CHAPTER FIVE 

Moments have past but I am still shaking from what just happened. Never in my life had I felt such high turbulence on an airplane! For a moment I really thought the plane was going to lose control and crash in the middle of nowhere! Luckily that didn’t happen.

“Uh… What are you guys doing?”

I quickly glanced to the source of the voice and noticed TOP standing in the middle of the aisle looking at me… Still on top of Taehyun. I gulped and looked up at Taehyun who had the same expression as me. Crap, this is bad. I totally forgot I haven’t returned to my seat yet! He released his grip on me and I quickly stood up, patting my clothing down while thinking of what to say.

“Nothing! Nothing Seunghyun-shi… I just fell on Taehyun during the turbulence and I wasn’t able to get up!” I defended myself and tried to avoid Taehyun’s gaze.

“The lights have been turned off for a while now Yunju shi.” TOP chuckled and took a seat on my chair. “It’s okay. I won’t tell anyone about your relationship. You can take my seat!” He yanked me down by my arm so that I am sitting in the middle- beside Taehyun.

“No really sunbaenim… What noona said is true!” Taehyun immediately spoke up. “She was such a scaredy cat, she was shaking and panicking just now! It’s not like I could have left her alone…”

TOP smirked and leaned back onto his chair. As he was about to put his headphones back on, he leaned in towards us and placed his finger on his lips. “Shh… It’s okay. I won’t tell anyone! Sorry that I had to separate you love birds earlier!”

“Ani!!” I suddenly blushed at TOP’s words yet I feel frustrated at the same time. I looked back at Taehyun and saw him face palming himself. Aish this kid… Why isn’t he helping me? I don’t think he is happy getting in this situation too, right?

“Ai, stop blushing Yunju-shi, it really is alright!” TOP said again, this time his voice got a little louder, causing Taeyang, who sat in front of him now, to turn around.

“What are you guys talking about?” Taeyang chirped in, giving us a confused glance but full of curiosity at the same time.

“Ah.. Ani. Nothing is going on!” I immediately gave TOP a look, hinting at him to keep his mouth shut.

TOP looks even more puzzled now. “OH Youngbae ah, did you know about these two’s little secret?” He pointed at Taehyun and I. “They like each other but don’t want to admit it, it’s so funny!” I take back what I said about luck being on my side and God starting to pity me. This is just the start! WHAT IS THIS?! I wish TOP still had his stomach ache and didn’t come back!

Taeyang started to laugh. “That’s cute. Yunju-ah, there’s nothing embarrassing about it! You can admit it! We will keep it a secret for you!” I sighed, feeling more defeated than ever.

“What’s going on?” I turned and saw Mino rubbing his eyes and stretching out his arms. Oh no, our conversation must have gotten louder and a little out of control that it’s waking people up! I must put a stop to this otherwise the whole plane would be talking about it when we get off!

I immediately stood up and placed Taeyang’s headphones back on his ears to tell him to mind his own business. Then I looked at TOP and asked, “Seunghyun- shi, how’s your stomach ache?”

TOP’s eyes widened and placed his hand on his stomach. “Why did you remind me?! Omo… I think I need to go again!” With that, he quickly stood up and ran for dear life to the washroom again.

I sat down and looked at the confused Mino. “Nothing is going on. TOP is just having a really bad stomach ache.” I tried to make it sound as plausible as I can. In the end Mino nodded and went back to sleep.

I groaned and leaned down on my chair to massage my temples. Never have I ever been in a situation like this before! And what’s up with that Nam Taehyun? He didn’t even do anything to help the situation! But I know I shouldn’t even depend on that jerk!

Calming myself and my heart rate down, I contemplated whether I should talk to Taehyun or not. Why is he so quiet and still? That’s odd… Did what happen even affect him? I don’t even understand why it’s affecting me so much! It’s not like it’s true! I should just leave it and then TOP and Taeyang will soon forget about it! I slowly turned my eyes to his direction, trying my best to see what he’s doing without having to turn my head. But I couldn’t see anything so I decided to steal a glance at him. I instantly regretted my decision when I saw him looking straight at me.

Oh my… How long has he been staring at me for and why? I noticed a slight red tint on his cheeks. Omo! I bet I’m blushing even more than he is! After a few seconds or so, we both immediately turned away towards our little screen on the chair in front of us. I gulped and felt my breath shortened. I brought my hand to my cheeks and it was BURNING. I wish I didn’t have to react like this, especially in front of Taehyun. Calm down Yunju! Just pretend to concentrate on the movie playing right now!

I searched through my seat for my headphones and somehow managed to plug it in the headphone jack with shaky hands. Why am I even shaking! Why am I getting so nervous!? I exhaled a deep breath and tried to watch the movie that’s playing. But for the rest of the ride, all I could think of is of a certain someone. Someone called Nam Taehyun.

---

When we arrived at Narita airport, it was already 5PM. Since it’s still too early for dinner, and because there was no schedule planned for the rest of the day, we decided to drop off our belongings in the hotel first, wash up and then meet again later for dinner.

Stepping into the hotel, I pulled Hyejin aside and begged for her to room with me no matter what happens. She simply smiled at me and shrugged off my weird behaviour. I’m not being weird! This is being precautious! I don’t want to be anywhere near Nam Taehyun at all!

After getting my room keys, I was informed of a good news and a bad news. Good news is that I’ll be sharing a room with Hyejin. Sounds awesome right? Yeah…  Bad news is that Taehyun and Seungyoon will be staying in the room across Hyejin and I. WHY?! JUST WHY? Why must this happen to me? I went to talk to Sungmin about it and he said because sajangnim knew Taehyun and I were ‘close’ so he wanted to arrange things this way- for us to sit next to each other on the plane, and for our rooms to be across the hallway. All I can simply do was to smile at Sungmin and dragged my miserable self back into my hotel room. I plopped myself down on the bed when I heard Hyejin coming out of the washroom from her shower.

“Wow Yunju-ah. You look dead.” Hyejin said while drying her hair with a towel.

“Maybe I should go cast for a part time job in The Walking Dead?” I joked and sat up to look at Hyejin.

Hyejin sat next to me on my bed and gave me a hug. “Why are you so stressed out? Is it because of…” She chuckled. “Nam Taehyun?”

“Do me a favour. Don’t mention his name in front of me!” I warned and laid on the bed again.

Hyejin laughed but I gave her a harsh look. She brought her hand to to suppress her laughs. “What happened this time? Oh my! Did he actually confess to you?” I sat up to smack the back of her head. “Aish! What was that for?” She smirked and laid down beside me. “Just tell me what happened!”

I sighed and spent the next five minutes explaining to her what happened on the plane ride just now. She instantaneously laughed after I finished. “So you mean TOP and Taeyang thinks you two are a couple now?”

“Oh god, I sure hope not!” I sat cross legged on the bed with my head down. “But I think they believe we like each other or something.”

Hyejin laughed even harder. “Omo, this is getting interesting! And you said Taehyun didn’t do anything but just stared at you?”

I gulped. “Well I don’t know. I just saw him looking at me when I glanced at him.” I face palmed myself. “Omo, it was so awkward and embarrassing!”

“Hahaha! Well it seems like Taehyun isn’t such a bad guy! At least he tried to comfort you when you were scared!”

“I didn’t even know why I did that! I’m never scared of plane rides! And… I just somehow lost my balance and fell on him… Aish!!” I scratched and pulled on my hair in frustration.

“Yah, stop that or you’re going to be bald soon!”

I groaned and looked at Hyejin. “What should I do now? How am I going to face him again?”

“Yunju, you need to chill. Just calm down! I don’t even know why you’re reacting this way.” Hyejin slowly explained but trialed off. “Unless… You actually like him too?

“What?! He’s younger than me!” I exclaimed.

“So?”

My eyes widened at her blunt comment. “So…? I’m older than him! I’m his noona! And I’m just his makeup artist!”

“So?”

“I just… I don’t even know. What do you mean ‘so’?”

“Besides the age thing, would you have liked him?”

I paused and thought for a moment. Wait, why do I even need to think? He’s Nam Taehyun afterall! “Of course not! He’s Nam Taehyun, the bossy guy who always gets me in trouble!”

Hyejin shrugged. “If you don’t like him then you should just act like you normally would. I don’t get what you’re stressing over. Take it easy and pretend nothing happened!” She then went to blow dry her hair, leaving me alone on my bed to think.

Maybe I am just overreacting. Taehyun didn’t seem at all bothered by it. It was just me telling TOP and Taeyang that there’s nothing going on. I took a deep breath and exhaled. I can do this! I’ll just act like nothing happened. I jumped on my bed and threw up a determined fist. “I CAN DO THIS! I CAN DO THIS! IM LEE YUNJU!”

Hyejin then came out right away and threw her towel over my head. “YAH SHUT UP!”

Not able to see with a towel draping over my face, I lost my balance and slipped off the bed. Ouch… “Neh unnie…”

---

An hour later, the crew met up in the lobby for dinner. But it turns out that Big Bang had a last minute change in their schedule and they had to do a rehearsal tonight for their concert tomorrow evening. Poor Hyejin, she was looking forward to having a delicious dinner tonight, certainly not going to the event hall for a rehearsal.

“Make sure you eat my portion too! Have fun later Yunju ah and act normal arrasseo?” I grudgingly nodded at her before she left the room. Wait. That means only WINNER’s crew will be going to dinner. This means there’ll be less people there that I can talk to. Omo… Should I even go for dinner? I looked at my stomach that’s already growling. I really want to eat… But I also don’t know what to say to Taehyun when I see him. Maybe I should take a short nap and eat with Hyejin later when she comes back! I grinned at my brilliant idea and tried to sleep.

Suddenly, there was a knock on my door and Seungyoon’s voice was heard. “Noona, do you want to come have dinner with us?”

Oh no, what should I say? “Ah, it’s okay. I’m quite exhausted so I’m just going to sleep now… haha…”

“Are you sure? Do you want me to get you some take out?”

“No no, I’m fine. Thank you. Have fun at dinner!” I tried my best to let out a yawn to convince him.

“Okay noona. See you tomorrow then!”

Phew… That was close! I looked at my stomach again. “Sorry, hang in there with me arrasseo?”

My attempt to take a nap wasn’t working because my stomach was growling too much. I cursed at myself for not bringing any snacks with me on the trip. I looked at the clock which read 8:30PM. It’s been about 45 minutes since everyone left for dinner. Maybe it’s safe to go out now? I’ll just run to a nearby convenient store, grab a bento box and come back!

I smiled at my idea and got ready to head out. For the sake of not getting caught by anyone in YG, I also threw on a cap and curled my hair as I usually wear it straight or tie it up. I glanced at my reflection in the mirror and grinned at myself. Brilliant Yunju! Now go get some food before you die of hunger! Grabbing the key to the room, I quietly opened the door, peered out at the hallway and finally stepped out when the coast was clear.

Just then, I hear another door open and close in the hallway so I looked over behind me. Wait… Behind me? I turned around and gasped.

WHAT? NAM TAEHYUN? I wish I can just dig a hole at that moment and hide in it. I blinked once, twice and now he is staring at me too. Maybe my disguise wasn’t as great as I thought it was.

“What are you doing here?” I asked and crossed my arms in front of my chest. “Aren’t you supposed to be having dinner with the rest of them?”

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”

I coughed. “I’m not hungry.” But my stomach betrayed me and growled very loudly at that time. WHY? Even my own body is doing this to me?!

“Are you sure noona? It’s not good to starve yourself.”

I pursed my lips. “Well, I’m just about to go to the convenient store now to grab something to eat.”

He nodded and started to walk down the hallway with me. I glanced at him. “Why didn’t you join them?”

“I wanted to finish a song that I started. I’m going to get some food now.” He explained as we started to go down on the elevator.

“Oh.” What else can I say? My mind is probably running at infinite speed per hour right now. I looked at every possible corner in the elevator for something interesting to occupy my mind but nothing caught my eyes. Hyejin’s voice is playing in the back of my head instead, telling me to act normal. Maybe I should ask him to go eat with me? That’s okay right? Of course it’s okay! We work as a team after all, of course it’s okay to eat together! We do that sometimes anyways!

“Perhaps, we can go eat together then?” Taehyun suddenly suggested, his face remained calm and he kept his gaze forward.

I turned my vision to him. Guess he beat me to it first. “Sure, let’s go.”

He seemed taken aback by my response but in the end cleared his throat and looked away again. “Cool.”

---

We walked around the neighbourhood in silence, trying to look for a place to sit down and eat. Since we don’t have any cars available, we are only able to go somewhere within walking distance. But I preferred this since I was able to explore the inner parts of the city. After all, it was my first time here in Japan.

“Uh noona, I just noticed something.” Taehyun suddenly started to say. I looked at him and urged him to continue. “Your leggings…”

Huh? I bent down to take a look and indeed, there’s a hole in my leggings! “How the hell did that happen?”

“You’re asking me?” Taehyun said and smirked at my stupid question.

I pouted. These leggings were new too! How did it suddenly break and have a hole in it?? “OH wait… I know now.” I suddenly remembered when I jumped on the bed and yelled in the hotel earlier. I probably made a hole when I slipped off the bed. Stupid Hyejin and her shutting-me-up tactics! “Uh, whatever. It’s not like I can go back and change now.”

Taehyun looked at it uneasily but shrugged in the end. “New fashion it is.”

We continued walking. There were people everywhere, the city lights and busy streets all seemed so captivating to me. I probably stopped and stared at the scene in awe.

“Is it your first time in Japan?” Taehyun asked.

I smiled and nodded at him. “You’ve been here before?”

“Nope, it’s my first time too.”

“Is there anything you want to try?”

He paused to think. “Well, since we’re in Japan, I think we should go for something that’s more local right?”

I nodded immediately at his words. “Right? That’s what I think too! But what?”

“Hmm… Takoyaki? Okonomiyaki? Ramen?” He started to suggest as he reads the signs up ahead on the street in front of us. “I wonder where the rest of them went.”

“Beats me. They have two cars! They probably went somewhere further away.” I stopped walking because the ramen display in front of a restaurant caught my eyes. “This looks mighty delicious!”

“Shall we go in then?” I happily nodded and we stepped into the small yet comfortable restaurant. Wow, it seems like I’m actually having a NORMAL conversation with Taehyun right now. From the moment we met in the hotel until now, he hasn’t pulled a trick on me yet! What is this?! It actually feels so weird…

We got sat down quickly and ordered two bowls of ramen right away. As soon as the waiter walked away, silence came floating back to us. I think Taehyun noticed the awkwardness too, especially after the incident on the plane.

All of a sudden, he smirked and cleared his throat. Uh no, up to no good Taehyun is back! I can just tell from him face! “Noona, let’s have a challenge!” I cocked up an eyebrow and nodded at him. What is he up to now?  

“What challenge?” I questioned, not wanting to participate in his crazy ideas but still curious enough to know.

He grinned and pointed at a picture behind me. I turned around and saw a contest advertisement. It says they offer a bowl of ramen that is five times the spiciness of their regular spicy ramen. If we finish it in 20 minutes then our meal is free and will be given a t-shirt as well.

“Well… We’re Koreans right? We should be able to handle spicy food…” I reasoned. “Challenge accepted.” We notified their waiter about the change in our menu to which they happily accepted. “What happens if you can’t finish it?”

“Losers will be granting the winner a wish of course!” Taehyun said right away, taking a pair of wooden chopsticks from the table. Hmm this sounds even more interesting! I bet I can kick his in this! I love spicy food!

“Sure, sounds like a good plan.” I nodded.

By then, the ramen have arrived at our table. It looked astonishingly red and orange in colour. The bowl also looked a lot bigger than usual. We were notified that we had to finish everything- including the soup. I gulped. Somehow, this doesn’t seem as easy as I thought it would anymore. I looked at Taehyun who seemed to be quite shocked as well.

He looked at me uneasily but suddenly looked really determined again. Right… I can’t lose to him! He’s going to make me do something very lame as punishment I just know it! It’s time for me to get my revenge!  “Bottoms up Yunju noona!”

I smiled at him. “Bottoms up Taehyun shi!” And with that, our 20 minute timer started.

---

Author's Note: HELLO MY READERS! Oh how i've missed you all! I'm so sorry that I wasn't able to update until now because I actually went on a mini trip last week. I hope you guys understand >< I also hope you will all like this chapter! I proof read it a few times but it may still not be perfect. I just really wanted to post it ASAP for you all. Well, here it is! Enjoy! And hello new subscribers, welcome aboard to the journey of Yunju and Taehyun :) That awkwardness on the plane. HAHA I just had to laugh! TOP is so nosy!

So what will happen to their little ramen contest? Who do you think will win? Who will lose? Will a wish be granted? Teehee... 

And as always, please comment and tell me what you think! It will be greatly appreciated!! Talk to you all soon!