Chapter Text
So maybe this wasn’t the most well thought out idea of Kim Kibum’s life but it was definitely too late to turn back now considering it was just last night that Kibum laid in bed all night experiencing what he could only describe as “a sudden overwhelming sense of panic at the realization that nothing in his life was remotely in his control anymore.” After a sleepless night, Kibum woke up, texted his manager something vague like: cancel my schedule for the next week, I’ll be in touch, packed up his car and set off with nothing but a half baked memory of where he was going.
See, here's the thing. One summer when he was much younger, before the whole famous thing happened, his grandma took him to this small coastal town a few hours from where he lived. He didn’t remember many details about the trip, just that it was probably one of the last times he truly felt happy. Ok, that last part was probably a bit of an exaggeration, but the point stands. Kibum wanted to experience anything remotely close to that again. And yeah, maybe vaguely texting his manager before ghosting him wasn’t the smartest idea in the world but he was pretty sure that if he told him, “Hey, I’m feeling like nothing in my life is mine to control anymore, so can I take a week off to run away?” That his manager would chuckle, shake his head no and say something about schedules and commitments and stuff.
He liked the whole famous thing, he did. From a young age becoming a singer was all he could think or talk about and as soon as he was old enough, he started auditioning. Even though it took him 4 or 5 times to get noticed and get signed on he never gave up, if anything, the rejections just spurred him along more in the end to get what he wanted. Kibum, or “Key” as he was widely known to the world, exploded in popularity from a relatively young age. When he released his first album, ‘Face’ he was just a newbie with ‘great potential’ as the news organizations said, but after it was released he charted to #1 almost immediately and Kibum rapidly realized just how famous he became overnight when he was suddenly unable to even go to the local convenience store without getting recognized.
From there, he only grew and grew in popularity, to the point that he was watched almost 24/7, and never allowed to go anywhere by himself anymore, “For his own safety” they said. He actually loved meeting fans, but he really just missed wandering around occasionally without an entourage or crowd of fans or staff following him. While the vast majority of his fans were respectful, there was always the rare few who got a little too pushy for his comfort and unfortunately, after a few slightly panic-inducing experiences when he was alone, he begrudgingly accepted his need for security.
He spent most of his days being driven from venue to venue, either performing, recording, doing interviews or prepping for his next album. Whatever time he was allotted alone at home he usually spent trying to catch up on sleep. Once, years ago he entertained the idea of even adopting a dog or two, hoping that it would provide some much needed companionship at home, but he unfortunately had to dismiss that idea as he simply traveled too much to own a pet. So yeah, Kibum’s life felt like it was spiraling out of his grasp, and the harder he tried to regain control of it, the more it slipped away.
All this led Kibum to the present, as his GPS pinged to alert him that he had arrived at his destination. Pulling into the town, Kibum slowly crawled along the main street. It was funny, how memory worked sometimes. If you had asked him yesterday what this place looked like, he couldn't describe anything in detail, but immediately, things came flooding back to him.
Parts of the town were newer, he noted but generally, the town looked exactly the same as he remembered it being, from the same dingy looking tourist shop that was still there with the wooden statue of a fisherman out front, to the odd sculpture of a giant spatula in the green space that didn’t make any sense but also somehow fit right in, to the arcade that he remembered playing in as a child. He did note that it seemed like most of the tourist stores were closed, the only things seemingly open were places devoted to keeping the town alive in the off season. A fact that while slightly disappointing did make sense, he supposed what with it being the middle of winter and all.
Kibum booked his hotel from the car on his drive here, and he knew he couldn't check in for a little bit yet, so he pulled into a spot directly in front of the bakery, one of the few things still open he noted. Kibum’s hand hovered over his face mask, internally debating if he should grab it or not. The mask offered a bit of protection when he was back in town, but here he wondered if it would have the opposite effect. The whole point of this trip was to be inconspicuous, to blend in. A fact that hurt slightly when he was packing, as he left all of his flashier, loud outfits at home and stuck to nothing but casual muted clothes. Kibum decided to ditch the mask, hoping that maybe, just maybe, no one here would recognize him and he could just… exist as a human for a few days.
Sitting in his car Kibum silenced yet another call from his manager (He'd been calling and texting Kibum almost consistently every half hour or so since he left) before muting his phone entirely. I'll text him later Kibum thought optimistically before he groaned softly as he got out of the car. Kibum stretched while he pulled his arms over his head and sighed briefly, his body ached slightly after the 4 hour drive. After he felt his body loosen a bit, Kibum looked over into the bakery and noted that the staff member behind the counter was watching him with what Kibum could only describe as an amused expression. Steeling himself, Kibum pushed the front door open and walked into the bakery and was greeted with a delicious smell of pastries of different kinds wafting under his nose.
“Welcome to Jinki’s Cottage Bakery! You must be new in town?” the man behind the counter spoke while smiling at Kibum.
Kibum smiled and spoke, a bit awkward in his delivery, “Ah, Yeah, I am, just got here. How’d you know?”
The man smiled nicely and shrugged, “It’s the middle of winter. I only have my regular customers this time of year. A new face like yours isn’t hard to miss.”
Like yours?
Kibum laughed slightly, shaking off the internal worry, “I see. Don’t get a lot of traffic this time of year?”
The man shrugged, “Aside from the regulars, not really. But don’t worry, we like visitors any time of year, especially those looking for peace and quiet.”
“What do you mean?” Kibum asked, a tinge of worry seeping through his voice because of course, the first person he ran into in the middle of nowhere would know who he was. Kibum would just have to learn to embrace his outdoorsy self, and live as a hermit in the middle of the woods or something.
Before Kibum could continue down that particular spiral the man spoke quickly, almost as if he himself was detecting the panic behind Kibum's eyes, “I mean, why else would you show up in the middle of winter? Don’t worry, even though you might be the only visitor right now that doesn't mean you won’t get the peace and quiet you’re looking for.”
Kibum really couldn’t tell if Jinki knew who he was and was being reassuring, or if he was just being friendly to the new tourist in town. Either way though, he was desperate to change the trajectory of this conversation, “So, what’s good here, any recommendations?”
The man paused, pursing his lips slightly as if he was trying to figure out exactly what he wanted to say, “That’s hard for me to answer. I make everything here, so, I suppose I recommend everything?”
Kibum laughed, reaching his hand up to cover his mouth, “I take it that makes you Jinki of Jinki’s Cottage Bakery?”
“The one and only!” Jinki responded, before reaching his hand across the counter to shake Kibums, “and what can I call you by?”
“Ah. I’m Kibum. It’s nice to meet you, Jinki.” Kibum paused slightly before continuing, ”You know, I remember coming here once when I was young and I thought this place had the same name then. Family business?”
The corners of Jinkis eyes crinkled as he smiled, “Ah! Yeah it is. My parents named it after me. You've got a good memory, if you only came here once and remember that.”
Kibum chuckled, lifting his arm to rub the back of his neck, “I guess you could say the trip stuck with me? Something about this place reminds me of a time when life wasn't so complicated for me. But that's adulthood isn't it?”
Jinki cocked his head, “What do you mean?”
“Ah, just that life isn't ever easy, you just get better at managing it I suppose. At least that's what people tell me.”
“Has it? Become easier to manage?”
Kibum chuckled, “Juries still out on that one Jinki. I digress though. You don't need to listen to me babble about how stressful my life is. I came in here to buy an obscene amount of pastries anyways.”
Kibum couldn’t decide on what he wanted, so he ended up filling a large box full of many different options, though he was particularly looking forward to trying the apple danish. He paid Jinki, leaving a sizable tip and went to head out. Balancing the box in one hand as he opened the door with the other, Jinki spoke one last time, “If you get hungry, the restaurant across the street is good too. Though I suppose I’m obligated to say that, my partner Jonghyun co-owns the place with a friend of ours. It’s also the only option this time of year, but I swear it’s good!”
Kibum turned back towards Jinki, smiled and spoke, “Thanks for the recommendation. I'll be sure to check that out. Thanks for all your help Jinki, and for the conversation.”
Jinki smiled, his eyes crinkling slightly, “No problem. I hope you have a relaxing vacation Kibum!”
Kibum smiled as he exited the building and found himself back on the street. It was late enough that Kibum could check in so while the idea of getting food was intriguing, he was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to crawl into bed and sleep… probably for the next few days.
At the hotel Kibum pulled into the spot right outside the reception building and wandered inside. The man behind the counter had a name tag that read ‘Minseok’ Kibum noted as he greeted him, paid for his room in cash and was given a map of the complex. The place he was staying was separated into 4 different long skinny buildings set perpendicular to the water but slightly angled out so every apartment had a view of the ocean. Kibum noted he was in the second building on the third floor as Minseok showed him the best staircase to park near on a map so he’d be near his room.
Kibum thanked him, and quickly found his room thanks to Minseok’s clear directions. He fumbled a bit briefly with his keycard as he opened the door for the first time but after a few attempts, got the door open. He took a few trips to move his stuff upstairs before giving the place a cursory look around, shoving a pastry in his mouth and promptly flopping on the bed to pass the fuck out.