Chapter Text
“Mark Tuan, leave my food alone or you'll regret it!”
“But you're not eating it.”
“I will when I have time,” says his sister, directing a fierce glare at him.
“Jen, look how it dwells there all alone, waiting to be eaten and nothing happens. It's sad.”
“Mark!”
“Listen! Do you hear that? Jen? Jen? Eat me! Or give me to your nice little brother!” Mark pretends to speak as his sister's food. Apparently food has a whiny voice.
“I swear, I'll kill you. You eat all the time anyway.”
“So why stop now?” he retorts, grinning.
“Here, take a chocolate bar but keep a distance from my meal!” she warns and takes the treat out of her desk drawer.
“Yay, chocolate! That's even better,” Mark cheers and leans back into the comfortable armchair in the corner of his sister's office. His sister is the company founder and therefore occupies an individual office. The publishing company, specialized in manga releases, always had been her dream. And when it came true, Mark witnessed just how capable his older sister was in leading the company. It impresses him every day anew. And he does enjoy seeing his sister happy and active.
“Mark, what are you actually doing here again?” she asks, calmer now as she's no longer afraid of having her meal robbed of her.
“Hanging out with my great, independent and smart sister?” he answers casually while he slowly savors the melting chocolate.
“I won’t throw you out, even when you’d stop dropping compliments here and there. You know that, right?”
“I know. But I was just stating facts.”
“You’re the most successful actor in your age group these days. Shouldn’t you be out there, conquering the world, throwing parties and buying whole shopping malls just for the fun of it?”
“If I ever start acting like that, please punch me,” he demands dryly.
“It just feels a little off, you sitting here and wasting your time just watching me work.”
“But I love that. I like hanging out here. And I like hanging out with you. Watching you work fascinates me somehow. You created all of this out of nowhere and you handle everything like a real adult-”
“I am a real adult.”
“- like you exactly know what you’re doing-”
“Well, I know pretty much what I am doing.”
“My point is, I am very proud of you. And I like watching you fulfilling your dream more with each day,” he finishes with a fond smile.
“Little brother, how come you’re the sweetest creature on earth?! You do realize all of this wouldn’t have been possible without your financial support, especially in the beginning days, right? Your acting career funded everything here.”
“So? Money is one thing, but you did all the work. You put so much effort in everything, I knew it would be a success right from the start.”
“Thank you. But you’re praising me so much while you have this amazing career going on. Shouldn’t you live a little more on the glamorous side of life? Hanging out with actor friends, taking selfies for your social media, show everyone how awesome you're doing or something?”
“I don’t really have actor friends. It may surprise you but a lot of actors, especially young ones, tend to be obnoxious and cocky. Not the company I feel comfortable with.”
“I’m worried about you, Mark. You’re still so young. You should get out more, experiencing things, and you should have more friends.”
“I have Youngjae and Jackson,” he reasons calmly.
“Your manager and your stylist, really?” she asks and raises a brow.
“Still they are my friends. And where exactly should I go out to?! People recognize me pretty quickly on the streets. It’s fun to talk to fans but it’s not that I can go out just like everybody else can.”
“I know. I know that but you’re supposed to live life to the fullest. But I also see that your half-assed disguise doesn’t provide you nearly enough protection from being recognized.”
“Huh? What do you mean? This is working just fine. Nobody here does know who I am.”
“Are you kidding me? You’re wearing fake glasses and a cap, and you already think you’re an undercover agent? Absurd!”
“It works in manga, doesn’t it?” he questions with a wide grin.
This earns him an excessive eye roll. “Yeah, but manga is manga and real life is real life. And you really think my employees don’t recognize you? They are absolutely fawning over you. They are just too shy to chat you up. But every time you casually walk in here, suddenly all of my staff is temporarily useless, just staring with red faces and heart eyes.”
“Ugh.... really?… I didn’t know that. Sorry,” he replies, suddenly feeling guilty.
“Typical for my oblivious little brother,” she says, a smile playing on her lips while she's shaking her head. “But nothing to be terribly sorry about. After all I'm really glad I get to see you often. But now you have to leave. I have someone coming for an interview in a few minutes.”
“Who is it?”
“A college student who's applying for an internship during his semester break.”
“Let me stay! I’m going to be all silent, sitting in the corner.”
“Yeah, that absolutely wouldn’t freak him out, if I'd conduct an interview with him in front of a famous actor. Sure,” she says, her words dripping with sarcasm.
“I can just use my disguise,” he offers enthusiastically.
“Mark, I love you but get out now!”
(*^▽^*)
Jinyoung practically skips the way back home. He is so happy, his heart is almost bursting. He just finished his job interview for an internship in his favorite manga publishing company. And he actually nailed it. Not only will he be able to gather experience for his future work life during his semester break, he also learned that his boss is a very nice woman, who truly seems to care about manga and also about the well being of her employees. His dream came true with this recent success. He will be surrounded by artists and editors and proofreaders the whole day while he'll learn how the processes in a publishing company function. His passion for manga and everything that has anything to do with it was the driving force for his choice of employment. He was worried about meeting the criteria to get an internship in such a popular publishing house. But he lucked out today and now everything will run smoothly.
He bounces up the driveway to his family's spacious urban villa. When he swings open the front door he's greeted by Mrs. Jung, the head housekeeper, who has been part of the household since Jinyoung can remember. Despite her age she's still very lively and spirited. Plus if you'd ask Jinyoung, she's the kindest person in the whole house by far.
“Jinyoung, I'm glad you're back already. Your parents wish to speak to you,” she says, her expression revealing a hint of nervousness.
“They are here?” he asks in utter confusion.
“Yes.”
“Both?”
“Yes.”
“And they want to talk to me?”
“Yes, as I said.”
“That can't be good. Oh no, what's going to happen to me?” he whines.
“Jinyoung, it might not be a bad thing they want to discuss with you….maybe?”
“Yeah right,” he snorts. “Thank you for trying Mrs. Jung but we both know something's up with that,” he sighs.
“Whatever it is, please try to make the best out of it,” she advises and offers him a pitying smile. “They await you in the parlor.”
“Even the parlor....oh boy.....what have I done to deserve this?” he mutters under his breath as he sets down his backpack and makes his way to the said room.
When he pushes the double doors open, both his parents look up from their devices. They are seated in their favorite plushy arm chairs. His last information about their whereabouts stated that his mom was in Shanghai, promoting her upcoming musical tour and his dad should be in Singapore, filming for his next movie. Of course they both would act as the leads in their respective projects, they always are. But now here they are, sitting in front of him like it would be an entirely common situation that they would greet him after coming home.
His mom beams at him, standing up and crossing the room to pull him into a hug. “There is my cute nerd. I missed you so much.”
Jinyoung flinches, not because of the hug but the new nickname. “Mom, why are you calling me nerd?”
“Your sister told me you liked to be addressed like that. She said it's a cool way to call out to suave boys nowadays,” his mom explains.
His sister, of course it was her, is telling their parents trash like that just to make fun of him. That figures!
“Mom, it is not. It's an insult,” he corrects, trying his best to stay calm.
“What? No, that can't be the case. Your sister wouldn't say something like this. You must be wrong,” his mother marvels.
“Yeah, of course it's me who is wrong,” Jinyoung mumbles, every word drenched in sarcasm. His mother isn't listening to him anymore anyway. Instead she grabs him by the arm and gently pulls him across the room. He takes a seat on the huge leather couch, feeling a little lost there, all alone.
“Father,” he says and nods as a greeting and acknowledgment.
“Jinyoung, good to see you well and healthy,” his father says and offers one of his typical actor smiles.
Small talk is his father's hobby, he isn't good at it but he loves to do it. Jinyoung on the other hand wants to find out about what's going on. “I didn't know you two planned to come back here so soon. Is something up?”
“Oh it's good to be home once in a while,” his dad replies vague. “How are you, son? How was your day?”
“Great actually. I applied for an internship in that very awesome publishing company and they really recruited me. So now I have something useful to do during my semester break,” Jinyoung explains very excited.
“Good, that's very good, son,” his father utters absentmindedly. “We have something to discuss with you, Jinyoung.”
Of course his father wasn't really interested in what he told him. He just asked to fulfill his hobby of doing small talk. Jinyoung should have known. He isn't terribly hurt by it, he is more than used to it actually. He just sits there now and waits for the bomb they surely will drop on him.
“Jinyoung, your sister needs your help with something,” his mother starts.
“And she can't ask me herself?” Jinyoung's expression turns into a frown while his parents remain unfazed.
“Well, she thought it would be better if we would convince you of her request's importance,” his mother says, still smiling. His mother always smiles. It's her thing. She would bravely smile through everything. But if she could support her daughter, she would always smile truly and genuinely during it. But the thought that his parents came flying back from other countries just to convince him to help his sister gives him chills. The request they will make is definitely greater than usual.
His father speaks up again, “Jinyoung, there's an audition for a commercial. Your sister would like to participate in.”
“Then she should feel free to do that?”
“There's more of course. They are looking for two girls for this particular commercial, sisters to be exact. She is talented but of course she alone can't be two people,” he states and laughs a very fake actor laugh.
“Uh-huh” is the only thing Jinyoung manages to reply. His insides are already twisting in disagreement of what will follow.
“Since you're her only sibling, she needs your help.”
“I'm not a girl,” Jinyoung blurts out the obvious.
“No, my angel,” his mother chips in, “of course not. But you are her brother with a very pretty face. So pretty, with a little makeup here and there, you would look just as pretty as Sohee.”
“You can't be for real,” Jinyoung splutters, completely bewildered.
“Jinyoung, just be open minded about it,” his father tries again. “You would help your sister a great deal, if you both would be able to get this commercial deal. You know her career could use a little boost and representing such a famous brand will be doing wonders.”
Of course he knows that. His sister did a few commercials and had a role in a fairly successful movie. Her career started promising but then she did an advertisement for a new cosmetics line based on cucumber. And what else is there to say, it epically flopped due to some medical issues with the products. After that she was mainly known as Cucumber Girl. She desperately tried to get rid of her past but was only semi successful. Through their parents' influence she got some smaller parts in dramas. But nothing was big enough to wipe out her cucumber history so far. And now, of all people, he is supposed to help her out.
“No, I can't. Absolutely not. It's impossible. It's not only that I am not a girl, even though that should be reason enough not to get into this. But can we talk about the other obvious problem here? You're all into show business, so of course for you it wouldn't be a problem. But I never did even something remotely similar to acting. I have zero experience. So even if some miracle would make me look like a girl, how would I be able to pull that acting stuff off?”
“We think you would do good. And we are professionals so we can judge this, Jinyoung. Besides you're part of this family and that means acting talent is in your genes. Believe me angel, there is no need to fuss about that,” his mother chirps.
“Besides, we think it would be good for your brother-sister bond to do something like this together. It will be a nice experience for both of you,” his father reasons.
Jinyoung thinks that the best thing for their brother-sister bond would be if one of them would move to the other side of the world. Of course he can't say that. His parents would think he's the universe's worst brother. He might be, he's not sure about that. But for some reason he doesn't want his parents to think that. He knows he shouldn't care about what they think. Since he can remember, he wasn't more than his older sister's accessory, her minion, her toy when she was bored. Their parents focused all their attention on her. She did commercials and acting jobs from a very young age on. She loved it and their parents loved watching her doing it. They were proud she followed in their footsteps. It's a character thing, Jinyoung always thought that. Sohee needs all the attention and encouragement, while Jinyoung does not so much. He always was the calmer, more reserved sibling. And so it happened that his sister grew up to be a little star while he grew up to be just another commoner. But he loves his commoner life. He doesn't have any regrets about it. He just wishes for a little bit more acceptance from his family for it.
But instead of acceptance they throw this ridiculous request at him.
“I really don't think that's a good idea. I'm not a girl, I am inexperienced and I have my internship to attend to. I won't even have the time,” Jinyoung explains in a desperate attempt to make his parents understand.
His father sits up and straightens his back before he retorts. “Jinyoung, to make this clear, you will help your sister with this. She needs you so you will support her as good as you can. We are a family and that's what family members do for each other. We do understand very well that this is an inconvenience to you but for the sake of family, you have to do it,” his father claims with a crushing finality.
Jinyoung only gapes at him, not able to answer anything.
“My angel, you will be so good. I know you will give it your all to secure this commercial together with your sister, right?” His mom is smiling, still.
“But I-”
“Jinyoung,” his father adds, “you will do this and you will try very hard. Otherwise we might to have reevaluate if the fees for your literature degree are truly well invested or if we should look for other career choices for you.”
Jinyoung understands. It's modern blackmailing. So much for what family members are supposed to do for each other. He doesn't have a choice if he wants to finish his studies and eventually get his dream job. He admits defeat and slowly nods.
“Good,” his father says and suddenly his actor smile makes a comeback. “I assumed we would eventually reach a common understanding. Sohee will give you all the details. Thank you for your time. You're free to go now, son.”
Jinyoung gets to his feet and leaves the room like a lethargic blob. He hears his mother's silvery voice calling after him, “You will do great, my angel. I'm looking forward to seeing the good results.” His mom really knows how to apply pressure without actually meaning to. He shuts the big doors behind him and trudges away. He still can't believe what just happened.
“Are you excited, nerd?” the teasing voice calls out to him from the stairs. His older sister is sitting on the steps, obviously waiting for something, waiting for him.
“YOU! This is all your fault. Why do you have to drag me into your mess?” he growls in reply.
Sohee leaves her seat on the stairs and walks towards him, seeming completely unfazed by Jinyoung's statement. “It's not because I think you'd be super talented, obviously. And it's also not because I am really looking for some sibling bonding time. I just need somebody, a sister, who stands beside me while I show my talent to secure this job,” she says and smugly smiles.
“Why? Why is this commercial so important that you even ask our parents to blackmail me into helping you?”
“Blackmailing? That's a very nasty word,” she says with a smirk on her lips. “See, this commercial is for a very famous brand. Being the face of this brand for a while is probably the kick off for much bigger projects to come. This is how this business works. And since they want sisters for their concept, I can't help it. Besides, our most dangerous competitors are the Cho sisters. And they are sickeningly cute,” she spits with so much bitterness that he wonders if one of the Cho sisters personally ripped Sohee's favorite plushie or something. “So you better step out of your nerd-self and give it your all. We can't lose to them.”
“I don't care about Cho sisters and I don't care about that commercial.”
“But you care about your tuition, right?” And there is the evil smile Jinyoung despises so much. This smile means she wins and he loses.
“I guess that means you suggested the blackmailing part to mom and dad, too, huh? Yeah, I should have known,” he utters, the crushing feeling of being defeated yet again, hitting him.
“I see you understand the importance of this project now. Here's the schedule.” She shoves some papers into his hands. “There you will find the concept of the commercial together with the time table. Be super early on audition day! Jaebeom has to turn you into Park Jiwon after all. And heaven knows how long that might take.” With these derogatory words she turns around and leaves him standing in the hallway.
Jinyoung leafs through the papers, contemplating how a day, which started out great, just turned into a huge mess.
(*^▽^*)
Mark stares through the tinted car window. But he isn't really aware of anything outside the moving car. His mind is way too preoccupied with everything that lies ahead of him today. Subconsciously he frowns while he's rubbing his temple with the heel of his hand.
“Why are you so grumpy?” Jackson asks from the seat beside him, observing Mark with a skeptical look.
“I’m not grumpy. I just don’t see any sense in today’s activity. That irks me.”
“So you say you’re grumpy.”
Mark responds with a disapproving growl.
“Ladies and gentlemen, the young protagonist is out of humor today. He desperately tries to make sense of-”
“Jackson, stop narrating my life! You know I hate that.”
“Look Mark,” his manager, Youngjae, butts in, “you’re actually allowed to choose your partner for your upcoming commercial shoot yourself. That’s a huge act of faith, the company trusts you that much. Can’t you appreciate it a little more?” Youngjae reasons calmly as he turns around to look at him from the front passenger seat.
“But I don’t care about that. I care about acting and that’s it. If I do the commercial with Cinderella it’s fine. But if I would film with Quasimodo it’s just as good. Because. I. Don’t. Care!” Mark points out.
“But people care. They want to see you with Cinderella,” Jackson tosses in.
“I know they do. But it’s stupid....ugh!”
“You’re really special, you know? I don’t even know how you got this far in the business with such a humane attitude,” Jackson says in awe.
“I can’t even tell if it’s compliment.”
“Me neither.” Jackson grins and shrugs.
Youngjae speaks up again, “But one thing is as clear as day, every other guy would be over the moon if he could just choose from a bunch of pretty girls, all auditioning to act with only him.”
“What if I make the wrong choice? What if she turns out to be untalented? What if I ruin someone’s life by not choosing her? Oh my god… what if I ruin someone’s life by choosing her?” A sudden panic engulfs Mark.
“You worry too much. Just choose someone! It’s a mere commercial, not a freaking 200 episodes drama series, Mark.” Jackson advises.
“Since everyone wants me to do it so badly, I guess I don’t have a choice. I just want to show my discomfort with this whole thing,” the actor grumbles.
“Yeah, we got that already,” Youngjae mumbles and rolls his eyes.
“Good,” Mark says with grim satisfaction. “Will there be food at least?” He desperately tries to find a positive aspect.
His friend and stylist obviously thinks his question is scandalous. “How can you always think about food? No, the more important question is how can you consume food, in huge quantities, and still manage to look like that?” He underlines his question with an over-exaggerated hand gesture towards Mark's body.
The actor opts to only shrug in response. This seems to fuel his friend's outrage even more. “If I were to just lick an apple and not even swallow I’d still gain weight.”
“How is it my fault?”
“Can you at least show some sympathy for your friend?” Jackson demands with a deadpan expression on his face.
“Uhm…. too bad?”
“You know, for the very great actor you are, your real-life acting skills are terrible,” he says with a snarl.
“My real-life acting skills?” Mark laughs for the first time today. “You mean I’m a bad liar, yeah?”
Jackson huffs. “It’s still early in the morning but I am already done with you.” He crosses his arms in front of his chest and looks out of the window on his side of the car, deliberately avoiding Mark.
“Fine with me, though,” Mark says lightheartedly, only knowing too well that Jackson will be over it in a couple of minutes.
“Hey Mark, how about going out and do something wild this evening? Maybe it will cheer you up a little?” Youngjae suggests, trying to sell this to Mark by using his most enthusiastic voice.
“Something wild? I'm not interested.”
“You're not going out much. You need to live a little. It's good for the soul.”
“Why is everyone telling me that?” the actor groans and rubs his temple again.
“Youngjae is right,” Jackson suddenly butts in again, all teeth and smiles, acting like he never was pissed at Mark. “You should go out and get drunk properly.”
“Maybe not that,” Youngjae declines, his face looks like he just had a bite of lemon.
“Or you should go partying with a few girls, blow some money and get laid,” Jackson animatedly puts forward.
“Jackson, can you maybe suggest things that won't ruin his image?” Youngjae asks blankly.
The stylist tries again. “What about wild sex in a public-”
“Okay, you definitely can't do this, Mark! I thought about going out and seeing a movie or visiting an amusement park or a festival. Things like that.” The manager sighs deeply. Mark knows he wishes for the car to arrive as soon as possible.
“I really appreciate your effort, guys. But I'm actually fine. I live like I want to and I am content with it. No need to worry, alright?”
His friends are exchanging uncertain looks, Mark notices. But both of them are murmuring short phrases of understanding. He knows they don't believe him but he just can't be bothered to continue this discussion. Instead his thoughts are shifting back to the impending task. Like Youngjae, he wants to get out of this car but on the other hand he doesn't want to arrive at the studio. Nevertheless he knows that there is no way he can avoid today's mission.
(*^▽^*)
When Jinyoung arrives at the appointed time at the appointed location, together with his friends, he gets greeted by the family’s main stylist, Jaebeom. Jaebeom looks at him with a very blank expression. As always it’s hard to read him. Jinyoung is not particularly close to him. Jaebeom has worked for his family for two years already. Sure, they met briefly several times but since Jinyoung never needed to consult him for any jobs because he always stayed away from show business, they never exchanged more than just a couple words.
“So, we are doing something interesting today, aren’t we?” he asks with a small, lopsided smile.
“I guess,” Jinyoung mumbles in reply. He’s still not very fond of the whole idea but he accepted that it is a thing he simply has to endure to maintain living.
“And…. you brought a fan club?” Jaebeom is eyeing his friends a little uncertain.
“These are my friends, BamBam and Yugyeom. I thought, if I already have to make it through this mess, I at least can bring some support that keeps me sane,” Jinyoung reasons with a small shrug.
Jaebeom raises a brow. “Okay, as long as you won’t distract anyone, it’s fine. Nice to meet you.” His friends are greeting him back and assuring him over and over that they will be easy to handle.
“Then we should start. We have a lot of work to do before the audition begins,” Jaebeom announces. He maneuvers Jinyoung to a chair in front of a big mirror, which is currently curtained by a white cloth. Both his friends are making themselves comfortable on a couch somewhere behind him.
“What’s up with the mirror?”
“I assume this whole process might get a little disturbing for you, since I guess you aren’t here voluntarily. I think it’s better you won’t see how it happens.”
“Your guess is absolutely correct,” Jinyoung huffs. “Okay, what do I have to do now?”
“First step, wear this.” Jaebeom pulls out a fluttery, long, light pink dress, adorned with sparkling details all over.
“You're kidding me,” he brings out shakily as he stares at the garment in front of him in sheer horror. He hears how his friends try to suppress their laughter in the background but he couldn't care less.
“Jinyoung, I know... I know, but it's required for the participants in the audition.” When Jinyoung brings himself to tear his eyes away from the dress, he finally can spot some kind of emotion on Jaebeom's face. His expression looks like something between apologetic and pitying. “There's a small change room adjoining. Just put it on, please. Do you need help?”
“I.... I don't think so?” Jinyoung is still in shock and flustered to no end. But here's Jaebeom, shoving the dress into his hands and pushing him into the mentioned room. He takes a deep breath. He once again is telling himself that there is no way to get out of this. So Jinyoung just takes off his street clothes and puts on the glittery, soft material.
There is no mirror in this room. But just looking down on himself is enough to question all of his life choices. He should have just ran away from home a long time ago. Then he might be an almost starving, overworked waiter somewhere but at least he wouldn't have to wear a dress right now.
“Jinyoung, are you ready?” the stylist's voice sounds through the door.
“Ready to die maybe,” he gives back, still dazed.
The door is pushed open and in a swift move Jaebeom pulls him out by his arm. “We have to get on. We don't have all the time in the world.”
Yugyeom and BamBam are now openly laughing at him. Yeah, he must look hilarious in the dress with his boy-face and his boy-hair and looking basically nothing like a girl.
“Shut up,” he mutters and hurries to take a seat on the provided chair so that his friends only have his back view.
“What now?”
“For now just relax. Don't ask too many questions. Trust me.”
“Fine.” He looks around the room in nervous anticipation. He has no idea what is going to happen now but he knows it's best to not make this harder for Jaebeom than it already is. After all it's not a routine for him to remodel a boy into a girl. With jittery fingers he pulls some chocolate candies from his backpack to unwrap them and stuff them into his mouth.
“What is this?” Jaebeom is eyeing him, the skeptical look makes a comeback.
“Ish shus a habbi ow mine,” he replies with his mouth still full of tasty candies. After swallowing he continues, “When I am nervous I have to eat chocolate.”
“Oh please, scratch that,” BamBam dramatically butts in from the back.
“Yeah, he always eats chocolate. Always. It's his drug,” Yugyeom adds amusedly.
“Okay, whatever. Jinyoung, this has to stop for a while. I can't work on your face when there's chocolate in the way all of the time.”
“Even the chocolate gets taken from me. Just how did I deserve all of this?” Jinyoung finally has his long looming mini-breakdown.
“Just relax, think about something nice, put the chocolates away and shut up,” Jaebeom advises. His choice of words is always on the harsher side but Jinyoung assumes he doesn't mean to be rude. So he sighs and follows the suggestions.
For the next god-knows-how-many-minutes the stylist dabs, brushes, wipes, powders and paints on his face in silent concentration. He assumes that his friends opted to play games on their phones to pass the time. Nothing of the styling process feels especially uncomfortable until Jaebeom announces that he now will insert contact lenses.
“What lenses? Why? Why?”
“Green ones. They will look pretty. Trust me,” Jaebeom simply replies and proceeds. “Wait, what are you doing?” Jaebeom suddenly is demanding to know, not from him, but somebody in the back.
“I just want to sneak a peek,” he hears a startled BamBam say.
“No way, sit back down. You can look when I am finished,” he retorts firmly, leaving no room for discussions. And that is all that it takes to convince his friend that retreating might be a good idea for now.
The next time Jinyoung gets jumpy is when the stylist produces a blonde, long-haired wig from somewhere.
“I'm going blonde now?” Jinyoung raises a brow and smirks. Not that this fact is any more unsettling than anything else he has endured today in this room already.
“Yep, green eyes, blonde hair. I just thought it would be in your favor if we would create as much of a difference as possible to your boy-self. The possibility of you being recognized by people will be almost zero this way,” Jaebeom reasons with a small smile on his face.
“Oh,” Jinyoung mumbles surprised. “Yeah, you're probably right. Thank you,” he adds meekly. It's something he didn't think about before. But of course it would mean trouble, not only for his private life, but also for his family, if people would come to know of this little disguise game.
After Jaebeom finished working on Jinyoung's new hairstyle, he beams down at him. “All done.”
“Can we look now?” Yugyeom almost yells in excitement.
“Sure,” Jaebeom confirms and is urging Jinyoung to get out of the chair. He turns him around so he's facing his friends. Jinyoung expected a lot of reactions from them, but not silently gazing at him with wide eyes and mouths hanging open. They slowly walk towards him, their eyes never leaving his face, until they are right in front. This odd behavior only adds up to Jinyoung's general uncertainty concerning the situation.
“What?” he asks huffily while his lips are forming a pout.
“Is... is it still you, Jinyoung?” BamBam asks astonished.
“What are you talking about? Are you stupid?” Jinyoung retorts, utterly irritated by now. “Why are you staring like that? Is it that awful?”
Both are slowly shaking their heads no. “You're so pretty. You literally look like a magical fairy,” Yugyeom explains slowly.
And this is the point where Jinyoung looks at Jaebeom, who is still smiling brightly. “What? I said you should trust me, right? Disappointing people is not my forte. And now have a look at yourself.”
Jaebeom gently ushers him in front of the mirror and finally pulls off the curtain. Jinyoung blinks at the person he sees in the mirror. But to his surprise, the pretty girl in the mirror blinks back at him. Big, green eyes, embellished with pretty makeup are looking him over. Pink tinted cheeks, fair, flawless skin and glossy, rose lips adding to the pretty image. The dark, thick eyebrows are light in color now, thanks to some magical powder. But they are almost hidden anyway by long bangs. Shiny, blonde waves of hair are falling over the silky material of the dress. Yugyeom is right, Jinyoung looks like a real fairy. He can't really comprehend how it worked but somehow Jaebeom did accomplish this miracle.
“Pretty, right?” Jaebeom chirps next to him.
“Y-Yeah, I think so. I just can't believe that's me,” Jinyoung replies astounded.
“Yep, I'm just that good.”
They both turn around as they hear a clicking sound. BamBam holds his phone up, camera fixed on Jinyoung.
“What are you doing, Bam?”
“I just want to snap a nice photo of you. Can you pose a little?”
“What? No! You never wanted to desperately take a pic of me before,” Jinyoung scoffs.
“Yeah, but you never looked like a whole snack before.”
“I really don't know what to think hearing you say that about me,” Jinyoung comments in slight disgust.
BamBam only shrugs and tries to take more pictures. Yugyeom even moves to Jinyoung's side to snap a selfie with him.
“Okay, what the heck. Stop this. This is ridiculous.” Jinyoung grumbles.
“Uuuhhh, the princess is unhappy,” Yugyeom snickers.
“Princess, should I be your prince? Or your knight in shining armor?” BamBam coos.
“So these are your friends, yeah?” Jaebeom asks, facing Jinyoung with a doubting look.
“Seems like this will end today,” he replies, grinding his teeth.
“Jinyoung, how do you feel now that you are turned into Park Jiwon?”
“Looking like that, I actually do have a tiny sliver of hope that we could pull this whole thing off.” Jaebeom happily nods along with his statement. “But... my face feels so heavy. I think it will fall off and shatter on the ground at any moment.”
“Don't be silly and don't talk nonsense about my perfect work!”
Jinyoung snickers at Jaebeom, thinking that it's cute how defensive he is about his performance. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that. You did an amazing job. Really. Thank you.” And that seems to be enough to appease the stylist again.
Jinyoung makes his way back to the small change room to get his phone which still rests in his jeans pocket. Just when he gets a hold of it he hears the door of the dressing room push open and his sister enter. He can hear her being rude just like always.
“Nerd 2! Nerd 3! What are you doing here?” she hisses after shutting the door.
“Hey witch, coming back from scaring some kids and elders out on the streets?” BamBam retorts casually.
“You can't talk to me like that, nerd. I am famous!”
“No, it's working. Look, I can talk to you like that just fine, mean witch.”
“God, why do I have to endure those two pests even today?” she mumbles more to herself but still loud enough for everyone to hear. But both boys know better than being offended by her. “Jaebeom, why are they here? And where is Nerd 1?”
“Well, hello to you, too,” the stylist replies unfazed. “Jinyoung brought them for moral support and there he is, today's star.” Jaebeom points at Jinyoung, who is emerging from the adjoining room. The scene repeats like he experienced it before with his friends. His sister stares at him with wide eyes and an open mouth, utterly bewildered. Only her eventual reaction turns out differently.
“Jaebeom, are you freaking kidding me? Your task was to turn him into a girl, not into a whole freaking Disney princess,” she at last manages to spit out. “Make him less pretty!”
Jinyoung can only heave a sigh at his sister's useless request. Again she feels threatened by him while he's doing practically nothing. He's not surprised, only tired of it.
“Sorry, but I won't destroy art,” Jaebeom replies while he crosses his arms in front of his chest. “I only can offer to make you just as pretty. So come on, Sohee.”
She's obviously not very amused by the stylist's reluctance but seems to understand that there's nothing she can do about it. “You better do your best later, Jiwon.”
“Thank you for your generous words,” Jinyoung replies with all the sarcasm he has to offer.
“Jinyoung, what will you do about your voice?” BamBam suddenly pipes up.
“I... uhm... I don't know.” It's true, that's just another thing he didn't think about before.
“Okay, just learn from me,” BamBam suggests confidently and clears his throat before he says in an obnoxiously high-pitched voice, “Hi, I'm Jiwon. I'm a million times nicer and prettier than my witch sister.”
“I kill you, you damn nerd,” Sohee screeches and starts towards BamBam.
Just before she can catch him, Yugyeom squeezes himself between them. He frowns down at her. “Not on my watch,” he says with certainty.
“Mean, how should I win against giant nerd?” she mutters and retreats, sulking.
“Okay, Jinyoung, repeat! Come on,” BamBam encourages after he finds enough courage to emerge from behind Yugyeom.
“Sorry Bam, but first, that sounded like a deceasing weasel and second, I think my voice is too deep. I guess I have to stay mute. Not that I care,” Jinyoung says with a shrug.
“Exactly. It's better when I do the talking anyway,” Sohee comments smugly. Every male in the room rolls their eyes at her statement.
“But at least let me teach you how to walk properly as a female,” BamBam suggests next.
“Wait, why should you of all people teach him that? It's my specialty,” Sohee scoffs.
“Just because you're a girl it doesn't mean you have all the girl stuff figured out, cucumber witch.” The grin on the skinny boy's face can't be described as anything else but mocking.
“NOW I WILL KILL YOU!”
Now it is Yugyeom and Jaebeom who are intervening and saving BamBam from an early death.
“Sohee, come on and put your dress on. And then we have to fix your makeup. And hopefully we all will survive this day,” Jaebeom tries to coax her.
All of this chaos is a bit too much for Jinyoung. He wants to get out and find a little calmness and peace before he has to plunge himself into this unknown world called show business. Apart from this he notices how Yugyeom is still trying to secretly take pics of him. He grabs his backpack and excuses himself, pretending that he has to make a phone call.
When Jinyoung wanders the extensive corridors, he enjoys the sudden silence. He curiously opens a door to a small storage room. This place seems to be absolutely perfect for him to enjoy a little quietness.
(*^▽^*)
Mark is exhausted. All of his fears came true. For the last two hours he watched girl after girl audition for the commercial. But he felt nothing. Not a single girl could he say he liked or even disliked for some reason, aside from one who decided to prove her talent by singing a self-composed song about Mark getting her pregnant. He pretty much disliked her, even though he thought her singing voice was nice. The security guys kindly escorted her out of the building.
Youngjae was constantly looking at him out of the corner of his eye with a mix of concern and impatience. But there's nothing Mark could do unless he decided on a girl randomly. The good thing is that Mark finally has some time to take a breather. The not so good thing is that it's just a break before he has to continue watching the rest of the girls audition.
Mark went to the restroom and is currently trying to find his way back. He never was the best one when it comes to having a good grip on his sense of direction. He opts to randomly open some doors but he seems to wander around in a rather deserted area of the studio. No door seems to lead him back to the auditioning area.
He opens a plain-looking door. The small storage room behind it seems equally plain. Besides one thing, or rather one person. On the floor, leaning her back against a shelf, is sitting a real-life princess. Her blonde, long hair falls in soft waves around her shoulders, her beautiful, rose-colored dress is surrounded by golden, shiny wrappers which are carelessly strewn across the floor. The glossy hair, the wrappers, the tiny pearls on her dress, everything reflects the artificial light in the room. Everything is glittering and gleaming. The whole scene looks unreal and Mark feels like he opened the door to a book of fairy tales. Bright, large eyes are blinking up at him, silently asking him for the reason of interruption.
Under normal circumstances Mark would have apologized and quickly left. But this isn't a normal situation. In front of him, an ethereal creature is situated. And there's an inner pull which draws him towards her, prohibiting him to walk away.
“Hey, sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt but... uhm.... mind if I join you for a little bit?”
She seems utterly perplexed, still staring and blinking for a while longer at him. Then she finally nods her head very slowly. At that Mark slips inside and shuts the door. He makes his way over to her and takes a seat on the floor right next to her, probably a little bit too close, he thinks afterwards. But he doesn't regret it.
He turns his head to directly look at her. She's the prettiest being he ever saw. When she meets his eyes he offers her his best smile. Mark wonders if this is only makeup or if she's blushing.
“Hi, I'm Mark. What's your name?”
She just blinks again. Then slowly a small but enchanting smile appears on her lips. Mark is a little taken aback by her stunning beauty as well as by her lack of answering his question.
“Can you hear me?”
Enthusiastic nodding accompanied by a growing smile, this is her answer. Mark thinks it's damn cute.
“But you don't speak.”
Nodding again and a thumbs up, indicating that he hit the nail on the head.
“Alright. Are you taking a little break?”
Nodding.
“That's good, me too. It's a nice place to hang out, peaceful and calm somehow.”
By now she has a beautiful, wide smile with closed lips, brightening up her face. She looks so dazzling and endearing that he has a little trouble to remain focused on the conversation, or rather his monologue.
“What's this?” He picks up one of the empty, shiny wrappers and inspects it. “Oh, are these candy wrappers?”
Her furious nodding contradicts her graceful appearance but Mark thinks it's such a charming trait. She produces a bag of golden chocolates from her backpack and offers it to him with a never ceasing smile.
“Chocolates? Are you for real? This is amazing.” He beams at her and snatches a candy to unwrap it. “I love chocolate but they never have it anywhere in any studios. But here you are, giving me tasty candies and saving my day.” He tastes the sweet and hums in joy. “This is amazing. Uhm.... can I have some more maybe?”
She silently laughs and a cozy warmth radiates from her, making Mark's heart race unnaturally fast. She generously gestures towards the bag which she placed between them, signaling him to have more.
In all the glittering he didn't notice at first but his entrance interrupted her while she was reading. When he occupied the space next to her, she put the book on the floor. Only now it attracts Mark's attention. “Hey, you're reading... oh it's a manga? Awesome. I love reading manga. What is it?”
She beams again. Mark thinks he can't get enough of her addictive smile. She picks up the book and shows the cover to him.
“Ranma ½, it's a classic. And it's so good. It's been some time since I read the series though.”
She turns away and pulls another volume of the manga series out of her bag and again offers it to him.
“Can I read it?”
She nods and Mark thinks she mouths “for your break”.
“Wow, thank you so much. Entering this room was the best decision of the day it seems,” he says and softly smiles at her. She smiles, too, but soon averts her gaze. Mark hopes it's just because she might be a little shy.
He starts reading the manga, continues to eat the tasty chocolate and enjoys the calmness of his surroundings as much as the comforting presence of the fairy-like girl next to him. From time to time he sneaks a quick glance at her side profile. Every time his heart seems to flutter in joy.
There's silence between them but for Mark it isn't an uncomfortable silence. It's kind of pleasant and warm and magical. He could sit there forever and enjoy this bliss. But way too soon the door is pushed open and a tall boy peeks in.
“Hey Jin-....Ji...Jiwon, hey Jiwon, I was looking for you forever. We... uhm... we have to go. Your audition, you remember?”
Mark jumps to his feet and stretches out his hand towards her. “Let me help you,” he says with a small, reassuring smile. She smiles back and takes his hand. Her skin is warm and smooth and Mark likes everything about the touch. To his surprise her hand is not small and when he pulls her to her feet he notices that her stature isn't small either. It's not something that he dislikes. This also is a charming contrast to her feathery presence.
“So your name is Jiwon?” A timid nod is the answer.
“Excuse me but... you're Mark Tuan, right?” the tall boy asks with curious eyes.
“Uhm, yes... that's me.”
“Oh my god, I can't believe I meet Mark Tuan here. Wow, I'm a huge fan. I love your latest movie. I watched it about 20 times and-”
The enthusiastic speech of the boy gets interrupted when Jiwon's elbow finds the way to his ribs.
“Ouch, what the heck?” he sulkily asks her and rubs his side. She only gestures towards the door, probably trying to point out that they have to leave.
“So as I said, I'm a huge fan so would you mind giving me an autograph? And maybe we can take a selfie, oh and maybe-”
The excited boy almost topples over this time when her elbow attacks again. Mark can only chuckle. He wouldn't mind giving the boy everything he asked for but the girl seems to be very sure that this shouldn't happen.
“Oooooouuuuch! What is it with-”
Again he gets interrupted as the princess drags him out of the room by his arm. Mark calls after them. “It was nice meeting you two. Jiwon, it was a pleasure to spend my break with you.”
They already were out of the room but at hearing Mark's last phrase, the pretty girl peeks inside once again to offer him an adorable smile. Before she disappears, she cutely waves at him. After a second she's gone. Mark thinks that he won't ever forget her.
(*^▽^*)
“I can't believe you robbed me of the chance to interact with freaking famous Mark Tuan,” Yugyeom whines as they are making their way back to the dressing-room.
“God Yugyeom, you were such a fan boy. I thought you were one step away from asking him if he dates someone right now or if you could record him while he says 'Yugyeom, I love you'.”
“Damn, why didn't I think about that?!” Yugyeom exclaims while he slaps his hands on his forehead.
Jinyoung rolls his eyes, now not only questioning his life choices, but also his friend choices as well.
When they step into the dressing-room Yugyeom can't hold himself back for even a second.
“Guess what!!! We just met Mark Tuan! The one and only famous actor, MARK FREAKING TUAN!” The last part he yells in excitement. “And basically I met him briefly. But our beauty, Park Jiwon here, spent a whole break with him, snacking and reading and having a lovely time together.”
“You are freaking kidding me!” BamBam shouts and jumps up from the couch.
“So you already found new friends? Good job. Your old ones are too loud anyway,” Jaebeom comments fairly calm.
Two very offended boys are yelling in disagreement.
“So what? Will you spill what happened?” BamBam asks as impatient as ever.
Jinyoung is glad that his sister is out of sight right now. It would be better if she won't know about his short adventure. He's still as perplexed as one could be about what went down just minutes ago. Not in a million years he thought he would have such an encounter. And not in a million years had he thought that Mark Tuan, the famous, handsome, talented actor, was such a sweet person. Until today he had thought most people with a certain degree of name recognition weren’t sweet at all, but rather conceited.
“Well I was sitting there in a storage room, eating candies and reading manga-”
“I told you, he was fleeing. Phone call my ass,” Yugyeom says to BamBam.
“It's because you're too loud,” Jaebeom butts in dryly.
“WHAT THE HECK WE AREN'T LOUD!” BamBam yells.
“WE'RE GOOD, SUPPORTING FRIENDS,” Yugyeom adds, not using an inside voice at all.
“Aaarghh.... so loud again. What's wrong with you?”Jaebeom grumbles. “Jinyoung? Please go on.”
“Uhm... yeah, so I was just enjoying myself and suddenly the door opened and there stood Mark Tuan. And he asked, all adorable, if he could join me there on the floor. And then he did and he asked me all that stuff and smiled all of the time. I can't believe he is such a nice person,” Jinyoung tells them, getting more hyped up with every word.
“Wow, I can't believe this. He's so famous but that sounds so chill. What did you talk about?” BamBam interrogates.
“Uhm... I didn't talk. I wanted to avoid the deceasing weasel, remember?”
“So you said nothing at all and he still continued talking to you?” Yugyeom asks amazed.
“Yep, I just smiled and nodded. And guess what! He loves reading manga and eating chocolates.”
“Oh my..... he's perfect for you. You are destined to be together,” Yugyeom cheers.
“Yes, and for sure you already have a crush on him. I mean, it's obvious,” BamBam judges smugly.
“Uhm... it's not... uhm... I-”
“You're into guys?” Jaebeom pipes up.
Jaebeom doesn't know yet. They are not close enough so that he would know. Jinyoung panics a bit, considering if the stylist would be uncomfortable around him from now on.
“Yeah, I am... pretty much.... only into guys,” he answers sheepishly.
“Cool, me too. I have a new boyfriend since a couple weeks ago. He's great.”
“Oh... ooooh, you're... too. Oh that's great. And a boyfriend, I'm happy for-”
“Mary-Kate, Ashley, would you please calm down? We got it, you're both gay. Shocker. Can we now please continue talking about celebrity Mark Tuan?” BamBam intervenes.
“They are not only loud but freaking rude,” Jaebeom mutters.
“There's not much more to tell, really. We both read and then Yugyeom came in to fetch me.”
“Did you take a selfie with him?” BamBam asks his tall friend.
“Noooo, Jinyoung dragged me away before I could get it.”
“Jinyoung, maaaaaaaaaan, what's up with you?”
“He was embarrassing. There's nothing else I could do,” Jinyoung reasons and shrugs.
“Yeah, and we can't have you being embarrassed in front of your crush, riiiight?”
“Shut up, Bam. He isn't my crush.”
“He totally is. And I think he has his eyes on you, too,” Yugyeom butts in, way too excited. “And he called after you, 'Jiwon, it was a pleasure to spend my break with you'. I tell you, he's into you.”
“Like that is going to happen,” a female voice suddenly hisses from behind them.
They turn around to find Sohee standing in the door frame of the small change room.
“Did... did you hear everything?” Jinyoung asks dumbfounded.
“Loud and clear, nerd. And for your information, you might look a little pretty now with tons of makeup, but don't be so stupid to think Mark Tuan will fall for you. He could have anyone at any time. Why would he pick you?! That's ridiculous,” she finishes with a glare and walks over to the main door. “And now hurry up, we have an audition to win.”
Jinyoung of course thinks she's rude and as harsh as ever. But he doesn't think she's wrong with what she's saying. He silently follows her. He notices Jaebeom's pitiful gaze on him and BamBam hissing under his breath “Mean cucumber witch”.
(*^▽^*)
“Mark, what do you say?” Youngjae wants to know. They are sitting in the same room the audition was held in. After the last girl finished her performance, Mark heaved a sigh in relief, happy that this ordeal finally ended. But the next disaster is already looming in the corner, in the form of Youngjae, who wants to know Mark's choice.
“Youngjae, I... I didn't particularly like any of them,” he replies apologetically. “They were nice and stuff but... I don't know. There wasn't anything special about them.”
“Unlike the princess girl which you met during break time. She seems pretty special to you,” Jackson speaks up while he grabs a chair and pulls it right next to Mark so he can attach himself to the actor.
“Well yes, she definitely is special. I never met anyone this intriguing,” he reminisces.
“Mark!” Youngjae nags.
“I really want her. She's my Cinderella.”
“He wants her, Youngjae. She's Cinderella,” Jackson adds as he throws his arm around Mark's shoulder to squeeze even closer. Youngjae sits opposite them, eyeing both boys with a frown.
“Mark, you can't. Choose someone else!”
“I never ask for anything, Youngjae, right?”
“He really doesn't,” Jackson whispers.
“Don't make this hard for me, Mark!”
“Funny, because I never make it hard for you, right? I always work diligently. I’m never problematic and never give you a hard time, riiiiiight?”
“Yeah, such a good boy, riiiiiight Youngjae?”
“She didn't even audition for it. Why can't you choose one of the many cute girls who actually did audition for this?”
“I want her. I don't want anybody else. I want her. Youngjae, please make it happen. Please,” Mark begs.
“Her, Youngjae. It has to be her. Please!” Jackson supports.
“Guys, come on.”
“Mark, do the puppy eyes. Let's do the double-puppy-eyes attack,” Jackson whispers loud enough for everyone within a radius of 25 meter to hear.
Mark opens his eyes as wide as possible, putting a pleading look to them while forming a pout with his lips. Jackson attaches his cheek to Mark's while he pulls the same puppy face.
Together they are pleading, “Pleeeaaaaase Youngjae.”
“You're both silly, you know that?” the manager says with a sigh of frustration.
“Is this a yes?” Mark perks up.
“It is, right? You can do this, right?”
“Fine. Alright, I'll at least try.” Both puppy boys cheer happily, celebrating their mini-victory over a very exhausted Youngjae. “So what did you say was her name?”
“Jiwon.”
“Jiwon what?”
“I don't know,” Mark says with a shrug. “But she was here to audition for something as well. And she is very pretty and blonde and charming and has an awesome smile and-”
“Okay, stop. That's not helping at all.”
Jackson chips in, “But you can find her, right?”
“I don't know. I'll try. But it's not like we have some kind of secret manager-network where all the artist’s information is traded back and forth.”
“Nooooo, of course not,” Jackson says smirking.
“No, noooo, unthinkable,” Mark affirms with the same smirk on his face.
Then Jackson leans towards Youngjae and starts whispering. “Okay, we actually know you do. Of course you can't openly tell us about it because, well, it's secret and we don't want to get you into trouble. But the network will help you to find her.” Mark happily nods along with his statement and winks at Youngjae. Jackson tries the same but fails and only ends up exaggeratedly blinking at him.
“Why am I stuck with not only one but two idiots?” he asks towards the ceiling. He stands up to leave the room, shaking his head all the while.
“We totally managed this like pros,” Jackson says with a satisfied grin and stretches his hand out for a high five.
Mark takes the invitation with a loud “YAS”. Now he can hope again.
“Once upon a time the young Prince Charming sees a flicker of hope to find his precious Cinderella again. He and his two knights thought out an elaborate plan to lure her-”
“No narration, Jackson. I fucking mean it!”