As Joohyun settled in on her ride back from the press conference, the emotions and recollections from it started flooding back. They were a mix of relief and concern, fear and trepidation.  In a few hours the news would spread across the internet like wildfire, and all she could do was wait and see if she and the other women who had stood up with her and professed their orientation would be praised, accepted or cancelled.  Like with many things, it was probably going to be a mix, and it would probably be a few weeks before the full impact was known.  In some ways she wanted people to blame her for it, and leave the others alone, but she knew they had all decided to do this together. She hoped the theory of strength in numbers really was true this time.  But it had to happen, and she had no regrets being the one who started it.  Sure, the actions of Seulgi and Sunmi did accelerate things,  but that just meant they had larger numbers when the time came. It had been a relief to have Hani there to lighten the mood, but Joohyun couldn't help wonder if her denying they were a thing meant people would believe they were. She had to admit she could do worse, but that was neither here nor there with her impending date.  Taking a deep breath, she realized the metaphor “Out of the frying pan and into the fire” had never felt more accurate.

As the car pulled into the underground garage underneath the restaurant a few days later, Joohyun was surprised she wasn’t more nervous.  Although some of the early feedback from the press conference had been negative, she felt inspired and motivated by the overwhelmingly positive feedback from true Reveluvs.  It was a real confidence booster just when she needed it the most.  However, as she walked up the back stairs she couldn’t deny that her heart was beating a bit faster than usual.  “This is really happening!” she thought to herself with mild disbelief. 

Opening the door, she found herself in a small waiting room filled with the scents of food being prepared close by.  She could hear the bustling noise from the restaurant through one of the doors.  Behind a desk, a teenage girl was focusing intently on her homework, her headphones blocking the sound of the new arrival.  Joohyun walked closer and moved her hand within the girl’s field of vision. Mildly startled, the girl looked up, and then with a shocked expression covered with both hands.  

“Joo… Joo.. “ the girl stuttered before Joohyun had time to signal her to be quiet.  

“Shh, Let’s keep that between us, okay?” Joohyun whispered, hoping no one else had heard.  Being recognized always triggered a mixture of pride and frustration which she could never quite reconcile.  “I am here to meet Hyeyeong, do you know if she’s here yet?”  The girl nodded starstruck and pointed at the other door in the room. Giving the girl a smile, Joohyun turned and walked over to the door, took a deep breath, opened it and walked in.  “Here goes nothing..” she thought to herself self-reassuringly. 

The private dining room was lit only by the candles on the solitary table. Hyejeong was seated with her side towards the entrance and was intently looking at the menu.  Joohyun couldn’t help notice the way the light reflected off her metallic blue hair, and how fashionable she looked in a button down white shirt and black leather pants.  She immediately felt a bit self conscious about her own outfit, but then remembered she had picked a red dress fans had really admired during one of their shows, and breathed an small sigh of relief.  Noticing her, Hyejeong stood up and waved her hand towards the free seat with a flourish and a small bow. 

“Have a seat, Yoojung! It’s good to finally meet this woman of mystery and few words!” she said with a small laugh. “Hopefully you didn’t have any trouble finding the place?”  

Joohyun shook her head and sat down awkwardly..  She wasn’t used to interacting with complete strangers, but then remembered how relatively easy Hyejeong had been to talk to online.  Looking at her across the table, she couldn’t help admire her confident smile and bright eyes. But, as Joohyun’s face was lit up by the candlelight when she sat down, she could tell Hyejeong’s expression becoming somewhat confused.   

“Hah.. “ Hyejeong said, in an uncharacteristically hesitant tone.  “Has anyone told you look a lot like that idol from..  Sorry I don't really listen to current music but I saw a thing on the news the other day.. It's on the tip of my tongue..”   

Joohyun started to freeze and hoped her face wasn't betraying what she sensed might be happening.  “Why did this have to be the week she was on the news that even non fans might notice,” she thought to herself in frustration.  She tilted her head a bit and hoped Hyejeong wouldn’t remember so that this would all go away. 

“Did you see it too, maybe?” Hyejeong continued, looking a bit annoyed at herself now.  “I just caught a bit of it from across the cafe,  but it seemed like they were coming out in support of lesbian relationships in entertainment.  It’s about time!”  

Joohyun felt herself blush and hoped the low lighting didn’t give her away.  “Ahh.. no I didn’t watch that on TV.. but that’s great, I agree!” she said hesitantly, hoping Hyejeong wouldn’t unravel her white lie.  She had a bad feeling this was no longer sustainable, but was relieved Hyejeong hadn’t paid closer attention.

“Oh yeah..  One of the members of Red Velvet, that's it!” Hyejeong said with relieved expression. “I had a short phase of listening to kpop in the summer of 2014 when Mamamoo and Red Velvet debuted, but then started my first trip around the world and totally forgot about it again. Back then you didn’t hear about it outside Korea much at all, but now I hear it’s become a worldwide thing. Amazing, isn’t it? But that’s right, you said you were more into EDM and such yourself so you may not know them either..”  

Joohyun could only nod and worry even more when she saw Hyejeong still trying to remember the name.  “I.. well.. “ she said, desperately thinking of some way to change the topic before it was too late. “I saw you looking at the menu earlier, what is good here?” she asked as calmly as she could.  This was going even worse than she had anticipated, so she hoped it wasn’t too late for thingsto recover. 

Hyejeong looked up, still with a distracted expression in her eyes, but with a smile.. “Ahh yes.. Well, that depends on what you like, Yooju.. “ she stopped and her eyes lit up excitedly.. Internally, a wave of dread flooded over Joohyun and she cursed herself internally for not being more original when coming up with a cover name.

“Joohyun, that's it.. You look a lot like Joohyun!” Hyejeong said with a grin, proud she had finally remembered. “Your names even sound alike, haha..”  she added smugly.  Joohyun could feel herself freeze up.  This was the point of no return.  She could either live a lie or take her chances.  This choice could determine the rest of the date and maybe even her future happiness. She could just laugh it off and say that she had heard that many times, and how funny it was, and then go on with the date as if nothing had happened.  That is, she could do that if she wasn’t a terrible liar and knew she would never be able to pull it off.  Joohyun inhaled deeply and started to respond.