Chapter 17
She’d regret it later, but Jiyeon had to ask. “Erin. Is that an acronym, just like Eric?”
Today’s Prism lackey had wispy bangs and a long, thin face. Pearl earrings, teal dress, nude pumps. Smiling, she said, “You’re so observant, Miss Han. E-R-I-N stands for almost the same thing, except for the last letter, of course.”
“Right. What does the N mean?”
Erin smiled, baring teeth that were a dental and orthodontic masterpiece. “Neutralize.”
Well, that was pleasant. Jiyeon went back to combing through outfits, perusing the rack labeled ‘Emma’ with one eye on the clock.
She was supposed to film an interview soon.
An hour had passed while Erin held forth on the kind of tone and body language that would best align with Emma’s low key, minor supporting role.
No deviating from the script. No referencing Apollo members by name or hinting at personal ties.
The fans were much too suggestible. They could take the smallest detail and run wild with it.
“You should show some emotion, but don’t go overboard. You love your brother, you love your family, you love your family’s cute little restaurant. Apollo? Fun people. Very talented. If the producers push you for it, you can say the members are sort of like brothers to you.”
“Oh, sure. They’re like my brothers,” said Jiyeon, “except I don’t love them.”
“Perfect! Such a professional. You’ll sail right through this.
” Erin summoned the stylists. “Okay, we’ll do these earrings with the flowers.
Her followers will remember those. We should throw them a bone, but let’s go with plain black for everything else, like the regular diner staff. Get us more of that by tomorrow.”
Jiyeon changed into the clothes that Erin wanted her to wear.
She let them plait her hair into Emma’s old standby, a braided bun.
She still opted for the same style multiple days a week, working at the shop.
It was almost possible to believe that this was an ordinary shift.
Here she was, dressed for work. Unfortunately, having to answer interview questions ruined the mirage.
She’d just finished when the cameras reoriented themselves, fixed on the main entrance. Jiyeon realized that the producers were directing a new arrival. “Great energy there. I think that’ll work, Mr. Hong.”
“Oh, it’s just Arthur,” came the breezy reply. Jiyeon ducked behind a partition. She’d forgotten he was scheduled to come in today.
At the apartment on Ivy Lane, in the bedroom she shared with Janie, there was a corkboard covered in pictures from high school.
These were crowded with the youthful faces of old friends.
In the largest, Jiyeon had her eyes closed, laughing.
The joke was forgotten, the moment lost, but the boy beside her remained frozen forever in a dramatic pose: down on one knee, brandishing a fake sword.
Arthur Hong, hero of the hour. The star, the protagonist, the main character.
And here he was now, polished on the outside, virtually unchanged on the inside.
If Jiyeon didn’t know him so well, she’d assume that the producers had dressed him to fit the image of ‘respectable attorney’ before recording his interview.
He always looked like this, though. The impeccable tailoring and jubilant expression were just standard Arthur.
He hadn’t seen her yet. There was still a chance to put this off a bit longer. But Jiyeon found her escape route blocked by Eunjae, who exited the kitchen at the same time she tried to enter it. He caught her by the shoulders to prevent a collision. The touch was swiftly withdrawn.
“Sorry,” said Eunjae. “Didn’t want to ruin your clothes.” Indicating the pancake batter spilled all over his apron, he added, “I’m kind of a mess right now.”
“That’s okay. I’m the one who almost ran you over.” Were they being overly familiar with each other? Did she have a stupid smile on her face? Jiyeon backed up another step. She said, “You look like a successful diner employee.”
“I know,” he replied, laughing. “Some of the batter even turned into pancakes.”
“See? You’re hired.”
“Emmie!” Arthur’s polished shoes came tapping across the floor at a clip. “Yes! You’re here!”
Jiyeon turned to greet him, accepting the inevitable. She felt Eunjae’s hand at the small of her back. He’d forgotten himself for a second. “Yeon-ah,” he whispered. “Is that Arthur? My Arthur?”
“Oh, he’s your Arthur now? Really?”
Cameras pivoted in their direction, magnetized to Arthur’s every move. “Hang on. Are you…? Have we…?” Arthur dropped his voice, nudging Jiyeon with an elbow. “Emms, is this Ari? My Ari?”
“He’s your Ari? Since when?”
Her comment was lost in a flurry of exuberant greetings. Eunjae came forward and Arthur grabbed him in a hug. “This is him,” he yelled at the top of his lungs. “This is my pen pal!”
Brothers tumbled into the room. Their presence went unnoticed. Arthur and Eunjae were absorbed in conversation, the former yammering away about how exciting it was to meet in person, and wasn’t Monroe just a hidden gem, and wow, the bird-watching around here! The lake life! Just excellent!
The cameras ate it up, but Max stepped in front of Jiyeon, convinced that this stranger might trample her by accident. “Who’s the fucking Disney prince?”
“That’s the lawyer,” said Kazu, snapping his fingers. “Right? The guy who helped Ari with the contract?”
Jiyeon was now surrounded by men in pastel diner uniforms. She wondered how they’d managed to elude Denny’s watchful eye. “Uh-huh,” she answered. “Arthur Hong.”
“Ding, ding, ding,” said Jesse, giggling. “Yay! Zuzu was right about something!”
“He’s a Hong, too? Aww! We need to be best friends!”
Nicky popped up. “Hear me out, Gyu. Cage match, no weapons, last Hong standing. Wouldn’t that be a fun game? Wouldn’t it be so funny?”
“Shut up,” Kei hissed at everyone in general. “Why are you so loud?”
As for Jungwoo, he tapped Jiyeon on the shoulder. “You dated him, didn’t you? Before?”
“So what if she did, hyung? Why do you care? What does it matter, that’s over now—”
They scrambled when Denny showed up, ordering them back to the perils of new hire training. A producer pulled Jiyeon aside. “Emma, could we see you again around 2:30? Then you and Arthur could interview together. Unless… well, would that be awkward? Given your history.”
“It’s all good,” Arthur answered for her. “We get along fine, no worries.”
“Great! I think we’ll do a solo interview and then get you in there with Ari once Apollo’s done in the kitchen. Okay with you?”
“Yes! Can’t wait!”
The producer scurried away. Eunjae said he’d better get going as well. “The boss sent me out to find something and I never came back. Don’t remember what it was, anymore. I’m in for it.” He went on to apologize for not being able to hang out longer.
“No worries, buddy. I’m out here for the whole weekend.
Thought I might as well, since I’ve never been to Monroe.
Heard the farmer’s market is epic.” Arthur whipped out his phone, swiping to a calendar app.
Meetings, appointments, and social events were arranged in color-coded blocks up and down the grid.
“Let’s see. That’s on Saturday. Hey, if you’ve got a couple hours free, we should go! The stalls stay open until 8:00.”
“Ah, I could try. Think we’re only filming in the morning.”
Pleased as punch, Arthur tried to wrap an arm around Jiyeon. “You too, Emmie. Come with us. It’ll be fun.”
“Can’t, sorry.” Sidestepping out of reach, she explained, “I take over for Denny on the weekends.”
“Whaaaaat? So I’ll end up missing him?”
This was unacceptable. Arthur marched to the kitchen, determined to at least say hi to Dee-dubs. “Oh, quick question. I meant to bring this up when I ran into you at Gloria’s, but you were getting a haircut, and then I was getting a haircut, and then the aunties… yeah.”
“Sure. What’s the question?”
“I just have to know if you changed your mind about that place because of me.”
Jiyeon frowned. “That place… what place?”
“The salon. You were thinking of signing a lease, right? In that new shopping center? Your dad told my dad. Then I started worrying that you turned it down just to avoid me, since that street is on my Monday-Wednesday-Friday running route.”
Arthur prattled on about his daily jog, the sanctity of his morning routine, and that one time Jiyeon switched gas stations because they bumped into each other there.
So dramatic! She heard just a fraction of what he said.
The pounding of her pulse was suddenly so loud, even louder than Apollo’s raucous laughter in the other room.
And up ahead, Eunjae faltered in his steps.
He forgot himself again, forgot that the cameras were rolling, turning to Jiyeon with a dozen questions in his eyes.
There had been so many chances to confess.
Busy at the shop, she’d missed her shot at that retail space when the leasing agent called in August. Someone else snapped it up within the week.
Other units were available, with more square footage, but that wasn’t what she wanted.
She let it go. Every time she tried, Jiyeon couldn’t bear to break this news to Eunjae.
“It didn’t work out,” she made herself say, because Arthur was still waiting for a response. “That wasn’t anything to do with you, though.”
“Oh, okay. I feel better. Ari, did you know she wants to open a salon?”
“Yeah,” said Eunjae, quietly. “I did know that.”
Memories of summer rushed by in reverse.
It was September, August, July. It was the second week in June, and they were at Lowell’s for the evening grocery run, waiting another five minutes while her dad combed the aisles for steel-cut oats.
Eunjae had a map pulled up on his phone.
Typically so mindful of maintaining space, he’d never chosen to stand so close to her before.
Within seconds, she forgot every item on the shopping list.
See? It wouldn’t have the best view, but it faces west. You could watch the sunset.
She’d felt the shift when it happened, like a tremor in the earth, like the first breathless drop on a roller coaster plummeting from the sky. Something had changed.
How stupid of me, Jiyeon remembers thinking. What would she do when he left? Because he would leave, of course. There was no Ryan Kim. He was a story she made up inside her head. His secret would catch up to him eventually, regardless of what it may be. Secrets had a way of doing that.
How stupid of me, she thought to herself now. Why didn’t I just tell him?