When Hoshi witnessed Jang-mi busking on the streets of Hongdae, he knew it was love at first sight - but with his idol status and her apprehension, fostering any kind of relationship would be extremely difficult. Especially when there are some plott...
Jang-mi awoke, the first rays of sunlight delicately streaming into the room. A grunt escaped her mouth as she rubbed her eyes open, soon stretching and rolling out of bed to begin her last day in the countryside.
"Good morning, halmeoni," she mumbled, stumbling into the living room. Her grandma was perched on the couch, knitting, a news anchor briefly going over last night's events on the TV. Her grandma nodded in greeting, the anchor finishing up his speech. Jang-mi sat down to watch.
"In other news, idol Jeon Wonwoo of Seventeen had been admitted to the hospital last night following an incident on the road. The perpetrator has been identified as Kim Jang-mi, a dancer with previous ties to the group. Wonwoo is set to make a full recovery within two months," the anchor stated, his face stony and indifferent.
Jang-mi paused, the world going silent.
Me? How could it be me?
Her vision began to spin, a kaleidoscope of colors enveloping her sight. Her head felt like feathers had replaced her brain.
"Dear! Are you okay?"
"But- how? It couldnt've been me- I was right here!" she cried out, her brain twisting and spinning into knots.
"I know, I know. It wasn't you. Sit back down, please, you're worrying me,"
Jang-mi plopped back on the couch, the carousel in her head finally coming to a halt. "I know who's behind this," she said, white-hot anger beginning to bubble up within her.
**
Throughout the night, Jang-mi's phone had been constantly blowing up with messages, from both friends and netizens alike. They ranged from words of concern over her wellbeing to language so colorful it could paint a canvas, and after the news on TV, things seemed to be getting even more heated online.
She sat on the front porch, the idyllic landscape a complete contrast to her panicked mood. She seemed to have fallen into an endless void of scrolling down forums and websites all gorging out their varied opinions on the situation.
Ruminating, Jang-mi cast her thoughts back to the first time things began to go wrong: that one practice session. She thought it was useless to investigate the message at the time, thought she deeply regretted letting it rest after what had just happened. With little thought, she opened the chat, the one message from an unknown number highlighting her screen.
???
you're fucking sick 10:13
10:13 oh?
why frame me for the accident? 10:14
10:14 that's not the worst to come xx
who the hell are you? 10:14 Seen
Sighing, Jang-mi dropped down her phone and took in the surrounding landscape she'd been so eager to enjoy. Bitterly, she finally realized she'd get no real respite as long as that person - whoever they were - kept doing these things to her. Jang-mi could tell it was due to her connections to Seventeen, Hoshi specifically, and that any sort of relation to an idol would only cause her pain - but she also knew that feelings could only be suppressed for so long.
She stood back up, going inside to start packing her things for the dreaded ride back to Seoul.
**
The atmosphere in the practice room was tense, the void caused by Wonwoo's absence seeming even greater with the silence that weighed down on the studio whenever there was no music playing. Jang-mi kept to herself, scared of approaching anyone in fear of the controversy being brought up.
She anxiously waited for the members to show up, knowing that the only person with a means of defending her was Hoshi; but even with that in mind, it was his word against the news. And what could he do when he was already embroiled in a scandal with her?
A few minutes later, the door swung open, the members of Seventeen slowly streaming in. They seemed bleak, not from exhaustion but from concern and lack of sleep.
"Okay. We're doing the section between VCRs one and two today. As you probably know, Wonwoo won't be here so we're just leaving a gap where he's supposed to be. If we need it, we'll have Jidae cover for him like he did with Seungkwan," Hoshi said, his voice drab and unenergetic. Dark circles pooled under his eyes.
Assuming they had just arrived when she saw them in the countryside, Jang-mi could infer that the ride back was a long and late one. She felt sympathy for Hoshi's tumultuous night, yet was still cautious of approaching him.
Though the practice was filled with unrest, it was nevertheless efficient, all the parts coming together like puzzle pieces.
As Hoshi was about to leave the room after dismissing the dancers, Jang-mi felt compelled to finally talk to him.
"Hoshi! Wait-" she called out, the performance leader whipping around at his name being called.
"You know it wasn't me, right?" she half-whispered.
"I know it wasn't you. You couldnt've been there in time to do it, and besides, you'd have no reason to," he said.
She felt like she could cry. Finally, a person that believed her. Someone who wasn't accusing her of a heinous act without any proper evidence.
"I don't know what to do... it's my word against the media's. They won't believe me,"
"I'll speak out about it,"
"No! You can't. Me and you can't be seen close, and this is just pushing i-" she argued.
"Why not?" he interrupted. "The scandal's already blown over for the most part,"
"I don't want to lose this job because of some crazy fans. I'm not letting you risk your career for me, either,"
"Fine."
Jang-mi watched him leave, his footsteps seeming heavier than before. She heaved a sigh before exiting herself.
** Mira
19:34 Did you just see what happened?
no, what? 19:34
19:34 Check Instagram
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