My Prettiest Friend

A tribute to the friendship of LHK and PSH. Another proof that not all great stories between a girl and a boy need to end in a romantic note.(Title inspired by Jason Mraz's "Prettiest Friend")

My Prettiest Friend

Hong Ki glances at Shin Hye sitting at the passenger seat with an impish grin and asks, for the nth time that night, “Are you really sure about this?”

Shin Hye glares at her, exasperated. “You punk, just drive and let’s go,” she reaches out to him to smooth some stray blond locks, tucking them into his beanie. “I’m so ravenous I am now seeing Yong Hwa’s face in yours!”

“Ya! You, too?” he asks her incredulously. “Why does everyone associate me with that guy like we are twins?” he pouts, maneuvering the car. “No, I don’t see him everyday. No, I don’t know his ideal type and no, we are not going out,” he rattles on to an imaginary reporter with a stoic face.

Shin Hye laughs at him, cracking up at his poker face while spitting out yaoi fics he found online about Yong Hwa and him. One of the things she loves best about Hong Ki is his humor, a side of him he only reveals to people close to him. When they first met, she thought he was a snob, barely smiling, sitting quietly in a corner and talking only when he was asked about something. But her perception of him changed when they got to know each other better. A walking time bomb, that’s what she calls him. A bomb full of pranks and idiotic ideas that are always the source of her loud laughs in the middle of shooting. More than the idol image he portrays on stage for his fans, she knows Hong Ki is a treasure full of fun.

That’s why for his birthday, she decided to give him a gift she knows his heart has been busily wishing for the past three years. A date. With a girl. Her.

~0o0~

“Is this all you got for me?” Hong Ki asks Shin Hye, faking a pout while scrutinizing the Beats headphone on his hand. “Ah, cinchia. My fans are more creative than you are!”

Shin Hye laughs at her friend then reaches out to hit his forehead with her chopsticks. “Hey, you ungrateful brat, I totally rocked my brains off trying to think of something to give you. It’s not that easy, ok?” She pouts back. “You already have me for one whole night and still you’re acting greedy!”

Hong Ki’s smile finally creeps out of the corners of his lips as he tries the headphone on. “This is jjang, Shin Hye-ah! I have always wanted to buy this brand but it’s so expensive I couldn’t bring myself to buy it then here you are, ahhh…you sure are richer than me. Komapta!” he says excitedly, opening his arms wide, giving her an air hug across the table.

Shin Hye giggles excitedly back at Hong Ki, her eyes warmly appraising his cute face adorned right now with his toothy smile. “Happy Birthday!”

“Here, this is your birthday gift,” he shoves a small package to her from across the table. It suspiciously looks like a CD.

“A CD?” she asks excitedly then drops the smile off her face. “Please don’t tell me it’s an FT Island CD,” she adds trying to sound as dejected as he did moments earlier with her gift.

“Look who’s turning ungrateful this time,” he says, giving her a disapproving look. “Just open it before you complain,” he orders.

A CD indeed lies inside the simple wrapping but it does not bear the name of FT Island. It is her name printed on the cover.

“Yong Hwa wrote a song for you, I sang it. Acoustic style,” he explains nonchalantly. “It’s a joint effort and we accept a free dinner in return. And the copyright is ours so don’t you ever think of uploading it online without our consent,” he rattles on, with a straight face.

Shin Hye’s smile brightens her face as she lovingly tucks the CD in her bag. “Tell Yong Hwa I’ll hoard all the CDs of his band and your band tomorrow to up the sales of your albums. And yes, free dinner. Call me anytime,” she stifles a giggle as her heart swells at the thought of having a song written just for her. “I’ll listen to it as soon as I get home.”

Hong Ki merely grunts as he scans the menu. He won’t accept any mushy thank you, no sir. Not even from Shin Hye.

~0o0~

Shin Hye has carefully planned to set aside a day for Hong Ki amidst her busy schedule. She wanted to do something special for his birthday so she thought of something that would really make him happy. But he had been really busy wrapping up their band’s Asian tour that merely getting a free day for him had been extremely difficult. So when she found out that he gets a free time before he flies to Japan with his band, she immediately grabbed the chance to ask him out…for their joint birthday date.

“Are you really spending the whole night with me just like you told me over the phone?” Hong Ki asks curiously as they eat.

Shin Hye beams at him. “Yes! I will be your girlfriend for tonight! Don’t you just love it?”

Hong Ki has forever been complaining to her about his non-existent love life. Given his idol status, dating or even just liking a girl is as remote a possibility as him getting a free round trip ticket to the moon for his birthday. “I couldn’t even see my mom regularly, how can I afford a relationship?” he would often rant to Shin Hye, Keun Suk or to who ever cares to know, voicing out his frustrations. “But I’m a guy in his 20’s! This is NOT normal!” he would gripe often. And it doesn’t help that Keun Suk often loves to rub it in that he is dating her whenever he gets the chance to talk to Hong Ki which forever embarrasses Shin Hye.

So she thought of doing this for him --- to spend time with a girl alone, just like on a date, even just for a night. And since she really couldn’t think of anyone who would date Hong Ki without shrieking like a crazy fangirl every five seconds, she thought she would just be the perfect candidate for him. No romantic strings attached, of course. Not that she would worry anyway. Hong Ki has always been vocal about how he sees her as something asexual.

But of course, precaution is always better than inciting the wrath of anti-fans, so she told him she would date him at night, in disguise. “Dress down, and remember to cover that blond hair of yours with a hat!” she has meticulously ordered. She in turn wore her trusted wig and eyeglasses.

Hong Ki snorts. “Hmpft! You’re just making up for your boyfriend’s haughtiness!” he picks some food from her plate. “Does hyung even know you’re spending time with me tonight?”

Shin Hye shakes her head. “Ani. This is our secret date. So let’s just have fun, okay?” she lies. Of course Keun Suk knows that she is with Hong Ki tonight, leaving him out of the loop would just mean trouble for her.

“Liar,” he says. “He just called me up on my way here. Told me not to do things to you he wouldn’t do himself. Tsk,” he shakes his head in disbelief. “His jealous streak does not really discriminate, does it?”

Shin Hye covers her mouth to hide her smile and embarrassment for getting caught lying. Ahh, that guy is really ruining her every move!  “Don’t mind him. He’s just jealous that I’m treating you to a movie later.”

Hong Ki’s eyes lit up at the mention of the word ‘movie’. “Really? We will watch a movie later? Ah, it’s been a while since I last saw a movie with a girl.” His eyes twinkle mischievously at the thought. “So does that mean I will have to kiss you, too?”

“Your choice, birthday boy,” she winks at him flirtatiously.

Then as if on cue, they both pretend to gag at the prospect. “Incestuous!” Hong Ki glares at her, feigning disgust.

She plays innocent. “The feeling is mutual, Lee Hong Ki.”

“I’ll treat you to the movie and I’ll pay for this dinner but the coffee after the movie is on you,” he proposes.

“Deal!” she gives him a thumbs-up.

He claps his hand excitedly. “Ah, I’m loving this date every minute!”

She smiles at him warmly. “I told you, I’m going to make your birthday happy!”

They exchange a loud high-five!

~0o0~

Coming out of the movie theatre, Hong Ki wraps his arms around Shin Hye, lifting her up playfully then started to spin her in circles.

“Let me down, you punk!” Shin Hye screams, wiggling her feet. “I’m dizzy!”

He puts her down, laughing at her. “Didn’t you say you are my girlfriend for today? Well, I have always wanted to do that to someone I would date,” he says, grinning widely.

She laughs incredulously. “Are you for real? That’s something my brother used to do to bully me.”

He shrugs. “Well, when I like someone, I usually tend to bully her around,” he admits.

“Ah, Hong Ki ah,” Shin Hye exhales a defeated sigh. They walk towards a coffee shop. “Your style is so high school. Not even your idol status can get you a girlfriend if you keep up with that,” she explains.

Hong Ki smirks, sitting down with her in a corner table. “Whatever. I can never afford to see someone now anyway,” the sadness in his voice creeps in unexpectedly.

Shin Hye looks at him affectionately. “Hey, do you happen to like someone right now that you just can’t date?” He has been carrying a melancholic vibe in him the minute she met him earlier and that has been nagging at her mind all night.

There is something in his eyes she couldn’t put a name on, something that bothers him that even his own quirky and perky personality cannot disguise.

He shifts his eyes towards hers. “No. I just….” He trails on. “…feel empty, that’s all.”

Shin Hye quietly sips her cup of coffee and waits for Hong Ki to continue. Her heart is now beginning to ache for him, especially now that she realizes how empty his eyes really are. He looks sick. Sick and tired of something.

Hong Ki traces the rim of his cup with his forefinger and sighs loudly. “I love what I do, you know. Singing is my passion. I can’t imagine myself doing anything else than being on stage and belting out songs for my fans. I love my band. They are family to me. We’ve been through a lot these past years.”

His eyes are glued to his cup. “But…” he trails on, lifting his eyes to meet hers. “Sometimes, I just want to run away from it all.” He looks at her, giving her a small, self-effacing smile. “I live before the public eye, literally under a microscope where everything about me is magnified. Yet I’m not complaining because I’m living my dream, you know. But I ask myself, how come I feel so insignificant to my own self? How come I don’t see my own worth amidst the love of our fans? Why do I feel lonely and sad after the lights went off and the screaming of fans died down?”

Shin Hye stares at him solemnly. “Aigoo…” she sighs, not sure of the right words to say. She didn’t have any idea he has been feeling this low.

Then to her surprise, his face lightens up immediately. Grinning, he says dismissively, “Oh crap. I just need a girl. That’s all there is to it.”

Her mouth agape, she asks, “Are you for real? You just told me your life is getting empty and now you say you just need a girl?” she throws him a skeptical look. “What are you?”

“A guy with raging hormones,” he tells her bluntly, with a shrug and with his poker face on. Shin Hye hears her jaw drop on the floor.

“Ya!” she yells, her cheeks turning red. “Watch your mouth, there’s a girl in front of you!”

“Ha!” he says, aghast. “I’m just telling you my honest assessment of what I’m feeling. And don’t you turn prudish on me. I’m not suffering from an unrequited love if that’s what you are aiming to hear. But I’ve got needs, you know and that’s when having a nonexistent lovelife really sucks!”

Her cheeks flaming from his honest words, she can’t help but chuckle at the way their conversation is going. “You know, I should have just arranged a boys’ night out for you with the guys. I’m sure they can relate better with your predicament.”

Hong Ki laughs at her, enjoying her uneasiness. “But you’re a better listener,” he teases.

“Stop it or I’ll go create an anti-fan site for you right this minute!” she warns, ignoring Hong Ki’s mirth.

~0o0~

“Has hyung been treating you right?” Hong Ki asks Shin Hye as he drives her home. It is past midnight and their date is drawing to a close.

She nods and grunts an incoherent ‘yes’.

“Wae?” Hong Ki teases her. “Why the shy smile? Aisshh, you guys really turned so mushy ever since you two hooked up. It makes me puke.”

Shin Hye laughs, slapping his arm. “Get yourself a girl and stop pestering me,” she nags.

“Ahrasso. But please, next time you think of setting me up for a date, get someone else okay? Not you. Give me a real girl I can kiss and hug!”

She pouts. “I don’t know your type. And yes, Song Hye Kyo sunbae is out of your league and out of the question so just let go of that dream. Besides, I can’t think of anyone prettier than me,” she jokes.

He gives her wig a tug before pulling over in front of her house. “Stop being annoying.”

Hong Ki has adored Shin Hye the minute she opened her mouth to introduce herself to him at the script reading for the drama. In his constrained idol life, it is very rare for him to ever get the chance to interact with girls around his age, not counting idols like him of course, and FT Island’s fans. So when Shin Hye walks up to him for the first time, he felt a little intimidated and shy. But Shin Hye was warm and friendly, always asking questions, starting little conversations with him and Yong Hwa that soon enough they were talking and playing together on set like long-lost friends.

She is beautiful, talented, charming and very friendly, Hong Ki is very aware of those facts. But strangely enough, and this really crossed his mind once, he never found himself romantically attracted to Shin Hye. Unlike the character he played in the drama, he is really positive he would never be caught singing “Sarangheyo…” with tears in his eyes to Shin Hye anytime soon. To think of her other than a sister or a friend is just…incestuous and vile. When he said in an interview that he was sure he would never be caught in a scandal with her even if they go on a holiday alone is true. He really feels that.

She is lovely and he adores her but she will always be someone else’s girl, never his. And that suits him just fine.

She grins sweetly at him. “Don’t be sad, Hong Ki-ah,” she says, her voice turning serious. “If ever you feel empty, call me and I’ll fill up the void. A lot of people love you. And a thousand fan girls adore you. You can have any girl anytime.”

Hong Ki nods, affectionately reaching out to hug her. “I know,” he smiles at her. “And I got the prettiest friend in the world right here with me.”

She beams proudly at him. “Ah, you finally acknowledge that I’m pretty. I’m so proud!”

He smirks. “You’ll even be more beautiful if you’re not that too gullible,” he retorts, earning him a smack on the face.