Rookies No More

"I mean… do you like her?" She asked which made my eyes grow wide in surprise.

I can't believe she was this observant towards me.

"You said that you were looking for a girl and found her in one of the trainees under JYP." She tried to analyze things.

She then turn to ask me again. "So… is it her? Do you like-"

I covered her mouth and checked if anyone else was around. "Yes. She's someone from your group. But I don't know if you got it right though. Whether you're right or not, please keep it a secret for now. Please."

She nodded and I slowly let go of her.

I sighed. "What made you ask this?"

"You said to protect each other, right? I'm just making sure that you won't hurt any of our members." She said with a straight face.

I nodded. "No worries. I know for a fact that my relationship with IU-sunbae is still fresh so I can't be in a relationship for now. Also, I have no intention of confessing to her yet. She's still too young."

Sana nodded in agreement. "Just be careful, oppa. I don't want you to get hurt too."

I smiled at her. "Thank you. I will."

"What are you guys doing over there? We already met with the girls. We're about to head out now." Jeong Do called out.

We met with the rest of the members at the entrance and headed for barbecue.

If I really did confess to her now? Would she even say yes?

____________

The following days were very hectic. I didn't get to see Twice because I was busy with Alpha and with the drama's shoot. But I trust that the managers are doing their jobs in keeping them on point with their schedules. We were shooting for the MV for Twice's 'Like Ooh Ahh.' I was trying to get things done as excellently as possible while also doing it as fast as possible.

"Oppa? Aren't you supposed to be in your MV's shoot today as well?" Dahyun asked.

I handed her one of the Milk Teas that I bought for them. "It's still in the afternoon. Don't worry about it. Instead, drink this. You guys are going to be here the whole day."

"Thanks, oppa!" she excitedly said. She also called out to the other members.

"Oh? Oppa? Why are you here? Don't come visit us if you're very busy." Mina said.

I chuckled. "What? You don't want to see me anymore now that you guys have your songs? That's mean of you."

"Fine. Do whatever you want." Mina rolled her eyes before she walked away after getting her drink.

What's up with her? She's a bit cranky today.

"Don't mind her. She's been like that for the past few days." Jeongyeon said.

I raised a brow. "Really? How come? Is she okay?"

"That's for you to find out." She said before she went to do her retouch.

What's with their attitude today?

I stayed a while and checked if they were doing well with their choreography. I also monitored their lip syncing part. It was good enough for me. We'll work on it the next time we meet each other.

Suddenly, my phone starts ringing.

"Yes sunbae?" I answered.

She giggled. "I believe we're passed the point of being formal, JayB-ya."

I chuckled. "Fine. Is there anything I can help you with IU-noona?"

She laughed. "You don't have to be sarcastic about it."

"I'm joking. So what's up?" I asked.

"I know I don't have any 'real' feelings towards you. But the previous owner of this body's memories are making me uncomfortable." She said.

I got confused. "What do you mean?"

She chuckled. "I mean… I know how busy you are nowadays, but I still can't help but call you and greet you a happy birthday."

Was it today?

I checked my phone for a quick sec. It is today! I can't believe I forgot my own birthday!

"You forgot didn't you?" She asked.

I laughed wryly. "You know how it is, noona."

"Well… I still care about you JayB-ya. Okay? In the previous world and this world too. So please… take good care of yourself. And go out and celebrate it. I bet your managers forgot to message you about it and you're probably not checking your phone either." She said.

It's nice to know that she still thinks of me even though she's not the IU of this world.

"Thank you. You're right. I haven't been checking online either. It's just…" I trailed away.

She sighed. "You feel like there's nothing good to celebrate about?"

"Yes! How'd you know?" I asked.

"You may have forgotten, but I was your girlfriend even if it was short-lived." She replied which made me laugh.

She then continued, "Be thankful that you're alive. That you're still here. There's a lot of reasons for you to celebrate. And don't let anything hinder you from achieving happiness. It's what SHE would have wanted. In fact, it's what I would want for you to have as well."

"The previous owner's memories?" I asked.

She chuckled. "My memories."

My heart started beating fast. For a second there, I felt like I really did miss the old IU. I started to tear up and without me noticing it started falling on their own.

"I got to go, JayB-ya. We should catch up some time soon. Okay?" She said.

After agreeing with her, I hung up the phone and paused for a second.

"Everything alright oppa?" Mina suddenly came from behind me and asked.

She looked really concerned and worried about me.

"Oh. Yeah. This is nothing. I just had something in my eye." I lied.

Before she could say anything I excused myself, left the set and walked back to my car. I left her there without listening to what she had to say.

She then sighed. "I wish you would trust me more."

__________

"Here you go." Kim Sohyun handed me a can of soda.

"You know I can't drink that, right?" I told her.

She chuckled. "What? Having a little won't hurt you. Besides, I'm not telling anybody about it."

I smiled as I took the can from her hand.

"Girl trouble?" She asked.

I turn to her and raised an eyebrow. How does she do it? How does she seem to know how I'm feeling?

She laughed. "I've been with you for months. I know that look anywhere. It's when you're thinking about a girl."

I chuckled. "You're starting to creep me out."

"I know. Now tell me. Who is it this time?" She asked.

"'This time'? You make it sound like I have problem with girls every single time." I complained.

She sighed as she sat beside me. "You have that look on your face for the past few days now."

I gave in and sighed. "Let's say you have this person that you've liked for a long time but you're not sure if it'll work out. Then there's this person that you've been with but that person has… well... CHANGED in a way… what would you do? Or who would you choose?"

She then placed her index finger on her chin and started pondering. "Hmm… For the first person, I say go for it. You'll never know the answer to that question unless you give the relationship a try anyway. You know I just recently broke up with a non-showbiz guy. I wasn't even sure that it would work in the first place, but I risked it anyway. And guess what? I was happy about it. Don't get me wrong, though it didn't work out, we parted in good terms."

I listened to her and thought about it for a while. "What about the other person?"

"In terms of IU-unnie… you should give her time. I think she's trying to figure out what she really feels about you." She replied.

"I never said it was her." I defended.

She laughed. "You didn't have to."

I sighed. "Is it really obvious?"

"Yep. Is the other girl, that mystery girl?" She then pressed on.

I was surprised. "How did you kno-"

"Almost everyone in the industry has been talking about it." She replied bluntly.

My jaw dropped because of her response. "W-What?!"

"Anyway, the way I see it, you shouldn't hurry yourself in getting in a relationship as well. You should try to figure things out too. Who you really like and all. Also, you have a lot on your plate right now so just focus on that first." She said as she stood up while patting off the dust from her pants.

She then held her hand out. "Let's go. We still have to continue filming."

I chuckled. "I can't believe that someone as young as you is already this wise."

"I know. That's why you love me, right?" She said in an aegyo.

I cringed. "No. Not really."

She then playfully slapped my shoulder. "Ya!"

I ran away and made her chase me. The producers had to stop us from playing around because we were starting to disturb the set.

It's good to have a friend like her.

_________

"Don't forget that we still have a party tonight. It's for us to record Alpha's anniversary special since we don't have time to do it later on." The manager said.

I sighed. "Really? We don't have any schedules lined-up for the anniversary. Why can't we just do a VLIVE then?"

The manager then handed me a new schedule. "Your tour starts next month, so we'll be very busy with the new schedule."

He was right. We didn't have a clear day off until the end of the tour. I guess debuting in another country will totally make us even busier. This schedule would definitely exhaust us. I guess going for a morning run for stamina and eating right from now on would help prepare us for the next month.

This is great and all but everyone actually forgot that it's my birthday. I understand that the schedule wouldn't allow us to celebrate our anniversary later on but to film it today of all days? Really?

I sighed. "Let's just get on with it and do the live for today."

Jiwoo excitedly clapped his hands. "Yes! We finally have our own light stick and merchandise!"

He's right. After almost a year of being in the industry now, we finally have our own light stick. The fans have been urging us and the company to make one. Today, we finally have it. We called it the Paw Print Bong. It's in the shape of a dogs paw print and it lights up with a color white. It turns red whenever a member of Alpha is nearby. Basically, if a concert or a showcase is on, they'll turn red. This was a pretty cool design made by the Strategy and Design Team.

It also has a cool way of turning it on. You have to high five the paw print to turn it on. This way, it would be as if we were doing a high 5 with our fans. This was our way of telling the fans that our relationship isn't virtual but it's real.

We will also be announcing our debut date in China and Japan during the live. This is the reason why we were releasing our light sticks today. It would be in the market together with the Japanese and Chinese albums, as soon as we announce it. Also, we were going to announce that we'll be giving away signed copies of the Album, plus a light stick with our signature as well, together with a ticket to our tour to those who would be posting the best moment they have with us on social media.

They would have to state how they come to know Alpha and why they love the group. It was our way of giving back to our fans who supported us for almost a year now. There would be 10 winners for this event.

"Alright guys! Let's get this started!" The manager announced.

We sat in our positions with our light sticks, albums and tickets on hand. I hope that they would like it.

After the final adjustments, the manager then announced. "Ready? Going live in 3… 2… 1…"

__________

"Ah! I can't wait to let loose tonight!" Dominic yelled.

We were on our way to the grand hall of JYP's Events Building. This was where the after parties were conducted every time we celebrate after going to an award show.

"Wooh! Even though it's recorded, I still can't wait to party!" Zee yelled while high fiving Dominic.

Everyone was showing their excitement as we were walking towards the hall. They were really excited the moment we got off our cars. I on the other hand was just staring at my phone while slowly walking behind them.

Jeong Do saw me and asked. "Are you okay? Why do you keep staring at your phone?"

"It's nothing. I've been trying to call everyone in the company today. It's just that, they either aren't answering or are busy with their schedules. I was even expecting a call from them." I sincerely answered.

I really was. No one really greeted me today. Not the Twice members, not Sohyun, not even the labelmates. I know that we're all busy, but IU-sunbae was even able to call me when she was busy. The 95 liners didn't even message me anything today.

"Why would they call you today? You do know that everyone's busy, right?" He asked.

I sighed. "It's nothing. Never mind."

He gave me a smile and I forced a smile on my own.

I guess everybody forgot.

I can't blame them. We are idols after all. Even my family isn't here.

We were heading towards the grand hall when everybody suddenly stopped walking.

"What's wrong? Why'd you guys stop?" I asked them.

"JayB-ya. You're the leader. Why don't you go first?" Seiji-hyung said with a smirk.

I became hesitant. "Why are you being weird?"

Yo Chul-hyung patted my back as hard as he could. "Just go on ahead first!"

Fine…

I slowly walked towards the giant doors and pushed it open.

"SURPRISE!"

What the hell?!

I almost had a heart attack when I heard a bunch of people yell that.

What the hell is going on?

All of my labelmates where here. The 95 liners were also present and accounted for. Twice was also coming over and were handing us some drinks and a garland. Even my parents were here. Although my siblings weren't around, it still is nice to see them here.

"What's going on?" I asked in confusion.

"You thought we forgot, didn't you?" Matt-hyung came up behind me and did a headlock on me.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY KIM JINBO!" Everybody greeted.

I got teary eyed for a second and was about to cry. I thanked everyone and didn't prolong it any further. We started partying and even started going crazy on the dance floor. PD-nim really prepared it well for me. He also apologized for what happened during the show. He told me that he said those things because we were working together, he sometimes forgets that we were family.

Of course, I forgave him and even performed with him on stage. We gave a small show for the audience as other groups in the company also performed. All of them performed the songs that I wrote for them. After everyone gave a short speech about how our friendship matters to them, we continued partying.

After all that, I became a little tired from all the attention. I decided to go up to one of the balconies to get some air. I really feel recharged every time I'm alone and I just wanted to look at the stars in the sky. Of course, there weren't that many because of the pollution and smog in Seoul.

"They're really pretty even if there are only a few of them." Someone said from behind me.

I turn to see Mina coming over to join me. "Enjoying yourself?"

She shook her head. "Not really. I prefer places that aren't crowded."

"An introvert I see." I joked as I leaned on the balcony while facing her.

"HA HA… You already know that." She said as she leaned on the balcony as well while looking at the sky.

She seemed so melancholic. "You know that they are not really there, right?"

I turn to her in confusion. "What is?"

"The stars… We might be seeing them right now but they are actually gone. They die out before the light becomes visible from where we are. It takes years for the light to travel this far. It's quite sad actually. It's like they wanted us to see them, but we notice them too late." She explained.

"It's beautiful though." I said with a smile while I turn to look at her.

"What is?" She asked.

I wanted to say, "You are." But that would be flirting.

I slowly faced the sky again. "Although they're gone, they aren't really dead. Because we get to see how beautiful they really are even though they're already dead. You're right though. It's sad because we would never see their true beauty unless they would die out."

She giggled. "I didn't know you were so deep, oppa."

I chuckled. "I didn't either."

We both laughed at that and continued to converse.

After a long silence she finally decided to break the ice. "JayB-oppa, I have something to tell you."

I turn to her in anticipation. I smiled and said, "Sure. Fire away."

She then turn to look at me straight in the eye. "I think I like you."

___________