It was already 2am in the morning. She was to set off for Japan in few hours and she was still packing her luggage. If she could she would have packed her bag long ago but her tight schedule in Korea forced her to reach home after 12am every night, or was it every day? She had lost the sense of time.

The television set was switched on to keep her entertained while she folded some T-shirts and shorts and placed them in the brown carrier. To her amazement, she found herself watching a program she had attended herself few weeks ago. Despite being in the industry for several years, she was still not very used to looking at herself from the TV.

She could not deny the fact that she still relished being in the limelight; that she still yearned to perform for others, to see the happy faces of the audience when she put up a good show.

It took her some time, though, to muster some courage before stepping back into the career she had taken up since she was 10 years old. She was somewhat relieved when her agency offered her the opportunity to venture into the Korean market first before going back to Japan.

She was a weirdo, at least to herself. She did not mind starting afresh in a new environment, which in this case meant Korea, and sweating through to receive approval from the people. She liked the sense of accomplishment achieved through hard work. Maybe she indeed was the reincarnation of a bull, as often stated by her master, born to work herself to the bone.

“I’ll be going to Japan after a few more activities here.” It was herself speaking in the studio, informing viewers of her coming schedule.

She felt her heart pace quickened. It was close to 3am and she was left with roughly 2 hours for a short nap before hailing a cab to the airport. She reached for the novel on the table and flipped to the page she had stopped previously. In her current excited state, she knew it was going to be another insomniac night.

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“What? It should have been me!” Yoochun had gone over to the TVXQ apartment the next day and joined in the discussion of who should be the girl’s favorite member.

Jaejoong managed to comprehend everything after the 3 lunatics explained in bits and pieces. He was certainly pleased that he had another fan, someone who in fact declared her admiration on air. He was thinking of checking out the person on net after cleaning up the kitchen. She must be someone sophisticated with refined taste.

“What’s her name? Is she pretty?” The Casanova inquired, seemingly more eager to know how the girl looked instead of why she had chosen Jaejoong to be her most favorite among other members.

“Tell me you’re not interested in someone on TV…” Changmin trailed off after finishing the bowl of white rice.

“Why not?” Yoochun retorted. “We appear on TV too and people are fascinated by us!”

“You sound like a womanizer.” Changmin said, even though he knew that the older one was, in reality, one of the most faithful guy one would ever meet.

“Hah! I’m single and I’m just looking around to find the one…” Yoochun chortled at his dongsaeng’s statement. “In this house, only you and Jaejoong are not in the position to check out other girls.”
Indeed, in the house, only Changmin and Jaejoong were attached. Two months ago it was only Changmin. It sometimes felt ironic that the youngest member was the only one with a girlfriend but now the oldest had gotten himself a partner as well. The other three could only wait for their luck to turn better.

“I don’t really care. She’s only a fan. I don’t date fans.” Jaejoong snickered as he wiped the washed plates with a dry cloth. He had his Hyojoo. That’s all he needed.

“Yeah right, who’s the one who claimed that he would marry his fan one day?” Junsu’s unexpected sarcasm cracked them up and the house was soon filled with boisterous laughter.

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“AKI!!! WE LOVE YOU!!” The fans shrieked hysterically and held out their gigantic banners, a sign of warm welcome for the star who left them more than 2 years ago.

Aki took a deep breath and strode towards the long table. She stopped in the middle where cameras and spotlights were flashing ferociously at her, for her. The scene was so familiar, except that she was doubly anxious that she might make any mistake on her first official press conference after so long.

She stood straight with a big smile plastered on her face and then gave a deep bow before she sat down. It was a bow filled with remorse for disappearing suddenly and a bow filled with gratitude towards every single fan who stood by her all the time.

The host did an introduction on Aki and her past achievements before the Q&A session began. Once the cue was given, reporters started bombarding the luminary with questions. It might have been uncomfortable for a newbie to face so many questions at one go but it worked well for Aki. She answered each question with care and sincerity, not forgetting her polite smile after satisfying each reporter.

“What have you been doing in the past two and a half years of hiatus?”

“I’ve been enjoying my break… I did attend Korean language classes during that time, to widen my knowledge as well as to prepare myself for the Korean market…”

“What are your current plans?”

“I’ve spent a few months in Korea for promotions previously. Now I’m back in Japan in the hope of bringing more performances to you.” She grinned more widely at the fans’ cheers.

“Did you get yourself a boyfriend during your break?”

“I had the intention! In fact, it was one of my resolutions but sadly I didn’t manage to find one…” She made a small pout, making more male fans scream.

“Many people are still unclear of the reasons for your hiatus. There were many rumors then, can you tell us the true story?”

Aki was stuck at the question. She couldn’t possibly tell them that she was receiving therapy during her hiatus right? She was supposed to be a teenage icon, a role model for youths to follow after. Depression wasn’t something adolescents should learn from their idol. Her company had done so much to cover up the truth, just so her reputation would be well-maintained. She should not, could not and would not waste their efforts.

Fortunately her manager was able to change the subject in time and mislead the reporters towards other direction. She heaved a silent sigh of relief. It wasn’t that easy after all.

The host made a brief signal to her, implying that the press conference was about to end.

He spoke into his microphone, “The press conference has finally ended. We thank you for your attendance and enthusiasm. It’s a pleasure having Aki back with us again. Our legend’s back! Let’s give a final round of applause for our legend!”

The cameramen fought to catch the last glimpse of the artist before she left with the bodyguards to the back. Fans squealed in excitement as their idol walked past them and waved slightly.

The crowd gradually dispersed, noise volume went down and soon the venue was empty. The conference had ended but legend had only just started, again.

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I'm loving this story more as I write it. LOL. Shameless me but it keeps me wanting to write. (x

Comments are still the biggest source of motivation though. ((:

This chapter is longer, I hope it doesn't bore you out too much...

By the way, sorry if you start to think that the pace is too slow... I planned to make Esoteric Amour a longer story than my other stories, somewhat similar to novel but not too long though. I don't think I'll be able to crap THAT much LOL.

Do tell me, though, if it gets too longwinded or boring. I'll see what I can do to spice up the story, haha.

Hope you enjoyed. (:

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