Bursting Bubbles

Hello, Samsam Bubbleman!

"I'm terribly sorry to say this but, Mister Jiyeob, you're fired," those merciless words stung Jiyeob's ears, almost making his heart came to an abrupt stop. Inconceivable, thought him.

"B-But why? I mean, my contributions to this company are quite remarkable- oh come on, President Jung...are you trying to prank me? I sense a hidden camera somewhere...." he sniffed around in utter anxiety, and the knot in his stomach tightened everytime he inhaled the air. The grey-haired President gazed at him with a lugubrious expression visibly seen on his wrinkled face, and he forced a smile of guilt.

"I comprehend your worries, but this is truly inevitable. Our company's currently facing a severe breakdown in financial aspect, and I have no choice but to fire you. We might go bankrupt in no time, and it seems like this company has to be closed," Jiyeob's knees buckled upon listening to the inconvenient truth again- but this time in full detail. Good thing he managed to lean against the cold wall of the President's office before he could kiss the ground and humiliate himself even further.

"This can't be happening....why so sudden?" muttered Jiyeob under his trembling breath as manly tears started to billow in his doleful eyes.

"I don't know what to say, Kim Jiyeob. The situation is more severe than you could imagine- and this happened in a flash. I've nothing to say but sorry,"

"B-But isn't there something I could do to help? There must be a solution to this-" the President was quick to halt his words, and sank his face into his palms.

"Just...go. I've banked in your pay for this month, and Jiyeob....thanks. You're a great worker of mine. Leave this crumbling company and find a better one. I'm certain you'll be just fine," his sincere words wrapped in a blanket of remorse didn't help to ease Jiyeob's consternation- and at that exact moment he pondered if his life would change 360 degrees.

 

Jiyeob weakly elbowed the door open, throwing blank gaze at the clerks and staffs who seemed crestfallen as well. He gave them a feeble smile for one last time before he left, accompanied by the waving hands of them- sending one of their wonderful researches away. Inside his bruised heart there was a fusion of feelings- sadness, fear, anxiety, all linked to each other- welling up relentlessly as if they could burst in no time.

Even every moment the sole of his shoe kissed the ground, it costed him practically half of his strength he owned. Indeed, he wanted to cry, but his ego was way too powerful and drained his tears away- but he found himself at the lowest ebb.

Mustering whatever strength he had, he dragged his shaking feet to the parking lot merely 50 metres away.

He had lost his job, but his beloved BMW X6 was still his for the taking. This time however, his eyes caught something rather displeasing. His car was shaking out of the blue as if a party was being thrown- there were people inside!

Jiyeob sprinted with eyes practically the size of the moon, aware that his car was in absolute danger. Fumbling inside his pocket in search for his car key, it flashed through his mind that he actually left the key inside the car.

" happens," he cursed within his breath, dashing towards his car but his worst fear was confirmed- the hefty, shining car stormed past him at full throttle, leaving him flabbergasted to the extent as the malicious thieves stuck out their tongues, signifying sheer mockery to Jiyeob's stupidity.

" FOR REAL. FOR REAL. What is happening here? Why am I getting ed up this way?!" he loosened his necktie in exasperation, screaming at the top of his voice to the point he could probably burst his lungs.

Inside the crevasse of his undefined anger, he pondered what he had done to deserve such things.

"Off to police station. Darn," he muttered tonnes of oaths along his way to the nearest police station that he could make a dictionary full of swearing words from every syllable he uttered.

 

"We'll call you in case we've found the car," said the police officer dryly, and Jiyeob responded with a nod. He was loath to spit out any word, too tired and vexed over everything that happened to him. Done lodging the report, he stepped out of the blue building with an obviously faked grin, which eventually dissipated into thin air.

With heavy and aimless steps, he pondered where should he go next.

Just when he thought he was living a cloistered life, some parts of it were snatched by God within a day. He was still stranded in the valley of vertigo; unable to differentiate whether this was a mere nightmare or a painful reality.

 

The evening air was rather crisp, blowing Jiyeob's hair to the direction of the East. As his eyes ventured around his atmosphere, his ears caught a fishy conversation between a pair of couple.

"What if he sees us?" said an unknown person, seemingly a man.

"What's the matter then? Don't tell me you're afraid?" this time a female voice rang out, returning the question back to the man.

"No, no...of course not! It's just that we'd better stay vigilant. Who knows if he'd ambush us in surprise?" the man appeared to be freaked out from the tone of his voice, and the lady cackled irritably. Jiyeob's eyes narrowed, noticing something familiar with the sudden outburst of laughter.

"No chickening out, Junhyung. What's there to be feared about after all? You won't be blurting this out ad nauseam if you really wanna date me. Junnie, Jiyeob is nothing but a piece of junk. Wealth is the only thing that makes him look worthy....or some brains, mayhaps? But Junnie dear, everything about you is perfect. Now let's go and buy me some jewelleries," she said, clinging affectionally onto his boyfriend's arm and at that exact moment, Jiyeob's eyes nearly popped out from his head.

That was his name, and he knew he was being insulted. He turned to his back, and every bone in his body froze in shock.

It was Gu Hara, her girlfriend- desperately clutching at one arm of a thug-looking man. Six eyes met, and the three of them stood motionless in bewilderment.

"What is this madness, Gu Hara?" uttered him in a controlled rage, his sharp gaze piercing through Hara's corneas.

"J-Jiyeob! What...are you doing here?" she stammered, and the man beside her was bathed in a profuse, cold sweat.

"Does that even matter? I thought only my wealth matters to you, no?" her breath caught, trying to swallow the lump in but she seemed paralyzed.

"Why aren't you answering? Who's this man by the way? Are you on drug, Mister? You look as if you'll pass away with that gaunt face of yours," he added euphemistically, charging at the Junhyung guy as he shook a finger in his face. Junyhung shoved Jiyeob off in apprehension, only to make the red colour inside his heart grew darker.

"Scums...both of you are nothing but a pile of . Hara, I can't believe this. All this while you've been hiding beneath that damned facade of yours...just for money? What a douche,"

"No, Jiyeob! This isn't exactly what you think! This guy, he's....trying to hit on me!"

This time it was Jiyeob's turn to cackle his heart out. " Haa yeah, I see you've fallen for him? Like I'm gonna buy your words, capital B," he would've called her a , but he managed to keep his cool.

"Hey, what're you trying to call my lady?" Junhyung interfered, only to be paid with a lopsided devilish grin from Jiyeob.

"I had a really bad day, and I do hope this will shut your stinking mouth, thuggie," he paused for a fleeting moment before giving Junhyung a jab in his ribs with his elbow, leaving him writhing in pain with hands clutching desperately on the injured area.

"Gu Hara, this is an absolute end for us. Till debt do both of you part!" as he uttered the final word, he summoned his legs to deliver him away from certain evil that was to befall him once again. Hara hollered his name out, but was definitely ignored.

He had enough. He had lost three things in total; his job, his car, and his cheating girlfriend.

This time he was beyond thankful that his wallet was still inside his pocket- stuffed with money, of course.

 

The sun was considerable lower, and it exuded a distinct chill in the air. After practically 30 minutes of walking, Jiyeob found himself stopping by an ice-cream stall with a cyan-white striped roof- one like he often saw in fantasy movies; so dreamy.

The last time he ever indulged in ice-cream was 9 years ago, during his high school days. He wasn't a big fan of ice-cream, but he admitted that it would make a good stress reliever for him.

"Welcome! Would you like something creamy, chilly and sweet? You've come to the right place!" greeted a female worker politely, and Jiyeob responded with a smile of approval.

"Vanilla and chocolate chips....seems fun," he finally made a choice, albeit in reluctance. The female worker nodded with a beam as she placed a huge scoop of the requested flavour on a cone before handing it to him.

Just when he was about to pay for the ice-cream, a flood of bubbles filled the atmosphere, seemingly from the back of the stall. The refraction of light made the bubbles appeared rainbow in colour, and as he watched the spherical objects danced gracefully in the air,  his shattered soul seemed to heal albeit hardly noticeable.

"Hyemiiiiii! Stop goofing around, you're gonna make our customer eat bubble-flavoured ice-cream!" screamed the worker at a controlled volume, trying to halt more bubbles from being blown again.

"Sorry! Okay, I'll wait for a 'lil bit," a young lady, presumably around Jiyeob's age appeared at the side of the stall, holding a large bottle of bubble solution in a hand and the other holding a blower.

Jiyeob turned his still gaze at her, and she does the same. Both of them remained speechless, overwhelmed with mixed emotions that they were dumbfounded for a fleeting moment.

 

"You're......" he pointed at her, ignoring the melted ice-cream that streamed down his hand and straight onto the ground.

 

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A/N ; too lazy to make a decent poster for the first chapter. i'm dead tired ;__;

Update: Yeay! Lol. Look how funny the pic is. HAHAHAHA

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hopelesswriter #1
Chapter 4: -cont cuz word limit exceeded lol-
chap4- so he didn't die...i knew he wouldn't...just entertaining crazy thoughts. but what the...first, what's she doing handling the scooter dangerously? yah! need the traffic police here, bubbles or not there's a thing called road safety. 2. how could she leave Kevin unconscious n injured like that? whoaaa....i get that plane ticket is expensive but still...and then time flew and everyone's back. haha, Hyemi n Samsam Bubbleman guy...if only he's included i'd probly ship him with her.....erk. xD...confession: i didn't know who he was too, until this fic...thanks for the knew knowledge...lol.
and aww, sweet ending...though i thought he'd ask "Can I be your bubbleman?" lolol. totally unromantic n silly. i don't usually like cheesy lines...but bcuz it's Kevin saying it....somehow it sounded swoonworthy...*slapped* no, well, forget it. *coughs*
Congrats on completing this delightful little fic...though i wished it's longer...some of the events between chap3-4 are moving a little fast for my slow mind to grow connection to the development but that's alrite. i'm a little sad to part with a fic i've just met n grew fond of...T^T...but what else could i do then say my farewell? truthfully...now this fic had tainted my pure mind with random bubble-related thoughts. grr. n cute chap posters...i keep staring...xD
i'm just a little pissed to see no comment like c'mon ppl...i hope nobody is intimidated by my flooding spazz comment *rollseyes*
Thanks for sharing this beautiful fic that i connect emotionally n personally to..which is rare, n Congrats for completing it.
go leave happily ever after with your bubbles, hyehye n cabin~!
*wipes tears n run*
xD bubblebyes~
hopelesswriter #2
Chapter 3: Aww, it ended *cries an ocean* and i thought i'd have something to read for a long time...lately there aren't many fics to read....T^T
It's been a verrrrryyy short ride but pleasant nevertheless. sobs. Hyehye made it! i'm happy she reached her impossible sounding dream though it's too good to be true n i still doubt any of my crazy dreams would ever come true, but still..it gave some glimmer of hopes to keep dreaming.
let's talk chap 3 first...ommo, Kevin's interview abt wanting to invest in bubbles..lol. but the shock when Hyemi left just like that...woosh...disappeared with a pic. the first time i knew about you creating story for kevin-hyemi that was the picture that came to my mind...and i love how she just conteng on the words....lol. suits her personality. n then gasp, accident? kevin died after what seemed like a movie scene?
hopelesswriter #3
Chapter 2: the fudge...okay, this is like...the story of my life. this chap made me really emotional, feelings of hopelessness, loser, bleak future, peppered with illusion of optimist hope...well, i don't quite have that part, but besides her optimism, i can relate almost entirely to Hyemi n her bubble metaphors. Kevin's whiny...maybe cuz he's had luck with him all these while...n only had it bad now....not even an entire day...lol. but his gloom n inferiority, i can relate...still, their lives are better than mine. but this is probly the closest i've ever empathize with fanfic characters n connect personally, especially the pain n inner feelings. n it arrive at the right time when i'm thinking abt my y life,stuck in a rut. now i'm being whiny too...lol.
Thanks for the update n keep it up~ totally adoring this.
hopelesswriter #4
Chapter 1: sorry that i stole the first comment again...actually i've seen this fic from yesterday in draft mode...muhaha. told 'ya i'm a stalker. n i knew this would be the kevin-hyemi fic you're planning. if only you had told me the mood of the poster, wouldn't have sent all the serious/y/charismatic pics....lol.
hmm, a different feel than your other fics. while i couldn't guess where the story heading from the description... Hyemi's character sounds plenty interesting. i just happen to like slightly weirdo characters. bubble enthusiast? lol.
and that's some ty luck Kevin's having (perfect story of sudah jatuh ditimpa tangga?lol)...i love seeing him curse with swear words and all...i can so imagine Kevin doing that..haahaa. ommonaaa, the president sounds so nice, almost bankrupt can still give the pay...n Hara is sucha biatch. till debt do both of you part...lmao. i'm surprised his money/wallet didn't get stolen...
the encounter sounds like something from a romantic scene with bubbles effects coming outta the back of the stall...except the melting ice-cream doesn't sound so romantic...yah, melted ice cream doesn't taste fun, Kebin-ah.
the language is still so...you. i can count more than ten words i didn't understand*slapped* thanks to my 'extensive vocabs*coughs*' haha, but lazy to check dictionary...
lastly, i must say that i completely adore the Hyemi quote about bubbles in the poster. it's touching n evoke my mind/feelings/inspiration maybe?...
and another thing...thank you for a fairly refreshing pairing for hyemi...i keep finding hyemi-siwan/infinite/exo pairing n i was like... whut...?
ok done ranting. this is already like a chapter.
Thanks for sharing the fic n keep it up~