Fan Fiction 1: I LIKE YOU, KWON! – Chapter 4

Title: I Like You, Kwon!

CHAPTER 4

2 WEEKS LATER, WGM FILMING

Ga In had been out of the hospital for a week. It was her first day back at work. She went to WGM filming exceptionally early today. The moment she reached the location, she went to say her greetings and apologies for delaying the recording because of her health issue.

“Omo, our Ga In is back. Today’s recording, fighting!” The director, producer and the crew all welcomed her back warmly. Ga In smiled from the bottom of her heart. She really enjoyed working with these people. As she thought to herself, she had already reached the waiting room for her and Kwonnie.

“And here’s the person who I really enjoy being with…” Ga In thought to herself, a smile started creeping its way onto her face as she spied Kwonnie napping on the sofa with his earphones on. She stood at the doorway, remembering their last meeting at the hospital. She could feel heat rushing to her cheeks.

As if sensing Ga In’s presence, Kwonnie woke up from his nap. He sat up and started stretching. He turned towards the doorway and saw Ga In standing, looking exceptionally pretty with the blush on her face. He saw the shy smile on her face and look up at her eyes. They exchanged a look. Ga In looked away real quick. Kwonnie smiled, his lips were all the way to his ears and his eyes could barely be seen. The sheer joy of seeing her once again stunned him but he was slowly getting used to this feeling.

“Yeo bo~~ Why are you doing, standing there looking all stunned? Are you alright? “ As he stood up to walk towards her, what started out as a tease became concern when he remembered she had just recovered.

Hearing Kwonnie’s voice seemed to wake her up from her daydream. “I’m alright…” With that, she quickly walked into the waiting room to get ready for the shoot.

“Where are we going today?” Ga In asked after the director gave the signal to start.

“Noona, don’t ask so much. You will know when we get there.” With that, both of them got into Kwonnie’s car and drove out of the TV station.

“Noona, whose songs do you like?” Kwonnie asked, seeing that Ga In was extraordinarily subdued in the car. The atmosphere in the limited space within the car felt a little awkward. He was a little worried about Ga In’s health but he didn’t dare voice it out since they were filming. He cast a quick glance her way.

“Me? I’m your boss’s biggest fan! Do you have his CDs?” She replied excitedly. As if brought back from her fantasy world, she remembered that she was filming. She quickly got back into the scheme of things.

“Isn’t he having his “Bad Party” concert soon? I really want to go and watch him in action. But I doubt we will have time.” Ga In sounded disappointed at the thought that she won’t be able to see her idol in concert yet again.

Kwonnie heard her disappointment and saw the downcast look on her face. An idea started blooming in his head. He smiled secretly to himself.

With JYP’s songs playing on the stereo, they reached their destination very soon after.

Ga In looked up when he finally stopped the car. “It’s your dorm!! What?! Am I meeting the in-laws today?”

“Yup!” When Kwonnie heard her say “in-laws”, there was a strange feeling inside.

“Ah! I can see Ong Seul Ong Ong! Hahahah!!” With that, she got out of the car. There was a bounce in her step.

Her delighted laughter that followed the mention of Seul Ong’s name froze the smile that was on his face. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, as if to suppress a bigger emotion that threaten to invade into his joy. He regained his composure, took another deep breath and stepped out of the car.

2AM DORM

“I’m back!”

Kwonnie’s shout was greeted by silence. He was a little embarrassed by the lack of response and went into the room that Jin Woon shares with Chang Min quickly to wake the maknae up. Chang Min was not around as he had to go for his individual schedules.

“Jin Woonah, Jin Woon! Wake up! Your sister-in-law is here!” Kwonnie tried to exert his authority as the leader of the group and being the elder one of the two.

Jin Woon, upon hearing Kwonnie’s voice and that Ga In was here, pulled himself out of dreamland, well aware that the cameras were rolling.

“Oh. Hyung Su Nim (sister-in-law of elder brother), hello.” Jin Woon said his greetings politely with a bow. A broad smile appeared on his face despite the fact that he was still very sleepy.

“Hello. I’m his wife.” Ga In also bowed very politely towards Jin Woon. Her voice was very meek, very unlike her usual self.

Kwonnie was amused at the meek voice that he just heard coming out of Ga In’s mouth. By now, Jin Woon was fully awake and said that he needed to change. The couple walked out of his room and headed towards Seul Ong’s room.

The moment they stepped out of the room, Ga In ran towards Seul Ong’s room, pulling Kwonnie behind her, urging him to move a bit faster. The excitement on her face was obvious. Kwonnie’s steps were more hesitant. But he had to do it since the cameras were following them and he had to remind himself not to show his emotions on his face.

When Kwonnie pushed open Seul Ong’s room door, Ga In literally ran into the room, heading for the bed. She sat down heavily on Seul Ong’s bed, pulled the blanket away and started shaking him awake.

“YA! ONG SEUL ONG ONG!! WAKE UP! I’M HERE!! WAKE UP!!”

From her speech to her gestures, the familiarity that these two person shared was obvious. Kwonnie looked at the scene in front of him, his unhappiness could not be hidden no matter how hard he tried.

Seul Ong was now roused from his sleep. “In ah! Stop hitting me! Let me sleep for a while more! You knew that I went to bed late last night. Please~”

“What?! She knew he went to bed late last night? How?” Upon hearing what Seul Ong said, Kwonnie’s anger rose to a new high.  He took a deep breath so he won’t blurt out the questions that were swimming in his mind.

Noticing Kwonnie for the first time since Ga In burst into the room, Seul Ong caught the look on Kwonnie’s face before he looked away. He lifted Ga In’s hand that was on his arm even though he was enjoying the warmth, the animated voice and expression. She looked much better than when he last saw her at the hospital. He silently thanked God that she has recovered well. He turned to Ga In, looked at her hard one last time and then got up. “Alright, alright, I’m awake now. I need to change and wash up. Go wait for me outside.” Seul Ong said, sounded annoyed but beneath that annoyance was hostility, something Ga In has never felt before when it comes to her Ong oppa.

Ga In was shocked at his reaction and tone. Why was Ong oppa behaving this way? But she also realized that they were not alone, and this was not normal circumstance. She got off the bed and turned towards Kwonnie. Kwonnie seemed to have frozen on the spot. There seemed to be a hint of anger on his face. Ga In was surprised. She looked from one man to the other, both trying to avoid each other. Did something happen between the two of them?

“Yeo bo~” Kwonnie seemed to place special emphasis on the word. “Let’s go outside and let Seul Ong hyung change and wash up.” With that, he came over and linked his arms with Ga In. Half pulling her along with him, the two left the room.

Seul Ong looked at the backs of the two person in front of him. Ga In was playfully slapping Kwonnie’s arm and seemed to be reprimanding him. But her smile, her smile could not hide the joy that she was feeling with Kwonnie’s arm in hers. Kwonnie’s expression has also softened now that her attention was focused on him once again. He stole a glance at Seul Ong and his smile turned into a smirk, for just a fraction of a second. It was gone so quickly that had Seul Ong not been staring at them, he would have missed it. He turned around and started to get ready.

FLASHBACK: 2 WEEKS AGO

2AM DORM

By the time Ga In fell asleep and Kwonnie made sure that everything was alright with her and arrived back at their dorm, it was close to midnight. He had to make a trip to the company to explain to his manager why he left the filming early without notifying him. He didn’t tell him the whole truth, just said that something happened in his family. Manager Min did suspect it’s got to do with Ga In but he also knew that Kwonnie is very close to his mother. He didn’t question him any further but was worried nonetheless.

Seul Ong was sitting in the living room, staring at the TV. His mind was not really on what was showing on TV. He was waiting for Kwonnie to come back from the hospital. Kwonnie’s look when he saw him inside the elevator floated before his eyes again. He sighed heavily just as he heard the door open. It could only be Kwonnie as the other members were all asleep.

“You’re back.” Seul Ong turned and looked at Kwonnie.

Kwonnie walked into the living room, his usual relaxed self when he’s at the dorm with his members, especially Seul Ong, was nowhere to be found. He looked like he was going into battle.

“Good. You are still awake. I need to talk to you.” Kwonnie tried to put as much authority into those words as possible, wanting to show that he was in control.

Seul Ong knew what was coming. He remained calm and unfaltering, like the eye of the storm. He looked at Kwonnie, without saying anything but Kwonnie knew it was a signal to carry on.

“Fine. I shall not beat around the bush. Hyung, do you like Ga In?” He saw Seul Ong looking away and continued.

“That day, you knew from that brief meeting backstage that Ga In wasn’t feeling well. I know you are a trusted friend of hers and you have always looked after her well. But the care you show to Ga In is different from the care you show to the other girls. You agreed to take on the studio MC job because you knew I was paired up with her on WGM right? Kwonnie bombarded Seul Ong with all the questions that have been looming in his head.

“Yes.” One single word, that was Seul Ong’s answer. He did not bother with beating around the bush either. Why bother when it’s the truth.

“So are you pursuing her?” Kwonnie’s irritation was pushed up a notch at the calm and sure answer that he just heard come out of Seul Ong’s mouth.

“She doesn’t know or see it that way. To her I’m just a good friend and a brother-like figure.” Seul Ong paused and looked up at Kwonnie when he said the next line.

“I do not necessarily need to be her boyfriend. All I want is to be always by her side, looking after her, be there whenever she needs me. If she does find someone who she loves and wants to be with someday, I will give her my blessings as well.” The last sentence came out a little choked and that was the only hint of emotion that Seul Ong has shown throughout this entire conversation.

“Then, back off and don’t ever let her know how you feel about her. Don’t come in between us. Because the person who can give her the happiness she deserves has appeared – ME!  If you come between us…” In the face of what looks to be his strongest competitor, Kwonnie was forced to be honest about how he truly feels about Ga In. He could not keep it inside him anymore. Admitting it to Seul Ong felt right and he was surprised. And as the realization of what he had just said out loud slowly registered, there was another feeling, the feeling of liberation, like opening the lid to Pandora’s box. There are some feelings of uncertainty but beyond that, he was experiencing a joy that he had never felt before. That was amazing even to him.

Seul Ong knew what was the ending to Kwonnie’s last sentence. He knew Kwonnie was serious about what he just said. “This silly boy didn’t even realized how he truly felt until now.” Seul Ong thought to himself. And as he watched Kwonnie’s face soften with the realization, and the joy that was beginning to spread on his face, made Seul Ong pause and wonder if he could really entrust Ga In to this boy, no, this man standing in front of him.

“Fine. If you can really give her the happiness she deserves and wants, I promise I will not interfere. But what kind of assurance can you give me? Seul Ong asked Kwonnie calmly.

“Give me one month. I will prove to you that I’m Ga In’s happiness.” The expression on Kwonnie’s face was the same one that Seul Ong has seen since the first day he met Kwonnie. He knew that look, that determined look that was seen on Kwonnie’s face throughout his 8 years as a trainee in JYPE. He knew Kwonnie was really serious.

“Jo Kwon, I’m only going to say this once so please listen carefully. I love Ga In and I have protected her like she’s my little sister since she was 15. I would not allow her to be hurt. I promise you that within this month, I will not do anything. But, if at any point in time during this one month, I see that being with you cause Ga In to be upset or if you cannot give her the happiness that she deserves, don’t blame me if I step in and take her away from you.”

“Fine.” Kwonnie looked Seul Ong in the eye and answered without hesitation. Kwonnie’s answer was direct and his voice conveyed the confidence that he felt. He knew Seul Ong is a man of his word. “I am Ga In’s happiness.” He whispered to himself as he turned away from Seul Ong and couldn’t help smiling as those words warmed his own heart.

Seul Ong stared at the Kwonnie’s back as he walked to his room. He was sad that he has to let go of Ga In now because he knew that the boy who had been his teammate for the last 3 years has finally become a man. “Kwonah, please, do well. I believe in you.”

END OF FLASHBACK

BACK AT 2AM’S DORM, WGM FILMING

While Jin Woon and Seul Ong were washing up, Ga In also didn’t rest on her laurels. She went into Kwonnie’s room first and helped him tidy up his room. Although Kwonnie’s room was the cleanest of the 3 rooms, both of them still worked happily to make the room even tidier and cleaner. It’s not really what they do, but the fact that they were doing it together.

After 30 minutes, both Jin Woon and Seul Ong were more ready to face the camera, they sat in the living room to chat for a while. But as it was near noon, everyone’s stomach began to grumble.

“Hyung Su Nim~ I’m hungry~ Would you cook for us please?” Jin Woon the maknae put on a pitiful face and used his aegyo to make Ga In cook lunch for them. “I heard from Kwon hyung that you are a very good cook. Cook for us, please!!”

“Ga In ah, I’m also hungry! Can’t you cook us your best dish, egg stew? Seul Ong added to Jin Woon’s request.

Looking at Kwonnie’s teammates, Ga In could only agree.

“Alright, alright! I will cook lunch for you guys! But I have to warn you, I’m not a fast cook, so you have to be patient!” Having said that, she got up and went to the kitchen and started with the preparations for the meal.

After an hour, Ga In finally finished cooking the meal in the unfamiliar kitchen. Using what she could find in the refrigerator, she made egg stew, fried meat and grilled vegetables. Everything looked fantastic and the portions were also adjusted to feed the boys with beastly appetite.

After the first taste of the food, Jin Woon exclaimed, “WOW! This is really delicious!! Thank you, Hyung Su Nim for the meal!”

“It is really good! You have not lost your touch! In fact, you seemed to have improved! The egg stew is so good!!” Seul Ong added.

“Omo! YeoBo! This tastes really good! Even better than my mother’s cooking!!” Kwonnie felt really proud that all his members all praised Ga In for her cooking. Every time Jin Woon calls her “Hyung Su Nim”, he felt something inside him, that tingle that felt strange at first but it felt… right. He smiled happily.

“Eat more then.” Ga In was a little tired from all the cooking preparation and didn’t feel like eating. Her gastric was acting up again. Knowing Seul Ong’s keen eyes would detect her slightest discomfort, Ga In got up and used the excuse of cutting them fruits to escape from the dining table.

“Hyung! You are really lucky to have gotten Ga In noona as your wife! She’s not only pretty but kind and a great cook!” Jin Woon, always candid, especially after being fed a great meal, proclaimed loudly.

Kwonnie, upon hearing what Jin Woon said, couldn’t help breaking out in a broad smile. He felt like he was on top of the world. He turned to look at Ga In’s back as she stood beside the sink to cut the fruits. “Yes, indeed. I must be the luckiest man alive!” He thought to himself.

Beside the sink, Ga In wished that the filming would end soon because the pain was making her weak and she really did not want to collapse in front of all of them, especially Kwonnie and Ong oppa. She could feel something was going on between the two men but she couldn’t put her finger to it. After cutting the fruits and presenting it to the boys, she went towards the bathroom. She took out her handphone and sent a message to Manager Joon.

“Joon oppa, I can’t go on much longer. My gastric is acting up again. Help. Can you please call the producer to tell her about my condition? But please tell her to be subtle. I don’t want the boys to worry about me.”

After sending the message, she got up and splashed some water on her face. Luckily her face is pale so it was not noticeable to most people that her face was now a shade whiter than usual. She took a deep breath in an attempt keep the pain at bay. For now, it’s mind over body. “Son Ga In, you will not faint. Just a while more, bear with it!” Ga In mouthed the words softly, as if reminding herself.

As soon as Manager Joon received the message, he quickly called the producer for WGM and passed on the message. The producer understood the situation and approached the director. The director ended the shoot after the boys sang “Propose” as a congratulatory song. Ga In immediately thanked everyone and was about to sneak out when Kwonnie said, “YeoBo, Joon hyung is not here today? Let me take you home.”

Ga In could not refuse Kwonnie’s offer as she didn’t want to arouse any suspicions. Amidst much teasing from the staff that the two of them couldn’t get enough of each other, they said their goodbyes, left the 2AM dorm and walked towards Kwonnie’s car. The moment they settled down in the car and Kwonnie drove off, Ga In fell asleep. Partly because the shoot had been a tiring one but also because she was really not feeling well.

“Yeo bo? Yeo bo?” Kwonnie called out to Ga In and when there was no response, realized that Ga In was out cold. “I had wanted to chat with you, but now, it seems like I shall have to be content being your chauffeur.”

Looking at Ga In’s face, her long eyelashes touching her cheeks. “Such a pretty face…” With that, he reached out to softly stroke her cheeks. He felt the chill on her skin and thought that the air-conditioning in the car was too strong. He adjusted the temperature, turned behind to get the blanket that was on the backseat and covered Ga In with it. After that, he drove towards the BEG’s dorm, holding Ga In’s hand throughout the whole drive back.

When he arrived at the BEG’s dorm, he didn’t want to wake Ga In up. He picked up his phone and called Narsha to get her help to open the door for him. He got out of the car, went over to Ga In’s side and lifted Ga In into his arms. He carried Ga In all the way up to BEG’s apartment, went into her bedroom and put her down on her bed. After he had settled her properly on the bed, he got up to leave. JeA and MiRyo were making a ruckus about how caring their Jo Seo Bang is. Kwonnie smiled at their comments, said his goodbyes and left. No one noticed the dismayed look on Narsha’s face. She turned to look at Ga In who was lying on her bed and wondered once again, if she would be able to handle the two men’s feeling towards her.

END OF CHAPTER 4