A/N: A little fillerish treat for any lowkey Taeten shippers out there to kick start this chapter...

13.1: Unknown Aquarium Exhibit

Taeyong and Ten woke up in a state of confusion inside an aquarium exhibit. Before they could register how they ended up in there, they heard the gentle tread of running shoes from a distance. Turning their attention towards the source of the sound, they spotted Seulgi. Cladded in a hoodie sweatshirt that hid the top half of her face, Seulgi emanated an aura of mystery that piqued the boys’ curiosity to move unconsciously towards her. Looking as if she was caught, Seulgi took to her heels and sprinted towards the staircase. Racing her way up to the second floor, Seulgi occasionally turned back to look at Ten and Taeyong.

Once the boys reached the second floor as well, they decided to split up to catch Seulgi in the labyrinth of water-filled enclosures. Hunting for their target in the dim environment, the only source of light that aided them were the neon lights from the fish tank. There were moments of frustrations when they made eye contact with Seulgi’s intense cat eye stare across the glass tanks. It was like she was so near yet so far.

Eventually, Seulgi reached the end of the maze-like hall. On her left and right side, Taeyong and Ten emerged from the same maze via their individual selected pathway. Smirking with triumph, both boys leaped towards Seulgi at what they thought was a platter handed to them on a plate. Little did they expect Seulgi to crouch down and rolled away in a somersault, only to have them smashing into each other, face to face, lips to lips. Once realisation dawned upon them that they had kissed, they cringed with disgust while Seulgi broke into a girlish giggle.

“Cut!” the director shouted, followed by a thumbs-up. “Great job!”

The Shin family had won the exclusive distribution right for Skechers Footwear in South Korea. Due to some poor investment decisions previously, the Shin business had suffered significant losses. With cash flow problem, they might not be able to create a decent marketing campaign to properly represent Skechers in South Korea, and risked losing the lucrative deal they had previously fought for.

(Please re-read chapter 10 if you need a refresher).

With the hope to break the engagement with Shin Jimin without hurting ties between the two families, Taeyong agreed to be the model for the advertisement at no charges. Mr Lee Sooman himself had also engaged a media company from his own pocket to conceptualise and execute the campaign. As the story line of the advertisement required more than one models, Taeyong managed to enlist the help of his classmates, Ten, Seulgi and Baekhyun. In the original script, two of the boys would be chasing the girl in the aquarium exhibit, but she ended up dancing with the third boy in the final scene. On the day of filming, Baekhyun was down with flu. In order not to delay the set, the producer decided to amend the script such that they could make do with the remaining three models. In the midst of debating which male model should get the girl in the end, Seulgi shared her view on how she had a different take on this matter.

“I’m not a famous celebrity, so the audience will not be interested in who I ended up with. Why not we focus on the storyline itself? Giving it a plot twist would leave a more lasting impression on the public.”

Both the producer and director concurred with Seulgi and even used most of her ideas in the amended script, except for the part that the two boys fell in love with each other in the end. Instead, the two boys would react with disgust after kissing each other. Not only would that achieve a humour effect, it would also keep the largely homophobic South Korea happy.

“Hey Seul, the bangle you’re wearing looks unique and beautiful. Where did you get it from?” Ten noticed the accessory that Seulgi was wearing while they were eating from the packed lunch provided for them.

“Ah this? Unnie taught me how to make it using epoxy resin and the flowers from the school garden. We made a pair for each other,” Seulgi glowed with pride as she explained how the bangle came about.

“It’s just a piece of cheap looking plastic…” Taeyong muttered and walked away to discard the empty food carton.

“Cheap looking?” Seulgi was a little offended by Taeyong’s reaction. “He’s not completely wrong that this doesn’t cost much, but it’s Unnie’s thoughts that count.”

“Seul, are you playing dumb or what?”

Ten could imagine question marks popping up around Seulgi’s head, so he continued. “I’m sure you know Taetae doesn’t mean what he says. Taetae’s snobbish behaviour is the result of his jealousy over the noona that you have a crush on. Oh… wait, are you still at that crush stage?”

Thankfully Seulgi had finished her lunch as well, otherwise her face would be messed up when she tried to cover her flushed face using the food carton. “Am I that obvious?”

“Let’s just say you are not as good as your best friend at hiding such things. But this also means my Taetae’s heart is broken into pieces,” Ten pretended to clutch his chest in agony.

“Then go pick up the pieces and mend it back for him. Moreover, he had ended his engagement with Jimin. Ten, this is your chance.”

“This is easier said than done. The fact that he likes you proves that he is straight. I know from the beginning that I don’t stand a chance at all.”

“How do you know? Just because he erm… likes me…doesn’t mean he shows no interest in men. That is, if he actually sees me that way. For all we know, Taeyong is simply expressing gratitude to me for rescuing him from some bullies when we were younger.”

“Why do you sound like it is impossible for Taetae to have romantic feelings for you? You are quite a catch yourself. If Taetae loves you, I shall support him all the way. All that matters to me is his happiness. That Unnie of yours… be prepared to put up a good fight with us.”

“Hey! You don’t have to drag Unnie down into this. Regardless, your altruism is admirable. I really hope Taeyong will be moved by your sincerity one day.”

“Thank you Seul, for the encouraging words… and the kissing scene that you influence the producers to include. Ah… I can die happy!” With that Ten bumped his fist with Seulgi.

From afar, Taeyong was wondering what were his two friends happily chatting about.

“Is that the girl you choose over my Jimin?”

Taeyong was about to head back to his clique when the familiar voice of Mr Shin startled him to a halt. “Oh, good afternoon, Mr Shin.”

“I just saw the finished product of the filming. The ending was unexpected and hilarious. Seulgi, that’s her name, right? She contributed a lot of ideas, didn’t she? At least that was what I was told.”

Taeyong nodded like a proud parent hearing compliments about his daughter. “I’m glad to hear that.”

“Apart from her creativity, Seulgi is quite pretty and acts well too. So are Ten and you. I am really thankful for all your help in making this marketing campaign possible.”

“Not at all. That’s the least I can do to help the Shin family… after breaking…”

“Don’t mention it. As much as I would really like you to be my son-in-law, I have to respect your decision. Perhaps I should stop spoiling Jimin like a princess. It’s making her undesirable to good boys like you, isn’t it?” Mr Shin laughed heartily at his own comments.

“I am no better myself. Jimin will surely find a much better boyfriend than me in no time,” Taeyong tried to soften the blow with his humility.

“I know you are just being kind. Good luck to you with your girl. Anyway, let’s go over to them now, before she gets too friendly with your other buddy.”

“Sure,” Taeyong laughed nervously. If only he knows better, he thought.

13.2 Joohyun’s Home

Initially, Seulgi planned to lodge at Joohyun’s home for a few days until she received her next scholarship allowance, so that she could rent a place outside. Both Granny and Joohyun objected to the idea on grounds that it was dangerous for a young girl live alone. As a result, Seulgi continued to reside at Joohyun’s home.

Due to the regular visits by volunteers from social welfare to distribute food rations, it was obvious that Joohyun’s household was not well-off. Seulgi had offered to pay rental with her scholarship allowance. However, Granny had declined any form of monetary contribution by Seulgi and insisted that her scholarship was meant for her own educational expenses.

On a few occasions, Seulgi went back home to see if her mother had a change of heart, only to return with fresh wounds. Joohyun could not bear to see her getting hurt time after time and decided that Seulgi was here to stay. Not one to take advantage of the kindness of others, Seulgi shared the load in household chores with Joohyun. So, there she was doing the laundry despite feeling exhausted after a long day of filming earlier, while Joohyun was in the utility room ironing the clothes.

After staying at Joohyun’s home over a period of time, Seulgi started to notice there was something amiss. For instance, Seulgi could only find clothes belonging to Granny, Joohyun and herself when she was doing laundry. Since the brief introduction Joohyun gave about her parents when they met the second time, she never talked about them again. While it was understandable that the fathers were no longer available, it was strange not to meet Joohyun’s mother even once. Neither Granny nor Joohyun made any mention about her. It was like Joohyun’s mother was non-existent. Despite her curiosity, Seulgi did not dare to probe further because of the nature of her occupation.

“Ahhhh!” the painful shriek from the utility room punctuated Seulgi’s thoughts. Dropping the task at hand, Seulgi bolted to the source of the commotion to find Joohyun clutching her right hand in agony.

“Oh my god Unnie! You burned your hand with the iron!” without further delay, Seulgi escorted Joohyun to the kitchen, where she could get first aid treatment to cool down the burn. Seulgi was careful not to turn on the tap at full force for fear of bursting the blisters that were developing on the angry patch of redness on the skin. On her way to get the first aid kit in the utility room, Seulgi saw her uniform on the floor, looking like it was the last item ironed by Joohyun before the accident. When she picked it up, shreds of the forgotten talisman fell out of the pocket.

“Oh ****! I forgot to take out the talisman before feeding the uniform to the washing machine. Now it’s ruined,” Seulgi lamented and felt guilty for taking Sooyoung-ssi’s kindness for granted. “What if I see Mr Oh or other ghosts again?”

“Seulgi-yah? Have you found the first aid kit?”

Joohyun’s voice brought Seulgi back to Earth. Common sense told her that tending to Joohyun should be her top priority. She could worry about the ghosts at another time.

“I found it,” Seulgi headed to the couch in the living room where Joohyun was resting. When she took out the medicated cream for burns, nothing came out when she squeezed the tube. “There’s no more medicated cream left. Did you stock up on any new tubes?”

Joohyun shook her head. “It’s late now and all the shops have closed. I guess I have to bear with the pain till tomorrow.”

Seulgi watched guiltily as Joohyun winced in pain. “Did you get hurt while ironing my uniform?”

Joohyun silence left Seulgi helpless for a moment. Perhaps what actually happened was less important than how to make things better next. Taking Joohyun’s hand into hers, Seulgi brought it towards her own lips and grazed the burnt area tenderly.

“Seulgi-yah…”

“Oh… erm… I heard that saliva has antiseptic properties, so I thought it might help…”

“But you are nibbling at my wrist which is far away from the burnt areas,” Joohyun burst into laughter, “If you want to kiss me, just go ahead instead of covering up with some medical explanations.”

“Unnie! I’m serious…” Seulgi released Joohyun’s hands and covered her own face in embarrassment.

“Hey! Then why do you stop?” Joohyun attempted to pull Seulgi’s hands from her face.

“Unnie doesn’t seem to like it, so I…”

“I’m not sure about the antiseptic part, but the way it distracts me from the pain,” Joohyun narrowed the gap between Seulgi and herself. “I… don’t… hate it.”

To be honest, Seulgi was not prepared to be by Joohyun’s sultry reply. Neither was she ready, nor would she ever be, to have Joohyun feeling up her waist. “By the same medical logic, I could perhaps help to speed up the healing of the scars left by your Umma a few days ago.”

Seulgi.exe literally stopped working as she blindly allowed Joohyun to drag her back to the utility room, and the rest, Yours Truly shall leave it to your imagination…