"Movie! I want to go watch a movie!" I exclaimed in my segmented Korean. It worked, and sometimes it was better than my miming act. I got more of a response from it, I noticed. Like the way Chunji oppa cutely crinkled his nose when he heard my voice. Or the way Niel oppa smiles brightly, like he was just a giant lighthouse. They all had their charms, so it was no surprise why Leanne became such an avid fan. I probably would, too, if I had found out about them somehow by some freak chance. It made me wonder how Leanne got into K-Pop, she's spent her entire life on the island of North America. 

"Ricky's gone for an interview and everyone else left, Kari," Chunji proclaimed. Okay, so I don't understand as fluently as I make it sound. However, I was getting better at piecing together the parts of speech and I was soon able to just infer from certain phrases what TEEN TOP was talking about. So, I wasn't getting great at Hangukeo. I was just getting better. 

"You take me, Chunji oppa!" I exclaimed as brightly as I could. There was something in Korea, a way of acting. It was called 'aegyo' and the best way Ricky explained it was "baby act". It was supposedly acting childish and adorable, as a way of making people smile and getting what you want. The more I thought about it, the more I realized I was an aegyo-y person. There were times when it was deliberate, like trying to keep Leanne with me at the bookstore. There were other times, like with my ships, when it came as second nature. 

"No, I can't. I need to study if I want to graduate," Chunji murmured, looking back at his textbook. C.A.P oppa graduated last year, just after their "Supa Luv" promotions, if I remember correctly. Sometimes, it was hard to understand C.A.P oppa, with how deep and low his voice was. He mumbled half the time. Chunji oppa and L. Joe (I was in a huge turmoil on whether or not I call him oppa, considering I was talking to him before without using such honorifics but he was older than me, and I kinda did respect him... do you see my turmoil?) were next in line to graduate. Being a celebrity and a student was tough business - I understood their pain and I was only some nameless model in clothing ads! Nonetheless, I did my puppy eyes towards him. 

He responded with a loud groan and exclaimed, "You're just like Ricky!"

The way he said it, the syllables he used, were very familiar. Way too familiar. It took me a moment to realize it but L. Joe had said the same exact thing to me. "You're just like Ricky". He said it to me trying to clean my scrapes from the fall. That was when I thought the "Ricky" was just some word and not a name. Oh, wow, I was getting so much better at Hangukeo! I still had the scrapes but they were easily scabbing over and soon would be gone if I treated them right.

"What does that mean?" I asked, still trying to sound as childish as I could. 

Chunji oppa stopped then looked at me. He blinked a few times then smiled wryly. "You're too cute. One day, you're not going to want to be cute but you will still be anyway. That is how you're like Ricky. Plus, your smiles are the same." Okay, that one took me a lot longer to process. I sat there, staring at him as adorably as I could until I could piece it altogether. As soon as I could piece it together, I frowned. Really? I don't think I'll be cute forever. Sure, for a little while, but I'll mature and become pretty like Leanne. Right? 

"... so no movie?" I asked, pouting to the point where I could my bottom lip on my chin. Chunji oppa laughed. I could tell he was trying to be charismatic but he sincerely thought my face was funny, as well. It was the same laugh Leanne used in photoshoots. 

"No movie." 

I harrumphed, sticking out my tongue towards him. That also had a name. It was called a "mehrong". It was more of a jeering thing that kids did and it wasn't necessarily aegyo. Still, Chunji oppa smiled that same wry, charming smile. Was he trying to woo me? Was this how he acted with other people? 

The TEEN TOP boys explained the whole situation to L. Joe's mother, who lived here in Korea. His father lived somewhere in the States, I think he said Oregon? I couldn't remember. Nonetheless, she came to see me sometimes and her English was a little better than the boys. I liked talking to her because she was so proud of L. Joe. I could relate to L. Joe, since his mother said that he gets embarrassed when she spoke to other people about him, because that's exactly what my mom did. To think, even celebrities have insecurities such as embarrassing moms. I wanted to ask L. Joe's mom about Chunji and how he acted with her. Was he as cool with her as he was trying to be with me? Or were they as dorky as they seemed in the interviews that decorated YouTube?

With a soft huff, I grabbed my South Korean-bought iPhone (I internally screamed of happiness because that sounds so amazing) and dialled an aimless number. It was a bad habit of mine. Sometimes I called Leanne in 3 in the morning without even thinking about it because I just wanted to talk to someone. There were others times, I would call Jolan and wonder why no one was answering and who I was calling in the first place (for the record, Jolan is doing so many outdoors-y things that he gets no service 9 times out of 10). I waited and waited, not even paying attention to what I was doing until a tired voice rang out, "Yobeoseyeo?"

"L. Joe? Oh, um, hi. Didn't realize... who I was calling," I stuttered out sheepishly, knowing that Chunji oppa was watching me. Oh dear God, what am I doing? How did I do this? 

"Kari, it's 1 in the morning here. I just got to sleep. What do you want?" L. Joe groaned out, sound more crabby than I have ever heard him. 

"I... uh... So I'm learning Korean, y'know Hangukeo..."

"Kinda hard not to remember my first language, Kari."

"Okay, okay. But Chunji oppa -"

"Wait, you call him 'oppa'? Why don't you call me 'oppa'?"

"L. Joe, listen!" I whined so loud, Chunji oppa looked up at me with a raised eyebrow. He clicked his tongue and tapped his pencil against his textbook, intent on deciphering my conversation now. "Chunji oppa said something that you said to me while we were in New York. Remember? You said that I was just like Ricky."

"Oh great, now you're learning Korean. Wonderful," he grumbled. I didn't like his sarcasm. Not one bit.

"But how am I like Ricky?"

There was a long pause on the other end. Then, with a deep sigh, L. Joe muttered, "You both are friendly, cute and embarrassing. I don't know. Both of you make me want to cuddle and watch over you." 

"Ah. Chunji oppa said something similiar!" I exclaimed, pointing my finger at really nothing. It was more of a 'Eureka!' kind of gesture. 

"Kari, promise me something." Even though he was crabby, his voice rolled smoothly into my ear, like cool water flowing over a rocky stream. It made me want to squirm and giggle. "Don't ever call me at 1 in the morning again. And call me 'oppa' from now on, too." 

"Aye, aye, sir! Oop- I mean oppa!" I proclaimed with a soft laugh. Well, I didn't get a movie but I got something. Not sure what, but something.