Chapter 34: Media Darling

After I hung up the phone with Zen, I was still smiling. God, he was so sweet. Just calling to say I love you, he said… I furrowed my brow… but was that really all? I couldn't shake the feeling that something else was going on. Something was definitely up with Zen. All morning, he was acting weird and emotional. First, there was that thing where he asked me about my family. Then, I kept catching him looking at me strangely… Every time I'd turn around, he'd be staring at me… I don't know… with this curious boyish expression? Then when he caught me looking, he'd turn away. Having him look at me wasn't odd in itself. I mean, I often caught Zen stealing glances at me, but he would usually never look away. Usually he'd just smile back or come over and kiss me, not act like he had his hand in the cookie jar…

I was so lost in thought I didn't hear Jaehee come up to my desk. "MC?" she said. I jumped when she tapped me on the shoulder. "Oh, sorry," she said. "Didn't mean to scare you… Do you have a moment?"

"Sure," I said. "What's up?"

"Well," she said, running a hand through her thick dark hair. "You're not going to believe this, but I got a call from the morning show The Viewpoint… are you familiar?"

"Yeah," I said. "That's the one with the all female panel of hosts… weekday mornings on the Korea Now Network…"

"That's right," Jaehee said. "Well, guess what?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "What?"

"They want you to come on the show…" she said, studying my face for a reaction.

It was like someone let all the air out of my body. "What?!" I said, incredulous, disbelieving, frightened. "They want ME? Like on the show as a guest?"

"Yes," Jaehee said. "It's good news, really… It's evidence that the public is acting favorably to this weekend's events… Will you do it?"

"Uh…" I stammered. Me on television? I'd only seen The Viewpoint once or twice, but my mind immediately made the leap to a plausible scenario… Me sitting on the couch in some kind of flashy outfit… The four lady hosts sitting opposite… A mind numbing back and forth conversation that likely ends with me saying something stupid, something very, very stupid.

"I know what you're thinking," Jaehee said, reading me like a book. "But this will really help Zen… You want to help Zen, right?"

Of course I wanted to help Zen, but unlike Jaehee, I wasn't convinced me appearing on network TV was the way to do that. I mean, the likelihood of me saying the wrong thing was high, very high. Although I felt fairly comfortable talking to people one on one, I was terrified of speaking in front of groups of people. Once during a school presentation about the habits of migratory birds, I stuttered and stammered so badly I had to leave the stage.

Jaehee could obviously sense my skepticism.

"I can see you're having doubts," Jaehee said, as she pulled up a chair and sat down opposite me. "But, MC, we think this is really important."

"We?" I said. "Who's we?"

"Well, me and Mr. Han…" Jaehee said.

"Jumin's in on this?" I said. "What's in it for him?" I almost couldn't believe it, but I was starting to come around to Zen's way of thinking… If Jumin wanted something, there was always a catch… What was the catch?

"Look, MC," Jaehee started. "I know what it must look like, but Mr. Han and Mi-Sun truly have your best interest at heart…"

I sighed. "Do they now?"

Jaehee's face got very serious behind her glasses. "MC, if I may be so bold… Like it or not, being a public figure is part of your future, especially if you plan on spending it with Zen… The sooner you get used to doing these kinds of things the better."

I sighed. OK, she had a point.

Jaehee reached out and put a hand on my knee and smiled, knowing she had me. "What can we do to make you feel comfortable?"

"I don't know," I said. "What do people typically do in these types of situations?"

Jaehee suddenly sat up smiling and clapped her hands. "I know," she said. "We'll get you a media coach."

It was just our luck that Seven's girlfriend, Lexi Ann, was immediately available to step in as my media coach. She had been working as Echo Girl's assistant, and sort of like an undercover informant for us, until the RFA party, that is. When Echo Girl saw Lexi Ann show up on the arm of Saeyoung, she put two and two together, and, well, bam! Lexi Ann was history, fired on the spot.

"It's OK," Lexi Ann said. "I hated working for that woman anyway... Besides, I think the whole spy angle kind of ran its course…"

Lexi Ann was too much of a communications genius to be working as Echo Girl's assistant anyway. Prior to meeting us, she had worked in four other countries in various aspects of technology and journalism. At one point, she had even worked for Oprah Winfrey in the United States.

"I'm a jack of all trades in the media world," Lexi Ann said with pride. "Come on, float me any story, I'll give you the 6-8 word headline, nut graph or tagline..."

No wonder she and Saeyoung were such a good pair, I thought. I was just thankful she was so willing and available to help me. We spent the rest of the afternoon role playing talk show.

"So, MC…" Lexi Ann said in a mocking voice reminiscent of current Viewpoint host attorney Sun Aries. "What do you know about this 'mystery man' Echo Girl showed up to the RFA party with?"

I felt my face flush pink and I was at a total loss for words. "I, uh…" I stammered, clutching at my chest with my fingers. It was the migratory birds all over again.

"See?" Lexi Ann said. "This is why we're doing this… so that you'll be prepared." She put a comforting hand on my knee. "Don't worry, you'll be more than media ready by the time I'm done with you."

"OK," I said, nodding, trying to convince myself more than her, I think. "I better be ready. I certainly can't fuck up."

Lexi Ann looked at me very seriously. "Trust me, you'll be fine," she said, and then she switched gears. "OK, so let's think it through… what's the narrative that we want to portray?"

"That Kwang-jo wasn't my ex-boyfriend…" I said. "I don't want to talk about him, ever."

Lexi Ann nodded. "Yes," she said. "Ideally, that is the narrative we're going for… but honestly, MC, you have to be prepared for the worst…" her brown eyes searched mine. "You have to be prepared for everything."

I felt a sick feeling rise in my throat, but I swallowed it down. "OK," I said. "OK."

"Rule #1…" Lexi Ann said. "Be friendly and amiable…"

"Aren't those the same thing?" I said.

Lexi Ann scrunched up her nose at me. "Well, yeah, basically," she said. "Look, do you want help or what?"

She reminded me a lot of Saeyoung when she said that, and so I smiled. "OK, then," I said. "Let's take it from the top."

Lexi Ann smiled and straightened herself up, just like Sun Aries might've done it in the show. "OK, then, what's up with the 'mystery man'... did you know him?"

I took a breath and laughed a little, reminding myself of rule number #2: Make everything fun, aka giggle and toss your hair A LOT. Lexi Ann nodded her approval. "Know him?" I said, with the giggle. "I never saw him before in my life, then he showed up outside my yoga studio that day… Imagine my surprise when…"

Lexi Ann cut me off. "OK, that's good…" she started. "But the thing with a lie is that it's a lie… so the less you say the better. Remember, for everything you say there are about twenty journalists out there who are making it their business to discount what you say on every level..."

God, like Saeyoung, I was so glad that Lexi Ann was on my side and not the other way around.

When I got home later that night, Zen was absorbed in one of the More Than Friends Season 2 scripts.

"Oh damn!" he said, his lip curling into a menacing smile. "Oh yes! Damn!"

"What is it, babe?" I said, poking my head around the kitchen door. Since it was one of Zen's reading nights, I had offered to cook dinner, and was so wrangling some pre-made tomato sauce and pasta I'd picked up at the local grocery store.

"Babe," Zen said, popping up and practically gliding into the kitchen. "You aren't going to believe this!" He grabbed me around the waist, picked me up and spun me around. "This is so amazing!"

"What is it?" I said, trying not to get distracted by his bare biceps. He was wearing a tank top.

He set me down on top of the counter, keeping himself positioned between my legs. "Oh man!" he said, pointing to the script he was holding in his hands. He could barely contain his glee. "They're WRITING HER OUT."

"What?" I said, having no concept of what that even meant.

"They're writing her out of the story, babe!" he leaned forward to kiss me and then picked me up to turn me around again for a little whoop-de-whirl. "She's DONE. She's FINISHED."

"Who?" I said, feeling a little dizzy. There had to be only one "her". "You mean Echo Girl?"

Zen leaned forward, smiling devilishly at me. "YES!" he said. "Echo Girl! Kyungju! Whatever the fuck her name is!" he paused and took a breath, getting ready to explain. "She's going to get sick… They're diagnosing her with a disease, some kind of autoimmune disorder called Pemphigus Vulgaris and, oh damn…" Zen said, picking up his phone, Foogling it. "Man, it's pretty awful…"

"Yeah?" I said. "What is it? Let me see…"

Zen showed me his phone. He'd pulled up a page that showed pictures of people with the disease, and they were awful. Men and women of all ages, their faces horribly disfigured, skin covered with pussy blisters and swelling.

"Ugh," I said, wrinkling my nose, almost able to smell the stench of it. "That's so gross!"

"Yeah, terrible," Zen said. "Wow, Echo Girl is really going to hate that…"

"No kidding," I said, trying to sound serious, but not really able to stifle the giggle that was rising in my throat. An image had begun to form in my mind of Echo Girl sitting in her makeup chair, and the look she had on her face as they applied the pussy blisters… Priceless.

"Damn," Zen said, a smile escaping his lips. He was likely imagining similar things. "Poor Lovey-hunny…"

"Poor, poor Lovey-hunny…" I said, breaking out my best fake sympathetic voice. Tears of laughter were pooling at the corners of my eyes.

Not able to hold it any longer, and god, why should we? We both erupted into full-on belly clutching laughter. I laughed so hard my side started to ache.

"OK, ok, babe," I gasped. "We got to stop… My stomach…"

We were laughing so hard, we both fell on our backs onto the floor, and Zen rolled on top of me. His face was red and he had tears in his eyes. I looked at him sideways. Tears of joy, right?

"I love you so much," he said, and then he got that dreamy, faraway look in his eye again. Why was he acting so weird? I was going to ask him but then another thought occurred to me.

"Babe," I said. "So what do you think that means for the show overall? I mean, Echo Girl's a main character? Doesn't her dead kind of kill the plot line?"

Zen shrugged his shoulders. "Honestly, I don't know…" he said. "If they decide to keep the show going, they'll obviously have to take the story in a different direction…"

"Maybe someone else will move into Ji-yoo's flat… a new love interest for Jae-joon…" I offered.

Zen sighed. "Yeah, possibly, but the more likely scenario is that they'll just cancel the show. We have roughly six episodes left… that's about enough to finish off Echo Girl and wrap it up… There's been so much controversy around this season, and well, last season, too, really... I don't know if it's worth it to try and keep it going."

I placed a hand on each of his cheeks and looked up into his eyes. "Oh, babe," I said. "Something else will come along… I just know it."

"Yeah, I know," he said. "You know, I feel mostly relieved… Man, I hated working with Echo Girl."

I reached up to brush some of the silver hair away from his face. "I know you did, babe," I said. "I'm really proud of you, though, you know?"

He looked up at me with a boyish half smile. "Yeah?"

"Yeah," I said. "Echo Girl made your life… our lives... damn near impossible, and yet somehow you managed to stay a total professional."

Zen nodded. "I did, didn't I?"

I nodded back. "That's got to go a long way toward your next gig, don't you think?"

Zen sat up - we were still on the floor - and leaned against the kitchen cabinets. "Come here," he said, with a glimmer in his eye. I scooted toward him and he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me close. "Babe," he breathed, and I felt his lips on the top of my head. "This is all good news. Things are going to get better from here." He turned my face around to look me in the eye, and then kissed me once on the lips. "I promise."

"You don't have to promise," I said and I looked deeply into his eyes so he'd know I meant it. "It's not all on you... We're in this together. Forever and always."

Zen smiled. "Yeah, we are, aren't we?"

This time when he kissed me, he didn't stop. I parted my lips and let his tongue explore me. I breathed him in, lost in the beautiful scent of him, kissing him back with what felt like my entire self. It was so good that I thought maybe I could just make out with this guy forever and be totally satisfied... but then Zen's hand slipped lower, brushing the bare skin of my stomach, and I had to take it back. Of course I needed him inside me. I needed him like I needed air.

"You know, you owe me," Zen whispered after a while.

"Oh, do I?" I said, playfully, knowing full-well what he was talking about. I hadn't forgotten about the boner I'd left him with after we woke up late, talked about my family and then had to rush off to work.

"Yeah," Zen said, taking my hand and placing it on the bulge that was growing in his pants. He had the most wicked smile on his face. "Good thing I saved it for you."

I don't know what happened, but something about feeling his hardness underneath my hand flipped a switch inside me. I felt my whole body flush with heat, my whole mind fill up with the raunchiest of thoughts. There was only one thing I could think of and I wanted it now. With fire in my eyes, I straddled him, went for his belt buckle and then started pulling at the leather. I heard Zen gasp, taken aback.

"Shit, babe," Zen said, with a lusty chuckle. "Maybe you've got a beast, too…"

I looked up at him and grinned, not bothering to hide the wild look in my eye. "Yeah?" I said. "You think you're the only one who gets to be an animal?"

Still working the buckle, I crushed my lips to his and kissed him greedily. In a heartbeat, I had Zen's buckle loose and stopped kissing him long enough to start tugging at the waistband of his pants...

I wasn't able to help myself when his underwear came off and his cock popped out bobbing to attention. In a move, I was on him, wrapping my hands around the shaft, putting my mouth around the salty tip. Zen moaned, digging his fingers into my hair as I began to suck, swirling my tongue around his hardness, gripping his balls with my free hand. He tasted so good I took him even further into my mouth, all the way to the back of my throat.

"God, MC…" Zen groaned, and then he began to pump slowly inside my mouth. I moved rhythmically with his motions, responding to the little gasps and moans he was making, noting the spots he liked, and revisiting them again and again.

"Oh, man…" Zen moaned. "Babe, you better stop now, or I'm going to..."

Little did he know it was my intention to take him completely under my power, make him cum, and so instead of stopping, I sucked harder and faster, taking him deeper in my mouth. My body tingled with satisfaction as Zen's thrusts became more ragged and urgent in response... until suddenly he cursed. I felt his body tighten as he tried to pull back, but I held him inside my mouth and continued to suck until I felt his load shoot into the back of my throat… and I swallowed all of it, every single drop.

"Oh god, Oh, MC, MC, MC..." Zen called my name over and over as he came. I loved the way he pulled at my hair and got delirious as he lost himself. When it was over, I slowly released his length, savoring the taste of him as I licked him clean. Then I lifted my head to look at him.

"Damn, Princess," Zen smiled, and then he laughed. "You sure you didn't do that wrestling team? Because you've got SKILLS..."

I sat up and swatted him playfully. "Shut up," I said, smiling and pushed him back against the kitchen cabinets.

"You know," Zen said a moment later. "I think it's official."

"What's official?" I said, turning my head to look at him quizzically.

"I think we've officially done it in every room of the apartment," he said, smiling.

"Yeah," I said, smiling back at him. "Kitchen… check! Good job us!"

"Damn," Zen said. He had a wistful look. "I'm wondering why it took us this long…"

"Because you wouldn't give it up," I said, teasing him just a bit. "Remember? You said you wanted to preserve my honor, but you were just…"

"SHHH… DON'T SAY IT!" Zen said, laughing and pressing a finger to my lips. Then he picked me up and spun me around.

"A virgin!" I shouted at the top of my lungs as soon as my mouth was free. "I'm your ONE and ONLY!"

Zen carried me into the living room and laid me gently on the couch, crawling on top of me. "Yes, Princess," he said, softly. "You're my one and only…"

"You know," Zen said, sometime later. We were still lying together on the couch in various stages of undress. "I'm really looking forward to looking for other work…"

Another thought occurred to me and I sighed. If Zen would be looking for work soon that meant any sort of PR he did, or that I did, would be extra important now. I thought about my upcoming appearance on The Viewpoint.

"What is it, babe?" Zen said, seeing the worried look on my face. I hadn't told him about the show yet, but now was as good a time as any.

"The Korea Now Network called Jaehee today," I started. "They want me to go on The Viewpoint…"

Zen's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "They do? Seriously?" he said. "Wow, babe, that's great…" He studied my face for a moment. "Wait, you don't look exactly excited about this..."

"No, I'm not," I said. "Not really… I mean, what if I mess it up? Especially now that you'll be looking for work again it's going to be even more super important."

"Come here," Zen said, pulling me even closer so I could snuggle my face into his naked chest. "Nothing you do could disappoint me. Just be yourself. The people will love you. I love you."

Zen reached down and pulled my face up so that his nose was touching mine, his red eyes searching deep into my brown ones in such a way that made me wonder what secret thing he was thinking about again. I was about to ask, but then he kissed me again.

The next day, Driver Kim picked me up and drove me and Lexi Ann to the Korea Now Network studios to film my guest appearance on The Viewpoint.

"Are you nervous?" Lexi Ann said, touching my knee. I hadn't noticed until that moment that my knee had been shaking.

"A little," I said, and then I looked at Lexi Ann, who was looking at me, so I copped to the truth. "OK, so I'm nervous a lot."

"It's OK, MC," she said. "You're going to be great… Just remember what we talked about."

"That's what I'm worried about," I said. "We talked about a lot of stuff… I just don't think I'm cut out for all this media stuff..."

"Don't worry," Lexi Ann said. "Remember Rule #3…"

"Yeah," I said. "When in doubt, evade the question by asking one of your own…"

"YES!" Lexi Ann said, giving me a high five. "See? You're a natural!"

I knew I was supposed to feel better, but I didn't. I just had a bad feeling about all of this. So much was riding on the line for Zen and his career, and I so didn't want to blow it.

Finally, the Korea Now Network came into view, a big white flat building with about ten antennas on top. When we got out of the car, we were greeted by the showrunner, a stunning woman with flaming red hair named Jin Nari.

"Oh good, you're here…" she said with a flashy smile. "I just love a guest who is on time… Timeliness… it's a trait that's just a little too rare these days, IMO..." Nari showed us directly to the green room, basically a small waiting/dressing room just outside the studio itself. Inside was a dressing table, couch and side table with refreshments. There was also a television monitor that relayed what was happening in the studio.

"This is where you'll be until an associate comes for you," she said. "I do believe you're the main act, so you'll come on after the actor Keanu Reeves…"

I heard Lexi Ann gulp beside me. "Keanu Reeves is here?" she gasped, and then looked at me. I shrugged. Who was Keanu Reeves? I had no idea.

"Yes," Nari said. "The theme today is 'Teen Heartthrobs Then and Now, and well, I guess he used to be one, didn't he?"

Lexi Ann bobbed her head up and down. "God, MC, how do you not know who he is?" she said. All the color had drained from her face and she was simply beside herself. "He was in this movie I LOVED as a kid… Well, actually, it was my mom's favorite movie as a kid, and then she showed it to me… anyways…" Her eyes continued to widen as mine continued to appear more and more blank. I had no idea who or what she was talking about. Lexi Ann put a hand on my shoulder. "MC, are you trying to tell me you've never seen 'Point Break'? What about 'Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure'? 'The MATRIX'?"

"Nope," I said, shaking my head. "I sure haven't." It was kind of fun seeing Lexi Ann this flustered, getting all worked up over a guy, a celebrity that was maybe thirty years her senior. I wondered what Saeyoung would have to say about that...

Nari smiled. "Well, perhaps we can arrange a meeting after the shoot…"

Lexi Ann's eyebrows shot up. "Really?!" she said. "I would LOVE that. I'm such a MEGA fan."

"No promises," Nari said. "But I'll see what I can do…"

"Oh my god, thank you!" Lexi Ann said, pumping Nari's hand with both of her own. "Thank you so much!"

"You're so hilarious," I said when Nari had left the room. "I've never seen you go to mock ten over a guy before… I mean, not even Saeyoung…"

"No offense, MC," Lexi Ann said. "Saeyoung is a lot of things, but he is NOT Keanu Reeves."

We both laughed and I tried to think of a celebrity I would go nuts over, but there wasn't anyone I could think of that I would want more than Zen.

When Keanu Reeves took the stage, I thought Lexi Ann was going to go mental. The aging actor was actually better looking than I imagined, a tall man with dark hair, but god, he was still so old. Lexi Ann was literally sitting on the edge of her seat, her eyes wide, her fingers in her hair. "Oh my god," she said. "I can't believe I'm in the same building as Keanu Reeves."

Watching her watch Keanu was actually a welcome distraction. I was so entertained by her admiration that I forgot to think about what was coming next. Soon it would be me on that stage...

The Viewpoint was hosted by four women. As I've already mentioned, there was Sun Aries, an attorney turned celebrity show host. There was also Song Ji-yeon, a former soap opera actress, a former pop star known as Yumi, and a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Nam Sook-ja. The hosts all ranged in age from about 26 (Yumi) to 58 (Nam Sook-ja). The idea was that having representatives from different generations would naturally stoke the conversation in interesting ways. Apparently that was happening with Keanu now.

"So, Keanu, you have a new film coming up," Sook-ja said, leaning forward and batting her eyelashes. Keanu was obviously the heart throb from her day.

"Yeah," Keanu said. "It's a sequel to a film me and my buddy, Alex Winter, are going to star in…"

"Yeah, but isn't that just about two aging rockstar dads?" Yumi said, busting in on the conversation. "Like, don't you think you're too old to be trying to live the rockstar dream?"

"Come on, Yumi," Sook-ja said. "What do you know about it?"

"Well, it's really more about parenting than becoming a rockstar…" Keanu started. I could see he was working rule #1: be friendly and amiable.

Keanu was trying hard, but his voice faded into the background as Yumi and Sook-ja continued to argue with mostly just each other. Every once in a while, Aries would manage to get a word in edgewise, but ultimately it didn't seem to help.

"Yumi and Sook-ja always have it in for each other," Lexi Ann said. "I should've warned you about that. Part of the show dynamic, what the viewers like, is to watch them go at each other's throats."

I nodded. I was starting to feel a little sick to my stomach. I did not want to be caught in a situation Keanu like was in right now.

"Just take a breath, MC," Lexi Ann said. "You'll be fine."

Finally, after what seemed like an ice age, the show went to commercial break and one of the production assistants came to get me. "You're up in five, MC," she said.

I stood up and followed her on shaky knees down the hall and around the corner to wait in the wings.

"Stay here until they introduce you and then go on up," the production assistant said. "...And don't forget to smile and wave at the studio audience - that's important."

I nodded, smoothing my dress and touching my hair. Lexi Ann had decided that we should keep it classic and so I was wearing a simple little black dress and Mary Jane sandals, with my hair down and loose. I sighed. Wow, five minutes sure could seem like a long time, when you were waiting. I tried to distract myself by counting the stage lights... until finally, they began to flash and someone cued the music.

"Welcome back to the The Viewpoint…" It was Song Ji-yeon speaking into the camera. "Now we'd like to welcome our second guest… She's gotten a lot of attention in the media lately because of her boyfriend, the musical actor and one half of More Than Friends fame, Zen…" Ji-yeon had to pause for the shouts and applause at the mention of Zen's name, and then went on. "Please welcome one third of the infamous More Than Friends Love Triangle, the beautiful MC!"

The music surged and I rolled my eyes. Oh brother, here goes nothing, I thought. Somehow I felt my legs propelling me forward toward the stage. It felt like someone else's body, someone else's legs moving across the floor, but I just went with it. As I reached the steps, I heard the production assistant whisper. "Turn, smile and wave!" she urged. "Turn, smile and wave... NOW!"

I did as she said, turning slightly I smiled and waved with both hands. "Hello everybody!" I shouted, blowing kisses from what seemed like somebody else's mouth. Slowly, I turned back away from the crowd and concentrated on my feet as I mounted the stairs so I wouldn't trip. Finally I made it to the lavender couch and sat down. Phew, at least I made it without face planting. Small victories.

"Hi…" I said, beaming to the hosts and then out toward the crowd. Rule #1: be friendly and amiable. The audience roared in response, some of them screaming my name in that same crazed teenager way they screamed Zen's.

"Welcome, welcome, MC!" Ji-yeon said, the soap opera actress smiled so big I thought that the white of her teeth might blind me.

"How are you doing today, MC?" Yumi, the pop star, said. Wow, I couldn't help but notice that her boobs were even bigger in person. I had to avert my eyes and will them back up to her face.

"Just fine, just fine," I said, turning to sweep my eyes across the sea of faces. "Wow, there are A LOT of people here." Remembering Rule #4: when you're not sure what to say, state the obvious + smile.

To my surprise, the audience laughed and so did the panel. "Yes, yes, MC," Aries said. "It's a little different when you're sitting on this side of the screen, isn't it?"

"Yes," I said, smiling. "Definitely not something I'm used to… thank you so much for inviting me." Remembering Rule #6: always be gracious.

"We're so glad to have you, MC," Sook-ja said. Little crow's feet wrinkles were just barely visible behind her warm smile. She was so beautiful. God, I hoped I looked that good when I'm older. "We've all been watching with some fascination the development of Zen's career…"

"Yes," Yumi said, interrupting with a smack of lips. "I've been a huge fan, ever since The Jalapeno Topping Was Pretty Spicy… He was just so good in that, don't you think? The scene where he's saying good-bye to his best friend…" She touched her forehead like she was about to swoon. "Just SO heartbreaking…"

"I know, right?!" I said, placing a hand to my chest. Rule #5: use dramatic hand gestures and make eye contact whenever possible + smile, smile, smile. "Zen would love to hear you say that…" I heard myself answering in what sounded like someone else's voice. "He appreciates all his fans, especially those that notice, in particular, his acting." I smiled and the audience roared.

"So, MC…" Yumi said, leaning forward like we were becoming best friends. "How did you and Zen meet? I mean, you're a musician yourself, but you're not an actor…"

"Oh that…" I said, smiling and giggling a little (Rule #2). "Yeah, I'm a musician, but Zen didn't know that about me until a few weeks ago… We met in a chat room, actually."

Sook-ja's eyes went wide. "A chat room?"

Yumi shot Sookja a disapproving sideways glance. "Yeah, we have those nowadays..."

Uh-oh, I thought. Here we go. Luckily Sook-ja chose to ignore Yumi, for now. "What kind of chat room? Don't tell me Zen has to resort to online dating sites to get a date…?"

The audience laughed and I joined in. "Oh god," I said, laughing. "God, no… We met in a special chat room that's associated with the RFA, the charity organization we belong to. You see, I was hired as a party coordinator…"

"...and the rest was history, wasn't it?" Ji-yeon said, cutting me off at the quick. "Well, that's all well and good, but let's get to the bit we all really want to know about, shall we?"

"Uh-oh, here it comes…" Sook-ja said, cupping her hand over her mouth and speaking in my direction. "Sorry in advance, MC… Inquiring minds want to know…"

"Inquiring minds NEED to know," Yumi said with a laugh.

I felt my whole body go rigid and tense, bracing myself for the question. Would it be about Kwang-jo? Echo Girl? Zen's vice grip around Kwang-jo's neck? I glanced over in the direction of the stage wings, where Lexi Ann was standing. She shrugged.

"Well," Ji-yeon said, her bright blue eyes looking demure. "What we all REALLY want to know is… Well, MC, what is Zen like in bed?"

As the words washed over me, I felt all the color drain from my face… and then without warning the blood immediately flushed back in the other direction, turning my face a bright red.

"Oh, um… uh…" I started to stammer and then my mouth went dry. In a panic, I glanced at Lexi Ann. She was holding up two fingers. OK, Rule #2… She wants me to do Rule #2… Damn it, what was Rule #2? Oh god, my mind was spinning… and then I remembered. Rule #2: make it fun. I took another breath, breathing in and out, to compose myself.

"Oh, Ji-yeon," I said, forcing a giggle and a fun toss of my hair. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Lexi Ann nod, and so I slid directly into Rule #3: when you're not sure what to say, ask a question of your own. "Well, Ji-yeon," I said, with another giggle for good measure. "Wouldn't you like to know…?"

"Wouldn't I like to know?" Ji-yeon repeated. "Heck yes I'd like to know!" and then when I didn't answer. "Well, is that all we're going to get?"

"Well, you know you really should never kiss and tell…" I said, and then I bit my bottom lip remembering Rule #7: a little (just a little) controversy never hurts. "But I will tell you…" I started, pausing for dramatic effect, and as I did, I swear the whole panel, the whole audience leaned forward. "What I can tell you is that Zen aims to please...and he sure as hell doesn't disappoint…"

The whole audience erupted in a roar. "Ooooh!" they said, and began exchanging knowing looks, smiles and glances.

"Oh jesus!" Sook-ja cried, leaning back and fanning herself. "I swear that comment was enough to break me out of menopause…"

"Oh wow," Yumi said. "That sure leaves A LOT to the imagination…"

"Anything else you want to share, MC, in that department?" Ji-yeon said, hopefully. "Maybe about the size of his anatomy? Please?"

"Nope," I said with a definitive shake of the head. "I said all I'm going to say about that…"

"You sure?" Yumi said.

"Positive," I said, folding my hands in my lap to show I meant business, but in a fun way, being mindful of Rule #1. I smiled and glanced out at the audience, they were all covering their blushing faces and whispering to one another.

"OK, then, moving on, reluctantly…" Sook-ja said. "Let's talk about your nemesis then… Echo Girl…"

"Oh I don't know if I'd call her my nemesis," I said with a flip of my hair.

"OK, then, well Zen's co-star…" Sook-ja corrected. "What's it like watching him work with her… I mean, as part of a couple?"

"Yes," Yumi chimed in. "I mean, as a couple on stage they were so convincing…"

"So convincing," Ji-yeon parroted.

"Well," I said, shrugging my shoulders. "That just goes to show, again, what a great actor my lovely Zen is…"

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Lexi Ann give me the double thumbs up. Rule #8: don't take the bait. The hosts tried a couple more times to get me trash talk Echo Girl, but I wouldn't play. I kept changing the subject, asking them questions, basically running the show. The interview continued like this for a while, and I might've even been able to say that I was having fun. Finally, though, the conversation turned a corner.

"So, MC," Yumi said, smiling and batting her lashes. "We have a surprise for you…"

My heart nearly jumped out of my chest at the word "surprise" because, you know, I don't like surprises. "Ohhh….?" I said, trying to keep it cool.

"Yeah," Ji-yeon said. "We have someone off-stage waiting to meet you…"

I felt the color drain from my face. So far they hadn't brought up Kwang-jo, hadn't said a thing about him, but now… Do they have him off stage right now? Or Echo Girl? Are they going to bring Echo Girl out here and let us duke it out? I've seen that kind of thing go down on shows like this before...

"OK, everyone," Yumi said. "As you know, this morning's show is about heart throbs and it wouldn't be a show about heart throbs without… ZEN!"

Both my hands shot up to cover my open mouth in surprise as I watched my beautiful boyfriend glide toward me confidently from off-stage in the wings. I can't even begin to describe the feelings of relief washing over me as I watched him turn toward the audience, give them all a hearty wave and then blow them a kiss. How my heart warmed, no glowed, as he turned his attention back to me, continuing his walk up the stairs to me, smiling that special smile he saves only for me. When he finally reached me, I stood up and he gathered me in his long arms.

"I'm sorry, babe," Zen said, his hot breath whispering in my ear. "They insisted it should be a surprise… I know how you hate surprises, but..."

"Oh, Zen," I said, as I blinked back tears of relief and joy. "Don't worry about it… I'm just so glad you weren't…"

"Right?" he said, catching my drift. "That totally would've sucked… Now kiss me."

Zen wrapped his arms tight around my waist and lifted me up to meet his parted lips. The moment our faces made contact, the audience started to whoop, holler and just in general, go wild. Zen didn't hold back in the slightest. I knew he always loved an audience and he was loving it now. Sliding his hands up my back to the base of my neck, he crushed his lips to mine in search of the taste of me.

"Wow," Yumi said, when Zen finally pulled away. She was red in the face and fanning herself with a piece of paper. "That was some kiss…"

Zen took my hand, smiled and we both sat down on the couch.

"Yeah...some kiss," Ji-yeon said. She was fanning herself with the back of her hand. "Wow, it becomes obvious what's an act and what's real, does it not?"

"I've certainly never seen you kiss Echo Girl that way, Zen," Aries said. Zen smiled and blushed.

"Well, being with MC is easy," Zen said, playing with my fingers. "Because that's how I really feel. Making it look believable with Echo Girl, well that's… harder."

Zen chuckled a little bit and the audience and the panel followed suit.

"Yes," Yumi said. "How did you deal with that?"

"Especially since all sources seemed to point to Echo Girl," Sook-ja said. "I mean, the whole country just took it for granted that you two were a thing…"

"...and Echo Girl didn't go out of her way to dispute it, did she?" Aries added.

"Yes, Zen," Ji-yeon said. "Why didn't you say anything?"

Zen sighed. "Well, if you remember, I DID say something," Zen said. "After the first Echo Girl scandal I held a press conference at the RFA charity party… I told the whole world then that Echo Girl's allegations were false. I also declared I had a girlfriend, that I was in love."

"Yes," Sook-ja said. "That wasn't so widely publicized… Why do you think that was, Zen?"

Zen shrugged. "Well, if you want the truth, I think it has something to do with what people wanted to believe… They saw More Than Friends and they wanted that to be true in real life, too." Zen turned to me. "Honestly, I'm just so glad it's over."

"Do you think the show will get picked up for another season, Zen?" Sook-ja said. "I mean, now that the media love affair is over?"

"Unfortunately, I can't comment on that, Sook-ja," Zen said. "But I get your meaning…" Zen wrapped a long arm around me and pulled me close. "We'll just have to wait and see…"

God, Zen was such a smooth talker, so good at this media bullshit. I was in awe.

"Absolutely," Sook-ja said, clutching the chunky necklace to her chest. "Well, there's no doubt about it… I mean, wow, you two are adorable."

"Yes,," Yumi said, for once agreeing with her TV frenemy. "It looks as if South Korea has just swapped one national ideal couple for another… Well, we look forward to seeing what you do next!"

Ji-yeon leaned into the mic. "OK, well, we promised the audience we'd leave some time for their questions…" she said, pausing to look out at the audience. "Well, what do you all think? You got some questions?"

The audience roared with applause and shouts of "yes, yes, yes!"

Ji-yeon got up from her chair and waded out into the audience carrying the microphone. "OK, well, it looks like we have time for just about three questions," Ji-yeon said, glancing back at me and Zen.

"Yes," I said, nodding. "That sounds fine, doesn't it, baby?"

"Yeah, all right," Zen said, flashing a gorgeous smile to more teenage swoon sounds. "I just want to say in advance, though, I saw the earlier part of the show and well, let's just say I don't kiss and tell…" He did that thing where he scans the people in the audience, making eye contact with each and every one. "So please don't ask me anything, uh, too personal."

There were a few groans from the audience, but some applause as well. "That seems more than fair, Zen," Sook-ja said.

"Party pooper," Yumi said, making a pouty face. "Well, we'll just have to continue to leave things up to our imagination…"

"I'm good with that," Aries said with the most hot and bothered look I'd seen in a while.

Ji-yeon waved the hosts off. "OK, let's get to these audience questions," she said, standing next to a girl of about sixteen. She was wearing a tight blond ponytail on top of her head, which made the big smile she had on her face appear even wider. "OK," Ji-yeon said. "Who do we have here?"

"I'm Mikayla," the girl said, speaking with a thick British accent. "From London."

"Well, welcome Mikayla," Ji-yeon said. "What's your question.

"Well, so, Zen…" Mikayla started. "We all know you fancy MC, but I'm wondering how much? You know, would you consider... I don't know… marrying her?"

I felt my heart jump in my throat and I think I may have too audibly sucked air. "Oh god," I said. Zen squeezed my knee.

"It's OK, princess," he whispered. "I got this…"

The audience was responding with gasps and claps. "Oh…" Ji-yeon said, turning to Zen. Mikayla sat back down. "Good question…"

Zen sat back on the couch and smiled. "Wow," he said. "Well, that wasn't the kind of personal question I was thinking about when I made the request… but that's awfully personal. I mean…" he looked at me and grabbed my hand again. "We haven't even discussed it yet… so I don't think it's fair to answer one way or the other." Then I watched as Zen's eyes softened again. He was getting that goofy, weird dreamy look. "In all honesty, I can't say it's something I haven't thought about."

Suddenly my eyes went wide as everything fell into place. Zen's weird glances, his questions about my family, the long silences and the way he was avoiding some of my questions… Was Zen thinking about asking me to marry him?

I didn't even hear the other two audience questions and really don't remember how I even got off the stage. Even the after show meet-and-greet that Nari set up with Keanu Reeves for Lexi Ann seemed like a dream. All I could think about was the goofy, dreamy look on Zen's face and the particular way he squeezed my hand when he said we hadn't talked about it marriage. In particular he said we hadn't talked about marriage "yet"…

My mind kept drifting to thoughts of our future together, and how I already knew most definitely that I was going to love Zen forever. It was funny how I could look at him now and already see what he was going to be like as an old man, how his crinkled, gentle eyes would smile at me and he'd still hold my hand. I also knew it in my heart that he would be a good dad. Some people think it's impossible to be a good dad if you don't have a good role model, but I know it's the opposite. I think that if you weren't really loved as a kid, that only means you know how important it is to love and to share MORE.

Yes, I thought, looking at Zen now. Zen knew love, and he knew how to share it. Here he was talking to a fan, being so attentive and shaking her hand. God, he was just so kind, so gentle, just the best person I had ever known. My heart swelled. Yes, we hadn't discussed it "yet", but my heart had already said "yes", maybe even as far back as those early days in the chat room...

Author's note: Wow, another whopper chapter! Dang, it's hard to wrap up a story, especially when I LOVE these two characters SO DAMN MUCH. Was there ever a cuter couple in the history of the universe? No, I think not. Thanks (always) for reading, reviewing, commenting, etc. Your comments and feedback really help me think about the story and make it better, so if you have something to say, say it :-) :-) :-) We're getting close, folks. I think maybe two more chapters… Stay tuned!