LA LA LOVE YOU | LIZKOOK

xvi. city of dreams

Fast forward a couple of months and a lot had happened to the two most famous kpop bands on the planet. Blackpink had released their newest mini album with the title track, Ddu-Du Ddu-Du, breaking numerous records. They were making waves in the global market, extending their reach outside of music to fashion and beauty too.
BTS were also continuing their global takeover with numerous appearances on American TV over the summer with more upcoming after the release of Idol.
It was the first day of September of 2018 and it was Jungkook's birthday. They couldn't spend the day together but they had managed to spend a couple of hours wandering around Seoul, taking photos of the scenery and of each other and enjoying the quiet company together. Lisa posted a tribute to her boyfriend's special day on her public account with a photo he had taken of her that night.
She had fallen asleep looking through the rest of her photos. With both of their schedules so packed out, it had been hard to meet up at all, and even their phone conversations were becoming less frequent.
However, fortuitously, whilst BTS were promoting in America, it turned out that Lisa would be in New York for a fashion show at the same time that Jungkook was there. They had planned weeks in advance that they were going to spend a couple of hours that they both had free together, touring around New York and eating at a fancy restaurant.
Jisoo and Rosé were also travelling from Incheon with Lisa, as they were due to attend the Coach fashion show at the same time as Lisa would attend Michael Kors.
"What did you tell manager-oppa about tomorrow?" Rosé asked on the plane. The three of them were sat in first-class together and had immediately applied sheet masks and gotten comfy under their blankets for the long flight ahead.
"I was hoping you could help with that..."
"You want us to cover for you again!?"
Lisa slapped her palms together in front of her face to beg them to help her. "Please!!"
Jisoo sighed. "We can just say we're all going out to explore. We'll leave together and then split off so you can meet Jungkook."
"Thank you, unnie!"
"But I really think you should tell him. We're not rookies anymore, they can't expect us to not date anyone for the rest of our lives. I think manager-oppa will be okay with it!"
Lisa chewed on her lip in thought. Maybe their manager would be okay with it, but just the thought of one more person knowing put her on edge. And if he wasn't okay with it, would he tell Sajangnim and what would they do if they didn't want her and Jungkook to be together?
From the anxiety that was blooming on her face, Rosé placed her hand on Lisa's arm to ground her.
"Stop freaking out. I get the feeling your manager already knows."
"What?! Why?"
"He never looks fully convinced when we make up excuses for why you're not at the dorm. And I get the impression he's quite eagle-eyed."
"

Oh..." Lisa muttered. She shrugged and replied with her instincts. "If he knows and hasn't said anything, maybe it's best to not rock the boat."

-&-

"Unnie, Jungkook is on his way here. Let's take a photo before he comes!"
L

isa and Jisoo posed under their umbrella with their backs facing the camera. Rosé was their photographer and showed them the photo from her phone.
"Ohh, it's good! Thanks, Chaeyoung-ah. Use that if manager-oppa wants to know how our day is going!"
"Yeah, yeah, I got it, Lali. There's Jungkook now," Rosé pointed to a figure dressed inconspicuously in an oversized black jacket with the hood pulled up and black skinny jeans.
"Hey, Chaeyoung, noona," he greeted Rosé and Jisoo. He then greeted Lisa by pulling her into a side hug and affectionately kissing the top of her head. "Hey, baby."
She hugged him back around the waist and leaned into his peck. "Hi Kookie."
Rosé and Jisoo both snickered. "You're so adorable," Rosé said warmly. "We'll go now and leave you two lovebirds. Lisa, remember we'll meet you outside the hotel at 9. Don't be late!"
Lisa nodded her head and waved them off. It was already 5PM, so they only had a few hours with each other but they both knew they would make the most of it. When it was just the two of them, they entwined hands and walked in the opposite direction. They had made reservations at a fancy restaurant and planned to take a walk around the city and wander into Central Park after dinner.
They were feeling a little braver about being out in public as a couple as they were in a foreign country, but Jungkook had still taken care to wear a cap under his hood with clothes he wouldn't normally wear. Lisa had also brought a bucket hat along to shield her face slightly, but she had chosen to wear a little black dress and smart flat shoes, as they were heading to a nice restaurant with a dress code.
"Ahh, New York is so romantic," she remarked, glancing left, right and above to take in all the sights. It was already beginning to get a little dark and lights were starting to switch on here and there.
"Are you sure it's not just because you're with me?" Jungkook asked unashamedly, pulling her a little closer to make his point.
"Hmm," she made a show of thinking hard. "... I don't think so," she teased, pulling away from him. "Are you even my boyfriend? Are you sure we're not strangers?!"
He held onto his chest as if he had just been fatally wounded there. "Just because we haven't seen each other for a while-"
"And you haven't sang me a lullaby for the last month!"
"Ah, yeah, that too... But still, of course I still love you! I'll prove it to you by singing you your lullaby right here!"
He made a show of twirling her around and under his arm. Another couple walking behind them had to sidestep them to overtake, as Jungkook's flashy move took up most of the sidewalk.
He twirled Lisa into a nook of his arms and started singing to her as promised. His rendition of a slow Korean love ballad was loud enough to echo off the brick buildings around them on this fairly quiet street.
Lisa, as much as she loved the show of attention, clamped her hands over Jungkook's mouth with a laugh. "Alright, alright, I get it, Casanova! But people will know it's you instantly if you start singing with that honey voice of yours."
He couldn't help but lick the hand that was covering his mouth and she pulled away instantly in disgust. However, he grabbed onto her wrist with a laugh and pulled her closer before she could get away.
"You're dead meat, Jeon Jungkook!" she said simultaneously trying to wriggle out of his strong grasp while wiping her wet palm on the arm of his coat.
"And I love you too, Lalisa Manoban."
She rolled her eyes but gave into him eventually, lessening her struggle. "Eugh, you know I can't resist you when you say that."
He grinned his cheeky, infectious smile. "Say it back."
"I love you too, Jungkookie."
She was still a little embarrassed to say it, especially with his face so close to hers and giving her that intense, sincere expression, so she hid her face into his neck as soon as it came out of her mouth.
He chuckled and she could feel the vibrations from his throat.
They eventually pulled apart and carried on walking towards the restaurant.
When they got there and were seated in a private room, as requested, they were finally able to relax fully without the weight of potentially being discovered at any moment in the streets.
"I already know I want the steak!" Jungkook declared excitedly. This restaurant had come highly recommended by Bang PD himself who had helped reserve the private room for the couple at this exclusive restaurant.
Lisa took a bit longer to peruse the menu, but eventually settled for a pasta dish.
They both ordered in English. Lisa was comfortable enough with the language but Jungkook had to concentrate extra hard to not mess up his order.
"Ohh, your English is improving!" Lisa said, proud and impressed when the waiter had left them alone again.
"Thank you," he replied back to her in English with a small grin. "RM-hyung is helping me a lot."
"Maybe I should speak to you in English to help you too, just like how you help me with Korean!"
Their bottle of wine came quickly and the in-house sommelier poured a generous glass for them both before leaving again.
Lisa took the opportunity to say in English, "Wow, this wine is delicious. It's like the best wine I've ever had, don't you think?"
Jungkook handled the question with ease and nodded his head. "The wine is very delicious."
"It goes, like, straight to my head, you know?"
He looked a little more lost with her on this one but she repeated it again for him and used hand gestures. "It's going straight to my head. Just like your kisses."
He had seemed to understand the last word she had said, and with her cheeky, secretive grin he could make a good guess of the gist of what she said.
"My kisses make you drunk, huh?" Jungkook  said in Korean with a smug grin and a hint of a modest blush on his cheeks.
She laughed infectiously. "You got it, you really are good at English," she teased him.
Their food came out after. When Lisa took the first bite of her pasta, she closed her eyes and savoured the flavours dancing on her tongue, even making a small groan of agreement at the back of her throat.
Jungkook cleared his throat and distracted himself by the sight and sound by cutting violently into his steak.
His eyes went wide when he took his first bite and be couldn't help but do a little dance at the joy it brought him.
"Mmm, try this," he said, holding out a piece of steak on his fork to Lisa.
She reached forward and wrapped her lips around the proferred meat. She didn't mean to make it look seductive but when she glanced up and Jungkook's eyes were fixated on her lips, she couldn't help but tease him more and make her moves overly sensual. Making direct eye contact with him, she slid the beef off his fork and chewed slowly, savouring its flavour with a moan. When she winked at him and he guffawed back, her charade was over and she couldn't take it any longer. She burst into laughter, almost choking on her mouthful inelegantly, a complete contrast to her earlier act.
When he realised she was teasing him, his ears flared red, but he also laughed along. "I'm going to get you back for that!" he warned, pinching her thigh under the table to startle her enough to stop laughing.
"I'm so scared!" she replied sarcastically with a snigger.
They continued their meal with light-hearted banter and endless admiration for the food.
After they paid and donned their light disguises, they headed out back into the streets of New York City.
They carried on chatting and bantering on their walk, their hands entwined and blissfully high in each other's company.
When they reached Central Park, it was already dark so they didn't wander too far in. It was fairly quiet and they found a perfect picture spot in front of a large fountain. Lisa had brought along one of her cameras, and asked Jungkook to take a picture of her.
She removed her hat and coat and posed cutely, while her personal photographer took multiple snaps.
"Hang on, I want one on my phone too," Jungkook said, digging into his pocket for his iPhone.
"Oh? Am I finally going to be your wallpaper?" Lisa asked excitedly. It had been a point of mild contention in their relationship that Jungkook hadn't changed his background to her or at least them together at all.
"It might indeed be the day," he said, snapping a few more pictures of his girlfriend posing cutely in her little black dress.
They put the camera on self-timer and managed to balance it precariously on a ledge while they posed for a couple more photos. The artificial lighting from the park lamps helped to paint a romantic scene.
As the timer was counting down and Lisa was ready in her pose and had her 'v' sign up, Jungkook surprised her completely by wrapping his arms around her waist and lifting her up so her feet weren't touching the ground anymore. She squealed lightly and hastily grabbed onto his shoulders for stability. Just as the camera shutter went off, he had planted a deep kiss on her lips.
He let her down gently but didn't let go of her immediately. He had also taken off his hat and mask for the photo so she could see his beautiful face shining down on her and she smiled at him softly, completely content in the moment.
Not fifty yards away, however, the young couple were unaware that a phone camera shutter, that was neither Lisa's nor Jungkook's, had also gone off.