January 2017

Los Angeles, United States

It was always good to be back home. Coincidentally, Unnie had a photo shoot in LA and she asked me to come along. But, to be honest, I really had no idea where I would wander off by myself when Unnie was too occupied with her own business.

Even so, I didn’t mind being left out on one of the busiest streets in LA. It hadn’t been a while since I last visited this city; yet, many things seemed to have improved. There was this coffee shop that I had in mind, located on the corner of the street. As far as I could remember, it hadn’t been built the last time I came; hence, I thought maybe I could give it a try. Oh, I did some research about the place before. Unfortunately, most of the reviews didn’t recommend this place. 3.2 out of 5 stars, seriously? I don’t know why, but I always felt thrilled when I saw bad reviews, it personally made me want to prove the reviewers wrong.

And not to mention, art galleries—how could I forget about them? Unnie always complained when I told her that I was stopping by there. ‘It’s just a room filled with random pictures,’ her unforgettable comment rang in my ear. What if I told you it was not? A picture literally told a thousand unspoken words. The canvas was the media that the painter used to communicate their deeper selves with the world. It was a window that connected their mind to ours. But, of course, Unnie’s taste couldn’t be blamed since it was rather similar to the majority of people’s. No wonder she could blend in the crowd without difficulty.

This art gallery I planned to check focused more on contemporary art. I really couldn’t wait to get there! Last time, I recalled I didn’t get to visit it because something came up… with my date, actually. It felt like forever since I went to an art gallery accompanied by someone else. I almost forgot how it felt like. Sad to say that Jongin was of the same mind as Unnie, they weren’t big on art, much to my disappointment. He allowed me if I wanted to talk about it (though I couldn’t stop talking about it after that). Sometimes, he also stated his opinion regarding the display of art (to tell you the truth, it wasn’t that hard to persuade Jongin so that we went to an art gallery on our date). However, I caught him playing with his phone too often. Of course, it was tolerable as yet. He wouldn’t dare to cheat on me—I believed in him. Besides, I knew him so well. I had been familiar with his habit of playing mobile games when he wasn’t having fun in reality. We were dating after all. I didn’t want to be the only one having fun. If we could share it together, why did I have to put my enjoyment first?

The authentic scent of coffee welcomed me warmly once I arrived at the new coffee shop. I wasted no time in deciding and placed an order for the house specialty. Shortly after, I gazed around the small room. It was Monday today. Where most coffee shops weren’t open for business on this very day, this place gladly received the visitors who were seeking for the combination of caffeine and free Wi-Fi that probably held their lives on the line. Because of that, I somewhat had a hard time finding a seat.

Luckily, a man in a business suit stood up from his seat after he had got his things together. As if he noticed I was targeting his seat up to now, he took a glance at his phone just when he passed me by so that our eyes wouldn’t have to meet along the way. Before long, I had already found myself taking the load off my feet at the lonely table in the corner of the room.

It hadn’t been too long since I'd been seating myself. I didn’t even get the chance to heave a sigh. My phone screen lit up all of a sudden, displaying notifications from none other than Kim Jongin.

Jongin ♡: You went to LA?

Jongin ♡: Why didn’t you tell me???

Me: I already told Minwook-oppa about it

Me: He said he would let you know

Jongin ♡: Read it again

Jongin ♡: I said me, not my manager

Jongin ♡: Are you dating with Minwook-hyung?

Suddenly, the barista whom I believed didn’t belong here already stood by my table, serving my coffee, “Ms. Christy? Your coffee’s ready.”

I glanced up, “Oh, sorry. You misspelled my name. Maybe that’s why I didn’t notice.”

“Is that so? My apologies. May I ask what’s your real name?”

“It’s Chrystal,” I smiled politely.

“Chrystal? That’s a cute name—“

“Two orders for Cappuccino,” shouted the cashier behind the counter. “Hey, Jacob! Get the hell back here and stop flirting with the customer!”

“My bad, duty calls,” the Barista named Jacob continued, “My pleasure talking with you, Charlotte.” Not breaking eye contact, he slid a piece of tissue and a straw on the table, “Be careful. The drink’s still hot. Not as hot as you, of course.”

My hand partially flicked through the piece of tissue only to discover the Barista’s number on it. Oh. My. Freaking. God.

Jongin would definitely kill us both if he ever saw this…

“I’m sorry to break this out to you, Jackson, but I have a boyfriend already so…”

The cashier burst out laughing, “Serves you right!”

Shoot. I shouldn’t have paid attention to him in the first place at all! My phone must have been flooded with messages from Jongin by now.

And I was right.

Jongin ♡: Where are you babe?

Jongin ♡: Answer me

Jongin ♡: Yah!

I could’ve sworn it hadn’t been more than five freaking minutes. I let out a frustration sigh, my hand pinching the bridge of my nose following that.

Me: Sorry

Me: I was ordering coffee

Jongin ♡: Are you with Noona?

You are typing a message…

‘Uh-huh’ before I pressed the send button, a guilty conscience suddenly made me feel about lying to Jongin.

Me: No

Me: She’s busy

Jongin ♡: So, you’re going alone?

Me: Yeah

This is what I terribly disliked about Jongin. He easily got jealous, which I admitted was cute at first but now it was getting on my nerves, the more I thought of it.

Jongin ♡: How long until Noona’s photo shoot will last?

Jongin ♡: Do you wear a disguise?

Me: No

Me: No one notices me here

Jongin ♡: I’m calling Jessica-noona

Me: What the hell Jongin?!

Me: Jongin if you dare to…

Jongin ♡: Dare what?

Jongin ♡: Contacting Noona for you?

Jongin ♡: I’m doing this for you, Soojung…

Me: I never asked!

Me: I just want some time alone for now…

Jongin ♡: Why do you desperately want to be alone these days?

Jongin ♡: Are you seeing someone else…?

Me: Jongin, not again…

Another side of Jongin that I couldn’t put up with was his skepticism. Was it really hard to understand that I wanted to enjoy myself once in a while? I could sincerely understand that he didn’t take pleasure in art as much as I did, but could he at least allow me to go to wherever place I felt like visiting alone without getting wrong about me cheating on him?

Unknowingly, tears already streamed down my cheeks. Before I drew more attention than I already had (especially from the flirty Barista), I sneaked away to the bathroom, only taking my phone with me.

Incoming video call from Jongin ♡…

Spontaneously, I slid the red button along, rejecting the call by accident. I was currently in a hell of a mess, not prepared for making a video call at all.

Jongin ♡: Why didn’t you pick up?

Jongin ♡: Ah, I see

Jongin ♡: Fine, be that way

Jongin ♡: Have fun.

Me: I was in the bathroom

Me: I’m calling you back

Without further ado, I dialed his number. For all that, ring after ring, he still hadn’t answered. Until…

“The person you are calling is not answering—“

Hurriedly, my thumbs danced on the keypad furiously, pouring out my anger.

Me: I’m really telling you the truth

Me: It’s up to you whether to believe it or not

Me: I can get tired, too, you know…

Me: Don’t look for me from now on

Having said that, I turned off my phone without concern. Who cares about Kim Jongin? As long as I knew when Unnie wrapped up her photo shoot, I would survive, wouldn’t I?

***

The entrance fee to the art gallery was cheaper than usual, captivating more visitors to catch sight of the collection of contemporary art more often than not. Most of the visitors were some teenagers that were desperate for updating a new picture or two on SNS, seeing that they spend more time in taking photos rather than admiring their beautiful surroundings.

Just when I was examining one of the paintings that took my breath away, a Korean tourist came to my direction, she greeted me in our native tongue, “Do you mind taking a photo of me and my friend?” Before I turned to her, I caught her staring at my face longer than I anticipated, she then came out with, “Soojung, is that you? Oh my God! What a coincidence! I’m a big fan of yours! And congrats on getting a solo soon!”

Okay, I kind of regretted not wearing any disguise because all I wanted was to take a relaxing trip without being worried about getting recognized along the way. I’d never been so wrong. To make matters worse, she called my name a little bit louder than Umma ever scolded me in public, causing every gaze in the room to be directed toward me, out of curiosity. Let alone her friend that had noticed her friend had been holding a conversation with a stranger longer than she was supposed to, resulting in her going after her.

“Jiyeon-ah, what takes you so long?”

“Look, Areum-ah, it’s Krystal! Krystal
of f(x)!”

I had to acknowledge that being a public figure could be tiring from time to time. Not that I took exception to MeU, especially my fan. It was just—I was desperately in need of being alone right now. After the fight I had with Jongin, I wasn’t in the mood for bumping into a fan at all. There were so many things going on in my head at the moment, I was so afraid of letting it slip in the wrong place at the wrong time. What if I suddenly broke down in tears? Or expressed my anger to them? I didn’t want them to get worked up because of me…

I faked a confused smile and started speaking in English, “Is there anything I can help you with?”

My acting seemed to come out well for now. “Seriously, Jiyeon, you’re embarrassing me…” The girl named Areum nudged her friend before replying to me, “I’m sorry for my friend’s behavior. She must be mistaking you for a Korean celebrity she looks up to.”

I chuckled, my hand covering my mouth without being asked, “It’s no big deal. I actually heard it a lot.”

“But you really looked like Krystal Jung, though,” complimented her. “Oh, almost forgot! Do you mind taking a photo of us?”

“Of course not,” she handed me the Polaroid and posed for a picture.

“One… two… three, say cheese!”

At the time the flashlight shone on the two girls, a random tall man walked past them out of nowhere.

“Excuse me, Sir, but can’t you see we’re taking a photo—“

“Big Bang’s TOP?!” Shouted Areum in surprise.

Thump. Thump. Thump. Out of all places that he could cross the threshold of, why did he have to come here?

“Areum-ah, not again…” protested Jiyeon.

“Oh, my bad, I didn’t know you guys were taking a picture,” the man spoke in his raspy familiar voice, which I was confident it was none other than Seunghyun’s. Soon after, he pointed his index finger upward and brought it closer to his mouth, “Please keep this a secret among us.”

“Y-you’re really Actor Choi Seunghyun? For real?!” This time, Jiyeon stared in disbelief, “Holy cow! You’re more handsome in real life!”

“That’s so rude, Oppa!” interrupted Areum, “There’s no way we can forgive someone who has interfered us with taking a picture! Well, unless you’re willing to take a picture with us, of course.”

“Fine by me,” Seunghyun nodded in agreement, and before I knew it, he had already stood in between the two girls, placing his hands behind his back awkwardly while striking a pose in front of the camera.

I stopped dead in my tracks, lost for words.

“Um, excuse me, Miss, can you take another photo of us?” Asked the girl I recalled her name was Areum.

“Oh, right, sure.”

After they had satisfied with the photos I took (yeah, they actually asked for a retake), they thanked me briefly and went to exchange high fives with Seunghyun as if I was somebody they used to know. What do you expect, Jung Soojung? It’s your fault to pretend not to recognize your fan in the first place. But, whatever—it’s no big deal, actually, since you have something more of importance to bother yourself with—what is Choi Seunghyun doing here and now?

“What the hell are you doing here?!” I confronted him quietly after I had made sure that the two Korean tourists weren’t within reach.

“Since when did you become this disrespectful, Jung Soojung?” Despite his cold glare, he maintained a monotonous tone as he spoke, “It’s understandable if you’re treating me that way, but your fan doesn’t deserve that kind of treatment.”

“I didn’t come here to get lectured. Especially by you, Seunghyun.” I frowned, “Say, are you following me?!”

{a/n: heyo! it's been so long haha i didn't plan to ever continue this story again in the future, but your comments (especially the latest ones) encouraged me to do so. i was so moved to know anyone would still be reading topstal, reminding me to update this story even :') that's how impactful a reader's feedback to some authors. hence, keep supporting your favorite authors, come what may <3

i'd like to apologize to kai fans :( i know he's not like how i portray him in this story, please don't be mad about it. this is fictional, after all. i don't know how kai actually treated soojung in real life, so, bear with me! and as per usual, soojung'd be that kind of pretty girl who distracts everyone's attention with just breathing near them lmao love her so much!

are you curious about how on earth choi seunghyun appeared out of nowhere? i assure to make it clear in the next chapter so, stay tuned! shoutout to y0onda, reedus179, bluesprinkle, and airlovesong for keeping me going! who needs to be featured when i have awesome readers like you all?! thanks for reading!}