"Tsk tsk you really made me wait for an hour." His arms crossed as he watched Shizu turning the menu to choose a meal.
She furrowed her brow then put down the menu so that she could meet his eyes.
"Yeah but.. hey! I promised that I would reward you if you waited for me. I already prepared the reward." She protested.
Lee Changhyuk remained silence as he watched Shizu closed the menu, put it on the table then started searching her bag. His eyes didn't leave her, he could see that she would steal him a glance every now and then while digging that big bag. He couldn't tell whether she was nervous by his presence or annoyed by his petty remarks. Changhyuk's face remained calm and indifferent. That pouty face did not make her look any less cute.
They were sitting in a classic Japanese-style restaurant not too far from RHK. The restaurant was not very big and the surroundings were typically Japanese, with low tables and warm lighting, tatami mats, traditionally dressed staff and a beautiful Japanese garden.
Shizu did not know when did he privatize the whole restaurant under her name. He dragged her inside of a restaurant, showed a piece of paper to the host and the next thing she knew- they were escorted to a beautiful table next to the garden.
"I thought you could leave early. They postponed the shooting, right?" He said before sipping the hot ocha (1).
Shizu nodded but then furrowed her brow as if she just realized something. She stopped for two seconds then asked him.
"How did you know?"
Lee Changhyuk choked and almost spat the tea all over her face. He swallowed the tea then faked a cough.
"Where's my reward?"
She gave him another suspicious look then continued to search her bag. It took her around 5 seconds before finally presenting him with two cans of milk. One was strawberry flavored and the other was banana flavored.
Lee Changhyuk rested his chin on one hand and used the other hand to play with the milk cans. You could tell that he was amused from his facial expression.
"A. Ri. Ga. To." He said playfully.
Shizu could not help but stare at Lee Changhyuk. This guy before her was blessed with ridiculously handsome features but you would never find out what's inside that head.
Shizu bent her head, her eyes still glued to Lee Changhyuk. She bit her straw then drank her orange juice. With his money and popularity Lee Changhyuk could get anything that he wanted, but there he was, smiling from ear to ear like a little kid over two cans of milk that she hurriedly bought from a vending machine. What made him feel so happy?
"Do you really like milk that much?" She asked.
Lee Changhyuk took a glance at her then smirked. She asked if he liked milk? That made him wonder if she was a fan of GreenEast.
When GreenEast was still active they got invited to a lot of variety shows and participated in a lot of games. And every time Changhyuk lost in a game, the other members or the host would ask him to drink milk as a punishment.
Even now when you searched for Lee Changhyuk on YuTube, some of the the top results would be the videos of him refusing adorably to the punishment. Lee Changhyuk was the biggest eater and the sleeping beauty in GreenEast. He would eat anything but loathed milk the most. No matter what the flavor was, plain milk or fruity flavored- he would not drink a single drop as he hated the milk's particular aftertaste. He would even eat his cereals without milk. It was widely known among GreenEast fans that the evil-magnae hated milk.
"Why?" He asked.
"When you opened your eyes briefly back in the convenience store you immediately asked for milk, dont you remember? And now, I also just bribed you with milk."
Lee Changhyuk raised his brows and nodded as if he just understood something. The girl might think he was asking for milk during his brief consciousness, but he was actually calling her.
The first time he saw her, she was feeding milk to some stray kitten and for some reason the milk splashed all over her that she entered the elevator all wet from head to toe. Seeing her all embarassed and gloomy Changhyuk could not help but secretly gave her his favorite handkerchief. That's how she earned the name Milk Girl.
He knew that Shizu still had no clue about his handkerchief. He even hid himself behind a rock during their first encounter.
"Let's say that I have come to like it." He answered nonchalantly, one hand still playing with the cans.
Shizu nodded and put down her orange juice to sip her tea.
"Who's your favorite singer?"
COUGHED.
Shizu spewed her drink then started to hit her chest hard to clear her throat.
Lee Changhyuk grinned at Shizu's antiques. His chin still rested on one hand. His sharp eyes were amused with her every reactions.
Well the answer was obvious. Shizu was not a big fan of korean groups but she loved GreenEast to death.
She could recite all of GreenEast lyrics in her dream and collected all 5 albums that they released. Unlike other boybands who had only 1 or 2 good singers- all GreenEast members were exceptionally strong in vocal. And Lee Changhyuk, eventhough he was neither the main vocalist nor the lead vocalist, had the most powerful voice in GreenEast and was in charge for the high notes.
A lot of rookie groups in Korea would perform GreenEast's song to show their singing, rapping and dancing talents but they always felt intimidated by Lee Changhyuk's line. A lot of them ended up being a laughing stock for failing to sing his part correctly. Any singer who could sing Lee Changhyuk's line would be automatically deemed as a talented singer.
It was widely known that Lee Changhyuk could hit any notes with that powerful voice. Son Kangyu's and Kim Yoonjae's softer and unique voice would normally come after his to balance the song. That's how GreenEast rocked any kind of genre from EDM, ballad, rock, hip hop- you named it and they would flawlessly perform it. That's how they gained a very strong international fanbase.
But Shizu was too embarassed to admit her love for GreenEast. She was not sure how Lee Changhyuk would react if he knew that she liked them. Would he be flattered, or would he find her annoying? She heard from Kira that when a Star got too famous, their fans would tire them. She wiped her lips and answered with a straight face.
"Hitomi Nakamura."
"Whoa what a lady of culture. The Japanese youngsters these days are really amazing." Lee Changhyuk chuckled, he didn't sound disappointed.
Shizu was cringing inside. Really? Hitomi Nakamura? Hitomi Nakamura was a famous 90 year old japanese singer that performed Japanese traditional songs. She would normally hold a performance in shrines during a matsuri (2).
"Hahaha." She put the straw back in her mouth to stop her robotic laugh.
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Ocha (1) : Japanese word for tea
Matsuri (2) : Japanese word for festival or holiday