Author's notes: Okay, I have to admit - I started this new document on a spur of a moment. I'm not even sure if I would persevere to the end with this new idea. Either way, I was reading English Fics on the SoEul couple from the TV show Boys Over Flowers [Korean Version] and thought, perhaps I should try my hands in writing something on the couple. I had my fair share of dabbling in the ship with the Chinese language but I have never tried writing it in English before.
Summary: [AU] Chu Ga Eul has always been a country bumpkin in the eyes of the F4. Especially so, in the case of So Yi Jeong, the renowned Korean Casanova. But what if… Chu Ga Eul wasn't really a country bumpkin, nor was she the ordinary commoner friend of Geum Jan Di that everyone thought her out to be? And this secret side of hers was revealed unintentionally to the Korean Casanova of F4, how would that affect the entire story flow in the Boys over Flowers universe?
Title: Secret of the Autumn
Chapter 16 - Red Tag in the locker, again?! Part 2
Location: Chu Family Residence, Friday early evening, 20th Feb 2009, 5pm
Sakuraba Shuichi stood on the front steps of the Chu family residence, his hand reaching out to press the doorbell when the front door was suddenly pulled open from the inside.
"..."
For a while, neither spoke as the young man and the young lady stared at one another in surprise. Finally, Sakuraba Shuichi took it upon himself to break the awkward silence as he inquires. "Are you heading out?"
"Yes, I have a prearranged appointment with someone. Do you need me for something?" Chu Ga Eul responded with a questioning tilt of her head. After all, unlike Kazuki… Shuichi isn't a frequent visitor to her family home.
"Sort of, but it's fine if you aren't free today. It's not urgent, I could always speak to you on another day." Sakuraba Shuichi said in response, indicating to his cousin that his matter wasn't a pressing issue that need her immediate assistance.
"Hmm… how about this, you drive me over to the Woo Sung Museum… and I'll listen to what you have to say along the way?" Chu Ga Eul suggested after giving the matter some serious consideration. Honestly, if this was anyone else, Ga Eul would have asked them to come back another day but because it's Shuichi, she's willing to compromise. After all, unlike her overprotective brother, Shuichi isn't going to pry too much into her business with the Korean Casanova.
"Woo Sung Museum?" Shuichi repeated, lifting an eyebrow up in a questioning manner as he shifted his eyes towards the insulated carrier bag his cousin had in hand.
"... Yes, Woo Sung Museum." Chu Ga Eul nodded in affirmation.
"With food for a certain Casanova?" Shuichi continues to prompt, this time, a sly grin started to form on his lips.
"...Yes. There, I admit it. I'm bringing him a homemade dinner meal. Happy now? Come on, I have an appointment to keep." Chu Ga Eul urged as she headed towards the direction of the white Lexus parked outside her family home.
"Hmm... did he request or you decide to bring him food on your own accord?" Sakuraba Shuichi inquires out of curiosity.
"I did it on my own accord, after receiving info from Woo Bin-Sunbae about the possibility of him skipping dinner, again." Chu Ga Eul responded with a tinge of pink on her cheeks.
"Ah...so, is this your first step in wooing the Korean Casanova?" Sakuraba Shuichi nodded with a knowing glint in his eyes, he had always thought that there's some underlying chemistry between Ga Eul and the Korean Casanova. Only, he wasn't quite sure if either of them is going to do anything about it... but it looks like Ga Eul, his cousin, had decided to make the first move in exploring and addressing the underlying chemistry existing between the two.
Ga Eul was very thankful she wasn't drinking, as she spluttered at the words coming from her studious cousin. "Shuichi! It's good enough that you know of my growing feelings for Yi Jeong-Sunbae, but do you actually have to spell things out?"
In response to Ga Eul's flustered reactions to his words, Sakuraba Shuichi couldn't help it. He guffawed while his cousin pouted at him from the side passenger seat of his white Lexus.
Huffing in mild annoyance at her bespectacled cousin, Chu Ga Eul waited until the guy had calmed down from his guffawing reaction before broaching the subject of his impromptu visit to her family home, earlier. "If you're quite done with your laughing... care to tell me what exactly brought you over to my place of residence earlier, now?"
In hindsight, it's probably karma for his teasing. Because soon after he heard the words coming from Ga Eul. Sakuraba Shuichi felt his own cheeks burning up in response, as he recalled the reason behind his decision to pay the Chu family residence a visit, earlier.
[Oh... Shuichi's blushing. That's rare, well... there's only one person that would render him into a blushing mess. Serves him right for teasing me about my feelings for Yi Jeong-Sunbae. This is definitely karma.] - Chu Ga Eul was thinking as an amused glint start sparkling away in her eyes as she observed the figure of Sakuraba Shuichi from the corner of her eyes, waiting to see how long her cousin would last before coming clean to her about the purpose behind his decision to seek her out, this evening.
"Risa's coming over to Korea." Sakuraba Shuichi blurted out in a rush, his face going completely red under the amusing gaze of his cousin.
"Okay… why is she coming to Korea? When is she arriving and what do you need me to do for you?" Chu Ga Eul went on to cite out her next three questions as a smile of amusement starts forming on her lips. It never ceased to amaze her how shy her cousin could be when it comes down to interacting with the heiress to the Ninomiya Medical Group in Japan.
"... She's scheduled to perform in the Su Am Arts Centre concert hall next month, for an international violin competition. I thought we could throw her a welcoming party…" Sakuraba Shuichi responded with his face completely red, as he tried his best to avoid meeting the eyes of his very much amused female cousin.
"Hmm… okay, who's doing the planning for the party? And where do you guys intend to throw the party? Have the guest lists for the party been finalized yet? What do you guys intend to do with the food for the party?" Chu Ga Eul then proceeds to list out the next few crucial questions to the bespectacled member of E3.
"...Shunsuke's planning the party. We have yet to decide on the venue for the party… ultimately it depends a great deal on the size of our guests' list. Kazuki says he will be handling the guest lists portion, so until he decided who he wishes to invite to the party… we can't decide where to hold the party. As for the food…I'm deciding between the catering service from Miya's Cafe or MZ Kitchen." Sakuraba Shuichi admitted to Ga Eul, before continuing with the part that he needed the girl's assistance without the need for his cousin to prompt him into revealing, this time around.
"As for what I need you to do… could you help me inform her about the party? And in the process, attain her flight details so, we would know when to hold the welcoming party for her?" Sakuraba Shuichi then said, finally making his request to Ga Eul known.
"Of course, I'll make sure to email her tonight. Let me just pen it down in my calendar, so, it won't slip from my mind when I got home." Chu Ga Eul responded with a beaming smile at the bespectacled member of E3, before extracting a promise from the guy that he wouldn't reveal to Kazuki anything about her visit to the Woo Sung Museum with food obviously prepped up for a certain Casanova of F4.
"Don't worry, I wouldn't tell Kazuki anything until you give me the permission for me to do so. Although, I must ask, have you really decided? Is the Korean Casanova really the destined guy for you?" Sakuraba Shuichi couldn't resist the idea to double-check, as his white Lexus came to a stop in front of the building that housed the Woo Sung Museum.
"While I can't say for certain that he's definitely my soulmate, what I do know though, is that I'm really interested in him. Granted, with his skittishness that revolved around the topic of commitment and romantic relationships, I know I'm in for a long and hard battle. Still, I'm determined to try… because I don't want to look back on this a decade later and ended up regretting about not trying at all." Chu Ga Eul took a moment to dwell on the subject, before coming clean to her cousin about her thoughts on the feelings she had for the Korean Casanova.
"Well then…since you've decided. I'm not going to try and convince you otherwise. Good luck for trying to capture the heart of the Korean Casanova for real. I'll be rooting for you in secret." The bespectacled member of E3 responded as he smiled a genuine smile at the figure of Chu Ga Eul.
"Thanks, Shuichi. I'll update you once Risa-Chan responds to my email with her flight details." Chu Ga Eul responded with a playful wink, as she proceeds to alight from the white Lexus with her insulated carrier bag in hand.
Location: Woo Sung Museum, Friday evening, 6pm, 20th Feb 2009
When So Yi Jeong was told that someone was here to deliver his dinner to him, his first reaction was bafflement seeing as he didn't get the time to order any food delivery. So, why would there be someone here to deliver food to him? Still, he indicated for the guard stationed at the entrance of the museum to allow the food delivery person into the building.
Looking up from the pile of documents his grandfather had wanted him to look over since his arrival at the museum earlier in the day when he heard the sound of knocking coming from the doorway - the Korean Casanova was stunned to see the figure of Chu Ga Eul standing outside the door that leads to his makeshift office.
Yes - makeshift office, as he has yet to officially take over the management of the museum from his grandfather yet… So Yi Jeong currently does not have an office space of his own, in the building of the Woo Sung Museum. Thus, whenever he was in the building to handle paperwork, he found himself working out from one of the multi-purpose rooms available in the museum instead.
"Ga Eul-yang? What are you doing here this early? The workshop doesn't begin until 7pm…" So Yi Jeong blurted out, his expression reflecting evident surprise.
"Well… I'm here to deliver your dinner under the instructions of Woo Bin-Sunbae. He told me that you haven't eaten much for lunch, and considering how you had reported to your grandfather shortly after school ended… there's a high chance of you not getting time for dinner, too. Apparently, you have a tendency to procrastinate when it comes down to the paperwork aspects of your duties as the heir to the Woo Sung Museum. So, your grandfather likes to backlog your paperwork and later dump everything into your lap once you came in to report for your other duties." Chu Ga Eul explained as she set the thermal food jar down on the table in front of the speechless Korean Casanova.
"I have to say, I'm at a loss of words." So Yi Jeong eventually responded after darting his eyes between the figure of Chu Ga Eul and the thermal food jar in front of him several times, and still ended up incapable of formulating his thoughts into words.
"Well… a simple thank you would suffice in this case. Come on, there's still an hour until the workshop. Eat up before the food starts getting cold. I have to apologize though, I have no idea what's on your preferred dinner menu for today, so, I just brought you what I ate for dinner this evening." Chu Ga Eul admitted as she set down the cutlery set in front of the Korean Casanova.
"Wait… you didn't buy this from outside?" The Korean Casanova paused mid-action before glancing over to the country bumpkin for verification.
"No, I came here straight from home. So, these are homemade. Don't worry, my culinary skills are definitely passable. I did prep up my own lunch on most days, and I believe you saw my handiwork the other day when I was invited to have lunch in the F4 private lounge in school." Chu Ga Eul responded shrugging nonchalantly in response while ignoring the gobsmacked expression that is now clouding the features of a certain Casanova of F4.
Uncovering the lid of the food jar, So Yi Jeong started removing the separate compartments from the inside of the thermal jar. There are three separate compartments in the food jar, the compartment with the deeper volume turns out to be a soup dish while the other two compartments housed the main staple and the side-dish respectively.
The dinner menu catered to So Yi Jeong this evening by Chu Ga Eul turns out to be Thai cuisines, comprising of the infamous Tom Yum Soup, Pad Thai (Fried noodle dish), and Spring Rolls. Raising an eyebrow questioningly at the country bumpkin, the Korean Casanova started. "Thai cuisines?"
"Well… I'm in the mood for Thai food this evening, but it's hard to dine out alone in a restaurant. So, I decided to make my own dinner with whichever ingredients I could land my hands upon from the pantry of my family kitchen. Therefore, modifications have been made to the recipe for the dishes…so, I can't guarantee that it would taste exactly like how it's being served in a restaurant setting." Chu Ga Eul emphasized as she took a seat on the couch in the room where the Korean Casanova was utilizing as his temporary office space.
"Interesting…" So Yi Jeong commented as he finally starts digging into the meal brought over by the country bumpkin from home for his consumption, this evening. He started out taking small bites at first, mainly to taste the food cautiously while hoping that the country bumpkin wasn't lying when she claims to have passable culinary skills.
As it turns out, not only was Chu Ga Eul not lying about her passable culinary skills. So Yi Jeong thought her culinary skills were above average because he ended up polishing off the entirety of the contents brought over by the girl in the food jar for his consumption. The spring rolls are crispy but not oily which suits his preference just fine, and the modifications made to the recipe for the tom yum soup and pad Thai weren't too far off from the authentic taste. The idea of incorporating Kimchi into the Pad Thai was brilliant even, the dish was so tasty that he ended up cleaning off the entire content without realizing it.
Chu Ga Eul couldn't resist the urge to grin in satisfaction when she noticed how the Casanova of F4 had finished up everything she brought over for the man as dinner. With a smile of content playing on her lips, the long-haired girl started to address the Korean Casanova. "I would ask you how you find the food, but I think there isn't a need to ask for your feedback now."
"Ga Eul-yang, thank you for bringing me dinner this evening. Your culinary skills aren't passable, in fact, they're above average. They didn't taste much different from the Thai restaurant I occasionally patron in the Gangnam district. In fact, I think your version of the dish – Pad Thai triumphs against the restaurant's version. It was brilliant of you to incorporate the use of Kimchi into the dish." So Yi Jeong dabbed the side of his mouth with his handkerchief, as he set down the cutlery he has been using back onto the surface of the table.
"Thank you for your compliments, and I'm glad that the food is to your liking." Chu Ga Eul beams in response as she starts clearing away the cutlery set and the empty food containers replacing them back into the food jar and packing them away into the carrier bag, she had brought along with her to the museum.
"Now, I'm too full to continue sitting behind the work desk. Care to join me for a walk around the museum for a bit of exercise? I could show you around and give you a tour of the museum while at it." So Yi Jeong offered, directing his dimpled smile towards the country bumpkin and enjoying the blushing reaction his dimpled smile never failed to garner from the long-haired girl.
"Sure." Chu Ga Eul beams in response, setting aside the carrier bag leaving it in the workspace of the Korean Casanova while she followed the man out of the room and to go on a guided tour of the Woo Sung Museum, led by the heir to the museum, personally.
Given that the workshop session begins at 7pm, the tour which So Yi Jeong managed to give Ga Eul after having enjoyed the splendid dinner meal brought over by the girl was a brief tour comprising only two out of the seven exhibition halls in the museum. As the permanent exhibitions are going nowhere and would be in the museum forever, So Yi Jeong decides to show Chu Ga Eul the two seasonal exhibition halls that are being used for the display of the China porcelain collection and the Philippines ceramics collection, instead.
Location: Geum Family Residence, 20th Feb 2009, Friday evening 6.30pm
While Chu Ga Eul was touring the exhibition halls in Woo Sung Museum under the personal guidance of the Korean Casanova of F4, her childhood friend - Geum Jan Di, was scouring through the newspaper recruitment advertisements trying to secure a second part-time job for herself. The girl had just managed to get approval from a gas station situated two neighborhoods away from her current residential address to start work as a pump attendant for the night shift from the following day when her parents return home with mirrored looks of gloom and doom.
"Appa, Eomma… what's wrong?" Geum Jan Di inquires with a worried look on her face.
"Jan Di ah… we've lost our new source of livelihood, again." Na Gong-Joo meets eyes with her daughter and promptly starts crying, again.
"What? What happen?" Geum Jan Di then turns towards her father for a further explanation since her mother is never coherent with words while crying.
"We were getting ready to start selling supper snacks for passer-by and late-night commuters on the road when a group of men approached us with unfriendly looks demanding to know why we were doing business there without paying tax. And then, without listening to our explanations promptly starts trashing our booth and damages our products. So, now we can't continue doing business there… the tax payable is too high, it's beyond our affordability." Geum Ii-bong told his daughter depressingly.
"... Appa, Eomma… it's fine. We can just come up with a new way to earn money. I've just secured myself a new part-time night job, together with my part-time job at the porridge shop. I think we could still make enough to sustain our livelihood for the next one month. Besides, Eomma - you still had your part-time job at the public bathhouse, isn't it? For now, we make do…" Despite feeling lost, Geum Jan Di tried to be strong in the face of her depressed parents.
To ensure that she could make enough money to support her family through this period of hardship, Geum Jan Di went to the extent of pushing herself to her limit. In favor of earning money, she had even cut back on her training time at the pool in the aquatic center of Shinhwa Academy. Due to her headstrong personality, she refuses to share her burdens with her boyfriend, and neither did she reveal anything to her former prince charming.
And although, Yoon Ji Hoo did sic one of his bodyguards on the Geum family to keep track of the girl's movement. There are things his bodyguard is unable to find out, such as the new part-time job location that Geum Jan Di is working at. Mostly because the girl didn't mention anything of her new part-time job details to her parents.
Location: Shinhwa Country Club, F4 Clubhouse, 28th Feb 2009
Therefore, one week later, on a Saturday evening - when he was hanging out with So Yi Jeong in the F4 clubhouse on their own…Yoon Ji Hoo finally decided to try contacting the childhood friend of Geum Jan Di to see if the girl knows anything about the new part-time job of Geum Jan Di.
Jun Pyo having to attend to some social functions he can't skip out on as the heir to the Shinhwa Group, after receiving a long-distance call from his elder sister who cited that if he doesn't attend, their mother is going to come back to Korea personally to attend the event. Wanting to keep his mother away, Gu Jun Pyo has reluctantly donned on his suit and attended the social function with dread, and bailing out on his friends, in the process. As for Woo Bin, that guy was off elsewhere with his date for the month.
So Yi Jeong has been chatting idly with his auburn-haired friend speculating on the next moves of Kang Hee Soo, would be making against Geum Jan Di and her family due to the girl's relationship with their friend while looking through a series of pictures from a new pottery collection scheduled to be displayed in the exhibition hall of Woo Sung Museum, in three months… when he heard Ji Hoo requesting the use of his mobile device.
"Yi Jeong, lend me your phone." Yoon Ji Hoo began, his expression so natural that the Korean Casanova didn't suspect anything was amiss.
"Why? Did your phone run out of battery or something?" So Yi Jeong inquires as he handed his mobile phone over to his auburn-haired friend.
Yoon Ji Hoo didn't respond, simply took his friend's offered phone and looked through the contact list until he sighted the nickname 'country bumpkin' in the contact directory of his friend's mobile device. Pressing on the 'call' button, Yoon Ji Hoo waited until someone picked up on the other end of the line before placing the phone to the side of the ear of his Casanova friend.
"Hello, Yi Jeong-Sunbae?" The sound of Chu Ga Eul's voice coming through from the other end of the line, causes the Korean Casanova's mind to go blank for a second.
[What in the world…?! Why did Ji Hoo call up the country bumpkin on my mobile? No, wait… the question is why on earth would he hand the phone back to me when he's the one who calls her up?] - So Yi Jeong thought, as a flustered expression overtook his features for a moment before it was replaced by a smiling look as he took hold of his mobile phone to greet the girl on the other end of the line cordially. At the same time, he didn't forget to throw his auburn-haired friend a look of annoyance as well.
"Hi, Ga Eul-yang. Good evening." Having to say something fast, lest the girl hangs up on him thinking that he had accidentally called her up or something. The Korean Casanova settles on a quick word of greeting, as he continues to formulate something in mind to keep the conversation going.
"Hi, Yi Jeong-Sunbae. Is anything the matter?" Chu Ga Eul prompted on the other end of the line, sounding curious.
Just when the Korean Casanova was feeling tongue-tied, seeing as he wasn't the one to call up the girl, to begin with… he noticed his auburn-haired friend showing him a message on a piece of paper asking him to check if the girl had any inkling about where Geum Jan Di is working for her second part-time job.
"Right… actually, I was wondering if you had any idea about where Geum Jan Di is working at night after the end of her shift at the porridge shop. You see, she hasn't been telling Jun Pyo anything about her family difficulty, and Ji Hoo hasn't had the chance to sound her out recently given how much she had taken to cut down her training time at the pool. So, they wanted me to sound you out to see if Geum Jan Di had told you anything about her family's recent situation." Finally, having an idea of what this entire call is about - the Korean Casanova was able to formulate a response to the girl on the other end of the line, swiftly.
"Oh...Jan Di's new part-time job location, was it? I think she's working at a gas station that's situated two neighborhoods away from her current place of residence. Hmm...I think I have the address of the gas station somewhere, but I need time to find it. Can I send the address over to you in a few minutes?" Chu Ga Eul begins, as she starts to fumble through the contents of her handbag trying to locate the address of the gas station Jan Di had given her earlier on in the day. If she's a tad disappointed about the reason behind the Korean Casanova's decision to call her, she didn't allow it to show in her tone.
"Sure, that would be great. I'll wait for your text message then." So Yi Jeong responded as he ended the call on his end. Shifting his eyes upon the figure of his auburn-haired friend, the Korean Casanova throw another dirty look towards Yoon Ji Hoo as he remarked.
"She will send me the address to the gas station where Geum Jan Di works at night shortly, but honestly, Ji Hoo... you could have just told me to give her a call to find out the whereabouts of Geum Jan Di, you know?"
"I know, but your flustered reaction was kind of entertaining to see." Yoon Ji Hoo admitted with a sly grin on his lips, before refocusing his attention onto his guitar playing.
"... Well, I'm glad I kept you entertained with my reactions then." The Korean Casanova rolls his eyes as he deadpans to his auburn-haired friend in response.
As soon as the message from Chu Ga Eul came in on his mobile, So Yi Jeong didn't even spend more than a minute scanning through the content before forwarding the entire text message to his auburn-haired friend.
Private chat between Chu Ga Eul and So Yi Jeong, 28th Feb 2009, 9pm
Ga Eul: Yi Jeong-Sunbae, the gas station is located at Sejong-daero. Its location is diagonal across from the post office.
Yi Jeong: Noted. Thanks for the info. Ji Hoo would be eternally grateful to you.
Ga Eul: ... Was it Ji Hoo-Sunbae who actually calls me up earlier?
Yi Jeong: Yes. He asks to borrow my phone; I thought his phone was low on batt so I naively lend him my mobile phone. He then proceeds to call you up; but handed the phone back to me the moment you pick up the call.
Ga Eul: I see... that explains a lot. I was wondering why there's a prolonged period of silence on your end before I heard your voice coming through the connection.
Yi Jeong: Indeed. Anyway, once again, thank you for your valuable information. Goodnight, I'll see you in school on Monday.
Ga Eul: Goodnight, Yi Jeong-Sunbae. ^_^
Location: Unnamed Gas Station, 28th Feb 2009/1st March 2009, Saturday late night/Sunday early morning, 1am
Geum Jan Di was struggling to keep her eyes open when she heard the sound of an approaching motorbike. Too tired to check on the owner of the vehicle that just came to a stop in front of the pump station, Geum Jan Di simply operated on an autopilot mode as she prompted. "How much fuel do you need to pump? Half tank or full tank?"
"... Half tank would do." Yoon Ji Hoo answered in a monotonous tone of voice, but the familiarity in his voice finally draws the focus of Geum Jan Di upon his person.
"Ji Hoo-Sunbae, what are you doing here? No, wait... how did you know I'm working here?" Geum Jan Di couldn't help but inquire as a smiling expression overtook her weary features.
"I'm here to check in on you, as for how I get to know about you working here... well, I ask your friend." Yoon Ji Hoo responded as he handed a canned coffee to the tired-looking girl.
"Thank you. The coffee comes just in time, I was on the verge of falling asleep on the job, to be honest." Geum Jan Di said in response as she accepted the offered can of coffee from the auburn-haired member of F4 with a smile of gratitude.
"Are you sure you aren't been too hard on yourself?" Yoon Ji Hoo prompted, upon noticing that Geum Jan Di's nose has just bled but it seems the girl was still oblivious to the fact that she had blood flowing out from her nose. With an audible sigh, the auburn-haired member of F4 reaches into his pocket to retrieve his handkerchief and hold it below the girl's nose.
"..." Geum Jan Di was about to claim that she's doing fine, but now... she found herself at a loss of words.
"Knowing you, you probably would've insisted that you're fine but it seems your body is trying to tell you otherwise." Yoon Ji Hoo stated in a flat tone of voice, and after a moment of silence he suddenly blurted out. "It's heartbreaking to see you like this."
"Pardon?" Geum Jan Di froze up for a second, before turning towards the auburn-haired member of F4 with a quizzical look.
"I mean, Jun Pyo would be heartbroken if he were to see you in this state. Why didn't you tell him of the troubles that plague you?" Yoon Ji Hoo amended his statement upon realizing that he had unintentionally let his emotions overrule his logical sense of mind for a moment.
"What's there to tell? It isn't as though he is in any position to change the situation that my family is facing now. So, why bother to burden him with such issues when it would only serve to frustrate him?" Geum Jan Di responded on an eventuality, sighing aloud as she leaned her back against the gas pump.
"... I'm really envious of Jun Pyo, right now." Yoon Ji Hoo found himself blurting out his thoughts aloud, again. Upon the realization that he's going to have trouble stamping down his urge to pull the girl into an embrace if he didn't leave the site soon, the auburn-haired member of F4 promptly stick a wad of cash into the hands of the girl before getting on the back of his motorbike and sped off into the night before Geum Jan Di could react.
"..." Geum Jan Di stared at the wad of cash in her hands and wondered inwardly what she should do with the extra portion of cash, after deducting the cost for the gas pump she did on the motorbike of Yoon Ji Hoo.
Yoon Ji Hoo stared at the message he had just received from Geum Jan Di asking him what she should do with the additional cash amount he had stuffed into her hands earlier because the refueling cost for his motorbike doesn't amount up to the 10,000 Korean Won, he had given her before taking his leave from the gas station.
"..." In the end, the auburn-haired member of F4 simply responded with a brief text response telling the girl to keep the extra cash as tips.
[What a generous amount of tip, well... that just goes to show that Ji Hoo-Sunbae, no matter how down-to-earth he seems, is still a rich boy in the end.] - Geum Jan Di thought as she counted out the amount needed for the refueling cost, and stashed the balance amount of change into her own pocket.
Location: Porridge Shop, Monday, 3pm, 2nd March 2009
When Chu Ga Eul noticed how her friend is flipping through the job adverts section of the local newspaper again, she couldn't help but frown.
"Jan Di, what are you doing? Don't tell me you are looking for a third part-time job. You are already juggling two part-time jobs, when on earth are you going to find time for a third job? Are you trying to work yourself to the state of Karoshi?" Chu Ga Eul practically demanded as she zeroes in her stern gaze on her childhood friend with a disapproving look on her face.
"Karoshi?" A quizzical look marred the features of Geum Jan Di as she glances over to her childhood friend for an elaboration of the foreign term.
"... A term Japanese used to describe overwork death." Chu Ga Eul deadpans as she explained the meaning behind the term - Karoshi, to her childhood friend.
"Of course, I'm not trying to overwork myself to the brink of death. But… my parents' savings are depleting faster than expected, and the money my mother is earning from her part-time position with the public bathhouse combined with my income from the porridge shop and the weekly pay-out from my second part-time job wasn't quite enough to sustain the current monthly expenditure of my family. So, I'm on the lookout for some quick cash opportunities." Geum Jan Di sighed as she revealed to her childhood friend the reason why she's looking through the job's advertisement column of the newspaper, so soon after having found a second part-time job.
"Jan Di… in life, there's nothing good when it comes down to quick cash opportunities. In Japan, quick cash opportunities mostly existed in the form of sleeping with men. You exchanged sex for cash, that's what quick cash opportunities in the Japan society mean. So, please… no matter how desperate you are for money, don't ever fall into such scams trap." Chu Ga Eul looked her friend in the eyes with a serious expression, as she commented.
About half an hour later, Geum Jan Di collected a food tray handed over to her by the master of the porridge shop as she brought it over to a new customer who had, patronize the restaurant for the first time, today. Plastering a bright smile on her face, Geum Jan Di set the food tray down in front of the customer with the instructions of the side dish provided being free-flow, and for the customer to be careful when ingesting the porridge as it's still piping hot.
"Miss, are you a college student?" The man who was patronizing the restaurant for the first time, calls out to Jan Di, halting the girl from leaving with his sudden line of inquiry.
"Erm... no, I'm a high-school student, actually." Geum Jan Di responded politely, even though she has no clues about what exactly brought on the question from the customer.
"Oh, that's just too bad. I'm a scout for young models for a modeling agency, you see. I was thinking you kind of fit the image for our next photo shoot. But we only accept college students." The man appears disappointed that Jan Di wasn't at the age to do modeling for his company, but then, he still ended up handing Jan Di his name card for some unfathomable reasons.
Now, if Chu Ga Eul is around, she would have informed her childhood friend that this entire thing seems too fishy. It's as though the customer was trying to bait her friend into a trap, but unfortunately, Ga Eul is off to serve another customer who was seated on the opposite end of the shop and therefore can't exactly overhear the conversation between Geum Jan Di and the new patron to the porridge restaurant.
At first, Jan Di was going to turn and leave ignoring the customer's words but then the thought of her family's financial situation causes her to turn around and ask. "Out of curiosity, how much is the pay offered to college students?"
"..."
Originally, Geum Jan Di was simply asking to satisfy her curiosity. The thought of actually attempting it didn't even occur to her, it wasn't until the next day when she dropped her brother off at school and overheard her brother's friends asking him if it's true that he's no longer part of the school lunch plan.
"Wait a minute, Kang San… are they speaking the truth? You are no longer on the school's lunch plan?" Geum Jan Di halted her brother to clarify the above-mentioned subject before the boy could head off to join his friends.
"It's fine, noona. Our family is indeed in some serious financial trouble now, so, I told the teacher that I'm not taking part in the school lunch plan. Besides, as long as I eat a full breakfast… I can survive going without the lunch meal." Geum Kang San responded and was about to leave when he felt his sister pulling him back.
"Kang San ah… why didn't you tell me that you had no money to pay for the school lunch?" Geum Jan Di prompted, looking at her brother with a frowning look on her face.
"Noona, it's really fine. Besides, you're already stretched thin juggling two part-time jobs. How could I add more weight to your financial burden? Oh, and please don't tell eomma about what you just heard. If not, she's going to start crying again." Geum Kang San told Jan Di, before rushing off to join his friends and entered the school without a backward glance.
With her mind occupied fully by the notion that her brother had to go without lunch in school because they are unable to fork out the amount needed to pay for the school-supplied nutritious lunch plan, Geum Jan Di literally had her head up in the clouds for the most part of the day in school. Thus, when the school session came to an end - she didn't even run her plans through with her childhood friend and simply acted on impulse.
Following the directions given on the back of the name card provided by the customer who patronize the porridge shop the previous day, Geum Jan Di went looking for a company named 'Enjoy Production' in the Jung district, Euljiro-dong of Seoul. If only, Geum Jan Di weren't so impulsive and had at least the sense to speak to her childhood friend on the matter. Things wouldn't have escalated to the point of her falling straight into a trap, but unfortunately, she chooses to act impulsively rather than share her plans with her childhood friend. Either way, that's a tale for later - now though, Geum Jan Di has only arrived in the Euljiro-dong within the Jung district, and is still looking for the company named 'Enjoy Production'.
While searching for the company on the street, Geum Jan Di unintentionally bumped into an approaching figure without taking a good look at the person she had walked into. If she did, she probably would find the entire situation too much of a coincidence but because she didn't pay attention to the guy, she had crashed into only a few steps away from the building that housed the fishy production studio. Geum Jan Di had naively and foolishly walked right into a perfectly laid-out trap tailored specially for her.
"Excuse me, is anyone around?" Geum Jan Di poked her head through the doorway that leads inside the production studio and found herself staring into an oddly decorated space. That should be the first sign that this isn't any reputable production studio that qualifies as a legit and proper modeling agency. A corner of the room was decked out in a pink hue with neon lighting, and there's a queen-size bed planted right in the middle of that pinkish room with plush toys with a blindfold over the eyes. The entire place reeked of S&M (Sadomasochism) feel…and even though Geum Jan Di was still naive in that particular aspect of life, she did feel a tad weird being in this place.
Under usual circumstances, Geum Jan Di probably would have bolted out at first chance. This time though, her desperate financial status causes her to stamp down her discomfit and continue to call out for the attention of the staff working at this fishy production office. The sudden slamming of the door shut behind her startled Geum Jan Di for a moment, and it took up her entire self-control to not yelp on reflex.
During this time, Gu Jun Pyo was completely unaware of what his girlfriend was doing. He was currently with his two playboy friends in the aquatic center, dropping dead sea minerals salt into the swimming pool.
"Why are we doing this again?" Song Woo Bin prompted, sounding bemused as he looked at the baskets of dead sea minerals salt crystal that sits around the side of the swimming pool with the Shinhwa heir dropping them one by one into the water.
"I wanted to give that woman a surprise. I've read online that mineral pool is good for the swimmer's skin." Gu Jun Pyo responded in a matter-of-fact tone of voice as he continues to drop the crystal salt containing dead sea mineral into the swimming pool.
"But why are you dropping them one by one into the pool, can't you just dump the entire load into the water? Wouldn't that be a faster way?" Song Woo Bin pointed out objectively to his friend, who was busy putting the crystal salt one by one into the pool.
"...You're right, why didn't I think of it before?" The Shinhwa heir paused mid-act, before wondering aloud to no one in particular.
"Anyway, why are you looking so gloomy when you're preparing a surprise for your girlfriend?" So Yi Jeong prompted, finding the behavior of his friend incomprehensible. After all, Jun Pyo's always enthusiastic when it comes down to planning a surprise for Geum Jan Di. So, the fact that he's so mellowed this time is simply too odd.
"Because there isn't much that I could do to help her out. This is like the only thing I could do for her at present, and the sheer knowledge that I can't do anything to help her makes me upset." The Shinhwa heir sighed aloud as he confessed to his friends, before turning on his heels to leave the aquatic center.
"..." The F2 stared after the departing back figure of the Shinhwa heir, before returning their focus to the half-emptied minerals salt and resigned themselves to the fate of finishing up with what their friend had started. Granted, they aren't as patient as Jun Pyo who could stand the idea of putting these crystal salt, one by one into the pool. So, they simply took a basket each and emptied out its entire content into the pool in one shot.
Location: Euljiro-dong, Jung District, 3rd March 2009, 3pm
Being forced to put on accessories like the bunny ears headband, and change into some attire that looks like a random school uniform for girls. Geum Jan Di was asked to pose for a dozen of photos for the two men that runs the production studio.
"Are you sure it's fine taking photos like this?" Geum Jan Di began uncertainly, as she continues to pose for the pictures. Inwardly, she was thinking that these poses don't seem like the ones usually used for enrichment school enrolment advertisements that she had seen before.
"It's fine, it's absolutely fine. The entire point is to show off the naivety and pureness of a high-school student." The photographer cooed in response.
"..." Uncertain of what to say in response, Geum Jan Di maintain her silence even though, deep down in her - she was starting to feel really uneasy about this entire thing.
"Alright, shall we move on to part 2 then?" The man, who had patronized the porridge shop, the previous day suddenly announced.
"Part 2?" Geum Jan Di blinked, looking over to the man in confusion.
"There are two parts to this modeling job. Now, we shall take our leave and draw the privacy curtains for you. Get yourself changed into this outfit, and once you are done changing - we will resume the photography session." The plump-looking man said, handing a skimpy piece of the outfit over to Geum Jan Di.
"..." Taking the outfit in hand, Geum Jan Di started to do a thorough examination of the so-called outfit. The more she inspected the outfit, the more uneasy she felt about this entire modeling job that pays exceptionally well. Especially, the outfit seems to show off a lot of the skin areas with only the crucial parts being covered up.
[This is way worse than the bunny girl outfits I saw in Ga Eul's manga collection! There's no way I'm able to wear this for a photoshoot.] - Geum Jan Di thought inwardly to herself, as she commented aloud. "No way, I can't wear this!"
This was when the two men finally make their moves, they pulled apart the curtain without hesitation that startled Geum Jan Di somewhat. The only good thing is, she's still fully cladded in her last attire. Thankfully, she didn't think to change back into her own school uniform as of yet. Standing up as she positioned herself into a wary stance, she continues to converse with the two men. Inwardly, her mind is racing as she tried to find a way to escape the two approaching men.
"Ya! What do you want? I'm warning you now, don't come any closer!" Geum Jan Di calls out, getting herself ready to bolt at the first signs of danger. Only, she had overestimated her ability and underestimated the strength of the two lecherous men. As they close in on her from the left and right, Geum Jan Di soon found herself being cornered with no way of escaping.
Too panicky to think logically, Geum Jan Di screamed for help aloud. And that was when her savior this afternoon appears out of nowhere. This particular savior of hers was none other than the recently emerged model with a mysterious background - HAJE. And also, the same guy she had crashed into earlier on outside the building that housed the company - Enjoy Productions. Granted, at this point in time, Geum Jan Di still had no idea about the identity of her savior.
The guy punches the two men, sending them sprawling onto the queen-size bed before grabbing Geum Jan Di by the hand and leaving the room. It's a miracle that amid all the chaos, Geum Jan Di still remembers to make a grab for her backpack and her school uniform from a chair sitting near the doorway. They ran out of the building until they reach the train station where the commuters crowd are busy bustling around, there, Geum Jan Di finally had the chance to change back into her own school uniforms.
"Thank you very much for rescuing me earlier." Geum Jan Di bowed respectfully to the guy, as she thanked the young man for saving her from the two lecherous men at the fishy production studio.
"It's fine, but what are you doing there? Decent young ladies like yourself shouldn't be seen at places like that." The unknown young man inquires Geum Jan Di back in return.
And so, Geum Jan Di found herself sharing with the unknown young man about how she got herself lured into such a place. The guy was silent for a moment, before acknowledging her words with his own opinion on the matter. "You ought to listen to your friend more, if something sounds too good to be true, it's likely nothing good in reality."
"I know that now, and I'm really repenting of my actions." Geum Jan Di sighed aloud, thinking about Ga Eul's possible reactions after hearing about today's event.
"Alright, here's where I leave you. I'm sure you can find your own way home from here." The guy suddenly begins, causing Geum Jan Di to blink as she took in her surrounding environment.
Upon realizing that she's back at the entrance to the neighborhood where she's currently staying with her family, she looked a tad stunned. Turning towards the guy, she was about to inquire after the name of her unexpected savior when the guy responded with a cryptic remark of how they are bound to meet again. And when they meet up again, he would then divulge his name to her.
"Have a good rest, Geum Jan Di-Ssi." The guy commented one final time before turning on his heels to leave the site.
It wasn't until Jan Di arrived back at the building where her family resided, that she came to an abrupt realization that she had never told the guy her name. So, how was it possible that her unexpected savior knew her name? Did he know her from somewhere else?
Location: Porridge Shop, 4th March 2009, Wednesday, 3pm
"Jan Di ah, what are you doing in Euljiro-dong, yesterday afternoon?" Chu Ga Eul inquires the moment her childhood friend stepped into the porridge shop on Wednesday afternoon to report for work.
Geum Jan Di blanched mid-steps, as she turns towards her friend cautiously as she inquires her childhood friend warily in return. "How did you know I was in Euljiro-dong, yesterday?"
"Shunsuke told me. He was in the area for some errands." Chu Ga Eul responded flatly to her friend before she took note of the ashen white face of her friend and promptly start going on red-alert mode. "Jan Di, what aren't you telling me? That look on your face highlights to me the undeniable fact that something happened to you yesterday while you're in that neighborhood which you had yet to tell me about."
"..." Geum Jan Di nearly cursed aloud about how well her childhood friend could read her, is there absolutely nothing she could do about her overly expressive reactions? Why couldn't she be a tad more like Ga Eul?
"Jan Di... either you come clean to me personally, or I will pry the information out of you through forceful means if necessary. I'm not against the idea of locking you in the pantry until I get to hear your account of the events that transpired in Euljiro-dong, yesterday afternoon." Chu Ga Eul told her childhood friend in a warning tone of voice.
"... Fine, I'll tell you. But you are not allowed to rat me out to Gu Jun Pyo or Ji Hoo-Sunbae." Geum Jan Di eventually relented as she sighed aloud in response, and proceed to reiterate the frightful experience she had gone through while in the Euljiro-dong, the previous afternoon.
"So, basically, you're saying that nothing I told you the other day went into your mind. Thus, you had foolishly walked right into one of those quick cash opportunity traps and would have been seriously embroiled in trouble, if you hadn't been saved by someone who was passing by and heard your distress cries for help?" Chu Ga Eul summarized after listening to the entire account of her friend's experience in the neighborhood of Euljiro-dong, the previous afternoon.
Geum Jan Di's only response was to nod meekly in response, as she cringed inwardly for the lecturing talk that her childhood friend is going to deliver in the next few minutes. She's in luck though, because they are supposed to be working at present, her childhood friend didn't go beyond reprimanding her for what she did yesterday rather than subjecting her to an entire hour of lecturing session.
Chu Ga Eul wasn't quite sure whether she ought to yell at her friend's foolish act or simply be thankful that someone had managed to rescue her friend from the two lecherous men from that fishy production studio, yesterday afternoon. In the end, she settled for a reproachful look as she berated her friend's impulsive acts.
"Seriously, Jan Di... next time, don't just rush headlong into things. Talk to me about your plans before attempting them, otherwise, one of these days you are going to end up in hot soup without anyone knowing." Chu Ga Eul told her childhood friend with a reprimanding tone of voice.
"I know, Ga Eul... my savior said the same thing to me yesterday. Telling me that I had a wise friend, and I ought to listen to your words of advice, the next time around." Geum Jan Di looked wholly chastised as she plastered on a repentant look onto her features towards the end of her childhood friend's reprimanding words.
"So, you still had no inkling about who your mysterious savior could be?" Chu Ga Eul rolls her eyes at her friend's repentant look, inwardly thinking if her friend is going to repeat the err, or that, Jan Di is truly reflecting on her impulsiveness, this time.
"No... I thought on it hard throughout last night, but I still can't recall why he would know who I am. I'm quite certain I had never met him before yesterday." Geum Jan Di shakes her head at her friend in response.
Just then, the TV in the porridge shop starts showing a new commercial film about some newly released skin-care products featuring the up and rising mysterious model – HAJE, which causes Bom Choon-Sik, the master of the porridge shop to go into his 'dreamy' mood.
"Oh my god, it's HAJE!" The master of the porridge shop let out a wistful sigh, as he stared at the TV screen with a swooning look causing Ga Eul to roll her eyes outside of the man's sighting range.
"What's HAJE?" Geum Jan Di asks, looking completely bewildered as she wonders what was up with her odd employer, this time.
"Not what, but who!" Chu Ga Eul said as she corrected her friend's wrong use of the descriptive terms from her position.
"Huh?" Geum Jan Di glances towards her childhood friend with a look of confusion, still not quite getting the drift.
"Jan Di, HAJE isn't an item but a human. Thus, the correct term you should use in your earlier query should be 'who's HAJE?' instead of 'What's HAJE?'..." Chu Ga Eul deadpans to her clueless childhood friend.
"Oh... okay, so, who's this HAJE? Why's the master going into his dreamy mood, again?" Geum Jan Di prompted, looking rather out of the loop. She thought her employer was only dreamy in the presence of a certain Casanova of F4?
"Unbelievable, isn't it? It seems our dear master simply has a penchant for pretty boys, although, personally I still find Yi Jeong-Sunbae more charming than this HAJE." Chu Ga Eul shrugged casually as she addressed her childhood friend, sharing her own opinion on the subject of who has a prettier face, HAJE or the Andromeda Prince – the nickname bestowed upon the Korean Casanova by their employer in private.
It was, at this point in time, that the owner of the porridge shop finally found the window of opportunity to speak up. Retrieving a furled-up poster image he had gotten as a free gift when he went to the mall earlier this morning to make a purchase of the skincare serum from the brand 'Tony & Tony' endorsed by the model – HAJE, Bom Choon-Sik showed the poster to his clueless part-timer, Geum Jan Di as he explains to the girl just who exactly is HAJE. "Don't you know? HAJE is a recently up-and-rising model in the modeling industry. Nobody knows where he comes from, he just seems to appear out of the blue, one day. His mysterious vibe is what garners him the popularity among the members of the public, most products endorsed by him usually sold out within a day of release."
"..." Chu Ga Eul rolls her eyes yet again; the master of the porridge shop has been speaking about HAJE nonstop since yesterday's afternoon after a female patron brought in a fashion magazine featuring that guy. Then again, in hindsight, she supposed the sight of her boss swooning over the model HAJE is way better than the guy going 'gaga' over the Andromeda Prince.
"What's that on the table?" Noticing a bottle of liquid that doesn't look like any of the condiments used in the kitchen sitting on the countertop of the cashier, Geum Jan Di prompted drawing the attention of her employer onto her person.
"Oh... this? This is the skin-care serum featured in that CM film earlier. I spend hours queuing this morning, outside the Shinhwa departmental store to get it." Bom Choon-Sik responded with a pleased expression on his face, as he showed off the serum to his two part-timers; drawing an insufferable look from Chu Ga Eul and a bemused look from Geum Jan Di.
The more Geum Jan Di stared at the image of HAJE, the more she found the guy familiar-looking. But it wasn't until it was time for the porridge shop to close for the day, that she finally came to the realization that HAJE is the guy who had rescued her from that fishy production studio, the day before. However, that still doesn't explain why HAJE had sounded so certain that they are bound to meet again? What was the basis behind the certainty of HAJE's statement about them meeting up again, soon? The answer didn't come to Jan Di, until the following day in school.
Location: Shinhwa Academy, 5th March 2009, Thursday morning, 7.30am
Walking towards the academic building of the high-school division, Geum Jan Di tried to ignore the sound of her rumbling stomach. In an attempt to let her younger brother have more to eat for breakfast, to make up for the fact that he isn't getting lunch in school... Geum Jan Di had cut down on the portion of her own breakfast. Only it seems like she wasn't coping too well with the plan of cutting down on her breakfast portion because she started to hear the sound of her stomach growling an hour after she had taken her breakfast at home.
"How odd...why am I feeling hungry when I haven't been doing much?" Geum Jan Di mutters aloud to no one in particular, completely neglecting the fact that her morning swim at the aquatic center had likely burned the calories she had eaten for breakfast, thus explaining her hunger pangs now.
Upon entering the academic building, Geum Jan Di thought she smelled the aroma of instant noodles coming from one of the classrooms situated on the ground floor of the building.
[Was it a hallucination on my part? Why would anyone cook instant noodles in the academic building?] - Geum Jan Di thought bemusedly to herself, but the hunger pangs in her ended up leading her down the less populated hallway in the academic building as she went in search of the source of the aroma.
It took her a while to locate the classroom where the smell of the cooking noodles was emitting from, and a quick peek into the classroom informed her that nobody is around but there is indeed a pot simmering away on a portable stove that sits in the middle of the abandoned classroom.
[Why is there a portable stove in the middle of a classroom? No, wait... that isn't the issue. The issue lies in that nobody is around to keep an eye on the cooking noodles. Are they trying to cause a fire?] - Geum Jan Di was thinking as she approached the simmering pot.
A quick check into the content of the pot informed her that the noodles are thoroughly cooked by now, so, she decided to turn off the fire on the portable stove while persuading herself that she's only trying to prevent a fire from breaking out in school. Swallowing with some difficulty, Geum Jan Di glances around the abandoned classroom and waited for another five minutes to see if anyone is coming back in to claim the noodles for themselves. When five minutes came and passes by with nobody entering the classroom, Geum Jan Di hurried to close the classroom door as she approached the pot of noodles. Looking around the classroom, she located a pair of chopsticks and promptly starts stirring away at the content in the pot before taking a bite into the noodles.
Too engrossed in the task of slurping up the pot of noodles, Geum Jan Di failed to realize that she now has a silent observer standing in the doorway of the classroom observing her. It wasn't until she was done devouring the noodles that she realized someone has been observing her for quite some time in the doorway of the abandoned classroom.
"..."
"Well, I did tell you that we are bound to meet again. Didn't I? Geum Jan Di-Sunbae." The guy standing in the doorway commented as he stepped forward to greet Jan Di officially.
"Sunbae?" Geum Jan Di tilted her head slightly to the side in confusion, this was the first time she found herself being addressed as a senior in school.
"I'm Lee Jae-Ha, a freshman of Shinhwa High. Pleased to meet your acquaintance officially." Lee Jae-Ha, also known as HAJE to the members of the public said as he greeted Geum Jan Di, politely.
While Geum Jan Di is meeting her savior officially in an abandoned classroom within the academic building of the high-school division, Chu Ga Eul was being held up in the corridor way by the leader of F4.
"Good morning, Ga Eul-yang." So Yi Jeong took it upon himself to greet the girl when he realized the Shinhwa heir had no intention of doing so.
"Good morning, is there something I could be of assistance to you – Jun Pyo-sunbae?" Chu Ga Eul inquires, directing her questioning gaze upon the Shinhwa heir after returning the Casanova's greeting with a cordial smile and a nod.
"Do you know where's Geum Jan Di?" Gu Jun Pyo began, his tone demanding but luckily the long-haired girl was more than used to his 'high-and-mighty' attitude now to actually take any offenses.
"Hmm... I would say she's in the aquatic center, but I think you've already checked there and she isn't there. So, I would have to say – no. I do not know where she is at present, even though 80% of the time we are together... there's still times whereby we aren't near each other. However, I believe she is in school, today. Have you checked with Ji Hoo-sunbae to see if she's with him?" Chu Ga Eul inquires politely in return, after noticing that the auburn-haired member of F4 is absent from the site.
"..."
"Been there, done that. Ji Hoo says he hasn't seen Geum Jan Di today, yet." It was once again, the Korean Casanova that answered on behalf of the Shinhwa heir.
"I see... well, in that case, I'll let Jan Di know that you're looking for her when she comes in for class later. Shall I get her to give you a call later?" Chu Ga Eul prompted, looking towards the Shinhwa heir for a response, this time.
Luckily, this time around, Gu Jun Pyo did decide to answer for himself instead of indicating for his Casanova friend to do it for him. So, the Shinhwa heir nodded and told Ga Eul that he would be expecting the call from Geum Jan Di, later on in the day then.
When lunchtime comes around, Chu Ga Eul halted her friend's escape from the classroom with a stern gaze as she started. "Not so fast, Jan Di. I'm not letting you escape today. Don't think I had no idea about your intention to skip lunch. Come on, I'll buy you lunch in the students' cafeteria today."
"... Ga Eul... how did you know I've been skipping lunch?" Geum Jan Di cringed on reflex, as she directed a guilty look towards her childhood friend.
"Jan Di, don't think me an idiot. Thank you. Do you think I would fail to notice the presence of your lunch box both yesterday and today?" Chu Ga Eul deadpans at her childhood friend, as she promptly dragged the girl along towards the direction of the students' cafeteria.
Not bothering to ask what her friend intends to eat; Chu Ga Eul makes the decision to order lunch for them both from the students' cafeteria. Mostly because she knows if she were to ask for her friend's opinion, her childhood friend is going to pick the cheapest item listed on the menu which would be the least ideal option for lunch in Ga Eul's opinion. Especially, since she knew for certain that her friend has likely cut back on the portion of breakfast to allow Geum Kang San a heartier portion, to make up for the fact that he wouldn't be getting lunch in school.
Midway through lunch, Chu Ga Eul finally brought up the mention of the Shinhwa heir to her childhood friend. "Jan Di, you haven't been avoiding Jun Pyo-sunbae, have you?"
"Huh? What...? No, of course, I'm not avoiding him. Why do you ask?" Geum Jan Di blinked, as a look of confusion marred her features upon the sound of her friend's query.
"Because he was looking for you this morning, and I told him that I would get you to call him up once I saw you. I recommend that you call him now before he thinks me a liar." Chu Ga Eul deadpans to her childhood friend, as she started ingesting her lunch for the day. She wasn't in a mood to cook this morning, and thus had to resort to buying ready-made lunch from the vendors in the students' cafeteria.
Under the observant eyes of Chu Ga Eul, Geum Jan Di caved in, to the mounting pressure from her friend and finally took her mobile phone out to give the Shinhwa heir a call. Albeit, it took her a bit of time to come up with a plausible excuse to explain her absence from the aquatic center when the Shinhwa heir went looking for her earlier this morning. But ultimately, in the end, she managed to keep her new friendship with Lee Jae-Ha a secret from her overbearing boyfriend, for the time being.
What Geum Jan Di was unaware was that her new friend - Lee Jae-Ha, who goes by the name HAJE while working as a model, was actually the younger brother of Lee Min-Ha, the guy whom she had saved from committing suicide, more than six months ago while making a delivery of the Shinhwa uniform to the Shinhwa Academy. Considering that Lee Min-Ha was forced to the brink of suicide because of the F4, Lee Jae-Ha always has it in mind to revenge his elder brother who's now stuck in rehabilitation with a psychologist at home.
Therefore, his entire friendship with Geum Jan Di was a ploy of a sort. Part of it was because of his agreement with Kang Hee Soo, the mother of Gu Jun Pyo to get Geum Jan Di away from the heir of the Shinhwa Group. Another part of it was because he genuinely appreciates Jan Di's help in saving his elder brother from committing suicide and thus didn't want her anywhere near Gu Jun Pyo when he finally had his chance at revenging his elder brother.
Coming back to his senses, Lee Jae-Ha realized that he had nearly walked into the figure of Gu Jun Pyo, the leader of F4 while he had his head up in the clouds. Forcing himself to a groveling state, Lee Jae-Ha managed to make himself sound cowardly as he apologized repeatedly to the Shinhwa heir.
"... Get lost." Gu Jun Pyo ordered, without sparing Lee Jae-Ha a glance.
"Thank you so much." Lee Jae-Ha hurried to say as he stood aside to let the members of F4 pass him by. The moment the members of F4 passes through the area, Lee Jae-Ha finally dropped his meek and cowardly stance as he stood glaring at the back of the members of F4.
[F4… just you wait, I would have my revenge one way or another.] - Lee Jae-Ha thought inwardly to himself, before leaving the site with a dark look.
Over the next few days, Lee Jae-Ha continues to meet up with Geum Jan Di whenever possible. Only, when Geum Jan Di brought up the mention of introducing him to her childhood friend - he nearly balked as he hurried to dismiss the girl's suggestion.
"No, please. Sunbae, don't introduce me to your friend. The Japan Trio might not be the F4, but they are equally intimidating to me." Lee Jae-Ha hurried to deflect Geum Jan Di's suggestion for introducing him to Chu Ga Eul, the long-haired girl who had struck him as someone who could foil his ploy. The girl was too observant, and he wouldn't put it past the girl to piece things together. So, if he wishes for his ploy for revenge to succeed, he would have to ensure that the girl never had a chance to meet him. Thus, to nip this idea of Geum Jan Di in the bud, Lee Jae-Ha went on to bring the mention of E3 into the picture. Granted, he knew them as the Japan Trio as opposed to the term - E3.
"Is the Japan Trio really that daunting to you?" Geum Jan Di blinked at her new friend with curiosity, having only met one member from that group in person. There wasn't much she knew of them, what she knew - she tends to hear them from her childhood friend.
"They aren't daunting to the girls that flock around your friend, but with the guys… it's another matter entirely. Outside of the members of F4, I think all the guys in your class have been subjected to a thorough background check by the members of the Japan Trio; shortly after your friend transferred into Shinhwa High. I'm not sure if you noticed, but any guys who dared to venture too close to your friend or attempted to chat her up in between classes often find themselves been invited for tea with a member of the Japan Trio, usually with Miyazawa Kazuki though. He made these guys declare their intentions towards your friend during these tea sessions, and if their intentions weren't pure… they would find their dirty laundry air out for all to see on the school's interactive forum, online." Lee Jae-Ha responded as he explained to Geum Jan Di about the stories he had chanced upon while he was browsing through the school's interactive forum in his free time.
Geum Jan Di was literally gobsmacked by the information she received from her new friend about the extent the Japan Trio went to, in an attempt to protect her childhood friend's virtue. Judging from the above-mentioned stories, it seems like the Miyazawa heir had an overprotective streak in him when it comes down to Ga Eul. If it weren't for the fact that the Japan Trio tries to avoid the F4 at all costs, there's a high chance of the two playboys from F4 being invited to a tea session with the Miyazawa heir by now.
"Alright then… I won't insist on the idea of introducing you to Ga Eul, anymore." Geum Jan Di eventually relented, given that she knew that her new friend was trying to keep his identity as the model - HAJE, under wrap. It wouldn't be good for him to meet up with the Japan Trio, who knows what the Japan Trio would do if they determined her new friend to be dishonest with Ga Eul…? Would they go on to divulge the information of her new friend being the mysterious model - HAJE, to the entire school? Not quite daring to put her theory to the test, Geum Jan Di promptly discarded the notion of introducing Ga Eul to her newfound friend.
"Good." Lee Jae-Ha heaved a sigh of relief upon extracting the promise from Geum Jan Di that there wouldn't be a meeting between him and Chu Ga Eul. Allowing the silence to lapse by comfortably for a minute, Lee Jae-Ha proceeds to bring up a new topic of conversation with Geum Jan Di.
"So, are you still looking for ad-hoc assignments that pay well?" Lee Jae-Ha prompted nonchalantly, as he slurped away at his own portion of the instant noodles he had taken to cook in the abandoned classroom in the academic building, again.
"Yes. Why? Do you have any recommendations for such assignments?" Geum Jan Di inquires, slurping away at the instant noodles provided for her consumption by her new friend citing that he had cooked extra.
"I just so happen to have one such assignment on hand. The modeling agency I'm affiliated with is looking for a wardrobe assistant for a photoshoot this weekend, would you be interested in taking up the assignment? If you are, I'll inform the modeling agency and get you the relevant information on the wages payment terms." Lee Jae-Ha commented, glancing over to Geum Jan Di for a response.
"Really? Of course, I'm interested." Geum Jan Di beams in response.
"Great, I'll check with the modeling agency and get back to you on the details later then." Lee Jae-Ha responded with a smile playing on his lips.
Location: Shinhwa Academy, F4 Private Lounge, 9th March 2009, Monday
"So, Jun Pyo... have you thought about what you are going to do with Geum Jan Di – this weekend?" Song Woo Bin prompted during their lunch break, in the F4 private lounge in school.
"Huh?" The Shinhwa heir blinked, looking puzzled as he inwardly wonders what's so special about this coming weekend.
"... You aren't aware of the customs for the white day?" The Don Juan of F4 gaped, finding it hard to believe that the Shinhwa heir knew of valentine's day on 14th Feb but was completely unaware of the white day, which took place exactly one month after valentine's day, on the 14th of March whereby the guys would reciprocate the gift they received from the girls on valentine's day.
"What exactly is the white day?" The Shinhwa heir blinked in bewilderment as he shifted questioning eyes upon the rest of the members gathered in the private lounge as of current.
"..." The Don Juan and the Korean Casanova shared a look among themselves before sighing aloud in resignation, as they went into an immediate explanation behind the meaning of the white day to the oblivious Shinhwa heir.
"The white day is a day for guys to reciprocate the girls who gifted them with valentine's day chocolate a return gift of their own. I can't believe you didn't know this, while the custom begins in Japan – it has long spread to other countries by now." Song Woo Bin deadpans at the Shinhwa heir with an exasperated look on his face.
"Woo Bin, you can't blame Jun Pyo for not knowing things like this. He hasn't had a proper girl in his life until now, and thus didn't see the need to remember such dates." So Yi Jeong, the Korean Casanova, remarked with a smirk and an amusing glint in his eyes.
"I see..." Gu Jun Pyo commented in a musing tone of voice, at the end of his friend's explanation on the concept of the white day. As his face took on a pondering look, the two playboys of F4 promptly leave the Shinhwa heir alone to his own thoughts while they engaged in a conversation of their own.
"While on the subject, Yi Jeong ah... are you going to gift Ga Eul-yang anything in return on, white day? Obligatory chocolates or not, it didn't change the fact that she did gift you something on valentine's day which you ultimately accepted." Song Woo Bin prompted with a curious look in his eyes, reminding his friend that it's customary for a guy to gift something back in return to the girl on, white day.
"...I'm still thinking about it." So Yi Jeong responded with a roll of his eyes at his friend's question, leaving it to Woo Bin to poke his nose into the issue of whether he had the intention to reciprocate the country bumpkin with a gift of his own on the upcoming white day.
"Try not to take too long to decide, after all, this coming Saturday is the white day." Song Woo Bin commented to his friend cheekily.
"..." The Korean Casanova threw his Don Juan friend another look of exasperation, before he, too, joined the Shinhwa heir in deep thoughts. Only the Shinhwa heir was thinking of what to do this weekend with Geum Jan Di, whereas So Yi Jeong was busy contemplating on what to gift the country bumpkin in return for the dark chocolates he had received on valentine's day.
[Well… the chocolates were handmade, perhaps I should try to make her something in return?] - The Korean Casanova thought as a contemplative look took over his features, indicating that he's in deep consideration about something.
Deciding to leave his Casanova friend to think on the matter, the Don Juan of F4 signal to his auburn-haired friend who's the only one that's still aware of the surrounding environment that he's going to make a move first. Unlike his Casanova friend, the next class on their schedule was something he wasn't able to skip out on due to his lackluster performance in the last assessment. Therefore, if he didn't wish for his mother to get on his case about not focusing enough in classes - it's best for him to attend the class, even if he had to do it alone judging by the current circumstances.
Location: So Yi Jeong's Pottery Studio, 9th March 2009, Monday late evening.
It took the Korean Casanova an entire day to come up with the idea of what to gift the country bumpkin on the white valentine's day in return for the obligatory chocolates he had received from the girl on valentine's day. The idea originally came to him while he was doing a walkthrough in the seasonal exhibition hall of Woo Sung Museum which is currently showcasing a collection of porcelain collections from China that's due to ship out of Korea to another country, in another few months. During the walkthrough, he had noticed one of the displayed items in the porcelain collection is an inkstone originating from the Tang dynasty.
The sight of the inkstone reminded him of the calligraphy classes Chu Ga Eul has been attending at Su Am Arts Centre, and if his memory serves him correctly – the inkstones could be crafted out from clay as well. It might be a little tight on the time if he were to craft the girl an inkstone from porcelain, but if he were to craft it out from the clay. The time needed would be significantly shorter, and with about a week in between. He should be able to craft out something suitable and send it off to the kiln for heating in time for the white day.
Decision made, So Yi Jeong didn't dally further and promptly left the Woo Sung Museum for his pottery studio, intending to get down to work, immediately. As it's already quite late by the time he arrived back at his pottery studio, he decided to leave the actual crafting for tomorrow and use the remaining time to come up with a design for the clay inkstone he decided to make for the country bumpkin. So, with a paper and pencil in hand, the Korean Casanova began by coming up with a sketch of the ideal inkstone with the dimensions and the thickness for the proposed craftwork clearly listed out for easier referencing when he started creating it, the following day.
As So Yi Jeong started to come up with the design for the inkstone he intends to craft and gift the country bumpkin on, white day, what he didn't know was that Chu Ga Eul has taken up knitting as a new side-hobby and is currently thinking of knitting him something that would keep him warm.
~TBC~
Chapter's notes: Okay, here's chapter 16. Slightly shorter than anticipated, but we are moving into the contents of episode 11 in the original drama. ^^;
Original SoEul scenes at the beginning portion of the chapter, let me know what you think of it. I didn't want to go into too many details covering the interaction between Geum Jan Di and Lee Jae-Ha, so I axed out quite a bit of it and jump the scene elsewhere to my original scenario. I've also incorporated an original scene of mine between these two – I gathered that Jan Di might want to introduce her new friend to her childhood friend, but I figured HAJE wouldn't be keen on the idea and thus had to come up with something to explain why he isn't willing to meet Ga Eul and thus, the above-scene is formed.
Once again, this chapter comprises several original scenes of my own ... I've even modified/extended the porridge shop scene between the girls from the drama by adding in my own twist. But my favorite part is, of course, the SoEul interaction portion. And I think we all know what's coming in the next chapter ^_^; which I haven't gotten around to writing, but will soon. For now, enjoy chapter 16, and let me know what you think of the SoEul moments in this chapter. Ciao~