It took only two rehearsals before the organizing committee declared everything was in order and that everyone could break for lunch.
Taeyeon was surprised Yukiko didn’t unleash any of her seduction tricks during rehearsals. In fact, Yukiko was very cordial and hardly spoke to anyone during the rehearsals. She went through her part, along with everyone else and headed for a waiting room the moment the break was announced. Taeyeon wondered if something happened last night that caused the sudden change in behaviour. Nonetheless, she was more than happy the actress was staying away from her.
At lunch, Taeyeon was texting Jessica, wondering what she was up to. When Jessica didn’t reply for some time, a frown grew on her forehead.
“That woman did something again?”
Taeyeon looked up and saw Hinata settling down in a seat in front of her. She shook her head sadly.
“Who else could cause a frown? Hmm…let me think…”
“Hinata senpai, I’m fine. It’s just … … Jessica isn’t replying to my messages.”
Hinata leaned across the table and had a serious expression on his face. In a low voice, he whispered, “Maybe last night was just a dream.”
Seeing Taeyeon’s eyes widened in shock for a brief moment, Hinata clutched his sides and laughed out loud. It wasn’t until he caught a spoon flying in his direction that he stopped. Thankfully, his reflexes were quick and Taeyeon had bad aiming.
“She looked quite tired when I met her last night. She’s probably jetlagged. Give her some space.”
“Hmm…maybe,” Taeyeon replied, wistfully.
“Let’s finish up our bentos and check on the team in the kitchen. The cheesecake had better be ready on time else they’ll hear me roar,” Hinata grunted before tucking into his lunch.
The moment Hinata and Taeyeon stepped out of the ballroom, they were greeted by cheers and screams. Fans whipped out their cameras and some were waving signs at them. Both of them were surprised at the attention and walked briskly into the kitchen. They were thankful the security officers kept fans at bay and that they were quite a distance away from the crowd.
“Isn’t it still two hours away from the event? Why are these people here so early?” Taeyeon wondered out loud.
Hinata brushed his fingers through his hair. “Because they’re here to see me.”
“Oh come on, don’t make me waste my lunch by puking it at you.” Taeyeon gave Hinata a playful smack on his arm.
While the bakers were busy finishing the final touches in a room behind the stage, the organizing committee were getting into their positions to usher the media and public into the ballroom. A short announcement was made, requesting the media to get their passes ready as they would be the first to enter the ballroom to set up.
Soon, the doors opened and the media queued up orderly to enter the ballroom. Video cameras were lined up along the last row as cameramen worked quietly to set them up. Meanwhile, photographers were led to a cordoned area in the centre of the room near the stage.
Fifteen minutes before the press conference was due to start, the public started to stream into the ballroom. The public were either invited to the event or won tickets via contests by the sponsors. It was a small-scale and exclusive in-person event, with about fifty attendees excluding the media. A video of the event would be uploaded into Youtube later in the day for fans who didn’t manage to score any tickets.
The first two rows of seats were reserved for sponsors and guests. Both Jessica and Seungwan happened to sit side by side in the middle of the second row, giving them a good view of the stage.
The tension at the holding room was high. Suzuki was taking a last look at the script he prepared, Hinata was pacing around the room trying to stay focused & Taeyeon was having her makeup touched up by a stylist. Yukiko looked the most relaxed among them, sitting in a lounge chair while Riko ensured not a single strand of hair was out of place on the actress.
“Everyone is in the ballroom, let’s roll!” someone bellowed, gesturing for the team to move towards the backstage door.
Once the door was opened, loud cheers and applause were heard when the emcee announced the names individually as each of them went on stage. The chairperson of the organizing committee, followed by the bakers and finally the actress. It was obvious who had the loudest welcome. The actress went to her position in the middle of the stage and bowed politely. Cheers exploded as fans went crazy seeing their idol on stage, chanting her name in unison.
The media were given a few minutes to take photos of the team. Taeyeon was trying to search for Jessica but it was quite a challenge due to the bright stage lighting. The moment she spotted the consultant, she couldn’t help but break into a lopsided grin. Jessica discreetly returned the greeting with a bright smile and nod.
The brief lovey dovey interaction between the couple wasn’t lost on Yukiko. She was frustrated and tried not to show her displeasure on her face. She was jealous of Jessica and couldn’t stand seeing how happy Jessica was. In her eyes, Jessica belonged to her ‘exclusively’. It also reminded her of how she lost a ‘partner with benefits’. Plus, she was a popular celebrity and hence had to hide her gender preference. It was something she had to bear with if she wanted to continue being in the entertainment industry.
Once everyone had settled down, the event began. It was no surprise that Taeyeon was assigned to sit next to Yukiko while Suzuki was seated on the other side of the actress. Taeyeon had a gut feeling that Yukiko had a hand in planning the seating arrangement. Thankfully she had Hinata next to her. He was her pillar of support throughout this event and she felt grateful to him.
Everyone took turns to do a self-introduction as was greeted with hearty applause and screams. The emcee kicked off the interview segment with the various team members.
“Takahashi san, is this your first time baking a cake? Would you like to describe the learning experience?” the emcee asked.
Yukiko nodded shyly before turning her attention to Taeyeon.
“Ye, this is my first time baking a cake. Thankfully I have a patient mentor who spent a lot of time and effort to teach me.” As Yukiko spoke, she playfully placed her arm on Taeyeon’s shoulder and slowly slid down her arm casually. “We had a lot of fun spending time together to learn the techniques of baking and getting to know each other better.”
Taeyon smiled stiffly and nodded. She couldn’t shake off that slender palm, because it was too obvious to do so and may make her seem very disrespectful to the actress. Yukiko’s last sentence was rather misleading and she was very concerned about what Jessica might think.
“It was my honour to teach Takahashi san. She learns fast and was able to bake a delicious cake,’ Taeyeon replied in a matter-of-fact tone, looking straight at the emcee instead of the actress.
The clingy palm patted Taeyeon’s arm twice before returning to the owner. Taeyeon heaved a sigh of relief internally and prayed that the other interview questions wouldn’t have anything to do with the actress and her. Her eyes scanned the audience for Jessica, hoping that the consultant would not trust Yukiko’s words completely. She saw Jessica having a serious expression but there wasn’t anything to show what the consultant really felt.
Taeyeon’s prayers were answered and the rest of the interview went on smoothly.
Finally, it was time for the highlight of the event. A large castella cake was brought on stage, together with a huge paper pipe filled with pink cream. Yukiko was invited to the centre of the stage and told to “sign” on the cake by piping the cream. It was definitely a unique way to leave a mark and certainly suitable for the event. The cake would be auctioned off shortly and the highest bidder would be able to bring it home while the proceeds would be going to charity.
“Can we have Takahashi san to pose for the media please?” the emcee of the event called out.
Yukiko gave her sweetest smile as she struck several poses for the cameras. Shutters and flashes went off in a non-stop manner.
“Would the bakers please stand next to Takahashi san for a group photo?” the emcee requested.
The bakers rose and stood next to Yukiko, leaving a suitable gap. However, Yukiko hurriedly placed an arm behind Taeyeon’s waist and pulled her a little nearer. Taeyeon was caught by surprise but tried not to show it on her face. She gave her professional smile as photographers continued to snap away. Yukiko gave Jessica a quick smirk before resuming her typical ‘celebrity’ smile for the media.
For sure, Jessica caught the interaction on stage and was fuming internally. Her eyes were trained on Taeyeon the whole time, like a mother bird protecting her chick. She knew Yukiko did it intentionally and wanted to spite the consultant.
After the photo taking was done, a two-tier cake was brought out on stage. This cake would be cut and distributed to the members of the media and invited fans.
Yukiko was invited to do the first cut before the bakers took over with the rest of the cake cutting and distribution.
“I would like to invite Taeyeon san to cut the cake with it. She is such a great mentor and has so much patience to teach me how to bake this cake. I would like to share the honour with her,” Yukiko requested, turning around to look at the baker.
With much reluctance, Taeyeon stood next to the actress and tried to position her hand slightly apart from the actress while holding the knife. The knife wasn’t particularly long, hence it was inevitable their hands would overlap. Both their hands were stacked in alternate layers and Taeyeon could feel Yukiko tightening her grip on the knife so that Taeyeon wouldn’t remove one of her hands. Taeyeon’s discomfort was evident, despite her trying to remain as professional as possible.
The frustration was growing on Jessica’s face. It took a lot of control to contain her displeasure. She knew that once she showed her true feelings, Yukiko would have the upper hand as it meant the actress’ plan to provoke Jessica worked.
Those few seconds of cake cutting felt like eternity to Taeyeon. She avoided the consultant’s glare, worried that Jessica would be mistaken. She prayed that Jessica wouldn’t get the wrong idea and counted down to the end of this misery.
“Thank you Takahashi san and Taeyeon san. We’ll be cutting the rest of the cake and distributing them to our guests. We appreciate your patience and do enjoy the cake. Now we would like to invite the fans to come up in groups of five for the photo opportunity with Takahashi san. Can the staff please help to arrange?” the emcee announced. “Once you’re done with the photo taking, please proceed to the next room to enjoy the cake. Our staff will be on the ground to guide you.”
Yukiko beckoned a staff member on stage to come over. “I would like to get Taeyeon san to stay with me on the stage. She played a big part for this charity project and she deserves the recognition.”
The staff nodded and hurriedly went to ask Taeyeon to stay on stage. Taeyeon was already on her way down the stage. She was surprised but she couldn’t reject that request. She sighed internally and dragged her feet back up the stage and stood next to the actress. Hinata gave the baker a pat on her back and wished her good luck before he headed off to the media corner with Suzuki for more media interviews.
Smile Taeng smile. I just have to keep my smile on for 1, 2, 3, 4, … 10 groups of fans. Taeyeon chanted to herself.
The fans stood on either side of the two ladies while an official photographer took the photos. Some of them were Taeyeon’s fans and specially chose the side she was on. She put on a happy smile and made candid poses. For most of the photos, Taeyeon felt a sneaky arm behind her waist or looping arms with her. It was unbearable but she had to grit her teeth and get through with it. Her guilt towards Jessica made her unable to look at the audience.
Meanwhile, it took a lot of effort for Jessica to remain calm. Her eyes met Yukiko’s and it was obvious the actress was enjoying her moments of making the consultant feel miserable. Jessica contemplated leaving the event hall but she knew this meant she conceded defeat against the actress. She held her glare and stood her ground.
After what seemed like an eternity to Taeyeon and Jessica, the group photoshoot finally ended. Taeyeon was visibly tired at this point but she kept her spirits up. It was her first time attending such an elaborate event and it took a toll on her. Her usual events were mainly interviews and photo shoots, with only the rare occasions for fan meetings. While doing this charity event that involved a celebrity, she began to appreciate the hard work put in by celebrities to please their fans.
Majority of the crowd had dispersed, with only a handful milling around the seats. Yukiko and Taeyeon were ushered to the media corner for more interviews. Taeyeon caught sight of the consultant and saw the latter breaking into a warm smile. She didn’t mean to smile but couldn’t help it whenever she saw the baker. It was automatic and a natural reflex for Jessica, and it only happened whenever they looked at each other. Jessica mouthed ‘good job’ and gave the baker a thumbs up. Taeyeon flashed a toothy grin as she kept her head turned in the direction of her loved one while walking towards the media corner.
Yukiko grunted softly and immediately placed her hand on Taeyeon’s waist as they walked to the media corner. From her side glance, she noticed Jessica’s eyes never left the duo, eyeing every single movement. She was laughing inside, pleased that her revenge plan was successful. To add fuel to the fire, Yukiko leaned dangerously close to Taeyeon’s face, using the pretext of sharing tips on how to handle the media. She knew that from Jessica’s angle, it would look as if she was kissing the baker on the cheek.
Jessica’s face turned crimson despite her seemingly calm demeanour. She kept repeating to herself to remain calm and not fall for the trap laid out by the actress. She decided to turn away and leave the venue. Afterall, the event had concluded.
“Jessica san, please wait!”
Jessica stopped and turned around. She saw the young baker Ren running after her, a small white box in hand.
“This is for you, from Taeyeon senpai.” Ren handed over the box. “It contains cake so please be careful. There’s a small fork inside the box.”
“Thank you Ren san.”
Back in her hotel room, Jessica threw handbag on the table and collapsed onto the bed. She let out a long sigh, followed by a shrill scream of frustration. She punched both fists in the air and seemingly wanted to strangle the actress.
“ARGH that despicable woman!” Jessica exclaimed in an annoyed tone.
She rolled to her side and remembered about the cake in the box. She let out an excited chuckle when she saw the cake.
It was a Mont Blanc cake, one of her favourite cakes baked by Taeyeon. Then again, she loved everything that the baker made. It had been a long time since she last ate something made by the baker.
There was a small card enclosed inside. The single handwritten message on the card brought a tear to Jessica.
I promise to love you with every heartbeat I have left. ~ Your darling Taeng
Every ounce of anger and frustration dissipated from Jessica.
“I love you too, more than you ever know.”
A/N: Heartbeat is finally updated after a few years. I wonder who else really reads it but since I was in the mood. Those who waited, thank you very much. I’m not used to the new wordpress format, having taken a long hiatus so pardon me if the pages seem a bit weird. Nonetheless, hope you’ve enjoyed this chapter and do let me know what you think. 🙂
A Time Traveller's Tales 