Usually, I would freak out before going to bed and end up wandering the apartment until 5 in the morning. But with a warm cup of tea from Eun Mi and the sweet words from the members, I fell asleep instantly.
I woke up at 8 this time since my appointment with Appa YG wasn't until 11. I pulled on the planned outfit and made my way to the building with a rapidly beating heart. Jae Min was at the styling room. She was waiting for me with a wide grin.
"Ahh...you look adorable. Come sit and I'll do your hair and makeup," she greeted.
I obediently took a seat in front of the dressing table and let her brush through my long dark brown hair. By the time she finished with my hair, I learned over 50 new things about her and my hair was high up in a ponytail and was messily curled. It was a good idea. My hair wouldn't be able to get in my face when I dance.
"How would you liked your makeup?" she asked, holding a foundation brush.
"As simple as possible," I answered smiling at her.
"Very true. Your natural beauty should indeed shine today," she answered.
She began with a thin layer of foundation and worked her way around my face. Even if it was simple, it took at least 30 minutes. I noticed a hint of violet eyeshadow when she finished. It brought out the color in my eyes and the hairstyle. These stylists could work miracles.
"Alrighty! We are almost done!" she exclaimed.
I looked at her, puzzled. "What's next?"
She pulled out a pair of black-rimmed glasses from a cloth pouch. "These are the glasses TOP used at a music festival not too long ago. He wanted you to wear it today," Jae Min said.
She handed it to me to put on. It fit my face shape and made the overall outfit even more crazy natural.
I stood up and bowed to Jae Min. "Thank you, Unni...for helping me," I said.
Jae Min grabbed my shoulders. "My dongseng, listen." Her mascara-thick eyelashes batted prettily. "Whatever you do today, do it with confidence. And show that you really want it." I nodded. She smiled confidently and pulled me in for a hug. "Okay, good luck."
After thanking her again, I made my way up to the dance studio. I stepped into the studio and was met by a loud "woah". The members assembled on the seats against the wall. When they saw me in my outfit, they stood up.
"Annyongseo, oppa," I greeted.
Daesung clapped blindly. "Wah~ You look stunning!" he exclaimed. Jiyong just bit his lip in a smile and shook his head.
I took a seat on the floor to stretch out.
"Mindy...I'm so proud of you," Seungri said. "You look exactly like an idol right now."
I laughed. "I'm not an idol until I dye my hair blue."
"That's actually a really good idea," TOP said. Jiyong, Taeyang, and Daesung stared at him in disbelief.
"Don't worry so much. You're going to do amazing. I can tell the president will be so impressed," Taeyang told me when he turned back to me.
Jiyong came over to me and squatted to my level. "One piece of advice, Mindy." He smiled at me. "Smile."
"And watch your breath," Daesung added in. Jiyong rolled his eyes. I stood up and Jiyong followed suit.
"I honestly feel the greatest today. I think I can do it. I can make it," I told them.
As if on cue, Appa YG and my trainers came in. We quickly greeted them. Appa YG wore a different hat. This time it was dark green. He sat down at an empty chair and crossed his legs, ready to tell me to start.
Suddenly, the ponytail felt as if it was pulling at my scalp and my skin itched under the makeup. Staring at Appa YG's beady eyes, I felt sweat in my palms.
"Before we start, I would just like to say, " Appa YG said, "this evaluation isn't just based on your performance today. I've watched you practice for the past week so I will also judge on that."
"Yes, sir," I said confidently smiling. Even if it felt like a migraine from the ponytail, I still was able to pull on an act. Hye Ri smiled at me supportingly. "I will began now," I stated.
The members cheered for me and Appa YG smirked at them. Joon Tae began the music for me. I took a deep breath and began with the mic in my hand. The members cheered me on the entire song. With my refurbished dance routine, I incorporated each member's signature move. For example, for TOP's part, I preformed the move where he danced sideways. For Taeyang, I incorporated a dougie-like style.
The members and Appa YG enjoyed it immensely but I didn't. TOP's glasses kept slipping down my nose because slickness my nose developed. My ponytail also pulled at my scalp, making it hard to think.
I sang well and I was able to control my breaths but by the end of the song, I felt worse than after my practices. The room cheered for me when the song ended. Even Appa YG clapped. The members stood up and clapped and whistled and...danced.
When everyone settled down, Appa YG spoke. "Very impressive. I am very proud of you, Mindy-sshi," Appa YG stated.
I pulled on a smiling face ignoring the fact I felt so tired and bad. "Thank you, Appa YG," I answered. Mistake. I just called him Appa YG.
He raised his eyebrows."That's a peculiar title..."
I blushed. "Sorry..."
"But I like it," he simply stated. Then he stood. "Meet me in my office tomorrow at 10 AM."
I smiled at him and wished a good day. When he left, the members bombarded me with compliments and hugs, saying it was the greatest idea to incorporate their signature dance moves. Seungri complained to me how he never really danced like that.
Eventually, the members had to return to their schedule and left me alone in the Dance Studio to clean up. I collapsed against the wall when they left. What was wrong with me? Why was I so tired and why did everything hurt? I tried my hardest today, that was a definite yes. But why did I feel so bad?
I unlaced the boots and pulled off of my foot along with the socks. The sight shocked me. Along my toes and the side of my feet were bright red blisters. When I reached out to touch them, I instantly pulled back because it stung. I wiped the sweat from my forehead to find a fine layer of foundation on the back of my hand that I come off of my face. I didn't know much about makeup but I was pretty sure it wasn't supposed to do that.
Frustrated, I pulled my ponytail apart and instantly, the tension disappeared from my scalp. No wonder I was so tired. All of these factors affected my performance. A scary thought passed through my mind. It could have been a coincidence or...I stood up with my socks and made my way to the elevators. I was going to get to the bottom to why Jae Min planted all of these unfortunate events on my evaluation day.
When I went down to the dressing rooms, I only found a few stylists I didn't know well. I made my way to the dressing table Jae Min used on me and found the type of foundation she used on me. I held it up to another stylist.
"What kind of foundation is this?" I asked politely.
She scrunched her eyebrows. "It's foundation used for photo shoots."
"Can you use it for performances?" I continued. "Of course not. The sweat loosens it."
She continued to stare at me suspiciously. "Why...?"
"I..." I stopped. I was about to tell her about Jae Min and her devious plan to make me feel like a wreck during my performance but held back. I barely knew this stylist and she could think I was on to get Jae Min fired. "I was just curious. Jiyong oppa kept talking about how important foundation was," I lied.
The stylist nodded like she knew exactly what I was talking about. I quickly thanked her and scurried out of the room back to the Dance Studio. Even if I doubts, I still tried to make myself believe Jae Min wasn't intentionally trying to screw up my life. She could have grabbed the wrong foundation without noticing. Everything could have been a coincidence. Still...something seemed fishy.
Suddenly, I thought of the time Jae Min sent me on those errands for me to return as a thief. Did she send me away to make me look like I was running away with the rings? That didn't make sense. She didn't know I had the rings in the first place. No one was there when I took them.
I slipped the boots back on and took my things. As I walked through the lobby, Se7en found me.
"Eo, Mindy-sshi," he called me.
I quickly bowed. "Annyongseo Se7en-ssi."
He smiled at me warmly. "How did your evaluation go? Sorry I didn't come."
"It went greatly!" I answered half-heartedly. He sent me a look as if he knew exactly which words I held underneath.
Se7en looked at his watch. "Hmm...I want to hear more about it. Why don't we go get some coffee?" he offered.
I couldn't say no. That would be rude. So we ended up stopping at the cafe Daesung and I went to before. We ordered our coffee and took a seat at a nice spot in the corner.
"So Mindy-ssi. I heard you learned Korean for 4 years. Impressive. You barely have an American accent," Se7en complimented.
"Thank you," I answered.
He raised his eyebrows at me then leaned in a little closer. "Okay, from old YG artist to new YG artist, tell me what went wrong."
"I'm not a YG artist," I said, rolling my eyes.
"Not yet. Come on, Mindy-ssi. What's wrong?" he asked.
I hesitated but ended up telling him everything I suspected about Jae Min. He listened carefully.
"It does seem peculiar. Jae Min came in as a stylist around three years ago. She requested to be a main stylist for Big Bang," Se7en told me. "Honeslty, I wanted her for my own since she was absolutely great at makeup and hair...and clothes! But she went to Big Bang."
"Does that tell us anything?"
"Not necessarily," Se7en answered. "Just keep your ears and eyes open on Jae Min. And wait it out. We'll see then." He quickly looked at his watch. "I have to go now. I'll see you soon."
We exchanged our goodbyes and he left. I sat at the cafe for another 15 minutes sorting out my ideas about Jae Min. Even if everything was true and was caused by her, I still couldn't come up with an answer to one question: Why?
Everyone I knew in Korea was busy with work so I was left with no choice but to explore Seoul by myself. I ended up walking around the streets of downtown Seoul and trying a variety of foods from the street vendors. Although the culture was blast to experience, I still felt lonely and wished for the Big Bang members to be with me. At the end of my trip, I tried ten different kinds of fish cakes and bought 50,000 won worth of presents and clothes. I came back to the apartment and checked the Internet for any interesting news back in the United States.
Somehow, I ended up on a blog updating VIPs on the activities of Big Bang. I was mentioned in a post. "Who is this mysterious girl? From the press conference to shopping at the mall, this mysterious girl has been appearing around YG and Big Bang for the past week. There are suspicions of her being a new stylist or new member in the YG family. Not only that, she was accused of stealing rings..."
I stopped reading then, afraid of what they said about me. Curious, I searched Jae Min on Google. Oddly, Tumblr links showed up but when I clicked on it, it showed nothing about Jae Min. Seemingly, VIPs weren't aware of Big Bang's main stylist. I ended up having nothing to do. I considered going back to the YG building but everyone was too busy for me and I would just get in the way.
Seungri called me later to check on my.
"Eo, Mindy," Seungri said. "How are you?"
"I'm fine!" I replied. "How is rehearsal?"
"Boring. I wish you were here right now. We could sneak or something and do something fun. My vocal chords are so tired."
We continued talking for 30 minutes or so before he had to get back to rehearsing. The Lees came back from visiting their relatives to have dinner with me. We ended talking about our family life.
When I got ready for bed, Jiyong called me. "What are you doing right now, Mindy?" he asked me.
I yawned. "I'm about to go to sleep. You?"
"Me too. I'm so tired but we have to keep rehearsing," Jiyong answered. "Hey, since you're going to sleep, why don't I sing you a lullaby?"
Having Jiyong's voice in my war before going to bed? Please, sign me up.
"Sounds good," I said yawning again.
He began. It was a soft lullaby. His soft, unique singing voice began to lull me to sleep and my eyelids drooped. After he had finished, I tried my best to say goodbye to him before falling asleep. When I did, I knocked out, falling into a dream where Jiyong's beautiful voice was laced through the sweetness of sleep.
I woke up early in the morning due to my alarm. I tried to go back to sleep but the thought of facing Appa YG today kept me from falling asleep again. So, to calm nerves, I went jogging with my Nike shorts and tank top with a cardigan. I ended up around the neighborhood Big Bang lived in at 7 so I tried their door if they were there.
After I knocked five times, Taeyang opened the door wearing boxers and no shirt. He almost slammed the door on my face in an attempt to hide behind it.
"M-mindy!!!" he stammered, startled. "W-what are you doing here?"
I laughed at his scared face. "Gosh, Taeyang oppa. You would think you've never shown your abs to anyone," I told him.
He still hid behind the door. "But...b-but I'm not wearing pants."
I pushed past him to get into the house. "I won't look. Just pull something on."
He quickly closed the door after him and ran to the room to pull on pants. TOP sat at the dining table with his head on the table. He looked like he was half asleep. I came up to him and poked him in the ear. He jumped up, startled but sent me a questioning look when he saw me.
"What are you doing here, Mindy?" he asked as he put his head back on the table.
"My question is why you are here right now," I told him.
"I'm waiting for Taeyang to make me breakfast," he mumbled.
I rolled my eyes and made my way to the kitchen. As TOP mumbled something about irresponsible dongsengs, I made three egg rolls with seaweed for his breakfast and laid it in front of him along with a pair of chopsticks and a glass of orange juice. He looked up at me.
"What is this?" he asked. "It's food, oppa. Don't tell me you're too bingu to know what it is," I said smiling.
"This girl!" he exclaimed but he picked up the chopsticks and began eating.
Taeyang came out and began to make himself breakfast glancing at me every so often as if I was sneaking glances at his treasures. Daesung and Seungri came out of the room to join them for breakfast and bid me a good morning. Seungri froze in his place.
"Wait," he said. "What are you doing here?" Daesung also scratched his head and squinted. "It's so early."
"I'm here to do some housekeeping," I answered as I handed TOP a napkin. "Where's Jiyong?"
"He's still in the room refusing to wake up," Taeyang told me.
I smirked to myself and made my way to the lazy leader. Jiyong laid on his belly with a blanket over his head in an attempt to keep sleeping past raise time. I reached over to the curtains and pulled them open, turned on the lights and sat on his bed.
I summoned my shouting voice and then began bouncing on the bed and screaming, "FIRE. FIRE. OMFG. FIRE. JIYONG OPPA, GET UP. WE'RE GONNA BURN TO DEATH."
Jiyong jumped out of bed and squinted around the room. His sight landed on him and he groaned, trying to get back on the bed. Instead, I grabbed his arm and dragged him out of the room to the dining room where Taeyang laid out breakfast.
"Woah!!!" Daesung cried. "Mindy got hyung to wake up!"
"That bastard," Jiyong groaned as he sat down at the table.
I acted like I was offended. "Excuse me?"
"I meant Daesung," he muttered.
I patted his head. "Good response." After we had breakfast together, we went to the YG building.
Before I went up to Appa YG's headquarters, the members wished me luck and all gave me a hug. I stepped into the large room and shouted a greeting the president.
Surprised, he returned my greeting. Oddly, he wore the same cap from yesterday. Together we sat down before the coffee table.
"Alright, Mindy-ssi," Appa YG started. "What do you think I will say?"
"Honestly?" I asked. He nodded. "Well, I think you would say I could have done better and that I should try harder."
He sighed. "Idols...There is no such thing as perfection." He smiled at me. "I was incredibly impressed by your performance yesterday. The energy from you was overpowering. Adding on with the hours you spent practicing, I am 100% impressed."
"Thank you," I told Appa YG.
"And with the right harnessing and training and MANY more years of experience, you'll be an amazing idol," he continued. My heart thumped against my chest. "That's why..." He pulled a piece of paper out of the folder he held. "...I want you to sign here."
"Wait what?" I stared at him dumbfounded.
Appa YG said, "I want you to start immediately as an official artist in the YG Family."