None of Us Saw This Coming

December, 2018: Have Yourself A Merry Happy Christmas

"Have you brought your passport?"

Irene was at the back of a black sedan on her way to Incheon International Airport for her scheduled flight leaving for Osaka with her manager repeating the list he had memorised well to make sure Irene did not miss a single item she was supposed to carry with her. It was a personal schedule—personal, as in; it was not one arranged and engaged by the agency, not even her CEO or anybody else from the company knew about the special occasion.

Blackpink was scheduled to have their final Blackpink Arena Tour at Kyocera Dome Osaka the next day and since Irene had missed their first-ever concert in Seoul, then she was planning on making it up by attending their final concert in Japan. The thought of it made her excited that she could not wipe off her smile all the way from their dorm to the airport and her manager Oppa had been the sole witness for the ever so unusual sight of a giddy Irene.

"Nobody can be as happy as you are after spending that kind amount of money, you know. You're unbelievable."

Her manager stared at her from his rearview mirror, sighing in surrender. He could never understand the way Irene thought; the woman chartered a bloody private jet so she could slip in and out of Seoul without notice. 'It would only be until the next day, Oppa,' he remembered her saying and having weak arse as he was, he could not deny her puppy eyes and involuntarily agreed to help her chartering a bloody jet so she could go and see Blackpink's concert. He even went miles to hire two people to accompany her; Tomohiko Touko and Hasekura Noriko, two women who were participating in taking care of the girls during their Red Room Tour and Red Room Tour Hall—those Irene had been familiar with.

"I've contacted Tomohiko-San and Hasekura-San, per your request," he saw Irene nod but seemed to be not giving a single fuck about what he just told her. She looked like she was just there for a good time. So he just continued, hoping the woman would not get lost like the last time she did, "They will be waiting for you and picked you up once you arrive. I made sure everything was settled once you arrive. Don't wander off yourself like the last time you did, okay?"

He could still remember how panicked he was when Irene was gone for over two hours after saying she would only go to a hotel across from where they were staying last year. She got lost, so she said after he found her sitting in a quiet alley quite far from her original destination, eating the cake he brought her. Until that moment, he still could not figure out whatever it was that happened that the scaredy-cat Irene could sit in a quiet alley so late at night when he himself would have shat his pants just from the thought of being left alone there.

He trusted Irene knew what was best for herself and would not do anything that screamed possible trouble, but as mature as she was, Irene was sometimes just as impulsive and that impulsive nature was what he could not trust. He was against the idea of letting this particular woman who had not the slightest sense of direction travel alone without any supervision from him personally; moreover, he was doing what Irene told her without any consent from the agency. So, from the look of it, he was smuggling the idol, and should they ever be caught—or should ever something go terribly wrong, he would definitely lose his job with a list of legal prosecutions chasing his arse.

It was not like Irene was prohibited to conduct a solo travelling abroad, plus it was supposed to be the Christmas holiday anyway, so it should not be a problem, but when she did do so, it was expected that she notified the company, but the process might take a while—it did not suit her impromptu trip. Hence she opted to take matters into her hands and fly back and forth under the radar in less than 24 hours.

"This is madness, Irene," her manager Oppa sighed in defeat.

'Yes, it is indeed madness, Irene,' Irene silently repeated it in her head.