Chapter 11: I Got You
I find Jackson sprawled on my carpeted bedroom floor, and JB sitting on the edge of my bed holding my pillow. Mark is happily bouncing on top of the mattress with another pillow. "What the heck?"
"Oh-Jeosonghamnida!" JB apologizes with a wide smile. "We're having way too much fun on your bed, it's very soft!" He pats the white sheet he's sitting on and Jackson gets up from the floor to sit beside JB like an obedient pup.
"Your pillow smells so good!" Mark exclaims as he drops to his knees, bouncing a little while hugging my pillow tight. I don't think I'll be able to sleep well tonight thinking that Mark may have hugged the very pillow I drool onto. Before I get the chance to scold or warn them, we hear the doorbell ringing.
I rush down the stairs to see BamBam opening the door for Mina, who I can barely see behind the huge box she's carrying. She's obviously surprised to see GOT7's fan service king opening the door for her. "Oh, annyeong, annyeong!" Mina says, greeting BamBam who welcomed her warmly with a bow.
"Noona, let me help you with that!" BamBam takes the box from her, allowing me to see her barely made up face. She looks younger, and frankly a lot prettier without the pretense of winged liner and matte lips.
"Mina-yah," I say, giving her a hug before she can even take her shoes off. "What did you bring? I told you not to bother with food, we have a lot!" She steps into the living room awkwardly with me pulling on her arm. BamBam is peeking inside the box, his thin arms holding it steady.
"Oh, that's not food. I'll explain later. What are they doing?" Mina asks, curiously looking upwards because of the booming laughter emanating from my bedroom.
"Having a pillow fight," I say, rolling my eyes. BamBam snickers upon hearing news of his hyungs playing upstairs. I lead them both to my bedroom and we catch Mark trying to fix my bedside lamp with with a guilty grin on his face.
"I didn't break it!" He says, trying to hold the head of the lamp upright.
"Yeah, it just got a little lopsided," Jackson reasons, holding a pillow. Mark lets go of the head and it falls a little to the side like a curious puppy. "See, it's cuter this way!" He adds. JB throws his head back in laughter.
"Don't worry about it," I say, giving in. Mina shyly comes in and greets the rest of the boys while BamBam sets the box on top of the bed, announcing as he does that it contains fan gifts. "Those are all fan gifts?!" I ask Mina, my eyes huge with surprise. She nods quietly, obviously unsure about her decision.
"Ne, I've been collecting all these gifts for over six months now. Fans gave it to me on my way home, some of them were from my friends who are your fans too," She explains, her eyes focused on her feet while we all look at her with mouths hanging open. "Sorry if I'm giving all these to you just now, I never had the courage to send them to your dorm or give them to your manager because we're not supposed to receive gifts on your behalf..." She pauses her long speech and suddenly does a 90 degree bow. "Jeosonghamnida..."
"Oh, geurae?! [Is that so?!] I've done it too, I didn't know it wasn't allowed!" I give JB a panicked look knowing that they must have received the gifts I handed to the boys the first time they came here. "M-Mianhe..." [Sorry...] I didn't even get the chance to bow because Jackson's already shaking his head at me as he drapes his arm around my shoulders with a smile.
Mina is still in her bowing position and I almost pull her up if not for JB who takes the box and settles down on the floor in front of her. JB peeps through the curtain of semi-curly black hair hiding her face and I can see her ears reddening . "Gwaenchanayo, noona. [It's okay, noona.] We're really grateful for these." She stands up at his bidding and I smile as he takes her hand and asks her to sit on the floor with him. Jackson pulls at my wrist and orders me to sit beside him as well. Mark and BamBam take their places on the floor and we all end up in a semi-circle on the gray carpet, rummaging through Mina's box.
We watch as the boys excitedly open their packages, ripping the wrappers and happily complimenting each and every gift they open. "Oh my god, this is so cool," Mark says, holding up a framed caricature of him. It's amazing how much talent and effort these fans put into their idol gifts. After a few minutes of cheering and laughing along, I decide to give Mina some alone time with the boys. "Aigoo, look at the time! I'll go and make us chicken wings and rice for lunch. Any other food requests? I'll order if I can't make it." I say, standing up and rolling my sleeves expertly.
"Noona, let me help you cook!" JB pipes in, standing up and surprising the other members. It's not a secret that Jaebum can do anything BUT cook.
"Hyung, I'll do it," BamBam offers.
"Ani, gwaenchana. [No, it's okay.] You already washed the plates. I'll go help noona now," JB stands beside me with his standard boyish smile and I turn to Mina, giving her a small shrug to answer the questioning look she's throwing at me. He's either really passionate about chicken, or he's planning something and wants to let me in on it. Whatever it is, I'm feeling slightly excited to hear what he has to say.
I toss a girly pink apron at Jaebum, making him blush slightly. "Oh, kyeopta Jaebum-ah!" [Oh, you're cute, JB!] I tease as he wraps the apron around his waist. "You look ready. Do you know how to cook chicken?"
"A-aniyo..." He admits while watching me take out a ziplock bag filled with chicken wings from the freezer. "But I'd love to learn if you'll teach me!" He immediately adds.
"It's not that hard," I say, popping the bowl of chicken wings into the microwave for defrosting. JB stands beside me on the kitchen counter, listening intently to my instructions on how to properly bread a chicken part using cornstarch, salt, and pepper. "A lot of people use flour but I was taught that fried chicken is crispier when you use cornstarch,"
"Ah, jjinjja?"
"Ne," I say, taking the chicken out of the microwave. I take a piece of tender chicken and show him how to bread it so he can do the rest. "JB-ah..." He looks up to me with a curious smile, his hands covered in cornstarch. I smile back at him before busying myself with the frying pan. "I know you're looking forward to talk to me about something. May I know what it's about?" I suddenly feel like being bit more formal while talking to him in Korean and he seems to take notice because he starts looking around before turning to me again.
"Noona, to be honest, I came today because I wanted to know why my friends keep coming here..." JB's face is stony and almost scary. His jaw is jutting out just a little, signaling a fresh wave of anxiety as he carefully breads the chicken. "And I want to talk to you about them returning late at night."
I can feel my face flushing as he hands me a plate of breaded chicken wings so I turn my attention to the hot pan instead. Things have always been spontaneous during the past visits as far as I remember. The day after our Halloween special shoot, they came over to bring me ice cream and our working relationships somehow slipped into the conversation. We all agreed to keep being civil to each other at work while drinking beers. The one after that was much more chaotic. They called while I was shopping for groceries and I had to hurry back home because some girls recognized them while they're waiting for me at the lobby.
"Well," I start, thinking of a way to explain myself without sounding defensive. "First of all, you have to know how I met Jackson, Mark, and BamBam." I tell him all about the accidental awkward introduction with Mark and Coco, the night at the bar, the gifts I received from their fans, and our first popcorn meeting after that. "You called that night, remember? You were on loudspeaker. I got so scared because you sounded mad!" JB smirks before handing me another batch of chicken to fry.
"Actually, I was scared too," He says, catching me off guard. "I didn't know who you are, and if you are trustworthy. That's why I asked them to come home immediately." We both fall silent while I'm taking out the first batch of chicken from the frying pan.
"Noona, I hope I don't offend you by saying this but we've been through a lot just to get here so it's important for me to know if we can trust you or not." I can feel JB's eyes piercing my gut as I continue to cook and listen. I start thinking of ways to defend myself, to prove that I have no ill intentions, but then decide to abandon that route all together.
"Well then what do you think so far?" I ask, handing him the plate of fried chicken and urging him to try one. He takes a piece gratefully, thinking, considering. "I mean," A few English words slip through the cracks of our conversation, a reminder of our differences. I know he understands anyway. "What's your impression of me based on what you've seen so far?"
"I think your apartment speaks well for you. Jackson says you designed this yourself?" He asks and I nod. "It looks great! I've always wanted a place like this. It's like everywhere I look I can see bits and pieces of your personality. You and Jinyoung like the same kind of books,"
"Oh, jjinja?"
He nods, licking his lips before speaking again. I try to focus on the chicken I'm frying because his oil-glossed lips are making me squirm inside. "Mark loves your bedroom, BamBam loves your closet, Jackson loves your kitchen and I think Yugyeom would too, if he was here. Youngjae would love your vinyl collection." He finishes his chicken and washes his hands while I stand there, shocked at JB's observations. I didn't even show them my vinyl collection and player but they seem to have found it just the same. "I like your fried chicken," He adds, giving me a wide smile.
"Aigoo, gomawo..." I take out the second batch of chicken before frying the rest. "I feel like this place is slowly becoming a GOT7 tree house!" We both laugh, eyes scanning the view outside my kitchen's window. Seoul's bustling cityscape sprawling before us. I hand the plate full of chicken to JB and he takes it from me with a smile. Then we both share a long, hard look at each other. He's right. I DO need to provide them some sense of security because he's been in the business long enough to know what it means to have real friends. "I understand if you won't trust me immediately," I tell him, transitioning to English just because I think it sounds way more earnest. "Trust is earned, not given."
I turn back to the stove to start cooking the sauce. Mark and BamBam like hot, spicy food so I'm making them a special batch of buffalo chicken wings. For the cheese-obsessed Jackson, I'm making a garlic parmesan batch. "You guys need a space to be free from all the cameras and the fans and the industry standards and the competition. I know that because I work on the things you work on." I add, my voice steady and calm. Secretly, I am hoping that my Korean won't fail me as I toss the fried chicken in the pan to cover them in sauce. "Whether you should trust me or not is completely up to you, but know that my door is always open to anyone of you who needs a break." I finish. JB seems to be thinking deeply while watching me.
"Noona..."
"Just call me Love or Sarang, whichever you're more comfortable with," I answer. He nods at me and gives me the warmest smile I've ever seen from him.
"Okay," he says, surprising me with his one-word English. "Sarang-ah, gomapta..." I stop what I'm doing to face him, curious as to what he has to say in response to my lengthy sermon. "I appreciate you for being really kind and for taking care of my members." The serene look on his face is a bit debilitating, but I manage to crack a smile and nod. "Nalang chinguhallae?" [Will you be my friend?]
I hold my hand out to him. He gives me a wide smile, his eyes disappearing into adorable tiny slits as he shakes my hand vigorously. I feel like I have accomplished something huge by gaining the trust of GOT7's leader.
"Hey, Love!" Mark calls out, running down the stairs. He sees JB and I, still hand in hand, smiling at each other.
"What's up?" I ask, glad to be speaking in English again. He approaches us with a medium sized pink box in his other hand. "What's in there?"
"We've got something that's perfect for your fridge." He opens the box and shows me the magnetized mini webtoon versions of GOT7. Mark holds up a mini webtoon version of himself and poses exactly like it.
"Oh my god, you look so adorable!" I say, laughing. He sticks it on my fridge door, grinning from ear to ear while JB peers into the box to get his own webtoon character.
"You'll always remember us now when you're hungry or eating alone." Mark says before sticking the rest of mini GOT7 alongside his webtoon. JB carefully places his webtoon magnet at the end of the line. I look at the seven little figures on the fridge door and know that I'm probably never going to be sad and hungry at the same time ever again.