Zoey's P.O.V
Waking up this Monday morning was hectic. I didn't want to get out of bed, but in one way or another, I would have to. I lay awake, thinking. I didn't want to face off the challenges for today knowing that one of them was dealing with Jehan. Since I still have the teddy bear, I wasn't as free as I expected myself to be.
I couldn't stop wondering what Seungri and TOP were doing at the mall yesterday. As much as I wanted to believe that it was a coincidence, I couldn't help but feel that something was wrong.
Could they have known about Jehan? And if they did, then how? I shook my head. Maybe all that was nothing but a coincidence and I was just being paranoid. If they really had found out about Jehan, they would have been asking questions about him and what he does while we were shopping. But they didn't. We just had our usual conversation.
I brushed off all those thoughts aside when the alarm on my phone rang telling me to get up. The last time I had ever put up an alarm was the morning of my last day of high school. Eversince I became a musician, I never put up an alarm when I knew I had someone around to wake me up. Like Sam.
But now that she wasn't here, I had to wake up on my own. Most of the time, I would do so without her help. But when I overslept, she was always there to wake me. Anyway, right now, I was just too troubled in my sleep that I must have woken up early before the alarm rang.
I sat up on my bed and switched off the alarm. I checked the empty bed beside mine and I couldn't help but realise how much I miss Sam. I don't know why I was feeling this way, but I hated the fact that I was missing her so bad. Not after what happened yesterday at the mall and all over social media.
After seeing her with G-Dragon yesterday broke my heart further into tiny pieces. As much as I knew she was only there just to try and resolve things with G-Dragon, I was filled with fury seeing the two of them together. And to make matters worse, after I had left the mall, I went online and there were pictures of the two everywhere. They were a trending topic for the whole day. That left me devastated.
I couldn't stop looking at pictures online even when I came back to the hotel. I read so many comments. As much as there were so many haters around (like myself), so many people couldn't stop talking about how adorable the two looked together. I couldn't help but admit to myself that they were right. They really did make a cute couple. And that left me envious. I wished it was G-Dragon and I. Not G-Dragon and Sam.
That sent me boiling to a point where I almost threw my phone away. When Christine came to see me in my room and found me in an angry fit, I told her how painful I felt seeing G-Dragon and Sam together.
Christine had told me to cool down and that I shouldn't be jealous. She told me that Sam was only with G-Dragon because she was only trying to resolve things. I told her that I already knew that. Christine quickly left me to myself when she realised that she couldn't calm me down. So I was alone for the rest of the day, not speaking to anyone. I didn't even join the others for supper. I had ordered for my supper to be taken up to my room.
And now, I had to face another challenge of seeing everyone today, most especially Sam, since we have to finish up on the dance routine and start working on the music video as soon as possible. I have to put up with all this today when I was still so upset.
I quickly got out of bed and went in the showers, hoping the cool water would cool down all the boiling anger in me.
After I was done, I quickly dressed up. And carrying my purse with me, I went to meet the others at the dining table for breakfast.
I found them already settled. When I came to sit, everyone mouthed out a "good morning" to me, except Sam. And I replied back with a smile on my face.
I felt a little awkward when I looked at Sam who sat across the table next to Collins and hadn't said a word. She was busy with her breakfast, her usual bacon, eggs and toast with juice. I realised she hadn't even looked up at me once and that also felt weird.
I know that she and I aren't talking to each other at the moment, but I expected her to say a "good morning" or even look at me to acknowledge that I was around. She was one person even if we ever had an argument, she would at least try to say something to me. The fact that she didn't greet me, made me feel like something was wrong.
I poured myself a cup of coffee, trying to ignore what I was feeling at the moment. I got some slices of toast and ate my breakfast.
"Hey, Sam," said Mike, who sat right next to her. "Have you seen what people have been saying about you and G-Dragon?"
My heart almost skipped a beat and I almost choked on my coffee. What was Mike getting at? I know he does things just to annoy me sometimes, but this time, he's gone way too far. I was over here! Hello!
"You don't have to remind me," Sam said as she looked at her brother. "I've decided not to go online today."
"For one who doesn't like attention, you might just disappear off the face of the earth," said Collins.
"I can do that," said Sam, staring up at the ceiling obviously building castles in the air.
"I have no doubt about it."
"But I don't see why you have to," said Daniel. "Just because people make stories about you and G-Dragon dating, doesn't mean that you are."
"One thing about fans is that they can make a story so believable, even those who don't know what's going on, might end up believing it," said Christine.
"I know," said Lee. "Right now, some k-pop news sites are already taking this to the next level. But they all say they couldn't be too sure about it until they get an official statement from you and G-Dragon."
"Wow, that's serious," said Sam.
"But right now, we have no time for interviews," said Collins. "We have a music video to work on."
"I can work with that," said Sam, with a smile on her face.
"Alright, guys, finish your breakfast. You know the drill."
"Aye, aye," said Daniel.
"Well, you're quiet today, Zoey," said Christine as she looked at me. She sat directly across from me on the table.
"Do you have a problem with that?" I asked, eyeing Christine.
"You're just too quiet, that's all."
"You should be quiet more often," said Collins as he got up from the table. "It kind of suits you."
I frowned at Collins. "Thanks. I'll try doing so more often. That's if I really want to."
"Now that's the Zoey I know," said Mike, raising his eyebrow at me and smiling.
I stuck my tongue out at him but he continued to smile mockingly nonetheless. I noticed that the others were laughing and smiling at the whole thing, except Sam. She still wasn't looking in my direction.
Soon after breakfast, we left for YG. In the SUV, Sam sat at the back with her brothers. We were all chatting happily in the car but she was quiet the whole way. She was like that nowadays, always lost in thought. I wondered what she could be thinking about. Sam was one person who never really shared what she thought. When you asked her about it, she would usually say "nothing" and say no more. But if she really wanted to share with you, she would.
We arrived at YG and we found ourselves back at the dance studio we were practising in on Saturday. We found our dance instructor and all the BigBang members with the rest of the backup dancers, waiting for us.
When everyone was exchanging greetings with each other, G-Dragon didn't respond to me when I said "hi" to him. Given with what happened yesterday, I bet he was still mad at me for how I behaved towards Sam. He didn't even want to hang out with us soon after Sam had left.
He not responding to me felt awkward and I longed for him to at least give me some attention. He didn't say "hi" to Sam either but just nodded his head when she greeted him. At least that was acknowledging someone even if they weren't talking to each other. And he was staring at her the whole time even when she wasn't looking. I thought of throwing a shoe at him, but I just looked away instead.
We went straight to practising for almost a good five hours. And those proved to be the hardest five hours of my life. Since the dance routine starts with G-Dragon and I, it was really hard having him so close. I realised that I still had feelings for him. At some point during practise, I almost hugged him, but I brought myself not to. And that wasn't the worst part.
During pratice, I noticed that G-Dragon still couldn't take his eyes off Sam. This was getting to the point where I wanted to scream at him to snap out of it. I wondered what he saw in Sam and that sent me thinking.
G-Dragon wasn't the only one who liked Sam. Come to think of it, Daesung also liked her. Probably even Seungri and TOP, given that Seungri had a beautiful crown made just for her and TOP flirts with her whenever he gets the chance to. Taeyang already had Hyo-rin and always takes Sam like a sister. What did Sam have that even most of the BigBang members like her so much?
As her best friend, I should be aware of her qualities. She was nice and friendly to whoever approached her. She is very pretty and had a great body, though she was never ever fully aware of her physical beauty. She always thought she was like any other ordinary girl but she was more than that.
She is also smart, caring and always understanding. She is a great leader and one who always had our backs whenever we needed it. I don't know how many times she had always tried to get The Toxins out of trouble. I agree that even if it looked like we don't appreciate what she does, we really do.
Sam has a lot of good qualities. Maybe that's why she is liked and loved by everyone. Even her fans. She is honest, when she wanted to. She is also a pretty good liar, only when it was necessary to do so. And she is one who wouldn't want to hurt anyone around her.
Realising this made me feel a little guilty as I looked at Sam who was dancing in front of me with Taeyang beside her. I looked at her face and she had this smile that reflected her innocence. I realised that I had been giving Sam a real hard time after I found out G-Dragon likes her and not me. She is my best friend and would do nothing to hurt me. I know she was only looking out for me like she always does, but I am just too ignorant to realise it till now.
"Wait, hold on a minute guys," said the choreographer. We all stopped dancing as instructed.
"Zoey, you aren't concentrating," said the choreographer as he looked at me. "This is the second time you have made the same mistake."
"Oh, sorry," I said, scratching the back of my head feeling embarrassed. "I'll try to be more cautious next time."
"Okay. Let's continue from where we left off."
It was lunch the time we broke off for a break. The choreographer left and the others were talking to some of the backup dancers. I noticed Sam at the corner of the room with Christine and some of the backup dancers talking. It looked like they were having one hell of a funny conversation because they were all laughing.
"Hey, why are you here all alone?" came TOP as he came to stand right next to me.
"Nothing," I replied, looking down at my sneakers. "I just want to be alone today."
"Still not talking to Sam?"
"Nope."
TOP's lips rose to a smile. "You really are stubborn."
"Too bad it's in my DNA." I smirked.
"And how long do you think you're going to put up with it?" TOP folded his arms as he looked at me.
"Maybe till we go home." I shrugged my shoulders.
"I doubt it. Judging by the way you performed today, you looked really preoccupied that you made several mistakes."
"Being preoccupied is Sam's thing."
"I know. But you aren't yourself, that's for sure. The Zoey I know wouldn't be here all alone. You would be chit chatting like you always do."
"What if I just want to be alone for today?"
"It's okay. Everyone has those kinds of days. But you make it look like being alone sometimes is a bad thing."
I frowned. "Why?"
"Because you look miserable."
I didn't expect that coming from TOP. My mouth was agape as I looked at him.
"Miserable!"
"Ya." TOP nodded his head. "It clearly shows."
I thought for a moment and went back to looking at Sam and Christine with the backup dancers. Mike, Daesung, Seungri and Daniel had also formed their own little circle and were laughing and chatting too. Taeyang and G-Dragon were with some of the backup dancers, having a normal chat.
Seeing all this in front of me made me realise that TOP is right. I am definitely miserable. By now, I would be with the others, chatting. But here I was, all alone. Until TOP came to talk to me.
"I guess you're right," I said. "I am miserable."
"Don't worry about it. Aren't you going to resolve things with Sam?"
"I don't know," I said as I looked at Sam who was laughing out loud. "I'm still mad at her, but something in me says that I can't stay like this for long."
I told TOP what happened in the morning and how it felt weird that Sam didn't say a word to me nor even looked at me.
"I felt so bad about it," I said, shaking my head.
"Then why don't you talk to her?"
"Pfft!" I rolled my eyes. "Why should I? Sam always does all the talking."
"Really? You think Sam would do that this time around? Besides, she wasn't really at fault with all this."
"I know."
"So? Are you going to try and talk to her yourself?"
"I'll think about it."
"Hey, guys," came Seungri, suddenly calling out to everyone in the room. "Who wants pizza?"
Everyone muttered out "me!" really loud. Seungri smiled and said he would bring the pizza.
"Mind if you guys can help me?" Seungri asked as he came up to TOP and I.
"Sure," I said. I really needed to get out of here for a while and breathe.
The three of us went out of the room and headed to the elevator to take us downstairs. Seungri already had his phone out calling the pizza parlour to take the order.
As soon as we reached the ground floor, we stuck around in the lobby waiting for the pizza.
"I'm so hungry," said Seungri, staring at his watch.
"Chill, you just ordered pizza like right now," said TOP who was sitting right next to me on one of the chairs in the waiting area of the lobby.
"But I'm so hungry."
"Trust me, you aren't the only one," I said as I looked at Seungri who was still standing. "Sit down or else you're going to drain the last remaining blood you have."
"Well, that's mean," said Seungri as he sat next to me. "What's up with you?"
"Nothing," I said as I folded my arms.
"She's cranky, don't mind her," said TOP.
"I'm not cranky. Just having an awful day."
"Ya, we can see that," said Seungri with a smirk on his face.
I didn't say anything as I shook my head. All of the sudden, I felt my phone vibrate against my thigh in the pocket of my sweat pants. I took out my phone. Jehan was calling.
"Isn't it that French guy we met yesterday at the mall?" TOP asked, looking at my phone screen.
"Can you please not look!" I said as I turned the phone screen away from TOP's eyes.
"Okay, well you better answer that call."
I stood from the chair and answered Jehan's call when I was a few feet away from the two.
"Hello," I answered.
"Hey, Zoey," said Jehan. "Are you busy today?"
"Ya, I'm very busy," I answered. "Why?"
"We have to meet today, ASAP."
"But I can't. I have a lot to do today and I don't think I'll manage to meet with you."
"I don't care. I need that teddy bear today. Not tomorrow, but today."
I knew Jehan was going to call and demand for the teddy bear. Luckily, I carried my purse with the teddy bear in it. I hadn't removed it from my purse since yesterday and I checked to see if it was still in there this morning. The purse was upstairs in the dance studio.
"Okay, what time do you want to get the teddy bear?"
"I'm coming to YG to get it."
"What!" I was horrified and equally surprised. "No way. You can't come here."
"Fine. If you have a better idea, then call me or text in the next thirty minutes. I have to get that teddy today."
"You don't have to remind me," I snarled.
He cut the call and I looked at my phone like I was ready to throw it out of the lobby through the open entrance doors. This was bad. Real bad. He wanted to come here to get the teddy. That was going to be dangerous. If anyone were to see him they would start to ask questions.
"Zoey," came Seungri's voice behind me.
I turned around and there stood Seungri and TOP staring at me.
"What?" I asked.
"Was that Jehan you were talking to?" TOP asked.
"Um, ya. Is there a problem?"
"You two didn't seem to be having a normal conversation," said Seungri. "It sounded like you were arguing or something."
"Arguing? Pfft. No," I gave out a small laugh trying to hide my fear. "It was just some silly misunderstanding."
"Come on, Zoey," said TOP. "That was no ordinary misunderstanding and I know an argument when I see one."
"Guys, it's nothing. You're worrying for no reason."
"Oh, ya? Then why were you talking about that teddy bear then? It's that small cute teddy he had sent you, right?"
Dang it! I was cornered now. They had heard about the teddy. I couldn't come up with a lie. If anything, I'm a terrible liar. Looks like the truth will always come to light no matter how much you try to hide it.
"Tell us, Zoey," said Seungri softly. "It can show on your face that something is wrong."
I sighed as I looked down on the floor. "Fine. But don't tell anyone."
"Okay. Now tell us what's going on," said TOP.
We went back to settle down on the chairs. We were at a reasonable distance away from the receptionist so I could talk quietly.
I told them everything from what happened in Paris till now. They listened carefully and hadn't said a word until I finished the whole story.
"Have you told anyone about all this?" Seungri asked.
"Just you two," I answered.
"Wow, this is serious," said TOP, trying to take it all in. "He's a diamond smuggler?"
"Surprising, right?"
"He seemed so nice when we met him," said Seungri.
"We should involve the police," said TOP.
"No! We can't!"
"Why?"
"You know word goes out fast. The next thing we know, it's going to be all over social media and might give The Toxins a bad name. I would rather do this quietly."
"And how are you so sure he isn't going to use you again?" Seungri asked.
"He assured me that this will be the last time he will ever use me to do any of his dirty business. I just have to give him the teddy bear and that's it."
"Give who the teddy bear?" came Christine's voice.
The three of us turned and we saw Christine standing a few feet away from us. We hadn't heard the elevator doors open nor her footsteps. How did she get here unheard?
"Christine, you're here?" I raised my eyebrows.
"Ya, I came to check up on you guys since some of us are really hungry," said Christine.
"The delivery guy hasn't arrived yet," said Seungri with a smile.
"What's this about some guy and a teddy bear?" Christine asked as she looked at me.
"Ummm, it's nothing, Christine," I said, waving my hand in the air. "Just talking about some random stuff."
"Random stuff involving a teddy bear?" Christine shook her head at me as she folded her arms. "I clearly heard you talking about giving some guy a teddy bear and that you won't have to do his dirty business anymore. I know you're hiding something from me, Zoey. So you better start talking."
I rolled my eyes and sighed so loud in frustration. How many people was I going to tell the truth to today?
"Fine," I said, looking at Christine. "But please don't tell anyone about this."
"Okay, I won't."
"Sit down."
Christine sat right next to TOP and she looked at me with anticipation.
"I got myself into trouble," I started.
"Great!" Christine threw her arms in the air. "What did you do now, Zoey?"
"I got involved with a diamond smuggler."
Christine's face soon drained of colour and she looked as white as a ghost. She tried to open her mouth to say something but she couldn't. Until....
"What!"
TOP quickly covered up her mouth before she could shout out anything else. The receptionist looked our way and soon went back to work. When he was sure she had cooled down, TOP removed his hand from Christine's mouth.
"Are you cool now?" TOP asked.
"Cool?" asked Christine, sounding anxious. "I come here and hear about some diamond smuggler. How can I be cool?"
"I know you're really mad at me right now, but you asked what was going on," I said, looking apologetically at her.
"Of course I'm mad!" Christine whispered angrily at me. "I know you always get in trouble, but this by far is the worst one of them all."
"At least it's not a drug dealer," I said shrugging my shoulders.
"Is there a difference? Seriously, Zoey. How the heck did this happen?"
"It happened in Paris," I said. "Remember the guy I introduced you to at the fashion show?"
"Ya, I remember. What about him?"
"He's the diamond smuggler," said TOP.
"WHAT!"
"Ssh!" TOP, Seungri and I hushed at her at the same time, putting our fingers on our lips.
"Guys, I can't help it, sorry," said Christine. "Wait, that handsome guy is the diamond smuggler?"
"And the one I met at the café," I said.
"So he is the one who sent us the teddy bear?" Christine asked.
"Yes," the three of us answered at the same time.
"But why does he want the teddy bear back?"
"Because the teddy has diamonds in it," said Seungri.
"Wow, seriously?" Christine's eyes bulged out with surprise.
"Ya," I said. "I planned on giving him the teddy bear yesterday but I couldn't because these guys showed up." I pointed at Seungri and TOP with my two thumbs.
"So you're the one who got the teddy from our room yesterday," said Christine. "Lee was searching for it and couldn't find it. She thought she must have misplaced it somewhere. You even went to meet him? I thought you went out with Seungri."
"I lied."
Christine shook her head. "I knew something was up. You are really not good at lying."
"I know." I gave Christine a grim look, not feeling impressed about myself at all.
"Why didn't you tell us you were being threatened by this guy?"
"I wasn't supposed to. And besides, it was too dangerous. He threatened me with a gun in Paris not to tell anyone."
"That's great. There are guns too. Blackmail would have been so much better."
"I know. Now he wants the teddy bear back today. And I don't know what to do. He wanted to come here and get the teddy himself."
"Then why didn't you let him?" Christine asked.
"That was going to raise a lot of questions if anyone saw him," said Seungri.
"Now where is she going to meet him now? She has to take that teddy bear away or else it could land us into more trouble."
"He said I should have a location as to where we meet," I said. "And I haven't thought of anything yet."
"Why don't you meet after practice?" TOP suggested.
"But where?" I asked.
"Tell him you will meet at the café. The one you had met him in last time. TOP and I will take you there," said Seungri.
"I'm also coming with you," said Christine. "And don't refuse." She pointed her finger at me when I opened my mouth to object.
"Fine, but remember, don't tell anyone," I said.
"Got it," said TOP and Seungri at the same time. Christine nodded her head.
I took my phone out and texted Jehan that we should meet at the café after practise some time in the evening. He replied saying that he would be there.
"Okay, it's settled," I said as I put my phone back in my pocket.
"Yay! The pizza is here," said Seungri as he stood up and approached the pizza delivery man coming in through the entrance.
Seungri had ordered ten large sized boxes of pizza, enough for everyone upstairs. And the flavour, mac and cheese. Sam's favourite. Well, almost everyone's favourite.
We helped Seungri with the pizza and went to the elevator which took us back up to the floor of the dance studio.
"When all of this is over, Zoey, you're going to get a scolding from me," said Christine, as we walked down the hall.
"I'll be ready for that," I said as I rolled my eyes. "I just can't wait to have everything back to the way they were. Before all the threatening."
"No, they won't," said Seungri. "You still have Sam to resolve things with."
"And G-Dragon," TOP added.
"Can we please not talk about that?" I asked. "You don't have to remind me all the time."
"Well, someone has to," said Christine.
"Just so you know, I'll agree to resolve things on my own terms."
"Jeez," said Christine, rolling her eyes at me. "When you say that, I have to get ready for the unexpected."
We found ourselves back at the studio and this time, I found Sam talking to Taeyang. G-Dragon was still talking to some of the back up dancers and I could see him staring at Sam through the corner of his eye. Or was that me being paranoid?
Christine snapped her fingers right in front of me and I turned to look at her.
"What?" I asked.
"You were frowning," Christine answered.
"Frowning? I wasn't frowning."
"Says the person who couldn't stand seeing G-Dragon looking at someone else." Christine gave me a smirk and left me standing all alone by the door, while she joined the others who had soon formed a circle around Seungri and TOP.
Soon after lunch, we went straight back to practising. This time, for a good six hours. We had to do the dance routine over and over again to perfect it. This time around, I made sure not to make any mistake like I had been doing earlier. This time, everything was coming out perfectly and I don't know how many times we had to do the routine all over again. But despite the number of times we did it again, we had a whole lot of fun.
At some point in the afternoon, our two managers and Lee came over to check on us and they were really impressed. Yang Hyun-suk thought filming the dance practise will be helpful and that they would release it after the music video. The dance practise was shot and it came out perfect, but still, we went back to practising until we could pratice no more.
It was five and the sun was setting when we were finally done for the day. I was so tired that I was lying on the floor. My body aching everywhere. Luckily, I wasn't the only one on the floor. Christine and Daniel were lying on either side of me. We were all pretty tired.
The choreographer had already left and the backup dancers also started to leave. G-Dragon and Taeyang left together.
While I was resting and gathering up any ounce of energy I had left, Seungri was standing next to my head and looking down on me. I looked up at him with a puzzled look on my face.
"Get up, Zoey, we gotta go," he said.
"Go? Go where?" I asked.
Christine roughly nudged me on my side with her elbow, I looked at her with a whining look on my face.
"Ouch, that hurt!" I said.
"Are you forgetting, Zoey?" Christine asked, raising her eyebrows. "We have to go somewhere to do something."
It was then that I remembered that I was supposed to meet Jehan at the café. I totally forgot.
"Oh, ya!" I quickly sat up on the floor and Christine followed. "We have to go."
"Go where?" Daniel asked, still lying down on the floor and looking at us.
"No where," I answered quickly. "We're just planning on going around the city for a drive."
"I want to follow too," said Daniel.
"Where did you say you were going?" came Mike who had been talking with Sam and Daesung.
I rolled my eyes. Seriously? The last thing I want is for everyone to follow and find out what's going on.
"It's nothing really," said TOP. "We were planning to drive around the city. You don't have to follow."
"But this is not fair," said Daniel, sitting up quickly. "I also want to come along."
"Ya, me too," said Mike.
"Why don't you want these guys to go along?" Sam asked. I noticed that she still wasn't looking at me. "You're just going for a drive. I see no reason for them not to follow."
I wanted to protest and refuse but then I realised that I wasn't supposed to talk to Sam. And refusing her was going to be pointless because I already know Seungri and TOP weren't going to deny her so easily.
"Okay, they can come along," said Seungri.
Dang it!
"Okay, you'll find me back at the hotel. I'll tell Collins that you had to go out," said Sam to the others, giving them a smile.
"I can take you back to the hotel if you want," said Daesung, addressing Sam.
"Thanks, that's nice of you, Daesung," said Sam giving him a sweet smile. She turned to look at the others. "Have fun you, guys."
Sam and Daesung left the room together and I couldn't help but look at the door and think to myself that the two also made a nice pair.
"So, where are we going?" Mike asked.
"Please, don't ask any questions," I said as I turned to face him. "It's none of your business."
"Mmm, seeing the look on your face, something's up," said Daniel.
Christine stood up from the floor and said, "look guys, if we tell, you have to promise not to tell anyone. Not even Sam. No one."
I looked up at her with my eyebrow raised. "Are you seriously going to tell them?" I asked.
"Do I have a choice? You know how persistent these two are and they are probably going to find out anyway."
"Ya, Christine's right," said Seungri. "And we also couldn't refuse Sam for them to come along."
"You just couldn't refuse because you like her too much," I said, turning to face Seungri.
Seungri shrugged and smiled. "What can I say? I've to obey the lovely queen, right?"
I almost snapped back at him but I controlled myself and looked away.
"Okay, can we focus on telling us what's going on?" Daniel asked.
"Fine," I said. "Someone tell them. I can't keep repeating myself with all this."
TOP told Mike and Daniel what was going on. The two brothers were shocked after what they heard.
"Oooh, you're in a lot of trouble now, Zoey," said Mike, looking at me and shaking his head.
"You don't have to remind me," I said rolling my eyes.
"I can't believe that guy is the diamond smuggler," said Daniel.
"I know," said Christine.
"You haven't told Sam about this?" Mike asked.
"No. No one has to know," I said. "Not even the police."
"I think you should have told Sam," said Daniel.
"So that she can judge me? No way."
"You know Sam can never do that," said Seungri. "She would have helped in any way possible."
"Don't try to convince her of anything," said Christine. "She probably won't listen like she always does." I raised an eyebrow at Christine and she looked back at me like she could hit me with a hammer.
"Okay, let's go," said TOP.
I got up from the floor with Daniel and I took my purse. We soon left the room and headed downstairs. Sam and Daesung had already left since there was no sign of Daesung's car in the parking lot. Christine and I went with Seungri in his car while Daniel and Mike went in TOP's car.
The cars soon left the YG premises and in the car, I couldn't help but feel nervous. What if things didn't work out like it did yesterday? I hope not. Every now and then, I would open and check if the teddy bear was still in my purse.
"Can you you please stop doing that?" Christine asked from the back seat. "You might just drop the teddy and lose it in the car."
"Stop joking around," I said as I turned to look at Christine.
"Well, then stop getting nervous. We're all here with you so there is nothing to be worried about."
I leaned back on the chair and tried to relax. "You're right," I said. "I need to relax."
"Don't worry, we're almost there," said Seungri as the car took a turn.
"I just want to get this over with."
We were soon packed right outside the café and TOP's car parked right next to us. I took a deep breath. Christine came over and put her hand on my shoulder. I turned to look at her.
"Everything is going to be okay," said Christine giving me an encouraging smile. "If anything happens, we'll be here."
"Thanks," I said with a smile. "I'm glad you guys are all here."
Seungri also turned to smile at me. I don't know what I would have done without them. Their presence here gave me a little comfort. But I felt a small hole in my chest and I wished Sam was here too.
I soon got out of the car and there was a sudden chill in the air. Maybe it's because the sun was setting that it started to get cold. I had my purse in my hand and I looked towards the café. I hope everything will go as planned.
Before I could find my way into the café, TOP, Mike and Daniel waved at me through the windows of TOP's car and giving me a thumbs up. I smiled a little and waved back. At least that gave me the confidence to go ahead.
I quickly went in the café and when I slowly stepped in, I looked around for Jehan. I spotted him right next to the huge glass window where we had last sat down together. He was alone in his smart pressed black suit, as always.
I slowly approached the table. His eyes never left me since I walked in the café. When I got to the table, I sat facing him. My heart was beating so fast. I don't know why I was so scared that things might go wrong and Jehan wouldn't hesitate to end my life right here.
"I'm glad you could make it," said Jehan. "I was almost about to call my driver to come pick you up."
"I was practising today," I answered.
"You look really tired. It could show all over your face."
"Thanks," I frowned at him. "Can we get this over with? I still have a busy day tomorrow and I would like to get this teddy bear off my back."
Jehan smirked. "Certainly."
I quickly reached out for the purse on my lap, opened it and gave him the teddy bear. Jehan reached out to take it and I couldn't help but feel relieved.
"There! You have your teddy," I said. "Can I go now?"
"Wait." Jehan held up a finger when I was just about to stand up and leave. I sighed.
"What now?" I complained.
"I need to check if all the diamonds are in here," said Jehan, shaking the teddy in his other hand.
"What do you think? That I would steal from you?" I was really surprised that he didn't trust me. "You pointed a gun to my head in Paris and I have done everything you have asked until now. What makes you think I would steal your diamonds? I have a life to live, may I remind you."
Jehan raised an eyebrow at me. "Nice one, Zoey. You almost had me convinced. But I'm still going to check. I've to make sure all the diamonds are in here before I make a fool of myself in front of my clients I'm selling these to."
"Fine." I folded my arms on the table. "If you don't believe me, then check it yourself. I know I'm innocent."
"I know you're." Jehan gave me a smile and I looked away facing the window. It was getting really dark outside so fast.
I went back to looking at Jehan who had laid the little teddy bear on the table and he dug into the pockets of his suit and removed a small pocket knife. It didn't surprise me that he carried that thing around.
Jehan slowly laid the blade onto the little teddy's belly and cut through its tiny suit, dissecting the teddy bear. This reminded me of science class back in high school when we were told to dissect a frog. Doing that was so disgusting that I ended up purking all over Sam's shoes, who was my science partner. This time, it was just cotton stuffing that came out of the teddy bear.
Wait. I frowned. This isn't right. I raised an eyebrow when Jehan kept on removing cotton stuffings and there was no sign of the diamonds. Where were the diamonds!
I stared horrified at the scene on the table. There was tiny cotton stuffings everywhere and the bear that laid stuffless on the table was a sad site to see because there was nothing in it. No diamonds.
I looked up at Jehan and he was as surprised as I was. His mouth was wide open and he couldn't stop looking at the dissected teddy. If he kept on looking at it like that, he was going to end up traumatised.
"Je-Jehan," I said softly. Hoping he wouldn't bite at me like a dog with rabies. "Jehan. I...I have no idea what has just happened, but, there are no diamonds in there."
Jean neither moved nor said a word. I was getting worried. Should I move him to try and snap him out of it? I didn't know what to do.
But how could this be? Where did the diamonds go? It's not like the teddy bear could just poop out diamonds since it wasn't alive or anything. Something weird was going on. And I wasn't like liking it at all.
"Where are my diamonds?" Jehan muttered silently, still looking at the scene before him.
"I...I don't know," I said shaking my head. I was scared of his reaction and I prepared myself for it.
He banged his fists on the table so loudly that he startled not only me, but everyone else in the café. Everyone turned to look at us and I looked around then back at Jehan, whose eyes were as red as a bull's, staring at me.
"Jehan, chill," I said, putting my hands up to calm him down. "Let's not try to get angry here."
"Where are my diamonds, Zoey?" This time he didn't shout but the anger in his voice got me shivering.
"I don't know. I don't know what's going on right now. This is the same teddy bear you sent us. I don't know why it doesn't have diamonds in it."
"How did the diamonds go missing?"
"How am I supposed to know? I just kept the teddy for you. Maybe you sent me the teddy without diamonds in it and you probably never noticed."
"Don't doubt what I do, Zoey! I made sure I made no mistake."
"Okay, chill, I believe you. Look, why don't we try to sort this out calmly? Getting upset won't do us any good."
Jehan rubbed his forehead and sighed as he leaned back further into his seat. He seemed to have calmed down when he looked at the teddy bear again.
"I need my diamonds back, Zoey."
"I know. You've said that like almost a hundred times now."
"Let's not joke around here. What happened? Why does this bear have no diamonds in it?"
"I didn't do anything. I swear. That teddy was just the way it was eversince you sent it."
"Then why doesn't it have diamonds in it?"
"I don't know."
Jehan looked at me with an eyebrow raised. "Who else had this teddy apart from you?"
"Ummm," I looked down and played around with my fingers. "Uh....I wasn't the one who had been taking care of the teddy bear this whole time."
"What?" Jehan sounded surprised. "What do you mean?"
"I didn't have the teddy bear with me at the hotel the whole time," I said, looking at him fully in the eyes now.
"Who had the teddy bear?" Jehan leaned closer, his eyes not leaving mine.
"Lee had it before I took it from her yesterday."
"Oh, my gosh!" Jehan covered his face with his hands and I could see this wasn't going too well for him. "Could she have the diamonds?"
"I don't think so. Lee is an honest person. If she did notice there were diamonds in the teddy, she would've said something. No way. She can't have the diamonds."
"Then how do we explain all this! She was the last person to have the teddy, correct?"
"You're right. But if she did find out about us and all this diamond business, she wouldn't keep that to herself. I know Lee."
"Maybe you don't know Lee well enough. If this is the same teddy I had sent, where could the diamonds be?"
"Maybe this is just another teddy bear and the actual one with the diamonds is still at the hotel."
After I said that, Jehan quickly took the dissected teddy bear in his hands and looked at it carefully. He turned the teddy, looking at its back side and tearing the suit away. I wondered what he was looking for because he had a serious look on his face.
"You're right," said Jehan. "This is definitely another teddy bear and not the one I sent you."
"Wait, how do you know?" I asked.
"I remember one of my men who sewed the teddy bear after putting diamonds in it at the back. There should have been some stitching here but this one doesn't."
"Ha!" I snapped my fingers. "I knew I was right!"
"Don't snap your fingers and be all happy about this," said Jehan, back to giving me that angry look. "I need that teddy, now!"
"Huh? I can't start searching for it now. It would look suspicious. And I can't start asking Lee if she bought another teddy just like this one. She already knows that the bear is missing."
"Then maybe, Lee isn't the only person you should be asking."
"What do you mean?"
"Someone else must know where the other teddy bear is. Your group members perhaps."
"No. I highly doubt it. Lee must have bought another teddy and we just didn't know about it."
"Now that, makes no sense. If I were you, I would go back and find out what happened to that teddy and ask around for it. I'll need that teddy tomorrow."
"Tomorrow! Are you nuts!"
"Maybe I am because I'm desperate to have those diamonds back."
"I might not be around tomorrow. I have a music video to shoot."
"Find those diamonds and you will be scott free, Zoey. Or do you want everyone to mourn over you when they find you dead?"
I completely forgot that I was being threatened by this guy. Though his threats didn't scare me anymore, I just had to abide to everything. Who knows, he might not have me killed, but he could hurt the others and it would be all my fault.
"Okay. I'll see what I can do."
Jehan gave me a smile. "That's more I like it. I would start working on this soon if I were you. Try your best to find the bear by tomorrow, will you?"
I nodded my head and that made him smile even more. He soon stood up from his seat and looked down at me. I looked back at him without a saying a word.
"See you tomorrow," said Jehan and he quickly walked out of the café.
I sat there as I buried my face in my hands, thinking of what to do. Again, everything was ruined. First, the interruption from TOP and Seungri yesterday. Now, the teddy bear had been swapped with another. My life couldn't get any worse than this. What was going on? Who was putting me into so much drama that might just ruin my life?
I hadn't noticed the bell of the café ringing because I felt a hand on my shoulder and when I looked up, there stood Christine.
"Zoey, what happened?" Christine asked, as she turned to look on what was on the table.
I could hear footsteps behind me. The others had come in the café too. They all looked worried when they saw the look on my face.
Christine sat where Jehan had been a few minutes ago and looked at the tattered teddy bear on the table.
"What's going on?" Daniel asked. "And what happened to Mr Teddy?"
"Jehan didn't look happy when he left the café," said TOP. "Didn't he get his diamonds?"
"No," I answered. "He didn't."
"What?" Seungri sounded surprised. "What do you mean he didn't get his diamonds?"
"This teddy isn't the teddy he had sent us," I answered. "Someone swapped the teddy with another."
Mike shook his head. "But who? We didn't know what that teddy bear had until now, so, it couldn't be anyone of us."
"And what about Lee?" Christine asked. "She was the one who last had the teddy before Zoey took it. But what doesn't make any sense is why she would want to get another teddy when she had asked me last night where Mr Teddy had gone to."
"This is bad," I said, leaning my elbows on the table and holding my head. "Whoever has the teddy, knew what must have been going on this whole time."
"Ya, but who could have known?" Seungri asked. "It couldn't be Lee because all she knows is that the teddy has gone missing."
"Maybe Sam has it," said Mike.
We all turned to look at Mike with grim looks on our faces.
"Sam?" I wondered for a little while. "Why would Sam have the teddy? And if she did, how could she have swapped it with the other one?"
"Okay, wait," said TOP. "This is all too confusing. Does Sam even have any idea or clue as to what's really going on in the first place?"
"I doubt it," I said shaking my head. "If she knew what was going on she would have confronted me. And besides, she was also at the mall yesterday and would have probably seen Jehan and I together. But she didn't."
TOP and Seungri looked at each other after I said that. What was up with them? The look they gave each other made me feel that something was up but I quickly brushed it away.
"I highly doubt it too," said Daniel. "If she knew Zoey was into some kind of serious trouble, she would have asked us about it."
"That's true," said Mike. "Come to think of it, I don't think Sam has it. For her to swap the teddy, she would have bought it from somewhere."
"And I checked out the shopping bags, Lee came with yesterday when she went shopping with Sam. There was no sign of a small teddy in any of them," said Christine.
"She must have bought it when she was with G-Dragon," I said.
"No, I highly doubt it," said TOP. "There are some dedicated fans who followed those two yesterday, describing which store they went to and taking pictures. They said nothing about them entering a toy store."
"Now that's what I call a dead end," said Daniel.
"Fine, so Lee and Sam have been cancelled on the list," said Seungri. "Who else could have swapped the teddies?"
"Collins?" Mike asked.
"Ha! No way," I said, almost laughing in a such a serious situation. "How could he have known about Jehan and the diamonds?"
"Mmmm, good point," said Seungri. "He's been really busy these past few days."
"But who knows? Maybe he has been spying on me this whole time and I haven't noticed. He considers me the black sheep that has to be kept an eye on at all times."
"You're definitely the black sheep, Zoey," said Mike.
"Hey! May I remind you, I'm not the only one here who gets into trouble here."
"Okay, guys, focus," said TOP. "What makes you think Collins might have been the one who swapped the teddies?"
Daniel suddenly snapped his fingers. "I remember now. Yesterday when he came back with Sam, something happened."
"Wait. Collins was with Sam?" I asked.
"He was the one who went to pick her up from the mall," Daniel answered. "Back to what I was saying, Collins had something delivered to him at the hotel. He even went to get it himself from the delivery man who was coming up the elevator."
"What was it?" We all asked Daniel, looking at him anxiously.
"It was a small box. And if you ask me, it was kind of like the one Jehan had sent that teddy bear in."
"Gosh, it's been Collins this whole time," said Christine.
"I couldn't be too sure," I said. "But after what Daniel has said, I don't know what to believe."
"We really have to go," said Seungri. "We can't stay here."
"You're right," I said as I stood up from the seat taking my purse. "I've to search for that teddy if I want to make it out alive tomorrow."
"Wait, we can't leave all this here," said Christine, taking what was left of the teddy bear in her hands.
We all walked out of the café, hopping no one had heard our conversation. There were a few people in the café and I highly doubt if they really heard anything.
While I was in the car with Seungri driving and the others in the other car behind us, I was so troubled about the missing teddy. I couldn't help thinking that Collins is involved. But that didn't make any sense. As much as I wanted to believe that Collins could have swapped the teddies, I shook my head at the thought of it. Maybe it really wasn't Collins.
If it isn't him, then who? It couldn't be Lee because she had the teddy with her the whole time and she couldn't buy another teddy for no reason. And I couldn't picture Sam doing anything like that either because I had never seen her near that teddy after Jehan sent it to us that day.
What if I had the wrong teddy the whole time and I had never known till now? All this was too confusing. Who swapped the teddies? And when did the swapping ever take place without any of us noticing in the first place?
I hope I could be able to find the teddy soon. Jehan might threaten to kill me, but I was pretty sure he would try to hurt the others too. And I wouldn't let that happen.