Two weeks later

I had received a call from the training center I was going to be working at and was asked to come by for my first day at work. It had been difficult for me to get out of bed lately, because I'd been depressed since what happened with Kai. It was still something I was thinking about no matter how hard I tried not to. He had laughed at me and it had put an imprint in my brain and heart that I was afraid I was never going to forget or get over. Ever since that night, his laugh would always play in my mind when I least expected it.

Thankfully, Kai had left for Paris a week after the dinner. He and I had ignored each other the entire week and when he finally left, he did so without saying goodbye to me.

I didn’t know how I would make it through a day of work, but managed to get up and take a shower. I dressed up to go outside  for the first time in two weeks. Now that everyone I knew had gone on vacation and I was still stuck in Seoul, I didn’t feel like doing anything at all.  I had no thoughts of befriending anyone this summer and only wanted to be left alone. 

Down on the first floor was nobody. Actually the whole house was empty. Mr. Kim, Mrs. Kim and my father had travelled to the country for a fun time with Min Ho whose leg was finally healed. I was unable to go with them due to work.  I quickly wore my shoes and left the house for Gangnam where the centre was in between tall and fancy buildings. 

Strangely, in front but at the side stood a bunch of girls and boys that were staring at the door as if they were waiting for something. 

I looked up at the building, it was written SM Academy. I read it several times to make sure it was really written and it was. I couldn’t believe Tao had gotten me a job at the SM Academy. What was even more crazy was the fact they had picked me. Feeling honoured and happy, I passed by the glaring teenagers and pressed a button thinking the door would open, but instead a female voice was heard.

“This is SM Academy’s secretary”, the woman spoke in a pretty way. I could tell she was beautiful by hearing her voice. “How may I help you?” The teenagers were looking at me.

“My name is Go Ji Eun”, I nervously said. ”I’m here for the summer job at the  coffee shop.”

“One second please”, she said. I heard her typing on the keyboard and the mirrored front door opened. “Please quickly enter.” I hurried in and the doors closed behind me.

I thought the outside of the office looked fancy but apparently it was nothing compared to the inside. There was a cute looking restaurant - or maybe it was the coffee shop - and close to it were very expensive looking couches, chairs and tables. Further away from there and across the front door yet far away from it was the secretary’s big wide and clean looking desk. I walked to her and just like I thought, she was very good looking.

“Good morning”, I bowed. “I’m-”

“Go Ji Eun”, she smiled. “I’m sorry you had to run inside, but sometimes the fans sneak in wanting to take a look at their idols.” Now it made sense why the teenagers were glaring at me earlier. “I’m Yu Ri, the main secretary around here. I will be in charge of everything concerning you and your job so if you have any questions ask me.” I nodded. “So, you will be working at the coffee shop with one of our trainees.” 

I might have looked calm on the outside but inside my mind, there was a party going on. The main reason was because I was going to work at SM academy. The second reason was because if I worked at the coffee shop I would be able to see all kinds of idol coming in and out of the building. 

“If you follow me”, she left her desk and I followed her to a backdoor near the coffee shop / restaurant. We entered the back room that was bigger than it looked like from outside. There was a kitchen to do the dishes and cook, a big bathroom where you could even shower and a lounge for the workers. Not to forget there was a basement to get all the stuff needed for the shop. “Wait for me in the lounge while I look for him.”

I did as I was told and waited for Yu Ri who was looking for the trainee. I heard her enter the bathroom.

“I have no idea where he i… Oh! There you are. Chen! Get some clothes on there’s someone else here.” She came back to me with a smile and rosy cheeks. “He is on his way.”

A few seconds later, the second most handsome guy I had ever laid eyes on entered the lounge dressed in sweatpants, a white tee and a red cardigan with grey arms and white stripes. His face looked fresh and his hair was wet and messy in a good way.

“Hi”, his voice was so calm and soothing it made me fall deep in a sort of trance. He pulled his hand forward. “I’m Chen. You must be Ji Eun. Tao told me a lot about you.” Instead of shaking his hand I was just staring at him but he never looked creeped out or uncomfortable, nor did he lose his charming smile. He actually took my hand and shook it himself. I got over my trance and was definitely embarrassed to have spaced out.

“I’m Go Ji Eun”, I awkwardly said. ”B…but of course you already know that.” His smile grew wider and Yu Ri cleared . I let go of Chen’s hand.

“I’ll leave her in your care then”, she said and left.

When she left, I started feeling odd. My co-worker, Chen, was looking at me and it was as if fire was on my skin. It was making me uncomfortably hot.

“Isn’t it hot in here?” I asked and puffed my cheeks.

“Would you like some water?” He asked.

“Oh no thank you”, I answered. “I’m fine.”

“You know what’s funny?” He asked. ”Tao actually warned me that you would be acting exactly this way.” My eyes narrowed.

“He did huh?” That was so typical of Tao to do. “Whatever he said about me is true, so I won’t complain.”

“It is”, Chen smiled. “He said I’d think you’re cute and I think you are… definitely cute.” 

My eyes widened and I knew my face was flushing red by now, but it wasn’t because I was embarrassed. It was because I was in a weird way happy to have met Chen. I had this feeling I would like him even more in the future.

After work

I thought I would be able to see idols, but I didn’t get to see one of them. All those who came by, were trainees, teachers, managers and more. Work ended at 5 pm and just like I thought I would, I liked Chen even more than I did in the morning. He was such a good looking charming sweetheart it wouldn’t be surprising if he had girlfriend. The guy had managed to grab hold of my entire heart in less than 12 hours and for someone who was in love with another person that should be considered difficult to do.

I looked at my phone right before leaving but had no missed calls. Apparently no one wanted to hang out with me and I couldn’t blame them, they were all having fun.

“Bye”, I said to Chen. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Bye!” He said.

I t left the building and made my way home, but I hadn’t gotten far before someone call my name. I turned around and saw Chen.

“Yes?” I asked. He ran to me holding a leather jacket.

“I believe this is yours”, he said. I recognised my leather’s jacket and took it. I was a bit nervous that I had forgotten such an expensive item that my father had bought as a present.

“Thank you”, I said. “I forgot.”

“It’s cool”, he smiled and we walked side by side in silence. “So what are you doing tonight? Are you going out with friends?”

“No”, I answered. “They’re all busy. What about you?”

“I’m going to-”, he looked like he was thinking, “I don’t… No, I’m going to Busan.”

“Right now?” I asked.

“Sure, why not?”

“You're going to meet family?” I asked.

“No”, he shook his head. “I just remembered they are having a festival there today and wanted to go.” He looked at me. “We could be back by 3 am.”

“We?” I asked. “We have work tomorrow at 9.”

“So?” He asked. “It’s summer. Haven’t you done anything spontaneous before?”

“No”, I answered.

“Then what’s stopping you?” He asked. “Isn’t it exciting to do something without planning it?” I tried thinking about what he said, but I must not have been thinking straight when I made my decision.

“Fine", I said. “I’ll go with you.” This was definitely a first. I was going to Busan for the first time with a guy I had just met.

“You won’t regret this”, he smiled and I saw dimples on his cheek.  I loved dimples. 

Later I realized Chen was right. I didn’t regret going with him and I knew that I would never regret it either. Going to Busan spontaneously was absolutely the most enjoyable and exciting thing I had ever done. Everything I did there and on my way there was a first.

Exempel A:

I broke the law with Chen. Yes, I know it sounds bad but it was actually fun. We got onboard the train without buying tickets and locked ourselves up in the bathroom for three hours straight (I was very ill but held it in) to avoid the control. When we reached Busan, we got off chuckling like crazy because we hadn’t gotten caught. That was the first time I had broken the law and I was glad I did because I had fun doing it.

Exempel B:

It was my first time being in Busan. The carnival was very diverting and the mood was lively. Chen and I ate delicious food, played fun games and watched entertaining performances.

Exempel C:

On the way back, we broke the law again. This time though we got off the train with pride instead of laughs.

I left feeling happy and I had gotten to know Chen better. He was a nice, charming, polite and fun person to hang with. I liked him. Maybe a little too much though.

“So what did you think?” He asked when we reached the bus station.

“How many times have you done that?” I asked. “How many times have you gone to Busan just like that.”

“This was my first time actually”, he replied. “But I usually do whatever comes to my mind. I wanna have as much fun as I can before I become old.” I laughed.

“It was fun though”, I said. “I would like to do it again, but then we have to pay for our tickets. If I get on a train without paying again, I’ll get very anxious.”

“So you want to do it again?” He asked.

“Yeah”, I nodded. “Why not?” When my buss came I was going to say goodbye, but he followed me inside.

“You’re not stalking me are you?” I asked when I sat down.  

“Maybe”, he answered with a smirk. I lost my smile and he laughed. “Just kidding. I’m going home.”

“If you say so.” We both laughed and continued to converse. Afterwards, I was going to press the stop button when he reached for it too and we both looked at each other.

“You live here?” We asked at the same time. We laughed for the thousandth time that day and got off the bus. I was back in the Kim family’s nice neighbourhood.

“How come I’ve never seen you around here?” I asked him. We took the same route home.

“I moved in recently”, he answered.

“That explains it”, I said. We reached a crossroad with two different paths, one to the left and the other to the right. “I’m going to the left.”

“I’m going to the right”, he said. We smiled at each other for a few seconds before he leaned in for an awkward hug. “It was nice hanging out with you.”

“You too”, I said. “And thank you for the trip.”

“Anytime”, he said. “Tomorrow then?”

“I’ll see you tomorrow”, I said.

“By the way”, he said. “Is the high school around here good?”

“It’s the best in Seoul”, I answered. “Why?”

“My mom registered me there for senior year”, he answered. What? We were going to the same school in a couple of months? What king of ridiculous amount of coincidence is this?

“That’s great”, I said. “You’ll love the school.”

“I hope so”, he said. “Bye.” I waved goodbye and hurried back to the empty house.

It was 4 am in the morning and I didn’t feel tired. I had much more energy in me than I had in the morning. My first impression of work was great, especially when it came to my co-worker. I had this feeling he might be the one person who would help me get over my friends not being here. Se Hun was in England with Lu Han. Alice, who was not talking to me because of what happened at the dinner, was in Vietman visiting her grandparents and Lime was in Australia with her family.

I also thought there might be a slight possibility he would be able to get me over Kai. Right! Kai! How weird! I had not thought of Kai for hours. Omg! I had not thought of Kai!

I jumped around the house celebrating and proud of myself. This was certainly going to be an awesome summer.

A/N: 

Well, voila! He is finally here. The real second male lead.