My Summer in Seoul

We were still laughing when we walked into the studio.

And I wasn’t just met with a murderous look from Lucas but from Rae as well.

“Don’t worry about it,” Dae-Jung, or Oppa, said under his breath. It felt weird calling him anything but his name, but it was easy to remember. “They’re just… young.”

“And you’re old?”

“Older than you.” He laughed. “Now wish me luck, I have to go deal with all my juniors, and they look ready to kill me.”

“That’s normal.” I laughed.

He joined in, and then he was getting his makeup re-touched before he sat in between Lucas and Rae, addressing the camera and the laptop to watch the music video.

I was about to leave when Dae-Jung spoke up. “Grace, you should stay. I bet the guys would love your reaction too.”

Just kidding; he was dead, so dead.

The guys all stared at me like I was an alien. “No, no, that’s okay, I think—”

“I think you should watch after I do.” He motioned to the camera crew, and then suddenly, I was getting shoved into a chair, a brush pulled over my messy hair, and something sweet-smelling shoved across my face.

Just how much power did this actor guy have?

I hadn’t googled him, and now I was regretting it because it seemed like he said jump, and everyone else was ready to sacrifice everything just to make him happy.

I didn’t get to see his reaction to the MV at all because I was in hair and makeup.

And then I was getting shoved toward SWT—who half hated me, half tolerated me, and that was the math; that was it.

I was mortified when Dae-Jung shoved me into his chair and leaned down to whisper, “Just be honest.”

“Always am.” I shivered at his nearness and could have sworn I heard a growl from Rae, or was it Lucas?

Either way, it was weird, the entire situation.

He went over to the shooting director and said a few things. They both nodded as he looked at me. “You ready?”

“No,” I answered honestly. “But do I have a choice?”

“Nope.” He winked.

I was starting to hate those winks.

Taking a deep breath and closing my eyes, I finally nodded my chin once and tried to force relaxation.

“You’re a true Westerner watching your first MV,” Dae-Jung added. “It’s a real reaction. Those are important. Even SWT would agree with that. K-pop is exploding in the States. Why not have a college graduate who probably listens to Drake, Post Malone, and the Kid Laroi on a daily basis give her honest opinion.”

Rat bastard. How did he know those were my favorite artists?

“Yeah, okay.” I tucked my hair behind my ear.

The producer or director—some person asked a question after they started rolling. “Grace, can you tell us where you’re from?”

I gulped. “Seattle, Washington.”

“Beautiful,” he said. “Are you a fan of K-pop?”

Oh shit. I forced a smile. “Just recently. It’s very impressive and catchy. The guys work really hard…”

“Great, so today you’re going to react to their newest video with them surrounding you… sound good?”

“Sounds like a lot of pressure.” I laughed awkwardly. “But I’ll try my best.”

“Good!” He sounded way too excited for this. “Press play when you’re ready.”

I wrung my hands in my lap, then lifted my right hand and clicked play on the laptop. The MV opened up to the guys all staring up at the ceiling; it quickly turned into a dark night sky. They were in similar costumes as the last shoot, looking sexy as hell, and I found myself gasping way more than I should as I watched.

Honestly, I was enthralled, completely engrossed to the point I’d forgotten they were filming, and when Lucas started rapping with Jay then bit his neck, I wanted to fan myself then ask for a replay.

The dancing was perfection.

The song was smooth, yet I didn’t even know how to describe how catchy it was. I found myself smiling despite my nerves as I commented. “This is so good!”

The guys slowly relaxed.

I paused it again. “No seriously, this is going to kill it worldwide!”

I pressed play again and gasped when Sookie fell from a building only to have Kai catch him in his arms.

Rae stood tall amongst them in the middle, and then the dancing started again as they changed into all red costumes, their makeup dark like they were rising up from Hell, which should have been dark but instead was again sexy and intense. Soon they were back on the ground again in the forest. There were no English subtitles, but it didn’t matter.

The song ended too soon.

And I was clapping.

Like the idiots on the plane when the pilots actually do their job.

I quickly dropped my hands in my lap. “I loved it.”

Both director and producer smiled at me while Dae-Jung approached and said, “Well done. You’re a natural on camera.”

“Ha! Thank you for lying to me.”