Page 151

Chapter 45

We stayed in Busan just over a week. Long enough that news of his grandmother’s passing had made it into public knowledge.

It seemed like people had found out in the most boring way possible – someone had seen her obituary. There were also photos of him arriving at Busan airport. I was in the photos, but it wasn’t obvious we’d been together. Beneath my cap and facemask, I looked like just another person.

We’d gotten lucky that it had only been one person with a camera, and because his parents lived in Busan, it also wasn’t particularly unusual that he’d be seen here while the tour was on break, but when the media found out about Baek Hwayeon’s passing, the story changed from Jihoon coming home for a visit, to Jihoon rushing home to comfort his grieving family, and a dozen other salacious headlines. Thankfully, he’d been too caught up with everything to see them, which was a small mercy.

We didn’t stay long after that. Jihoon had to rejoin the tour now that his absence had been noted. The last thing he wanted was to draw his family into the public eye, and now that it was common knowledge he was in Busan, the company had decided to put him on a private plane to Incheon and from there he’d be met by a team who would arrange his onward flight to Dubai.

He was told the plan, not asked for any input, and I was not considered at all, which hadn’t been a surprise to me, but Jihoon had been furious.

“Joon, it’s not that big of a deal,” I’d tried to say the night before he was due to fly back to Incheon. I hadn’t booked a flight yet.

“It is a big deal,” he bit out. “You came with me to Busan. You came for me.”

I moved towards him, putting my hands on his chest and staring up at him.

“Yes, and I’d do it again,” I said clearly. “The company doesn’t get to dictate all our actions.”

“You should not have to travel back alone,” he said darkly, putting his hands on my waist and holding tight as if I might vanish if he let go.

“Baek Jihoon, I am capable of catching a plane by myself,” I scoffed, even as I softened my smile.

“Yes, you are, but that’s not the point,” he said firmly. “I’m not leaving without you.”

He’d called Youngsoo and demanded I be added to the passenger manifest. I didn’t know what ultimatum he’d given them – I hadn’t asked – but half an hour later, Youngsoo had called back to confirm I was on the manifest.

As simple as that.

August 28th

We drove the rental car back to the airport drop-off and took a shuttle to the private airstrip. I didn’t bother trying to hide my awe.

I had no idea what kind of plane it was. All I knew was that my eyes nearly fell out of my head when we boarded. The cream and walnut interior was lined with leather seats the size of armchairs. There was a bedroom in the back, and a bathroom with an actual shower. On a plane!

Jihoon laughed at me as we settled into the enormous chairs. My head was on a swivel, trying to take in every detail, and fiddling with everything.

“So cute,” he chuckled.

“My, how the other side lives,” I sighed with a shake of my head.

He sobered a little, studying my expression. “Does it make you uncomfortable, Kaiya?”

I considered the question, watching the attendants bustle around at the front of the cabin.

“Maybe once it would have,” I admitted. “I don’t know if this is the kind of thing you get used to.” I gestured around vaguely, encompassing the plush interior, the emptiness of the plane that must have cost thousands to charter for just one trip. “But maybe you just roll with it, after a while.”

He pursed his lips as he considered my answer. “Maybe. I don’t think I am used to it yet. We would prefer to fly normally, but we can’t anymore.”

I nodded. Sometimes they did, when the entire flight was booked out with other tour staff, but for the most part it simply wasn’t safe to do so anymore. It had become common for flight details to be leaked, and for people – namely saesangs – to book seats as close to the performer as possible. It shouldn’t be a thing that happened. It shouldn’t have been possible with all the data protection, and security, but that had never stopped it. The only thing that prevented it was flying private.

In the beginning, the power dynamic of our relationship had been something I’d felt keenly, like a stone in my shoe. Not something I could ever forget was there.

Growing up always slightly too close to the breadline had left more of a mark on me than I liked to acknowledge, and being confronted with Jihoon’s wealth and fame had made me uneasy in ways I was unprepared for. But that had been my problem, not his.

It wasn’t that I was used to it all now, it was more like I understood that just because he had more than me, did not make him more than me, or make me less than him.

“Jagiya, you’re thinking so loudly I can hear you over the engines.”