Chapter 3: Smile

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He didn’t show up, the next two days, and I was starting to worry.

I could already see Yong Yee’s smug smile already, when I would decide to give up. Soon enough, if Lee Joon didn’t appear, I would be forced to do that…

I was walking around, rearranging the shelves, waiting for a customer –waiting for him- to arrive. I was on edge.

That’s why when the doorbell rang, I jerked up to check who it was.

“…It’s not Lee Joon” was my first thought, and then: “Who’s that rock babe that honored us with his presence today?”

Because, hell, that man was just wow. The leather vest, the sunglasses, the posture, the smirk, the-

Holy mother of Jesus! Were those leather pants?

…That man was . ‘Nuff said.

Just then, his phone rang, and his voice only added more to the ‘ effect’ he had.

“Yah! There’s no way I’d let you come here again. I even gave you a list, and you forgot half of the things on it! I’m doing the shopping on my own tonight!”

My eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Could it be…?

“I said no, Joon!”

Oh. My. God. 

My knowledge on MBLAQ was limited, that was true. But the hints of mustache on the stranger’s face easily led me to a conclusion:

…The rock babe with the ‘ effect’ was none else than G.O, MBLAQ’s main vocalist.

Soon the girls noted his presence, proving that he was really the idol, as they started screaming “G.O oppa!”, “G.O oppa!”. You would have guessed they were accustomed to it by now (Myu Ri had informed me that they frequently came to that store, to the point that they didn’t have to conceal their appearances anymore), but apparently not.

…Well, thank God that I didn’t tell them about the “rock babe”. They would certainly tease me about it. A lot.

G.O lowered his sunglasses, nodded with a cocky smile, and returned to his phone call. “Yah, is that why you wanted to do the shopping? Because of all the goddesses here? … Man, I totally get you.” I’m pretty sure the girls had fainted by then, but I kept my attention to the conversation, as a very interesting piece of information came up.

“What do you mean you’re on your way?” Poor G.O looked as if he was about to pass out.

…So, he was coming.

I still had a chance. Only thing was, I had to use it correctly.

…

  The small circle that had gathered around G.O consisted of the girls (which came as no surprise), and of me (now, that was a surprise). It’s true that I stood out next to rest –the lack of squealing and excitement might have something to do with it-, but I was there.

G.O was such a flirt, I swear. Currently he was asking for our names, and every word of his seemed to be accompanied by a smirk or wink.

He was hilarious, and I was laughing like crazy at Hye Rin’s face when he told her that her name, as well as herself, were “tearfully beautiful” (I was later informed that this was the title of a song he had sang). When my turn came, he came closer and closer, whispering: “And you are…?”

“Call me Lydia” I said, smiling, just when the door opened suddenly.

Yep, it was Lee Joon. I turned my attention to him, greeting him with a wave of my hand.

His eyes kept going back and forth to G.O and me as he reached us, saying: “Aishh, I’m about to go crazy… I told you I would come, why did you do that?”

G.O only smiled cockily, replying: “So, that’s why you wanted to come… There are goddesses here, huh, Joon-ah! And there is even a foreigner… You know how much I love foreigners…” he continued, wiggling his eyebrows at his bandmate.

“Wh-what are you saying? You were the one who told me to shop here!” Lee Joon argued.

“Hmm, I’m pretty sure you forgot the things I told you to buy on purpose, so that you would have an excuse to come back here!” G.O was hilarious, but, seeing Lee Joon’s face drop by each accusation, I couldn’t help but feel bad for him.

He wasn’t very well today, I could see it. His smile wasn’t as spontaneous as before, and his eyes were a bit dim. His posture and his expression almost emitted the words “I’m tired”. It was the first time I’d seen him like that –he wasn’t that bad the previous time.

Was that why it bothered me so much?

“Well, it’s always a pleasure having you here, so…” I trailed, trying to sound comforting.

I probably failed, because Lee Joon’s smile was forced.

As the girls kept chatting (well, more like flirting) with G.O, I realized that I wasn’t paying any attention to them.

…My eyes were focused on someone else.

And when that someone suddenly excused himself and made his way out of the store, I decided to follow him, as soon as I bought something from one of our shelves:

Something that would bring back Lee Joon’s smile to his lips.

He was just outside of the store, leaning on the wall, eyes closed. He looked nothing like the man I had seen on variety shows. He looked nothing like the carefree man he portrayed. He looked nothing like the stupid man I had decided he was.

He looked… vulnerable, almost. And tired. Especially tired.

I hesitated. Should I go to him?

I approached him slowly. “I’m sorry… Are you okay?” He opened his eyes and looked at me, before smiling with that big, fake, idol-ish smile of his.

“Oh, I’m fine… Haven’t gotten much sleep, that’s all” he answered.

What a liar.

…It was suddenly very easy to remember why I didn’t like him. He was an idol, and, most of the time, he was fake.

But it was the first time I wondered about what the façade was hiding.

The chocolate in my hands helped me find what I should say next.

“Want some?” I asked as I unwrapped it, letting its content show: it was white.

“I thought you didn’t like it” he said surprised. I smiled at his expression.

“Well, it’s not my favorite, but you seem to be fond of it, so…” I shrugged my shoulders.

“You know, I’m an idol. I can’t eat this kind of food all the time” he said with a small smile on his lips.

“If you smiled more, I wouldn’t have to feed you that kind of food.”

My tone was playful, and I had the honor of seeing something I had rarely seen on Lee Joon’s face… Was he blushing?

The sure thing was that he was finally smiling, and as I noticed that, I did a small victory dance mentally.

“Come on, have some chocolate... It won’t hurt.” As he shook his head stubbornly, I cut a piece of the bar and brought it close to his lips. I could be stubborn to. “I’ll have to use force if you don’t cooperate” I said in the most low, dangerous voice I had.

And then, the strangest thing happened: his eyes never leaving mine, he opened his mouth slowly, taking a bite of the piece of chocolate I was offering.

I couldn’t think straight for a while, and I felt a shiver run down my spine, before coming back to my senses. I turned my head, unwilling to look at him.  His stare made me feel dizzy and bothered and uneasy and all sorts of things I didn’t want to feel. Who knew that a pair of eyes could have such an effect on me?

“We should probably get inside, I finally said, when I discovered the use of speech again.

He nodded. We made our way in, both silent, eyes lowered.

Inside, G.O was still talking to the girls, even though his focus was particularly on Hye Rin, as I noticed. I could already see the romance blossoming.

“Oi! Where were you?” G.O asked his bandmate, as soon as he saw us make our way in.

“Outside” Lee Joon answered simply, and a sly smile painted G.O’s features.

“You cornered the foreigner? Omo, Joon-ah! I never knew you were so bold!” he teased.

I decided to in, because well, G.O’s humor was my kind of humor, and I just couldn’t let the chance of teasing him pass like that.

“Yah, look who’s talking! Just turn your attention back to your ‘tearfully beautiful’ lady!” I fired back, watching with pleasure both G.O and Hye Rin’s faces turn red.

And among the girls’ laugh, I could hear Lee Joon’s chuckle too.

…

Soon, G.O and Lee Joon realized that they had stayed here for far too long. I quickly slipped the chocolate bar into Lee Joon’s pocket, and he laughed, saying: “You really want me to get weight.”

I smiled in response. “Just making sure you won’t stop smiling.” I noticed that his cheeks became a little rosier.

“By the way… what’s your name?” he asked, and it was then that I remembered that he didn’t know who I was. “Lydia” I simply said.

“That’s a nice name” he commented, and I could just shake my head in disagreement.

“Nah, I don’t really like it. It’s a tad too romantic for me, I think… Doesn’t suit me much.” I explained.

They said goodbye to us shortly after that, and I faintly heard G.O whisper to Hye Rin that his schedule ended early tomorrow, and that he would be more than willing to see her again, if she had time.

Well, that was interesting…

As they made their way out, I couldn’t help but stare at their backsides (I was starting to become a ert, and I knew it, but oh well).

The funny thing was that, while doing so, instead of ‘fangirling’ over G.O’s pants, my only thought was:

…“What would Lee Joon look like in leather pants?”

~~~