American Casual

Julia got out of the cab and ran into the restaurant, still kicking herself for being late. “I'm Julia Park,” she panted as she reached the hostess stand, “my friends-”

“Are waiting for you, Ms. Park,” the hostess finished smoothly. “This way, please.”

She led Julia up to the roof where the guys all sat at a beautifully laid table. “You made it!” Baekhyun cheered.

“Sorry I'm late,” she apologized, giving a quick bow.

“Sit here,” Sehun said, gesturing to the seat beside him, “we saved it for you.”

“You should give it to someone who was actually here on time,” she said wryly.

“Not when it's your birthday!” Chanyeol yelled.

The guys all applauded loudly and Julia's mouth dropped open. “How did you… ”

“Youngjun let it slip last week,” Minseok admitted. “He thought you and Sehun might be celebrating together.”

“And we are,” Sehun pronounced, pulling out her chair, “though a heads up would've been nice.”

Julia sat down and shook her head. “I think I've caused enough drama around here,” she joked, earning another round of laughter.

“Hey, at least I'm a day older than you,” Sehun said as he resumed his seat.

“But I'm still not calling you oppa,” Julia returned.

Baekhyun choked on his water and Kyungsoo gave him a hearty thump on the back.

“Not to put a damper on things,” Jongin began, “but what changed your mind?”

“You mean Shindo's mind,” Jongdae muttered.

Julia gave him a glance, but didn't miss a beat. “We had another conversation, and he was much more agreeable about it,” she said airily.

Junmyeon gave Jongdae a triumphant look and he seemed to simmer down as they opened their menus. “What should we get?” Julia asked.

“Soju,” Kyungsoo said decidedly, “lots of soju.”

The drinks arrived with platters of traditional Korean food like kimchi and seaweed soup, but to Emily's surprise they also brought out fried chicken and the best macaroni and cheese she had ever tasted. “I didn't know this place served mac and cheese,” she commented after her second helping.

“They made an exception for us,” Junmyeon said, “though it took a lot of convincing on our part.”

After a leisurely meal two birthday cakes were brought out, one black and white and the other a delicate lavender. They sang to Sehun first, and he even managed to keep Baekhyun from blowing out his candles before the song ended. “Nice work,” Julia laughed, feeling a pleasant buzz kick in from the soju.

“I've gotten a little wiser over the years,” he said smugly.

They sang to Julia in perfect English and she blew her own candles out without any interference. I want us to be friends forever, she wished, and may we always be as happy as we are right now.

After the cakes had been ravaged Sehun opened his presents, Julia's favorite being the Cat-Man shirt from Jongin. “Na na na na na na na na na Cat-Man!” she sang breathlessly, much to the delight of the whole table, but Sehun just laughed and put the shirt back into its wrappings. “Thank you, everyone,” he said, “I'm truly grateful for all of you.”

“Wait, you haven't opened mine!” Julia reminded him, handing him a small box. He opened it and carefully lifted out a gold watch. “Wow,” he breathed, examining it closely.

“I know you've probably got a dozen watches,” she said, “but I saw it and it made me think of you.”

Sehun nodded and Julia could've sworn she saw tears in his eyes. “It's beautiful, thank you,” he said, giving her a little bow.

“Julia's turn!” Jongdae sang out.

“You guys didn't-”

“We wanted to, and we did,” Junmyeon said firmly. “Now close your eyes.”

Julia did as she was told and felt something heavy come to rest in her lap. “Open!” they chorused.

She opened her eyes and saw it was a giant basket filled with small gifts and treats, all wrapped up and tied with a giant red bow. She tore the plastic wrappings off and started pulling out the items: a box of gourmet candy, makeup, designer sunglasses, even a small stuffed bear with her name embroidered on its little tummy. “This is amazing,” she laughed. “Who's it from?”

“All of us,” Kyungsoo replied, “each of us contributed something.”

“Let's see if she can guess who chose what,” Jongin suggested.

Julia looked at the arrangement of gifts thoughtfully. “The candy's from Kyungsoo,” she said immediately, “and the makeup from… Jongdae?”

They both nodded. “You're good,” Jongdae teased.

Julia picked up a box of skincare products. “This has gotta be Minseok,” she said, giving him a knowing glance.

“And I'll be happy to teach you how to use it,” he returned with a smile.

Julia frowned as she picked up the sunglasses. “Baekhyun?” she guessed.

“Those are from me, actually,” Junmyeon volunteered.

“I picked out the bath stuff!” Baekhyun blurted out excitedly.

“Julia’s guessing!” Jongin admonished him.

The remaining items were the bear, a small cardboard box, two impossibly thin silk scarves and an unmarked envelope, and she considered carefully before opening the envelope. It was a card with a beautiful tree painted on it and a poem about growth, and she quickly scanned the short message written inside. “This says I get a two-hour session with one of SM's top choreographers!” she said, holding up the card. “Sehun, how did you manage it?”

“How'd you know it was him?” Jongin asked.

“His handwriting,” she said dismissively, “though it's much more legible here than in most of your lessons.”

She opened the cardboard box next and saw it was filled with different kinds of snacks, all brightly colored and marked in Chinese characters. “This has to be from Yixing,” she surmised, examining a neon blue bag of chips. “How was he even able to get anything here in time?”

“Apparently he's known longer than us,” Junmyeon said with a shrug.

Julia set the box aside and glanced between the bear and the scarves for a while, struggling to determine who had selected them. “I think… Chanyeol picked the bear, and Jongin the scarves?”

“You got it!” Chanyeol said triumphantly, “though the bear is only part of my gift.” He pulled a guitar from under the table and Julia raised an eyebrow. “A romantic serenade?” she quipped. The whole table roared with laughter and Chanyeol's ears turned dark red, but he just laughed along and started tuning his guitar. “This is one of the songs I've been working on for the new album,” he said as the noise died down. “I finished it yesterday.”

“Really?” Junmyeon said, sitting up straight in his chair. “I didn't know you'd finished anything yet.”

“I didn't know you were working on a new album yet,” Julia added.

“I'm always working on something,” he said, giving the guitar a light strum. “If it's not good, pretend it is anyway.”

He started playing and the table fell silent, all of them listening intently. It was a slow ballad about absent friends staying true to each other, and Julia could practically hear accompanying violins as he crooned into the night air. Baekhyun and Minseok were teary by the end, and Kyungsoo even surreptitiously swiped a tear away. “That was beautiful,” she whispered.

“Do you have a title?” Jongdae asked.

“Not yet,” Chanyeol confessed, “but I want to polish it more before I give it one.”

It was getting late, so they decided to head back to the members’ apartment for a late movie before turning in. They called two cabs and piled into them in no particular order, all of them talking and laughing tipsily.

“Did you have a good birthday?” Kyungsoo murmured.

“Mm-hm,” she replied, laying her head on his shoulder.

“No funny business back there,” Jongin called from the passenger seat.

“Yeah, we're watching you,” Minseok said, his eyes drooping.

“Why did you keep your birthday a secret anyway?” Kyungsoo asked. “Do you hate your birthday or something?”

“I just don't like making a big deal about myself like that,” she replied. “It seems so selfish.”

“Duh, it's your birthday,” Minseok said, giving her a nudge.

“It's the one day you're allowed to be selfish,” Jongin chimed in.

They arrived at their building and made it up to the apartment, trying unsuccessfully to be quiet as they went inside. “What do you want to watch?” Jongdae asked, grabbing the remote.

“You're older, Sehun, you pick,” Julia yawned.

“Ladies’ choice,” he countered.

“I insist, oppa,” she teased. Everyone burst out laughing all over again and Sehun browsed Netflix while the others got snacks and settled in on the couches.

“Who wants shots?” Baekhyun called from the kitchen.

“I don't know, guys, I'm somewhat of a lightweight,” Julia said with a frown.

“Come on, just one for your birthday,” he insisted, bringing over a tray with shot glasses and a tall bottle of vodka in the center. He set the tray down on the coffee table and started pouring into the mismatched glasses. “Who wants to toast?” he asked.

“Julia should, it's her birthday,” Junmyeon said, handing her a shot. Julia waited until everyone had a glass, then held hers up high. “To EXO, and their first American tour,” she said loudly, to which they all cheered and downed their shots. The vodka warmed her stomach and she smiled as the heat coursed through her.

“Sehun next,” Chanyeol insisted, holding out his glass for a refill.

“Why not?” Sehun said agreeably, so Baekhyun passed the bottle around and everyone held their glasses up again. “To the summer,” he said, “and new experiences.”

They all cheered again and the warm feeling grew as the vodka went down Julia's throat. “And to my job,” she said, pouring her own shot this time. “May this be the first of many opportunities in Seoul.”

This shot brought on a soothing humming in her ears and she set her glass down awkwardly. “What'd you pick, Sehun?” she slurred.

“Mission Impossible,” he replied, snagging a bowl of popcorn before sitting down between Minseok and Jongin.

Julia kicked off her shoes and settled in beside Jongdae. She was fairly drunk, which gave the movie a shimmery quality and reduced the actors’ voices to a rushing murmur.

“Can I ask you something?” Jongdae whispered.

“Whatever you want,” she replied easily.

“Do you trust Shindo?”

The question caught her off-guard and she turned to look at him. “Why?” she demanded.

“I don't,” he said savagely. “He gives me the creeps.”

“Shh!” Kyungsoo snapped and Jongdae fell silent, leaving Julia to try and comprehend his outburst. What does he know? she thought dully. This is my life, not his.

After the movie ended she and Chanyeol were the only ones still awake, so he walked her to the door. “Happy birthday,” he whispered.

“Thanks,” she replied, “and nice job on that song. It really is beautiful.”

“Want me to walk you back down?”

“I'm not a child,” she said reproachfully, “but you're sweet to ask.”

His eyebrows knitted together and he seemed to be trying to say something. “I… don't have a crush on you,” he said thickly. “Everyone thinks I do, but I don't. Really.”

Julia reached up and patted his cheek. “I know,” she whispered. “Goodnight, Chanyeol.”

She left their apartment and took the elevator down to her floor, yawning prodigiously as she walked down the hallway to her door. She went to unlock it, but then noticed it was already standing ajar. “Hello?” she called, pushing it open. No one replied, so she stepped cautiously into the apartment, gripping the pepper spray on her keychain firmly. The light above the dining room table was the only one on, preventing her from seeing much beyond it. “I'm armed and ready to call the police,” she called.

“Look who finally decided to come home.”

She let out a sigh of relief. “Shindo,” she breathed, “you scared me. Why didn't you call?”

“I did,” he said, stepping into the light. “I thought we could have a nightcap once you got back from your outing, but it seems you made other plans with… other people.”

The emphasis on other people bordered on malevolent and Julia noticed an empty whiskey glass in his hand. “Look, you're drunk, I'm drunk, let's just start again tomorrow,” she said placatingly.

“I wasn't planning on being drunk!” he growled, “but you didn't show up and I had to pass the time somehow.”

Julia spotted the whiskey bottle on an end table and noted it was more than half empty. “Shindo-”

“What is it,” he interrupted, “that you find so captivating about those guys, huh? Is it the fame, the money?” He smirked and wagged a finger at her. “Or are you-”

“Enough, Shindo,” she said, cutting him off.

“Damn right it's enough!” he shouted, slinging the glass to the floor. It shattered on impact and Julia jumped back instinctively. “What are you doing?” she demanded. “This is my home!”

“Is it?” he sneered. “I couldn't tell, since you spend so much time in their apartment! I should've known you'd be another EXO groupie. How many have you slept with by now, four, five? Or have you already worked your way through all nine!”

“Stop it!” she yelled. “Get out of my apartment!”

The first blow took her completely by surprise and she saw a flash of stars as she went down on top of the broken glass.

“I'll leave when I'm good and ready,” Shindo snarled. “Get up!”

Julia managed to stumble to her feet, trying not to cry as pieces of glass dislodged from her skin and fell back to the floor. Her entire cheek pulsated with pain and rendered her mute as she tried to process what had just happened.

“I don't do sloppy seconds,” Shindo slurred, “and you're going to understand that, one way or another.”

He took a step toward her and instinct finally kicked in as she raised her pepper spray and doused his face. “Augh!” he yelled, clawing at his eyes.

“I'm calling the police!” she screamed. He reached out blindly and shoved her, pushing her onto the kitchen counter, but she caught herself and dodged his next swing easily. She darted into the living room in hopes of getting to her bedroom, but he managed to grab her wrist and yanked her back painfully. “You ungrateful bitch!” he hissed.

“Pig!” she spat. She wrenched away and he punched her again, this time in her eye, and she fell on top of a small bookcase beside her TV. The whole thing toppled over on top of her, and the last thing she saw was Shindo standing over her before she lost consciousness.


******


Julia cracked her eyes open and immediately winced as her left eye began to throb. She was still lying on the floor, covered in books and the remains of her bookshelf, but there was daylight coming through the window. How long was I out? she wondered, sitting up slowly. There was no sign of Shindo anywhere and she felt relieved. Maybe he left, she thought hopefully. She pushed the books and loose shelves off her body and managed to get to her feet. Her head spasmed alarmingly, but she ignored it as she staggered into the bathroom and looked at her reflection. Her eye was swollen shut, her cheek was a mottled red and purple and her lip had split in multiple places. She had small cuts down the entire left side of her body from the broken whiskey glass, and several places still had glass protruding from them and were slowly dripping blood on the floor.

She didn't know what to do besides stand there, staring at her reflection as blood started to drip into the sink. I should call the police, she thought disjointedly. I should go to the hospital. I should be doing something.

She opened her medicine cabinet and found her tweezers, then began the painful task of removing the glass shards in her shoulder, arm and hip.

“Julia?”

No! she thought wildly, they can’t see this!

She heard footsteps in the living room, then silence as they presumably took in the destroyed bookshelf and shattered glass. “Julia!” the voice repeated, sounding more panicked this time.

That sounds like Minseok, she thought to herself. I just hope he's alone.

She didn't have time to blink before Minseok appeared in the doorway, his concern turning to horror as he saw her injuries. “What happened?” he asked immediately.

“I… ”

There were more footsteps and Julia's heart sank as Baekhyun appeared just behind Minseok. She expected him to explode, but he just gave her a slow once-over and pressed his lips together. “Let me,” he said, holding out his hand.

Julia was so surprised she surrendered the tweezers and sat on the toilet as Baekhyun began removing the glass from her body.

“Was… was it a break-in?” Minseok asked.

“Yes,” she said instantly, latching onto the idea like a life preserver, “I surprised a thief in the living room. He got a few swings in, but I maced him and he ran off.”

She hissed as Baekhyun pulled a particularly large piece of glass out of her side. “That's probably gonna need stitches,” he murmured, dropping the glass into the trash can.

“We're taking you to the hospital,” Minseok said immediately.

Julia lifted her shirt carefully and examined the wound. “It's long, but not very deep,” she said, dropping it down again, “I'll be fine.”

“Did you get a look at the guy?” Minseok pressed.

You have no idea, she thought, but she just shook her head. “He was wearing a mask.”

Baekhyun finished and set the tweezers on the bathroom counter. “Do you have an ice pack?” he asked, nodding at her eye. “I can bring you some from our apartment.”

“I don't want the others to know,” she said quickly.

“Most of them are hungover from last night, so I can sneak some out,” he replied.

“But injuries like that will take weeks to heal,” Minseok told her. “You can't hide them that long.”

Julia nodded. “Just give me today,” she murmured, “please.”

Baekhyun left and Minseok cleaned up the mess in the living room while Julia bandaged herself as best she could. She sensed that they didn't quite believe her story, but they didn't press her and she was grateful for that.

She went back to the living room and sat gingerly on the couch. Minseok was obviously dying to say something, but Baekhyun returned and he just paced the hallway instead. “Here,” he said, giving her an ice pack, “and I brought extra so you can keep some in your freezer.”

“Thanks,” she said, sighing as the pack made contact with her cheek. “Why did you guys come by, anyway?”

“We were gonna start extra credit classes today, remember?” he said as he put the ice packs away. “We tried calling you, but you didn't answer and we decided to come check on you.”

“And good thing we did,” Minseok said, coming back into the room.

Julia spotted her phone on the floor and motioned for Baekhyun to hand it to her. The battery was low, but she had over thirty missed calls and innumerable texts piled up, so she started sifting through them. The most recent ones were from Minseok and Junmyeon, but to her surprise the majority were from Shindo. Her blood ran cold as the events of the previous night darted through her head and she dropped her phone onto the couch beside her.

“What's wrong?” Baekhyun asked.

“Nothing,” she whispered, turning her phone off. “Go tell the others I'm sick and you didn't see me. I'll come by tomorrow and… figure something out.”

“Are you sure?” Minseok asked. “Maybe you should stay with us until the police come by.”

“Thanks, but I'll be fine,” she said, giving them a brave smile. “Do this for me, please?”

They left reluctantly and Julia closed her one good eye. Okay Julia, what's the plan? she asked herself.


******


“She's lying to us,” Baekhyun muttered as they walked to the elevator.

“Of course she is,” Minseok replied. “She obviously doesn't want us to know who really did this.”

“Are we really going to lie to the others about this?” Baekhyun wondered.

Minseok struggled to answer, his desire for justice warring with their promise to Julia. “I don't think we can lie to them,” he said finally, pushing the elevator button. “You can't keep a promise to someone when it endangers them, and Julia is clearly in danger from someone.”

The elevator took them up to their floor and they slowly walked back to their apartment. “Let me do the talking,” Minseok murmured as he opened the door.

“Well, it's about time!” Jongin exclaimed from the kitchen. “We were about to come looking for you two.”

“Did you find Julia?” Chanyeol asked.

“Where are the others?” Baekhyun inquired, evading his question.

“They're around,” Jongin said, leaning against the counter. “Is something wrong?”

“We need to talk,” Minseok said abruptly.

Soon everyone was gathered in the living room and Minseok cleared his throat several times before attempting to speak. “What I'm about to tell you is going to be upsetting, but you all have to remain calm until I'm done, okay?”

“You're scaring us, Min,” Jongdae whispered.

Minseok glanced at Baekhyun and took a deep breath. “Baek and I went up to Julia's apartment and found the door standing open,” he began. “There was broken glass on the floor and a bookshelf had been knocked over, so we went looking for Julia.”

“And?” Junmyeon prodded.

“And… it was bad,” Minseok confessed. “She claims she surprised a thief in her apartment who assaulted her before taking off. She has a black eye, swollen cheek, and several cuts from landing on the broken glass when she fell.”

There were several seconds of silence as they processed this information, then Chanyeol cried, “I should've walked her home!”

“This isn't anyone's fault,” Baekhyun began.

“It's obviously somebody's fault!” Kyungsoo shouted. “Did she call the police?”

“I don't know,” Minseok said, “but it's her decision whether she wants to or not.”

Sehun narrowed his eyes. “What aren't you telling us?”

“We think Julia's lying about how she was attacked,” Baekhyun blurted out.

“So what, you think Julia knew her attacker?” Junmyeon asked.

“Maybe,” Minseok said, “but now isn't the time to pressure her for answers. She's in pain and horribly shaken, so she's asked to be left alone for today.”

“And then what?” Chanyeol demanded. “Are you saying we just pretend this didn't happen right below our apartment?!”

“We're all angry, Chanyeol,” Junmyeon said gently, “but Minseok's right. We need to be careful.”

“And try to look shocked when she comes by tomorrow,” Baekhyun added. “She asked us to keep it secret until then, but we couldn't-”

“I know,” Junmyeon murmured, “you did the right thing.”


******


Jongdae locked his bedroom door and dialed his phone. “Kim Tae Ryu?” he asked. “It's Kim Jongdae. I'm looking for someone, one of your dancers. Did anyone show up late or call out today?”

He listened to her reply and nodded. “Thank you for your help,” he muttered. He hung up and a dark feeling settled in the pit of his stomach.

“Jongdae, open the door,” Kyungsoo called, jiggling the handle impatiently.

Jongdae let him in and sat woodenly on the bed. “I just talked to Kim Tae Ryu,” he said.

“Who cares about her right now?” Kyungsoo snapped. “I wanna know what we're going to do about Julia. I'm not about to stand by and let whoever did this get away with it!”

“Soo-”

“She's our friend and has no family here, so it's our responsibility to-”

“Kyungsoo!” Jongdae interrupted. “Kim Tae Ryu just told me one of her dancers called out sick today.”

Kyungsoo folded his arms. “And?”

“Three guesses who.”

The cloud on Kyungsoo's face darkened even more as he pieced it together. “Do you have a plan?” he asked.

Jongdae nodded. “Let's go to the SM building.”

Notes