Chapter 34

‘When people said love at first sight; Wherever, however, whoever said that; I never believed it – Pouring’

“We wanna do a cover of your song,” Jae suddenly announced one day.

“My song?”

“Y’know. Radwimps. Zen Zen Zense.”

“So ka?” She squeeled in excitement, jumping up from her seat in the kitchen. “Waah sugoi..!”

What can top up her current favourite band singing her all-time favourite song, from her favourite anime.

“Yeah, for KCon Japan,” Jae could not help but to grin at Momo’s excited face. “You have to help us with the pronunciation, ok? Make sure we don’t do it wrong.”

“Hait..! Mochiron desu,” Momo gave him a sailor salute.

It was a cute sight with the others watching them.

“You do the slow version, yes?” Momo asked, thinking they have ample time with KCon Japan scheduled for the end of the month.

“No, the fast one,” Jae shook his head, giving her his signature Chicken Little pout.

"The fast one? Ommo, Kami -ama…” and Momo rattled off in Japanese, shaking her head as she did so.

Young K laughed. Especially at her mixed of English, Korean and Japanese.

“What? What did she say?” Sungjin asked.

Young K grinned, looking at Sungjin.

“She said, may God help us all.”

***

It took them a month perfecting the pronunciation to Zen Zen Zense.

They started slow and progressed to the faster version as they improved.

And finally performed it at Kcon Japan 2017 in May.

It was a roaring success.

The crowd simply loved their rendition.

Momo was extra busy at the two day event, carrying out her usual tasks for the boys and acting as impromptu traslater for the whole Korean entourage, not just JYPE’s.

The k-pop world loved her and accepted as one of their own.

Even G-Dragon, who was known to have soft spots for Japanese girls, got the wind of her, and patted her on the head when he bumped into her at backstage.

Luckily Momo was too busy and wrapped up with her work to be overly star strucked.

“There you are, we’ve been looking all over the place for you,” Jae puffed, catching up to Momo somewhere in the backstage after their performance. “Such a little tornado you are.”

“Nanda, anything the matter?”

“No,” Jae grinned. “We have a surprise for you.”

He pulled her by her elbow and dragged her to one of the dressing rooms.

There, Radwimps stood chatting with some of the k-pop people.

Young K and Sungjin were there too.

Dowoon and Wonpil joined them a few minutes later, after being told Momo was found.

And they pushed her to her idol for a chat.

“Aaahh.. Momo-san desuka? Hajime mae,” grinned Yojiro Noda, lead singer of the band.

She blushed and chatted away in Japanese, her Day6 biases completedly forgotten.

“She’s quite a fangirl, isn’t she?” Sungjin grinned, after being lost in Momo’s and Radwimp’s rapid Japanese.

“How come she doesn’t act that way with us?” Wonpil pouted, looking at how shy yet besoted Momo was. Her face was beetroot red as she conversed with the popular Japanese rock band members.

“Duuhhh.. cos she’s not a fan of ours..?” Dowoon chided, earning a flick to the back of his head by Young K.

“I think,” the normally gruff Jae smiled indulgently, “we’re more her fan than she is ours,”

And true enough, Jae was echoing everyone’s sentiment.

***

After the concert, the team and Manager Choi took a van up to Hakuba to stay a few days.

“Otosan, we brought home the prodigal daughter,” Young K bowed waist down politely.

After a brief introduction to the team, Young K and Momo went on their knees with their heads bowed down in front of both Otosan and Okasan in an act of contrition.

Luckily her parents’ worry far outweighed their anger towards her.

And they easily accepted both hers and Young K’s apologies.

In fact, the rest of the band sat behind the two, to strengthen the regret.

The apology then made way for a teary mother and daughter reunion.

Witnessing from the side, sat Momo’s earlier estranged brother and new family, apparently back from his hiatus when news of the missing Momo got to his ears.

With Momo ‘found’and her whereabouts accounted for, it was a happy occasion again for the Aihara family.

***

“Y’know Mo, no offense,” Young K spoke with his mouth full. “But as much as your cooking has improved these past months, you’ve still a long way to go to get to Okasan’s level.”

Momo scrunched her nose at the statement. She wasn’t seated wth the boys, but was helping her mother serve them instead.

“You’ll always love Okasan’s food more than you’ll ever love me,” she pouted, before slapping herself on the mouth.

“My cooking, my cooking, not me,” she blushed profusely at her slip of the tongue.

But it was too late, all the boys heard her and they all sniggered after a short stunned silence.

Young K grinned and tapped her gently on the forehead.

“Be careful of what you say, elst I can’t promise you what the repercussions will be,” he whispered seductively, looking up at her standing beside him.

Making her leave the table in a huff at the boys and manager’s guffows.

***

After lunch, Momo and Young K took the team for a walk about.

Hakuba in June was slightly different than the Hakuba Young K knew and loved.

The ski centre was closed for the summer but the shops and other places were open.

But the sleepy quaint atmosphere was still there.

They stopped at a small café for tea, and whom should they bump into if not Yuki and Naoki.

It was summer break from college, and the two were part timing at the café.

“Mo-chan?” Yuki asked in surprise.

The two girls squeeled and hugged, and Yuki called for Naoki who was serving behind the counter.

“Gawd, Mongrel-boy is back,” Young K sighed as Naoki came over to fawn at Momo.

Momo introduced them around the table.

Naoki suddenly pointed at Jae.

“I know you,” a light bulb went on in Naoki’s head. “You’re Day6.”

Naoki shared Momo’s passion for rock bands.

But unlike Momo, his interest went beyond the Japanese shores to its neighbours and was an avid follower of Nell, Drug Restaurant and other Korean rock bands.

He heard of Day6 from their Every Day6 project.

“What are you doing with Day6?” Naoki turned towards Momo to ask.

“I work for them,” Momo simply answered.

“What?”

While Naoki interrogated Momo, Yuki the cat emerged again.

Squinting her eyes down at the seated Young K.

“You seem so familiar.”

Young K grinned up at her, knowing she did not recognise him with hair.

He was wearing a baseball his cap as disguise too.

Not that they need it much in that quiet town.

He pulled off the cap and plonked it backwards, like he was wearing a skull cap instead.

And then pulled it off again

“It’s not burgundy, but brown,” he pointed at his head and gave Yuki his killer smile. “I hope it meets your standards, though.”

“Aahhh, Brian-san..?” Yuki recognised him on the spot, and then fainted unceremoniously to the ground.

***

That night, Young K came out to sit with Momo at the balcony.

“Yuki was so hilarious just now,” Young K laughed.

“Tsk… such a drama queen,” Momo snorted.

Young K grinned at Momo’s curt dismissal.

“I miss this place,” he smile and decided to focus on a more appealing topic of discussion, looking out at the balcony. “It’s different in the summer, huh?”

While the mountain top was still smattered with snow, but the bottom parts were filled with greenery.

“Uhuh,” Momo returned his smile. “This is beautiful too, no?”

“Most definitely. Makes me wanna stay longer.”

“But we’re leaving tomorrow,” Momo said wistfully.

“We’ll come back again soon.”

Momo nodded.

“My room is just the way I left it.”

“Is it?”

“Hmm…”

“Are your parents ok now?”

“Yes.”

“They’re letting you come back with us?”

“Uhuh, I’ve explained.”

Young K sighed in relief.

“I thought Otosan was going to hand me a katana or something, looking at his dark face.”

Momo laughed at the thought, but her father was really furious with her, with Young K too.

“Well, with Onii-chan back home with his wife and child, I think it helped lighten the situation.”

“Yeah, I’m glad,” Young K sighed again. He looked at her on his side at her and took her hand, playing with her tiny fingers absently. “This is nice, isn’t it? Just like old times.”

“Yes,” Momo smiled at him sweetly, all feels of their previous heart-to-heart talks came back. “I miss sitting out here with you. It was lonely when you left.”

“Was it?” Young K asked, feeling guilty all over again. “Mianhe.”

Momo smiled and shook her head, dismissing his apology. 

Young K went suddenly lost in her limpid eyes and cleared his throat to say something.

“Uhmmm, Mochi…”

Before being rudely interrupted.

“Hey, Brian-hyung is here too,” Dowoon suddenly popped his head out his sliding door.

And all romantic thoughts in Young K’s head had to take a back seat, as the rest of the troupe joined them

Foxi’s Notes – Watch Day6’s performance of Zen Zen Zense at the KCon Japan 2017 here (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3HjLJzas-Kw) (Jae Focus) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZXd2tuhuoA) (All)