CHAPTER 8

That evening, I went back to the hotel in silence after the concert has ended. The rest of the crew and the staff members wanted to go out but I immediately refused. First, I wasn’t in the mood to go anywhere even though we were in Japan, and second, there’s no way I’m going somewhere that has alcohol involved. So here I am now, sitting alone in my hotel room, scrolling through some channels on TV.

This is definitely a better idea than going out. I realized I haven’t had ‘me time’ in a while now so I’m really starting to appreciate this decision. I stretched exhaustedly on my bed and stared at the TV screen again. Can’t anything more interesting be playing right now? An episode of some kind of eating competition is airing right now. I looked at the contestants having a hard time finishing their bowl of noodle soup. I shivered remembering the events that happened the previous night. That was such a bad idea…

Switching the television off, I put on my earphones and laid back in bed to listen to some music. I closed my eyes and images from the concert just now came floating back into my mind. I squeezed my eyes shut, unwilling to let the realization settle in. I cannot believe I actually admitted having feelings for Nam Taehyun. I probably just met him less than a month ago too! How did that even happen? Why him out of all people? He’s the one who’s always annoying and bothering me. He should be the one I want to avoid the most! “OH GOD!” I screamed in frustration and hid underneath the covers. I’ll just sleep it off. Maybe I’ll change my mind when I wake up tomorrow.

---

I groaned the moment I woke up the next morning.

No luck.

No luck at all. My feelings for Taehyun remain the same. Sleeping it off didn’t work. Each day that passes by is simply more miserable for me because I still do not want to admit it. I’m still in denial. I figured it could just be an admiration for what he does. I don’t necessarily have to like him as a person, right?  

These thoughts continue to sweep through my head as I’m sitting here on the plane to return to Korea. This time though, I’m sitting between Seungyoon and Mino. I absolutely hate middle seats but I guess I didn’t have a choice. Taehyun is at the opposite aisle sitting with his manager and Seunghoon. I don’t know what they’re laughing about but that smile on his face is too captivating. Imagine a very dim stage with a spotlight shining on one person- that’s exactly what I’m currently seeing. Oh no Yunju, since when have my imaginations become so cheesy? I didn’t notice I was staring like a creep until he turned towards me. I quickly focused back to the two beside me and pretended to engage in a meaningful conversation about fried chicken. Let me tell you, these two kids beside me aren’t that mature at all. Fried chicken? Seriously?  Shouldn’t they be discussing about their next schedule in Korea? At least that’s what I’m used to hearing when I worked with Big Bang. As Mino and Seungyoon advance on that topic, I decided to just sit back and relax on my seat.

Does he even like me? Why did he kiss me that night? No… He probably doesn’t like me. He loves teasing me though. That I know for sure. Why is he so mysterious?

Seungyoon, on the other hand though, is starting to show an immense interest in me upon knowing that I like bands just as much as he does. Here I am, trying to relax for the rest of the flight, listening to some music on my iPod when I suddenly felt someone taking an ear bud away. I opened one eye to see what the commotion is about and faced a grinning Seungyoon placing the earphone in his ear instead.

“Oh!! Noona I love this song too! I can’t believe we have the same taste in music, this is amazing!” He exclaimed a little too enthusiastically though, causing Taehyun and Seunghoon to turn towards our direction.

After seeing that, a light bulb magically flew above my head and an idea popped into my mind. I smirked and then smiled brightly at Seungyoon. “Really? It’s such a coincidence to meet someone who likes the same genre in music, especially the same artists too!”

“I know right! Too little people like rock music here in Korea. I wish I could’ve met you sooner!” Seungyoon replied. By then, Taehyun looked away and popped on his headphone over his ears.

I don’t know how Taehyun feels about me, but I figured the best way to find out is to see whether he gets jealous or not. Besides, I do enjoy Seungyoon’s company, so as long as I’m not doing something too over the top then it’s fine, right? Although I do feel a little selfish about the situation, I justified my behaviour because Taehyun never addressed why he kissed me that night. It’s been bothering me so much!

Once we landed in Korea, we had to go back to the YG building immediately. Sometimes I feel so sorry for the boys as they almost have no time to rest. Since they have a short meeting with their boss though, Sungmin figured it’s the best if I just go with them for now so that he can simply drive us altogether in one go later. I didn’t mind because I’m hungry and wanted to eat at the YG cafeteria. I honestly do miss the food there, it’s amazing. I bid farewell with Hyejin and the Big Bang members as they have another schedule to attend.

When we reached the company, I headed straight for the cafeteria to find cure for my hungry stomach while the boys went upstairs with Sungmin to sajangnim’s office. I quickly ordered some food and then looked for a seat.  I noticed Park Bom unnie waving at me, gesturing for me to sit with her and Dara. I smiled at them and quickly made my way over. I have never worked with them before but we always see each other at the building and at other events. Bom unnie and I are actually quite close though as our personalities clicked quite well after we learned more about each other. She always joked that I should switch to working with 2NE1 instead of Big Bang before.

“Hello Bom unnie and Dara unnie!” I sat down, placing my tray of food on the table.

“Yunju-ah! I haven’t seen you in so long! I’ve missed you!” Bom pretended to pout. “You don’t even call me anymore!”

“Mianhe, I just came back from Japan this morning actually. WINNER was the opening act for Big Bang’s concert so I had to go with them.” I explained.

Dara suddenly looked very excited and clasped her hands together. “Oh yeah!! You’re working with WINNER now! How’s that going?”

Uh. Now is the point where I don’t know what to tell them anymore. “Well, could be better. I’m still at the point of knowing them. I wish I switched over to work with 2NE1 instead!”

Bom grinned. “Omo, but you’re working with the newest YG boy group now, you should be happy!” Her eyes suddenly widened and she leaned in closer to me and whispered. “By the way, are you close with Nam Taehyun?” I see Dara pinching the bridge of her nose with the corner of my eyes.

“Um… Why?” I asked curiously.

Bom smiled sheepishly but remained silent. Dara finally had to speak up. “Our Bommie obviously has a crush on him. She thinks he’s so handsome and cute. And she’s also in love with his voice.”

“Yeah… I do agree.”

“What?” Bom and Dara questioned my response at the same time.

“Oh I mean, that’s what all his fans say right?” I quickly laughed it off, shoving some food in my mouth.

Bom nodded. “Omo, why do I have to be 30 already?” She stopped eating her food and pulled out a portable mirror out of nowhere and examined her face. “Do I have wrinkles coming out already? Oh no, I need to load up on more collagen!”

“Relax, Bommie!” Dara lightly patted Bom’s shoulders to calm her down. “You have none okay?” I laughed at their behaviour. I love hanging out with the two of them. They’re so easy going and carefree. “To be honest, you should totally consider Seunghyun-ah. You two look great together!”

Bom lightly punched Dara at her joke. “Yah! Why is everyone saying that!”

“It’s true unnie. Everyone can see he has a crush on you! Plus, I do think you two match pretty well!” I chimed in, supporting Dara’s statement. Bom blushed at our words and continued eating her meal.

Just then, my phone vibrated and I quickly checked the message I got. Of course it’s none other than Taehyun who messaged me. It read: “Noona, are you still at the cafeteria? We’re coming down to grab something to eat. Save us a table!”

“Oh god, not again…” I murmured, trying to finish up the rest of my food quickly.

Dara noticed my behaviour and question. “Are you in a hurry? Take your time! You don’t want to choke on your food!”

Obviously, I cannot let them know my true intention of finishing my meal at the speed of light so that I can flee from the cafeteria before the boys come down. But whatever. I showed her the message that Taehyun just sent me.

Bom also leaned in to take a look. She gasped and turned to Dara. “When is our schedule later?”

Dara shrugged. “You’re asking me? I don’t know. Where’s Chaerin?”

“Omo, whatever! Yunju-ah, can we just stay here with you? For now? PLEASE!” Bom exclaimed excitedly, clapping her hands together.

“Oh come on Bommie!” Dara uttered. “Seriously?”

“Why not?” Bom immediately retorted. “It’s called ‘getting to know your dongsaengs better!’”

I pursed my lips at their conversation. “Well sure, if you want to.”

Bom quickly hopped onto her feet and made her way to the cashier to order some food for her ‘dongsaengs’ as she claimed its only right to treat them today. Dara looked at me and sighed. “I don’t know what to do with her anymore. She’s not even embarrassed with herself. Aish…” I laughed at Dara’s comment.

Bom came back to our table after she placed the food order. The three of us sat, waiting for WINNER’s arrival. Dara looks bored whereas Bom has been all jittery so far. I hope she doesn’t collapse in happiness when she sees WINNER. Or should I say Nam Taehyun to be precise? Hmph! What did he even do to catch Bom unnie’s attention? Or maybe it’s just with that face of his. Dang it, this feeling ! But what can I say? It’s not like I can be mad at unnie!

When the boys came down and saw the two members of 2NE1, they immediately bowed down at the two sunbaenims and greeted them warmly. Whoa, even Taehyun is doing the same thing. Is he that excited to see them? I frowned.

My assumptions were proved wrong because Bom unnie looked very composed whereas Dara looked more excited than ever.

“You guys are working hard for your album eh?” Dara commented. “Hwaiting!”

Bom noticed how tensed the five members are standing in front of them. “Goodness guys, just relax and sit! We’re not here to bite you! We were just eating with Yunju but she told us you guys are coming so… We’re here too! So yay!” I mentally face palmed myself after hearing her speech.

The buzzer started to vibrate, indicating that the food is already. I decided to go get it since the two members of 2NE1 are now engaged in some kind of conversation with the rest of them. As I gave the buzzer to the cashier, I felt a presence behind me as I took one foodtray. I turned around to see Taehyun. “Need help?” Psh.. Acting so nice all of a sudden because the unnies are here??

“No.” I replied coldly but Taehyun simply helped anyways even though I declined.

“Aigoo!” Bom came over to us and got a tray too. “Let me give you a hand Taehyun-ah!”

Taehyun glanced at her with a dumbfounded expression. “Oh, no it’s okay Bom noona. We can handle it.”

By this time, Seunghoon came over as well and situated himself beside Bom unnie. My goodness. Do all guys get this excited when they meet members of a girl group? I looked behind me to see Dara immerged in a conversation with Mino, Jinwoo and Seungyoon. Mino is actually blushing hard while talking to her.

Guess they don’t see me as a girl at all. I dipped my head down in realization. Oh well. Can’t be helped.

Soon enough, the members started to eat while Bom and Dara sat next to them. Seungyoon felt a little odd that the noonas are staring at them eat. “Noona, you sure you don’t want anything?”

Dara shook her head. “Oh no, we ate beforehand already. You guys eat!” The guys remained at a slow eating speed, seemingly a little nervous with the two members of 2NE1 around.

“Ah… Well why not we play a game then?” Bom randomly suggested, placing her arms on Dara and my shoulders, pulling us in towards her. I noticed that her eyes sparkled when she said that aloud. Knowing her for some time already, it seems like she has something in mind.

“Um, sure.” I casually said. “What game?”

Bom clapped excitedly. “DOONG DOONG DOONG. Truth or dare!”

Dara and I immediately pinched the bridge of our nose at the same time. Bom noticed and frowned. “Yah! It’ll be fun! Who wants to go first?” Everyone stayed silent until Taehyun lifted his hand up. Bom smiled. “Ohhh! Maknae wants to go first! Truth or dare?”

“Truth?”

“WHAT’S YOUR IDEAL TYPE?” Bom practically screamed out loud, as if she already has the question prepared in her mind. Taehyun seems taken aback from the question. I smirked at Bom’s behaviour with Dara.

“Uh…” Taehyun seems to be at a loss for words. My ears automatically perked up when he started to speak.

Bom looked impatient. “If you don’t answer in five seconds you will get a punishment!”

“He’ll probably just say a girl version of himself or something.” Mino randomly said, paying more attention to his food than the game. That gluttony should watch his diet!

“A girl version of me?” Taehyun repeated. “Yeah, I’ll go with that!” The guys began to chuckle at his answer.

Bom seems unpleased with his answer, almost glaring at Mino for answering for Taehyun. “Can you collaborate a little more on that?”

“What else is there to say?” Taehyun questioned, looking at Bom innocently.

That innocent look seems to have bought him some brownie points. Bom changed her question. She pointed at herself, Dara and I. “Would you date any of us?” WHAT? What did she just asked? Oh my god.

The rest of the guys glanced at each other curiously, also amazed by Bom’s straight forwardness. Dara looked shocked. “Yah Bommie, why did you put us on the spot too!” Bom simply ignored her groupmate’s comment and continued staring at Taehyun. I glanced at him as well and noticed how uncomfortable he looked. I didn’t even realize that this anticipation is killing me until I noticed how hard my fist is gripping against my jeans.

Finally, he opened his mouth to speak up. “Um… I don’t think I can date you noona. Seunghyun hyung will kill me.”

Bom rolled her eyes. “Why is everyone talking about him in front of me today?” She suddenly smiled at Taehyun again. “Well, thanks for your answer anyways.” She looked at her watch and stood up. “Dara and I still have a schedule to attend to, we should be leaving now!” I chuckled at Bom’s acting. She must be so upset right now!

“Oh yeah! I almost forgot about it too!” Dara got up frantically and headed for the elevator right away, dragging Bom with her. “Nice seeing you guys again. We should hang out again sometime!”

Seungyoon grinned. “I think 2NE1 should come over to our dorm. That’ll be fun!”

Bom immediately grinned at his words. “DEAL! I’ll talk to our manager about it. Bye! And bye Yunju! Call me more often!”

“Neh unnie!” I snickered at her behaviour. She never fails to bring a smile to my face. I wonder why she never mentioned to me she has a crush on Taehyun though. But who knows. She changes her mind at the rate of changing her hair color. I hope Bom unnie isn’t weeping in the hallway right now.

“Whoa… That was so intense.” Jinwoo finally exhaled and sat down comfortably on the chair. “I was so nervous I feel like I couldn’t breathe when they were here.”

Seunghoon patted his back. “Chill. They seem nice. I like Bom noona.” He laughed.

“Well, clearly Bom noona is only interested in one person.” Mino chirped in, laughing at Seunghoon’s frown. “But props to you Taehyun-ah, you got guts for mentioning Seunghyun sunbaenim!”

Taehyun remained expressionless. “Well, what else can I say? It was so awkward… I can’t possibly say “Oh yeah, for sure noona! You’re so my type!” right?”

I continued staying silent, watching the boys bickering over what happened just now. Seungyoon took a seat beside me. “You okay noona? You’re not really talking. Are you not feeling well?” Taehyun and Seunghoon turned to look at me.

“No. I’m fine!” I turned to the rest of the boys. “You guys done eating yet? Let’s get going soon, I’m getting a little sleep deprived over here.” I tried to say casually. Good thing they listened and started to clean up the table.

The ride back to our dorm was driven in silence. Well, I guess it was more like I wasn’t talking to them as I was occupied with my own music. Sometimes I just like to be alone, listen to some tunes, and be in my own world. The past few days in Japan was already spent with the boys. I can almost say I’m getting a little sick of them. Well, maybe except for one.

When we reached our floor, I said a quick good bye to them and closed the door to my apartment. Dragging my luggage into the living room, I plopped down on my couch exhaustedly. It’s so nice to be home again! Sungmin gave me a call later that day, notifying me that WINNER will be filming WINNER TV back in their home town. They’ll be leaving today and won’t be back until two days later so I get to have two days off. I smiled after we hung up and suddenly felt more relaxed.

I decided to unpack my luggage before calling it a day. I glanced at the clock which read 5PM. Maybe it’s still a little too early for bed time. I frowned, not knowing what to do. Suddenly, having two consecutive day offs doesn’t sound as appealing anymore. Oh how I wish I was still working with Big Bang… They usually plan things to do with the rest of the crew members. But now I’m stuck here in my apartment, feeling lonelier than ever. I decided to catch up on some Korean dramas that I’ve missed due to my busy schedule.

---

Sometimes I just hate watching Korean dramas. They’re so happy, so cheesy, or so sad. Why did I pick this melancholy drama out of all the other choices? I ran to the cabinet to get another box of Kleenex before making my way back to my room. All of a sudden, I heard a knock on the door. I took a peek at the clock and realized it’s already a quarter past eight in the evening. Who can it be knocking on my door right now? For sure it can’t be WINNER since they should have left the building already. Could it be a neighbour? The knocking continued, a little louder this time. “Gosh… Who can be so impatient?”

I quickly ran towards the front door and thankfully stopped right before I reached it, catching my balance. I slowly opened the door and peeked outside. My heart stopped when my eyes met the person standing in front of me. As much as I want to see him, a part of me doesn’t either. It’s just going to make me go even crazier. I shook the thought out of my head.

“Whoa! Noona is that you? What happened?” Taehyun scrunched up his face in disgust once his gaze met mine.

I looked down at my body to see nothing wrong. “What are you talking about? Why are you here? I thought you guys all left!”

“Your face… You have like tear stains on your face. And your make up is ruined pretty badly.” He began to laugh.

Omo. I totally forgot about my sappy drama marathon just now. I quickly raced to the washroom and looked in the mirror. To my horror, my face isn’t just occupied with noticeable tear stains but also enhanced with panda eyes. I cursed at myself for not using waterproofed eyeliner and mascara. I tried to wipe the gunk off my face as fast as I can and ran back to the door to see Taehyun still standing there. “Ahem. Well, I was watching a sad drama.” I explained calmly.

“Tsk. Well why else? It’s not like you could be heart broken or something.”

I gaped at him in silence and eventually squinted my eyes at him. Such a jerk… Why the heck do I even have feelings for him? “Why are you even here bothering me on my day off huh? I thought I would be able to not see you for two days at least!”

“OH!” Taehyun instantly grabbed my hand and pulled me into their apartment. “That panda face of yours totally made me forget what I need. It’s an emergency too!”

“Yah! What do you want?” I questioned angrily while being dragged by my arm. Just then, I noticed that he’s wearing an apron. What the heck? Is he trying to cook? My question was answered when I caught a whiff of smoke in my face when we entered his kitchen. “WHOA! Are you seriously trying to burn the whole apartment down?” I quickly turned the stove off and got the fire extinguisher ready just in case.

“I don’t even know how it happened!” Taehyun quickly defended. “It just did… Naturally!”

“Aish…” I replied when the smoke seems to be gone. I quickly opened the window and took in a gulp of fresh air. “Why are you even cooking anyways? Do you even know how?”

“No. That’s why I asked you to cook for us last time.” He said, trying to clean up the mess in the pan. I peeked in and saw something that resembled burnt meat and veggies.

I sighed. “Then why are you cooking now?”

“Because I’m expected a very special guest.”

I cocked up an eyebrow at him. Who can it be? This person must be very important for him to actually take on the role to cook for the first time. Maybe I should just leave ASAP. “Well, in that case I should get going.”

“Wait!” Taehyun blocked the front door as I was about to step out.

“What? There’s nothing I can help you with.”

Taehyun pursed his lips together and attempted to give me a puppy look. Oh God, please no. “Can you just help me this one time? Please? I don’t want to cook something so inedible that she’ll end up having a stomach ache!”

My ears already stopped listening when he mentioned ‘she.’ So, he’s expecting a woman, and I assume she’s someone very important. I don’t have a good feeling about this. Is he secretly seeing someone and he invited her over because the rest of the WINNER isn’t here? Worse of all, he wants ME to cook for THEM? Unbelievable!

“I refuse!” I said, trying to inch my way out the door but Taehyun kept blocking my way.

“I still have one wish left with you! I’m using it today!” He retorted, a grin appearing on his face. Are you kidding me?

I shook my head. “I’ll use my wish today too and I don’t want to help you!”

“You can’t do that! We can’t use a wish on the same thing!” He argued. I shook my head once again and crossed my arms. “Oh! Here how about this. You can watch me cook and you can just tell me if I’m doing it correctly or not. How about that?”

Did he seriously want me to cook for him and that stupid girlfriend of his? Gosh it’s pissing me off so badly. All this time when I thought I can clear my mind these two days without seeing him has already been ruined! I might as well just fulfil this wish of his and so we don’t owe each other anything in the future. It’s time to move on Yunju!

“Yeah sure whatever.” I said, pulling out a chair behind the counter to observe him cook.

Taehyun instantly smiled at my answer and came over to give me a warm hug. Taken aback by his actions, I blushed uncontrollably. Isn’t he being a little too touchy if he has a girlfriend already? Omo, does sajangnim know about this? Does WINNER know about this? How can he just let me know so easily? “Yah, move over to the kitchen and stop touching me!” I commanded.

He listened right away and quickly started preparing the meal. He wanted to make kimchi stew, which I assume is the burnt dish just now, and kimbap, which should be easy as there is no heat involved. I feel a little more assured for my safety now. I leaned down on the table and watched as Taehyun busied himself in the kitchen according to my given directions. There’s just something so charming about a man who is cooking. I tried to spread out my focus somewhere else but I can’t seem to take my eyes off his back. I gulped and quickly took out my phone to play around with it. I somehow came across the picture that Taehyun texted me the other night. Omo, he has a girl and still kissed me? HOW CAN THIS HAPPEN? I suddenly felt sorry for his girlfriend. That’s not right… I need to teach him a lesson! As he was about to roll up a kimbap, I quickly hopped off the stool and told him I heard his phone ringing. He gasped and quickly ran off to his phone, mumbling something along the lines of “She’s here already? I’m still not done yet!!”

If my eyes can send flying darts I would have already. But since I can’t, my attempt to shoo him away worked and I quickly tried to find something to hide in his kimbap roll so that he would eat it later. I found a bottle of vinegar and loaded an enormous amount onto the poor roll. Not giving up just yet, I also took a huge amount of salt and sprinkled it on generously. I chuckled to myself at my genius plan and quickly took a seat again when Taehyun came back.

“What are you talking about? My phone didn’t even ring!” He said.

“Oh really? I guess I heard it wrong then.”

Taehyun didn’t question me any further and went back to work. He didn’t suspect a thing with that kimbap roll and rolled it up nicely. Just then, the door bell rang and Taehyun immediately lifted his head up in excitement. Crap! She’s here already? Am I supposed to hide? I looked left and right for an escape route but can’t think of anything at the moment. Taehyun totally ignored my presence and hopped happily over to the door. My goodness. Doesn’t he remember I’m still here? I was about to stop him from opening the door but I was too late. He already opened the door and hugged the person in front of him immediately. I stood frozen in shock. What am I going to do now? Duck behind the kitchen wall?

I was about to crouch down when I saw a woman walk in. She stared at me and I stared at her at the same time. Eh? Girlfriend? No way. This woman looks like she’s in her mid forties.

She seems friendly though. We exchanged a bow and she asked immediately. “Taehyun-ah. Who is this?”

“Oh. OH yeah!” Taehyun closed the door and waved for me to go over. I obeyed right away and walked over silently. “Come here, I want you to meet my mom.”

I stopped walking and stared at the two in front of me. “Your MOM?” Oh crap…

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Author's note:

HAHA! Hello readers! I'm back with a new chapter! *throws confetti into the air* 

I sense Yunju being overly sensitive and had jealous moemnts in this chapter. But who could blame her? It IS Nam Taehyun that we are talking about. 

So... Yunju's guess of Taehyun having a girl is proved wrong at the end of the chapter. BAHA! oh my goodness. that vinegar and salt in kimbap? never get in a crazy girl's way people! 

Wait for the next chapter to see Yunju, Taehyun and his mom's interactions! :)

Please leave a comment and/or suggestion!! Thank you!!!