April - V.I.P

 

The chilly atmosphere of Friday was apparent in the streets of Seoul. The streets crowded with life as people bustled from one place to another as fast as they could. Young couples littered the streets, holding hands to warm themselves and frequenting coffee shops in attempts to keep warm. In a specific coffee shop in the heart of the city, Park YeonJoo sipped her coffee as she gazed contently at her boyfriend from across the table. She repressed a chuckle while watching Choi SeungHyun groaned as his head hit the top of the table with an unceremonious thud.

            “You should go to sleep earlier,” she giggled, petting his hair lovingly. “You’re always so busy with your gigs, but that doesn’t mean you should sacrifice sleep.”

SeungHyun smiled and playfully bit her thumb as her fingers made its way across his face. He looked up at her with an innocent smile. His face still held its normal chubbiness, but underneath his eyes were prominent dark eye bags. “Between school and my rap gigs,” SeungHyun said, sitting up correctly, “Me and JaeCheon – ”

            “JaeCheon-ah and I,” YeonJoo corrected, sipping her coffee. She honestly would correct her boyfriend’s grammar and syntax even if it was the last thing she was going to do. It was a pet peeve of hers to hear incorrect grammar; YeonJoo could tell that she rubbed of on SeungHyun – his vocabulary and speech mannerisms were improving greatly.

            “JaeCheon-ah and I,” SeungHyun repeated with a roll of his eyes. “Anyway, he and I have been getting so many offers, its hard to turn ‘em all down; it’s not like we want to anyways.” He took a sip of his coffee and the foam from his upper lip. “I mean, the thrill of being on stage, and the sound of people screaming and chanting along the beat – there are even girls who throw their and bras on the stage – even older women,” he concluded with a faraway expression.

YeonJoo cocked an eyebrow. “Older women?”

SeungHyun grinned at her smugly, and wiggled his eyebrows, “Jealous?”

She rose to the challenge. Very coyly, she ran her foot up and down his leg from underneath the table in a very seductive way. “Very,” she said with pout as she stirred her coffee with a spoon.

SeungHyun, a bit excited as YeonJoo’s foot rose and fell against his leg in a very enticing manner, grabbed her wrists and pulled her in for a kiss, almost knocking down her coffee. His lips muted a gasp of surprise as it covered her soft lips. YeonJoo giggled, pushing SeungHyun back as she immediately sat down and straighten her shirt. She blushed, as she looked around, hoping no adults saw their little display of PDA. She was a bit self-conscious and blushed as SeungHyun his lips with a glint in his eye.

He chuckled thinking his girlfriend was so cute, as YeonJoo blushed redder under his mesmerizing stare. She had a hard time keeping his intoxicating gaze and sipped her coffee in an attempt to look busy. SeungHyun tilted his head to one side, and said, “Come watch me perform tomorrow night.”

            “Muh?!” she asked scandalized, almost choking on her coffee. People around the coffee shop looked in her direction at her outburst. Feeling even more self-conscious, she leaned in and whispered. “I-I can’t go to a club! I’m under aged!”

            “So am I,” SeungHyun countered, leaning in and mimicking her whisper.

            “But that doesn’t count,” she said, blowing on his face. “You always do stuff like that. And besides, I can’t go; I’m going to get caught.”

            “I can sneak you in,” SeungHyun said confidently, “C’mon, go with me?”

            “I don’t know…” YeonJoo trailed off as she looked away from him. If she looked straight at him, she knew her resolve would fade away. His face, although still having its baby fat, was still very persuasively hot – it would almost be impossible to say no to him.

            “C’mon,” SeungHyun tried again, “We’ve been dating for about two months now, and you still haven’t come see me rap. I promise it’ll be worth while.”

She chanced a glance at him and her resolve immediately crumbled, “Won’t I get in trouble?” she asked half-heartedly. He smirked and laced his hands with hers. Both he and she knew she would be there tomorrow night.

            “What’s life without living a little dangerously once in a while?” he asked with a genuine smile on his face.

            

Loud cheers from the crowd and obnoxious background beats from the music kept his blood pumping, giving him an all time high. The glaring spot light shined on him, alone, as he belted into his microphone. In front him, a large gyrating crowd rocked their heads in tune with the beat of his rap. Yet they were all lost to him. To SeungHyun, the only one who mattered was the petite girl in a black top, standing in the 3^rd row. Though he sang to the crowd, he also sang just for her. Throughout his whole performance, despite everything else around him, he kept his mesmerizing gaze solely on her – YeonJoo.

After his solo, he thanked his audience and hopped off the stage towards his girlfriend. Sweat drenched the back of his shirt and his hair stuck against his brow underneath his white beanie. With a smile, he took YeonJoo’s hand in his and led her to the back of the club where booths were available. As he neared the tables, he pulled down the hood of his large, black sweater, letting the air cool his head. He pulled at his white shirt, his golden chain rattling as he created a small breeze.

            “Dude that was sick!” rasped JaeCheon as the couple reached their reserved c-shaped booth. JaeCheon gave SeungHyun a “guy” high five with his right hand, and held his beer steadily with is left. “Here,” he said, motioning the two to squeeze in.

YeonJoo slid in first, wanting to be next to her best friend, who she brought to the club with her. Kim SooJin, a tall girl with long straight hair and glasses, moved over, creating room for her best friend. The two attended the same all-girl high school and got along really well. SooJin gulped the last drop of her soju, feeling a bit tipsy.

            “Yah!” JaeCheon exclaimed as he sat down next to SeungHyun but referred to SooJin who sat across from him. “Slow down there! I don’t want you to puke on my bed when I take you home,” he said suggestively.

SooJin smirked, “Oh, puking isn’t what I had in mind.” She giggled, as she swayed lightly to the side.

YeonJoo eyed her friend and JaeCheon wearily, “I left you two for three minutes and you’re jumping each other’s bones? What happened? I thought you two didn’t like each other.”

            “Ahhh, the power of alcohol,” SooJin said, raising her empty soju bottle, “Any guy looks jumpable under beer-goggles – even him.” She glanced at JaeCheon and scrunched her nose, “I think the effects are wearing off now.”

SeungHyun laughed as JaeCheon protested with a “Yah!”

            “C’mon,” SooJin said, standing up from the booth. She linked her arm with JaeCheon’s and pulled him along. “Let’s leave these two love birds alone and hit the dance floor.”

The two left at the booth watched with amusement as their respective best friends lost themselves within the crowd. Finally alone, SeungHyun s his arm around his girl and felt content.

            “You were really amazing on stage,” YeonJoo said, raising her voice so she could be heard above the music. She snuggled deeper into his embrace, feeling his chest rise up and down with each breath he took. “I thought your song was really great, although you sang it so fast I couldn’t keep up with the lyrics. And I especially liked your beat boxing? Yeah, you’re beat boxing at the end.”

SeungHyun chuckled, curling his arms tighter around her. He could honestly say he was falling in love with her bit by bit. With that little realization, he leaned down next to her head, his breath tickling her ear.

“Ain't trying to meet new faces, this don't interest me,” he whispered the lyrics of his song. SeungHyun watched with amusement as his girlfriend’s breathe hitched at the low baritone of his voice. He inwardly smiled, liking the effect that his voice had on YeonJoo. “Even if we bubble slow, we get it eventually…”(*)

      

SeungHyun sat on his bed, his earphones fitting snuggly in his ears as he tapped his pencil against the notebook on his lap. Moonlight streamed into his room; it and a small nightstand lamp to his right being the only source of light in the house. It was late and there was school tomorrow, but he didn’t care. SeungHyun’s face was blank in concentration as his head bopped to the beat of the music. With a sudden smile, he began fervently jotting down lyrics as his mind went into overdrive.

            “Buckwild…” he mumbled, writing down lyrics as it came to his head.

        

Within the 2^nd week of April, SeungHyun’s new song, “Buckwild” spread like wild fire among fans as it became one of the most talked about rap songs in the underground world. To SeungHyun, instant fame literary happened over night. He was pretty well known in the underground world of hip hop, but now, regular people knew who he was. Who knew a simple rap he made up and sung with NBK Gray could become so huge? Within the next two weeks, it became the number one song to be downloaded online. Suddenly, more and more clubs offered him prime spot on their stage, and many famous underground rappers wanted to rap with him or challenge him in a rap battle. In between gigs and royalties from online downloading sites, he began making lots of money. But the major difference SeungHyun couldn’t get over, were the fans he began making. Girls – lots of girls – began giving him attention. His popularity wasn’t just in his school, but pretty soon, girls from other school would wait by the front gate of at the end of the day to get a glimpse of him or ask for his autograph. The braver girls would come up to him or JaeCheon and give them love letters.

On one particular day when he and YeonJoo scheduled a date, SeungHyun waited patiently for her next to her school’s front gate. As soon as the final bell rang and girls piled out of the school, it was like a big wave of whispers that spread through out the building – suddenly, a whole gaggle of girls began squealing as he stood by the gate. He felt like some kind of boy band idol as a majority of the girls began to whip out their camera phones and snap stolen shots of him.

He spotted YeonJoo in the crowd walking towards him, accompanied by SooJin. SeungHyun stuffed his hands into his pockets, and smiled as YeonJoo walked straight up to him. He gave SooJin a curt nod of the head in greeting, but then turned his attention to his girlfriend.

            “Let’s go?” he asked, offering his right hand to her and taking her bag from her.

The girls around him, minus SooJin, squealed in delight as YeonJoo shyly laced her hand in his and followed him out the school gate.

            “Annyong!” she yelled over her shoulder to her friend as walked with SeungHyun.

            “Yah!” SooJin yelled back, waving her hands. “Leave your best friend for your hot boyfriend, I see how it is.”

SeungHyun smirked as he dragged YeonJoo around the corner and across the street. The two walked hand in hand for about 30 minutes, talking idly with one another – sharing their eventful day with the other. It was still chilly out, but the climate was slowly changing to warmer days. At least now, people didn’t have to bundle up in winter clothing.

            “Let’s go here,” SeungHyun motioned towards a quiet restaurant, tugging on YeonJoo’s hand.

The petite girl nodded and allowed her boyfriend to take her into the warm restaurant. The host sat them at the counter towards the front, giving them a nice view of the bustling streets in front of them. They ordered their meal, and waited patiently for it to arrive.

Just then, a small group of 5 or 6 high school girls came into the restaurant and stood at the door, pointing and giggling at YeonJoo and SeungHyun. They jostled one another, teasingly pushing one of the tallest of the girls forward, but the girl fought back with a laugh. The host of the restaurant ushered them towards a booth at the side, close to where YeonJoo sat with SeungHyun.

They giggled to themselves as SeungHyun’s cheeks puffed up with food.

YeonJoo’s eyes narrowed in jealousy. “I see you have quiet a bit of fans there,” she said, motioning with her head to the group of girls a few meters away.

SeungHyun gulped down his burger and spun around, eying the girls. The girls then giggled, and waved at him. He smirked, feeling his ego inflate. Yep, it wasn’t his fault girls found him so attractive. He gave them a teasing smirk and raised his eyebrow at them. The girls squealed even louder, attracting attention from the rest of the patrons in the restaurant.

It unnerved YeonJoo and she crossed her arms over her chest angrily. “Yah!” she exclaimed, causing SeungHyun to face her. “Don’t lead them on. I’m right here you know…” she pouted, but narrowed her eyes in envy.

The rapper chuckled, finding his girlfriend’s jealously cute and endearing. ‘Wasn’t jealously a sign that they cared for you?’ he thought to himself. He couldn’t help but notice how inviting her lips looked as she pouted, and the way her cheeks turned red when she was angry. He leaned close to her, touching her forehead with his.

            “You’re the only one for me, ma’,” he said, staring straight into her eyes.

Instead of pulling away as he thought she would do, YeonJoo just smiled and said, “I better be.”

And to his surprise, the usual conservative YeonJoo leaned in and kissed him passionately on the lips. He smiled against , opening it to allow her tongue to slip through. He explored , tasting her for the first time. After a few seconds they parted, breathing a little heavily for air. YeonJoo’s normally soft lips looked a little plump, and a deep red blush settled across her cheek. ‘Wow,’ the thought to himself, a goofy and happy smile appeared on his lips.

The girl really knew how to stake her claim on her man.

SeungHyun settled back into his chair and finished of his food as YeonJoo shyly bit a piece of her burger. Underneath the table, the two held each other’s hand, with SeungHyun lovingly caressing her hand with his thumb.

            “Sooo…” SeungHyun started, still a bit winded about their kiss. In all honesty, he’s never been kissed that way before, and the idea that more kisses like that was in line down the road excited him. “I was wondering –  wanna come see me perform again?”

YeonJoo bit her lip and fidgeted nervously with her school uniform’s skirt. “I can’t,” she said with a sigh. “My parents won’t approve of me going. I already risked getting caught once; I don’t want to risk it.”

            “It’s okay,” SeungHyun said, giving her hand a squeeze, “I won’t push it.”

She looked at him and smiled cutely. “Thanks.” She then gave him a soft peck on the cheek and added, “You’re the best.”

                 

            “I’ve been getting a lot of offers to sign with some companies and producers,” SeungHyun commented out of the blue. “I gave them all indefinite answers.”   

            “Hmm?” YeonJoo turned her head from the TV to look up at him, moving her head from his shoulders. The couple was currently situated on his couch, watching a program on the television in his family room. YeonJoo leaned against SeungHyun’s body with her legs curled under her. His arm s around her small frame, keeping her close to him. They didn’t always go out. Sometimes, she would come over to his place to cook dinner and just enjoy quiet time at home. Never at her house, though. “Why?”

She watched as her boyfriend seemed less than thrilled at the prospect. YeonJoo looked a bit confused and added, “Isn’t that good? I mean, if you sign with one of them, you’re one step closer to reaching your dream.”

He shrugged, not really knowing why he felt disappointed. On some level, he was grateful that so many people wanted him on their label, and in all honesty, some of their offers seemed stupid to refuse…but…

            “They aren’t good enough,” he finally said, “I want to sign with YG Entertainment.”

            “YG?” YeonJoo asked, “Won’t that be hard? I mean, I believe in you, but should you really pass out on a sure thing?”

            “I gotta take a chance,” SeungHyun said, reaching for the remote to change the channel.

            “Well, whatever you choose, I support you,” she said, leaning up to kiss him on the mouth. They were about millimeters apart when something unexpected distracted them.

            “Yes yes! Oh god!” the sultry pant of a star moaned as she almost ed.

YeonJoo gasped as she and SeungHyun both turned in shock to the TV showing . A very awkward atmosphere filled the room as neither SeungHyun nor YeonJoo could tear their eyes off the screen.

In all of Korea’s teaching of conservativeness, it had little power over two hormonally charged teenagers.

The blush on YeonJoo’s face grew deeper as the male did a particularly hard move which got his costar screaming in pleasure. She bit her lip nervously as she glanced sideways at her boyfriend. She was surprised, however, to find that SeungHyun was already staring at her with an unreadable expression.

            “Ummm…” she mumbled, squirming underneath his gaze.

SeungHyun closed his eyes and sighed, but chuckled. “I think that’s unrealistic – there is no way Korean girls are that big.”

Despite the initial awkwardness, YeonJoo laughed, stealing the remote away from SeungHyun and flipping the channel. The two chuckled for a moment, trying to get rid of the remaining awkward atmosphere.

            “You know,” YeonJoo started as she flipped the channel to a music show, “you’re right.”

Her boyfriend looked at her questioningly, and cocked an eyebrow.

            “Korean girls aren’t that big,” she embellished, keeping her eyes on the five singing idols on the music stage, “I think I should get plastic surgery done,” she then glanced at him with a mischievous smile, “Don’t you think?”

With that single comment, YeonJoo did not expect how serious SeungHyun would take her words. Throughout the resulting week, articles and photos of plastic surgeries gone wrong had been mysteriously appearing in her bag.

By the last week of April, she had about 20 or so pictures that wormed their way into her hands. As she exited the school and found her boyfriend waiting patiently, she ran up to him with the articles clenched in her fist.

            “Yah!” she yelled, feigning anger but actually smiling, “Choi SeungHyun! What’s with all of this?!”

 

Houses and parked cars flew by as SeungHyun ran through the neighborhood, excitement and joy evident in the large, child-like grin on his face. His heartbeat pounded in his ear as the crispy wind danced with his hair. He raced down the sidewalk, carefully maneuvering around the other pedestrians. Seeing a familiar house up ahead, he playfully jumped over the low front gate and bounded up the 3 short steps to the front door. As if it was his own house, he burst in and removed his worn out shoes in the small alcove. He hastily ran past the kitchen, but back tracked when he saw a short woman with curly hair.

            “Annyonghaseyo,” SeungHyun greeted, bowing to the old lady.

            “Oh! SeungHyun-ah!” the ahjumma cooed, wiping her hands on her apron. SeungHyun bowed again as the lady opened the fridge door and took out a large plastic container containing fermented cabbage intended for making kimchi. “Are you staying for dinner?”

            “Yeh,” SeungHyun said, taking the large container and placing it on the counter. “If that’s okay with you.”

            “Oh nonsense!” the middle aged lady laughed, taking out other ingredients from the cupboard. “You know you are always welcomed here! You are like a second son!”

SeungHyun smiled fondly at the ahjumma, and asked, “Is JaeCheonnie upstairs?”

The woman donned clear gloves and began mixing ingredients into the large bowl of kimchi, “Yes, he is locked up in his room, playing those online games again. Che, what is with that boy.”

SeungHyun chuckled and then bowed again as he made his way out of the kitchen. “I’ll try to get him down,” SeungHyun yelled back as he bounded up the stairs.

            “Try!” he heard JaeCheon’s mom yell back. He turned the corner and rammed into his best friend’s room without knocking.

            “Dude!” SeungHyun exclaimed and closed the door behind him as he dove into his friend’s bed, his earlier excitement still evident on his face. JaeCheon had a headset on and sat crossed legged on his chair, fully concentrating on his game. He only wore blue plaid boxers and a white shirt, and his hair was in disarray.

Pausing the game after a minute, JaeCheon swiveled his chair so that he faced SeungHyun. “What’s up man?”

            “This,” SeungHyun said excitedly, taking out a folded paper from his back pocket. He handed it to JaeCheon who skimmed through it.

            “A rap battle!” JaeCheon exclaimed excitedly, springing up from his chair.

            “Yeah, KBS radio is sponsoring it,” SeungHyun grinned, “Winner gets their song on the radio, plus promotions. Dude, if one of us gets in… think about all the opportunities that will come pouring in.”

“But Monday… it starts tomorrow,” JaeCheon said, frowning as he read the information on the flyer.

            “So? C’mon man,” SeungHyun stood up from the bed and clamped a hand on his buddy’s shoulder. “So what if its short notice? Are you telling me you aren’t up for it?”

            “Ani, ya know me,” JaeCheon said with a weak smile, “I can’t make it tomorrow for the prelim.” He then sighed in defeat and sat down on his bad, “My Appa is coming home tomorrow night, and we’re suppos’ta go out on some ‘family dinner’ night.”

            “It’s aight man, I understand,” SeungHyun sympathized. He knew JaeCheon’s dad was always away on business, and even though his friend never said it out loud, SeungHyun knew JaeCheon really missed the old man when he was away.

            “Yeah,” JaeCheon said with a shrug, “I’ll just cheer ya on from the sidelines when you reach the finals on Wednesday.”

SeungHyun smiled, feeling grateful for his friend’s support. In all honesty, he was a bit let down that JaeCheon wouldn’t be able to participate. For as long as they both could remember, they have been chasing their dreams, side by side.

            “Thanks,” SeungHyun said, crossing the room towards the door. “Dude, your umma told me to drag yer down and do something productive. Let’s shoot some hoops at the park?”

            “Araso, araso,” JaeCheon nodded, “Now get out ya ! I needa change!”

SeungHyun chuckled, closing the door behind hm. ‘Hmmm, maybe Mrs. Go will give me food,’ he thought to himself as he bounded down the stairs.

              

            “We won! We won! We won!” JaeCheon yelled down the empty neighborhood, waving around a two foot trophy in the air. He spun around and broke through the couple with their hands linked together. With a great grin, he s his arms around the necks of SeungHyun and YeonJoo who were each laughing with glee themselves. “Well technically, you won,” he said to SeungHyun, letting them go and handing the trophy back to its rightful owner. “But because you won – I won too!”

            “See ya later man,” SeungHyun laughed, waving good bye to his friend as they came by his house.

            “See ya at school,” JaeCheon yelled back, opening the gate to his yard. He then nodded his head to YeonJoo, “Show him a good time, shorty.” He disappeared into his house as the couple kept walking.

YeonJoo blushed, shyly taking SeungHyun’s hands. The two continued down the street, hand in hand, with SeungHyun cradling his trophy in the other. YeonJoo’s house was a good 20 minute walk; SeungHyun’s was just around the corner. The streetlights lit their way, while the soft cricket noise filled the night.

            “You know,” YeonJoo said after a few minutes, breaking the comfortable silence, “I’m really proud of you today. When you were on that stage, it’s like you became this different person.” She smiled. “That’s how I knew you were going to win.”

            “How so?” SeungHyun asked, tilting his head in question.

            “Well,” her smile grew bigger, “It’s just you become so intense and I don’t know – I just think you belong on stage. I really think you’ll make it big someday.”

SeungHyun smiled, truly happy that his girlfriend had such a high opinion of him. “So how’s the bakery?”

            “Good,” she said, “I’ve been helping my umma in the back a lot, making some of the pastries. I can’t wait for the annual pastry convention in Paris this summer. I love going every year.”

            “Wait, you’re gonna be gone the whole summer?” SeungHyun asked in surprise. He didn’t think he could stand being away from his girlfriend for that long.

            “Ani,” YeonJoo placated, “Not the whole summer.”

            “That’s a relief,” SeungHyun admitted, giving her hand a light squeeze.

They continued chatting as SeungHyun walked YeonJoo to her neighborhood on the other side of town. Sometimes he wondered how lucky he was. Here was a girl he could literally see him self growing old with. There was something about her smile, and the way she laughed, spoke, and blushed – everything about her got his heart pounding and his palms sweaty. And the best thing about her was the fact the she believed in him and his dreams.

After about four more blocks, YeonJoo’s house came into view. The porch lights were on, signaling that her parents were awake and waiting for her. Coming up to the house, YeonJoo stopped and turned to face him.

            “So I guess this is good night?” YeonJoo asked with a coy smile.

SeungHyun coiled his arms around her waist, pulling her close and engulfing her into a huge hug. After a few seconds, he pulled away and kissed her tenderly on the forehead.

            “Thank you for being there for me today,” he said sincerely.

YeonJoo smiled cutely back up at him and kissed him on the cheek, “Good night TEMPO,” she said, using his stage name. She pulled away and walked up towards her house’s gate. “Annyong.” With a final wave of good bye, she opened the gate and walked towards her house.

SeungHyun stayed rooted in his spot, a goofy grin on his face and a gold plated trophy cradled in his arm.

 

Well here you go ^-^ The 2^nd installment to TALNIW. I know, its going a bit slow, but I promise, it’ll start getting pretty – erm dramatic? Once the ball starts rolling ^-^ until then, thank you for all those who silently read and especially those who commented.

Until next time!

~Asian_Innocence

Notes:

• The lyrics TOP whispers into YeonJoo’s ear is from “Snitch”, a cover he did in the BIG BANG DOCUMENTARY
• The legal drinking age in Korea is 20, but the thing about Asian countries is that its very loosely enforced. I mean, yeah, cops will book you for underage drinking but only if you’re causing trouble that is. Most students start drinking in high school, and sometimes liquor restaurants will even serve them. That is why TOP and his friends have easy access to alcohol, that and his status as an underground celebrity rapper helps. =)