Chapter 64: Caught at the Airport

The kind driver dropped us off right in front of the international terminal, and I couldn’t help but zone out halfway.

Are those people… not the ones I’m thinking of, right?

While waiting for the crosswalk signal to enter the airport, I saw a crowd of reporters holding cameras right in front of us.

“Looks like them, doesn’t it?” Jiwon said.

“Is it always like this, with them waiting around all the time?”

Don’t reporters usually move only when there’s a story?

“No idea. Anyway, I’m outta here. You handle it.” Jiwon said.

I grabbed Jiwon’s clothes as he tried to bolt from the swarm of reporters.

“Hey, wait! Where do you think you’re going alone?”

I figured two heads were better than one, but Jiwon coldly shook me off.

“I’m just a regular guy. Nail the runway and meet me inside.”

Jiwon dragged his suitcase and vanished, leaving me alone. I tried to stay positive, thinking maybe they wouldn’t recognize me.

The CEO told me not to get photographed without makeup… but there’s no way they’d spot me, right?

“Hey? That’s Jung Hyunjae!” 

“Who?” 

“The guy who played Donghyeok in Blue Sky Spring.” 

“Oh, that guy?”

But from across the street, I could already hear “Jung Hyunjae” and “Blue Sky Spring” being tossed around. Not long ago, no one knew me—how did word spread so fast?

“Haha, hello.” 

With no choice, I bowed and greeted them. Just then, the light turned green, and I crossed the street with awkward steps. 

With every step, I heard the clicking shutter sounds.

“Look over here just once, please!”

“Loved you in the drama!”

“Why are you traveling abroad?”

“Just going on a trip with a friend… Thanks for your hard work~”

It didn’t seem like they were here for me, so I hurried my steps to get inside.

Uh… where am I?

I strutted confidently into the airport, but the inside was way bigger than I expected, and I was disoriented.

I came here relying on Jiwon, but what am I supposed to do now?

I knew I had to check in, but I had no clue where to go or where Jiwon had disappeared to. 

As I pulled out my phone to call him, a call came in.

“CEO?”

My lovely Hyunjae… where are you right now?

“I’m at Incheon Airport.”

Hyunjae, didn’t you say you were going on a trip with a friend?

I’d already told Hyungkyu I was going on a trip with a friend.

“Yep! Phuket!”

But there’s a photo of you circulating online right now, completely unprepared. 

That wasn’t part of the plan, was it?

“Huh? How did you know?”

What a ghost. I just got here, and Hyungkyu already knows?

Haha… how do I know? 

Because it’s all over the news! I told you to keep it lowkey, and you go making headlines?

I yanked the phone away from my ear at Hyungkyu’s shouting. 

Seriously, how is he so fast?

“I didn’t mean to! I got out of the car, and the reporters were right there.”

You think I’m gonna buy that excuse?!

“It’s true! I thought they wouldn’t recognize me, but somehow they did.”

Sigh~ The airport is crawling with reporters all the time! Even sneaking in wouldn’t be enough, and you waltz right into their waiting spot?

Was that how it worked? 

I just thought an airport was an airport. I didn’t think about that stuff.

“Sorry…”

“Isn’t that guy an actor?”

“Hey! I saw him. That’s Donghyeok! He looks way better in person.”

Some girls nearby recognized me and started whispering.

Whatever. It’s done now, nothing we can do. Have a good rest.

“Okay.”

Come back ready to dive into work, got it?

After hanging up with Hyungkyu, I started looking for Jiwon when I noticed a woman holding a placard.

[Jung Hyunjae.]

Three honest syllables. I hoped it wasn’t me, but I couldn’t ignore the uneasy feeling, so I approached her.

“Um, excuse me…”

“Are you Jung Hyunjae?”

“Well, I am Jung Hyunjae, but…”

She glanced back and forth between her phone screen and me, confirmed I was the same person, and bowed politely.

“Hello. Park Jiwon is looking for you. Please follow me.”

What a clever guy, using a method like this. Following the woman, I found Jiwon lounging in a lounge, sipping coffee.

“Saw the photos. You looked great,” Jiwon teased.

“I got chewed out by the CEO for getting photographed unprepared~”

“That’s the life of a working stiff… ugh, I’m never getting a job.”

“It’s not that you don’t want one, it’s that you can’t get one.”

“Shut up and let’s go.”

We boarded the plane on time, and Jiwon, claiming his long legs couldn’t handle anything less than business class, got us seats there.

“Wow, this is nice.”

“Don’t act like a country bumpkin and keep it down.”

Jiwon adjusted his seat like a pro and shushed me from the seat in front. 

Just before takeoff, a petite woman wearing a hat, sunglasses, and a mask sat next to me.

Even non-celebrities bundle up like that. 

Was I too careless?

I felt a twinge of regret. 

While lost in thought, my eyes accidentally met hers.

Huh? What’s her deal?

It was just a casual eye contact, something that happens every day, but she flinched and looked uncomfortable.

Am I making her uneasy?

I figured staring at a stranger might be unsettling, so I turned my head toward the window.

Flight KE0070 will soon begin takeoff. 

All seated passengers, please fasten your seatbelts…

The in-flight announcement played, and soon the plane soared into the sky.

Wow! 

This is so cool!

It was my first time on a plane, so I was thrilled and nervous. 

Looking out the window, the place I’d been moments ago looked as tiny as ants.

“So cool…”

Hearing me, Jiwon glanced back, saw me staring out the window, and chuckled. I didn’t care if he laughed—this plane floating in the sky was fascinating.

Human technology is seriously amazing.

As I marveled at how this heavy object could fly, a voice interrupted.

“Excuse me.”

“Yes, do you need something?”

The woman next to me, still fully covered, called a flight attendant.

“Um…”

She whispered something to the attendant, who nodded and glanced at me. 

Even though I was distracted by the clouds, I wasn’t that oblivious.

“Uh… sir?”

“Yes?”

“There’s an empty seat elsewhere. Would you like to move?”

“My seat?”

Why were they suddenly asking me to move? Was I too loud by the window?

“Sorry, was I being too noisy?”

“No, no, it’s not that. Just for your comfort…”

“Uh…”

What do I do in a situation like this? 

Moving seats wasn’t a big deal, but should I? 

As I hesitated, Jiwon, who I thought was asleep, raised his head and called out.

“Excuse me.”

“Yes, one moment…”

“He’s with me.”

“Oh.”

With Jiwon’s single sentence, the flight attendant looked embarrassed, apologized, and briefly disappeared before returning.

“If it’s not too much trouble, would you mind moving to another seat?” 

This time, they asked the woman next to me to move.

“Me?”

“Yes.”

“Oh…”

She hadn’t expected to be the one asked to move and hesitated. 

People around her glanced over. 

Feeling their gazes, she said it was fine and sent the attendant away.

Was I too loud?

After that, I quietly stared out the window, and she, who’d been wary of me, covered herself with a blanket up to her face and fell asleep. 

Before I knew it, the plane had landed in Phuket.

“Wow, Phuket!”

The hot air hit me as soon as we stepped out of the airport, instantly screaming Southeast Asia.

“Yeah, but all I see are couples everywhere.”

“Huh? You’re right, what’s up with that?”

“This place is a honeymoon hotspot.”

You’re telling me we came to a honeymoon destination?

Why would he bring me to a honeymoon spot?

“My brother bought a resort here recently, so I’m checking it out.”

The scale of a rich guy’s life was on another level.

“Hey, that’s the woman who sat next to me.”

While Jiwon’s staff loaded our luggage, I spotted her getting into a car nearby.

“What a jerk,” Jiwon said, frowning the moment he saw her.

“Why?”

“Obviously acting like a celebrity, making a big deal out of it.”

“Huh? She’s a celebrity?”

I didn’t recognize her, but she was a celebrity?

“I don’t know who she is either, but she’s blatantly acting like one. Didn’t you see? She wouldn’t even take off her sunglasses on the plane.”

Oh, so that’s why she was all bundled up. Her behavior made sense now.

“And she tried to get you to move because she thought you’d recognize her. If she was uncomfortable, why didn’t she move instead of telling others what to do?”

Jiwon was clearly pissed, ranting until she disappeared.

“But when you said I was with you, the flight attendant changed her tune. Are you, like, a VIP or something?”

“Not exactly a VIP, but they know who I am.”

What’s that supposed to mean?

“They have basic info on passengers—like how often you fly or how much you spend.”

So that’s why they backed off when he said we were together. I was reminded again of the power of money in a capitalist world.

“Let’s go!”

“Yep!”

We headed to the resort Jiwon’s brother had recently bought for our vacation. 

The resort was massive—we drove for a while even after entering the gates. 

Trees I’d never seen in Korea and a sprawling pool caught my eye.

“Wow…”

The highlight was the emerald, crystal-clear sea, something rare in Korea.

“Crazy.”

I couldn’t help but gasp in awe. 

To think a place like this existed. 

If I’d stayed a dog, I’d never have seen this in my life. 

I soaked in the view, entranced.

“This is the real foreign vibe,” Jiwon said, looking proudly at my awestruck face.

As I was taking it all in, I spotted a familiar face.

“Hey… that woman?”

At the end of my pointing finger was a couple in a buggy cart. 

The woman clinging to the man’s arm was the same one from the plane.

“Hah, now it makes sense. She came here for a secret rendezvous. That’s why she was so paranoid.”

I’d accidentally witnessed an actress’s secret date.

Whether she’s having a fling or dating, I don’t really care.

Celebrities are people too—they can date. 

Why was she so paranoid about it? 

The buggy cart they were in sped off somewhere, and Jiwon and I, caught up in enjoying the resort, completely forgot about her.

Little did we know we’d meet again so soon.