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Beneath the Black4. He’s the 'nicest' player ever.
Amber Liu was very nonchalant about it.
After essentially setting her friend (and rumored love interest) Henry Lau out to dry by calling him a player on national television, she was asked about her friendship with Jackson, to which the f(x) rapper carelessly replied,
“Ah, Jackson is also a player…”
“Oh wow.” SeungYeon scoffed, scandalized. “Can she really say that in public?”
“People are bound to take her seriously since she knows them both so well.” GyuRi commented.
After a moment, they all realized that YoungJi had remained silent… but only because she was engrossed in a conversation with her Charm Girls friends. Well, it was less of an actual conversation and more like a chat with several-hours’ worth of them going back and forth sending each other ugly selcas to see who could make the most unattractive face. YoungJi wasn’t sure how they started this game, but she made a hideous expression that might’ve spurned some children to tears and giggled when she sent it to their chat.
“Hey YoungJi.” HaRa nudged her lightly. “Doesn’t what Amber said about Jackson bother you?”
“Why would it?” YoungJi replied flippantly, laughing when Lizzy sent a selca wherein she looked like a deformed beaver. She raised her head to meet her group members’ faces and said, perfectly unperturbed, “It’s not like what she said wasn’t true.”
YoungJi wasn’t blind or deaf.
Between passing rumors exchanged between fellow idols, idle gossip from oblivious staff members, and the few occasions she’d witnessed herself, YoungJi was well aware that Jackson Wang was a player.
More than once, YoungJi had come across him in passing, leaning in close towards a pretty girl, saying things in low, hushed tones to make them giggle and blush at his words. At those times, there’d be this moment, a split-second really, when YoungJi would catch sight Jackson’s grin, the one that always managed to make her chest slam like an erratic sledgehammer in her ears. But then she’d realize he was aiming it at someone else, and the thudding in her ears would sound more like the sudden shattering of sad glass.
Anyone would’ve figured that having a no-dating clause on his contract would’ve urged him to be cautious and distant towards members of the opposite gender. And yet, it did nothing to slow down his game because Jackson, being Jackson, played everything well.
“Hey,” He’d invade a girl’s space just to take her breath away. “Why don’t we exchange numbers?”
“Ooh.” He’d say, tucking a strand of hair behind another girl’s ear to make her duck her head shyly. “This new color makes you look very pretty today.”
“Aren’t you cold?” He’d ask yet another girl, gesturing to her outfit as if he hadn’t been checking her out for the last fifteen minutes. “Would you like to use my jacket?”
And he’d follow up the question by making a show of taking off his jacket, curling his ripped biceps as he undressed and taking care to ‘coincidentally’ lift his shirt enough to flash his abs in the process.
The girl would swoon.
Jackson would smirk.
And YoungJi would roll her eyes and go search for her group (and maybe a paper bag to gag into).
She almost felt bad for those unsuspecting girls (almost), the ones Jackson managed to into his undeniable gravitational pull, so enamored by him and his undeniable charm that they didn’t ever pay his parting words any heed.
“You’re really cool/pretty/s*xy,” He’d always warn them, “But I can’t be in a relationship right now.”
Not that it would matter at that point, because the girls have hearts in their eyes, he’s got their numbers on his phone, and YoungJi is long gone because she’s seen this rerun already.
It’s a neat little loophole, YoungJi thought. Because there’s a difference between being in a relationship and talking to girls on the down low and Jackson always defaults to that same.freaking.line time and time again,
“I can’t be in a relationship right now” and these silly girls who haven’t had to deal with his shenanigans on a regular basis don’t bother to press the issue by asking the pertinent questions.
“You can’t be in a relationship? Or you don’t want to be in one?”
“Does that mean you want to date me after your clause is lifted?”
“Isn’t that just a roundabout way to say you want to see other people too?”
“Why does it sound like you just want to hide me? Am I something to be ashamed of?”
But YoungJi didn’t ask those questions because Jackson never bothered to use that line on her. She wasn’t sure if she was supposed to be insulted or relieved. Mostly, the feeling in her stomach reminds her of the companies she left before coming to DSP: an old swell of disappointment at the thought of something that could’ve happened, but ultimately never did.
He found her in KARA’s waiting room, barging in and calling out,
“YOUNGJIIIIIIII!!”
“You kid!” GyuRi threw a can of hairspray at him, her left eye twitching when he caught it easily. “Haven’t you ever heard of knocking??”
The DSP staff present merely stared at Jackson, a few of them greeting him, since his sudden and usually-raucous appearance was getting to be a regular issue these days.
“Ehehe. Sorry I’ll be careful next time.” Jackson smiled at GyuRi disarmingly before turning his attention to the woman sitting at one of the vanity mirrors, not even glancing up to acknowledge him.
“Hey you bad girl.” Jackson lightly kicked one of the legs of her chair. “Didn’t you get any of my text messages??”
“Nope.” YoungJi said shortly, curling, “I don’t have my phone on me.”
Beside her, SeungYeon snorted out a laugh because YoungJi’s phone is in.her.actual.hands and it rang Got7’s latest song each time he called before YoungJi hit ‘ignore’ each time too. If Jackson realized this blatant lie, he didn’t acknowledge YoungJi’s passive aggression but, instead, reached for her wrist and pulled her to her feet.
“Yah! Jackson Wang!” YoungJi yelled as she stumbled in her high heels. “What’re you-”
“VIXX is doing their recording next.” Jackson told her brightly, steadying her with a hand at her waist. “Let’s go cheer them on.”
YoungJi flicked her wrist to shrug his hand off because she has a passing image of him bending his head to whisper into another girl’s ear.
“Isn’t that what they have fans for?” She asked him instead because it didn’t bother her. Nope. Not at all.
His other hand had shifted and was burning her hip through the fabric of her dress.
“Who are better fans than their own friends?” Jackson fired back, laughing. He cut off his own hyena cackle after a second though, suddenly frowning. He clucked his tongue twice. “Eh, what the heck are you wearing?”
YoungJi glanced down briefly at her outfit, a pretty though arguably short dress that covered her arms but stretched tightly over her thighs.
“Umm…my comeback costume?” YoungJi offered.
“It’s a napkin.” Jackson insisted, sounding irritated.
And suddenly he’d moved behind her and YoungJi caught the way HaRa choked on her water as Jackson’s arms came around waist. For her part, GyuRi looked like she couldn’t decide whether to laugh or gasp. To the side, YoungJi could’ve sworn she heard the shutter sound of SeungYeon’s camera phone.
“W-What the hell are you doing??” YoungJi managed to sputter.
“Jeez woman,” Jackson hissed, his breath falling like steam on her bare neck and she fought off a shiver. “Hold still for a second.”
YoungJi realized that he’d pulled off his jacket, wrapping the sleeves around her hips.
“There.” Jackson announced, coming around and nodding in satisfaction as he noted how the clothing managed to cover her. “That’s better.
Now let’s go!” He insisted and his hand is back at her wrist and she’s being drag toward the exit of their dressing room. Jackson had the grace to wave at her group cheerily, “I’ll have her back before your taping!”
YoungJi tried to throw her members a ‘help me/stop him’ look but HaRa simply laughed and waved back while GyuRi called out, “Bring her back in 30 minutes Jackson Wang!” like YoungJi was going on a date instead of being essentially abducted against her will.
“Hey!” YoungJi protested as Jackson swung them into the hallway. From all sides, passing staff members and idols jostled her as in passing. “Jackson, hold up! You’re going too fast!”
Jackson glanced over his shoulder to grant her a smirk that made her feel like a sledgehammer was swinging wildly in her chest. He didn’t break his pace, but adjusted his grip, lacing his fingers with hers to make sure he couldn’t lose her and it felt like he’d lit a match into her palm.
“You’re just too slow.” Jackson laughed, tugging her close to him before speeding down the crazy traffic in the hallway.
And like always, a girl swooned, Jackson smirked, and YoungJi rolled her eyes because she really should’ve did know better.
And yet she’s wearing his jacket and holding his hand because he’s the sun and she’s just another planet in the Wang Solar System getting pulled into his orbit. Jackson doesn’t use the same lines and excuses on her so YoungJi allowed herself this moment and these 30 yards to VIXX’s stage to make believe that (maybe) she was special different.
“I think…” Mark told her quietly once; standing beside her while, on the other side of the hallway, Jackson said something to make Red Velvet’s Joy laugh boisterously. “He’s just being honest.”
“Yeah right.” YoungJi scoffed, swallowing hard and digging crescents into her palms. “If he was being honest, wouldn’t it make more sense to tell them he’s not looking for a girlfriend?”
Mark snorted good-naturedly and tapped the back of her hand until she unfurled her bitter fists.
“That’s not really his style.”
Joy swooned, Jackson smiled, and YoungJi heard something shatter.
“Yeah. I know.” She ground her jaw quietly and repeated for herself, “I know.”
(Jackson thinks that he’s being nice because he doesn’t want to have to break a girl’s heart.
YoungJi thinks it’s a form of cruelty because it would’ve been nice to know where she stood before she fell.)
4/17/15
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