AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Among other things.”
Everyone’s walked through the gate of the courtyard except forus. Nathaniel pulls me to the side, out of view. Pressing me back against the wall, he kisses me. I slide my hand through his silky hair and taste the champagne from his lips.
“I reallycanmake an excuse,” he says, when we part.
I laugh.
“Sori?” Secretary Park calls from the opposite side of the wall.
I lean forward and kiss Nathaniel on the cheek. “I’ll see you tomorrow night.”
An hour later, snuggled in bed with my stuffed animals, I text Nathaniel.I’m home. Dream of me.
His response is immediate.Always.
As I’m putting my phone on the bedstand, I receive another text.
It’s from Hyemi.There was something I wanted to tell you earlier, but I didn’t get a chance. Please keep this between us. I’m so embarrassed, but I can’t hold it in any longer. I think I’m in love with Nathaniel.
Twenty-seven
The next morning, I read Hyemi’s text again. I haven’t responded, though it’s likely she’s seen that I’ve read it. I want to tell her the truth, about my own feelings for Nathaniel, but I want to share that with her in person, so I can explain everything in full. I feel awful knowing she’ll be devastated when I tell her.
Below Hyemi’s text is one from Nathaniel.I can’t wait to see you tonight.
It’s Saturday, which means Ajumma won’t be at the house until tomorrow morning, a day earlier than usual, as her daughter is hosting her in-laws.
Nathaniel and I will be alone tonight. My heart thrums at the thought.
On my phone, I bring up my mother’s number, skipping Secretary Park altogether. My thumbs hover over the keyboard before I quickly type a message.Are you busy today? Can I come by your office?I click Send before I can second-guess myself.
A stuffed whale slips from my bed as I push back the blankets. My phone chirps and I reach for it eagerly. But the message isn’t from my mother.
Kim Sun Ye:Come to Joah immediately. There’s an emergency.
Twenty minutes later, I burst into the practice room. Hyemi’s hunched in the middle of the floor. Sun Ye sits beside her, rubbing her back in a circular motion.
I crouch on Hyemi’s other side. “What’s going on?” The other members aren’t present, only Sun Ye. Secretary Park stands with her back against the mirror, furiously typing on her phone.
“I’m going to quit the group,” Hyemi bawls. “It’s not fair to the other girls.”
My eyes widen. I look to Sun Ye to elaborate.
Sun Ye hands me her phone. “Someone left an anonymous post on a popular forum,” she says, “about the agreement Hyemi’s father had with Joah.”
Dread curls in my stomach as I read the article.
A Joah insider confirmed yesterday evening that ASAP member Woo Hyemi’s last-minute addition to the girl group was contingent upon a sizable investment by her father, shipping magnate Woo Gongchul.
I wince. This is bad. The article goes on to slam the company’s business ethics, throwing around words likenepotismandbribery, and ends with a call to boycott ASAP.
“Th-they said,” Hyemi begins in a choked voice, barely able to speak through her tears, “I’m o-only in the group because of my f-father’s money.”
“That’s not true,” I say. Or at least, maybe that was the case in the beginning, but she’s proven herself time and again; shebelongsin ASAP. Anyone who watched the showcase would think this without a doubt.
“Once they see how hardworking and talented you are, none of this will matter,” I say.
Hyemi starts to sob even louder.
