She breathed in deeply then exhaled.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Incheon Airport... Enjoy your stay!" the pilot announced.
3 years. It had been 3 years since she last stepped her feet here. She once called this place her second home. She bit her bottom lip. She wasn't sure if she was still welcome here.
Memories. She had so much memories in this country but she wasn't sure if she'll ever be able to relive them. She never even imagined she'd be going back here.
"Tzuyu, let's go?" her manager asked. She smiled and nodded. She then stood up and grabbed her Louis Vuitton Montaigne BB bag.
She smiled noticing that there weren't a lot of people around the airport. She was always the introvert type and she didn't want to be around a lot of people but you wouldn't even notice that knowing her career now.
Her manager accompanied her to her chauffeur. "The photoshoot for the magazine will start tomorrow at 9am," her manager informed her. She nodded to this information. Her manager then opened the car door for her to get in.
She closed her eyes as soon as the driver had started driving. She looked outside the window. Things didn't change that much, she noticed, or she hoped
She smiled as she saw a billboard of her when the traffic light turned red and the car stopped. It was of a clothing line she was endorsing. It even had her name on it.
Chou Tzuyu. She was now a known supermodel. She had worked her way hard to where she was now. Things were never easy.
People always thought she had used her wealthy background to get to where she was now but in fact, her parents were against her decision. Like how they were against her decision to pursue her dreams in one of the prestigious schools here, in Seoul, 7 years ago.
She sighed. She leaned her head back to the car's head rest and closed her eyes.
"Ready?" her manager asked.
"As always," she shrugged her shoulders.
She furrowed her brows as she saw a familiar face passed by through the mirror. She turned her head to check it but it wasn't there anymore.
Was that him? She tilted her head as she thought that.
Imagination? She bit her bottom lip and shook her head. She must've been thinking a lot now that she's in Seoul. Impossible. She sighed.
"Hi Tzuyu!" she turned her head to see who just called her. She stood up as she saw it was Jihyo, the magazine's editor in chief.
"Unnie!" both girls exchanged hugs. Jihyo was an old friend. Jihyo had personally contacted her to grace the cover of this friend's magazine.
"Have you met the photographer yet?" Jihyo asked. She was sure there was a spark in Jihyo's eyes. She remembered Jihyo would usually be like this when a playful thought comes to her mind. She didn't mind it and just shook her head.
"Taehyung~ah!" Jihyo called.
Taehyung? Her brows furrowed. No! It's not him, is it? She secretly wished.
She held her breath as she saw who just came inside her room. Him! Her round eyes widened at the sight of the newcomer.
He was more masculine now since she last saw him. He was wearing a light blue button down paired with black trousers then covered with a grey coat. He was bringing his camera in one hand. She felt like her heart raced twice as he slowly approached them.
"Tzuyu," that caught her attention. She turned to Jihyo and did her best to stay poised.
"This is Taehyung, the magazine's official photographer," she tried her best to smile.
"Taehyung~ssi, this is the lovely supermodel, Chou Tzuyu," her breathing hitched at what he did. He reached for her hand and brought it near his face to give a kiss at the back of her palm.
The way he was staring at her awakened the butterflies in her stomach. She couldn't help but gulp. He had a playful smirk on his face after he kissed her hand.
She tried to release her hand from his grip but it seemed like he didn't have plans of letting it go.
Their stares were cut as they heard someone cleared her throat. She immediately got her hand back. Remind her to thank Jihyo later.
"Taehyung~ssi, do you want to check the area first?" Jihyo asked. Taehyung nodded. Both then left her.
She instantly dropped herself in her chair after that. She felt her chest. It was beating so fast, it was as if she was from a marathon.
She looked to the side to see an old issue of the magazine she was shooting for. She flipped the pages. K.TH! Why didn't she ever thought of checking who the photographer was? She wanted to slap herself right now. She couldn't blame Jihyo as she knew Jihyo didn't have a single idea.
She tried her best to be as professional as she could be during the shoot.
"Tzuyu~ssi, could you please pick up the flower?" Taehyung asked. She nodded and picked the flower up. It was a rose.
Her brows furrowed as she felt something stung. She let go of the rose.
"Are you alright?" she just found Taehyung held her finger and wiped it with his handkerchief. She couldn't help but look at him. He was biting his bottom lip while wiping her wounded finger seriously.
She always admired his almond eyes. She saw closely how his face changed. His jaw was more defined now. He still had that long, pointy nose and those thin, luscious lips.
"Are you done staring now?" that deep, husky voice. She turned away and removed her finger from his grip.
She could see at the side of her eyes that he had a smirk playing on his face. There was suddenly awkwardness in the atmosphere.
"Oppa!" both turned to see who called.
"Tzuyu?" the newcomer suddenly hugged her. She was taken aback by the sudden action.
"Sana~unnie?" she called.
"Are you the model for the cover?" Sana exclaimed, being her usual cheerful self as she remembered. She just nodded in response.
"Oppa, here!" she saw Sana handed some kind of lens to Taehyung.
"You always forget these things!" Sana scolded. Taehyung scratched the back of her head and smiled.
She wanted to touch her chest now. She was sure it suddenly hurt. Looking at how he looks at Sana now, she couldn't help but feel this unusual feeling. His stares, they were the same warm stares he always gave her before.
"Shall we continue?" that cut her train of thoughts. She nodded at his question then positioned herself.
She dropped herself on her bed. She was finally now at her hotel room. It was still the first day of the photoshoot yet it felt like forever.
She sighed. She covered her eyes with one of her arms. Who would've thought that this photoshoot would be the reason for them to see each other again?
It felt like things were going back to the past. But who was she kidding? He was not the same guy anymore. The guy who used to make her smile when she was feeling down. The guy who used to laugh at her jokes even when these weren't funny. The guy who would do everything to make her happy. Her first love.
She picked up her phone from the bedside table as she heard it rung. "Ouh?" she asked.
"Why didn't you tell me Kim Taehyung would be the one shooting for you?" she held the phone away from her ear as she heard someone yell.
"I didn't know, ok?" she answered. "Not until today," she sighed. She messaged her bestfriend after she freaked out, discovering who the photographer was.
"So, how was it? Plans of rekindling some old flame?" her best friend teased.
"Chaeng!" she exclaimed. "Stop it," she warned.
"He has Sana~unnie now," she covered her mouth. She couldn't believe that just came out from her mouth.
"Oooh, I can see someone's jealous," Chaeyoung teased again.
"No! It had been like 3 years ago," she reminded.
"Yeah, right. You were together for a year," she rolled her eyes at what Chaeyoung said.
"Wait, Sana~unnie?" she nodded to her best friend as if she could see her. "I thought, she already have somebody else," Chaeyoung clarified.
"I don't know Chaeng, I don't know," she told her.
"I think this would be the great time for you to reevaluate your feelings. Also, don't you think you both deserve the right closure?" Chaeyoung told her which made her ponder on the question. She sighed before dropping the call.
2 more days. She was supposed to be here for 3 days. All she needed to endure was 3 days. She's just got to be professional.
Thankfully, the second day went on normally. There were times when she would catch him look at her intensely but maybe she was just putting some other meanings to it.
Last day. It was the third day of the photoshoot. She smiled at her reflection through the mirror before going out of the dressing room.
She was surprised to see who was standing outside. He looked really handsome with him leaning on the wall and both his hands in the side pockets of his pants.
She saw at how his eyes moved from her head to her toe. How she wished what she was thinking was true but sad to say it isn't.
"Done checking me out?" she playfully asked to divert his attention. He looked at her with a shy smile while scratching his nape.
"Uhm, you're a little early today," he said.
"You know me," she uttered.
"Yeah, you're a morning person. You're usually punctual too," he stated. She nodded and smiled awkwardly at him.
"Want to grab some coffee?" he asked.
"Sure," she answered.
The coffee shop was just one block away. The walk to the café was silent.
"What do you want? My treat," he told her.
"No it's ok," she told him.
"You're our guest, I insist" he pleaded. She sighed then nodded.
"What do you want? Macchiato or Americano?" he asked.
"Uhm, Double Choco Chip Crème," "Double Choco Chip Crème?" both said together but his was a question. Both then smiled at each other. She bit her bottom lip. He turned to order.
With coffee in their hands, both were heading back to the location.
"You still choose choco over coffee, huh?" he said while looking at the glass she was holding.
"You still like your coffee sweet though," she shrugged her shoulders looking at the macchiato he was holding.
"Yeah," he replied.
"I'm glad you pursued photography," she opened up.
"Yeah, just so happened," he shrugged his shoulders.
"I remember, I used to be your model before," she couldn't help but reminisce.
"Aren't you my model now?" he said as he tucked a few strands of her hair at the back of her ear. She felt shy at what he just did.
"Isn't it nice how things are still the same after a few years?" she expressed, trying to change the topic.
"No, things change. Even before, not a few years after, things changed," he turned serious. He was giving her a piercing stare. She felt nervous at his sudden change.
She looked around, they have arrived at the location. "I'll go prepare now," she excused herself then walked fast to the dressing room.
She sighed as soon as she got inside her dressing room. She thought she wouldn't be able to escape. She felt really uncomfortable.
"That's a wrap!" Jihyo announced. That made her exhale in satisfaction.
"Tzuyu~ssi, we're going out to celebrate at a nearby restaurant tonight, aren't you coming?" one staff asked.
"I don't think so," she declined.
"You should come," Jihyo intervened.
"Unnie, my flight's early tomorrow," she tried to explain.
"You should come, we're celebrating for you anyways," she didn't noticed he had approached them already. She couldn't help but nod.
"She's coming guys!" Jihyo announced, the staff cheered.
She sighed. Why am I here again? She asked herself. Everyone was enjoying their time but she just wasn't comfortable.
She would talk to Jihyo and her manager once in a while but she's just not one of the crowd.
"Tzuyu~ssi!" she turned to see who it was. It was one staff who handed her a glass of somaek. She wanted to decline. She just doesn't enjoy alcohol that much. She slowly extended her arm to receive it but was shocked to see him grab it for her then drank everything from that glass in one go. Her lips parted in awe.
"Oh, I thought it was for me," he just shrugged his shoulders as he placed the empty glass on the table. Did he just save her? She didn't want to think otherwise.
The party ended with everyone wasted, except for her and her manager.
"Oppa, can you bring Jihyo~unnie to her home?" she asked her manager. Both looked at Jihyo who was sleeping beside her.
"But," her manager was about to oppose as she looked at him who was also asleep beside her manager. She just sighed at the sight of the two.
They have arrived at Jihyo's place. Her manager had brought Jihyo inside. She looked to her side. She furrowed her brows as she noticed how close he was to her.
She couldn't help but look at him. She brought her finger to trace his facial features. She remembered that she used to do this while he was sleeping.
"I missed you," she stopped what she was doing as he grabbed her finger. What he just said surprised her.
"Sana~unnie's not here," she tried to release her finger. She furrowed her brows, he must've thought she was his girlfriend.
"Sana's just a friend, my assistant at that," he revealed. He was able to read her thoughts. She bit her bottom lip. She was wrong all along.
"She used to like you," she whispered.
"That was 3 years ago. She has somebody else now."
"It has always been you Tzuyu. You heard that? It has been 3 years since you left yet I still yearn for you," he was now looking at her intently.
"That day, that day was our first year anniversary, why did you leave me?" he asked. This was the day she dreaded. She looked away.
She felt him cup her chin and brought her to look at him. "Please answer me," he pleaded.
"I loved you then, I still love you now. But why? I was sure I gave you everything," he stated. She gasped as one tear fell from his eye. She brought her hand to his face to wipe that tear.
"On the day you left, I looked for you. I called you. I messaged you. I asked all of your friends where you were. I tried to reach you but it was when I went to your house that I discovered that you already left for Tainan," she bit her bottom lip, trying to suppress her cry.
"Was it Jungkook?" he snorted.
"No," she quickly denied, shaking her head.
"I knew that he liked you. I saw how he used to look at you. Were you by any chance confused with how you felt that's why you left?" he asked, desperate for her answer.
"No!" she denied again. "But he's your brother!" she exclaimed.
"He told me he liked me. I knew how much you loved your brother. I didn't want you both to fight," she tried to explain.
"Those were the times when you were so happy because your father had finally acknowledged you. Your stepmother and Jungkook, your stepbrother had finally welcomed you to the family," she continued, one tear fell from her eye.
"I couldn't fathom to destroy that happiness," she sniffed, she felt her chest tightening.
"You destroyed my every hope to happiness the day you left," he confessed. She looked away. Everything that happened and was happening hurt her, she also knew it also hurt him.
"Jungkook," he stated. She looked at him. "He told me on the day you left that he thought we were just friends so he tried to pursue you. I told him that we weren't. You meant the world to me," he revealed.
"Maybe, things were just meant to happen," she expressed. "We weren't meant to be," she whispered as another tear escaped from her eye.
"So you just gave up like that," it wasn't a question. What he said was a statement. Silence prevailed inside the car.
"Taehyung~ssi, where do you live?" her manager who just arrived asked. She watched him get off the car.
"It's just nearby. I can already walk from here," he told her manager.
"If you can't fight for us, then I will," he said without glancing at her again. She just looked at his figure walk away from the car.
She sighed. She looked at the airport again one last time before finally entering the departure door.
Maybe, last night was the closure they needed. But she knew her heart wanted to see him again but will he accept her? A lot of thoughts just clouded her mind.
"Tzuyu!" her manager called. She sighed then started walking to the airplane.
She found herself plop on the airplane seat. She closed her eyes. A tear escaped from her eye.
"Tzuyu, are you ok?" her manager who was sitting beside her asked. She wiped the tear, just smiled a little and nodded.
She opened her eyes as she heard the pilot announce that they have arrived in Tainan already.
She walked to the arrival door to be welcomed by a familiar figure. Her lips parted in shock. She removed her sunglasses to be sure with what she was seeing.
"You think you can escape from me again?" that husky voice snapped her out of her thoughts.
She pinched her cheek just to be sure things were real.
"You don't pinch the cheek of the most beautiful face of the world just like that," he had approached her already. She was breathless.
"Would this do to tell you this is real?" he asked. He then gave her a peck on the lips.
"Chou Tzuyu, would you be my model forever?" he asked while scratching the back of his head, feeling shy. She giggled at him.
She then jumped at him. His reflexes were quick enough to catch her. She looked at him then nodded.
"I love you," he confessed, she felt her cheeks burn so she hid her face with his shoulder.
"I love you too," she replied, still hiding her face.
She lifted her head as she leaned in to close their distance. She closed her eyes as she felt their lips touch. Now, she can be his model forever.
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AN: This is a work of fiction, based solely from the author's delusional mind. Please do leave a comment and tell me what you think. Rightful credits to the owners of the photos used in this story.
I missed making Taetzu oneshots! Maybe that's why I was able to make this a little longer than the others.
What do you think of this chapter?