Love Letters And Triangles

Chapter 11: New Beginnings

I get up the next day and I look in the mirror brushing my hair. Two years had gone by since I moved to Seoul and my life had turned completely upside down. I moved out of my college dorm into the lavish one provided by the entertainment company I now work for and a working actress slash what Wikipedia calls "TV personnel" since I've never really acted in the television show to be considered a TV actor. My mind goes on and on and realizes I had spent half an hour putting on makeup, my mind on autopilot and I was able to finish. 

Kai was sweet. Some parts of me feared it was just for the cameras. I heard a lot about celebrities being like that but he wasn't at all. He was gentle in the way he spoke humbly in the way he got up and didn't ask and just went to the kitchen and clean the dishes without asking. Before we arrived at my apartment I sensed everyone around the production team liked him. He stood up while waiting, smiled at everyone passing him by. He even joked around with a couple of staff he must have known from previous projects. He was so effortlessly playful. 

The doorbell rings and instantly I'm sent to panic. He was early? A whole hour early! WHY? 

I throw on a white bathrobe though I'm dressed and rushes for the door. It's him through my intercom. 

"Hi..." He greets with a waving hand and smiling eyes and I couldn't help but fill my face with the same smile but I brush it off and I unlock the door and let him in, a lighting guy and cameraman behind him.

"Hi." I bow "You're a little early," with my hands covering my smiling face. 

"I wanted to see what you look like before you get ready.." He teased.

"But I see you already are. Excited to see me?" 

"Hmm, I was in the middle of getting ready and you're here a whole hour early, who do you think is more excited?" I shot back with a warm smile to let him know I'm open to more jabs I just can't promise I won't retaliate. 

"You're quick." He smirks. 

When he walks in I realize he was carrying a duffel bag. I queue him to sit and he takes a spot on the floor by the coffee table and opens the bag. 

"So I brought a few of my personals." He starts rummaging through the bag.

"Personals?" I look at him confusingly. 

"My manager says this is like moving day for me. I need to bring some things that are mine that will make it appear as if I live here." 

"Where will you put it with all of my stuff already in places?"

"You can't make the room to get rid of some things?"

My eyes grow big and my face freezes. I slowly walk over towards the wall bay beside the kitchen and start to look around at my things. I have a lot of things. My books, picture frames, memorabilia, that I hadn't planned to get rid of any time soon. He was still rummaging through his bag and he had just pulled out a stuffed fan toy and a toy figurine that might have been one of those assembled once you buy for such an expensive price. 

"Oh, this? Not my thing. It's Chanyeol's he insisted I take it here, he says the fans will just know. Also a Mnet trophy, this is just the perfect thing to display and appropriate, right?" He holds it up to me gleamingly.

I take it from his hands, amazed by being in the presence of an EXO history I turn to the cameraman, "I would like to thank my fans."

Jongin breaks into hysterical laughter. I could not bear to continue and start laughing at myself as well. I look at the trophy and it was for Artist Of the Year. 

"I can't believe you're displaying a daesang in my apartment." I peer at him

"Our apartment." He corrects.

I remove a display of heavy books in the center part of my bookshelf and place the trophy there. 

"Deserving," I say. 

"What?" He asks

"I'm putting it in the center where it deserves," I respond. 

"You worked hard for it... no other place than there." I look at him proudly and he offers a friendly smile back.

"I'm just going to my room and finish getting ready." I continue

Can I look at your room?" He asks throwing me off my tracks.

I froze, confused. Confused because I have a clause in my contract that we would not film in my bedroom, nervous at what he'll see once I let him. 

"We can't get footage there." I look at him innocently. Why was he asking so suddenly? My heart starts to raise and blood rushes to my head for no reason. It was a simple question and I can say no. But there was a part of me that felt comfortable enough to show him, another part utterly ashamed already. 

"That's true, I brought a keyboard by the way." He changes the subject and takes out a small red lap keyboard that can almost pass as a kid's toy if it didn't have a vintage feel to it. 

"I saw and bought it in Shanghai and it's my wedding present to you." I take it from his hand in shock I kneel on the floor with the keyboard in my lap.

"Can you play?" He asks and I nod. I haven't been near a piano since I was 16 and stopped playing. It had a ribbon on it holding down a card with my name on it saying to look in the back. 

In the back engraved it wrote, "To Lee Jay Ni shi.. for your first of many movies. You worked hard, very well done!" 

My eyes pierced at the message, fighting not to let out a twinkle of tear. My heart was also overwhelmed by the gesture my insides fighting the urge not to burst out crying from all the emotions I didn't realize I'd been holding on to. The last year had been a dream but it was nonstop, I was so preoccupied with everything new, sometimes I felt like I was living someone else life. 

The feeling was like opening a present on Christmas morning being surrounded by love once from home. Home. That's what it made me - so dang homesick I wanted to vomit from the emotion itself. I've never wanted to cherish an item more. It felt like something more than the piece of plastic it was made out of. I wanted to display in something that was protected by glass. I look back at him and the sunlight reflected on his face and I felt warmth unlike any since I left home. I wanted to hug him but was unsure of the response that I would get that I refrained. I looked him in the eyes instead and deeply thanked him. "It's one of the most beautiful things I've ever received."

A little after I had made him a french toast breakfast with freshly squeezed orange juice. 

He sat down eating every bit and says," I don't usually eat sweet breakfast like this but it was kind of perfect eating it with you for some reason and it was really delicious."

I felt the same way but little did he know I chose to make it for aesthetic purposes and I had very few ingredients to work with. Never has anyone told me they'd enjoy what I made as I wasn't the most confident in cooking. A little bit after he dabbled around with the keyboard and back and forth on his phone looking up piano tutorials while I cleaned. I finished and sat down fairly close to him. 

"What do you want to do today?" The cameraman won't leave for another hour so I suggest we take a quick walk around the neighborhood since it was a cloudless sunny day. We both put our shoes on and headed for the door.