Seoul is beautiful, was Kia's first thought after exiting the airport. The air smells different here than it does back in LA.

She hoisted her shoulder bag higher and walked to the row of waiting taxis.

After a driver held the door open for her and put her luggage in the trunk, she told him her destination in perfect Korean. She saw his look of surprise and stifled her laughter. With silver blonde hair and western features, she knew probably no one she met here would expect her to be able to speak Korean at all, much less fluently. Knowing Korean was just one of the perks of being Serena's best friend for 12 years.

She sat back and watched the passing scenery. According to Serena, it would take at least an hour to get from the airport to Seoul.

As a trainee, Serena lived in a dorm with other female trainees and therefore Kia wouldn't be able to stay with her. However, Serena had heard from a friend of a friend that they had a small apartment that was currently not being used. Finding out that the rent they were willing to take was very reasonable, Serena had told Kia about it and she in turn had gotten all the details settled.

The tall buildings outside the windows soon turned to smaller buildings and houses and Kia felt excitement creeping into her veins.

The taxi finally pulled up to a small apartment building with five floors. Kia stepped out and waited till the driver had put all her luggage on the sidewalk before asking him what she owed him.

She quickly paid the man who bowed to her before getting into his vehicle and driving away.

With one bag on her shoulder and pulling a suitcase in each hand, Kia walked towards the building. The outside looked fairly nice. It was a dark red brick and the small strip of flowers along the front looked well-tended.

She pulled open the door and stepped into a hallway. Here it showed that the building was probably close to fifty years old. The carpeting was faded and the doors were painted a teal green.

She looked for an elevator, but found none, so sighing a little, she headed for the stairs and slowly made her way to the top floor.

Out of breath, she finally arrived in front of the door marked 514 and knocked. The door opened and a somewhat elderly woman peered out.

"Who are you?" She asked cautiously in Korean.

Kia bowed. "Hello. I'm Kia Blake from America. I believe we may have talked on the phone about me renting this apartment for three months?"

The woman's face relaxed and she opened the door wider. "Ahh, yes," she said.

Inside, the apartment was clean and bright, thanks to the cheery yellow carpet and wide window whose curtains were pulled back letting the sunshine in.

"I am Jung Saera," she introduced herself. "My daughter lived here, but moved away several months ago." She walked through, showing Kia the two bedrooms, the bathroom, kitchen and small alcove where a washer and dryer were located. "Of course, this is the living room as you can tell." She waved her hand around the room that Kia had entered when she stepped through the door.

Kia smiled as she followed Saera's waving hand. "It's very nice. I like it."

Saera just inclined her head. She went into the kitchen and soon returned with a key. "Here is your key. Since, you already paid for your stay, I will leave you." She bowed. "Have a good evening." She was almost to the front door when she suddenly turned. "Oh, yes. If you encounter any problems, my phone number is on the refrigerator." With that, she pulled the door open and stepped through and it banged closed behind her.

"And that's that." Kia chuckled.

~~~~~~~~

After unpacking her bags, Kia decided to go outside and take a walk. There was no use waiting inside for Serena to call or text her. She was going to be here for a while, she might as well get familiar with the area.

She grabbed her purse and key and left the apartment. Once outside she debated which way to go. She decided to the left and leisurely took her time walking, looking around her at all the shops and cafes.

She spotted a cute-looking cafe called Cat's Eye and went inside. There was a young, bored-looking teenager behind the counter whose expression became interested as he caught sight of her.

"May I help you, Miss?" He asked in accented English.

Kia smiled at him and he showed a simple as he returned her smile. She glanced at the menu. "Yes. I would like a Mocha iced coffee and a chocolate chip muffin."

Her gaze fell back on the worker in time to see his mouth drop open in shock.

"Ehh?" He asked, still staring. 

Kia repeated the order and his face flushed as he punched the order in on the computer. "I'm sorry," he apologized.

"No problem," she assured him. She handed over the money for her snack, grateful she'd been able to exchange American money for Korean won at the airport.

She waited at the side till her order was called. Grabbing her coffee and muffin she smiled once again at the still-embarrassed cashier and exited the cafe.

Ten minutes later, her muffin was gone. on the straw she took another swallow of her drink. Her phone suddenly sounded Vixx's Voodoo Doll and she reached into her pocket for her phone.

"Hello?"

"Kia!" Serena's excited voice yelled into her ear. 

"Ouch!" She exclaimed back, laughing.

"Sorry, I'm just so excited that you're finally here! I haven't seen you in forever!"

"Same here. Are you free now?"

The small pause on the other end of the line gave her her answer before her friend spoke. "No. I still have practice for another hour."

"All right. Just call or text whenever you're free and we can meet up."

"Okay! Where are you right now?"

"I'm out taking a walk. I went to a cafe called Cat's Eye and got some coffee and a muffin."

Serena chuckled. "You and your stomach," she teased.

"You know me. My metabolism works very fast and I need to eat all the time," she said in a funny-sounding voice.

"Yes, I do know you." She sighed. "It's so nice knowing that you're only a few miles away instead of thousands."

"Mmm," she agreed. 

"So," Serena continued. "I know that cafe you mentioned. There's a really nice park close by. Why don't you go there and I'll meet you there when I'm free?"

"Sounds good. Tell me where to go." After making note of the directions, Kia hung up and made her way to Haneul Park.

Heaven Park certainly lived up to its name. Rows and rows of flower beds were surrounded by lush, green lawns. Off to one side was a playground and farther on she spotted a tennis and basketball courts. A paved path ran all through the park which looked like it went on for miles.

She decided to follow the path and soon was lost in thought as she admired the beautiful sights. So lost in thought was she, that it took her a minute to realize that there was a muted roar coming from up ahead.

Curious, she quickened her steps, the noise growing in volume as she walked. Rounding a corner, she suddenly came out on a wide round, brick courtyard with a stage at one side of it. The courtyard was crowded with young teens and adults who all seemed to be looking at the stage. Or rather, the people on the stage.

She made her way through the angry crowd. They would look at one another and then frown, yell and point at the stage. The shouting was so loud she couldn't understand what they were saying. 

As she got closer to the stage, she made out six males who all seemed to be dressed in some kind of costume. They were singers, she realized as she saw they each held a microphone.

A track started to play and the crowd grew more raucous, some of them even advancing towards the stage as if they would pull the performers down or something. 

I know this song, she thought. She finally walked through the last row of kids and stood only a few feet from the stage.

They're Boyfriend! That's who they are! Are you kidding me? What are the chances that I'd see one of my favorite groups the first day I'm in Korea?

The idols started to sing and Kia found herself nodding along to the song. They were just about to go into the chorus when a shoe was suddenly thrown onto the stage, narrowly missing one of the Jo twins.

The members stopped singing and stared at the crowd in shock.

Booing filled the air.

Kia looked behind her with a frown.  Why are they booing Boyfriend?

As if she had spoken the question aloud, an angry teen girl yelled, "Did you think we would cheer for you after Lee Jeongmin pushed that fan? DID YOU?!"

What? Jeongmin pushed someone? 

She turned back to the stage and saw the sadness and defeat on said boy's face. The hand holding his microphone dropped to his side and his head bowed.

The other members still stared at the crowd in shock before anger finally overcame it. Kia watched as the other twin stepped towards the edge of the stage. He opened his mouth, but before he could speak, Donghyun pulled him back. The twin looked at him and Donghyun just shook his head. The younger boy slightly nodded and allowed himself to be pulled away from the crowd.

They returned to their previous spots. Donghyun nodded to a staff member at the rear of the stage and the music started over.

She held her breath as they again began to sing, afraid something else would be thrown.

Nothing was thrown. Instead, the booing and yells were raised in volume. The crowd was so loud that she could barely hear the music from where she was standing directly in front of the stage.

She saw the boys' faces as they tried their best to perform their song amidst so much negativity. The crowd was winning, though. What could she do for them?   

A sudden thought crossed her mind and she stepped even closer, so she was literally just a few inches from the stage. She began to clap her hands in time to the music and sing the song lyrics as loud as she could, trying to combat the booing and yelling.

It was about 30 seconds later, near the end of the song, when Minwoo noticed her and tapped Donghyun on the arm and motioned in her direction. All six members stared openmouthed.

Her clapping slowed a little as she realized she was now the center of attention.

Oops.

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Well, I am back much sooner than I planned with this story.

I hope someone enjoys this...remember this is just the beginning. I promise it will get more interesting! :D

Please leave me a comment and let me know what you think of the first chapter! I love reading comments. Story comments are the highlight of my day!

Thanks!