Chapter 3: I Am a Crack-Addict, and Laughing Is My Crack

Taeyang POV

I watch her from afar. I had taken notice of my morning running partner a week ago when I saw her leaving. Ever since, I have been cautious of her. Yet a week has gone by and she still has not approached me. I thought at first that she did not know I was there, but that thought was crushed as soon as it came. So now I find myself respecting the mystery runner. She comes every morning to the same place and runs for three hours before leaving. She does not try to figure out who I am or every approach me. She even keeps her distance when she sees me running ahead. So as I now stare at her back I also keep my distance. I watch her carrying her weights in her hands and hopping on her toes as she runs. I wonder if she is a dancer or athlete. I watch her sing to the tunes I can not hear, dancing around and humming. Her hood hiding her head, all I know is that the runner is female. I watch her go before sprinting the last of my laps through the trail. She, like me, is here in this remote location at dawn because she doesn’t want company, only the feeling of her feet on pavement.

~~~

The bells of the café doors chime as I walk in out of the cold. I see Ajumni smile at me from the counter. I give a bow and walk over to her. “One Americano please,” I say as I peek on the other side of the counter searching for Cho Hee.

The old lady chuckles, “She isn’t here today, son. She went out with a friend.”

“Oh, aw she is going to be disappointed if she finds out,” I say with a smile.

“Pfh, like I’m going to tell that rascal that she missed you. She will never go out again if I do.” She rolls her eyes and hands me my drink. I hand her the cash and pick it up when she hands me another drink. “Here, can you take this to the blonde in the corner. She completely forgot to get it and now she can’t hear me with those ear-things in.” She gestures to her ears like they are some sort of evil device. I turn to gaze at the girl sitting in the corner only to find Emily sitting there. I pick up the other warm drink and walk towards her watching her work.

The whole table is covered in drawings. She doesn’t even notice me as I watch her sing to herself and sketch on a big piece of paper. I take the moment to look her over. I can’t decide if she is cute, y, or something entirely different. She has long beautifully legs that stick out from under the table, because of their length. Her bleach blonde hair is cut short and tousled as she runs her hand through it concentrating hard on her work. Ink smuggles on her hands and face makes me have to suppress a laugh as I watch her. I sneak a peek down at her iPhone to see what she is singing to in English only to see my face staring back at me and “I’ll Be There (English Version)” scrolls across the screen. I freeze, did she realize who I am? I think back to the first time we met. She didn’t seem to know then, but… I abruptly sit and the seat across from her.

“You forgot your drink at the counter.” I whisper leaning forward.

“Hm… thank-you Ajum-” She says while slowing turning her gaze to mine her eyes widen when she sees me.  Here it comes, I think, she recognizes me. Cover blown.

“GAAHHH!” With that everything went flying. I hear a bang and then an “Oof,” and then some colorful language in English that made me blush to here a woman say. I stare at the mess in front of me. Sketches are everywhere. Ink is spilled all over the ground and where there was Emily is now just a pair of long legs sticking straight up. I jump to my feet and walk over to her as she lies in her chair, that is now with its back on the floor, holding her head.

“Are you okay?” I say reaching for her.

She stares at me wide-eyed. “Get back!” She yells waving a sharp metal object covered in ink at my face. I stare at her amazed. “Ajumni! There is a creeper over here.” She yells again.

That is when I start to laugh. I had forgotten that I am still wearing my huge sunglasses and hood. I must look like a creep. I put off the sunglasses and hood and hold my stomach laughing. “Its me…silly,” I say between breaths as I try to get some air into me.

“What!!? Oh gosh you troublemaker, don’t do that to me! Scared me to death!”

I help her up and start collecting the sketches while she starts swearing like no tomorrow. I stop just to stare at her. I think at one point she switched to swearing in Spanish, then Korean, then when she ran out of Korean swears she moved on to Japanese and what sounded like German. Her face is a mask of anger and sadness as she picks up the now ruined drawings.

“A months worth of work…look at all this ink…now I have to go buy…stupid…#$#%$!&…” She mutters to herself putting the ruined ones in one pile and the others in another. Guilt rises in me.

“I’m sorry.” I whisper staring at her with as much sincerity as I can muster.

When she turns her face to me it is like a switch. I no longer see the anger or sadness. She smiles at me. “It is fine Young Bae. Just a few pages, I can redo them tonight.” She finishes up cleaning off everything and sits down in her now upright chair. Letting out a sigh she starts drinking the drink I brought over for her. “Sigh hot chocolate always fixes everything. Thanks for bringing it to me Young Bae.” She smiles at me. I can’t help but smile back at those clear light blue eyes.

“I forgot to mention this earlier, but your Korean is very good.” I say smiles at the ink-smudged face of Emily. “How long have you lived in Korea?” But she doesn’t answer. Instead her brow comes together as she stares at me intently. I can almost see the gears in her head working as she bites her lip unconsciously. I stiffen. Does she recognize me? I watch her carefully when I see her eyes widen. I can almost see the light-blub flipping on in her head. “Omo…you’re…”

I sigh readying myself for it. “Yes I am-” I am cut off as she places a hand over my eyes. “What are you…” I trail off as I watch as she removes her hand staring at me wide-eyed then repeats the process of placing her hand over my eyes and removing it several times. I raise my eyebrows. What is up with this girl?

“Omo… Your, your-“

“Yes, yes I know I’m Taey-“

“The guy from the airport!”

“Wait, what?” I stare at her bewildered.

“That shady guy from the airport, remember I ran into you and ended up causing you to fall. I asked if you knew where Luggage Drop D was. Remember? You told me that my Korean is good then too!” She exclaimed.

Blink, Blink, I stare at her as the memory slowly trickles into my mind. The airport, getting off and picking up my luggage, the tall, blonde American girl, falling. Ohhhh, so that was her. Huh, small world.

“Wow, small world huh?” she mutters gazing at me with half-lidded eyes, holding her head. Ditto, I think.

“Yeah…” I say with a small smile. That was way to close of a call. I watch as she squints her eyes, and holds her head. “Are you okay?”

She nods now holding her head with both hands. “My head hurts really bad…” She trails off now with her eyes close. I think of the fall and jump out of my chair. Concussion. I run to the counter.

“Ajumni I think Emily has a concussion.” The elderly lady’s eyes widen and she runs to the ice machine.

Together we lay Emily in a booth and put the ice on her head. “Aigo… what to do with you, child?” She says shaking her head at Emily. Then she turns to me, “watch her. I don’t want her falling asleep.”

I sit at the end of the booth watching her. Her eyes are slam shut as she holds her head. Guilt floods me again. This is my fault. “I’m sorry.”

I hear her snicker. “You have been saying that a lot to me today.” Her eyes still closed.

“I seem to be causing you lots of trouble today.”

She just laughs. “Anymore problems I need to worry about, you ‘troublemaker’?” She says calling me a troublemaker in English.

“I hope not.” I reply. She just laughs quietly again. We just end up sitting (or in her case laying) there is silence. I feel awkward at first for not having any subject to discuss with her, but it soon leaves replacing the feeling with peace. I sit listening to the sounds of Ajumni working in the kitchen and the passing chatter of the people outside. Peace. It is an odd relaxing peace. Normally I hate the quiet, awkwardness that comes when people are not talking, but this…is different. I let myself relax and try to capture all of this foreign feeling of peace. I glance over at Emily a few times to check on her. She would catch my gaze and wink or give a small smile. Bold is a good way to describe her. She looks at me straight in the eyes and doesn’t glance away. She doesn’t coo, blush, or place her hands over her face to try and hide. Her words are not formal and she doesn’t try to hide the fact that she towers over everyone she meets. Then again it may be the fact that she is a foreigner. I let my thoughts wonder; jumping from thought to thought without any patterns or reasons.

“Ah~ Much better, my headache is bearable now.” I turn to see Emily sit up and place the now bag of water on the table. “Thanks for taking care of me Young Bae.” She gives me a sweet smile that makes me want to smile back before she yells “Thank-you too Ajumni!” in the direction of the shop owner.

“Aigo stop with your yelling child. You will give this old woman a heart-attack! I’m glad you’re feeling better though.” I tilt my head back to see the old lady shaking her head.

“Oh for the love of biscuits, I have been here way to long. I still have to redo those pages.” I hear her hiss as she promptly shoos me out of the booth so she can get up and pack her supplies. I watch her rush around packing with total amusement.

“Emily, sweetie, are you sure you are okay to leave? You hit your head pretty badly.” I watch her wave it off like it is nothing only to stop and hold her head when Ajumni isn’t looking. I frown as guilt once again stirs in the pit of my stomach.

“No need to worry Ajumni, I’ll accompany Emily on her walk to make sure she doesn’t faint on the side of the street.” I say standing up.

Emily stares at me in surprise, her eyebrows raised. “You don’t have to do that. I can handle myself. I’m fine.”

“Oh let him walk you home, Emily. I know you say you are fine, but that was a bad fall. I don’t want something to happen to you on the way.”

“It is my fault that you fell in the first place. This is the least I can do.”

“Okay, okay, okay, you can if you want.” I watch her shake her head and sigh as she finishes up packing. I can’t help but laugh at her… I guess “oddness” is a good word to use here. The way she acts like its some sort of punishment to have me accompany her. The irony in it all is just too funny. If only she knew who she just said that too.

We say good-bye to Ajumni and head in the direction of her home. The walk it mostly silent with her humming to the songs on her iPhone, as I watch her closely I can tell her head still hurts. Only when she stumbles does it come to my immediate attention. I reach out and catch her, grabbing her by the arm and pulling her to her feet.

“Ah, thank-you Young Bae,” she smiles at me and I continue to hold her arm afraid she may stumble again.  Though it is only the second time meeting there isn’t any awkwardness, even with me holding her arm. She just continues to chat with me about this and that and hum to her songs. Another word rolls into my head. Casual. She is casual. The way she presents herself is so casual that I wonder if she ever feels shy and awkward around people. I find myself laughing along with her and her odd humor.

“Hey why are you all decked-out in disguise? With the hood and big sunglasses every time I see you? You afraid of the sun or something,” I smile to cover up the fact that I don’t know what to say and start thinking of a plan. I do not want to lie, no I will not lie. I laugh at her like what she asked was a silly question and continue to think. To hide the truth without lying is the goal.

“Well…you see. Umm… I” I stumble through my words trying to think of a good way to state it.

“Oh gosh never-mine.” She gives me an eye-brow raise. “You know if you don’t want to say something or talk about something just say so. I won’t mine.” She laughs and continues walking like nothing happened. It makes me feel awkward though that I didn’t answer. I wonder if I have upset her, but before I can ask she turns to me.

“Omo, listen to this song Young Bae. So amazing.” She says and hands me the other ear-bud. I put it in my ear only to hear Tablo’s “Bad” blazing in my ear.

“You like Tablo?” Giving her a curious look as we walk up the stairs of an apartment building.

She gives me a huge smile. “I love rap.” I roll my eyes as we stop at a door. So this is where she lives. Room 302.

She gives me a bow. “Thank-you so much for walking me to my apartment.” I tell her that it was my pleasure and gesture for her to go inside. Her eyes widen, “Oh no, I’m fine, you can go on.” After arguing with her about who should leave first for a few minutes I just end up laughing at her stubbornness and walking off with a smile and a wave.

“Bye, bye you troublemaker! Don’t get lost on your way back!” She yells when I’m halfway down the hall. I turn and watch her wave like an excited two year old before going in her apartment.

What a day.

~~~

Time seems to pass in fast-forward. My day becomes a routine of running in the mornings, going to the café at lunch, practicing at dinner, and hanging with the guys at night. Cho Hee, Ajumni, and Emily have become like a basic need.

I step out of the bathroom after my shower from getting back from my run. I go in my closet for something to wear. I sigh when I find that all my sweat-shirts are gone. Ugh, I need to do the Landry. So instead I settle of being normal today, which isn’t that bad. I put on black skinny jeans, white shoes, a muscle shirt, a flat-brim white hat, dark-green hoodie and a black leather jacket on top. With my hat and hood on I leave the hoodie and leather jacket ped and grab my sunglasses. Ignoring the shouts from the guys asking, like they do everyday, where I’m going, I head for the café.

I listen to the ever familiar jingles of the bells as I walk in the door and like always as soon as my hood is down and my sunglasses put away Cho Hee runs at me. “YOUNG BAE!!” I laugh and twirl the princess around for a bit, listening to her tell me all the things she did while I was away. I grab and coffee from Ajumni and let the little girl finish her big story about her first visit to the zoo before setting my eyes on the totally oblivious artist in the usual corner.

I watch her bite her bottom lip while she concentrates and run her hair through her hair. Her brow comes together in deep thought. I smile and stroll up to her. I poke her forehead where her brow is meeting with concern. She glances at my hand and I see the light-blub flip on in her head and wait for something random to come out of like always.

“Oh perfect.” She grabs my hand and pulls me into the opposite chair. “Can I use your hand?” She asks still holding my hand.

“Umm…”

“Thanks!” She then starts forming my hand into a weird position and murmurs to herself in English like she does when she is in deep thought. After getting my hand in the right pose she starts drawing away. I just sit for 30 minutes or so, letting her change my hand into different positions and draw it. I don’t question her or talk, just watch. I have never found anything more interesting in my life than watching an artist draw. They do all sorts of things with their faces. After I noticed Emily and her funny faces I started staring at any artist face when they are drawing. It is surprising with you see.

“Ah perfect, thanks for the help Young Bae.” She smiles and shows me the sketch with the hands se used from me.

“Looks nice,” I smile.

“You should totally be a hand model.” She mutters finishing up the sketch. I laugh at the random thing she said.

“You can’t seem to go a day without saying something weird huh?” She just sticks her tongue out at me.

“What’s fun about being normal?”

“True, true,” Letting myself laugh some more. This is why the café is my addiction. Not because of the building or people. No, I am addicted to laughing. I laugh and laugh till I think something inside me will explode and my side hurts in pain. I have never laughed like this before. It is the kind of laugh that starts in your belly and then like a disease it takes over you. I have met many funny people and laughed very hard, but this… is new. It is like a release of joy. It is my crack.

I sit and share about my week. Telling her about my days without saying anything that may lead to her thinking that I’m in Big Bang. I entertain Cho Hee and get advice from Ajumni. This is my day. Emily always listens carefully to every word and makes those random jokes I can’t seem to get enough of.

“Isn’t your birthday coming up, troublemaker?” She says with a curious smile.

“Ah, yeah. I totally forgot.” I stare at her for a second. “How do you know my birthday?”

She laughs like I asked a stupid question. Then again, maybe I did. “You have told my many times Young Bae.”

“Oh…” I sit back and stare at the sky through the huge glass windows thinking of all the information I know about the people in this little hide away of mine. I know the kids situation her birthday, color, etc. She tells me everything and then some. I know a little about Ajumni. Her favorite meal, a little of her past, etc. I shift my gaze to glance sideways at Emily. All I get is blanks. As I think about it, I do not even know her last name. Suddenly all my focus is on her and she looks up giving my a questioning glance.

“Emily, what is your last name?” Her eyes widen at my words.

“Davis.”

“What is your favorite color?”

“Green.”

“How old are you?”

“23, what is with all of the sudden questions?” She gives me a confused stare.

“Now that I think about it, I don’t really know anything about you. I don’t know your birthday, where you work, your favorite food, and even your last name is a mystery to me. I am just curious why have you never told me?”

She just smiles like I asked her about the weather. “You never asked.” I find myself shocked. Still…even if I never asked it should have made its way into the conversations. I think about the conversations we had this week and stiffen. We never chatted about Emily’s personally life. Sure she talked about general things, but never did we chat about her, her life, friends, family. I frown trying to think back farther and still draw blanks. Two months of friendship and all I get are blanks for the questions I want.

“Why do you not talk about yourself?”

“Because you never do. Why should I tell you about me if I don’t know about you? Hm?”

I stare at her dumbfounded. “You know a lot about me though.”

She sighs and then smiles it away. “You keep telling yourself that.” Then she reaches over and places her ear-bubs in my ears. I listen as my song “Wedding Dress” plays for me as I stare into her eyes. Everything is summed up in that one look. I realize right then that Emily has never been oblivious or innocent, just extremely intelligent.

Author’s Note

Taa-daa~ Chapter 3 is finished! Woot! I had fun writing it in the perspective of Young Bae. I’m going to try and make Taeyang as close to his real personality as I can. I don’t really like OOCness, but who really know what Taeyang is like. Lol So anyways I hope you enjoyed this longer chapter. I will try to post another one sooner this time. Things are going to get complicated.