"What?" I whisper, gripping my phone harder.
"I'm coming over right now," she tells me. "If you don't think you can leave without escaping their attention, it's best to stay put."
I watch in horror as another group of fans arrive. What on earth is happening?
My limbs are suddenly shaking. I lean against the wall. "Okay," I tell her.
When Bella hangs up, I turn on my Wi-Fi and wait for my notifications to load. I've been staying offline to keep from looking up anything related to Hyun Bin or the company. Otherwise, I wouldn't have missed whatever is going on.
"Daehyun's Bitter Fan Shows True Colors at Park Entertainment"
I frown and swipe that one away. Any other day, it would be an interesting piece, but not today.
"6ix's Sasaeng Fan Who Worked at Park Entertainment and Dated Park Hyun Bin Revealed"
Bella arrives an hour later. She's only able to come up after a call to the guard to clear her identity. When she walks in through the door, I immediately push it closed, as if worried someone will jump in from behind her. "Don't worry, the guard is not allowing any stranger inside," she says, giving me a hug. "I can't believe this," Bella says, heading to the window. "Who the fuck spread the rumours? Who knew about you two?" I shrug, going to stand next to her. "I've been thinking," Bella says, tapping her foot on the ground. "The only person I can think of is your coworker from hell. The one from that first night at The Daze. You said that she blackmailed you, right? To be honest, I've thought of Fiona too. Thinking back to some of the things she said, she appears like the kind of person who would make such accusations. She's also the one person from work
"What do you think you're doing?" I demand, fixing my eyes on Hyun Bin. "Are you okay? Did anyone hurt you?" he asks instead of answering my question. His eyes roam all over my body, as if searching for a sign of injury. "I'm fine!" I snap. I was fine before he showed up. "Why the hell are you here? You made things worse!" "There are crowds of angry fans outside your building, Emma! How exactly did I make this worse?" "I had a plan! I was going to leave, unnoticed, before you showed up and made a show of it. God knows what they're saying now." His jaw clenches. "Where were you going to go?" "Bella's." "They know about Bella's."
I make a call to Bella and let her know what's up. After that, I spent most of my time pacing around Hyun Bin's living area, waiting for him to show up. He disappeared into his study room after we agreed on what to do about the dating rumours. He hasn't come out of the room since. The company has already released a statement revealing that the song leak was an intended early surprise for the fans. Another statement noted that I'm not related to any anti-fan activities. But fans' reactions show they need more than a couple of statements to go by. Many think this is PR's way of saving the company's face. Unless they sue someone for the false accusations and reveal a motive, nothing is going to be convincing. I want to ask Hyun Bin whether they've found something on Fiona. But that's not the only thing that has me restless.
I taste the orange juice on his lips. But that's not the reason my insides are in a knot. I thought I'd never feel his lips against mine again. My eyes are closed tight, but I don't need to look to know I've caught him by surprise. I pry his lips apart with mine, giving him a soft kiss. "Emma--" "Kiss me." It's too quiet. The sound of our breathing is the only thing in my ears. He makes no move for so many seconds that I believe he's not going to. By when I'm about to pull away, his lips crash into mine. I lock out all thought from my mind and kiss him back, taking everything I can. I didn't realise how much I missed this. Not just kissing him but being thi
I head to the bathroom and when I come back, I run into Hyun Bin heading into his study room. I frown and walk over. "What are you doing?" "I have to take care of some stuff." I shake my head and reach for his hand. "You've been at work all night. Did you sleep at all?" "Don't worry about me. I was an idol, remember? I've gone for days without sleep." I shake my head. "You need to rest. Dealing with everything when you're tired will only make you more frustrated." "Emma, every second I don't spend looking for who is behind all this is another second of people smearing your name all over the place." "I don't want you to sacrifice your health for that. I'm sure your team is handling everything well. Come." I
By the time we emerge from the bedroom, it's dark out and I'm starving. We plan to make dinner together, but Hyun Bin excuses himself to his study room first. I've kept him away from work for long enough, so I don't try to hold him back anymore.When he finally reappears, the spicy chicken stew I'm making is almost done, same as the rice. I'm in the middle of preparing a vegetable salad.He walks over and gives me a kiss on the forehead. "I'm sorry, that took longer than I expected.""No worries, I've got this covered."He sniffs the air. "Yeah, I can tell." I dig my elbow into his side playfully. He chuckles and moves away. "I'll set the table.""Any developments?" I ask later when we're at the table."There's a
When I get to the station in Busan, I get a taxi and give the driver the address Jennifer sent me. It's an address for an apartment in Daeyeon, which has me a little confused. All along, I thought I was headed to Haeundae, where Louise lives. Unless Jennifer got a separate place. I arrive after about ten minutes and make my way to the fourth floor. I ring the bell and the door opens a few seconds later. Jennifer is standing on the other side, dressed in a purple shirt and black slacks. It looks like work uniform. She smiles at me and reaches for my suitcase. "Emma! Come in." "Thanks," I step over the threshold and walk into the room. The living room is about the size of mine, but it's a lot neater. "I didn't know you had your own place." She closes the door and comes after me. "Yes, I… Louise go
In the morning, my mother shakes me awake. I realise the sofa bed is pulled out and I'm covered up. When I cried myself to sleep last night, I didn't get up to pull the bed out or get a blanket. "Emma, wake up. You have a visitor." I sit up, half-confused. "What? Me? Who? What's the time?" Why would I have a visitor in Busan? I don't have any friends here. "It's six." And who on earth pays someone a visit so early? "Emma?" I stare at my mother, uncomprehending. Someone else just called my name. Someone with Hyun Bin's voice. I whip my head towards the direction of the door. Hyun Bin i
One Year Later "Thank you for coming. Bye, have a safe ride home." I walk back towards the entrance and heave a sigh of relief. That was the last guest to leave. The night is finally over, and as much as I enjoyed it, my legs are killing me from being on my feet all evening. Before getting back into the building, I come to a halt and stare at the shining sign above the entrance. Emma's. The smile that has been assaulting my lips every time I see that logo appears. It still feels unreal. A year ago, I never would have thought I would be launching my company today. I've spent the last year planning everything and putting together my first collection while also working for one of the biggest fashion houses in the city.
"Stop worrying," Hyun Bin urges as he closes the door behind us. We've ended up in a condo by the beach. He takes hold of my hand and pulls me to him. He cradles my face in his hands and looks at me earnestly. "Everything is going to be fine. I promise." After he explained everything during the ride over, I tried to be positive. Everything he's telling me points to a massive exposé that's going to cause ripples countrywide and clear up a lot of misunderstandings from the past. But there's a part of me that's reluctant to relax. I've watched him battle negative press time and again successfully, but it only provides temporary reprieve. When the next scandal arises, it's as if he never proved himself before. How many times does he need to prove himself before people leave hi
In the morning, my mother shakes me awake. I realise the sofa bed is pulled out and I'm covered up. When I cried myself to sleep last night, I didn't get up to pull the bed out or get a blanket. "Emma, wake up. You have a visitor." I sit up, half-confused. "What? Me? Who? What's the time?" Why would I have a visitor in Busan? I don't have any friends here. "It's six." And who on earth pays someone a visit so early? "Emma?" I stare at my mother, uncomprehending. Someone else just called my name. Someone with Hyun Bin's voice. I whip my head towards the direction of the door. Hyun Bin i
When I get to the station in Busan, I get a taxi and give the driver the address Jennifer sent me. It's an address for an apartment in Daeyeon, which has me a little confused. All along, I thought I was headed to Haeundae, where Louise lives. Unless Jennifer got a separate place. I arrive after about ten minutes and make my way to the fourth floor. I ring the bell and the door opens a few seconds later. Jennifer is standing on the other side, dressed in a purple shirt and black slacks. It looks like work uniform. She smiles at me and reaches for my suitcase. "Emma! Come in." "Thanks," I step over the threshold and walk into the room. The living room is about the size of mine, but it's a lot neater. "I didn't know you had your own place." She closes the door and comes after me. "Yes, I… Louise go
By the time we emerge from the bedroom, it's dark out and I'm starving. We plan to make dinner together, but Hyun Bin excuses himself to his study room first. I've kept him away from work for long enough, so I don't try to hold him back anymore.When he finally reappears, the spicy chicken stew I'm making is almost done, same as the rice. I'm in the middle of preparing a vegetable salad.He walks over and gives me a kiss on the forehead. "I'm sorry, that took longer than I expected.""No worries, I've got this covered."He sniffs the air. "Yeah, I can tell." I dig my elbow into his side playfully. He chuckles and moves away. "I'll set the table.""Any developments?" I ask later when we're at the table."There's a
I head to the bathroom and when I come back, I run into Hyun Bin heading into his study room. I frown and walk over. "What are you doing?" "I have to take care of some stuff." I shake my head and reach for his hand. "You've been at work all night. Did you sleep at all?" "Don't worry about me. I was an idol, remember? I've gone for days without sleep." I shake my head. "You need to rest. Dealing with everything when you're tired will only make you more frustrated." "Emma, every second I don't spend looking for who is behind all this is another second of people smearing your name all over the place." "I don't want you to sacrifice your health for that. I'm sure your team is handling everything well. Come." I
I taste the orange juice on his lips. But that's not the reason my insides are in a knot. I thought I'd never feel his lips against mine again. My eyes are closed tight, but I don't need to look to know I've caught him by surprise. I pry his lips apart with mine, giving him a soft kiss. "Emma--" "Kiss me." It's too quiet. The sound of our breathing is the only thing in my ears. He makes no move for so many seconds that I believe he's not going to. By when I'm about to pull away, his lips crash into mine. I lock out all thought from my mind and kiss him back, taking everything I can. I didn't realise how much I missed this. Not just kissing him but being thi
I make a call to Bella and let her know what's up. After that, I spent most of my time pacing around Hyun Bin's living area, waiting for him to show up. He disappeared into his study room after we agreed on what to do about the dating rumours. He hasn't come out of the room since. The company has already released a statement revealing that the song leak was an intended early surprise for the fans. Another statement noted that I'm not related to any anti-fan activities. But fans' reactions show they need more than a couple of statements to go by. Many think this is PR's way of saving the company's face. Unless they sue someone for the false accusations and reveal a motive, nothing is going to be convincing. I want to ask Hyun Bin whether they've found something on Fiona. But that's not the only thing that has me restless.
"What do you think you're doing?" I demand, fixing my eyes on Hyun Bin. "Are you okay? Did anyone hurt you?" he asks instead of answering my question. His eyes roam all over my body, as if searching for a sign of injury. "I'm fine!" I snap. I was fine before he showed up. "Why the hell are you here? You made things worse!" "There are crowds of angry fans outside your building, Emma! How exactly did I make this worse?" "I had a plan! I was going to leave, unnoticed, before you showed up and made a show of it. God knows what they're saying now." His jaw clenches. "Where were you going to go?" "Bella's." "They know about Bella's."