Rain

I felt my body freeze as I heard the voice of an older woman make her way into the room. I felt Siwon's arms tense up around me as he burried my face into his shoulder. "Uh... Mom...mianhae, I was just told that I'm actually late for a photo shoot with Elle Magazine." I heard him say as he slowly let me go and turned to face his mother. "Oh ok son... but may I ask who your friend is?" he asked sweetly as she walked closer to us. Although I felt shy I slowly lifted up my eyes to meet the elegant lady before me. Although she was dressed simply her presence alone made me know that she was the esteemed lady of the house. "Anneyonghaseyo, Park Rain-imnidad." I said softly as I bowed to his Mrs. Choi. "Annyeonghaseyo Park Rain, I'm Siwon's mother." she said kindly as she continued to give Siwon a questioning look. "Um...mom, Park Rain is a model for Elle Magazine as well and she just came to tell me that the previous model has caught a stomach virus and won't be able to do the shoot so the staff needs me to go for the shoot. But... the thing is....." Siwon began to say before he bent down to whisper in his mom's ear. I saw as Siwon continued to whisper in his mom's ear and watched as her questioning gaze slowly faded into that of an understanding one. "Ah...I see." she said softly before she playfully hit a smiling Siwon. "Gentleman don't play hard to get!" she said soflty as Siwon hugged her from behind. "Rain-ssi, I apologize if my son has caused you any trouble. He's a bit of a handful...but he makes up for it. You look beautiful in that gown by the way, I hope the photo shoot comes out well." she said before she made her way towards me. "Rain...such as beautiful name matches such a beautiful person..., I do hope you give my son a chance. Between us ladies... when my son wants something, he usually manages to obtain it. " she said with a small giggle. I could only smile since I had no idea what she was talking about. Mrs Choi then reached for my hands and said, "I know you are both in a hurry to go back to the photoshoot but I do hope we can have lunch sometime so that we can get to know you better." With that last statement she turned and smiled at her son before leaving us alone in the room once again. "Well..... that was a surprise...." I managed to say as I slowly sank into the desk chair. I watched as Siwon began to ruffle his hair before picking out a set of clothes from his closet. "Give me a few minutes while I get changed. We'll head back to my apartment in a bit." he said as he walked into the bathroom. It wasn't long before he came out before he grabbed his coat and my hand as we left his parent's house. I stayed silent as we got into his white Audi. "Siwon....what did you mother mean back there?" I asked once I gained enough courage. He blinked a few times before clearing his throat. "Nothing much... I just told her that you were......" he began to say but hesitated during the last part of his sentence. "You told her that I was what?" I asked since I was not quite sure what Siwon was trying to say. "I told her that you were an old crush of mine....and that I wouldn't agree to go to the photoshoot unless you yourself came to get me. I told my mom that I've never managed to make you fall for me so this was me playing hard to get to try and gain your attention...." he said shyly as he continued to look straight ahead. "Wow....I'm just surprised you were able to come up with such a lie in so little time!" I said amazed that Siwon possessed such talent. He gave a little chuckle as he said, "You make it sound like such an accomplishment." I turned to look at him as I said, "I...can't lie to save my life. Honestly... in situations where I have to lie...I panic and begin to stutter so I've learned just to nod or smile because I really can't lie...." He let out a light laugh as he asked, "Really? Wow now that's amazing! It's a lot harder to find someone who can't lie than someone who can. But...are you sure you can't lie??" I gave him a hopeless look before saying, "If I ever do get to meet your mother again and she asks me how we met.... you'll see what I mean." I almost laughed at how fast the smile on his face faded and was replaced with one of worry. "So... you mean to say that if my mom had asked you today how we met... you would have told her truth?! Like the fact that we don't know how or why you keep appearing in my bed and the fact that you live in the States but mysteriously appear here in Seoul?! Are you insane?! Who would believe you?!" he shouted anxiously. "In a way yes.... I'll try to smile my way out of it but if she were to interrogate more then the stuttering would begin until I end up telling her the entire truth... I really can't lie... believe me I've tried....I'm just glad you were able to come up with a lie for me." I said before I sneezed. "Bless you!" said Siwon as he looked and saw that I wasn't wearing a coat. "My god you must be freezing! I didn't notice you weren't wearing a coat when we left!" He quickly pulled over and took off his own coat to give to me. "Let's go buy a coat for you first he said as he carefully placed his coat over my shoulders and drove to a shopping mall. "I'm fine really..." I said for seemed like the 100th time since Siwon kept apologizing. We walked into a familiar boutique and I couldn't stop myself from heading towards a manequin that was wearing a lamb wool coat. I was indeed freezing but I didn't want to make Siwon feel bad. I couldn't take my eyes off of it and soon felt Siwon's coat being taken off of my shoulders. I turned around and noticed Siwon was taking off the coat so that I could try on the coat I had set my eyes on. "You should look for a warm set of clothes as well unless you don't mind staying in that gown." he said as he took another look at the semi provocative dress I was wearing. "Actually, it makes sense to keep the gown since the last time, I woke up with the clothes I went to sleep in. I think that if I go to sleep in this gown then I'll wake up with it over there in L.A. If it were mine to keep then I wouldn't mind, but I need to return it back to the designer." I said as I looked up at a puzzled Siwon. "Is that so? How did you figure that out?" he whispered as he stood behind me as I tried the coat on in front of a mirror. "Well, when I first woke up next to you, I was wearing my pajamas that I fell asleep in. Then when I fell asleep on your bed I remember wearing the ones you had boughten for me and in fact I woke up in LA wearing them too. Now with the gown, I fell asleep at my desk still wearing the gown and my purse....and now look at how I woke up next to you today." I finished explaining as I gave him a confident look. Siwon seemed to have understood my logic behind this and quickly agreed. "So...you're really not some lost spirit stuck between this world and the next?" said Siwon suddenly which was enough to make me turn around. "You STILL think I'm a ghost?" I asked him with an annoyed look. "No, I'm only kidding." he said with a smile as he went to bring me a winter outfit. He then bent down to whisper in my ear as he said, "You look amazing in that gown and I would totally agree to leave it on, but.... aren't you afraid that you'll attract attention in what you're wearing?" I quickly faced him and saw him point discretly towards some fans that had already begun to take pictures. "Oh no....I'll change and meet you at the coffee shop on the second floor." I said quickly before disappearing into a dressing room.

Siwon

"She's cute...., " I thought to myself as I saw her rush into a dressing room. I walked over to an attendant and handed her my card. "Please charge anything that she purchases to my account." I asked her but what surprised when she returned my card. "Ms. Park is one of our VVIP costomers. She's been shopping here since she was young so she has her own account on with us so it isn't necessary for you to pay." she said kindly. "You know this lady?" I asked the attendant since it was the first time that I met someone else who knew Rain. "Well I don't know Ms. Park Rain personally  but I've been working here part time for the past 8 years and I've seen her shop here frequently. She hasn't done personal shopping in about 4 years but we still get her orders online. Everyone who works here knows who she is since we have her picture and profile uploaded onto her account." she finished saying with a professional smile. "Is there anything else you can tell me about Ms. Park Rain? I've just became a friend of hers and I just would like to know more." I said sincerely as I continued to ask the salesperson. "Well, if you're asking about her family....its a mystery even to us. Even when she used to come shopping she was always alone. She doesn't have a known job profession either." she answered hesitantly. "Always alone...." I repeated silently. "Well although it hasn't been confirmed if she's related to the companies at all but Ms. Park always attends banquets for Mountain Green Energy, Light Corp, Silver Star Energy, and White Rain. She never accompanies anyone but she's been spotted at several banquets as well as a few conferences." she finished whispering to me. The sales person bowed and left to go attend another customer while I began to head over to the Starbucks which was located on the second floor of the shopping mall. "She's always spotted alone....yet she's a well known customer....her family and job is unknown....and she attends the banquets of the four major energy supplying companies in South Korea...."  I thought to myself as I patiently waited at a table for Rain to show up. "Sorry I took a while...I decided to take off some of the make up as well." she said once she had arrived and took a seat across from me. I could feel my cheeks begin to feel warm as I saw that her hair was no longer pinned up but falling elegantly past her shoulders with loose curls. The dark smokey makeup had been replaced with natural shades which made her look casual but elegant at the same time. She was wearing the same black heels but she now wore them with a pair of skinny jeans and an ivory colored cardigan that matched perfectly with the beige lamb wool coat I had seen before. The outfit she wore now made her blend in with everyone else that it was hard to imagine she was the same person who looked like a midnight goddess just moments ago. She looked stunning in the black gown but she looked even more beautiful and approachable with casual clothes. Before I let my mind get the best of me I quickly distracted myself by asking about something else. "It's fine, I just got here myself. I was looking around some stores. So where is the gown?"I asked anxious to stop thinking about Rain even though she was right in front of me. "It's right here, I had the ladies pack it up for me. But please remind me to wear it again tonight." she said as she turned to order coffee for the both of us. Once Rain came back with the drinks I couldn't help myself from asking her the questions that had been on my mind. "Rain....how long has it been since you moved to America to study?" I asked as I blew into my coffee to cool it down a bit. "It's been 6 years since I've moved to the United States....I was 18 when I graduated and moved to study in LA but during the first two years I would come back to Seoul to spend winter and summer vacation here. I spent the first two years studying English and Music so I didn't begin working on my Business degree until I was 20. I have a degree in both Classical music and English so I was pretty focused the first two years on just the things I wanted to study. But after the first 2 years my mother said that it would be better to permanantly move to the United States for the next 4 years in order to apply myself to business studies." she finished saying before taking a sip of her coffee. "You said you were getting your Master's in Business...you were able to accomplish that in 4 years?" I asked her amazed since it usully takes people 6 years. "Yeah... once i moved permanetly to LA I took full loads and every semester even during breaks since I had nothing else to do. Now that I'm about to graduate next week the load has significanly lessened which was why i was able to do more modeling as well as shifts at the restaurant." she answered. "Oh... so what do you plan to do after you graduate?" I asked casually as I watched her begin to get nervous in front of me. "That...well I'm actually moving back to Seoul to help my mother run a company....." she said hesitantly as she began to figit. I felt horrible for interrogating her like this but somehow I just couldn't keep the questions from coming out. "What company? Is it well-known? Maybe i've heard of it..." I asked even though I knew I shouldn't. "Y-you could say ....that it is w-well known.....it's an energy supplying company..." she said while avoiding my gaze. "Oh! Now that makes sense. I actually spoke with a salesperson while you were changing and she told me that you always attend banquets and conferences for some of the top energy supplying companies in South Korea. You probably attend to gain experience from them right?" I said as I carefully watched her expression. Rain didn't respond but she just smiled. "So...this is how she reacts when she's trying to lie....." I thought to myself as I calmly drank my coffee. "You don't have to tell me anything else if you don't want to...." I softly as I looked at her nervous state. "It...it's not that I don't want to tell you...its just that I can't.... honestly I wish I could tell someone...that way I would feel like I have an actual friend who knows about me. But since I'm kind of a secret....i can never have close friends." She said with a weak smile. "Arasso....I won't ask until its alright for you to tell me. So, what are we going to do about your vanishing act?" I asked friendly. Rain let out a sigh as she said, "I don't have a clue.....and I can't keep bothering you... I know that you must have your own work as well...." I stayed starring at the table as i tried to find a solution but looked back when I couldn't think of anything. "My mother can't find out that I'm here so I can't go home but I should be able to use one of the apartments she has up for sale just until next week. " she said before looking out the frosty window. "You can.... stay at my apartment. No one goes in there and you've been there once before so I think you'll be comfortable there. Also, i'm leaving to Taiwan for a week to promote the drama "Extravagant Challenge". So you'll have the apartment all to yourself." I offered since i couldn't bear to see a woman in distress. "Thanks....but really I don't want to trouble you more than I already have....I'll just stay in one of my mom's apartments." she said as she shyly bowed her head in gratitude. "Well....for you to keep appearing in front of me...i feel that I have some sort of responsibility so I want to help you in any way that I can. Please call me if you ever need anything." I said sincerely as I gave her my business card. "Thank you again....about me appearing....I don't know where to start first since this is not something a regular person experiences.....but my guess is to go to different temples and do research to see if anything like this has ever happened....and if I can't find anything then I'll continue to do more research and maybe find a way to get my life back in order." she said with a determined look. I smiled at her and placed my hand on hers as I said, "That's a good idea. I'll try and ask around some temples and churches in Taiwan while I'm there to see if I can find anything for you."

Rain

We left the mall and Siwon was nice enough to come take a look at the apartment with me. He wanted to help me settle things before he left to Taiwan the next day. "So you're a famous actor?" I asked Siwon once we were driving toward Gangnam district. "You could say that...." he said modestly before letting out a shy laugh. "I'm actually apart of music group known as "Super Junior". You've probably heard of us right?" he asked as he turned to face me. "I'm sorry.... I was home schooled so I didn't get to follow up with the latest trends. There was a group that I heard alot of when I was staying in Japan. They're known as Tohoshinki. Do you know of that group?" I asked him as he pulled over to the 43 pyung Gangnam apartment that I used to live in while I was still in elementary. "Yes...actually we are from the same Entertainment company. We both work for SM Entertainment. They are actually a Korean group but they promote a lot in Japan. They are known as Dong Bang Shin Ki or TVXQ here in Korea." he said before opening the car door for me. "Wow! Really! I don't know much about them but I remember hearing their music and falling in love with it while I was in Japan. So do you get to work with them often?" I asked as we made our way up the stairs. "Yes I actually got to act along side Shim Changmin while filming the drama "Athena. We're good friends." he said with a smile. "I'm kind of disappointed that you know about his group and not mine...." he began to say playfully. "I really don't know much about them either. Its just that when I stayed in Japan for a few months to take some language courses I would always walk around in between classes and you could see their videos everywhere. Even when I would go eat at the restaurants near the University of Tokyo i could always hear their music." I said to him as I stood in front of apartment 431. "Do you know the password to get in?" he asked me as I stood in front of the door. I turned to give him a smile before saying, "My mom uses the same password for everything she owns....my birthday." I said as I punched in the 6 digit code. I heard the door unlock but was surprised when I felt siwon's hand on my wrist. "Your birthday is 021087? As in February 10th 1987?" he asked with wide eyes. "Yes...that's my birthday." I said with a smile before opening the door. "What a coincidence....that's also my birthday! Well it's the day my parents registered my birth." he said with a little laugh as he followed me into the apartment. "I used to live in this apartment when I was in elementary school. My mom put it up for rent but since she placed a really high price on it, I doubt anyone will be interested in buying it." I told him as I gave him a tour of the apartment. "Why did your mom put such a high price on it if she wants to sell it?" SIwon asked curiously as he looked around the kitchen. "My mom....knows that I grew up here and she doesn't want to sell it... but for reasons I can't explain....she has to make it look like she's selling it, so she puts a ridiculously high price." I said as I looked throught the cabinets to find the rice cooker and silverware that I had packed away. "Your mom must really love you and the memories of your childhood...." he said as he walked up beside me. "Yes....she loves me more than anything....and I think she feels bad about not being able to spend much time with me while I grew up so she does things like this to show me how much she cares...." I said with a smile as I thought about my mother. "Is there anything that you'll be needing? It's barely 6pm so we have plenty of time to go shopping for things you need." offered siwon as he helped me take off the sheets from the furniture. "Thank you... but i really don't want to trouble you since you are leaving to Taiwan in a few hours...Don't you need to pack?" I asked hesitantly since i would have taken his help but didn't want to be a constant bother to him. To my relief he said, "Its no problem at all. All the stuff i need is already in Taiwan. The only thing i need from here is my phone, wallet and myself". I started to laugh as he ran over to cover me with the furniture sheets and was shocked when he lifted me up onto his shoulder. "I could always pack you up and take you as my luggage if you want." he teased playfully and i was almost glad that my face was covered up by those sheets so Siwon wouldn't see me blush. Once we finished dusting the furniture I quickly made a list of what I would need from the store and went into the garage to check if my old car was still there. "ASSA!!" I exclaimed as i saw my 2005 green Mustang my mother had boughten me when i graduated high school. "I saw as Siwon's eyes widened in surprise at the foreign sports car. "Is this yours?" he asked curiously as he went over to inspect the tan leather seats and flawless pain job. "Yes, its my pride and joy! I can't believe my mother kept this here too!" I said excitedly as I got into the driver's seat and motioned for Siwon to get into the passenger seat. I saw as he coughed uncomfortably and said, "I'm sorry but.. I'm not used to having a lady drive me around...it's a man pride thing..." I almost burst out laughing but instead reached over and tugged on his arm to pull him into the passenger seat. I guess i pulled him in too close because his face was just milimeters from mine and I could have sworn his cheeks turned a light shade of pink when I whispered, "Trust me....I don't drive like a lady."