| Fan Fiction |
by shattered teardrops
Jan Di went ahead to Macau all on her own in her quest to meet Goo Jun Pyo. Ga Eul thought that it was very brave of Jan Di to do such a much unexpected thing. But at the same time, she worried over her friend’s sudden decision. Jan Di wasn’t exactly the brightest lass in class and being alone in a foreign country… well, she might be involved in some unforeseen trouble. The only person Ga Eul could count on making sure that Jan Di was safe, was no other than So Yi Jung. Ga Eul knew that the F4 wouldn’t just let Jan Di go alone in a foreign country by herself. The other F4 members might be Goo Jun Pyo’s childhood friends but it was also true that they have learned to value Jan Di, not only as Goo Jun Pyo’s girlfriend but also as their friend as well.
It had been two days since Jan Di left and Ga Eul already missed her. As Ga Eul stood behind the cash register of Soeul Sweets, she pouted and looked down trodden. She wondered briefly about how Jan Di was doing and soon after, found herself thinking the same thing towards So Yi Jung. Realizing the direction to which her lazy thoughts were heading, she secretly scolded herself. She was so caught up in what she was thinking that she failed to notice a customer suddenly entering the bakeshop.
“Do you know… where your heart is?” The voice of the man suddenly awakened Ga Eul from her trance. She found herself looking at the charming smile of Kim Jae Joong.
“Ehh? Uh… Is that another riddle?” She could not help but ask. On her face was an expression of pure surprise. Clearly, Jae Joong was no ordinary man. He was very fond of saying riddle-ish rhymes and sentences. He ultimately confused Ga Eul but nonetheless, Ga Eul could not help but admire his words. They were poetic and mysterious. Maybe that’s why Kim Jae Joong became a composer.
“If you want to know where your heart is… Look where your mind unconsciously goes when it wanders…” He continued. “Annyong, Ga Eul-yang…” He greeted. “I hope I’m not disturbing your work with my sudden visit.” He added and seated himself at an empty table.
“Aniyo… Of course not. We don’t have that much customer during this time of the night so, I guess, it’s okay… Uhm, might I ask why you came?” Ga Eul’s eyes were round and innocent that Jae Joong found himself being captivated by them as she asked him a question.
“Well, I could tell you that I came here to buy chocolate crinkles, but I guess, that would simply be a very lame excuse. Truth is, I wanted to see you.” Jae Joong’s bluntness caused Ga Eul to be wide eyed and puzzled. Why would the man want to see her? She had no idea. It would have been understandable if Seung Hyun suddenly showed up as the man worked on the restaurant next door as a dishwasher and janitor, but for someone like Jae Joong to suddenly want to see her? It was certainly odd.
“See me? For what?” She asked and got out behind the counter to sit by the chair opposite Jae Joong.
“Well, I haven’t seen you in months. I’ve been a little busy with work but I promised myself to check up on you.” He replied with a good-natured tone. His actions baffled Ga Eul. The man wasn’t even that familiar to her but he treated her as if he knew a lot about her already. And for the record, she only met the man twice. First, on Yi Jung’s exhibit and second, on the Phantom of the Opera play.
“Check up on me?” She asked again.
Jae Joong sighed exasperatedly. “Have you figured out what I told you? The one about the Phantom and the Casanova?” Jae Joong asked with an eager expression on his face as he leaned towards Ga Eul, waiting for her reply.
“Ehh? Uh… Choisonghamnida… I didn’t really understand a thing…” She admitted honestly.
“Aish…” Jae Joong slumped on his chair with a disappointed expression but immediately changed it into a smiling one. “I guess it was a little hard to figure out for you, huh? Anyway, what has Yi Jung been up to?” He asked, changing topic. After all, the main reason why he came to see Ga Eul was about Yi Jung. No need to be beating around bush now, is it?
“Yi Jung-sshi? Well, he’s in Macau at the moment. He and the other F4 went to see Goo Jun Pyo.” Ga Eul replied. She found herself arbitrarily thinking about Yi Jung again. Furthermore, she began getting infuriated at the thought of Yi Jung enjoying the company of foreign girls. Seriously, she hated his philandering ways.
“Sou ka… I mean, I see… And if you don’t mind, what has the philanderer been telling you?” Jae Joong asked again.
“Telling me? About what in particular?”
“Well, about your relationship with each other? Are there no changes?” Jae Joong asked. He was met by the sound of Ga Eul soft chuckles. The reaction puzzled him but he thought that she certainly looked endearing with her soft laugh. He wondered what was so funny about what he asked.
“Relationship? Is that man and I supposed to have a relationship?” Her tone was amused and there was a hint if sarcasm on the way she asked. “The last time I checked, that man told me that we shouldn’t see each other when it’s not necessary. That arrangement has been going on for months. What relationship are you talking about?”
Instead of being confused or disappointed, Jae Joong broadly smiled upon hearing her reply. “Looks like the Casanova know his own Achilles’ heel…” Again, with the riddle-ish sentences, Jae Joong puzzled Ga Eul even more. Noticing, Ga Eul’s perplexed expression, Jae Joong voluntarily apologized. “Ah. Mianhaeyo… What I mean is, So Yi Jung knows his weakness… Need I explain it further?” He asked.
“Uh… if it’s not a bother, please do… I can’t seem to understand the connection of the Casanova to Yi Jung and what about the Achilles’ heel? What does it mean?” She was obviously eager to understand the bit of information that Jae Joong was talking about. She was naturally curious so it wasn’t surprising for her to be so inquisitive.
“Well, So Yi Jung is F4’s Casanova. A Casanova is a classic term for a playboy, a philanderer. And in Greek mythology, the warrior Achilles’ body was invincible against any form of weapon, except on his point of weakness, which is on his heel. When an arrow hit his heel, invincible Achilles immediately died. So, when I said Achilles’ heel, it symbolizes weakness. Do you understand?” Jae Joong patiently explained and Ga Eul nodded in comprehension.
“So… you mean Yi Jung knew his weakness?” Ga Eul clarified.
“That’s right…”
“Eh… What does it have to do with me?”
Jae Joong gave out a hearty laugh. Ga Eul was certainly such a darling. She was clearly innocent, unassuming and naïve. Maybe that was the reason why Yi Jung was so drawn to her. She was clearly the type of girl whom Yi Jung would vehemently avoid. If Jae Joong had not seen how Yi Jung secretly watched Ga Eul, he would have dismissed that Ga Eul wasn’t his type. However, Jae Joong also knew that Yi Jung would not go to such lengthy extents just to watch a girl. There was clearly something deeper with his actions.
When his laughter died down, only then did Jae Joong gave a thorough explanation. “When we were young, Yi Jung and I used to be very close. He loved watching the Phantom of the Opera back then and when I asked him who his favorite character was, he did not hesitate to answer that it was Phantom. At that time, I could not understand why he liked the Phantom. But now, I think I’ve come to understand him. Yi Jung is a difficult man to tame, Ga Eul… But if you do, I assure you, he would stop being a Casanova for you…” Jae Joong’s features expressed seriousness just as his tone. For a moment, Ga Eul pondered on Jae Joong’s words. That was certainly something she did not expect to know about Yi Jung. For her, he was nothing but a mere philanderer who only toyed with women.
“Jae Joong-sshi…” Ga Eul smiled kindly but also too sadly for comfort. “I hate to break your bubbles but… I am not the woman meant to tame Yi Jung…”
“Ga Eul-yang… Do you believe in destiny? In fate? In lifetime partners? In soul mates?” Jae Joong unexpectedly asked. For a moment, Ga Eul was taken aback by his question. She was about give an answer, but before she could do so, Jae Joong already spoke again. “Haven’t you ever thought about the point of having choices when in the end, all would fall into place? Why were we given the freedom to choose when in the end, we’ll have someone who’s meant for us? Don’t you think that having a choice is completely in contrast to the idea of destiny and soul mates? I don’t mean to persuade you into giving up your belief towards soul mates. Actually, I would like to do the opposite. Let’s just say that sometimes, destiny also needs a little push… I’m willing to give that push for you, but I could only do so much if you won’t cooperate with me.” He explained.
Jae Joong’s words were deep and it got Ga Eul thinking. She also remembered how Jan Di aggressively made her own choice to see Goo Jun Pyo even if he was in another country. Could she be the same? Could she also make her own choice? Ga Eul was silent as she continued to ponder on Jae Joong’s words. Noticing that Ga Eul was still having difficulty in deciding, Jae Joong decided to give her more time. “Maybe I’ll come back some other time… I hope you could give me an answer then… It would be fun if we were to cooperate on capturing the Casanova.” He said and finally bid his goodbye.
Ga Eul was left to ponder on her own. Jae Joong’s words left a deep impression on her. He was clearly someone who was wise enough to think of such deeply complicated thoughts. Surprisingly, she could not help but ask herself a question she never dared to ask herself before. ‘Would she be willing to capture the Casanova?’ Her thoughts were abruptly halted when someone got through the door of the bakeshop. It turned out to be Choi Seung Hyun carrying two packs of noodles.
“I thought you might be hungry so I brought food.” He said with a smile.
For the past months, it was Seung Hyun who had been with her. Since he worked on the restaurant next door, it wasn’t hard for him to randomly see her and walk her home whenever her shift at the bakeshop ended. She learned that he had been working at night and going to school at day just like her. Apart from that, she also learned that Seung Hyun had been living independently on his own ever since his mother died. He was also earning money in order to support his younger sister who stayed with their Aunt as he was unable to take care of her.
“Komaowoyo…” Ga Eul gratefully thanked the man. “Say… Seung Hyun, why do some people call you TOP?” She asked as they were eating their noodles, remembering how some people addressed him as TOP when his real name was Seung Hyun.
Seung Hyun smiled uncomfortably. “Um… I don’t think you’d be delighted to know what it meant.” He answered with hesitation.
“I’m just curious… Come on… Tell me.” She insisted.
“TOP meant TOP fighter… You remember how I used to be in a lot of trouble before, right? Ever since then, people christened me TOP.” He lied. Though it was true that TOP stood for his reputation as the TOP fighter, he didn’t get it by getting into trouble. The main reason why people began addressing him as TOP was because he joined underground fights which were sponsored by shadowy kkangpae groups. There came a time in his life when he needed money. The only option he had were those fights. So, he joined. And he won one fight after another, until nobody had been able to beat him. For five consecutive years, TOP remained as the TOP fighter.
Eventually, he grew tired of fighting and made an arrangement with the promoter of the fights. He told them to look for the strongest fighter who would be able to beat his record. If one fighter manages to do so, he would fight to the death against that fighter. It was the only arrangement he could think of in order for the kkangpae lords to allow him temporary freedom from fighting. So far, no fighter has been close enough into beating Seung Hyun’s record and so, he was still free not to go back to the underground fights.
“You’re that good in fighting?” Ga Eul asked naively with a hint of disbelief. TOP smiled. Ga Eul reminded him so much of how life can be so carefree and beautiful. She was like a breath of fresh air in his badly beaten up twisted world. She was someone who was delicate and fragile, someone who should be taken care of. If only he could provide her a better life, he would. But then, if he pursued her, he would only taint her innocence. So up until now, he resisted the urge to tell Ga Eul how much she meant to him.
To be continued…
- - - - - - - - - -Preview of Chapter Fifteen: “Rivals Meet”
Yi Jung, Woo Bin and Ji Hoo decided to play hide and seek like they used too, only this time, Jun Pyo was not with them, and instead, they had Jan Di. Woo Bin became the ‘it’ and as he counted, the rest of them began to hide. Each one of them wore an intricately designed mask. His was silver colored with gold linings and sparkly gold glitters. Much like the Phantom, Yi Jung hid behind the mask and hid himself well.
For a brief moment, he wondered how nice it was to play hide and seek. He had always been hidden. He always kept things bottled up inside him. Would someone eventually find him? Would someone even try to bring him out of his hiding place? The one woman he had thought who would find him, never did. Would someone ever come? Yi Jung smiled acridly behind the mask as he hid from Woo Bin. Why fill himself up with hopes when in the end, he knew that his fate was to end up like his Father?
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A/n: No soeul on this one but there’s GExTOP and GExJJ moments! XD Let’s stiffen the competition now, shall we?
-oOo-
Date Written: March10,’09
Date Posted: March14,'09