Main Characters in the Story:

*Kim So Hyun as "Athena" Myung-hee Park

*Jake T. Austin as Michael De Soto

Minor Characters in the Story:

*Woo Hee-Jin as Park Eun-hye {Myung-hee's mother}

*Grace Randolph {Beyond the Trailer Youtuber} as the reporter on Youtube

Chapter VIII: Because You Don't Trust Me.

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"That movie was amazing." Michael says as we exit the cold theatre. "A hundred thumbs up."

"I agree." I say, tossing my trash into the garbage and sweeping my hands of salt and butter. "I especially love how Pepper looked when she-" My phone begins to ring in my pocket. I pull it out of my back pocket and check the caller. I sigh in annoyance when I see my eomeoni's face on there. "It's my mom. Hold on." I answer the phone call. "Annyeonghaseyo? {Hello?}"

"Annyeonghaseyo yeon-in. Yonghwa eottaess-eo? {Hello, sweetheart. How was the movie?}"

"Dangsin-eun siljelo sigan-eul chujeoghago iss-eossseubnikka? {You were actually keeping in track of the time?}" I say.

"Ye. Naneun neoleul eotteohge yeonghwaga kkeutnan hu jigeum boneunji jeonhwahagileul wonhaessda. {Yes. I wanted to call to see how you're doing right now after the movie.} Eojjaessdeun, abeojineun uliga nu-iui jib-eseo jeonyeog sigsaleulhagileul wonhae. geulsse, patiga deo manh-a iljelo. {Anyway, you father wants us to a dinner at his sister's house. Well, it's more of a party, actually.} Nega jib-e dol-awaseo junbi hal su-issge haejwo. {I need you to come home so you can get ready.}"

I make a disgusted face. I stop right outside the door, staying in the shade that guards me from the sunlight. "Geulaedo gago sipji anh-a. naneun geudeuljocha moleunda. {I don't want to go, though. I don't even know them.}"

"Igeos-eun dangsin-i geudeul-eul al su-issneun wanbyeoghan sigan-ibnida. {This is the perfect time for you to get to know them.} Gedaga, dangsin-eun seontaeg-ui yeojiga eobs-eo. Naega nega dwie meomulgehandamyeon naega neoleul tteonal gos-i eobs-eo. {Besides, you don't have a choice. If I were to let you stay behind, I would have nowhere to leave you.}"

"Na tteonayo? Naneun yeol yeoseos seibnida. nega naleul jib-edugo gal su issdago saeng-gaghae. {Leave me? I'm sixteen. I think you can leave me home.}"

"Geugeolhago sipjiman ... Neoe daehaeseo neomu geogjeonghalgeoya. {I would like to do that, but… I would worry about you too much.} Geuligo nega gajog-eul wonhandago saeng-gaghae. Geudeul-eun jaemi issgo, joh-eun eum-ag-eul teulmyeo, daehwaleul joh-ahabnida. {And I think you would like your family. They're fun, they play good music, and they love having conversation.}"

"Naneunhaji anhneunda. Geuligo naneun eum-ag-eulo dangsin-i uimihaneun geos-imyeon noindeul-ui eum-ag-eul joh-ahaji anhseubnida. {I don't. And I don't like old people's music, if that's what you mean by music.} Jib-edugo gala. Nan gwaenchanh-eulgeoya. Naneun jeonyeog sigsaleul wihae eumsig-ina mueongaleul jumunhal geos-ida. Jeonbuda gwaenchanh-a. {Just leave me at home. I'll be fine. I'll order some food or something for dinner. It's all good.}"

"Ani-yo. {No.}"

"Geuligo wae andwae? Wae naega jib-e meomulgehaji anh-eulgeoya? {And why not? Why won't you let me stay home?}"

"Ttaemun-e… {Because…}" Her voice trails off, and I know exactly what she wants to say.

"Neoneun naleul midji anhgi ttaemun-e. {Because you don't trust me.}" I finish her sentence for her, sharp and cold. No matter. I stay on the phone and wait for her to deny that she doesn't trust me enough to leave me alone. It's three minutes of silence from her, and I decided to continue but this time I would say it in English to just mock her harshly.

"So… You'll let me go out in public, where I can leave and never return. But you won't let me stay home alone because you're afraid I will hurt you and everyone by leaving again. Because I'm a heartless person, am I right?! Is that it?!"

She remains in silent.

"Dangsin-e daehan mid-eum bujog-e gamsadeulibnida. Jeongmal gamsa. {Thank you for your lack in faith in me. I really appreciate it.}" I hang up the phone and slide it into my pocket, my face heated in anger. I started walking ahead, desperate to burn off this feeling and relax once again.

"That sounded pretty harsh." Michael says, catching up to me. "What did you mean by 'leaving again'?"

"I was a runaway kid before."

"What?" He says, shocked by my bit of news.

"Run-A-Way. I ran away from home about nine years ago. I have been living on the streets and in abandoned apartments in several different states, including California."

"California? Are you serious?"

"No, but I find it amusing that you believed me." I grin, holding back a giggle. "I came back a few months ago to start over after some inspiration from… a person very dear to me. I was on the news and everything. I honestly found it so annoying. I still don't understand why parents insisted on making such a big deal out of it. Anyway, to sum it up. I was gone for a long time, and now I'm back."

"Holy crap." He says. "How did you manage to live on your own for that long? Did you live with someone or something?"

"See, I have the highest IQ in the city, so I can take in tons of information at a time. Before I left, I was obviously planning to do so. I spent a week around at the library, filling my little seven-year-old head with ideas on how to make it out there. It definitely work, because." I turn a quick three-sixty degrees for him as I'm walking. "Here I am, in the flesh. Athena 'Myung-hee' Park survived on her own. Why the world needs to know, I don't know. But there you go."

"At least the entire world doesn't know. I never even heard of that story until now. I mean, I'm sure it's been mentioned, but never made into a conversation." He looks around us, at stores and restaurant, as if he's looking for something. "Let's get something to eat. Garden Catering, or something. That sound good?"

"Oh, I love Garden Catering." I smile at his offer, but it disappears quickly. "Unfortunately, I'm broke right now. I only brought enough money for the theatre."

"I'll pay for it." He offers.

"No, it's fine. You don't have to."

"Seriously. I insist. It's just food."

Yeah, to you. It's just food. "Alright. Why not?"

He smiles, clearly pleased that I said yes. "Alright. Well, you lead the way. I know there's a Garden Catering here, but I don't exactly know where. We're headed in the right direction, right?"

"Yeah. Just follow me."

A couple of minutes later, we are at the entrance of Garden Catering. I hold the door open for Michael, then I follow behind him. We head to the counter to place our orders. "You can go and sit down, if you want." He says. "I'll order the food for us. Unless you didn't want to eat here."

"No, here is fine. Get me a junior with cones."

"Same as me. Nice." He smiles and looks at the employee, who is ready to take our order with her pen and pad. He tells her the order, and she scribbles them down. When she confirms it and walks away, he glances at me. "Can you grab me a Sprite?" he asks.

"Same as me. Nice," I reply, mimicking him. I turn and walk to the fridges. I open one up and take out two ice-cold cans of Sprite. I choose the table right next to one of the fridges and sit down, setting them in front of me. I sit there and stare at the window, twiddling my thumbs and waiting for him to join me at the table.

Finally, he sits down across from me, folding his hands on the table in front of him. "So, how's your day been?" he asks me.

I shrug. "Nothing special. Except for the fact that I met Robert Downey, Jr. and Gwyneth Paltrow. But then even that wasn't as awesome as I thought realize he was as much of a shit as Tony Stark. But other than that, it was average."

"Yeah, same here. The average part, not the Robert Downey, Jr. part. Woke up, got dressed, and wished my life was better than this, then went to the movies.

"Hm."

I don't remember how we got into it, but the rest of our waiting time, we talked about comics, Marvel movies, etc. we cover a bunch of subjects like Iron Man, Superman, Batman, Spiderman, Captain America, etc. I avoid Thor as much as possible. I 'm starting to miss Tom even more, and I don't feel like becoming depressed right now. After a while, Michael gets the food and brings it to our table. I take the few seconds of silence I have to realize: Michael and I are so alike? How is that even possible? We have so much in common, it's not even funny anymore. It's actually… kind of nice. I want to talk to him for hours, because, beside Marilyn, I really have no one to talk to like this.

"You know what I noticed?" He says as he rips his bag open.

"What?" I say, already starting at the cones.

"Your eyes." He says.

I look up at him, and he's staring into my eyes with a sort of light I know all too well. I can't quite look away. Something's holding me there, and I don't know why. "What about my eyes?" I ask him, sounding as natural as possible even though I'm sort of out of it.

"They're so beautiful. All dark brown eyes look the same, but yours… I love to look at yours."

I blush at his compliment. Why am I blushing? I nervously tuck a strand of my hair behind my ear. "Thank you." I say shyly.

"Beautiful, just like the rest of you."

Immediately, I look down at my food, my blush deepening. I wipe the smile away. I don't reply to that compliment. That lie. I just shove another piece of food into my mouth.

"Did I say something mean?" He says, trying to make eye contact again.

I nod my head. "No. its fine." I didn't even look up at him. I continue to stuff my face, keeping from saying OH YES YOU DID, YOU LIAR.

My phone buzzes once in my pocket, indicating that it was a text from someone. I take it out and open the message; it's a link from Marilyn that reads: ^^You need to see this!^^

"YouTube?" I mumbled to myself. I click it and open it in a browser. I want for the video to load up, then remain silent to hear what is playing on the screen.

"Tom Hiddleston, our ironically-beloved Loki, has been taking head quite a few headlines this week. Why? What about him has been holding the cameras' attention? It could have something to do with a certain 'mystery girl' that's been seen hand-in-hand with him in his photos. In fact, it does. 'Hiddles', as most of his fans refer to him, has been spotted numerous times in the city of Stamford, Connecticut. All the way on the East Coast. Why was he there? No one knows, really, but he seemed to have a hit off with a very lucky woman."

I raise an eyebrow as a picture of Tom and I dancing in the park comes onto the screen. It does really surprise me, however. I knew that was going to happen, and I also happen to know the park wasn't bright enough to show my face.

"Here he is dancing in the park with her. What a romantic scene! Sweet music in Columbus Park on what looks like a pretty chilly night. He's holding her much too close for her to be 'just a friend'. If you ask me. Doesn't matter, because this much of a sweetheart he really can be. This night had to have gained him points, because here he is again with the same girl walking into a Remo's restaurant not too long after that."

I have to admit. I'm a little surprised at the next photo that pops up. I don't remember seeing any cameras that day. I just went in, told what I needed to tell him. And left. At least, I think that's what happened. Or maybe it's a picture of when I was moving out of the Remo's bathroom. Oh, I don't even remember.

"They are absolutely adorable together. It's a shame no one got a shot of her face, really. I'm sure she was beautiful."

"What are you doing?" Michael asks, already finished with his small meal.

I hit the pause button. "Just watching a video real quick. I'm sorry, but the sender said it's urgent. It's almost done." I return to the video and press play.

"I just have a question for Tom, if he's watching. Why would find love in such a far away town when you knew you had to come back eventually? That's just a little bit messed up, isn't it? Okay, back to you guys."

I roll my eyes when she giggles after her question, as if it's some sort of a joke. I wonder if she even took a second to realize that he might just be getting over the guilt of doing just that.

"Something tells me that woman wasn't as important as it seemed in those pictures."

Excuse me?! My eyes widen when a picture of Tom and Susannah together in a music store. It shouldn't be a problem since there have been plenty of pictures of those two together. They only problem with this one is how new it is.

"You remember these two lovebirds, don't you? Tom Hiddleston was spotted with an old flame, English actress Susannah Fielding, in a guitar shop in Surrey. Seeing the smiles on their faces, we don't need a source to tell what's clear to see: they must have been flirting up in there. And look at her cheeks! She's blushing! Could Hiddleston and Fielding possibly get back together? Are they ready get back together? Are they ready to start it up again? Also, who was that mystery woman, and is she still in his life?"

That last sentence ends on a picture of Tom and I in the hallway by the auditorium in my high school. After a few more seconds, it fades out, and the little "Replay" sign appears in middle of the screen.

I close out the YouTube and set my phone on the table. The picture of Tom and Susannah is burned in my mind, along with the blonde lady's question: Could Hiddleston and Fielding possibly get back together? I mean, I don't know, bitch. You tell me.

"That looked a little like you." Michael says.

I stay staring at my phone, wondering how they got so many pictures of us. "What looked like me?"

"The woman they were talking about. I could see the pictures from here. The hair kind of like yours; your hair color's the same, your skin color, even your height."

He can't put this together. It's not possible. I just shrug. "Maybe she does look like me. But hey. It could be a coincidence. Things happen." I stuff another cone into my mouth. I can feel his eyes on me, turn my porcelain white skin blush red. But my mind wanders back to the picture. Tom wouldn't do that to me. I know he wouldn't. He loves me. He cares about me. He did everything in his power to make sure I'm safe and able to trust him. And I do. Now I do. I love him. I trust him. I love him. I trust him. I trust him enough that I know he wouldn't cheat on me. He's kept every promise he's made to me since we've met. He won't ever let me down after how faithful he's been to me.

Finally, what I have reassured myself that everything will be okay. I start another conversation with Michael, taking my busy mind off of Susannah before I get a bad headache.