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Paparazzi Next Door

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Jung Eunhye:

"Calling all passengers, we advise you fasten your seatbelts as we make our descend."

I quickly buckle my seatbelt as the plane lands smoothly on the runway.

“I'm home." I whisper to myself as I carry my luggage out of the plane.

South Korea will always be different from the North. It's really good to be back. Spending two years in Pyongyang taking pictures of the ongoing war, famine and what not there is really exhausting. My photos have been featured in magazines and websites in South Korea but I'm always credited as "Anonymous" because what I do isn't really allowed. 

My name is Jung Eunhye and I'm a 21 year old war photographer. It's a really long story how I got a flight to the North and how I got this one back to Seoul. Let's just say it involved a lot of blackmail which is illegal, I know. I get paid a decent amount of money for these photos and taking them was just my dream. Of course, every dream had to be cut short as my dad suffered a and won't be able to take care of my little brother, Daewong anymore. My mom has been dead for as long as I can remember so that leaves me with no choice but to come sprinting back to Seoul to take care of them.

Of course I doubted myself first. I thought if I should really just come back after fulfilling my dreams then I thought about Appa. He was the one who took care of us and paid for my photography class in the first place and what kind of daughter would  I be if I didn't help him right now? When they told me the news of his , for some odd reason I didn't cry. Sometimes I wonder if the hardships in Pyongyang have made me numb or if I just got to use to being the one who had to pull herself together because showing any form of emotion will just give people a chance to see right through you. It's not like I want to be the emotionless monster people see me as but in order for Daewong to live a good life then I will have to just it in.   

My head hurts like crazy from the number of cameras that were flashing around the airport. What the hell is going on here? I look around and see some boys, just about my age walking at the airport like it was a freaking catwalk. Well, the people seem to be enjoying it as they take their pictures.

Who the hell are these boys? Oh... I get it. Celebrities, who else? Well, unlike me... some people waste their expensive, auto-focused and high definition cameras in taking pictures of those who dress like they decided to throw away a million dollars on an outfit they'll wear to the airport. To the freaking airport, if I counted right, ten. Yes, ten pretty boys wearing sunglasses and being treated like Greek gods. Psh, please.

Suddenly my suitcase gets knocked over by this boy wearing sunglasses. I hiss in annoyance and he seems to hear me.

"Mianhe. I didn't see." he says. With those sunglasses on, who would? Seriously? It looks like his glasses were made of pure darkness and his cheeks were pink as well. His voice also sounded nasal, like he's been crying... a lot.

"It's okay." I answer as I pick it up. 

"Kyaaaaa~  Baekhyun! Over here!" I heard a girl scream towards our direction.  He looks at her and I'm immediately blinded by the flash of a camera. So he's one of them.

He bows immediately and runs towards the other ten that I saw a while ago, so it's eleven then. Eleven pretty boy celebrities at the airport. Eleven? Something about that number just feels so... imperfect. Tsk. It's probably just me.

I get on a taxi and give the driver the address to my aunt's home near Gangnam. She was the one who took care of my dad and Daewong after what happened. But unfortunately, she can't do it on her own and needs my financial help. Besides the fact that her husband just left her for another woman, she was also just 32. She didn't have a very good career either. She was a housewife and now she's trying to stand on her own. 

As I look out the taxi's window, I see a glimpse of Seoul's beauty that I've been missing for two years now. I take a picture with my camera. Just because I'm not in the North anymore doesn't mean I should give up on being a photographer. This will always be my dream.

The taxi parks at my aunt's house and immediately Daewong comes rocketing out the front door. Aish my Daewong, he was 12 when I left and now he's 14. He's grown so much but he still hasn't changed a bit. I remember missing him so much when I was in Pyongyang. My first few days there I couldn't stop crying and saying over and over how I missed my family. It was just the sick feeling of being away from them for so long that got me exicted on coming back. 

"Noona! I miss you." he says cheekily. I smile at him.

"I missed you too." I say. My Aunt Minmi then comes following him. She hugs me as well.

"Eunhye! How long has it been?" she asks. I let go of her

"Annyeong-haseyo autie. Pretty long, where's appa?" I ask her. 

"Inside, resting… Go visit him." she says. I bow.

I went inside my appa's room and try to not shed a tear when I saw the state he was in. The left half his body paralyzed and has difficulties with his speech. I smile at him and he nods lightly.

"Appa..." I call for him.

"Eu- Eunhye." He mutters, barely able to say my name. I approach him and hug him. Then suddenly I realized how I stupid I was for having second thoughts of coming back. I could never abandon them. I'm stuck here, serving them my whole life but it doesn't matter. They're the only ones I have left and losing them means losing the world. 

"I miss you appa." I say and I could feel him nodding. I know he can't say them in words but this was enough. Seeing appa again is enough. I let go of my grip of him and he tries his best to smile. I've missed him so much...

I remember the way he would tell other kids to stop teasing us because we didn't have a mother. He would tell them that he was our mother and our father. And the time that he told me to continue with photography despite my bad grades. But the thing about my Appa was is that he was better when it came to hiding his emotions, he would always smile even if it hurt. Maybe I learned from him... putting walls up was the best way to keep people out. People that just might ruin you.

"Eu-Eunhye..." he repeats my name. I giggle.

"Is that all you can say appa? Don't worry. I'll get you therapy so you can get better, okay?" I tell him. He shakes his head. I'll do it. Even if it means ing back to work, I will.

"N-no." he stutters again.

"I can do it appa. I'll find a job here in Seoul so I can pay for your therapy. Trust me." I assure him. 

And I will get a job. I'll take any job that I can just to pay for my dad's therapy.



Kim Naerim:

"Ruin? As in destroy their careers? Look Naerim, I know you've revealed a lot of scandals maybe even more then all the writers here combined but this is EXO we're talking about." Seunghoon says as he takes a drink of his freshly grounded coffee.

"So what? What makes them different from any other showbiz personality out there?" I ask. What was the difference though? I didn't see it of course.

"Different? They're different because they're dominating the awards show right now, the charts, the social media it's EXO, EXO, EXO." he says. Gosh that name annoys me. 

I take a sip of my warm coffee and start to read the newspaper. Seunghoon and I always take our lunch breaks here at the cafe when we weren't working. Being a news writer to Showbiz Seoul was fun. Watching celebrities ruin their own careers while you make money has never been a dream of mine but some things just change you, I guess.

I'm Kim Naerim and I'm a 23 year old news writer. The media calls me the "Red Lady" and I have come to actually like that name. They call me that because apparently I'm ruthless when it comes to exposing scandals. I don't believe that idols should have a personal life by all means. Hate me if you want but that's what I think. First, they chose to become idols. It was their choice, nobody forced them. Second, they get paid for it anyway. Seriously? Did anyone actually think that they get paid that much money for dancing and moving their lips a little? I mean, sure it's tiring but it's what they signed up for. 

SM Ent is the company I despise specifically EXO. If people truly knew what hid behind those flower boy like features then they wouldn't love them this much. 

"That doesn't make them untouchable." I respond to Seunghoon's argument."

"Of course it doesn't but they are still the it company's it group which brings them pretty close to that." he says. I glare at him. Maybe he was worried about my reputation as a writer but still... I wanted them to pay.

"I'll find a way, Seunghoon. I always find a way." I say with a straight face.

"Aish, Naerim. Why can't you just let them ruin their careers themselves? They are already so vulnerable with the whole Kris thing and the Baekhyun and Taeyeon mishap." he says. 

He is right somehow. EXO is vulnerable. One more misstep and they'll disappear like a bubble. But the thing is... people are starting to forget. They're starting to accept EXO again like nothing happened. The Kris thing is becoming old news and only a few are interested now since the outcome is clear. I still remember how happy I was when I heard about it. I actually thought that it was their end. I was an idiot. Their fandom was stronger than I thought. They even support OT11 and the former Kris turned Wu Yi Fan's acting career. I still prefer Kris though, it's shorter. Of course the Baekhyun & Taeyeon thing was a fake from the start. Everyone in the business knew that  it was SM media-playing their way through Kris' mediation and his career in China. The hate was obvious at first but in time fans have also accepted it.

There has to be a way. At least one way....

"Those are old news." I say. "We have to get something that can ruin their image to everyone out there." 

"You wish! An EXO member can start a third world war and fans would still defend him. Well, I guess no matter how crazy the fandom is... it has its perks." he says.

"Pabo." I mutter. "Fans are like flies. They live for a decent amount of time, multiply and die out unnoticed. Now, we'll start a something that will squash EXO's flies once and for all. A rumor-- no, not a rumor, something real, something that will hurt every single fangirl out there... something that'll destroy their image and with proof to back it up. We can get a photographer, the most daring one out there. She can do the dirty work for me."

"Eh? Who'll have the guts to do that?" 

"With the right price... anyone can be the Red Lady's ally." I say as I take one last sip of my coffee.  My lips forms a smirk....

 

Get ready, EXO. The Red Lady has her eyes set on you...

 

 


A/N: 

Hi! First chapter~~ Just a little introduction. Hope you like it. :*

 

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forgottensnow68
Chapter 8 is up!

Comments

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dreamshade
#1
Chapter 8: can't wait for another update!
fighting author-nim ^^
it's been quite a long time since your last update
GiangDam
#2
Chapter 8: Yay! You came back!!! I hope you will keep updating, this is a great story!
Karenkwan01
#3
u finally updateeeeeeee!!!~~~ yayayaayayyayaa
moonyuki
#4
Chapter 7: yeah~ it does look awkward to me too...thanks for the update and looking forward for the next update - Yuki
Karenkwan01
#5
update soon~
lkimgirl #6
Chapter 7: Looking forward for this story... Interesting n
KaihleeLo
#7
Just the description is catchy enough. It's really good xD
iMerawr
#8
Chapter 7: Kay im going to do your review now