh as he flopped down into one of the couches. He felt defeated and curled into a ball as he continued to stare at his phone, hoping that she'd call him. 

 

Dara stared at the pictures with a heavy heart. The look on Chanyeol's face showed pure happiness and it was something she had not seen from him in a long time. She envied the girl he was with. She got to see his true happy self that he only shared with his closest friends and family. She has never seen him smile that way when it was only the two of them. It was as though he was in pure bliss. She bit her lip as she wiped the tears from her cheeks. Dara thought about calling him but decided against it, knowing that he would only get upset. She looked at the picture once again and felt more tears roll down her cheeks, this time she didn't wipe them away. 

 




***

 

Chanyeol kept his eyes downcast as he felt every single pair of eyes looking at him with a mixture of emotions. He knew that this was coming, however he did not know if he wanted to face it. 




"Chanyeol..." Chanyeol looked up at his manager and felt a pang of guilt at the sullen look on his features. He had caused that. "You know that we have to do a press conference over this. You have to remember the uproar about Baekhyun and Taeyeon. Then you and Dara. This is much worse than those events. You are accused of cheating on one of the nations most beautiful women. This could potentially ruin you. Already, one of the directors of a drama has decided to remove you from their list. Who knows what will be canceled next. We have to address this now." Chanyeol clenched his fists and stared at the floor in defeat. How could he remedy this? There was no way he could fix any of it. He knew this. Everyone knew this. Unless Eunyoung came out on her own and dispelled the rumors herself. That would be the only way. However, she was unable to be reached for the past two days. Chanyeol let out a sigh and looked up at his manager. "Tell me where this girl is. I will find her and talk to her."

 

Chanyeol frowned. How would he know where she is? They met in public and had not been in contact that long. How would he know something like that? 

 

"I don't know anything like that. I only know her name and little things about her. Nothing personal like that. There's no point." Chanyeol looked away and another sigh escaped his lips. The members looked at him with pity. They had never seen him in this state and it hurt them more than anything. Chanyeol was always the smiling ball of sunshine and energy. 

 

Just then a knock was heard at the door. One of the SM workers came in and whispered something into their managers ear and his eyes widened. They exchanged words and then she left. "Chanyeol." Chanyeol slowly looked up and waited for him to speak. "She is here. She wants to do a press conference." 

 

Chanyeol's eyes widened and he felt his heart skip a beat as he stood in a flash. "Where is she? Let me talk to her. Let me see her!" For some reason Chanyeol could not control this urge to see Eunyoung after such a short time. 

 

In another room on another floor Eunyoung was clutching her bag as if it would keep her from floating away. She just wanted this to end. Being a fan, she had seen all of the hate comments on Chanyeol's Instagram and even on fan pages all over Facebook. She was hurting as she saw multiple declarations of fans leaving the fandom and even hate mail being mailed to SM by Blackjacks. She wanted to end all of this. The secretary she had talked to earlier reentered the room and gave Eunyoung a small smile. 

 

"EXO's manager has told me that he would definitely like to proceed. He told me he has your number and would like you to await his call within the next day. You may leave now, Miss." Eunyoung nodded and stood, bowing before leaving the room and making her way to the nearest elevator. As she did, thoughts flooded her mind. This meant that she would never see Chanyeol again. She wouldn't be able to show her face near any other Chanyeol fans after this. She wouldn't be able to attend concerts and fansigns. She