“Okay, thank you,” FX gave a thumbs up to everyone. “Bye.” He hung up the phone. “She’s there. We can try calling tomorrow but she is getting out tomorrow. Maybe if we tell her where we are, she can come by and see us before she flies out on Saturday morning.”
“We have a concert that day,” Wonjung pointed out. “But maybe after she gets out tomorrow.”
“Yeah, if we catch her, maybe she can,” Hyunwoo said hopefully.
***
“Oh, hello dear,” The nurse greeted as she came into the room to check on her at about 10 pm. “I thought you would be sleeping now. A call came in for you a little while ago. Some young man looking for you.”
“If they call again,” Claire carefully kept her eyes on the television still quietly playing in the corner of the room. “Tell them I’m not here anymore, even if I haven’t been discharged yet. Really, if anyone but my mother calls, tell them that.”
“Of course,” The slightly pudgy woman was a little surprised by the request, but didn’t press further. “If that is what you want.”
“Thanks.” She gave the woman a flash of a smile. “When will I get out of here tomorrow?”
“As soon as the doctor can come in and give you one last check,” The nurse said in her calm and friendly patient voice. “I can ask him to come see you first, if you want.”
“I’d appreciate that,” Claire replied, holding out her arm so the other woman could take her blood pressure.
“Can I ask you something?” The nurse asked as she squeezed the bulb on the sphygmomanometer.
“Hmmm?” Claire made a small sound, giving her permission to ask.
“I saw some of the article that was published after you came in,” She had a slightly embarrassed tinge to her voice. “Maybe I shouldn’t have, but I admit I was curious.” Her eyes flicked up to check the reaction on her patient’s face. “You two looked so in love. Are...are you going back to Seoul to try and work it out with him? I mean, his company really can’t think they can control his personal life like that, do they?”
“There really isn’t much to work out,” Claire shrugged and gave her a tight smile. “Neither of us are really in a place right now to be in a relationship, so it’s probably for the best.”
“I see,” The nurse nodded. “Well, don’t lose touch. You two looked like a wonderful couple. Reminded me of the early days with my husband.”
“We’ll see how things go,” She looked up at the older woman and gave her a quavering smile. “Somethings just aren’t meant to be.”
“That smile he gave you tells me it was meant to be,” The woman patted her arm with a warm confidence. “Just you wait and see.”
Claire just nodded and folded her hands in her lap. After another reassuring smile and pat, the nurse walked back out to her station, turning off the room lights as she went and leaving Claire alone, finally. Alone in the quiet hum of the room, she let herself crumble and cry for all the stupid mistakes, and the wasted time, and the time she would never share with Cheol again.
Chapter 24
The time between her discharge and setting foot in Seoul again felt like it was moving with the speed of cold molasses. Her mother, bless her heart, didn’t really help, and neither did the chatty passenger who sat beside her in coach during the more than 14 hour flight. In Incheon airport she caught sight of a few photographers but, much to her relief, none of them seemed to take notice of her. She headed to the taxi queue and gave them the address of KXO Entertainment, deciding to deal with that first to get it out of the way.
Director Lee met her in the lobby, his face stern from the moment he stepped out of the elevator on the ground floor. Not wanting to drag this out any more than it needed to be, Claire had everything ready to give to him that the company had provided her as an employee. She handed over her phone, the apartment keys, her pass, and all the paperwork she had taken with her on the trip.
“Here,” She said, pulling out a thumb drive from her pocket. “I have written a statement taking responsibility for the scandal. I’ve included text versions in both English and Korean, though you will want to have someone read through and correct the Korean if you want to publish it or maybe even share it with the executives. In it I take responsibility for letting myself get star struck and using my position as a teacher as an opportunity to seduce and manipulate one of the members of YTHTonic for my own satisfaction. I offer my apologies for dragging the other members into this with my irresponsible and selfish behavior. Unequivocally, I take responsibility for convincing Park Cheol Min to enter into a secret relationship and to keep it from the company, though he had proposed going to the company to ask permission or advice. Given the short term nature of my contract and the equally short term I intended to be in the relationship with Mr. Park, I didn’t see the benefit in doing so. Please accept my apologies for my behavior and for the scandal I have caused. And please don’t make the members suffer for my poor judgement and selfishness.”
Director Lee took the offered item and slipped it in his pocket before he handed her an envelope. “Here this is the key and the contract for the storage where your things have been put. I’m disappointed in how your time here has had to end. We were very satisfied with the progress our artists were making with you, but your behavior and the choices you made were unacceptable and incompatible with the culture and values of this company. I am afraid we will not be able to offer you any future recommendations for job positions.”
“I understand,” She gave him a nod and stepped back, allowing him to turn and head to the elevators again before making her own way out of the building.
She remembered a cell phone store a few blocks away and walked there, dragging her luggage behind her, careful not to pull too hard and stress the stitches in her back which were already aching. She bought the cheapest smartphone she could find and a pre-paid SIM card with a small data plan she could afford. A couple more blocks away she found a convenience store and bought herself a sandwich and a bowl of ramen noodles she was able to prepare and eat there and take a moment to warm up and lean against the counter at least for a few minutes.
The flight hadn’t been quiet and she hadn’t been able to sleep for more than an hour at a time, thanks to the poor baby on the flight who hadn’t either. The people in her row hadn’t helped either. On one side was the chatty woman who didn’t seem to pay attention to whether someone was interested in a chat or was even awake when she started some new topic. On the other side was a lucky older man who had an easy time sleeping on the flight but who couldn’t seem to stay in his own seat, repeatedly leaning against Claire as he snored.
What now, she asked herself. She didn’t even have a place to sleep tonight and it would take a little while to find a new place to rent, if she even had enough to make a deposit on a new place. She had savings, but not as much as she would have liked, to make sure she could make ends meet in the meantime. Once her cell phone was working she needed to chase down the recruiters and see if anything had come through for her with anyone who would still be willing to hire her.
She pulled out the notebook from her back and copied the couple of contacts she had saved into her new phone and set out to ask one of the few locals she might not have burned her bridges with for advice. With a deep breath she pressed the call button and blew out a nervous breath.
“Choi Yejun,” The voice on the other end answered, much to her relief.
“I’m really sorry to bother you,” She bit her lip and scooted back into the building behind her to get out of the way of the passers-by. “I couldn’t think of anyone else to call. Oh, it’s Claire Faroe, by the way. Sorry I didn’t say that first.”
“Claire-ssi? You’re back in Seoul?” He couldn’t hide his surprise. “I heard you were hurt and still in the US.”
“I got back this afternoon,” She explained. “I still have to figure out some things but I just need a place to take a break for a couple of hours. Can I come by your dorm and borrow the internet
for a little while? I won’t bother you for long, I promise.”
“We are at our company at the moment, but I can head to our apartment now,” On the other end of the phone she could hear the sound of a chair scraping and things being shuffled around. “Maybe I can pick you up on the way? Where are you staying?”
“I haven’t worked that out yet,” She confessed. “If you’re busy I can just figure something else out. I probably shouldn’t have called…”
“No, no, don’t be silly,” He chided. “Where are you?”
“I’m not sure exactly,” She sighed, looking around at the sea of buildings in the area. “I’m a few blocks from the KXO offices at the moment. I don’t think it’s too far from your apartment block. I can probably take the subway...or maybe a taxi since I have my suitcase…”
“Take a taxi to our apartment,” Yejun instructed firmly. “I should get there first, but I’ll meet you at the apartment. Call me again when you get there, okay?”
“Okay,” Uncertainty was evident in her tone. “You’re sure I’m not being a bother. I can wait if--”
“No, no,” He insisted. “I’ll be waiting for you. I’ll be worried if you take too long, alright?”
“Okay,” She agreed, heading back towards the main road that ran in front of KXO’s offices, as it seemed the easiest place to flag down a taxi. “Oh wait. Can you text me the address? I lost all the information on my old phone.”
“Of course,” He confirmed. “I’ll do that as soon as we hang up.”
“Thanks,” Her voice was breathy as she walked and tried to corral her belongings behind her and talk on the phone. “I’ll see you soon then.”
“Yeah, see you soon,” Yejun let her hang up first, then texted her the address of their apartment building to give to the taxi driver.
***
Claire called Yejun from the sidewalk outside the apartment building, half expecting for him to answer and say that something had come up and he either wasn’t there or couldn’t come yet. It really had been unfair of her to spring this on him and she was sure that he had better things to do with his day, but she hadn’t known who else to call. He answered on the first ring and she could hear the sound of a door opening and shutting even as he greeted her.
Yejun hung up the phone when he walked out the front door and he laid eyes on Claire and her belongings on the sidewalk outside of their building. Walking to her, he took the handle of her bag from her and led her inside and up to their apartment.
“Can I get you something to eat or drink?” He asked as he parked her bag against the wall in their living room.
“Just some water is fine,” She told him gratefully, as she carefully pulled her messenger bag off over her head. Lifting her arms up caused the stitches to pull uncomfortably and taking her bag on and off made them sting. Once her bag was on the ground, she let out the breath she had been holding and followed Yejun to their kitchen. She took a seat at the breakfast bar on one side of the island and accepted the bottle of water Yejun handed her.
“Thank you,” She told him, taking a sip.
“You got back today?” He leaned on the edge of the table to the side of her.
“Yeah just a few hours ago,” She nodded, twisting the cap back onto the bottle. “I just need to sit down for a few minutes and get on my laptop to figure out where I can sleep tonight. Tomorrow I can start looking for an apartment and calling about jobs again. I’m sure I’ll find something.”
“If you need a place for tonight,” He put a hand on her shoulder. “You can borrow the couch here. Even for a couple of days.”
“No, no,” She pulled away, giving him an apologetic smile. “I can’t do that. It’s bad enough I’m imposing for a few hours. I probably shouldn’t have called at all. I just...I don’t really know anyone here anymore.”
“I read about what happened,” Yejun sighed, leaning forward on his elbows. “I read the article. I’m...I’m sorry about what happened. Can I ask what’s going to happen now?”
“What do you mean?” Claire clutched the water bottle in front of her.
“What will you and Cheol do now that the company knows?” He tried to be delicate with the question.
“There is nothing to do; there is no me and Cheol,” She told him simply. “My relationship with anyone at KXO ended a few hours ago. I accepted responsibility for the scandal, which hopefully is enough for the company to let it drop, and I don’t think I’ll be seeing any of them again.”
“That’s it?” Honestly, her answer didn’t surprise him in a way, but her seemingly bland acceptance of it did. “How has Cheol accepted things?”
“I honestly have no idea,” She admitted. “I haven’t seen or spoken to him since the incident at the airport actually.”
“You haven’t--” Yejun was cut off by the sound of the front door opening and the loud voices of Junwoo and Taehyun announce their arrival. They could hear them drop their shoes in the front hall and hang their coats up before entering the kitchen. Both of them laid eyes on the visitor with excited expressions and came in to greet her. Taehyun rushed forward eagerly and pulled her into a strong hug. Normally she would have welcomed the exuberant greeting, but his arm wrapped around her and pulled and twisted the skin of her back. She screamed and felt her knees buckle as white hot pain washed over her.
Justifiably startled, Taehyun let her go and lept back, accidentally allowing her to crumple to the floor. “What did I do?” He asked, afraid to touch her again.
“It’s your back, isn’t it,” Yejun knelt down beside her as she sat frozen on the floor, waiting for the pain to subside. Claire nodded, clenching her jaw too tightly to say something. “Is it just a bruise or…” She shook her head. “If I help you, can you walk to the bathroom with me?” After a pause and letting out a shaking breath, she nodded. “Okay, here.” He supported her under her arm as she stood and put a supportive arm around her waist as he walked her to the bathroom. “Give us a minute, okay? We’ll be back.”
“Yeah,” Both the boys answered, having been startled into silence.
Yejun sat Claire down on the toilet in the nearest bathroom and closed the door most of the way behind them. Silent tears were now rolling down Claire’s cheeks as she tried to tell herself, it couldn’t really hurt that much and that she was really fine, just tired and being silly.
“Can I look at your back?” He asked, already noticing little spots of blood seeping through her shirt. She nodded and let him lift the back of her shirt. On the right side of her back, between her shoulder blade and her spine was a jagged looking wound about seven centimeters long. The skin around the wound was hot and red and it looked like a couple of the stitches had been ripped by the over eager hug.
“I think we should probably take you back to the doctor,” He said gently, blotting the little droplets of blood off her back with a cotton pad he got from the shelves of the medicine cabinet. “I think Taehyun pulled out a stitch or two.”
“Can you clean it for me?” She managed to ask. “I don’t think I can reach it myself.”
“Yeah but..” He sighed, moving to where he could look her in the eyes. “If we go to the doctor they can do a better job.”
“I don’t want to,” She shook her head. “I don’t think I have insurance right now and I can’t spend money on things I don’t absolutely need right now.”
“If it’s the money, I can help,” He offered quietly.
“Just wash it if you don’t mind,” She sniffled, wiping her eyes.
“Okay,” Yejun sighed. “Tell me if I hurt you. I’ll try to be careful.” She nodded and he stood up, pulling a rag out of the cabinet before going into the kitchen to get their first aid kit they kept there.
“Is she okay?” Taehyun asked as Yejun passed him.
“I think you pulled a couple of stitches out on her back and I can’t get her to agree to go to the doctor,” Yejun sighed as he pulled the small box out from the shelf under the island. “I’m going to do my best
to clean it, but it is probably pretty painful.”
“I didn’t know,” The tall boy shrunk down like a kicked puppy. “I didn’t mean to hurt her.”
“Idiot,” Junwoo scolded him, from the seat beside him. “Didn’t you hear what happened this week?”
“No,” Taehyun looked between his two bandmates, looking both guilty and confused. “What happened?”
“I’ll talk to him,” Junwoo shooed Yejun back in the direction of the bathroom. “Just go fix her as best you can.”
Yejun left them in the kitchen and made his way back to the bathroom. Claire had removed her shirt and was leaning against the chest high counter built in on one side of the bathroom.
“I thought it might be easier if you didn’t have to lean down to reach me and if the shirt wasn’t in the way.” She explained, lifting her head off her crossed forearms she had been using to cushion it.
“Yeah, it will be. Thanks,” He nodded and avoided looking at her as he passed, putting the first aid box down on the lid of the toilet. “I’m going to wash it first with a little soap and water. You might want to hold a towel to keep water from dripping down. Let me get one for you.” He reached into the cabinet under her and pulled out a medium sized, fluffy white towel. Claire took it from him, wrapping it around her ribcage and holding it in a bunch just under the band of her bra. Wetting the rag in the sink, he added some soap, and moved to stand behind her. “Ready?” He asked, not wanting to surprise her.
She gave him a nod and put her forehead back on her arms. With gentle hands he started by wiping the hot, angry skin around the wound, slowly working inwards until he lightly brushed over the wound itself. She tensed but didn’t pull away and he could tell that it stung her.
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