It was perfect Saturday afternoon, the weather was neither too hot nor too cold. The yellow-gold sun shined bright in the cloudless azure sky. Perfect for picnics and dates but to Sujeong and Taekwoon, it was a nerve racking day. At 8 AM, the famous “Leo” had showed up at her condo, asking her to get changed before bringing her to the JellyFish Entertainment’s HQ where a press conference was scheduled a little after the clock struck noon.

“Taekwoon-ah, don’t you think this is a bit too sudden?”

“No”

“But, your image…”

“Sujeong! Don’t bring my image into this!”

His usual calm voice had suddenly become sharp and angry, it was very evident that something had upset him. She chewed her bottom lip nervously as he paced in front of her. He was massaging his temples as he muttered to himself. opened but she quickly shut it as soon as he his heel and stared right at her as he walked up to her. He easily towered over her, his small cat-like eyes focused on her doe-like ones. For a moment she felt scared, Taekwoon was a man of few words and rarely voiced out his anger and frustations.

“Why?” He asked after a few seconds of silence.

She raised an eyebrow at his question. He let out a sigh as he reached for her right arm, rolling up the sleeve in the process. His eyes grew wide at the ugly purple marks which riddled her forearm and travelled up till her shoulder. She closed her eyes as she looked away in shame. Her body had become temporarily disfigured with ugly bruises not only her arm. 

“You think I wouldn’t know?” He asked in a soft voice. Hurt was evident in his eyes.

“I couldn’t tell you…” She whimpered as his hand grasped her left shoulder, thinking that she wasn’t bruised anywhere else.

He let go of her shoulder immediately, asking her to remove her cardigan. His heart ached when he discovered even more bruises on her left arm and shoulder. The way her hands kept pulling down her sleeveless white tee, told him that she was hiding a lot more bruises underneath. He held both of her hands as he made her look up at him. He felt ashamed of himself for not protecting her and a little guilty for not being able to visit her more often as he used to. With VIXX becoming rapidly popular, his schedules seemed to get even more hectic than ever, preventing him from visiting her.

“I’m sorry, Sujeong. I’m sorry…” He apologized, his bottom lip quivering with each word.

The two had been dating for more than a year now, they met back when VIXX was practicing for their comeback with ‘On And On’, she had just joined the company. She wasn’t an idol yet and was just an ordinary trainee who happened to capture the heart of a “cold city man”.

Despite the pain, she hugged him tightly as he rested his chin on her head. “How did you find out?” She asked softly.

“Hakyeon and I, we were rewinding the security cameras trying to figure out who stole my deodorant stick and cologne when we saw you…” His voice trailed off as his eyes closed letting warm teardrops fall unto her hair, as he remembered the scene from yesterday. A gang of girls, crowding over his girlfriend as they kicked her and pulled at her clothes. He knew that as an idol, dating a trainee or anyone in general was a hard task. He had heard the stories of partners being kidnapped, tortured, humiliated and bullied by stalkers and other trainees but he didn’t expect his so-called fans to be that brutal.

Her heart shrunk at the sight of her boyfriend’s tears. It wasn’t easy for him to shed tears as he explained to her while they were getting to know each other. He had a very masculine personality and that meant his pride was quite strong too. In contrast with his body figure and manly actions, there was a soft and gentle side to him too. He would do anything to protect his family and her.

“But, why the press conference?” She asked as he regained his composure. 

Something lit up in those dark eyes of his as the corners of his lips curled into a determined smile. “It is about time, I told the world that you are mine.” He answered as he pressed a kiss on to her forehead.

He prevented her from protesting by bringing his lips down on to her soft pink ones. He had already made up his mind since yesterday, whether she liked it or not. The world was going to know that Jung Taekwoon is dating and his girlfriend is indeed a member of an upcoming girl group who is rumoured to be VIXX’s sister group. He was going to tell his fans to respect his decision and that his girlfriend was off-limits, not even as much as a strand of her hair must be touched by these savage beasts. After that, whether his image as a cold person would change or not, he was going to spend as much time with her as possible. Show his affection for her and even propose to her if they were going to last long, which he was sure they would.

-

“I am sorry to my fans who feel disappointed or even enraged. Yes, it is my job to entertain Starlights and repay them for the support they have shown by practicing a lot and giving them spectacular performances. Whatever we (VIXX) do, it is for our fans. I am grateful for the love and support that you all have given me but I am human too. I deserve to date whoever I want without fearing that I would lose fans or hearing that she (my girlfriend) is hurt. I am not being selfish here. For I also have rights to having a personal life and love life. Please, do not stalk us anymore, do not hurt her, for she makes me happy and isn’t this what you all would wish for me to have? To feel human, to have happiness…Once again I apologize to all Starlights who are probably hurt or shocked right now.”

These words were all said during the press conference that day. Some reporters even shed tears during the conference as they all understood the harsh lifestyle of an idol. Everyone in that room clapped for Taekwoon as he stood on stage with an arm wrapped protectively around Sujeong’s waist. They all agreed. It was about time more idols went public with their relationships. The crazed fans had to understand that their oppa was human too. They had to realize that they were the ones being selfish for stopping their idols for having just a little happiness….