“Jackson, you’re getting a call!” yelled Mark from their bedroom.

Jackson was stuffing into a sandwich in the living room. He rushed to receive the call while trying to chew fast.

“Yesh?” said Jackson, struggling to swallow.

It was a call from the production crew with which he had worked on the MV. While he waited to be connected directly to the PD, he wondered what was wrong.

“Jackson! How are you?” boomed the PD.

“I’m good?” replied Jackson, not quite sure why the PD was suddenly calling now.

“Good! Okay, here it is, we have decided to add another sequence to the MV. We were just sitting along with BJY and reviewing all the shots and we all decided that there has to be one more sequence” said the PD in a rush.

“Another sequence? But we finished all the scenes in the script. Is anything wrong with them?” asked Jackson, unsure of what was going on.

“Actually, there was no script, and you know that. No, we have no problem with the scenes that we already filmed. We just feel that there has to be another sequence that shall bind the whole footage together and give a smoother continuation of the story….”, the PD tried to explain.

“Well, I don’t know, PDnim. Did you decide it just now?” Jackson said.

“Yes, I have spoken to your Manager and he informed me that you do not have any schedule today. Even Youngji is free today. Let’s meet up at the studio and we shall discuss further” replied the PD.

Jackson sighed, “Fine, I’m on my way there.”

Youngji was carrying too many things in her hands and when they reached their car, she could not open the door. As the Manager helped her in, she absentmindedly listened to what he was saying while dumping all her things inside.

“… have to go immediately” said the manager as he got into the car to drive.

“What? Where? Sorry I was not paying attention. Where do we have to go?” asked Youngji putting on her seat belt.

“I said we need to go to the studio for a meeting with the PD now” replied the manager.

“What studio? Which PD?” asked Youngji confused.

“You really did not hear anything that I said, right?” the Manager sighed. “I just received a call that I have to take you to the studio where you filmed last week. They seem to be planning another sequence. They wanted to discuss with you.”

“But we just finished a schedule!” exclaimed Youngji, throwing her head back against the seat. “I was looking forward to a leisure time for packing.”

The manager smiled, “Your packing can never be leisurely. You just dump everything you need. Even if I give you the whole day, you’ll only spend the last 10 minutes before leaving to pack.”

Youngji closed her eyes and smiled. It was true; she really didn’t need a lot of time to pack for an international tour. But nevertheless, she was tired and expected the previous schedule to be the last one. While wondering what the matter was, she fell asleep.

“You must be joking!” cried Jackson incredulously.

“I knew you would react this way. But don’t you feel that it is necessary? It would make the whole MV perfect” said the PD patiently.

“But….you’re talking about a bed scene!” said Jackson, anxiously.

“Are you reacting this way because it’s a bed scene or because you have to do it with Youngji? I thought you were pretty professional, Jackson!” said the PD, humorously. “Seriously Jackson, see, we have the footage of the early morning, which seems rather abrupt to introduce after the baking sequence. A night sequence is what we need to fill in that awkward gap, to make it a smoothly flowing story.”

Jackson was quiet as he listened to the PD explaining. Taking this as a cue of compliance, the PD continued to convince him, “And it’s not really a ‘bed scene’. We can’t risk censoring. It’ll only be a cutely sensual sequence.”

“There’s nothing cute about sensuousness. It’s either this or that” grumbled Jackson, more to himself.

Before they could continue, Youngji entered the studio. Jackson was ready to spar with her about being late, but stopped himself when he saw her. She must have fallen asleep in the car, as she looked groggy and her hair was a mess. While she greeted everyone, Jackson felt a twinge of concern. She seemed tired and by the way she was clutching that thermos, he was sure she had skipped her dinner. That blasted bottle was constantly with her since she began her diet.

“Sorry for being late, everyone. Hi, Jackson. So, what happened, PDnim?” said Youngji while sitting down beside Jackson, facing the PD. Jackson did not like how she had greeted him like some afterthought. But, he let it pass, as she looked so beaten.

As the PD explained the same things again, Jackson waited eagerly to watch Youngji start whining too. Instead, she was calmly listening to everything while taking a couple of sips from her beloved bottle.

“Fine,” said Youngji.

“You’re fine with this?” asked Jackson, truly surprised.

“What’s the problem? The PD is right, there does seem to be an awkward gap” said Youngji frowning at Jackson.

“Are you still half asleep? This is a bed scene we are talking about!” exclaimed Jackson.

“It is not a bed scene, not in that sense” cut in the PD. “Youngji has agreed to it, what about you Jackson?”

Jackson did not look away from Youngji, “If she’s okay with it, then I have no problem.”

“Great! Then let’s go! We cannot waste anymore time!” said the excited PD.

“Now?” cried Jackson and Youngji in unison.

“How can we shoot now? I have a plane to catch tonight!” said Jackson standing up.

“And I have to travel too, early tomorrow!” said Youngji standing up too.

“I know. You will both be abroad for the whole week. I cannot wait till you get back again. We have to finish it now” said the PD firmly. Looking at their worried faces he said, “Let’s make it a really short sequence. Just a few hours.”  

Jackson was glad to have closed his eyes as the makeup was being applied. He was trying his best to compose his thoughts. It’s just another scripted action. Nothing he hadn’t done before. He kept telling himself over and over.

“Hey Jackson,” said his Manager who had been sitting beside him, busy on his phone, “I have to leave. I’ll round up the guys and get the entire luggage. I’ll come back for you later.”

“Nice. Now you’re abandoning me again” pouted Jackson.

“You somehow always manage to have a schedule just before we leave abroad. I can’t help it”, said the manager laughing, “Have fun shooting, just don’t go overboard.” He thumped Jackson on his back and left.

The situation was already going overboard, thought Jackson sighing.

The set was that of the same bedroom that they had shot in earlier on the first floor. The bed was placed with its head board against the wall and facing a set of glass double doors that opened onto a balcony. The balcony was semicircular in shape with a low parapet wall. In the middle of the balcony was placed a small round table made of wrought iron with four chairs around it. It was past nine and really dark outside. The otherwise strongly lit studio was bathed in mellow lights now. There were only a couple of yellow lights illuminating the balcony and the entire bedroom was filled with candles and tea lights.

As Youngji entered the bedroom, she was thankful that they did not need to face any bright hot studio lights. The way the little room was set up with cameras, some of them discretely; there was room only for very few people apart from them both. She walked barefoot through the double doors into the balcony, to find Jackson and his stylist as they sat at the table, fiddling with something.

“What is this?” asked Youngji walking over to them.

Jackson caught his breath when he saw Youngji. She was wearing a white camisole and lace shorts. She had her hands wrapped around herself and was walking bare foot. Jackson did not realize he was staring until Youngji snapped her fingers in front of his face saying, “What?”

Jackson mentally slapped himself. Damn she looked hot! He had seen her in even more revealing stage costumes. But this simple look seemed so real, like she had just stepped out of her own bedroom, making Jackson feel like he had invaded someone’s personal space.

Youngji sat down on one of the chairs and exclaimed, “Oh, this! This is that flying lantern! We used to do this…..” she rambled on, though Jackson could not hear anything. He did not even notice the stylist leave. This was not going to be easy, he thought, second mental slap.

“Jackson? Are you listening to me?” asked Youngji.

“Um…what?” said Jackson, trying to remember what she had been talking about.

“I said we could write something on this before we set it afloat. We used to do that as kids. Write some wish and send it to heaven, something like that” said Youngji sounding excited.

“Okay” was all he could manage to say. He wished Youngji would have at least worn a shirt over her dress. Jackson himself was wearing a white button down shirt; similar to the one Youngji was wearing in the previous shoot, paired with white pajamas. The fact that most of his buttons were undone and the fabric was so thin made him feel like he was almost . There was a slight chilly breeze too.

Youngji borrowed a couple of pens from the staff and handed one to Jackson. She spread out the paper lantern on the table and sat across him. Jackson found it really cute how she tapped her pen on her cheek while thinking about what to write. Then she bent over and began writing intently. When she finished, she looked up to see that Jackson had not even started writing.

“Can’t decide what to write?” asked Youngji.

“No, I know exactly what to write. I was waiting for you to finish writing” replied Jackson. He began writing and Youngji stretched her neck to read it.

“That’s not fair!” cried Youngji, “You can’t write in Chinese!”

“You never said I had to write in Korean only” smiled Jackson as he wrote a short note. “There, done. Let me see yours.”

Youngji grudgingly turned the paper around. Though she could not understand what was written in Chinese, the last line written n English brought a smile on her face, for she had written exactly the same at the end of her note. “I’ll miss you.”

Jackson too was smiling as he read Youngji’s note. She had wished for happiness and good health, for both of them; for Jackson to stay safe and that she will miss him.

“Thank god, I wrote down my wish” laughed Jackson.

“What did you wish for? Tell me…” pleaded Youngji. Jackson only smiled.

Before she could resort to threatening him, the PD called for order.  There really were very few people on set. Apart from their stylists and the PD, only a couple of cameramen were present. The fewer, the better, thought Jackson.

The cameras were rolling and Jackson and Youngji were left alone in the balcony. They unraveled the lantern and lit it. As they waited for it to heat up, they walked over to the edge of the balcony carefully. Soon, the lantern started lifting up and they released it together. Watching the lantern soar higher, Youngji was smiling like a happy child and she climbed on the wall to sit with one leg folded and the other dangling inside. Though there was a several feet drop on the other side, the wall was wide enough to sit down comfortably.

Jackson was not very convinced and moved closer to place one hand on the wall behind her back to support her better. Youngji unconsciously leaned back on Jackson and rested her head on his arm as he stood beside her. She was still staring up at the lantern when she felt that odd flutter in her stomach. She turned her head to find Jackson looking at her thoughtfully. Due to the lighting, only Youngji was illuminated completely, while Jackson was facing away and his face was in the shadows. Though she could not see him clearly, she could swear that his eyes were sparkling right then. She cocked up her eyebrows in a questioning way. Jackson shook his head slightly and kept looking at her as if trying to reach somewhere deep.

She began wondering what was going in his mind when they were suddenly startled. Youngji’s stomach made a low growling sound, which thankfully, only the two of them could here. They both started laughing at once.

Though Jackson was enjoying the moment and found the hunger pangs funny, he was also sorry that Youngji had to stay on that damn diet, leaving her hungry. The things they had to do for maintaining their career.

Jackson straightened up and moved closer to face Youngji. “Let’s get this over with quickly” he said. As Youngji turned to get down from the wall, Jackson moved in front of her, blocking her from descending. When she looked up into his face, she saw that impish grin. The next thing she knew, he was putting his arms around her and lifting her up.

Youngji gasped in surprise, “Yah!” Instinctively, she wrapped her legs around his torso, while Jackson cupped his hands on her behind, like carrying a child. She started laughing and hid her face on his shoulder. Jackson carried her towards the bedroom, through the glass doors and stopped at the foot of the bed. Youngji lifted her head to see why he stopped and expected him to let her down. He was smiling at her and slowly turned around with her still in his arms. Then, without warning, he started falling backwards onto the bed. With a plop they both landed on the bed and began laughing like kids.

“Cut!”  called the PD. “Okay guys, we need a little adjustment to do. Jackson, move higher up on the bed, near the pillows. Youngji, stay the same way, you being on top seems even better. We’ll continue from this position.”

As Jackson scooted backwards, Youngji walked on her knees while still straddling him. It was awkward, but neither of them wanted to complain. As Youngji settled back on his torso, she asked, “Are you okay this way? Am I not too heavy?”

Jackson, at any other time, would not have passed such an opportunity to . But today, he just did not have the urge to do so. He simply shook his head no.

“You know, you’re oddly very quiet today. Is anything wrong?” asked Youngji while adjusting her hair and finding a comfortable sitting position.

Oh everything, Jackson wanted to say. He never even dreamt that today they would end up like this. It seemed so surreal, what could he say. He couldn’t even look her square in the face; she looked ethereal in the glow of candlelight. Jackson did not answer, but played with the lace hem of her shorts. Youngji shrugged and decided that maybe he was just too tired. It was so unlike Jackson to stay quiet.

Jackson was still lost in his thoughts when the cameras began rolling again. Youngji noticed this and stilled his hands with her own. Jackson looked up into her eyes and found her biting her lip and smiling. Jackson tilted his head and raised an eyebrow as if asking what she was up to.

Youngji clasped both his hands with hers and slowly raised them until they were crossed over behind his head. She had to lean forward to do this. As she straightened up, Jackson too began to move his hands, but, Youngji firmly held him again and gave a warning glance to stay put. Jackson was smiling at the role reversal and trying to guess what she would do next.

She leaned back slowly, dragging her fingers along his lower arms, then across his elbow. Jackson inhaled sharply and closed his eyes. He was ready to stop her if she went any further as it would be very ticklish for him. But Youngji cleverly evaded that area. She had managed to cause goose bumps on his skin. She now ran her fingers delicately over his eyebrows, and cheeks. Jackson felt her lean down and heard her whisper in his ear, “I didn’t know you were this sensitive.  At this rate you might need a cold shower.”

Jackson opened his eyes, startled at her comment. Youngji too jerked back into a sitting position and the movement almost caused him to have just the predicament she was hinting about. She threw back her head and started laughing. It was Jackson’s turn to start blushing today and he had a sudden urge to wrap his hands around himself.

“How….why would you say something like that!” asked Jackson, shocked.

“I had to do something to snap you out of your damn silence. I cannot bear it if you give me the silent treatment” said Youngji. She had unwittingly confessed, and Jackson did not miss her genuine intent.

“Okay, I won’t. Don’t surprise me like that” said Jackson.

“You know, right now your face is…” Youngji said, laughing.

“Don’t. Just stop. Don’t even laugh” warned Jackson through clenched teeth. This girl has no idea how hard I’m trying to hang on, he thought.

“Oh you poor Wang Jackson!” said Youngji sighing exaggeratedly. She leaned down and laid her head on his chest and cuddled close to him. Jackson naturally held her with one arm around her and the other in her hair. He loved the soft feel of her hair; he’d always known it though he never really touched it. He was unconsciously her hair and making small circles on her back with his other hand. Youngji inhaled deeply like a content cat.

“Cut. Beautiful guys! But just don’t move yet. We need some still shots” said the PD.

Neither of them actually intended to get up. Both wanted to just stay that way, for as long as possible. Just this moment felt so true and blissful, that what lay in the past and future was forgotten, at least for now.

They were so still, just breathing, that they would have well fallen asleep.

“Wang Jackson?” said Youngji with her eyes still closed.

“Hmm?”

She would not forget the way his heartbeat sounded through his chest, or how it rumbled when he spoke. It felt so intimate.

“What did you write in Chinese?” asked Youngji. She knew he was smiling now, though she could not see his face.

“I wished for your wishes to come true” he replied.