NOTES:
The following is a work of Fiction. The events and characters are fictional and the names characters are merely borrowed and do not represent who they are in reality.
No offence is intended towards them, their families or friends.
Title: Playing A Masquerade Sucks
Rating: PG13
***
---PROLOGUE---
I see faint lights dancing upon, I see faces but I have no vague idea who it is.
My heart throbs and I can feel it tightening, it hurts – a lot.
And then memories begin flooding me, I have pulled a smile unintentionally as I recall those fond, beautiful memories, of a certain someone.
She is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen in my life.
I see her smiling at me, sunshine and warm. I feel her caressing my face, gentle and warmth spilling onto my cold face. I feel my self pressing my lips against her and the other responds a moment later, joy and love engulfing the both of us.
Everything about her suddenly fill up every crack and exhaustion in my body, as though stress releasing after accumulating in the same place for decades. She has given me a lot of first times and I have also presented her many of mine.
She makes me feel life.
I feel hands and warmth wrapping me, bringing me higher and higher, as though floating in air.
I see a blinding light directed at me and bringing me forward to a new place.
I…
-----------
CHAPTER 1: Surfacing Problems
“Man, I’m so dead,” SooYoung leaned back on her seat, lids closed and her lips pursed.
“You won't die since you're so beautiful," EonJin said, scanning through the schedules.
SooYoung opened her eyes slowly and stared at her manager, who was looking dazed and dreamy. She sighed, adding, “I know you are thinking how you’ll make big money with my face, but, what if someone found out? My mask isn’t keeping me going forever. I’m only playing a masquerade!”
“Well, I never said you aren’t going to drop your mask. We’ll find one day to speak out the truth to the media and public,” Stealing a quick glance at the bizarred SooYoung, she added quickly, “Before they find out, of course.”
SooYoung exhaled heavily, almost a sigh.
“I’m not making any improvements.”
EonJin looked at her artist, she was a newly debuted star in the entertainment world. But not famed yet and she was nothing but a nebula in the wide galaxy with this much artificial beauty. But there was one thing that SooYoung was advantaging, she's original. No plastic addition, she's pure.
“I know,” EonJin said, as she looked at SooYoung who was massaging her temples, eyes closed again. “If that’s bothering you, you don’t have to worry. I’ll get you big time when you get to receive a new job! Alright? Now it’s only some modeling, you haven’t even get started on doing a show? Right? Don’t give up! Come on! Smile a little!” EonJin shoved her gently but the other didn’t budge.
SooYoung licked her lips, “I can’t smile. You see…” EonJin nodded her head along the slurs in SooYoung’s words. Clearing her throat, SooYoung said her words softly, slowly.
“… If I am to tell you that a guy at school saw me with my hair down, will you kill me?”
Silence.
“WHAT?”
SooYoung shrugged, “Well, when I was resting, feeling stressed with all the braids pulling at my hair and the glasses making me dizzy. I was brushing my hair and I doubt he didn’t know who am I cause I’m not a oh-so-hot star yet like HyoRi-sunbae.”
“You mean stroking,” EonJin snapped, “I remember I told you to NOT bring a brush to school.”
“Whatever, listen! When I was stroking my hair and feeling about the weather, I looked up and saw a dumbfounded looking guy with glasses staring back at me.”
“So what did you do?”
“… Uh, I fled?” SooYoung said, rolling her eyes to EonJin.
“UGH! YOU STUPID GIRL!” EonJin felt her face flushed with anger, if nothing’s gonna pull her down right now, she’ll definitely run to SooYoung’s school to strangle that guy.
“YOU SHOULD JUST KILL HIM!”
SooYoung sat back in her seat, her mouth dropped open, not attempted again to pull down the raged EonJin.
“You’re joking.”
“I’m not.”
“But I’m not recognized and I’m no big star, so why-”
“WHATEVER HELL THE FAME IS YOU’LL GET BLACKMAILED WHEN YOU’RE ALL OH-SO-HOTTER-THAN-HYORI! IT’S A PRE-DISASTER!”
SooYoung shook her head, hands on her waist, “You’re crazy.”
“Yes! And I am going to kill him right now! DRIVE,YOU IDIOT!” EonJin screamed at the driver who fumbled with his wheel, biting his lower lips.
SooYoung gulped, “She’s serious?” .
----
“JaeJoong! What the heck you are doing! Get the hell here right now or else I’m going to chop off your ears!” Amane yelled, slapping the old cloth on the table. JaeJoong placed down his glasses, jammed the book back into his bag and hurried to Amane. “I’m sorry,” He panted as he supported himself with his hands on his knees. Amane looked at him with disgrace, “You weakling! A little run and you’re panting the hell like you’re having asthma!”
JaeJoong gulped, “Well, I can’t help it.” His heart tightened and a lump formed as he recalled something. Amane wasn’t sincere enough noticed it.
“Now get to work! Table 23 is calling for the menu!” Amane threw an apron towards JaeJoong, who caught it and wore it instantly. He grabbed a note pad from the counter, a pen and the menu, and then scurried down the small aisles between the tables.
JaeJoong wasn’t listening to his customer at all even though his note pad was placed in his hands and he was holding a pen. He was thinking about the girl who sat by the fountain at school today. He had never really seen anyone like her.
-FLASHBACK-
“Hey, it’s recess! Woohoo! Food!” JunSu ran out of the classroom with his mates when the bell rang, as JaeJoong looked up slowly from his book, his nerdy glasses guaranteeing a safe and quiet school life for him. He closed his book and staggered his way to the front door as people squeezed and pushed him. He might be tall but he was skinny and frail-looking. Any girl with thunder thighs could squeeze him into nothing but dust.
And he himself knew that he wasn’t that of a good fight with the others. So he lived quietly, his presence barely noticed by people but bullies.
JaeJoong bit into own bento, even though he looked frail and fragile, he was born in a wealthy family. He tried to hide the fact of it as it might attract attention, which was not his means at all. He only wanted a peaceful high school life. When he was making his way back to the school building through the back door where a fountain was build, he noticed a figure blurred by the running water of the fountain.
Dragging his feet quietly, he narrowed his eyes to figure out who was it.
“A girl?” He whispered to himself as a small framed girl appeared before his eyes.
The girl was stroking her let-down-waist-length-hair, her white slender fingers brushing through her black hair smoothly. Her pearl white face with tints of red had two large twinkling eyes and long, luxurious eye lashes, lips pink and love-shaped. Even though she was sitting, JaeJoong could tell she was lean and even more than average height – around 165. She looked soft and bunny-like with her white hands dangling by her sides and her legs poking out from knee-length boots with black socks. She’s only a little too thin for a bunny. Hmmm…
Instead of a bunny, she also looked like…
A real, living, breathing human-sized doll.
As he was amazed by her beauty, too shock to move or say anything, the girl looked up.
He saw fear and panic washed through her eyes, and it was quickly replaced by calmness as she picked up the glasses on her sides and put them on. The usual twinklings of her eyes were gone and when JaeJoong blinked his eyes. She was gone.
JaeJoong wondered if he was day dreaming on a bright, sunny day, but the lingering perfume in the air told him he was not hallucinating.
She was real.
-end of FLASHBACK-
“Hello, mister?” JaeJoong blinked his eyes, returning to present where his customer waved her hand in front of his face, annoyed. “I’m sorry,” He stuttered an apology quickly, collecting the menus and jotting down the orders, and then left the table in a hurry.
Amane shook his head as he watched him, heaving a plaintive sigh, “Kids.”
KimBum appeared behind him, eyes blinking innocently, “What kids?”
Amane shoved his head away as KimBum cuddled it on his shoulder, “Get to work and stop playing the fool!” KimBum chuckled and walked away, his grace charming every girl in the shop. He was the only thing – Amane called him the shop’s mascot - to bring business up.
Amane wondered if KimBum jacked it all in one day – what will exactly happen to his little baby shop? Shuddering and rubbing his arms, he pulled a face and winced, not noticing the approaching JaeJoong, “Hmm, why the bitter face? Getting another shock from not-so-mascot KimBum?” Amane puffed his cheeks out and rolled his eyes at KimBum, who winked back from a table of squealing high school girls. JaeJoong laughed and walked away.
He wasn’t all awoke from his dream until he tipped over something and the plates flew in the air.
“SHOOOT!” Amane yelled.
JaeJoong’s eyes grew large as the plates began to react at the pull of gravity.
JJ: I’M DOOMED! O-O
AMANE:
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