Hello!
I'm back! And I have a new long, yummy, delicious chapter! LOL...I'm crazy, I know.
For further references about the activity F4 and the rest will do on this chapter, please go to the bottom of the chapter where you can find them in more detail.
Now, I want to thank once more to all of you who have taken the time to write me a PM, a review or put me on alert, I'm very grateful. Today, I think my goal for this fic will be to get 500 reviews by the end of it. HOw's that? Too much? I hope not! And also hope that you're enjoying reading this as much as I enjoy writing it.
Huge shoutout to JHsgf82 who always helps me with the proofreading of my chapters, besides listening to my crazy ideas and helping me mold them into something much, much better. Thanks, Mandy!
Lyn, you too, thank you so much for your comments and PMs. Oh and, novembershowers, I started reading your fics! Congrats, girl! I'm excited.
That's it from my part right now! Hope to see you in the next update. Hugs and kisses!
Previously on Part of Me:
Jan Di was surprised when she went back to her hotel and received gifts from every F4. She later received an extra gift which made her smile and remember that she still had a special place in the F4. She's supposed to wait to see where the F4 will put her and her son for her stay in the city.
When the knock on her door woke her up, Jan Di glimpsed the time on the bedroom's clock and felt she could easily have gotten a bit more sleep. She almost went back to her bed's warmth when she remembered who might be knocking so early.
"Hey, Chul Moo," Her tiredness was evident in the deeper, grainier quality of her voice. Her friend's smile quickly deflated, as he saw she had been sleeping and not even remotely trying to get ready to leave with him.
"Hey, so I guess you're staying." Jan Di noticed he had his bag on him and just then remembered his words from the previous day: 'Sleep on it, okay?'
"Um, yeah, I thought about it, and I would like some time to see my old friends, so yeah, we'll stay."
Chul Moo knew that when Jan Di set her mind on something there was no power on earth to change that. "Can I say goodbye to Ji Min?"
"Sure, although he's still sleeping." She opened the door to let him in, and he approached Ji Min's bed. The boy was sleeping soundly, so Chul Moo tried not to disturb him and simply said, 'See you around, Ji Min' before walking to the door again.
"I guess I'll see you in a week?" Chul Moo couldn't help but ask, for he wanted to have a bit of confirmation.
"Yeah, it's Saturday today, so I'm guessing I'll be home by next Saturday or Sunday, tops."
"Okay, so...bye-bye." He put up his hand and waved while turning to leave.
"Bye-bye." Jan Di closed the door and went right back to bed, just wanting to rest a little bit longer.
"Omma! Wake up, wake up, your cell phone is ringing!" Jan Di was suddenly brought back to life by her son and a loud ringing that she hadn't heard before.
"Okay, okay, I'm up! Yeoboseyo?" She quickly answered the call.
"Good morning, Jan Di-ah, were you still sleeping?"
Jan Di sighed and plopped back into her bed "Hey, Woo Bin, yeah sorry, I overslept. I'll get ready soon."
"You should because it's almost 9 and breakfast is going to be at your door any minute now."
"Woo Bin!" She got up again to quickly pick up her clothes. "There is no need for more food right now, and-"
"No complaining. As Ji Hoo said yesterday, you owe us a whole lot, so from now on you better get used to being spoiled, you and Ji Min because that's exactly what we're going to do." She could actually hear him grinning from the other side of the phone. "Jan Di?"
"Yes, yes, I heard. I'm gonna change now."
"Good girl."
Jan Di told Ji Min to dress up, and he excitedly asked if he could wear some new clothes. She didn't think that was a bad idea, and in fact, chose something new for herself as well. Ji Min was dressed in some really cool jeans with patches here and there, a horizontally striped t-shirt and, of course, his new sneakers. Jan Di, on her part, chose a new pair of jeans but stuck with her old grey and white sweatshirt; it was comfy and warm. Her hair was not cooperating today, so she decided to tie it in a high bun and let it be.
Not one minute after she finished tying her sneakers, there was a knock at the door. On the other side were the same gentleman from the night before; they took away the dinner cart and left a breakfast one. This time, Ji Min and Jan Di tried an American breakfast: toast, eggs, bacon, waffles, yogurt, cereal, pancakes, coffee, milk, hot chocolate; you name it, and it was there. Jan Di actually laughed at the amount of pancakes on the cart but happily went at them, along with Ji Min.
When the clock struck 10, there was another knock on the door.
"Yes?"
"Miss Geum Jan Di. We are in charge of taking your things to the hotel. Please, follow me, a car is waiting for you." The man before her was bowing and asking her to follow. She did so because, who else was going to show up right then and there to take her away? Still, she quickly texted Woo Bin, and he told her it was okay.
Ji Min was once again excited to be in such a huge car and couldn't stop jumping around the whole way there. Jan Di just let him; he wasn't used to so many road trips.
Not long after, the car stopped, and Jan Di and Ji Min were helped out; they stepped out onto the street and looked upon the building before them; it froze them in place for a bit.
A beautiful woman then went to them and took a bow. "Miss Geum, welcome to The Shilla Seoul hotel. We are honored to have you with us. Please, follow me."
Jan Di blindly offered her hand to her son, and he took it. She was too shocked at seeing such grandeur; she knew about how F4 lived the high life, but perhaps she had spent too long away from them. I'm definitely not used to this anymore.
Jan Di suddenly felt way underdressed for this place. The hotel exuded luxury from the moment you set a foot in it. She looked down and saw that her little man was also impressed, his eyes wide open, same as his mouth, which was forming a little "O." Although, she could also feel him squeeze her hand tighter, as if asking her not to leave him alone.
Never, my little prince.
They were joined shortly after by a man who had all of their luggage on a weird cart with silver handles. Jan Di and Ji Min were led to an elevator, and before its door was an older man with a clean aspect, face shaven, not a hair out of place, wearing a serious gaze and an expensive looking suit.
"Miss Geum," he offered his hand to her as soon as she reached him, "I am the manager of the hotel. I would like to personally welcome you to Shilla; we hope you have a great stay here. Please, if there is anything you don't like about your accommodations, just call the front desk, and they'll take care of it. If you encounter any problem at all, please call me." He took out one business card and gave it to her. "It is our pleasure to have you here." And here, he looked down and for the first time, smiled. "Both of you. Welcome, young man." He shook Ji Min's hand and finally, called the elevator for them.
Jan Di was still a bit dizzy from all of this, and it seemed that Ji Min was, too because before they got off the elevator at the 22nd floor, he tugged at her sleeve.
"Omma, can you carry me?" This was odd; Ji Min usually didn't like to be treated like a baby, but he perhaps was feeling a bit intimidated by all of this.
"Sure thing, love." She turned around to piggyback him. "Hop on."
They followed the same lady who had received them first down a long corridor, finally reaching a polished door that opened with a card. The bellboy went in first, and Jan Di followed through an inner corridor. She took exactly four steps, and to her right, the room came into view. Well, scratch that, the living room, which was weird...There was a living room in her hotel room?
"Should I call a maid to help you unpack, madam?" the bellboy asked.
"No, that's alright, thank you."
"May you enjoy your stay." He bowed before leaving her and Ji Min to explore the room.
Only, this was no room; this was a mini apartment!
To her right, Jan Di had a sort of study area. There was a shiny mahogany desk with a beige leather rollaway chair. Behind them stood a nicely illuminated wine cabinet, also mahogany, with several bottles of different selections of liquor.
"Omma! Look at the TV!"
And she did.
There was a mounted flat screen, at least 50 inches, in front of the living room space. Plush, velvety, beige furniture was presented on a soft, brown carpet with a round center table. In the corner stood a tall lamp that gave nice lighting for when you wanted to relax. A huge window, taking up more than half of the wall, showed her just how high they were in the hotel.
Jan Di could hear her son ooh and ahh over all the luxury of their new hotel. She, finally, got to the actual room part. A double king-sized bed with white, comfy pillows and bedding, another larger than life window, and another 50-inch flat screen tv.
"We have a bathtub!"
Oh yes, they did. A white, square, jacuzzi-like bathtub, and also His and Hers sinks on a marble surface with a pretty plant for decoration.
Subtle, minimal yet elegant. This was a room Jan Di couldn't dream of ever affording, but still, in her brain, besides the calculations of how much this must have costed, she couldn't help but admit it. "It's beautiful."
"Right? It's amazing, Omma! We don't have this much bath space at home! I want to go in!" Ji Min was beyond excited.
"Okay, tiger, calm down," she looked at her watch, "Woo Bin should be here in a few minutes, so we don't have time for a bath right now."
"Aw…"
"I promise I'll fill this for you by night, and I'll even get you some bubbles!"
"Really!?"
"Really, really."
With the promise of a bubble bath for later, Ji Min helped his mother take out the essentials for the room while they waited for F4 to arrive for them.
As Jan Di was putting down a plastic cup with hers and Ji Min's toothbrushes next to the bathroom sink, she heard a doorbell.
We have a doorbell?
"Omma, can I open up?"
"Yes, but ask first who it is."
She saw him dash to the door as fast as his legs could carry him, and she laughed. Her son was happy, thus, she was happy.
She thought for a minute what her day would be like; she was about to go out with F4 and some of their girlfriends. She had to say, the girlfriend part surprised her.
Jun Pyo was a difficult man to deal with, to say the least, at least as far as she could remember. She didn't know if he kept on being like that, but the comments from Ha Jae Kyung the previous day kinda confirmed it. Also, she could imagine that Jae Kyung was from his social circle, or his mother would've thrown a fit; besides, Jae Kyung seemed more than capable of holding her own against the 'Great' Goo Jun Pyo. Jan Di was happy Jun Pyo had found someone to get along with.
Now Ji Hoo, that was a whole different matter. It wasn't as if she thought he wouldn't have a girlfriend; she just didn't think that girlfriend wouldn't be Seo Hyun. She'd been dying to ask what had happened between them after she left, but she thought better of it; after all, she was the one who was due for some explanations. As far as she had seen the day before, Sun Mi didn't seem as clingy or bubbly as Jae Kyung, which must have been what had drawn him to her, probably. Whatever the reason was, she was also glad Ji Hoo had found someone. He deserved happiness, more than anyone she knew; he deserved to have his 'happy ending'.
And the most important thing, she was relieved he wasn't mad at her for disappearing like she did. True, she had left a note, but that was it, and she didn't attempt any contact after that. He had every right to feel as angry as Jun Pyo, perhaps more, but he had received her with open arms and a wide smile. She didn't deserve such good friends.
"Geum Jan Di, I gotta say, you're rocking that hoodie." Woo Bin was wearing track pants, sneakers, a jacket, and his signature killer smile. He had noticed Jan Di's hoodie said 'Beauty is in the eye'.
"Good morning, Woo Bin. Do you need to flirt so early in the morning?"
He winked at her. "Can't help it, doll. It just comes naturally." Of course, this earned him a slap to the arm.
"Do not call me 'doll'".
"I beg your forgiveness, my lady." He joked. "Are you ready?"
"Yeah, am I dressed okay?"
"You are, but you should take a couple of extra t-shirts, just in case, and another change of clothes for the little runt."
Jan Di opened her eyes in surprise and went to the room to take out some clothes as Woo Bin suggested; she noticed her son was in front of the TV eating something.
"What did you give him?" Woo Bin had followed after her.
"Some wheat cereal, don't worry. It has honey in it and stuff."
She stopped folding Ji Min's shirt and put her hand on her waist. "How come you know so much about kids?"
"Big brother of twin girls, remember?" She had forgotten about it. Woo Bin's mother looked 20 years younger than her actual age, and his sisters adored him to bits.
While she caught up on his situation within the Song family, Jan Di couldn't help but smile. Woo Bin was now the Boss of the biggest Korean administrative group. No longer related to the underground world business, the Song family still held respect and fear among its peers; the fact that they didn't want to dirty their hands now didn't mean they couldn't or wouldn't know very well how to do it.
"I'm impressed that your father allowed you to make such a drastic change." She zipped up the small bag with hers and Ji Min's clothes and essentials.
"We're still in change, but it has proven beneficial for everyone. We have ties with some amazingly powerful corporations, and the financial trade has been more beneficial than he would've expected." Woo Bin closed the distance between them, took her hand, and looked straight into her eyes. Jan Di looked confused. "Can I be honest with you?"
Jan Di could guess what he wanted to say and felt her heart stammer for a second. She contained her breath and replied, "Yeah."
"I was...I am so mad that you disappeared. But I'm also mad because no matter how many men I put on the task of looking for you or how much money I spent at finding you, I couldn't."
"Woo Bin…" The air finally escaped her lungs.
"We were all desperate to find you. We knew of your dad's issues after digging a little, and so we also knew we would've been able to help. Your pride, Geum Jan Di, it's a really awful and terrible thing." Jan Di was sad because she knew that even though Woo Bin had been happy and cheerful the previous night, he was now telling her the other part of his feelings. "You have no idea how badly I wanted to yell at you, for the obvious reasons, but also because you made me realize I could take a new path; I set myself to do so, but you weren't there to beat me up if I messed up again. What if I slipped?"
"Woo Bin, you never needed anyone to tell you what to do."
"I know, but as I said yesterday, you are my little sister. I told you as much back when we were in school. At one point, I thought I liked you, but frankly, I can't see you as a woman; that's just...weird." That made Jan Di laugh. "So, I realized you are my sister from a different mother."
"You're my oppa, then?"
"For all that is holy please do not start calling me that." They both laughed out loud.
"I won't, I promise. I...I'm so, so sorry. If I think logically about it, I know all of you would have helped me and my dad, but...I just didn't want to be that kind of friend, and then...well, I didn't know how to face you guys with my huge belly and swollen ankles...And about Ji Min and his father, I-"
"You told us you couldn't talk about it and I won't force it out of you. I respect that we all have some secrets we don't want to reveal."
She felt so relieved at hearing that. "Thank you very much for that."
He took her other hand in his. "You know, the International Business career and my brain played a big part in the change I presented to the Song clan, but Geum Jan Di, your willingness not to take anything lying down, and your fist...," She chuckled at this "were the things which really helped me decide my path. I just...Thank you for coming back so I could tell you this."
Jan Di teared up, and a pair of stubborn tears did escape her eyes when Woo Bin gently held her to him. It brought back an old feeling, to watch as the Don Juan of F4 bared his heart for her to see without any doubts. She had missed her friend.
"I'm not crying," he said when he let her go and was wiping away at his eyes. "There's just too much dust in this room, and if you dare say otherwise I'll make you disappear without a trace."
She widely grinned. "I wouldn't dare go against Song Woo Bin." She bowed, and Woo Bin laughed out loud, thinking about a past occurrence and said, "At least now I don't have to worry about certain F4 catching us and getting the wrong idea."
"Omma? What are you doing? Are you playing something? I want to play, too!" Ji Min had heard Uncle Woo Bin's laugh, so he also wanted in on the fun.
"We're not playing yet, little man. But we're about to." He crouched down to his level. "Are you ready to have the most incredible type of fun you've ever had?"
Ji Min's eyes opened up and seemed to glint at his question. "Yes!"
Without asking, Woo Bin carried him upside down and started running to the door. "Come on, little sister! You're gonna miss all the fun if you don't follow!"
Jan Di had to suppress a laugh and promptly went to follow them.
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"You're finally here!" Yi Jung welcomed them as soon as they got out of the car.
"We're seven minutes late, get over it." Woo Bin punched him playfully.
Jan Di greeted everyone and was led to a big building with what seemed like mirror walls.
"How did you sleep, Jan Di?" Jae Kyung had interlocked their arms as they walked in.
"Good, very good."
"And how was your room today? We wanted to get you the suite, but Ji Hoo said you'd probably be more comfortable in the other room."
"He was right, too much space just makes me feel nervous."
Jae Kyung pouted. "Really? Well, I could ask my mom to accommodate one of the rooms at the manor."
"Oh, that's okay. I'm quite well there, and Ji Min loves it." She suddenly remembered something. "Do you know if we're near any kind of market? I promised Ji Min a bubble bath later."
"That's going to be so fun! Leave it to me, you'll find what you need when you get there."
"That's- I wasn't trying to-"
"Everyone knows you're not a gold digger, relax." Jun Pyo had caught up to them. "Jae is just trying to help."
Jan Di still felt a bit bad. If it had been one of F4 she would've gotten it, but Jae Kyung had met her not 24 hours before. She turned to said girl and saw her pouting a bit.
"I'm...Thank you, Jae Kyung. It'd be really helpful if you could do that for me."
"Consider it done!" She went off to write something on her cellphone.
"She's really happy because she doesn't have that many friends," Jun Pyo explained.
"I can't imagine why; she's really friendly." Jan Di looked back and saw Ji Min between Casanova and Don Juan, thanking them for the gifts from the day before. Sun Mi was walking next to Ji Hoo. When she saw Jan Di, she smiled and took Ji Hoo's hand. He looked up at Jan Di and smiled as well.
"Yes, she is, but because of that she's been taken advantage of many times. So, when I told her you were a friend of F4 and after she got to see you yesterday, Jae Kyung couldn't help but get excited." Jan Di saw Jun Pyo give her that rare soft smile he had on certain occasions.
"You really love her, don't you?" Jun Pyo didn't answer, but Jan Di could see the slight blush that crept up to his cheeks, so she decided to let it go and gave him a small laugh. She was happy for him.
"Welcome! We've been waiting for you." A tall man, probably in his forties, who looked like he could easily kill a man with his bare hands, walked to meet them. "I'm Yung Tae Wha. I'll be your instructor for today."
"What exactly are we doing today?" Jan Di whispered to Jun Pyo while staring wide-eyed at the bear of a man in front of her, but he just smirked and said nothing.
"If you could please follow me, we've already prepared everything." The instructor showed them to a large hallway, and Ji Min went up to Jun Pyo and also asked him what they were going to do.
"You'll find out in just a second."
Jan Di and Ji Min followed the rest and soon came to a huge hangar-like room. It was dark, illuminated only by colorful beams of light and what seemed like those weird purple light bulbs Jan Di had seen on a police series on TV; it also had walls separated here and there, stairs, and domes...it made her think of a maze.
"As you can see, to your right is the gear you will use and, to your left, is a TV. If you could please first follow me to your left, I can explain the rules, victory points and equipment."
"Omma, what is this?"
"Ji Min," Woo Bin stood in front of everybody with his head down, sighing. He turned his gaze to Yi Jung, and Jan Di followed his gaze. Yi Jung nodded to his friend. Suddenly, Jan Di heard his booming voice. "This...is...LASER TAG!"
"Woo Bin! Did you have to yell to say that?" Ji Min was laughing at Woo Bin, even if he didn't totally get what was going on.
"You haven't watched '300', Jan Di? That hurts my heart; I'm gonna have to set up a movie night with you just so you can catch up."
"Don't worry," she suddenly heard Ji Hoo's voice, "It's not a bad movie, you'll probably like it." He said it kind of distractedly, and Jan Di smiled. "So, long story short, laser tag is like your normal 'Tag' game, except you use laser guns. And before you start protesting," he had seen how her mouth started to open to do exactly that, "those are not real guns, and there is no risk of getting shot because it just 'fires' lasers. We will all watch over Ji Min, and by the time he's done, he'll be ecstatic."
Jan Di crossed her arms over her chest and pouted a bit. "So, you're just not going to let me complain, are you?"
"No." He smiled. "When have I ever put you in danger?"
Jan Di gave him this look that made the rest aware that something was going on. "What about the last time you said something like that?"
"It was one time," Ji Hoo complained to Jan Di.
"What's she talking about, man?" Yi Jung asked, but Ji Hoo simply rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, yeah... " She joked for a bit. "It's okay; I know it's safe, and this is something Ji Min will love, I'm sure. Just look." They turned around and saw Ji Min next to Jun Pyo and Jae Kyung while the instructor gave her friend a gun. Jun Pyo struck a pose, and Ji Min had stars in his eyes while looking at him.
"Let's go guys, or Ji Min is going to wipe the floor with us." Woo Bin pushed them to where the guns were. "Hey, midget."
"I'm not a midget!" Woo Bin just ruffled his hair and made him laugh.
When they were finally done, the whole gang stood before Tae Wha, paying great attention. Actually, F4 was used to this, but the girls weren't, or Ji Min, so standing next to them, they also listened to the instructions.
It was clear they were getting the VIP treatment because all the instructors stopped what they were doing and focused on their group, and Jan Di could only assume that Woo Bin had paid them all well. The head instructor, Tae Wha, pulled out a gun from behind the counter. The thing looked real to Jan Di, though she hoped it was much lighter so Ji Min could handle it.
"Okay, everyone, this here is the Battle Rifle XL…" The macho instructor held up the gun as if it was his baby. Jan Di watched her little man's eyes light up as he eyed the gun in the man's hands. The instructor began to describe how to use the weapon‒what button to hit to start the game, where the trigger was, and where to touch to the charging station.
As if he'd heard Jan Di's thoughts, the instructor then brought out another equally cool-looking but smaller gun and handed it to Ji Min. "The Battle Rifle Pro. This one is for the little man. It's lighter but just as deadly." With eyes wide, Ji Min took it and cradled it in his arms. The instructor showed him the proper grip and praised him for his natural skill. "You got it." He ruffled his hair.
Woo Bin had asked for the three-game package for all of them. The first one would be a solo game; the next would be the 8 of them against 8 instructors, and the last game would be 4 of them against the other 4.
After asking if there were any questions, the instructor and three others led them to the wall off to their right that had a rack filled with black vests, all numbered. The three men and one woman began fitting them with vests, placing them over their heads and clipping them on‒the woman fitted the females and Ji Min with theirs‒and they showed them the sensors on the vests. Sun Mi seemed a little uncomfortable with all the gear on, but Jae Kyung told her she looked great and like a war heroine. Again, the attentive instructors asked if they had any questions. When the answer was no, they were told to wait for a green light and a noise like an alarm, and when that happened, they would be sent out into the arena. There would be a one-minute delay for them to find their positions, and then their guns would be activated and they could begin.
"Remember, if you tag an opponent, you get 2 TP and 200 IP; if you are tagged by an opponent or if you tag your own member, you get -1 TP and -100 IP. Now, if you hit the headquarters, you get 10 TP and 1000 IP. Is everything clear?" They all nodded.
They were taken to the edge of the arena, and while they waited, Jan Di glanced around. Woo Bin was on her left side, Yi Jeong on her right. Jun Pyo and Jae Kyung were across from them, and Jae Kyung was clinging to his arm. "Ya, Monkey, get off. I need this arm." She poked her lip out but let go. And, next to them, Sun Mi stood next to Ji Hoo, not touching him but simply close. Ji Min was excited, holding the gun as he saw in the promo video, which was still playing on a loop on the TV on the left side of the room.
"Are you ready, my little prince?" Jan Di asked, looking down at Ji Min. He nodded with a huge smile on his face.
"So, how are all of you feeling about playing this game?" Jan Di asked. She knew F4 used to go clay-shooting, which she didn't get the point of, but she didn't think they'd ever tried laser tag.
"Great!" Woo Bin spoke up first, and the others nodded. Jun Pyo was, of course, very gung-ho about informing the others that he was going to destroy them all. Jae Kyung started chastising him for that, saying she was going to go after him first. Sun Mi didn't say anything but just shrugged a bit, and Jan Di kind of felt as if she didn't want to be there.
"Remember, if you're shot, exit the arena through the side door only. This is last man, or woman, standing." Sun Mi then saw Jan Di smirking at Jun Pyo's menacing stance and also giving Ji Hoo a look. Her boyfriend had a small smile on.
The green light came on, accompanied by the blaring alarm, which startled them at first, but then they were off. The instructors let Ji Min and Jan Di go first, giving them a brief head start and had the others line up behind them. Jan Di held Ji Min's hand as they entered the arena. It was very dark, with only some fluorescent lights scattered about to shine some light on the pathway and on the partitions. Ji Min was soon pulling Jan Di along by the hand and taking her around a pillar. "I think this is a good spot, Omma," he whispered. "Okay," she whispered back, smiling.
Jan Di and Ji Min crouched down, and they could hear the sound of the others' footsteps as they entered the arena. They watched F4 and their girlfriends pass by, each single player or pair looking around the room and then going one way or the other. Jun Pyo walked on steadily ahead with Jae Kyung trailing behind. After a few steps, she split up with him and went to her left. Then Ji Hoo and Sun Mi walked by, and Ji Hoo led them off to the left, to the partition across from where Jan Di and Ji Min were. Following closely behind, Sun Mi stuck to him like glue.
Ji Min was eagerly peeking around the partition. "Now, don't rush out right away, my love. Be patient." Ji Min nodded to her, and Jan Di readied her own weapon, trying to be patient herself. She knew it was just a game, but she was starting to feel the adrenaline coursing through her veins. Then they heard the second alarm, and the room got louder with the sounds of lasers blasting, some talking and shouts when someone would get picked off or picked off someone.
"Okay, Ji MIn-ah, we must try to take them down. We each have 10 lives, so be careful, yes?"
"Yes, omma!"
"Okay...go!"
Ji Min ran from his hiding spot to another while firing his gun. He obviously didn't have the time to aim, but he still managed to land a shot on Jun Pyo.
"Yah!" he exclaimed when he felt his vest vibrate. "Do you want to die?"
"He's just a child, Jun Pyo." Jae Kyung came out and got shot two times, once by Woo Bin and then by Yi Jung.
"Jae, just go hide!" Jun Pyo started running while aiming and successfully taking a few lives from his two friends.
Jan Di decided it was then or never, so she left her hiding spot and shot Jun Pyo from the back and went behind a wall. She could hear him complaining loudly about it.
Just then, she saw a shadowy figure that appeared to be Yi Jung with his gun pointed at someone on the other side. When she turned around, she saw a little head poking from behind a pillar. She turned around, worried, noticing that Yi Jung hadn't shot even though Ji Min was clearly in his sights, but her protective instinct had already kicked in and she picked off Yi Jung with her own gun. Then Ji Min ran on ahead and crouched to try to get to another spot, but he felt his vest vibrating; he had been shot again.
"No!" he yelled, frustrated, and went to hide.
Jan Di knew this was a game, with fake guns, only for fun, but her son had just been shot. Her motherly drive plus the competitive one had kicked in, and she was out for figurative blood.
She knew there were a few guns hidden in places to give more advantage to the players, and she went from spot to spot trying to find them. She felt her vest vibrating two times and saw Jae Kyung was responsible. Jan Di spun around and ducked at the same time, and lying flat on the floor, she shot three times, putting Jae Kyung out of the game.
"No fair!" The first dead person complained and lifted her gun up so that the rest knew not to shoot her anymore.
"Are you okay, unnie?" Sun Mi left her spot to help Jae Kyung.
"Don't come out!" She tried to warn her, but it was too late, and between Yi Jung, Jan Di, and surprisingly, Ji Hoo, Sun Mi was dead in two seconds.
"Did you just shoot me!?" Sun Mi had a horrified expression on her face while looking at Ji Hoo, and Jan Di and Yi Jung took advantage of the situation to roll back to safety. "I can't believe you just shot me!"
"Every man for himself," was his only answer with that boyish grin Sun Mi had only seen the day before.
"Come on, Sun Mi, we need to leave the arena." Jae Kyung tried to comfort her.
Jan Di found a cardboard box in her new hiding place, and surprise, surprise, she found another gun.
"Lucky!" she singsang.
"I'm dead!" She suddenly heard her son's voice, and all bets were off.
She went out with no intention of protecting herself; perhaps that was what startled the guys the most because they didn't react as fast as they should have. Jan Di was firing shot after shot with the cool resolve of a warrior.
"Shit! How did she get two guns?" Yi Jung exclaimed.
"Same way I did!" yelled Jun Pyo, and the game was on.
Blast after blast were fired; people ran, shouted and covered, and Jan Di put up a good fight, but in the end, she was killed.
Breathing a bit hard, she went through the side door of the arena and was greeted with a huge hug from Ji Min.
"Omma! You were so great! You looked, you looked… great!" She just laughed.
"You looked fierce, Jan Di!" Jae Kyung also joined them.
"Thanks, that was harder than I thought. Only the guys remain, right?"
"Yeah, lets see how long they can hold on."
The girls and Ji Min could see through the 3 Plasma TVs in the room how everyone was doing. Each screen was split in 4, so they had 12 angles in total that allowed them to watch a live feed of how the game was developing. Once again, Jan Di saw that, perhaps, F4 actually could do anything.
"Cooooool…," said Ji Min as he watched, and Jan Di knew he had also realized how different the game now was. Their movements and shots were sharper and calculated; this was kill or be killed.
When they were all down to one or two lives, the tension could be heavily felt. The first one to fall was Yi Jung, followed by Ji Hoo, and then, only two were standing.
"Where is Woo Bin?" Yi Jung stood next to Jae Kyung.
"Knowing him, he must be on high ground." Ji Hoo was wiping some sweat with the towel Sun Mi gave him.
"I don't know, Jun Pyo had a good vantage point for stair entrances."
They suddenly heard a yell and a blare that signaled the end of the game.
"Who was it? Who won?" Jae Kyung was trying to see, and they all realized the outcome when a sulking Jun Pyo entered the room.
"Jun!" his girlfriend went to his side immediately, but Jun Pyo didn't seem to want any kind of attention right now.
"Ahhh...Why am I so cool?" Jan Di couldn't help but laugh when Woo Bin entered the room, obviously not caring about his leader's wounded pride.
Yi Jung, Ji Hoo and Woo Bin started laughing and went to their leader to ruffle his hair and tell him to stop sulking like a three year old. Eventually, Jun Pyo relented, and the guys' banter and punches made Jan Di remember that day at the airport, when they all huddled over Ji Hoo before he left to follow Seo Hyun.
They had little time to keep playing, though because the next game was going to start soon. This time, it would be the 8 of them against 8 instructors, though Tae Wha told Jan Di in a low voice that they'd give them a handicap because of Ji Min and not to worry about him, that they were in good hands. She felt even more reassured now and could also see that Ji Min was eager to go into the arena again.
The second game was on!
Jae Kyung and Sun Mi were the first to be eliminated, along with three of the instructors, thanks to the vengeance of Jun Pyo and Woo Bin. Jan Di saw Yi Jung protecting Ji Min fiercely and getting shot just because of that, being the third to be killed. She was now in charge of her little man while Woo Bin, Ji Hoo and Jun Pyo tried to take down as many instructors as they could. Jan Di knew the handicap was real because Ji Min was the fourth person to be eliminated, and she was sad to see him go through the side door once again.
"No time for tears, Jan Di; we need to kill all of these bastards to avenge our friends." Woo Bin winked at her, and she laughed, listening to his serious tone, as if they were in a real war.
"Lead the way, captain!" was her answer, and off they went.
It came down to 5 instructors against her, Jun Pyo, Woo Bin, and Ji Hoo. She was ordered to stay hidden, since she only had one life left and they couldn't risk losing more points. Woo Bin tried to get her to a tower, but it was very difficult to do so when a sniper was hindering their every move.
With Jun Pyo's fierceness and Ji Hoo's cleverness, though, they managed to wipe out 2 more instructors, and when things started to heat up, the 3 that were left went for an all-or-nothing approach.
"Take them down!" Jan Di heard Jun Pyo yell, and she heard the blasts going off. Suddenly, there was someone where she was, a young male instructor. He seemed to be surprised, as well, and went to fire his gun, but Jan Di beat him to it, although, not before he alerted the rest of his partners to where she was hiding.
Obviously, the 2 remaining instructors wanted to get her, as she was the 'weak link', so she tried to escape, but in doing so, she just left herself exposed to the sniper. It was over for her.
"Jan Di-ah!" She felt someone pulling her out of the way and a vibration that didn't come from her vest.
"Stop playing hero, Ji Hoo! You have two lives left!" Jun Pyo roared and went after the sniper at light speed while Ji Hoo took Jan Di to another hiding spot.
"You okay?" he asked.
"Yeah, but you should've just let them get me; it was a good distraction," she complained.
"Not on my watch," he said while charging his weapon. "Although...you just gave me an idea."
Ji Hoo explained to her where to stand to be the perfect bait, and he would take down the sniper once and for all before he could hit her. Jan Di did as she was told, and not a second after she stood where Ji Hoo had told her, the blast went off, and they had won!
"You rascal! Who would've thought you would use a woman as bait?" Woo Bin went to Ji Hoo and hugged Jan Di, making her squeal.
"It was a good distraction, and she gave me the idea."
"Hey you! Where's the gratitude for making me save you?" They just rolled their eyes at Jun Pyo.
"Yeah, yeah...whatever. We won!" said Woo Bin again, and he started singing the chorus of 'We are the Champions'. Jan Di laughed at his theatrics, which were met by clapping from their fallen mates, plus the instructors. Jun Pyo tried to jump in, but he was so way off-key that Woo Bin hit him. "Bro, stop pissing on my parade!" Jun Pyo, surprisingly just laughed. "You know it, Ji Hoo! Sing with me! Do you know it, Jan Di?"
She was unsure about her English skills, but this was a song that most of the world knew, or the chorus, at least. "I can try…"
"Great!" He put one arm across Ji Hoo's shoulders and the other across Jan Di's. He tilted his head, and Jun Pyo also put an arm around Jan Di, with a mock sad smile. "Then on one, two…"
They all started singing, and Jun Pyo took his gun and put it in front of Woo Bin as if it were a microphone; Ji Hoo was laughing amidst words, and Jan Di tried to follow as best she could. She hadn't laughed so hard in months.
After a minute of singing, they all clapped and went to get ready for the next game. Ji Min couldn't stop worshiping Woo Bin's skill, much to Jun Pyo's chagrin.
Inside the waiting room, Jan Di found that now there were some bottles of water on a nearby table, and she thanked the heavens for the VIP treatment.
"Yi Jung," she went to her friend while chugging down big gulps of water, "Do you know if I can get the female instructor to come here to help me with the vest?"
"Is it too tight? I can help you loosening it."
"No, I just want to take off my hoodie; I'm suffocating."
"I can take it off for you, wait." He put down his own bottle, took her away from the group, and easily unclasped her vest. "There you go."
"Thanks." Jan Di pulled the hoodie up a bit when she noticed Yi Jung was still standing next to her. "I'm not taking my clothes off with you standing there." She raised her eyebrow.
"No need to be shy." Yi Jung smirked.
"Yeah, right. You," she pointed, "turn around," and moving her index finger in a circle, she told him to 'get lost.'
Yi Jung just chuckled loudly, put up his hands, and turned around.
Jan Di turned her back to the group for good measure and took off her hoodie in one go. Not caring about folding it neatly, she just straightened it up a bit and put it on a chair. As Jan Di did this, she realized she needed help again, and just as the thought was crossing her mind, she heard a voice that, she was sure, had made hearts skip a beat all over Korea.
"Want some help with that?" It was Yi Jung again, obviously. She just rolled her eyes.
"Yes, please." Jan Di had a white tank top on now. It didn't cling to her, but it didn't hide her womanly shape either.
After Yi Jung had finished gearing her up again, he stood there with his hand on his chin, as if studying Jan Di.
"What?" she asked him.
"Oh no, nothing. I just always knew you'd be one hell of a woman." And he winked at her.
"Oh, shut up…" But she still laughed. It wasn't everyday that she received compliments; now she was, and from the Casanova no less. She felt her pride inflating a bit against her better judgement. "I bet that's one of your pickup lines."
Yi Jung openly laughed, and Jan Di did the same. "How I've missed you, Geum Jan Di. This place just wasn't the same without your snarky remarks."
"Hey, what are you doing over here?" Woo Bin had come to check on them. "Let me in on the fun."
"Oh nothing," Yi Jung's laugh was still present in his voice, "I was here telling Jan Di-"
"-that the next game is about to begin!" She cut him off, still laughing a bit.
"Okay?" Woo Bin said, a bit confused, but his two friends were laughing, so he thought it was okay. That was until Yi Jung smiled like the cat that got the canary. "Hold on a bit, are you making a move on my sister, man? Because let me tell you I will beat you to a pulp if I find out you're messing with her." His threat was not entirely empty but not serious either; he knew Yi Jung didn't feel that way about Jan Di, but it was easy for him to slip into the role of protective big brother.
"I wouldn't dare mess with her...or, at least, not too much?"
"Yah! Don't get cocky with me!" Woo Bin head-locked Yi Jung.
"Oh my...you guys!" Jan Di started laughing again as her two friends tussled.
"What are you doing?" came the calm voice of Ji Hoo, who stood a bit to the side, witnessing what seemed to be a wrestling match. He cocked his head to the right and then asked Jan Di, "Who's winning?"
She wiped a tear and gathered enough air to answer him, though her belly was starting to hurt. "I don't know." Ji Hoo looked curiously at them once more; well, everyone was looking at them now. When he saw that his friends would not stop until one of them won, he went to Jan Di and put his hands on her shoulders, startling her for a second. He leaned down, so they were at the same level, "We should give them more space," and he gave her a small smile.
Before Jan Di could react, Ji Hoo turned her around, and once again grabbing her shoulders, led her to the rest of the group.
Jan Di felt a bit of a blush spreading across her cheeks; after all, her shoulders were bare now, so Ji Hoo was directly touching her. Still, she quickly dismissed this, for she knew Ji Hoo had never been one to think much about these kind of actions. His girlfriend, however, didn't seem to know this about Ji Hoo because she was intently looking at the place where he was touching Jan Di.
"It's okay, Ji Hoo," she quickly told him, "let's watch who wins?"
He nodded and let go of her; at the same time, Ji Min came to her excitedly.
"Omma, do you think Uncle Woo Bin or Uncle Yi Jung will teach me how to fight?"
Jan Di laughed a bit. "You can ask them. There's nothing wrong with learning a bit of self-defense."
Ji Hoo had gone to Sun Mi's side to ask her who she thought would win.
"I don't know," Sun Mi was clearly surprised at the macho display in front of her, "I also didn't know they could wrestle."
"F4 was trained in different combat styles," Jun Pyo offered. "There was always a chance of getting kidnapped when we were younger, so we needed to know how to defend ourselves."
Jan Di and Jun Pyo shared a look.
"I think Yi Jung will win, look." Jae Kyung and the rest turned to watch as Woo Bin seemed to be getting less and less oxygen as the seconds went by, for Yi Jung had him trapped in a headlock and was holding on tightly.
"You can do it, Uncle Woo Bin!" Ji Min exclaimed.
"Hold on and don't let go, Yi Jung!" Jun Pyo countered.
Jae Kyung started clapping rhythmically, and Jan Di followed suit.
Just a few more seconds and Woo Bin tapped the floor three times, conceding defeat. Yi Jung gave a loud shout, laughing a bit and falling to the floor exhausted. This didn't deter Ji Min, though, and he ran straight to Yi Jung, telling him loudly that he also wanted to do the same.
Jan Di, once again, found herself thinking that this was nostalgic, like reliving part of her high-school life.
"Excuse me." Tae Wha had come into the room. "Are you ready to start the next game?" They all said yes and went to the edge of the arena once more. "Now, because there's eight of you, you'll be split into teams of four. To make it fair, we'll draw names out of this box." He signaled to another member of the staff who had a small box in her hands. "You'll either be on Team 1 or Team 2." They all nodded. "However, there's a child present, and we will respect his wishes if he wants to play with his mother."
"Yeah! I want to be on Omma's team." He beamed.
"Ji Min-ah," Jan Di interrupted, "it's okay if you want to team up with someone else, Woo Bin perhaps?"
"No, that's okay, Omma. I want to to play with you." And her heart melted a bit while the instructor chuckled.
"That's alright. Here are the eight names." He showed them the pieces of paper, and he took Ji Min's name out. "And now, only seven will go into the box. Geum Jan Di-sii, are you okay with being on Team 1?"
"Yes, that's okay."
"Well then, the first one for Team 2 is, Heo Sun Mi." She went to stand on the opposite side from Jan Di. "Next, for Team 1, So Yi Jung." He sauntered to where Jan Di was and picked Ji Min up. "For Team 2 now, it's Goo Jun Pyo."
"You're all so dead," he threatened, and Jan Di just rolled her eyes.
"Now, for Team 1, the last member…" There were Woo Bin, Jae Kyung, and Ji Hoo as possible members. "Yoon Ji Hoo." He smiled and went to their side, giving Yi Jung a high five.
"Figures you two would end up together," chuckled Woo Bin while pointing at Ji Hoo and Jan Di, "It's like Fate!" He went to his team's side and caught Sun Mi's glare. "I mean, you know, as teammates."
Sun Mi just sighed off to the side while rolling her eyes. Woo Bin went to stand next to her and nudged her a bit, while whispering, "Hey, you know that was a joke, right? I was trying to psyche them out a bit. I already told you, you have nothing to worry about."
"Yeah, I know. It's okay." She smiled at him, and he smiled back.
"Good, because we are so going to toast them, you know?" And at this, she laughed and Woo Bin felt more relaxed.
So, it ended up being Sun Mi, Jun Pyo, Woo Bin and Jae Kyung on Team 2 and Jan Di, Ji Min, Yi Jung and Ji Hoo on Team 1.
"Players, get ready!" Tae Wha's voice boomed around them, and they waited for the signal once more.
As soon as they heard it, they all sprinted to different places. Yi Jung ran with Ji Min on his back, making Jan Di smile; the whole F4 had taken such a quick liking to her son.
Yi Jung took cover and was followed by Ji Hoo and Jan Di.
"So, we have only five lives each; this game will be harder, Ji Min-ah." He turned to the little boy. "I'm going to take you up there," he signaled above them to where there was a good spot for a sniper. "I want you to help us take as many enemies down as you can; we won't be able to see them because they'll be running around us, so I want you to help us, okay?" Jan Di noticed he was trying to give her son something to do without making him feel like the 'kid.'
"I saw Uncle Woo Bin doing it earlier. I can do it, too," Ji Min said with confidence.
"I'm going to scope a bit; they'll find us soon if we don't move," Ji Hoo told them before running to hide behind a wall.
Yi Jung and Jan Di wished him luck and then turned to put Ji Min up in the bunker-like structure.
"Be safe," Jan Di said before following Yi Jung to a different wall.
The game seemed to be stalled because neither part was making a move, all too worried about losing lives too fast to take the first step. However, that all changed when a laser-like sound was heard and seconds later, a complaint that sounded a lot like Jun Pyo.
"Go!" Yi Jung pushed her, and she went to land an attack. Bad luck for her, she encountered Sun Mi first. They both seemed very surprised but the hesitation quickly melted, and they both lifted their weapons.
"What's that!?" Jan Di asked in horror, and Sun Mi turned her head, earning three shots to the chest before she realized she had fallen for the oldest of traps. Still, she managed to shoot once, and Jan Di felt her vest vibrating as she ran for cover. She tried to be more careful the next times, and she successfully fired a few shots, some doing damage and others not, but the star of the show was Ji Min, firing as well as he could and as many times at anyone who crossed his teammates' path.
Unfortunately, Jun Pyo quickly noticed the strategy and went for Ji Min, but this cost him his first teammate.
"I'm dead!" Jae Kyung raised her gun and started to leave the arena. Jun Pyo cursed under his breath and went for Ji Min faster; the poor child never stood a chance against a man, and one such as Goo Jun Pyo, at that, but he didn't go down without fighting. He managed to take two of Jun Pyo's lives.
Jan Di saw her little prince running towards the side door with his gun held high, and now the fight was between Jun Pyo and Yi Jung, who had realized his intentions before and had tried to reach Ji Min but was a step too late.
Luckily, he killed Jun Pyo, and now there were 3 persons from Team 2 and 2 persons from Team 1 in the arena. Things got a little out of hand when Jun Pyo left and blasts were fired everywhere. Sun Mi died, same as Yi Jung, and now they were down to Woo Bin, Ji Hoo, and Jan Di, all three with only one life left.
The fallen were biting their nails in the waiting room, watching as their friends were in hiding, trying to come up with the best strategy to win.
The screen showed a large wall with a middle opening; Yi Jung had seen Ji Hoo and Jan Di run there last, and Woo Bin was on the other side, trying to move closer, carefully.
"What are we going to do?" Jan Di whispered while crouching down.
"I'm thinking," Ji Hoo chanced a glimpse and was met with a blast that almost got him, "that I need to get out. He doesn't know we're together, so we have the surprise factor."
"Jan Di-ah, Ji Hoo-ah," Woo Bin exclaimed in a sing-song voice, "Come out, come out wherever you are."
"That bastard." Ji Hoo chuckled.
"He likes to push your buttons, right?" She also had a smile on her face.
"He's a master at manipulation." Ji Hoo started thinking again but was once again interrupted by Woo Bin's voice.
"You can't protect Jan Di forever, Ji Hoo! Why not just come out and get this over with?"
"If we stay here together, we'll be fishes in a barrel." Ji Hoo pointed out.
Jan Di noticed he was getting ready to make a run for it and confront Woo Bin, but if he did, she was sure he would get shot. Woo Bin had proven to be one of the best at this game, after all, and she couldn't let Ji Hoo sacrifice himself for her.
"Ji Hoo," Jan Di said in a harsh whisper. "What?" he asked before dashing out, or well, trying to dash out, actually because Jan Di grabbed Ji Hoo by the vest and pulled to stop him for a second so that they could think. But she'd clearly misjudged a few things, namely, the force of her tug and his body weight because she was now thrown completely off balance and was hurtling toward the floor. But not only her…
Surprised by her sudden pull, Ji Hoo had spun around to face Jan Di, and when he saw her falling, he had dropped his gun and thrown his arms around her waist to try and steady her...but it was no use. Now, they were both plummeting toward the ground, and it didn't help that she was holding tightly to his vest with both hands, which only served to pull him down harder. Jan Di had also dropped her gun in an attempt to regain her footing but failed. Despite Ji Hoo's best efforts to stop it from happening, Jan Di ended up on the floor on her back, and he was on top of her.
In the waiting room, Ji Min looked confused; he had seen his hyung try to get out and then suddenly disappear, followed by the sound of guns clattering on the floor. "Where did he go?" he asked Sun Mi, but she also didn't know.
Ji Hoo was, at the moment, partially on top of Jan Di. He'd thrown one of his hands out at the last second to catch himself, to prevent his entire body weight from hitting her, so now he had one arm around her waist and the other flat against the floor; her legs were between his, and he was hovering over her. They remained like that for several seconds, just staring at one another in the darkened room.
"S-sorry," Jan Di managed to whisper. Her heart was positively racing, and her eyes were wide.
"It's okay," he whispered back, his eyes mirroring hers at the surprise of finding themselves in such a position. A few seconds passed, and he chuckled softly at the scenario. Somehow, it felt like old times, her getting into a situation, him trying to rescue her...only this time, it backfired.
She let out a small, quiet laugh in response, and Ji Hoo followed her lead.
"Was this part of your plan to win the game?" he whispered.
"No!" But she couldn't stop smiling. "I was just trying to stop you for a second! What good will it do if you end up dead?"
"You do know it's just a game, right?"
"Oh, don't you start with me, mister I'll-use-my-body-to-shield-you-from-a-fake-laser."
They looked at each other and did their best to stifle their laughter. For a moment, it seemed as if they had forgotten they were in the middle of a game, and they were still practically glued together on the floor.
Ji Hoo realized this first, also the fact that he still had his arm firmly around her waist, and he tried to get off of her. As he started to do so, Jan Di raised her head and caught sight on her left side of Woo Bin appearing from around the wall's furthest corner. Woo Bin stopped for a second, stunned by the sight before him.
"Look out!" Jan Di shouted, and instinctively, she grabbed Ji Hoo's vest with her left hand and pulled him against her body again, while at the same time, her right hand went to grab the gun that was lying beside her. She didn't hesitate and fired, taking out Woo Bin.
"Ohhhh, man, no!" Woo Bin exclaimed in frustration.
"YES!" Jan Di exclaimed, and she laughed loudly. "Ha! I killed you!" She looked back at Ji Hoo. "I killed him!"
Ji Hoo lifted his head a bit; he had been surprised by her sudden actions but understood that there had been no time to explain. "Quite the assassin, you are." He was laughing at the awkward situation, mainly because he had yet to stand up, so he thought it was a good moment to do so.
He quickly pulled himself up and offered his hand to Jan Di to help her. She quickly took it and stood up, beginning a strange victory dance.
"What was that?" Woo Bin asked Ji Hoo, totally dumbfounded at having lost and by the position he found them in.
"She tried to stop me from confronting you, and we tripped and fell." Ji Hoo shrugged.
"Omma!" Jan Di suddenly turned around and picked up her son, mid-jump. "You won! You won!"
"I did, my little prince! Well, we did." She turned to Ji Hoo and smiled.
"Your mom has learned fast," Woo Bin told Ji Min as Yi Jung went to Ji Hoo and tackled him to the ground.
Jun Pyo was, surprisingly, taking his team's loss very well, and when all was said and done, the absolute winner of the day was Woo Bin, who received some kind of diploma and fake medal. However, in a gesture that made the hearts of all present females in the room melt, instructors included, Woo Bin crouched down and called Ji Min over to put the medal around his neck.
oº°˚˚°ºoº°˚˚°ºoº°˚˚°ºoº°˚˚°ºoº°˚˚°ºoº°˚˚°ºoº°˚˚°ºoº°˚˚°ºoº°˚˚°ºo
It had been a good experience, and Jan Di was tired, but it was a good kind of tired.
They were leaving the premises after thanking the kind Tae Wha for his instructions, all discussing lunch options for their next activity.
Jan Di heard Ji Min saying to Jae Kyung that he wanted seolleongtang, and she laughed a bit. Here they were, surrounded by the four most powerful men in Korea and their rich girlfriends, and her son wanted something as typical as that.
"That was fun, wasn't it, Jan Di-ah?" Yi Jung turned around to ask her.
"It was. I'd never done something like that before."
"And we haven't done this in a while. Last time was…" His eyes darted around trying to remember the date.
"More than ten months ago, when Jun Pyo and Woo Bin made a bet over who was better, and they unexpectedly tied," Ji Hoo provided when he noticed his friend couldn't come up with the date.
"That's true! Man, that day was awful! I couldn't walk straight for a day! With all the running and crouching...At least, I'm glad those two didn't put the girls up to that."
"And why not?" Jan Di asked, feeling the feminist in her flaring up. "We can do whatever you men can do, and better in some occasions."
"Whoa, wait, I'm not saying that you can't do it, but really, Jan Di, that day was more like boot training camp than playing tag. And a woman's body is different from a man's, you have to agree with me on that."
Jan Di thought about it for a bit and saw that Yi Jung wasn't really trying to make a degrading comment.
"Well, Jan Di is not as thin as before," Ji Hoo said, and the rest of the F4 knew that was not a comment one made lightly.
Jan Di chuckled a bit and looked down at her body. She still hadn't put her hoodie back on, and her tank top left a lot of her to sight. "Now, that's something every woman wants to hear. I had a baby, so of course, my body was going to change."
Ji Hoo immediately noticed his mistake; he knew about never talking to a woman about her weight, or well, at least his experiences with Seo Hyun and Sun Mi had taught him that. He tried to think quickly about something to correct his error, and his friends noticed, but even when they tried to signal him to zip it, he didn't catch on it.
"I didn't mean anything wrong by it; you're...healthier." He finally provided.
Jan Di had a confused expression on her face while the rest of the F4 let out a collective sigh. Jae Kyung saw the guys were all making funny expressions and told Sun Mi and Ji Min they should probably go back to see what was going on.
"Keep digging that grave, Ji Hoo. Personally, Jan Di-ah," Yi Jung put his arm around her shoulders, "I think you've filled out beautifully; we could go on a date tomorrow." He finished with a wink.
As for Ji Hoo, he felt bad. He had noticed her body when they fell in the last game, but it wasn't like he did so in a sleazy way. He was just happy to feel and see that Jan Di wasn't as thin as her high-school self. Ji Hoo had always been worried about her weight because she was a swimmer and used to train a lot. And of course, Jan Di had had a baby, so her hips were fuller and her body more shapely and...he needed to stop going down that route.
Jan Di knew Ji Hoo had meant well. He was always bringing her food or asking her if she'd eaten when they were in school, so she decided to give him an out. Just as the girls arrived, they heard Jan Di say, "Well, you're not as skinny as before, either. Have you been lifting weights?" Now it was Ji Hoo's turn to look confused. "You used to be so scrawny, Ji Hoo, but now you have...muscles." Jan Di finished, moving her hand up and down in his direction.
Ji Hoo could feel the tip of his ears getting hot when the rest of the F4 started laughing out loud.
"You're not as skinny as before, but I could still haul you over my shoulder," he told Jan Di, and she immediately remembered that time he had done so years ago.
"I'm way heavier than I look, Ji Hoo."
"Can you lift me?" Jae Kyung excitedly asked him. She loved Jun Pyo, but she would be lying if she didn't admit that Ji Hoo was just as handsome. It was like being friends with your idol, so she wasn't about to miss her chance.
"Yah, monkey, what are you saying?" Jun Pyo was not happy, but before he could say one more thing, Ji Hoo swiftly picked up Jae Kyung in his arms, in what could only be described as a princess hold.
Ji Hoo had a tiny, smug smile on his face, and Jun Pyo (and now Sun Mi) didn't look pleased.
"I can also carry her!" Jun Pyo told Ji Hoo.
"Here we go again with the competition," Woo Bin whispered to Yi Jung while they laughed.
"I can! Or you, Jan Di." Jun Pyo turned quickly to her and tried to scoop her up, but Jan Di beat him to it and dodged him.
"Oh no, nobody is carrying me," she stated.
"Is that a challenge I hear?" Yi Jung was now really interested in what they were saying.
"It definitely was, bro." Of course, Woo Bin, his brother in arms, was right there with him.
Jan Di felt the hairs of her skin standing on end. She could see Ji Hoo was putting Jae Kyung down and that all of the F4 were now prowling around her. "Wait...guys..." She put her hands up, as if trying to calm wild beasts.
No such luck.
"Whoever catches Jan Di first wins!" Yi Jung loudly exclaimed, and that was her cue. Jan Di ducked and sprinted to her right as fast as she could while Woo Bin, Jun Pyo, Yi Jung, and Ji Hoo all nipped at her heels, smiles on their faces.
"Omma! Don't let them catch you!" She heard her son saying. And she didn't want to be caught, but the area surrounding the Laser Tag Centre was a big, green garden, so she knew she wouldn't be able to hide at all.
Although she could hear the guys already getting near her, Jan Di realized she was smiling like crazy, feeling free as she slipped away from Yi Jung's hold and suddenly changed her path when Ji Hoo tried to catch her.
"Jun! You must catch her! Go, go, go!" Jae Kyung was cheering on her boyfriend from the sidelines, along with Ji Min, only he was rooting for his mother. Sun Mi, on the other hand, once again found herself speechless at watching the F4 running around, yelling, trying to catch a girl as if they were on a junior high school playground.
Jan Di could feel her heart pounding so fast it actually hurt and a pain in her ribcage wanted to start, but she still didn't give up. Jun Pyo almost caught her one time, and Ji Hoo actually managed to take her by the arm and spin her around to face him, but she twisted to the other side and escaped his hold. She was giving a good fight, but nothing can last forever. When getting air became a really impossible task, she slowed down; as she did, she saw Woo Bin coming directly at her in a full-on tackle position.
Jan Di screamed as she found herself hauled over Woo Bin's shoulder.
"Good job!" Yi Jung high-fived his brother when he caught up with him. "You're the absolute winner today, man."
"I so am!" Woo Bin was laughing loudly as Ji Hoo and Jun Pyo also came up to them. "Jan Di-ah, you really are light; I can't feel a thing carrying you!"
"Oh, just shut up, will you? And let me down!"
"Oh no, no way. I caught the prize; I'm keeping it." And he tightened his hold on her legs.
"Besides, the view from here is amazing," Yi Jung teased. "I can see that you really are a woman now."
"So Yi Jung, you better tear your eyes away from my behind before I tear them out of your head with my bare hands!" Jan Di threatened.
"Can't blame a man for enjoying the view, Jan Di."
"Ugh...Is someone near him? I don't care who, just hit him!"
Yi Jung kept laughing until he felt two hard punches, each on both of his upper arms, courtesy of Ji Hoo and Jun Pyo.
"Woo Bin," Jan Di called as they made their way back, "can you please put me down now?"
"No way. I'm not letting my prize go." He chuckled, knowing perfectly well that Jan Di was hating every minute of this. But he didn't count on her quick mind.
"Please...oppa?"
"Oh, hell no!" Woo Bin immediately put her down. "You are not starting to call me 'oppa'. I thought we talked about this in the morning!"
"And I thought I told you to put me down!" Jan Di had a scolding tone to her voice but was still laughing, same as the rest of the group, who knew the only two people allowed to call him 'Oppa' were his little sisters.
The F4 and Geum Jan Di walked across the grass, laughter all around them. It was like one of those days in school when they'd pick her up to go try a new dish at the porridge shop. Even though F4 hadn't separated in so many years, to have Jan Di laughing alongside them made them feel as if the group was truly complete once again.
"Why did you catch my omma?" Ji Min was sulking a bit at his hero for the day; he didn't like that his mom had lost.
"It's okay, baby. It was a game. And what have we always said about games?" Jan Di crouched to remind her child of the lesson.
"Sometimes you win, and sometimes you lose," Ji Min answered, a bit sad.
Jun Pyo started to interrupt, saying that wasn't true, but a look from Jan Di quickly shut him up.
"Exactly, and this time Omma lost...Okay? That doesn't mean Woo Bin and I are no longer friends. We'll play again, and I might win!"
Ji Min accepted the explanation with a smile.
Jan Di felt her bun coming out pretty fast, so she undid it to tie it back one more time, but when she let her hair down, she heard a squeal behind her.
"Look at your hair! It's so long and pretty!" Jae Kyung fussed over her.
"R-Really? Actually, I never have the time to cut it, so it ended up like this." She mused, taking notice of how unkempt she felt her hair was in comparison to Jae Kyung's or Sun Mi's.
"It's very pretty. You've never dyed it, right?"
"No, never had enough or was interested enough. I've had it shorter, and it was easier then."
"How short are you talking about?"
"Oh, Jan Di's hair was way up here when we were in school." Woo Bin moved his hands to his neck to show how short it had been.
"Do you have pics?" Jae Kyung wanted to see how Jan Di looked back when she was with the guys.
"As a matter of fact I do! I'll bring them around one of these days."
"Please don't. High school was a nightmare," Jan Di asked of Prince Song, but he simply smiled as an answer.
"Do not cut your hair, Jan Di. I know we can do something great with it on our day!" Jae Kyung clapped her hands while asking as Jan Di started putting her hair back in the bun.
"I'll see what I can do."
Jan Di had been watching her son fidget for a whole minute before he approached Woo Bin and Yi Jung.
"Uncle Woo Bin, Uncle Yi Jung…"
"Yeah?" Both of them paid all their attention to the little boy.
"Would you teach me how to wrestle like you did a while ago?"
Woo Bin scooped him up and started walking towards the car.
"Geum Jan Di. We will need about...let me see...five years to turn Ji Min into an amazing martial artist, so just leave him with us and come back in that time." Yi Jung winked at her while following his brother.
"Yah! Where do you think you're going? Do not even dare joke about something like that! You guys are so dead!" And she was running once more.
Jun Pyo and Jae Kyung were laughing out loud at the display while Ji Hoo hung back with an arm around Sun Mi's shoulders.
"You really seem close," she told him.
"We are." He answered with a smile and walked to the car with her. What Ji Hoo had meant was that F4 and Jan Di were close, but what Sun Mi had asked was if he and Jan Di were close.
Sun Mi still wasn't sure about how she felt regarding Geum Jan Di. She had known her for a day and a half, but in that space of time, Sun Mi had noticed how different the whole F4 had behaved.
She had known Woo Bin first. After their parents got reacquainted at a restaurant one night four years ago, they had begun talking. With time, he had introduced her to his friends and brothers, the F4. Of course, she knew about them; there was no one in Korea who wouldn't know about F4, but she didn't know she would be so stricken by Ji Hoo's features, and later on, his character. True, it was a very difficult character, but she felt as if they connected somehow.
It had taken a long time for him to open up to her, but at the first crack Sun Mi found, she weaseled her way in and secured a place. When she confessed to him, she saw the surprise in his eyes, as if he couldn't believe it, and he had even asked her for some time to think about it. Sun Mi had thought it was a lost cause until she heard the rumbling of a motorcycle outside her house. She always feared for his safety when he rode his bike, but he had always assured her that he was very careful. But the main thing was, he had come to accept her confession and held her in his arms while he said so.
F4 had been immensely happy about the news, Woo Bin even more, for he had been her confidante, the one who told her about Ji Hoo's favorite foods and quirks so she could snatch his heart, and it had worked. Jae Kyung also gave her a bone-crushing hug and congratulated her, saying they were like real sisters dating brothers, which actually sounded weird to her, but she accepted it, nonetheless.
Sun Mi's life was good. She had loving parents and a good head on her shoulders, and despite the easy life she led, thanks to her parent's money, she was very down to earth and kind. Then, she got Woo Bin as a friend, and later the whole F4 plus a female friend who, even though she was a bit crazy, was also very kind. Finally, Sun Mi got Ji Hoo as a boyfriend, and she couldn't have been happier about it.
Sun Mi's life was good, happy, and followed a simple routine.
Said routine cracked when Jan Di appeared. Everything she thought she knew was shattering around her. Not in a bad way, but she was just surprised at how much she didn't know about F4, Jae Kyung, and even her own boyfriend.
What did Jan Di have that made all of them simply be themselves?
And as much as Sun Mi didn't want to admit it, she was a bit jealous of Jan Di's relationship, not only with Ji Hoo but with the whole F4.
Don't be petty, Heo Sun Mi. You just haven't taken the time to get to know her. If she's a dear friend to your friends, you should make an effort to know her, too.
Laser tag scoring:
TP: Team Point
IP: Individual Point
Did you like it, did you like it? Let me know in a review! Remember we have a goal to reach! Hehehehe
Oh! Remember to check the Pinterest board! I updated it =)
www. pinterest nerwentasartir /part-of-me / (Delete the spaces)
Coming up in Part of Me:
Someone else is joining the party. Jan Di makes a confession she has never told anyone before. A museum is the destination for the next day and Jae Kyung, Sun Mi, Yi Jung and a surprise guest go along. A night of entertainment awaits!