Secret of the Autumn

by xiaoj

[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,

30. Chapter 30

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 30 - An Interlude, Part 3: Summer Break!

May 2009 ended with the F4 graduation from Shinhwa High, and with it brought along Summer. The Shinhwa Academy is closed for the summer break from June to the end of July, and the new school term begins on the 1st of August for the students of the middle and high school division, and the 5th of August for the freshman to the university division.

Location: F4 clubhouse in Shinhwa Country Club, 14th June 2009, Sunday, 4pm

"Sorry, I'm late." Song Woo Bin calls out to his two friends as he stepped into the clubhouse of the F4 situated within the Shinhwa Country Club.

"Finally, you know - as the organizer for this particular meet-up, at least have the decency to postpone the meeting if you know you're going to be late." So Yi Jeong told his best friend in a flat tone of voice, looking somewhat displeased.

The reason why he was displeased - well, today's the last day he would get to see the country bumpkin in person until his freelance work trip took him to Japan in two weeks. As such, he was meeting up with the girl for lunch on a Sunday which is a rare occurrence since Ga Eul had the tradition of spending her Sunday with the E3. Either way, because Woo Bin decided to call on an impromptu meeting at the clubhouse, and it had been weeks since he saw his friend following their graduation from Shinhwa High - Yi Jeong had cut short his lunch appointment with Ga Eul. Yet, upon arrival at the clubhouse - he was greeted by the knowledge of Woo Bin running late for the meeting.

"Hey! Yi Jeong, I swear it wasn't an intentional act on my part to be late for a meeting I called upon myself. I was already planning to leave the office for the day when Sunny Park Sun Ja pops in to have a quick word with me about one of the tiles sent over to the worksite being in the wrong color and thus needing to be rectified as soon as possible. Anyway, I'll spare you guys the boring details of my work - how have you guys been? We haven't had time to meet up properly for a chat since graduation day, and thus bringing me to the decision of calling an F4 meeting without Jun Pyo around to call the shots." Song Woo Bin was quick to defend himself against the displeasure of his friend, as he wonders inwardly what had brought on the displeased mood of his friend - this afternoon.

"Ignore him, Woo Bin. He's just displeased about you being late for the meeting when he had to cut short his lunch date with Ga Eul-yang to make it here on time for the meeting." Yoon Ji Hoo deadpans from his position on the couch in the clubhouse.

"Ya! Ji Hoo, how many times must I emphasize that it wasn't a lunch date but a lunch appointment." So Yi Jeong protested as he threw a look of annoyance towards his auburn-haired friend.

"Whatever makes you sleep easier at night, Yi Jeong. Lunch appointment or lunch date, it matters not. What matters is the fact that you were meeting up with Chu Ga Eul earlier, and on a day before she was scheduled to fly out on her annual trip to Japan." Yoon Ji Hoo stated in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.

"..." Upon Ji Hoo's words, Yi Jeong fell silent because he couldn't find anything to contradict his friend's words.

"Oh… Ga Eul-yang is flying to Japan tomorrow?" Song Woo Bin raised an eyebrow up in surprise, as he shifted his attention from his Casanova friend to his auburn-haired friend before inquiring on how exactly Ji Hoo got his hands on the above-mentioned information.

"I heard it from Geum Jan Di in passing." Yoon Ji Hoo shrugged casually in response to his Don Juan friend.

"Wait… you heard it from Geum Jan Di? Have you been meeting up with Geum Jan Di on the sly? Jun Pyo would flip if he knew of your frequent meet-up with his girlfriend behind his back…"Song Woo Bin couldn't help but remind his auburn-haired friend of the fact that the Wonder Woman of Korea is the girlfriend of the absent Shinhwa heir.

"Are you aware that her family apartment's lease is expiring in July, and her family is now searching for a new place to move? Anyway, I have been chancing upon her in the aquatic center at the Shinhwa Academy when I went back to drop off my course selection form for college. So, naturally, we get to sit down for a chat - it was through one of these chats with her that I came to know of Ga Eul-yang's departing date for Japan, this year." Yoon Ji Hoo rolls his eyes at his Don Juan's friend's words, certainly a chance encounter in school doesn't qualify as a meet-up with Geum Jan Di on the sly? Could it?

Besides, it isn't as though Jun Pyo wouldn't expect him to be keeping an eye on Geum Jan Di… as long as he doesn't attempt to touch or do anything inappropriate with the girl, Ji Hoo highly doubted his long-time friend would react negatively to his frequent meet-up with Geum Jan Di.

"Is that what you are going to be doing the entirety of this summer? Spending the bulk of your time keeping an eye on Geum Jan Di?" The Korean Casanova then glanced over at his auburn-haired friend disbelievingly, that sounds like an absolute waste of time in his opinion.

"Well… it isn't as though I have other pressing issues at hand to attend, there's no need for me to dabble in my family business at present. Wherever my hermit of a grandfather is hiding at present, he's doing an exceptionally good job at running the business remotely. The manager at the arts center - Baek Hyun-Woo answers to him, not to me, even though I'm the one at the arts center literally every single day. The only time anything was brought to my attention is when either you or Woo Bin was caught flirting with a female employee at the arts center." Yoon Ji Hoo deadpans at his Casanova friend, with a flat-eye look.

"Speaking of summer plans, I'll be off to Thailand for a week on behalf of my father to inspect a plot of land which my father had the intention to bid it down for property development. Is there anything you guys would want from me as a souvenir from my Thailand trip?"Song Woo Bin begins then, steering the topic of conversation back to his original idea to call upon this meeting. Yes, this meeting was called solely by the Don Juan of F4 to speak about his own summer plans and also to find out what his friends would be doing this summer, without Jun Pyo around to keep them together in a group.

"Which part of Thailand are you going to?" The Korean Casanova inquires, mostly out of curiosity.

"Bangkok, and before you asked - yes, I'll be lodging at the Shinhwa Hotel in Bangkok. What about you? What do you have planned for this summer?" Song Woo Bin responded before asking about his friend's summer plans.

"I'll be flying out to Japan in early July, I have taken on a 3-days workshop freelance job in Tochigi Prefecture of Japan. While at it, I might swing by Tokyo to visit Ga Eul before coming back to Seoul." So Yi Jeong responded figuring that there isn't any point in trying to keep his plans secret, and thus simply lay it all out to his friends' knowledge.

Letting out a whistling sound, Song Woo Bin directed a 'thumbs-up' hand-sign to his Casanova friend praising his friend for the proactive act in staking a claim on the lovely Chu Ga Eul by traveling all the way over to Japan to hang out with the girl. Already too familiar with the thinking of his best friend, the potter of F4 didn't even need to ask to know what his friend had thought of his decision to visit Japan this summer.

While the thought of seeing Chu Ga Eul off at the airport, the following morning did occur to the Korean Casanova, later that evening. It didn't come to fruition because the girl had claimed that the Miyazawa heir would be sending her off to the airport, the following day as such he didn't need to come by her family home to pick her up and then drop her off at the airport. Knowing that the Miyazawa heir is going to be around, Yi Jeong who still isn't ready to face an overprotective brother of Chu Ga Eul promptly decided to forgo the idea of seeing the girl off at the airport. So, he settled on sending the girl a Bon voyage text message the following day, moments before the flight took off from the Incheon International Airport for the Narita International Airport in Japan, instead.

A private message between So Yi Jeong and Chu Ga Eul, 16th June 2009, Monday, 8.05am

Yi Jeong: Bon voyage, Ga Eul. Have a safe trip, and send me a message upon your safe landing in Tokyo - will you?

PS: My workshop in Japan, would be taking place from the 2nd to the 4th of July 2009. I'll let you know when I'm in Tokyo, maybe we could meet up for a meal or something.

Ga Eul: Sure. I'll text you when I arrived in Tokyo later, along with the lunch reminder text message. ^_^ While on the subject, I haven't had the time to buzz you earlier today but since you took initiative in messaging me, I thought I'll ask you now. Have you taken your breakfast for today yet?

Yi Jeong: [Today's ] - I've put the microwave oven you insisted on me to purchase to good use this morning. The croissants I bought from the convenience store, came out fluffy and soft as though it was freshly baked.

Ga Eul: I'm glad you agree with my choice of the perfect oven for your kitchenette space then. ^_^ I thought a multifunctional oven is better suited for your kitchenette than a typical standard microwave oven.

Yi Jeong: Well, at the end of the day, I had to agree that the oven is a good investment. Either way, take care. I'll see you in Tokyo, soon.

Ga Eul: Of course. Yi Jeong-sunbae, you better take care of yourself while I'm away. I'll see you soon, and you'd best come by for a visit when you're in Tokyo. Don't be a stranger, okay? ^_~ Ciao~

Ending the text message, Chu Ga Eul finally switches her phone into flight mode just as the announcement for the plane to take off came over the in-flight announcement system. Ga Eul is flying with Japan Airlines for this particular trip and on the premium economy tier. She didn't see the need to fly first-class since she isn't traveling with a member of the F4, and between flying economy on Shinhwa Air or Premium Economy on Japan Airline. Ga Eul picked the latter because the pricing didn't differ too much, the pricing for the premium economy seats on the JAL flight costs the same as the pricing for the standard economy tier on Shinhwa Air. Henceforth, Ga Eul thought about why she should make do with the economy on Shinhwa Air when she could get more legroom by flying premium economy with JAL. And so, she decided to fly JAL after mulling over the matter for a few minutes.

The flight between Seoul and Tokyo lasted only 2 hours 20 minutes in total, and therefore, Ga Eul didn't even bother to nap. She simply spends the 2 hours 20 minutes on the flight entertaining herself with the in-flight entertainment system, and since it's a flight operated by Japan Airlines - she gets an entire list of Japanese films on the in-flight entertainment system that wasn't even showing in the Korea public cinemas.

Chu Ga Eul ended up spending her time on the flight watching the film titled - April Bride, a movie film that was based on the true story of Chie Nagashima, a woman afflicted with breast cancer and her husband - Taro Akasu. The film wasn't shown in Korea despite being released on the international market, and the summary looks interesting enough that Ga Eul decided to watch it via the in-flight entertainment system while onboard the JAL flight heading towards the Narita International Airport of Tokyo.

Needless to say, she ended up tearing up discreetly towards the end of the film due to the various touching scenes featured in the film. Luckily, Chu Ga Eul choose to watch the film knowing full well about what to expect from the film and thus was able to keep her tearing up reaction to the minimal. Otherwise, she might find herself receiving some curious looks in her direction when she starts sniffling and weeping, out of the blue.

Location: Narita International Airport, 16th June 2009, Monday, 10.30am

"Nee-chan!" Miyazawa Tsubasa calls out cheerfully to the figure of Chu Ga Eul upon sighting her arrival from the crowd of passengers that just stepped out to the public area of the arrival hall in the Narita International Airport terminal building.

"Tsubasa, Miyuki! What are you two doing here?" Chu Ga Eul inquires with a look of surprise clouding her features, she was pretty much prepared to make her way from the airport to her family-owned apartment via the public train system, to be honest.

"Kazuki-nii called home and said you'll be arriving today alone because your family is not coming with you on the summer trip to Japan, this year." Miyazawa Miyuki, the 14-year-old half-sister of Chu Ga Eul explains why they were at the airport welcoming her arrival, despite being told ahead of time by Ga Eul that there isn't a need for them to pick her up at the airport.

"Oh… well, since you two are here - I supposed you can bring back the things Kazuki had requested my assistance in bringing over from Seoul for you and your mother. That way, it will save me the hassle of lugging it over to the Miyazawa family home later this evening." Chu Ga Eul commented with a shrug.

"Sure, you can just leave the things Kazuki-nii ask for you to bring for us in the car trunk. Come on, the family's car is waiting outside. Tanaka-san can drop you off at the apartment unit in Shinagawa first, and then after you had gotten settled - we can head out for lunch in a mall near your family-owned apartment. Tonight, you can then come by our family home for a reunion dinner without Kazuki-nii, this time. Okaasan and Otousan have been looking forward to seeing you, especially Okaasan since she didn't get to visit Seoul, the last time Otousan went over to settle some impromptu matters that came up which require his attention in Seoul." Miyazawa Miyuki told Ga Eul with a beaming smile.

"Alright, sound good to me. Lead the way to the car then, I'm afraid I don't remember the color of the family car in Japan. Since I usually travel via public transport while I'm in Tokyo." Chu Ga Eul explains, as she lugged her baggage with her and followed her two little half-siblings out of the airport to the passenger pick-up point where the family chauffeur employed in the Miyazawa family in Japan stood waiting for their emergence by the side of a black Rolls-Royce.

The apartment unit owned by Ga Eul's family in Tokyo, Japan is a three bedrooms apartment situated in the upscale neighborhood of Shinagawa. Although the apartment is stated to be owned by Chu Mi-Young, it's actually a gift from Miyazawa Hideaki to Ga Eul. It was only under Mi-Young's name because Ga Eul hasn't reached the age of maturity when the apartment was gifted. Either way, the Chu family resides full-time in Seoul and is only using the apartment during the Summers or when Mi-Young is in Japan for a business meeting with the management team working in the headquarters. The rest of the time, the apartment is placed in the care of the Miyazawa family.

And so, every year before the summer season arrives - Miyazawa nee Takahashi Midori, the wife of Ga Eul's birth father would arrange for someone to come over to dust up and clean up the apartment in preparation for the Chu family arrival. And so, when Chu Ga Eul unlocked the door to the apartment with her copy of the key to the unit - what met her sight was a pristine and clean apartment interior as opposed to a dusty and unkempt apartment unit.

"Alright then, feel free to take a seat in the living room while I dropped off my baggage in my room." Chu Ga Eul told her two half-siblings, as she changed out of her shoes into the home-used slippers she found tucked away in the shoe cabinet at the entrance area to her family apartment unit.

Most Japanese apartment only comes equipped with one bathroom facility to be shared among the occupants, and this particular apartment unit is no different. As such, there wasn't really a master bedroom in this apartment unit. So, what the Chu family did was to assign the bigger size bedroom in the apartment as the masters, and made the two smaller size bedrooms the kids' bedroom. The entire living, dining, and kitchen area are designed in an open-concept manner to give it a bigger and spacious look. There's a balcony off to the side of the living area, which is also accessible from the dining area of the apartment unit.

Ga Eul's bedroom was decorated in shades of light pink, despite having outgrown the color scheme for a long time since she was a little girl - she didn't bother to get the paint in her bedroom changed. Mostly because this isn't her full-time residence, but simply a vacation home of sorts. Therefore, she kept the princess decor of her bedroom in the Shinagawa apartment unit owned by her family in Tokyo, Japan. She figured if the Korean Casanova did decide to swing by and pay her a visit at her family apartment in Tokyo, Japan when he's in town - she would try and keep the guy in the living area, and not allow him to peek into her bedroom, at all costs.

Deciding to leave the unpacking of her baggage until tonight when she have more time on hand, Chu Ga Eul took her mobile phone, apartment unit keys, and wallet out of her backpack and placed it into her cloth sling-bag she had brought along with her from Seoul and dump everything in before heading out to meet her two half-siblings out front for a lunch session in the nearby mall.

"Alright, I'm ready. Have you two thought about where to go for lunch yet?" Ga Eul inquires as she stepped out of her bedroom, to join her two half-siblings in the living room of the apartment unit.

"Sushiryori Inose!" Miyuki and Tsubasa shared a look among themselves before chorusing in unison, causing Ga Eul to shake her head at the duo in response.

"Fine, let's go to Sushiryori Inose then." Thankfully, she has got enough cash on her person since that particular restaurant only accepts cash payments. Knowing both Miyuki and Tsubasa, they likely didn't bring any money on their person and thus it's her duty as the eldest sister to pay for the meal.

Location: Miya's Cafe, Nowon district. 16th June 2009, Monday, 2pm

While Chu Ga Eul is taking lunch at a sushi restaurant in the Shinagawa district of Tokyo with Miyazawa Miyuki and Miyazawa Tsubasa, her two youngest half-siblings shortly after she arrived in Japan. Back in Seoul, Geum Jan Di had finally mustered up her courage to call up Kim Nari intending to seek the girl's help in putting her family in contact with a property agent that could help her family out in their apartment search.

"Hey, Jan Di. Sorry, I'm late - I'm not very familiar with this part of the area." Kim Nari started as soon as she managed to find her way to the Miya's Cafe in the Nowon district.

"Oh… sorry, why didn't you say you weren't familiar with the Nowon district? If you did, I could probably meet you somewhere within Myeong-Dong. That would be more familiar for you to navigate, right?" Geum Jan Di begins sounding a tad apologetic.

"It's fine, with the GPS - finding my way around isn't too much of an issue. But it can be a bit of a chore since sometimes GPS tends to guide you on the long route rather than the shortest route. Right, anyway, have you ordered anything yet?" Kim Nari began, given that she's more than 15 minutes late - she would have expected Geum Jan Di to chew her ears off. The fact that the girl hasn't chewed her ears off, had her on alert because that meant - the girl likely had something in mind to ask for assistance from her. Only, she isn't sure what she could do to help the girl out… since she isn't as influential as Ga Eul.

"No, not yet." Geum Jan Di shakes her head in response, she wasn't certain if Nari would show up for the meet-up so she didn't dare to order anything. But now that Kim Nari did appear for the lunch meet-up, maybe it's time she went on to order some food for herself.

"Okay, I'm going to place my order now. Would you like me to order for you as well? I don't know about you, but I'm famished." Kim Nari responded having to spend more than half an hour trying to find her way to the cafe in the Nowon district has really made her feel hungry.

"Oh… in that case, can I trouble you to help me order a chicken-baked rice set?" Geum Jan Di began, as she starts to fish around for the cash to hand over to Nari.

"Nah… I'll pay first, you can pay me back when I'm back with the orders. Oh, can you help me take care of my bag?" Kim Nari inquires as she dropped her bag onto the empty seat next to Geum Jan Di, so the girl could help her safe-keep her belongings.

"Alright then." Geum Jan Di nodded eventually, and Kim Nari thanked her before breezing off towards the ordering counter.

As Nari appears to be rather hungry, Geum Jan Di waited until the meal is about to come to an end before bringing up the main topic for today's lunch meet-up.

"I'm sure you're curious about the reason why I've asked you out for a lunch meet-up." Geum Jan Di begins, wasting no time in cutting straight to the core of the issue.

"Of course, I'm curious. Unlike Ga Eul, you don't really spend time socializing… so pardon me when I say that your lunch invitation did come across me as a bit of a shock. Anyway, I figured you must have a reason for asking me out for lunch. So, care to share with me what exactly do you need me for?" Kim Nari begins, after using a paper napkin to wipe the side of her lips to clean off the traces of the pasta sauce that stain her lips while she ate.

"I heard from Ga Eul that your father works in the property industry? My family is looking for a new apartment to rent, is it possible for you to put me in contact with your father? Although, we have another property agent that we are using at present he didn't seem very competent in finding us residential property to rent. He kept referring us to property that requires us to rent both the residential quarters and the commercial space that comes with the residential quarters which is completely outside of our budget range at present." Geum Jan Di confessed to Nari about the reason why she had to ask the girl out for lunch, this afternoon.

"I see… that I can do easily. Would you like him to contact you or would you like to contact him?" Kim Nari inquires, pulling out her phone ready to do either option - depending on which option Geum Jan Di is going to pick.

"I think I'll contact him personally." Geum Jan Di had only just ended her words when she felt her phone buzzed with activity. A good look at her phone informed her that she had just received a contact card from Kim Nari.

"That's my father's business contact card, so you can just give him a call anytime. Not that I'm boasting, but he's very efficient in his work. As long as you provide him with a budget and your expectation - he's bound to come back to you within a matter of days with the available options he has on his hands." Kim Nari told Jan Di proudly as she advertised her father's work efficiency to her former classmate.

"Thank you." Geum Jan Di said to her former classmate and received a beaming smile in return from the ever cheerful Kim Nari that nearly blinded her.

"Don't mention it, and while I do love to stay and catch up. I'm afraid I'm gonna rush off, I have a date with my boyfriend. Ciao~" Kim Nari responded and was gone from the cafe in a blink of the eye, it wasn't until minutes later that Geum Jan Di came to the realization that she had been treated to a lunch meal by the girl because she hasn't gotten a chance to pay the girl back for the food.

"..."

As it turns out, Kim Nari wasn't exaggerating when she claims that her father works efficiently. Because within days after Jan Di calls him up informing him of the budget her family has on hand about needing to find a new place to rent for their stay, as their current lease for the apartment they are staying in is due to expire in July. Kim Nari's father calls her back citing that he has found them four apartment units to consider and ask if they would be interested in arranging for an apartment viewing within the next few days.

The four apartment units are located in different areas, and two of which are on completely different ends of the city even. The Gangdong and the Gangseo apartment units both came with three bedrooms, which fits their requirements. Only, the Gangdong apartment is a bit too far out of their preferred zone. The Gangseo apartment didn't fare much better since it's also inconvenient for Kang San to travel to school on his own, too much transit is necessary and Kang San is reluctant to transfer school. Moreover, the Gangseo apartment has smaller sizing bedrooms as compared to the Gangdong apartment but the rental is about the same - both are asking for 1,000,000 Korean Won per month.

The third apartment unit falls short of their expectation because it's technically a one-bedroom apartment unit. The rental fee is definitely within budget though, asking for a monthly rental of 650,000 Korean Won and is located near to the central district of Seoul making it a very convenient place of residence. Only, the one-bedroom aspect is a bit hard for the family to stomach… even if the bedroom is big enough to fit in four mattresses for the entire family to stay. They might be fine with the idea for a short-term stay, but long-term sharing a single room just isn't workable. Thus, eventually, they had to make some concessions and end up deciding to rent the last apartment shown to them by the agent.

The apartment they eventually decided to rent is a two bedrooms apartment in the Seongbuk district, asking for a monthly rental of 800,000 Korean Won. The concession they had to make is for Jan Di to share a room with Kang San, which Jan Di didn't mind. It's not as though her boyfriend would be coming over to stay the night anytime soon. And Kang San is still too young to have a girlfriend to bring home… so, for now, it would work. Decision made, Geum Ii-Bong went on to contact the property agent about renting the two-bedrooms apartment in the Samseong-dong neighborhood within the Seongbuk district of Seoul.

Once everything is finalized, Na Gong-Joo went on to resign from her public bathhouse job and start looking around for a new part-time job in the Seongbuk district. Geum Ii-Bong informed his boss at the convenience store that he's moving residence and would prefer to be transferred to a branch closer to where his new place of residence would be. Lastly, they went on to inform their former landlord about finally having found a new place of residence to move and thus would be moving out before their lease completely expires.

The former landlord is pleased that he didn't have to evict the family out of the place via force, and promised to refund the 200,000 Korean Won deposit to them on the day after they moved out via bank transfer. In a way, Geum Jan Di was relieved that it's now the school's summer break and thus she didn't have to apply for any leave of absence from school to help her family out in the task of moving house. The only thing she truly missed was her childhood friend's presence, since she couldn't even share the news of her family moving apartment with her friend in person, and could only do it via the means of a text message which makes it feel all too impersonal.

A private message between Geum Jan Di and Chu Ga Eul, 20th June 2009, Saturday, 2pm

Jan Di: Hey, Ga Eul. Thanks for your words of advice. I went to Nari for help, and she got me her father's contact. Her father is truly efficient, he managed to find us four apartments within our budget for viewing within a matter of days. Coming Monday, Appa would be heading down to his office to sign the new lease contract and make the payment for the first month's rental + the deposit. We are looking to move out from our current place of residence to the new apartment next weekend. So, Eomma had me and Kang San helping with the boxing of our belongings at present.

PS: How are you doing in Japan? Sorry, I wasn't able to see you off on the day you left for Tokyo.

Ga Eul: Hi, Jan Di. It's good to hear from you about the successful apartment hunt. Where's your new home going to be located? Is there any chance for me to visit your new place of residence when the school term starts back up?

PS: I'm doing fine in Japan, busy meeting up with friends and relatives. Oh, and Midori-sama, the wife of my birth parent had me attend several social functions alongside her daughter - to keep Miyuki from getting too bored out of her mind at such functions was her exact wordings. As to the matter of you being unable to see me off at the airport the other day, it's fine - my flight's in the morning anyway. Besides, this trip of mine is a yearly affair - it's not as though I'm leaving Seoul and not coming back. *Shrugging Emoji*

Jan Di: If we are done making the place presentable by the time the new term begins, I'll definitely invite you over for a visit. The new apartment is in Samseong-dong, within the Seongbuk district. It's a two-bedroom apartment, so I would need to share a room with Kang San. But there are two bathrooms though, which means my parents finally got an En-suite… Eomma was quite pleased with it. I think that's the only bright spot in the entire apartment unit for Eomma, but well… since she's moving outside of her comfort zone, I'm glad there's something to cheer her up.

PS: Still…I feel bad about not being able to see you off at the airport.

Ga Eul: Good to hear that. Alright, sorry for cutting this message short but my female cousin is here to visit so, we'll continue the chat at a later timing.

PS: I'll forgive you for not being able to send me off at the airport if you invite me to your new place of residence in the new school term.

Jan Di: Deal. I'll make sure to work extra hard to make my new place of residence presentable when the new school term begins.

Location: Ginger Choi Jin-Hee's family home, Sillim-dong, Seoul. 28th June 2009, Sunday, 7pm

Ginger was scrolling through the news feed of her Instagram account on her mobile device, when she chanced upon an update from Sunny, about two days ago. It was an image of the Sydney Opera House, taken a year ago when Sunny was off on a solo trip to explore the city of Sydney, Australia without telling them. The caption of Sunny's update two days ago read: Counting down to my next Aussie trip, 14 more days to go!

Being impulsive was one of Ginger's traits, and so, the memory of Sunny withdrawing from her little group had completely slipped from the mind of Ginger that she promptly drop a new text message to Sunny via the Kakao-Talk messenger app.

Kakao-Talk Messenger: Private chat between Ginger and Sunny, 28th June 2009, 7.15pm

Ginger: Sunny, you're off to explore Australia solo, again?

Sunny: Evening, Ginger. Yes, I take it as you saw my Instagram update then.

Ginger: Well duh. Anyway, when are you leaving and how long would you be spending in Aussie this time?

Sunny: I planned for 8 days 7 nights trip, this time. But I'm not exploring Sydney, instead, I'll be exploring the city of Melbourne.

Ginger: Doesn't matter which area of Aussie you're visiting. I'm messaging you because I need you to do me a favor. [Attached windbreaker_Billabong. IMG] - See this windbreaker? Can you help me get it from the Billabong outlet in Aussie? As the brand originated in Aussie, it's cheaper to get it straight from Aussie than from the outlets in Seoul or via the online platform. Let me know how much it cost after you buy the windbreaker, I can transfer the money over to you immediately.

Sunny: Right… I'll bear it in mind. Do remind me closer to the date of my departure on the matter again, lest I forgot about it by the time I set off for my trip.

Ginger: Will do, I'll make sure to buzz you closer to your date of departure to remind you of it. Thanks, Sunny ^_^

Seeing as Ginger has entrusted her to bring something back from her trip to Aussie, Sunny figures she might as well check in with her new friends to see if anyone of them wanted her to bring something back from her upcoming Aussie trip as well. So, tapping into the study group - chatroom created by Kim Nari, Sunny typed in the following message.

Kakao-Talk Messenger: Chat room of Study Group [Kim Nari - Creator, Sunny, Areum, Jessica, Dong-Jun]

Sunny: I'm heading off for my 2nd solo trip to Aussie in 2 weeks. Is there anything you people would like me to help bring back from Melbourne, Australia?

Areum: Manuka Honey? ^^;

Jessica: Seriously? That's the first thing you could think of, Areum?

Areum: Sorry, but Aussie is famous for its export of honey - isn't it?

Jessica: Yes, but is that the only thing that you know about Aussie? *Roll Eyes Emoji*

Dong-Jun: Oh, you're going to Aussie in two weeks? That's cool. Since you offered, well - can you help get this back for me from Melbourne? [Insert Quiksilver Cap_Black. IMG] - I can transfer you the money first if you prefer.

Jessica: I thought you already had a cap like this of the same branding?

Dong-Jun: Yes, Jessica… I did already have one. But it's getting old and worn out, I want a new one. It's expensive to buy online, and the stores in Seoul carry more Roxy products than Quiksilver products. So far, I haven't seen something that catches my attention yet. Hence, I thought to get Sunny to help bring it back directly from the source.

Jessica: Well… I have nothing that I would want you to help bring back from Aussie, but I do expect a souvenir from you. So, I'll give you free rein to decide what to buy for me :P

Sunny: Got it, so nothing specific for Jessica. Quiksilver black cap for Dong-Jun, and Areum… are you seriously asking for Manuka Honey? I honestly wouldn't mind bringing back another bottle because I'm bound to buy a 6 bottle set of the Manuka Honey, given that it's a great gift choice for family friends.

Areum: No, please… I'm just saying it in jest. ^^; Although, I've heard that there's lip-balm and hand cream made with Manuka Honey? If you happen to see them, feel free to get them for me as souvenirs. As for the actual Manuka Honey, there's no need for you to buy it back for me. My mom has two bottles sitting in the kitchen's pantry still. *Sweat-drop Emoji*

Sunny: Noted, and Nari - what about you?

Nari: Oops, sorry ^^; Right… erm… can you get me this from Roxy? [Insert leather shoulder bag_pink. IMG] - I want to get it the other day, but the color I wanted was out of stock in the outlet at the Lotte Mall. See if you can get it in Melbourne… if not, it's fine. ^^;

Sunny: Of course. I've noted down your request. ^_^

PS: Dong-Jun, I heard from Areum that your birthday is at the end of July? In that case, you needn't transfer me the money for the Quiksilver Cap. I'll just get it for you as a birthday gift ^_^

PS: Jessica, no need to raise your hackles at me yet. I'm not interested in your boyfriend. So, he's safe from my clutches. :P

Jessica: … *Face-palm Emoji*

Location: Isshiki Family Home, Ota ward, Tokyo, Japan. 28th June 2009, Sunday, 8pm

"What are you two doing at my home at this hour?" Isshiki Masashi felt the corner of his lips twitching when he returned home to find the presence of his three friends gathered in the living room of his family home, enjoying themselves on his play-station set without him being present for the game.

"Oh… your cousin invited us over." Saionji Ichiro, the elder brother of Saionji Shunsuke, who is currently in Seoul with Kazuki and Shuichi responded casually and nonchalantly to the inquiry from the figure of Isshiki Masashi.

"My cousin invited you guys over?! And where is this cousin of mine, right now?" Isshiki Masashi pressed a hand to the sides of his head as he directed a second question towards his friends.

This time, it was Takahashi Shuuhei, the heir to the Takahashi artisan bakery chain that answers him. "Out shopping with your mother."

"...Wait, you mean to tell me that she invited you guys over to have fun only to drop the lot of you in favor of visiting the mall with my mother?!" Isshiki Masashi palmed himself on the face for real, this time around.

"Yep! And given that she had nicked my car keys off my person, we can't exactly leave your home…I mean, your family home is literally at the highest point of the hilly slope. It's a chore to walk all the way down without a car, so no, until your cousin came back with your mom and my car keys - I'm not leaving your place and you can't make me." Shinosaki Izumi, another childhood friend of Isshiki Masashi lamented aloud. Similar to Saionji Ichiro and Takahashi Shuuhei, Shinosaki Izumi is also an heir to his family-owned business.

Looking at his three friends, Isshiki Masashi wonders how exactly did he end up with three heirs as his childhood friends given that he's the only one without any obligations to succeed in the family business. After all, his mother is a veteran actress and his father a renowned film director - but the movie production studio isn't founded by his father. His paternal uncle did own several modeling agencies, but those are likely to be succeeded by his cousins from his paternal side of the family. As for his maternal family, well… the Wakaba family were Yakuza, and therefore they have plenty of successors lying around if supposedly, his recently engaged cousin didn't want to succeed the throne as the next Yakuza lord to the Wakaba Group. Hence, Isshiki needn't concern himself with the succession right to the family business on either side of his family. So, he gets the freedom to decide what he wants to do for his future.

Saionji Ichiro is the heir to the Saionji Spa & Wellness Group, headquartered and based in Tokyo, Japan. Takahashi Shuuhei, as mentioned earlier, is the heir to the Takahashi artisan bakery chain franchise business, affiliated to the Miyazawa F&B Group with that marriage union between Miyazawa Hideaki and Miyazawa nee Takahashi Midori about two decades ago. Shinosaki Izumi, on the other hand, is heir to his family bed & breakfast business - they own a chain of Shinosaki Inn, which are most conveniently located near to the train stations in Tokyo, offering bed & breakfast lodging to their guests and tourists from all over the world. Even if every Shinosaki inn only had 15 rooms available for booking, but because the pricing is reasonable and their location is very conveniently located - their rooms are often booked out during the holiday season.

Funnily enough, despite the three of them being his childhood friends - neither of them are in the same school year. First of all, Ichiro is the eldest among them - having graduated from high school two years ago, and is now in his third year of college studies at Hyotei Academy. Takahashi Shuuhei graduated one year ago and is now in his second year of a college education at Hyotei Academy as well. Shinosaki Izumi is a year ahead of him in school and recently graduated from the high school division of Teiko Academy in March - making him the same age as the F4 from Korea. Isshiki Masashi himself belongs to the same age group as the E3 who is currently in Seoul, while he's stuck in Japan with the annoying Fuyusawa heir, for a company in school. Luckily, Ninomiya Risa is returning to Tokyo from her violin competition event in Seoul soon - else, he fears he might lose it and strangle the Fuyusawa heir one of these days.

Unlike the Shinhwa Academy in Seoul, the students in Japan usually graduated in March and start a new school year in April. Summer break usually begins from early July to mid-August, which is the complete opposite of Shinhwa Academy in Seoul. Given that the summer break for the Shinhwa Academy in Seoul begins in June and ends at the end of July, lasting two months in total while Japan's summer break lasts for only 6 weeks in total. Because of that, Isshiki Masashi has yet to have a chance to meet up with Chu Ga Eul since her arrival in Tokyo two weeks ago.

"Have either of you met up with Ga Eul yet?" Dropping himself onto the sofa armchair of his living room in his family home, Isshiki Masashi asks his fellow friends.

"Nope. I don't exactly have the opportunity and a valid reason for meeting up with her. So, nope." Shinosaki Izumi was the first to respond, being the only guy who didn't know the illegitimate heiress to the Miyazawa F&B Group on a personal scale - he definitely had no chance to meet the girl unless it's at a social function organized by their common friend.

"Well… I wasn't exactly asking you either." Isshiki Masashi deadpans at the Shinosaki heir, before shifting his inquiring eyes upon his remaining two friends.

"Actually, I have arranged to meet up with her for tea tomorrow at the Shinhwa Hotel lounge in Ginza." Saionji Ichiro commented upon receiving the inquiring look from his friend with a notorious playboy reputation in Japan.

"I did already met her two days ago, at the charity ball event hosted by the matriarch of the Fuyusawa family in the Seasons Hotel in Roppongi. She was there to keep Miyuki from getting too bored, it seems." Takahashi Shuuhei explained with a nonchalant shrug, personally, he didn't know the girl very well.

Given the nature of her relationship to his uncle via marriage, it's only natural for them to feel awkward in each other's presence. Funnily enough, it seems his aunt was the only person completely at ease with the idea that her husband had an illegitimate daughter with an old flame when the rest of the Takahashi family could only feel complicated on the subject.

"I supposed your tea appointment with her had to do with finding out how your brother is doing in Seoul? Honestly, I don't understand why you couldn't call him up to check in on him personally… it's not as though you couldn't afford the cost of a long-distance call." Isshiki Masashi commented to his friend and the elder sibling of Saionji Shunsuke with a quizzical look on his features.

"Whoever said I didn't call him up to check-in on him frequently? But because he told me the same thing every single time I called, I thought to have someone else validating the authenticity of his words." Saionji Ichiro sighed in response, if it weren't for his brother's somewhat problematic character - he likely wouldn't have to go through a third party to get a recount of his recent happenings.

"Whatever, anyway - I'll be out of town for the next two weeks. Just thought to give you guys a heads-up." Shinosaki Izumi suddenly commented out of the blue, drawing his three friends' attention onto his person.

"Out of town? Where are you going this time?" Takahashi Shuuhei raised an eyebrow up at his friend questioningly, the guy has a penchant for going on solo holiday trips around the world unannounced. What's the fun of traveling alone, he couldn't really comprehend - if their positions were reversed, he would likely be bored out of his mind.

"Melbourne, Australia." Shinosaki Izumi grinned his response to his friend who inquires.

"What?! Melbourne? I thought we went there last Summer already? What are you doing heading back there?" Takahashi Shuuhei gaped at his friend with a look of bewilderment.

"Yes, but it was a group trip with you and Masashi. Granted, I was given solo time to explore the place… it wasn't a truly solo trip experience, so I wanted to visit Melbourne again, this time solo to get a different feel for the place. But I've booked the same lodging site, I kind of like the atmosphere and environment at the inn. Besides, I wanted to explore the inner suburb of Albert Park further, I didn't get much opportunity to explore the park - the last time I'm in Melbourne, because the two of you are more interested in the nightlife entertainment district of the city." Shinosaki Izumi commented with a grin, before deadpanning at his two friends who were with him in Melbourne, last summer.

"..."

Location: So Yi Jeong's Pottery Studio, Seoul, South Korea. 28th June 2009, Sunday, 10pm

The Korean Casanova flicked his gaze between his 3-day itinerary plan for the freelance workshop event held in the town of Mashiko, in the Haga district within the Tochigi Prefecture of Japan, and the Shinhwa Air website. He was trying to decide when he should set off for his Japan trip at present, the workshop would be running from the 2nd of July to the 4th of July, Thursday to Saturday. With only a 2 hour plus flight time between Seoul and Tokyo, Japan - he needn't book his ticket too early, to be honest. He could book a flight departing out of Seoul on the morning of 1st July and still make it in time to Tochigi Prefecture from Tokyo via the railway network since the town of Mashiko is only a 2.5 hours train ride away.

But the thing is… there's someone Yi Jeong wished to see earnestly, and so, he was debating if he should depart Seoul earlier for Japan. That way, he could squeeze in time for a meeting with that someone before he had to leave for the Tochigi Prefecture for his freelance job. Of course, he would likely make his way back to Tokyo to see the person for a second time around before leaving for home on the flight back to Seoul. After all, most national and international transport to the Tochigi Prefecture is through the Narita International Airport located to the east of Tokyo. This means, either way - he would need to go through Tokyo before and after his freelance job in the Tochigi Prefecture.

Tapping into his personal calendar on his mobile device, the Korean Casanova noted that he had several things to do on the following day as the heir to the Woo Sung Museum. In other words, the earliest date he could leave Seoul is on the 30th of June, since there's only one item on his calendar that morning - which is to pick up some chocolate muffins from the artisan bakery near his pottery studio, which he could do without if he's not going to be in town for at least a week. His mind made up, So Yi Jeong promptly booked himself a first-class air ticket with the Shinhwa Airline departing Seoul from Incheon International Airport for the Narita International Airport in Japan, dated on the 30th of June, 11am.

Ticket booked, the next thing to do is to secure an accommodation site. Naturally, the first website he visited for hotel booking was the Shinhwa Hotel Group Global site, from there he checked through the listing of locations for the Shinhwa Hotel available for booking in Japan before he actually attempt to book his rooms. Through the website, he realized that while the Shinhwa Group does have hotels built in the prominent cities of Japan - they didn't have any hotels in the Tochigi Prefecture, which he would definitely require to lodge there for at least 2 nights, given his 3 days job in that area. So, the Korean Casanova seized the opportunity to message a certain country bumpkin for suggestions.

A private message between So Yi Jeong and Chu Ga Eul, 28th June 2009, Sunday, 10.30pm

Yi Jeong: Good evening, Ga Eul. I hope I didn't wake you up with this message of mine, I find myself in need of some good suggestions for a lodging site in the Tochigi Prefecture. The Shinhwa Group doesn't have hotels in that area, do you have any good suggestions for me?

Ga Eul: Good evening, Yi Jeong-sunbae. No worries, I'm not in bed yet. So, you didn't wake me up from my beauty sleep with this message of yours. :P

Your job is in the pottery town of Mashiko in the Tochigi Prefecture, right? The most reputable lodging site of that area is the Resort Hotel owned by the Seasons Hotel Group, it's situated in the capital city of Tochigi Prefecture - Utsunomiya. It's a hot-spring resort hotel, you might need to rent a car to travel from the hotel to the place where you're scheduled to give the workshop session though - since it's about a 45 minutes drive away between the town of Mashiko and the city of Utsunomiya. But since you owned a driving license that shouldn't be too much of an issue for you. ^^;

[Insert website of Seasons Hotel Group] - you can do the direct booking from their website.

Yi Jeong: Thank you, I'll check out their website in a moment. How have you been? While on the subject, I'm surprised that you still find the time to drop me those meals reminder messages while being out of town. I was under the impression that you would be quite busy with the family bonding events/activities while in Tokyo for the summer holiday.

Ga Eul: *Blushing Emoji* I've been fine, thank you for inquiring. You're right that those activities have been filling up my calendar while in Tokyo and kept me busy for days, but it didn't really take up much time to send you those meals reminder text messages. And well, it's easy for me to drop you those meal reminders messages because there isn't a time difference between Japan and South Korea. Besides, I took my role as your 'meal supervisor' very seriously. *Stern face emoji*

Yi Jeong: … Right. I shan't disturb you further, good night… and see you soon.

Ga Eul: Goodnight. ^_^

Setting aside his mobile phone device, So Yi Jeong couldn't believe what he had nearly done. He nearly send out the text message 'I missed you to the girl, thankfully his mind caught up with him before he actually hit the send button on his phone and he hurried to erase off the message and recompose another text to send it off to the girl.

[Honestly, So Yi Jeong, get a grip! Now isn't the time to confess to Ga Eul about how you feel for her!] - The Korean Casanova snapped at his mental self, as he went on to check out the website of the Seasons Hotel Group to book his two-night stay in the resort hotel where his freelance work would take him.

After which, the potter of F4 shifted his focus back to the Shinhwa Hotel Group website and booked his stay for 2 nights [30th June to 1st July] before his trip to the Tochigi Prefecture at the Shinhwa Hotel - Shinagawa and then another 2 nights [4th July to 5th July] in the same hotel after his Tochigi work trip, as his return flight to Seoul is scheduled to take off from the Narita International Airport on the 6th of July, Monday, in the afternoon.

In a way, So Yi Jeong was glad that the workshop organizer had allowed him the flexibility to book his own air tickets and accommodation instead of making such arrangements for him. Otherwise, he likely wouldn't be able to fit in the side-trips to visit a certain country bumpkin before and after his Tochigi trip.

With the travel arrangements settled, and his travel insurance purchased - So Yi Jeong decided that he might as well get his suitcase out and start packing for his one-week trip to Japan. Meanwhile, his best friend - Song Woo Bin, a certain Don Juan of F4 is just getting settled down in his hotel room over in Bangkok, Thailand.

Just like his Casanova friend, the Don Juan of F4 went straight to book his stay in Bangkok at the hotel owned by the Shinhwa Group. Luckily, the business trip his father send him on is based in Bangkok, Thailand, and not Chiang Mai. Because the Shinhwa Group only has a hotel built in Bangkok within the country of Thailand, since they are not as established in South East Asia still.

South East Asia is a new market that the Shinhwa Group has just entered, and with the collapse of Gu Bon-Hyeong recently, the expansion plan in South East Asia is bound to slow down for a period. Therefore, the Don Juan of F4 believes it would be some time before the Shinhwa Hotel could be found sprouting out in every prominent city in the southeast Asian countries.

Meanwhile, over at the reception counter of the Shinhwa Hotel in Bangkok - a certain heiress from the JK Group had just completed her check-in procedure with her bodyguard, Chen - in tow. Bangkok is her third stop in this South East Asia exploration trip, after her week spent in Hanoi, Vietnam… her trip brought her to explore its' neighboring country - Cambodia. Between the city of Phnom Penh and Siem Reap, the heiress of the JK Group settled on visiting the capital city of Cambodia, Phnom Penh.

In Phnom Penh, Jae-Kyung spent a week touring the city with her bodyguard - Chen, following her closely from behind. She spent the first few days in Cambodia following a local tour group going sightseeing in various infamous tourist spots. Such as the National Museum - a historic and archaeological museum of the country, where she also got to see a popular classic traditional Apsara dance. Of course, as someone who loves to try out new food - the heiress of the JK Group also make sure to try out the notable dish - Ka tieu Phnom Penh, its variation on the rice noodle soup, that is easily found in sit-down cafes as well as the street cafe in the city of Phnom Penh. Lodging wise, Jae-Kyung had lodged with the Hotel Le Royal, managed by the Raffles Hotel & Resort Group while she was visiting Cambodia.

And now, her exploration trip in South East Asia had finally brought her to Bangkok, Thailand. This time, she's lodging at the Shinhwa Hotel based in Bangkok under the insistence of her bodyguard - Chen. After all, Thailand doesn't have a stellar reputation at safeguarding the safety of its tourists; which was why her bodyguard refused to let her lodge in the boutique hotels while they are exploring the city of Bangkok, citing safety concerns. Not wanting to spend time debating with her bodyguard on the matter, Ha Jae-Kyung simply went along with her bodyguard's advice and book her stay with the reputable Shinhwa Hotel.

Location: Narita International Airport, Japan. 30th June 2009, Tuesday, 2pm

It was 2pm in the afternoon when So Yi Jeong cleared the customs and collected his suitcase from the luggage belt as he finally emerged into the public area of the Narita International Airport, situated in Chiba, part of the Greater Tokyo area of Japan. Given that he didn't actually inform Chu Ga Eul about his date of arrival in Japan, it's only natural that the girl isn't around to welcome him at the airport.

Taking a moment to scan his surroundings, the first thing So Yi Jeong did was to approach the closest car rental booth in the airport - replicating his decision from the previous trip to Sapporo, Hokkaido. The public train network of Japan is too complicated for him to make sense, so he figured his safest bet to get to Shinagawa was to rely on the GPS function of his phone and an automobile vehicle. As such, he decided to rent a vehicle for his use while in Japan, once again.

Using his previous experience in renting a car, which thankfully was only weeks ago - the memory is still fresh in his mind. After filling up the application form for the vehicle rental, and making the necessary payment - he went on to pick out a vehicle at the open-air parking facility situated within walking distance from the airport. This time, the vehicle he rented was a black Toyota Corolla. Glad that he wasn't assigned with a white vehicle this time, So Yi Jeong loaded his suitcase into the car trunk of his rented vehicle and turned on his GPS program on his mobile phone, as he steered the vehicle onto the route that will bring him to his lodging hotel - Shinhwa Hotel, Shinagawa for his check-in.

The Korean Casanova decided to drop his baggage off at his lodging hotel first before he went in search of the country bumpkin he had found himself missing dearly over the past two weeks. The feelings he had for Chu Ga Eul differs a great deal from the feelings he had for his first love, Cha Eun-Jae, the Korean Casanova had come to realize.

Eun-Jae, his first love, has grown up together with him and his elder brother - Ii Hyun. Thus, as far as he knows, Eun-Jae has been a constant presence in his life until she decided that she couldn't take his merry-making way of life anymore and promptly remove her presence from his life permanently. To date, her abrupt departure still left him with a sense of regret and bitterness. Either way, that isn't the point - the point is that Yi Jeong has never missed her presence as much as he missed Ga Eul's presence in his life, before.

Before leaving his life permanently, Eun-Jae had gone on vacation trips with her family before. And those vacations are just like the summer trips Chu Ga Eul made to Japan, usually lasting weeks to a month or more. Yet, Yi Jeong had never felt any differently when Eun-Jae is away on a family vacation trip unlike Ga Eul's summer trip to Japan.

Despite knowing full well that Ga Eul would be back in Seoul by the time July came to an end, So Yi Jeong had difficulty remaining focus on his task and projects because his mind would always drift off towards a certain country bumpkin, as he starts wondering what the girl was doing in Tokyo. Sometimes, when dinner time comes around, he would keep glancing towards the doorway of his pottery studio as he wonders if the girl would show up with homemade dinner meals for his consumption.

But then, the chiming of an incoming text from the girl reminding him to eat dinner would then remind him of the fact that Chu Ga Eul wouldn't be showing up with homemade dinner meals for him anytime soon because she isn't in the country. That alone, makes his mealtime feels terribly and dreadfully long. It might not be as bad if he's dining with his friends, as his friends are likely able to distract him momentarily from his thoughts about the girl.

Only, Woo Bin has been kept busy with his internship at the Ii-Shin Construction to meet him for meals as often as before. Ji Hoo, well, his auburn-haired friend is indeed free to meet up with him for meals but Yi Jeong didn't want to meet up with Ji Hoo far too often, because his auburn-haired friend was too perceptive and would then spend the entire mealtime studying his micro-expression which would only make Yi Jeong feels self-conscious.

Of course, there's also the option of going clubbing to distract himself from the thoughts of a certain country bumpkin - which is ironic, what he did to numb himself from the thoughts of his first love. But, Yi Jeong didn't want that - not that he didn't try. The thing is he did visit a club, on the night before Woo Bin fly out to Bangkok for some supposed 'happy hour' with his best friend.

Only, every single time a hostess sat too close to him, his mind would jump immediately to what Chu Ga Eul would think if she were to see him now, and then he would promptly put some distance between the hostess and himself. Eventually, Yi Jeong give up on the idea of remaining in the nightclub and simply took his leave and went back to his pottery studio to brood in silence, instead. That was the precise moment that Yi Jeong realized that he had fallen deeply and hard for Chu Ga Eul, a girl he had dubbed 'country bumpkin' at first sight.

Thinking of how dearly he had missed seeing the girl around in his pottery studio, with those homemade meals the girl had prepped up for his consumption… Yi Jeong found himself getting hungry, already. Inwardly, Yi Jeong briefly wonders if he could talk the girl into making him dinner tonight at her family-owned apartment unit because he truly missed the homemade food Ga Eul had prepped up for him over the past two months.

Has it really only been two months since Chu Ga Eul starts coming around his pottery studio with homemade dinner meals for him? It feels longer though… the more the Korean Casanova thought about the homemade meals prepped up by the country bumpkin, the more he starts to feel hungry.

[Alright, stop thinking about food. The sooner you leave the airport, the sooner you will get to see Ga Eul!] - So Yi Jeong told himself firmly in his mind, as he starts up the engine of his rental vehicle and took off towards the direction of the Shinagawa district from the Narita International Airport.

The first order of business for the Korean Casanova upon reaching the Shinagawa district is to first check in at his lodging hotel. Next, he dropped off his suitcase in his hotel room without caring to unpack, since he's only lodging for two nights before having to leave for the Tochigi Prefecture. Unpacking and packing repetitively seems like a chore. Therefore, the potter of F4 simply grabbed his mobile phone and wallet, ensure he had ample cash and his card on him before turning to leave the hotel room ready to go in search of a florist to pick up a flower bouquet for the girl he was yearning to meet over the past two weeks.

Of course, Yi Jeong also had to text the girl to find out the exact whereabouts of Chu Ga Eul, before he swings by her family-owned apartment in the Shinagawa district. After all, he didn't want to make a waste trip over to the apartment only to find that the girl was out somewhere with her half-siblings.

A Private message between So Yi Jeong and Chu Ga Eul, 30th June 2009, Tuesday, 3pm

Yi Jeong: Ga Eul, are you outside or at home now?

Ga Eul: At home, why?

Yi Jeong: Good. Stay home and don't go anywhere for the next half an hour.

Ga Eul: Oh…okay. *Confused Emoji*

When Chu Ga Eul first received a text message from the Korean Casanova inquiring on her whereabouts, she had simply assumed that the guy simply wished to courier something ahead to Japan before his actual arrival, and would need her to help receive the item on his behalf. But nothing prepared her for the sight of the Korean Casanova standing in front of her family-owned apartment unit in Shinagawa, Tokyo with a bouquet of pink tulips held in his hands - 30 minutes after the end of the text message exchanged between them.

"Yi Jeong-sunbae!" Chu Ga Eul was rendered speechless as she stared at the figure of So Yi Jeong standing on her doorstep with wide disbelieving eyes, upon answering the door at the sound of the doorbell ringing.

"Good evening, Ga Eul. Aren't you going to invite me in?" So Yi Jeong prompted as he handed the bouquet of pink tulips over to the stunned-looking country bumpkin.

"Of course, please come in." Chu Ga Eul blinked as she snapped herself out from her stupor-like mannerism and promptly invited the Korean Casanova into her family's apartment unit in Shinagawa, Tokyo, Japan. Needless to say, she didn't forget to thank the guy for the lovely bouquet of pink tulips as well.

Getting pink tulips for Chu Ga Eul wasn't planned, the Korean Casanova initial idea was to get the girl pink roses since pink roses are the supposedly multipurpose roses. But the florist he visited just now, only had the red, white, and orange roses in stock. Red roses stood for passionate and romantic love, which he wasn't quite ready to proclaim for the girl yet. White roses usually symbolize new starts and hope for the future, and are usually used for ceremonial purposes. Given that it wasn't the girl's graduation day, and he wasn't aiming for a marriage proposal at this point - white roses are obviously not suitable for the occasion.

As for the orange roses, well, they are just a subtler choice of saying 'I love you as the orange roses were cultivated by crossing yellow with red roses. And although Yi Jeong had just admitted to himself that he had fallen irrevocably for the girl, he wasn't ready to proclaim his feelings for the girl yet. Not when he hasn't cleared up the messy situation between his brother, Eun-Jae, and himself. But that could wait, given that he's not in Seoul for the matter. Besides, such things are best to communicate in person rather than through a phone call. So, for now, Yi Jeong decided to stop dwelling on the matter and instead focus on the present.

Since pink roses aren't available at the florist, the Korean Casanova decided to look into other options when picking out the flowers for today's bouquet. Carefully avoiding the use of bright red tulips, since bright red tulips have the same meaning as the red roses - they stood for passion and undying love. He ended up picking out the pink tulips for the flower bouquet, this afternoon.

According to the words of the florist, pink tulips symbolize less intense affection and love, which is a more appropriate choice for family and friends. That was, ultimately, the reason why Yi Jeong decided to get a bouquet of pink tulips for Chu Ga Eul this evening. After all, he wished to express his feelings without actually coming out with an outright confession of his love for the girl, at present.

"Yi Jeong-sunbae, when did you get off the plane?" It took a while, but Chu Ga Eul eventually regathered her wits together to start off a proper conversation with her visiting guest.

"Hmm… give or take, about 2.5 hours ago?" So Yi Jeong responded, it took him about half an hour to clear customs, collect his suitcase and finish the renting procedure for a vehicle at the airport. And then it took about an hour or so to drive from the airport to his lodging hotel. The check-in procedure at the hotel took him another few minutes, and then he spend about 20 minutes picking out the flower bouquet before coming over to find the country bumpkin. So, yes - all in, it has been about 2.5 hours since he touched down in Tokyo, Japan.

"I see… and your job in Tochigi Prefecture would only begin on the 2nd of July, today's only the 30th of June. You arrived about 2 days ahead of schedule…" Chu Ga Eul commented as she stared at the Korean Casanova with an expecting look on her face, the word 'why' was unsaid but implied heavily in her body language.

"... Do I really need to spell it out to you? I think you know why I'm here…" So Yi Jeong sighed inwardly, as he turns to regard the country bumpkin with an exasperated look.

"I have an inkling but I'm uncertain, so humor me and say it aloud." Chu Ga Eul hugged the pink tulip bouquet to her chest, as she remarked at the Korean Casanova while hiding her triumphant grin behind the bouquet of pink tulips.

"Fine… I'm here two days ahead of schedule because I missed you…and your cooking. Happy? Now, what about you? Did you miss me at all? Or were you too preoccupied with your family bonding activities to think about me?" So Yi Jeong was tempted to roll his eyes at the country bumpkin but decided against the notion in the end. Instead, he reaches out with his hand to tuck a strand of the hair that got loose from the ponytail behind the ears of the blushing girl.

With a lovely pink flush decorating her cheeks, Chu Ga Eul beams in response to the words of the Korean Casanova. It looks like the saying 'a way to a man's heart is through his stomach' did have some truth in them, seeing as it got her a partial confession of the potter's admission of missing her presence without actually saying that three words she yearns to hear from the man. "Yes, I'm very happy to hear that you'd missed my presence and the food I made for you while I'm away from Seoul. Of course, I did think about you - I wouldn't be sending you all the routine meal reminder text messages if I wasn't thinking of you, to begin with."

"Glad to hear that. Now, given that I've just confessed about how much I missed your cooking… you aren't going to disappoint me, this evening - are you?" So Yi Jeong then flashes his charming smile towards Chu Ga Eul and prompted.

"Hmm… of course, I'm not going to disappoint you. You're in luck that I've just visited the supermarket to stock up the apartment's fridge yesterday afternoon, so it isn't exactly empty of ingredients to whip up a decent meal for you - this evening." Chu Ga Eul smiles in response at the Korean Casanova, as she set down the bouquet of pink tulips onto the coffee table of the apartment's living room. In favor of checking out the fridge in the kitchen to see what she has available in the fridge to prep up a decent meal for her surprised visitor, this afternoon.

"Any preference for dinner or I get the full right to decide what to make for dinner?" Chu Ga Eul asks, voicing her query across to the Korean Casanova who seems to be observing the view from the balcony of her family-owned apartment in Shinagawa, Tokyo.

"I'll leave you fully in charge to decide on the dinner menu. But first things first, is there anything I could snack on while you prepped up a homemade dinner meal for me? To be honest, all the constant thinking about how I had missed your cooking over the past two weeks had left me feeling somewhat peckish." So Yi Jeong responded a tad sheepishly at the figure of Chu Ga Eul, as he flashed his charming dimpled smile at the girl.

"Oh… snacks, alright… let me see, would a sandwich do for you as a snack? No wait, I think I have something better. Hold on, I'll just heat it up for you in the oven. It'll be ready in a jiffy." Chu Ga Eul started, scanning her eyes around the chiller compartment of her fridge and landing her eyes on the leftover meat pie she had made yesterday afternoon as snacks for her visiting siblings and cousins.

As she reheated the meat pie for a certain Casanova as an afternoon snack, Ga Eul was also studying the fresh ingredients she had in her fridge to decide on tonight's dinner menu. Luckily, she has no plans made for this evening - so, she could dedicate her entire afternoon to whipping up a meal for her impromptu visiting guest and herself.

"Alright, I've decided. I'll make potato salad for the starter, and Spaghetti Aglio e Olio with shrimps for main. Dessert for the day would be a fresh fruits platter. Any objections to the above menu for tonight?" Chu Ga Eul responded as she took note of the ingredients she would need to create the above menu, and nodded in affirmation when she ascertained the fact that she had everything she needed in the kitchen for the above-mentioned menu.

"Nope. I have no objections to your suggested menu." So Yi Jeong commented in response, knowing that there's nothing he is capable of doing in the kitchen - he settled on taking a seat on the sofa couch in the living room of the apartment unit and start searching for the route he would need to take to travel from Shinagawa to the Tochigi Prefecture for his job on the morning of the 2nd of July, 2009.

While busying getting the ingredients out, such as the frozen shrimps from the freezer and set them in the sink to defrost. Chu Ga Eul makes full use of the timing to engage the Korean Casanova in small talk, one of the first questions Ga Eul inquires was the duration which the potter of F4 is going to stay in Japan, this time.

"One week. I'll be spending two nights here in Tokyo, and then two nights in Tochigi before coming back to Tokyo for another two nights. While on the subject, care to join me for breakfast tomorrow morning, or would you prefer to join me for brunch session instead?" The Korean Casanova inquires, shifting his eyes away from the screen of his phone to look over at the figure of Chu Ga Eul who's looking through the crisper compartment of the fridge for the vegetables to use for her potato salad dish as well as picking out the fruits for the fruits platter that would be served as dessert this evening.

"I'll meet you for breakfast tomorrow, but I won't be able to show you around Tokyo tomorrow since you didn't think to give me a heads-up of your arrival so I had already made plans with Miyuki and Misaki. But I'll be sure to stand by a full day for you when you return from your work trip to Tochigi." Chu Ga Eul responded without looking away from her pantry cabinet of the apartment's kitchen.

"The 5th of July then. That's likely the only other full day I have in Tokyo, outside of tomorrow. My return flight to Seoul is scheduled to take off from the Narita International Airport on the 6th of July, at 1pm." So Yi Jeong answered in a matter-of-fact tone of voice.

"Sure, I'll mark it down on my personal calendar. Is there anywhere you want to visit in Tokyo? Or you are leaving it to me to decide, again?" Chu Ga Eul inquires, glancing over to the Korean Casanova for his opinion before deciding on the itinerary on her own.

"I'll leave you to decide, Tokyo is your home turf, after all." So Yi Jeong shrugged his response, he doesn't really care where they would be going as long as he gets to spend the entire day in the company of the girl.

"I'll start thinking about the itinerary tonight then. So, which hotel did you book for your stay while in Tokyo?" Chu Ga Eul then inquires, she didn't bother to ask about his lodging arrangement for the time while he's in Tochigi, since she's the one who recommended the hot spring resort owned by the Seasons Hotel Group to the guy, to begin with.

"Shinhwa Hotel - Shinagawa." So Yi Jeong answered easily enough, smirking when he noticed the flush that starts creeping up the cheeks of the girl again. They would have continued the wordless eye contact in their position if it weren't for the timely chime of the oven's timer informing them that the snack is ready for his consumption.

"Right… the meat pie's ready. Take a seat at the dining table, I'll serve it to you shortly." Chu Ga Eul mutters aloud as she hurries back to the kitchen area to get the meat pie ready for serving.

"Thank you." Yi Jeong commented when the plate was set down in front of him on the dining table in the dining area of the apartment unit. One bite was all he needs to tell that the meat pie was homemade and likely prepped up by the country bumpkin at an earlier timing. After all, he had eaten other variations of the meat pie prepped up by the girl before, and thus he was attuned to the taste of the recipe utilized by the girl in the meat pie. It goes without saying, that he polished off the slice of meat pie within minutes after it was served to him.

During the time while Chu Ga Eul was busy prepping up dinner for them in the kitchen of the apartment unit, So Yi Jeong first occupy his time by surveying the interior of the apartment. And while he was curious to see the inside of the closed door that leads to the bedrooms in the apartment, he had enough courtesy in him to avoid prying when the owners of the apartment obviously had no intention to show him the interior of the bedrooms. And so, the potter of F4 decided to study the view of the outside through the balcony of the apartment unit instead.

"Thank you for the meal." Yi Jeong commented to Ga Eul with a smile of gratitude and appreciation as he finished the food on his plate, and set down his cutlery on top of the empty plate.

"You're welcome. Here, have some fruits. The peaches are in season now, and the pears are not bad either. I was going to serve you grapes as well, but then it seems Tsubasa who was here for dinner yesterday finishes them up and I haven't had time to replenish the grapes in my fridge." Chu Ga Eul responded as she slide the plate of fruits she had cut up earlier to serve as the after-meal dessert to the Korean Casanova.

"Thank you." Using the offered fork, the Korean Casanova thanked the girl as he tried out the pear slice as the peaches seems a tad too sweet for him based on his first impression of the fruit. "So, out of curiosity, how often do you cook your own meals while in Japan?" Yi Jeong inquires, as he thought of the country bumpkin's previous remarks of having just visited the supermarket the day before when he first hinted to Ga Eul about his desire to enjoy a homemade meal from the girl.

"Ah… I try to cook every other day, usually for breakfast and dinner. I usually dined out for lunch, since I'm either hanging out with the girls or that I'm meeting up with Kazuki's acquaintances." Ga Eul responded as she thought back to the high tea session she had taken with the elder brother of Shunsuke, at the lounge of the Seasons Hotel in Ginza district - about a day ago.

"You are meeting up with his acquaintances even when he isn't in Tokyo?" So Yi Jeong raised an eyebrow questioningly at the words of Chu Ga Eul, inwardly wondering if there's a need for him to concern himself with the subject.

"Yes, well… I'm sort of playing the courier-man for Kazuki at present. His friends who weren't adventurous enough to join him on his exile trip wanted to send him his birthday gifts in advance, and he had told them that they could hand the gifts over to me while I'm in Tokyo for the summer and that I'll be in charge of bringing them back to him in Seoul. So, yes… I've been meeting up with a couple of his acquaintances since I arrived in Tokyo, mid-June." Chu Ga Eul sighed as she deadpans to the Korean Casanova with a resigned look on her features.

"..."

For a while, there was silence. Until Chu Ga Eul broke the silence by asking if the Korean Casanova was done with the fruits. So Yi Jeong blinked down at the plate of fruits served to him by the country bumpkin and nodded wordlessly in response to the girl. "Alright then, let me put away the remaining peaches back to the fridge, and then we can go on our after-meal exercise." Chu Ga Eul commented, noting how the potter of F4 had left the peaches untouched and simply ate up the pear slices.

The after-meal exercise turns out to be a stroll in the vicinity of the building that housed the apartment unit belonging to the Chu family. Eventually, the stroll brought them to the Gotenyamanooka Park situated within walking distance from the apartment building where Ga Eul is staying and also happens to be within the vicinity of the Shinhwa Hotel - Shinagawa.

They ended the stroll outside of the Shinhwa Hotel building, and then So Yi Jeong went on to walk Ga Eul back home to her family-owned apartment unit before coming back to his lodging hotel for a peaceful night of rest. He didn't really sleep well last night, given that he was rushing through the paperwork assigned to him by his grandfather so he needn't bring them with him on his Japan trip, this week.

Yi Jeong spent his second day in Japan alone, because Ga Eul was not available to spend time with him as he didn't exactly inform the girl ahead of time of his arrival to Japan. It's simply by chance that he was able to pay the girl a visit at her family-owned apartment in Shinagawa, on the day of his arrival in Tokyo. Of course, he got to enjoy a homemade meal at the Chu family-owned apartment after his confession of having missed the girl's cooking.

Anyway, Yi Jeong spends the bulk of his morning on the 1st of July going over his lecturing notes for the workshop session due to take place in the town of Mashiko, at the Tochigi Prefecture. Now, usually, there isn't a need for him to prepare lecture notes in advance for a workshop session - only, this time he was expected to deliver the workshop in a language that isn't his native tongue. So, to minimize the chance of slipping up and using the wrong terms of description - the Korean Casanova had prepared a set of lecturing notes for his own references in advance.

In the afternoon, he spends about half an hour conversing with Chu Ga Eul via text when the girl sends in the routine lunch reminder text message to him. And although, during the text exchange, the girl had recommended him several good lunch spots in the Shinagawa district. Yi Jeong ended up settling for calling room service for lunch instead because he wasn't quite in the mood to head out to explore the neighborhood without a certain country bumpkin by his side. Eventually, they agreed to meet up on the morning before Yi Jeong's due to leave for the Tochigi Prefecture for a breakfast meal at the comfort of Ga Eul's place of residence in Japan.

The two nights Yi Jeong was lodging at the hot spring resort hotel under the Seasons Hotel Group management in Utsunomiya, aside from enjoying a dip in the hot spring bath as per Ga Eul's recommendations. The Korean Casanova also spends some time shopping for souvenirs in the Tochigi Prefecture, near his lodging site. Since the Tochigi Prefecture is infamous for its strawberries, it's only natural that most of the snacks that could be brought home are mostly strawberry-flavored.

[Well…it might not be ideal for Woo Bin as a souvenir, but I think Ji Hoo wouldn't complain about getting strawberry-flavored chocolates as a souvenir gift.] - So Yi Jeong thought as he made a purchase for two boxes of strawberry-flavored Kit-Kats. Why did he get two boxes when he knows his best friend wouldn't want to receive strawberry-flavored chocolates as a souvenir from his Japan trip? Well, he got two boxes of the chocolates because he thought he ought to bring Ga Eul something back from the Tochigi Prefecture as well. So, the two boxes of strawberry-flavored Kit-Kats are meant for Ji Hoo and Ga Eul, respectively. As for his best friend, well… Yi Jeong supposed he would have to find something else to bring home from the duty-free area in the Narita International Airport.

The workshop sessions are held mostly in the afternoon, and so, by the time So Yi Jeong ended his last workshop in the town of Mashiko in the Tochigi Prefecture, checked out from his lodging site and made his way back to Tokyo in his rented black Toyota Corolla vehicle - it was already approaching 10pm in the evening. Of course, the Korean Casanova didn't dare to skip dinner in favor of driving back to Tokyo. The potter of F4 knows he would get his ears nagged off by the country bumpkin if he prioritize the drive back to Tokyo, as opposed to getting a proper dinner meal in Utsunomiya.

So, the Woo Sung heir made sure to find a place for dinner, sat down, and ordered a meal. And once his meal was served, the Korean Casanova went to take a photo of it and send it off to his ever-responsible 'meal-supervisor'. Needless to say, Yi Jeong also make sure to finish up the food and took another photo for evidence, sent it off to the country bumpkin before getting into his car for the long drive back to Tokyo, on the evening he was due to leave the Tochigi Prefecture for Tokyo.

Over in Tokyo, Chu Ga Eul happens to be in the washroom and she had left her phone behind unattended on the dining table in the Miyazawa family home. Her half-sister, Miyazawa Miyuki was the one seated next to her at the dining table, that evening. Thus, when her phone starts to buzz with a series of incoming text notifications and chimes. The 14-year-old girl couldn't help but flicked her eyes over to check on the cause behind the constant chiming of Ga Eul's phone. While the girl couldn't see the content of the incoming text messages, since Ga Eul's using a flip phone - she could still see the name of the sender for the messages.

"...So Yi Jeong… why does that name sound so familiar?" Miyazawa Miyuki couldn't help but murmurs under her breath.

"Hmm…? So Yi Jeong? Well, that's the name of that youngest potter to debut on the international stage, and the heir to the Woo Sung Museum in Korea." Sakuraba Misaki, the younger sister of Sakuraba Shuichi, a member of the E3 who's now in Seoul, then commented in response. The girl has been invited to dinner alongside her father, Sakuraba Manabu, at the family home of the Miyazawa this evening.

"Okay… but that still doesn't explain why I found the name familiar. Seeing as I don't exactly follow the news in the arts industry…" Miyazawa Miyuki responded to the comment of her cousin with a frowning look on her face.

"Gees… Miyuki-nee, aside from the above-mentioned identity… So Yi Jeong was also known as the infamous Korean Casanova of F4. Now, surely you remember why his name sounds familiar to you?" The 10-year-old, soon-to-be 11-years old Miyazawa Tsubasa deadpans to his sister with a roll of his eyes.

"...Ah! He's the guy that Ga Eul-nee likes!" Miyazawa Miyuki exclaimed, finally recalling why she found the name familiar. She had heard it in passing from Isshiki Masashi a few weeks ago, following his return to Tokyo from Hokkaido where he said he had met Ga Eul-nee and took her out to his cousin's engagement party as a date because the heiress of the Ninomiya Medical Group wasn't available to attend the event with him as his 'plus-one'.

"...Wait, where did you learn of that particular detail?" Miyazawa nee Takahashi Midori pressed her biological daughter for an explanation, while inwardly relieved that her husband had just stepped out for a call and thus didn't hear what Miyuki had just mentioned. Just like her elder son, her husband - Hideaki, has an overprotective streak when it comes down to the girls of their family. Hideaki had once mentioned that he didn't want his girls dating before they reached the age of 20. of

Of course, Midori knew it wasn't quite possible to ask that of the girls. So, she had always requested her daughter to refrain from mentioning any names of the opposite gender at their dining table when her husband is around. As for Ga Eul, well… the girl was living in Seoul for the most part of the year, and she's sure Ga Eul's other parents aren't as ridiculous as her husband was - when it comes down to the idea of Ga Eul dating someone.

"I heard it from Masashi-nii. He was explaining to Otousan why Ga Eul-nee was seen in his arms at his cousin's engagement party event. Apparently, Otousan heard of the information from one of his acquaintances and decided to summon Masashi-nii over for an explanation of the event." Miyazawa Miyuki was quick to sell out her information source to her mother.

"..." Miyazawa nee Takahashi Midori huffed under her breath muttering something about Fuyusawa Raido being a meddlesome old coot.

Her husband likely heard of the information about Ga Eul attending the engagement party of the Wakaba heir with Isshiki Masashi through the lips of Fuyusawa Satoru, an old acquaintance of theirs, who in turns, heard it from that old coot - the former director for the Fuyusawa Holdings that owns the Seasons Hotel Group. That old man was an old acquaintance to the former Yakuza lord that founded the Wakaba Group, so - it's only natural that Fuyusawa Raido was on the invitation list to the engagement party of the Wakaba heir. Not to mention, the party itself was held in the ballroom of the Seasons Hotel in Sapporo, Hokkaido.

"Did I miss anything of importance?" It was at this point that Chu Ga Eul returns to the dining room of the Miyazawa family home in Tokyo, as she voiced her words across to the occupants at the dining table. After all, everyone kind of fell silent when she enters the room - so, it makes her wonder if they were speaking about her behind her back.

"Nah… you didn't miss anything of importance. We fell silent because we thought you were Otousan… anyway, nee-chan… your phone has been buzzing with activity since you stepped out to the washroom." Miyazawa Miyuki hurried to diffuse the awkward atmosphere in the air by addressing her elder half-sister, with a dazzling smile playing on her lips.

"Right… thank you." Chu Ga Eul nodded as she return to her seat, and continue on with the dinner meal.

Before that, she did check on her phone to determine the cause of the activity mentioned by her half-sister earlier. Upon noticing that the activity was brought on by the text messages from a certain Casanova, Chu Ga Eul smiles momentarily before deciding to respond to the text messages at a later time. Likely after the meal ended, and that she was no longer in her Chichiue's sighting range. The man was as overprotective as Kazuki, if not worse… and if Masashi could get summoned in front of him to provide an explanation about why she was seen on his arms at the engagement party of the Wakaba heir. She shudders to think about what might happen if her birth father knew of her interest in the Korean Casanova in a romantic sense.

A private message between Chu Ga Eul and So Yi Jeong, 4th July 2009, Saturday, 9pm

Ga Eul: Sorry for the lack of response earlier. I was having dinner at the Miyazawa with my Chichiue present, and I didn't want him to pry too much into the reason why I was messaging on the phone during a family dinner session. ^^; Anyway, it's good to know that you didn't skip dinner in favor of driving back to Tokyo. While on the subject, are you back in Tokyo yet, or are you still on the way?

Yi Jeong: Just arrived back in Tokyo, and finished parking. So, your message came in just in time. Any minutes earlier, I wouldn't be able to respond due to the traffic rules of no using of mobile phone while driving that's in place for Japan.

Ga Eul: Welcome back to Tokyo, then. ^_^ It's a long drive back, so head on up to your hotel room and take a good soak in the tub. Enjoy your sleep tonight, and I'll see you tomorrow for breakfast at Shinhwa Hotel - Shinagawa. I've planned a full day of activity ahead for tomorrow ^_^

Yi Jeong: Really? I'll look forward to it then.

Ga Eul: *Blushing Emoji* See you tomorrow, then. Goodnight.

Yi Jeong: Goodnight & Sweet Dreams!

~TBC~

Chapter's notes:

Right, this is chapter 30 - fresh hot from the oven. I jinxed my plan again, I shouldn't have said I planned for 3 interlude chapters before. But I went ahead and declared it, thus I'm now looking at one more bridging interlude chapter instead of the original 3 bridging chapters. *Sweat-drop Emoji* Hopefully, I could indeed end the interlude portion by chapter 31, crossing fingers and hope since there is obviously a second part to the SoEul in Japan scene. ^^; Anyway, I had packed this chapter full of SoEul moments - let me know what you think of it, okay? I killed a dozen of my brain cells on this chapter ^^;

I have included some screen time for Sunny and her friends. Even Ginger gets a cameo in this chapter… oh, and a scene dedicated to the original characters created by yours truly in Japan featuring Masashi, and his three friends. Ichiro - who is Shunsuke's elder brother, Takahashi Shuuhei - Kazuki's cousin on his mother's side of the family, and a new OC - Shinosaki Izumi. I think I've made the hint quite obvious - but just in case, there are still people who didn't get it.

Well, previously I mentioned Sunny eventually met the love of her life while on one of her solo trips to a foreign land. And she's heading for Melbourne in her upcoming solo trip, likewise, Shinosaki Izumi is also heading to Melbourne. Therefore, it's quite clear why I created Shinosaki Izumi - isn't it? XD On the subject of Sunny's Melbourne trip, I'm likely to time-skip and speed-through it. The details of how she got acquainted with Shinosaki Izumi might come up in a flashback scene or something, but I'm not going into details of her Melbourne trip for sure. Otherwise, I would end up with more interlude chapters than I intended ^^;

No Jun Pyo in this chapter, hopefully, I'll be able to fit him in for some screen-time in the next chapter. ^^; Alright, that's all for now - see you in the next update!

PS: Happy Holidays! This chapter marks the end of my updates for year 2021. My next update is likely schedule on New Year Day, 1st Jan 2022 (Singapore Time) For some, it might be New Year Eve still ^^ due to the different time zones :P Happy Reading, and I hope the SoEul fans enjoys the SoEul scenes in this chapter ^_^