(Guide Us to) A Million Stars

10

I stared at Tae in disbelief. The video, leaked from the MV taping, was still playing on his phone.

"The company thinks I posted a video of the MV on the internet?" I asked, lowering my hands from my mouth.

Tae pursed his lips and nodded. He put the phone away. "Everyone was part of our staff. You are the only one they can think to do this," he said, sheepishly.

Walking down the hallway with heavy steps, I passed him and stopped. With my back still to him, I asked, carefully, "Am I in trouble?"

Not wanting to hear the answer, I braced myself for the worst. What was the punishment in the K-pop industry for someone who leaked a video? Or maybe it wasn't a big deal in this business and they just ignored it to avoid any negative press. Realizing my question almost made me look guilty, I spun around to face Tae. "I mean, I didn't do it."

"I know," he said, leaning against the wall with his hands in his pocket.

"Do you believe me?"

"I believe you."

The way he looked at ease told me he didn't think this was a big deal. "You seem very calm. Isn't this bad news?"

Tae cleared his throat and closed the gap between us. He looked at me intensely and I had to look away. Not only was I nervous, but I was disappointed in myself for doing something so stupid. I shouldn't have accepted his invitation to visit the taping.

"The company will try to find the poster. They said if it is you, they will make you leave this place. I do not want to believe that will happen. To me, the leaked video is not really bad news, but if they make you..."

I nodded as he spoke then raised my head to meet his gaze when his voice trailed off. "So, they'll kick me out of this apartment? What am I gonna do? How can I prove it wasn't me? Can I talk to Bang PD?"

Tae's arm flinched, then he put his hands in his pocket like he didn't know what to do with them. Maybe he could hear the desperation in my voice. "It is okay. You cannot talk to them but I will talk to them. I tell them you are trusting."

"Thank you. You're pretty cool, Tae. But I guess I should let 'Learning E' know I might need housing after all."

"Wae?"

"Yeah. I found out they offer housing to their employees. I could live in one of their apartments."

Tae pouted and even when he seemed serious it was still adorable. "Then we cannot meet like this." His eyes darted around the apartment. It was true that this place was very convenient for meeting for English lessons. In the same complex, without any crazy fans or stalkers following him. The company kept tabs on him every time he left the building. But here he could come over anytime, as many times as he wanted. With their canceled schedule, that was a lot and I was there for him.

"If you still want me to be your English teacher, we can always do Zoom."

"That is not in my vocabulary," he deadpanned.

I took a step back to collect my thoughts. The threat of forcing me to move made me ashamed and I didn't want that to jeopardize my time here in Seoul. "Well, then look it up. I have four other students on Zoom. What's the big deal?"

I took another step to turn toward the kitchen table where the English books were set up. Then I felt his hand grab mine and slightly pull me back. First I glanced at our hands, then up to Tae's face to see him take a deep breath. He bit his lower lip. "Suni..."

A silent beat. "Yes?"

It seemed he wanted to say something but couldn't find the words. Then he let go of my hand and walked ahead of me to sit at the table. "Nothing," he said as he started writing in his workbook.