Beyond The Stage

Being Watched

Alexis's POV

I unpack my toiletries and put them on the counter top in the bathroom. I leave my clothes in the suitcase, too lazy to put them away just to have to put them back one week later. I planned to buy clothes and other things here anyways, out of convenience. I'm not hungry thanks to that sub I got back at the airport. Everything else would have to wait for later, because a girl has to sleep.

I timed the flight so that I would leave during the day, and arrive in Korea at night, but I didn't sleep on the plane. That way, I won't have too much jet lag. But being awake for thirteen hours is a lot, I'm surprised I haven't passed out yet. I decide to go straight to sleep and take a shower in the morning.

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In the morning, I'm barely awake after being woken up not once, but twice in the early morning. The first time, was at 2 am because dear old mother wanted to check up on me. She didn't remember about the little thing called time zones. I reminded her what the time was, but she still asked me questions, saying that it's fine because, 'she's my mother.' As if that gave her an ultimate pass for everything. It did, really.

The second time was by my brother, who called me at 7 am. I didn't see the name, I just put it to my ear. I was about to hang up up as soon as I heard his voice, but he told me Eddie was on the phone, so I stayed. I talked to them for about thirty minutes before ending the call. I decided to get up, since I knew I would be sleeping in way past noon if I went back to sleep. So now, I'm forcing myself to get out of bed.

I groggily walk to the bathroom, nearly walking into the wall. I take a shower with the soap I brought with me, and my own shampoo and conditioner. I use the hotel's conditioner to shave my legs and armpits. 

It's a bit weird, having a glass shower. Back at my college, I could leave my phone on the toilet while showering to play music. It was close enough so that I could reach out and change the song if I didn't like it. Being able to see out into the bathroom and not having the toilet within an arms reach is strange to me. There is no homely feeling here. 

Rinsing my body off, I step out into the cold and hastily grab the towel from the floor. The counter top was a few steps away, but it seemed like walking out into the middle of the alps, so I just put the towel on the floor in front of the shower.

I brush my hair while it's wet, untangling the waves so that they neatly cascade down my back. Like always, I leave my hair alone to air dry while putting on my clothes and brushing my teeth. I rinse my face and put moisturizer on, finishing up my morning routine. I never put on makeup. It's too much work, and I never got into it. My face is mostly smooth, put I get a few pimples every once in a while. My genes can only make up for so much of my laziness.

Grabbing my phone and the room keys, I go to the dining area to get the complimentary breakfast. There are eggs, bacon, sausage, oatmeal, waffles, and every morning dish I could ever think of. I pile my plate high with a little bit of everything. I eat that and a little bit more before I put my plate away.

I brought my wallet down with me, so I leave right after eating. "Bye, miss." I say to the receptionist from yesterday.

She waves, probably having already forgotten my name. I don't blame her, there's no way to remember every person who comes in and out of the hotel.

There are only two days until the concert, then two days after that. The trip is a week, but that also includes the flight and yesterday, which wasn't really a "full" day since I arrived at night. So my seven days in South Korea is really five days. Today and tomorrow, I'm going to go around, eat, do touristy things, whatever I can find really. Then the day of the concert, and two more days of random activities.

I walk out and start walking randomly. Some Koreans stare at me, because of my foreign looks, but not for long. There is a lot of tourism in Seoul, so an American isn't anything new to them. I simply greet them back. 

A group of teenage girls walk by with BTS merchandise. One of them sees me staring at the pouch with Jimin's face on it. "Do you like... Bangtan?" She asks me in English. The other girls stop and turn around facing me.

I reply in Korean, "Yeah, I'm here for the concert." 

She looks relieved, "Ah, you speak Korean, that's good." I laugh at her response. 

Her friends talk to me now that there is no language barrier. "Unnie, you're really pretty." They nod.

"Unnie? I'm not that much older than you. Why don't you just call me Alexis?"

They introduce themselves before asking me about the concert. "Ah, you're so lucky. My mom won't let me go to the concert." The shortest - Jung-Ah - says.

"Me neither." The girl next to her - Nae-mi - complains.

"It's fine, there will be more. Next time, make sure to annoy them non-stop so they have no choice but to take you." I share my wise advice. They laugh at that. 

"Or go with a group of friends, so they won't get worried. It'll be more fun too." I tell them this as if I've been to an endless amount of concerts, but in reality, I haven't been to one. This will be my first concert.

"Are you going with your boyfriend?" The oldest - Hyun-mi - asks.

My who now? I look at them in confusion. Hyun-mi points to something behind me, "Isn't he your boyfriend? He's been watching you for a while now."

I look behind me, to where she's pointing. There is a Korean man, who looks to be slightly older than me. When our gazes meet, he turns around and pays quite a bit of attention to the shrub. I don't know what this is, but it is bright daylight outside, and the streets are crowded with people. If this is a kidnapping attempt, it's very poorly thought out. 

Just in case, I send the girls off, "Why don't you guys go walk on that side?" I point across the street. "I saw on Google that there is this new store with a bunch of limited edition K-pop merchandise." 

They get excited at my lie. "Really? Where is it?"

"Turn right there, and about five stores down." I point at the intersection. They say their good-byes and thanks as they leave. Hyun-mi looks skeptical, but she goes along with her friends.

When they leave, I start walking again. I turn back after five minutes, to see the man still following me. He looks away, and puts his phone, that had a black screen, to his ear and pretends to talk to someone.

I turn the corner sharply and make a full one-eighty, standing in the direction of on-comers. I hear someone start jogging. He turns the corner fast, but stops when he comes face-to-face, with my pissed off self. 

"Who are you?"