"So, wait. You're a Korean idol? You're famous?" Jolan was asking me on our way to Kenora. He was perplexed. Not so much at me being famous, but rather, Kari meeting someone famous. Apparently, that doesn't happen a lot in her quaint little town. "And you helped Kari out?"

"And she dropped her phone! Sheesh, just when you'd think she can't get any dorkier!" Kyreese snickered. I was in the backseat of the car with him. However, Kyreese didn't make for a great travel partner. He was immersed in a fantasy world. He had an array of carefully constructed Lego vehicles, as well as a handful of Bionicle figurines. He made whooshing and gunshot noises as he used the majority of the backseat as his battleground. Jolan turned enough so that he could see me clearly and Miss Ryan was driving intently. She made a sharp shushing noise towards Kyreese who only huffed in response. He went back into his fantasy world. 

"Is it cold in Korea?"

"It can get pretty cold sometimes. Not very often, though."

"Huh, cool. How hot does it get there?"

"Uh... pretty hot? Around thirty or forty degrees?"

"Holy ." A glare from Miss Ryan. "Pardon my French. That's pretty hot. Half of Kenora's population find themselves in the lake on days where it'd get that hot." 

"Oh, L. Joe," Miss Ryan called out, looking at me through the mirror. "I say we live in Kenora. But we're actually about 20 minutes out. Our house is on the lake." 

"Fine with me."

"Hey, hey, Joey. Are the girls pretty over there? Do they look like Leanne? Or more importantly, do they act like her?" 

"Some of them do. Most aren't that tall. Well, there's a lot of different type of girls."

"Alright, alright, understandable. Do they act like her?"

"... Lots of k-pop fans act like her, but only towards the idols. Leanne seems to do it to everyone."

"Oh, trust me. She terrorizes the kids in Kenora. Okay, not terrorize. She charms so much at once and then they just brawl it out. It's fun to watch."

I laughed harder than I should've. But Jolan didn't mind. He was laughing just as hard, too. "So, wait, wait. You must've saw right through that girl then, huh?"

I raised my shoulder up and down, grining from ear to ear. Jolan was a cool guy. Definitely not laidback as C.A.P or friendly as Ricky... but he had his own set of tricks that made people want to be around him. "Yeah, there are a lot of girls like her around. They'd do anything for a chance at their idols, even stomp over their friends."

Jolan raised an eyebrow, his smile becoming less friendly. It was thoughtful and it was geared towards me with blinding curiosity. It was almost like he was trying to read my mind. "Huh. That's a new opinion I haven't heard about Leanne. You'd really think she'd discard her friends like that?" he asked. I bit my tongue so I wouldn't retort back that I knew. She did it to Kari, I was sure of it. Of course, there was nothing supporting my claim. I knew better than to throw accusations like that around. 

"It's possible." They were the only words that I could manage to say without sounding cold. 

"Well, yeah. It makes sense. Oh hey, you know how to swim right? The current at Miss Ryan's house is a little strong but the water's clear as day," he said to change the subject. 

The rest of the ride home went like this. My English was put to the test as Jolan asked question after question about celebrity life, my hobbies, Korea, my family, my friends and my opinions about Canada. I didn't really think he was that annoying. He registered everything and used it as fuel for the next question. He was absorbing all the information about me. It was better than the interviewers who pretended like they knew me. 

***

Ring! Ring! Ring!

"Hey, L. Joe! Is that Kari?" Kyreese asked instantly, his head snapping around to face me. He was playing some sort of war game on the huge flat-screen TV they had in the living room. I dug out my phone and checked to see who it was. Ricky. 

"Yobeoseyo?" I answered. Kyreese looked at me with a confused face, his nose crinkling slightly. 

"L. Joe! L. Joe! I don't speak Korean!" Kari wailed into my ear frantically. "I don't speak Korean and I'm dying! None of the other members speak English as well as you do!"

"Calm down, calm down. Where are you?" I asked, trying to use a soothing tone in my voice. Kari took one deep breath. 

When she spoke, it was a lot quieter than before. Although, you could still tell she was panicking. "Okay, okay. I'm at the TEEN TOP dorm. I told your manager it was a mistake. I think he understood. But like, the next flight to Canada is booked! I have to wait for a few days! L. Joe, I don't know what to do!"

I laughed involuntarily. "Well, first off. Buy a phone for yourself. Your mom wants you to buy one using her credit card. Secondly, buy a English to Korean dictionary."

"I did, I did. Changjo helped me buy one. Uh... uh... I also changed all the money I had to woon. Is that how you say it? Woon?"

Laughing some more, I replied, "No, no. It's won."

"Won. Won. Okay. I'm really worried, what if I offend people? By saying something wrong?" Just from her voice, I could tell she was chewing on her bottom lip. Some of  the Angels do the same thing during fanmeetings. It was charming and I remember those ones – the nervous fans that have enough bravery to still talk – I remember those fans the most. 

"It'll be fine. Just stay with TEEN TOP, they'll help explain your mistakes. Get them to take you places. Tell them L. Joe said so."

Kari snorted. "Why? Are you mean to them?"

I smiled with nostalgia. Of course, I bugged them because I cared about them. But, most of TEEN TOP are wary of me and I've been dubbed a bully. I didn't mind all that much. They knew I really cared about them and I know they care about me. "You could say that. Here, to make you feel better, we'll book flights that are around the same time, okay? I'll stay here and you'll stay there."

"What about your manager? He doesn't seem all that pleased, L. Joe."

"He can't do anything to me. I'm halfway across the world. It'll be like an extended vacation," I said. Kyreese had lost interest in the phone call and went back to playing. He sat cross-legged in the middle of the living room, looking at the screen with an open mouth. Kyreese and Jolan were fun to hang around; it'd be a great time with them.

"Okay, okay. Chunji's telling me to get off... I think. I'll... I'll talk to you later. Tell Kyreese I love him and tell my mom that I'm sorry," and with that, she hung up. I blinked. Well, that was quick.

"Hey, kid," I said with a big grin on my face. Kyreese grunted as a response, his eyes never leaving the screen. "Kari loves you. She also told me to give you a kiss."

"Ew. No way, L. Joe. I don't want a kiss," the boy grumbled.

I let out a laugh. "She insisted."

It didn't take long for Kyreese to pause his game and disappear out the porch door. It was fun playing with the hyperactive kid. He loved playing tag and chase. He'd find any reason to and since I could, as well, we played tag for close to 3 hours when we arrived at the Ryan house. Kyreese didn't look tired so why not play some more?