Page 117 of A World Apart
“They’re just all so pretty,” Becka said for the third time.
“I know, right?”
“Who’s that, and why do they keep cutting to them?” Becka asked as the view once again cut back to a view of the audience where a group of three or four girls were clearly watching the show. They were all super pretty, even under the caps and layered clothes they wore. They must have enjoyed the performance, because they were giggling and pointing excitedly at the stage, just like I would have been. Something about them did look familiar though.
“I don’t know,” I said, frowning. “Let me look at the comments.”
“Already doing it,” Becka said, taking a long sip from her massive drink bottle while flipping irreverently through her phone.
“Who’s Lee Hyejin?” She wrinkled her nose.
I thought for a moment, trying to remember why the name sounded so familiar, until finally, I offered a silent apology to GVibes and Jihoon and pulled out my own phone, quickly tapping in the name. Immediately my screen was covered in pictures of a group I was aware of, but not familiar with.
“Ah,” I said, nodding my head, “she − and I’d guess the other girls − are members of a girl group also under ENT, PrettyYOUngthings.” I scrolled for a few moments more, reading the relevant information. “She’s the group’s maknae. She’s the lead dancer and rapper, apparently.”
“Good for her,” Becka garbled through a mouth full of ice.
Just then, I saw a thread that paused me like a tape deck. I hovered my thumb over it, giving myself the option of not opening that can of worms, but almost compulsively, I pressed down and watched as the page loaded.
First a picture of Lee Hyejin, a woman so blessed with good looks it was difficult to look away, and then to a picture of Jihoon, a still from one of his on-stage performances. He had his head thrown back with his eyes closed as sweat glistened on his skin. It was an undeniably sexy photo, and in this context, an undeniable implication.
Chapter 36
‘ARE BAEK JIHOON AND LEE HYEJIN DATING?’
The headline was as subtle as a brick to the face, so I had to hand it to the author for grabbing a reader’s attention.
Rumours are once again flying around the internet after eagle-eyed fans attending this weekend’s Incheon KPOP music festival spotted none-other than Lee Hyejin of PrettyYOUngThings in the crowd. Her disguise was not enough to hide her beauty, and even less so her obvious enthusiasm at Baek Jihoon’s solos during GVibes’ performance.
No official statement has been released by either group, or their shared management company, ENT. Let’s not forget though, fellow netizens, this is not the first time this pair have faced speculation over their romantic relationship! Both GVibes and PYT were trainees at ENT before their debuts and have been spotted in the crowds for each other’s performances. Given this most recent spotting, Vibers and Beautys are left to wonder: is this more than the simple friendship between two company members?
I couldn’t stop reading the article, although I wanted to. It was like prodding a cold-sore with your tongue; you knew it would heal faster if you just left it the hell alone. I just couldn’t seem to.
“Girl, just call him,” Becka waved her hand at me dismissively.
“I can’t,” I whined. “It’s mid-morning on a Monday, he’ll be doing stuff.”
Becka rolled her eyes at me. “Call him. If he doesn’t pick up, he doesn’t, but give the guy a chance.”
“Wow, you’ve come a long way from being suspicious of everything about him.” I observed.
“Yeah, well, that wasn’t getting me anywhere, and he seemed like a decent enough guy, so I changed my mind.” She shrugged. “Which is why I’m telling you to call him now, instead of stewing in the gossip of people who don’t know him.”
I nodded. She had a fair point. I got up from the sofa and walked towards my room, pulling up Jihoon’s number on Kakaotalk and then anxiously listening as the call went through.
“Kaiya.” The sound of his voice made my knees weak, and I shakily sat down on the edge of the bed.
“Is everything alright?” he asked when I didn’t say anything.
“Yeah, um. Are you busy?” I immediately felt stupid for calling over a rumour.
“No, just surprised. Are you sure you’re okay? You sound different.”
I tried to pep myself up, but the more I thought about asking him about a dating rumour, the sillier I felt.
“Yeah, you know what? I just called to tell you I watched the Incheon festival just now.”
“Oh, you did? How did you like it?”
