Love is painful in two ways. It hurts to let go. It hurts to leave.
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Each time I caught him staring at me, he would just smile at me with an eyebrow raised and gave me a thumbs up, a sign asking if I was okay. I would just smile...
Early the next day, I went back to the city to get busy with the incoming photo exhibit of our gallery. I brought home many photos from my travels to Boston, but it wasn't enough as the directors screened out most of my works. Oh, yeah... I admit I'm still not a pro. I had meetings with the employees and attended virtual auctions with Min Ho. The next few days were a bit hectic. I had a few meet-ups with some art dealers, although it was all Min Ho's job to speak with them. My job was to observe the talk and tell him what I thought.
Finally, the day has arrived and half of the money to be earned by the gallery will be donated. I was upstairs looking over the people flocking in front of each work as they took turns to get a view. Grandes Recuerdos was the theme for today's exhibition, depicting the artist's childhood memories being relived through art.
"Ma'am," I heard Min-ho speak behind me.
Facing him, I saw an elderly man and woman in formal suits standing with him.
"This is Professor Aubert, a known art professor in France. This is his lady, Madame Emma."
I recognized the man. "Professor Aubert, I attended one of your lectures in Paris!" I greeted them with enthusiasm as I shook his hands. "And nice to meet you, Ma'am."
The old lady's tinted lips twitched into a smile as she took my hand. "Nice to meet you too."
"Your gallery is small, but it homes a lot of beautiful arts," the low-voiced professor commented while he adjusted his eyeglasses.
"Thank you, sir. I never expected that a famous art professor would visit our gallery today. This is a surprise for me!"
"I was here for a conference and decided to visit one museum before I could leave. I chose to come here after hearing that this gallery has an exhibit today."
"Thank you for coming, sir. It's my pleasure," I bowed. "My assistant will show you more of our displays. I hope you have a great time looking around."
"Sure, sure." They smiled and turned to leave.
"Min-ho," I pulled his wrist before he could attempt to leave with them. "Show him the most expensive artworks we have. He likes to collect arts," I whispered and winked at him.
Immediately, he got the meaning and showed me a thumbs up before catching up with the old couple.
"Ji Hyo-ahhhh!!"
A soon as they left, someone screamed from the stairs, making me sigh after sensing her familiar voice. It was from Lily. She wore a light-colored blue dress that reached her thighs, showing off her slim and fair legs and clear heels-ah, such a huge fan of Kylie- and a white sling bag that matched the color of her rhinestone hair clip that kept her wavy hair in place.
"Unnie, stop calling me with my real name!" I nudged at her as soon as she came. She was wrapping her hands on my arm and playfully leaning her head on my shoulder, giving me tickles on the nape.
"Ayyyyy, I'm sorry I got so used to calling you with that, Shanshan," she said and smiled, displaying her upper white teeth. "I went to see your works downstairs. They're really great! Are you sure you were the one who took it?"
"Are you teasing me, or is that a compliment?" I asked, crossing my arms.
"It's a compliment, of course," she chuckled, letting go of me and patting my shoulder. "Your works are getting lots of sales, so you are legally called a professional photographer."
I smiled at her compliment, making me shy. "How about we go to the office? You said you have lots of things to show me." I pulled her arm as soon as she nodded with a cheeky smile, giggling as we entered inside.
"There's not actually much," she said before throwing herself on the couch. "I made it a reason just to see you."
"Stop lying to me," I grinned. "Two coffees, please," I called to the staff, who nodded and left to follow my order.
Lily took out a thick envelope from her bag and spread out the photos on the table. "I just want to brag you about these photos I took." She smiled.
I picked one from the table, admiring how she took the photo perfectly. "Whoa, how did you manage to go to Australia while working as a commissioned photographer?"
She just answered with a smile as she showed me more photos of the wildlife of Australia. She was interested in trying different kinds of photography. We talked about many things related to arts while looking at the photographs she took.
"You know, my dream is to become an international photographer, right?" Lily asked, always bragging about her dream career.
"Yes, that's like the fiftieth time you told me about it," I answered while shuffling the photos in my hands.
"By the way, my birthday is next month. I am thinking of where to bring you for my birthday."
"How about a free ticket to the national museum?" I suggested. "I need to get some ideas for my next solo exhibition."
"Hmm... let me think about it first." She answered, wandering her eyes in the air.
"Fine. Happy birthday in advance."
After a few minutes, Min-ho entered the office in a rush. He was a bit flustered to see my friend whom he had a crush on but pretended to act unbothered. "Ma'am, we have a problem downstairs."
"What?"
We immediately got out of the office and went to the indoor balcony to view the people below.
"RM came to see the exhibit... with some BTS members," Min-ho spoke.
"RM? He really came."
"But I don't see any chaos, though?" I asked, looking around. "Make sure to alert the security if fans try to create a mess around the celebrities."
"Uh. T- that's not the problem, ma'am. One of RM's friends wanted one of the displays. BTS Jungkook insists on buying a not-for-sale item."
"Ah, Jungkook...what?" I furrowed my eyebrows with shock. "JK is here?"
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^^Photo: by @BTS_twt https://t.co/NSHCVsNsUv downloaded from Twitter
