American Casual

“No, you need to enunciate the th sound more,” Julia corrected. “Bathroom, not bat room.”

“This is hard!” Baekhyun groaned, laying his head on the table.

“English only,” Julia reminded him. “It'll help you learn faster.”

He groaned again and she shook her head. “We'll try again tomorrow,” she said finally. “Don’t forget to practice!” she called, but he had already leapt up and run out of the room. This is a nightmare, she thought tiredly. After a week none of them had shown much improvement, and although they blamed long dance practices or exhausting vocal exercises, Julia knew most of them were just not trying. Meanwhile Sehun openly refused to show up, finding every excuse under the sun to avoid her. But little did he know she had a secret weapon. She sent a quick text and the reply came almost immediately, complete with emojis and exclamation points. She smiled and left her workroom, sliding her phone back into her pocket.

SMENT was a huge place, but Julia was already memorizing the layout. She took an elevator down to the third floor and soon found Sehun in a makeup room, sitting in a chair while a stylist put a fresh coat of color on his hair. His eyes were closed, so Julia couldn't resist sneaking up to him, wordlessly shushing the stylist as she bent down beside his ear. “Hi Sehun,” she whispered. Sehun started violently and swore under his breath. “How did you-”

“Find you?” she finished, leaning on the supply counter. “Chanyeol told me.”

Sehun swore again and Julia grinned. “Those aren't very polite words,” she said innocently.

“I know some choice English ones,” he shot back.

“You haven't shown up for one session, Sehun,” she said, getting serious. “Not one. You're lucky Junmyeon doesn't know.”

Sehun's eyebrow arched slightly. “You didn't tell him?”

“I didn't want to be the one to tell him you're costing everyone their tour,” she said, folding her arms. Sehun waved the stylist away. “Are you trying to make me feel guilty?” he asked in a low voice.

“I’m trying to make you see sense,” Julia replied. “You're only hurting yourself and your friends by acting this way. If you aren't ready by May, the tour is off.”

“You've got some nerve,” he growled.

“No more than you,” she countered. She got up and went to the door. “Eleven o'clock tomorrow, in my office,” she said, opening the door, “if you can find the time.”


******


“Do you think he'll show up?” Chanyeol asked. Julia shrugged. “I hope so. I can't believe he would risk everyone's chance at this tour.”

“You should tell Youngjun,” Baekhyun said definitively. “He'll straighten Sehun out.”

“No,” Julia said immediately, “I'm not a snitch. I can work this out with Sehun myself, which is why I'm trusting you two to not say anything.”

“Say anything about what?” Jongdae asked as he came out of the bathroom.

“How long you were taking,” Chanyeol said, punching him in the arm. “We thought you'd fallen in.”

Jongdae shoved him playfully. “Where are you going?” he asked, nodding at the keys in Chanyeol's hand.

“I'm going grocery shopping,” Julia replied, “and Chanyeol is insisting on driving me.”

Baekhyun's phone rang and he groaned. “Yeah?” he said, putting it to his ear. “He's with me. Okay, we’re coming.” He hung up and looked longingly at the door before beckoning Jongdae over. “Minseok’s waiting for us upstairs,” he said, “but I'd rather go with you guys.”

“I thought you were desperate to get away from me,” Julia teased.

“Yeah, but we want to go on the tour more,” Jongdae teased back, grinning as he followed Baekhyun down the hallway. Julia rolled her eyes and stuck her hands in her hoodie pockets. “I wish you'd just let me take a bus,” she said, walking toward the door.

“No way,” Chanyeol said firmly. “Not when I've got such a sweet car sitting in the parking lot.” He opened the door for her and a blast of cold wind hit them like a fist. They hurried across the lot to a gleaming Mercedes Benz tucked in a corner space. “Nice,” Julia commented, climbing in quickly. Chanyeol got in the driver's seat and started the car, cranking the heat all the way up. As they eased out of the lot Julia leaned back against the seat. “You don't have a crush on me, do you?” she asked abruptly.

Chanyeol laughed. “No, why?”

Julia shrugged. “It's just… you've accepted me really fast. I just wanted to know why.”

“Does there have to be a reason?” Chanyeol asked, turning down a side street.

“I guess not,” she conceded. They were quiet for a little while, then Chanyeol cleared his throat. “Okay, look,” he said quietly. “When they first put EXO together, I didn't know what to expect. They brought us to a big room and lined us up, and we had these big pieces of paper with our names on them pinned to our shirts, kinda like we were in school. Anyway, we were all excited and nervous, so it wasn’t until we met our managers and were divided into our sub-units that I finally looked around the room at the other guys. Baekhyun made eye contact with me and gave me this warm smile, like he knew everything I was feeling and that I’d be okay. It was almost as if he was a lost piece of me that happened to wander across my path, and... that's how I felt when you walked into the conference room.”

Julia swiped a tear away before he could see it. “Even though I was wearing your jacket?” she quipped.

“Especially because you were wearing it,” he said, smiling at her. They pulled into the supermarket and got out, shivering as the cold wind hit them again. Inside the market Julia grabbed a basket and looked around. “Let's have some fun,” she said, heading for the produce. She grabbed an apple and held it up. “What’s this in English?” she asked him.

“Apple,” Chanyeol said proudly. Julia set it down and grabbed a lemon. “And this?”

Chanyeol frowned, then his face brightened. “Lemon,” he said triumphantly. Julia nodded. “Good. What about this?” she said, tossing him a plum. He caught it and stared at it for a minute, then shrugged helplessly. “It's a plum,” she said, taking it from him and adding it to her basket.

“Plum,” he repeated to himself. “Plum. Plum.”

Julia smiled. “You work harder at this than the others,” she said, selecting a head of lettuce.

“I'm sure you say that to all the guys,” he teased.

“No, it's true. I was expecting it to be Junmyeon, or even Minseok, but you're leaving them in the dust.”

“Really?” he asked, grinning widely. “I'm your best student?”

“Don't get cocky,” she said, nudging him with her elbow. “What are those called?”

“Carrots,” Chanyeol said easily. “Why did you think it would be them?”

“Junmyeon’s the leader, and Minseok's the oldest. I thought they'd be trying to set an example.”

“Trust me, Junmyeon's trying,” Chanyeol said flatly. “He bought a Korean-English dictionary and has been making us take turns practicing with him.”

“Thank goodness for that,” Julia murmured, switching to English. “Grab me some peanut butter, please.”

Chanyeol stood in front of the shelves, thinking hard, then selected a jar of creamy peanut butter and handed it to her proudly.

“Good job,” she said, reverting back to Korean. “What about Minseok? He always seems distant during our sessions.”

“I think they're talking about a comeback for the CBX unit,” Chanyeol replied, perusing the cereals. “It's stressing him out.”

Julia grabbed a box of instant oatmeal. “Everyone seems to be consumed by other things,” she muttered. “Don't they want to go on this tour?”

“Of course they do,” Chanyeol said immediately, “but it's not like Youngjun cut back our schedules to make room. It's hard for them to fit this in, especially Kyungsoo and Yixing with all of their acting. It's out of our hands.”

Julia didn't reply, but her mind started turning. Maybe I can do something about that.


******


“What do you mean, cancelled?!”

“Not permanently,” Youngjun said quickly, raising his hands. “Think of it more as 'postponed’.”

Jongin folded his arms angrily. “So you're telling us that you've wiped our schedules for the next four months?!”

“He didn't say that,” Junmyeon reminded him. “We're just… prioritizing, right?”

“Exactly,” Youngjun said, pointing at Junmyeon. “Prioritizing.”

“But… but we have commitments!” Minseok sputtered. “Appearances, collaborations, interviews-”

“All deferred until after your tour,” Youngjun interrupted. “Those of you currently acting will continue that, but otherwise you're free to focus on other things.”

Sehun narrowed his eyes. “Other things?” he repeated. “You mean learning English.”

Chanyeol slid down in his seat and Sehun looked over at him. “What?” he demanded. “Do you know something about this?”

“I… might have said something to Julia about it yesterday,” he admitted, “but I didn't think this would happen!”

Kyungsoo groaned and Jongin snorted derisively. “Of course you said something,” he snapped. “If you could just think past your-”

“That's enough!” Jongdae barked. “For your information, Julia wasn't the one who said something about it. I did.”

That shut everyone up for several seconds. “You did?” Minseok asked incredulously.

“I did,” he said, stepping forward. “I’m tired of watching everyone hide behind their schedules. Poor Julia didn’t have a chance competing with that, so Junmyeon and I decided to do something about it.”

“Poor Julia?” Jongin echoed. “You should’ve talked with us before going to Youngjun! What happened to working as a group?”

“We haven't been working as a group since Julia was hired,” Kyungsoo snapped. “Acting in a drama is one thing, but your drama is exhausting. Maybe this is a good thing.”

“Easy for you to say,” Baekhyun mumbled. “You get to keep acting.”

“We can't just drop off the face of the Earth for four months,” Minseok pleaded.

“You'll have a few appearances, after you've shown progress,” Youngjun said magnanimously. “Now, since you're all on vacation, you should go back to the apartment. I'll let Julia know to expect you.”

“The apartment? It's the middle of the day!” Jongin exclaimed. Youngjun waved goodbye and he stomped out of the room angrily. The others followed him, grumbling to each other. I can't believe we actually made this happen, Jongdae thought to himself. Youngjun must really want us to go on this tour.

Julia came around the corner and his stomach dropped. Go away, he pleaded silently, but it was too late.

“Hey guys, what's… up?” Her voice trailed off as she saw the dark looks on their faces. “I hope you're happy now,” Sehun spat, walking past her with long strides. Several of the other members ignored her and Jongdae felt guilty as Julia looked around, bewildered. “What’s going on? Chanyeol?”

Chanyeol glanced at Jongdae, his desire to tell her warring with his own anger and disappointment. Jongdae beckoned her over. “Youngjun cleared everyone's schedules for the next four months,” he said in a low voice.

“What?! Why?”

“Because Junmyeon and I asked him to,” Jongdae admitted. He noticed she was holding a thick folder in her hand and nodded at it. “What's that?”

Julia glanced at it. “I was… well, I was on my way to see Youngjun, actually. I made materials for you guys to take with you when you're gone, to make it easier to practice your English. I was even going to work out a travel schedule so I could bounce back and forth and keep anyone from falling behind.” She sighed loudly. “I guess it doesn't matter now.”

Jongdae saw Chanyeol's face soften. “You were willing to do all of that?” he asked. Julia nodded. “It may surprise you to learn that I've been an EXO-L since your debut. I want you to succeed, not fail.”

Jongdae’s mouth fell open. “You're a fan?”

She nodded again as her phone buzzed in her pocket. She pulled it out and read the text rapidly. “It's official,” she said, showing them the text. “I've got uninterrupted access for the next four months.” She turned to leave and they followed her automatically. “Why didn't you say anything?” Chanyeol asked.

“Because I didn't want to,” she said, taking the stairs down to the lobby. Jongdae was curious too, but he caught sight of the other members and he tapped Chanyeol's arm. “We’ll catch up with you later,” he suggested, pulling Chanyeol toward the door, but Chanyeol ignored him completely. “Who's your bias? What's your favorite song, no, favorite album?”

Jongdae heaved on his arm and Chanyeol reluctantly went to follow him. Julia touched his hand and he turned back to look at her. “Two Moons,” she said, smiling at him, “but Exodus is my favorite album.”

Chanyeol grinned and finally followed Jongdae over to the others. “What was that about?” Junmyeon wondered, watching Julia leave through a side exit.

“She's a fan,” Chanyeol said delightedly, his bad mood gone. All of them perked up at this. “Why didn't she say anything?” Baekhyun demanded.

“Probably because certain members haven't been very nice to her,” Jongdae said, looking over at Sehun.

“I don't care if she is a fan,” he said irritably, “It doesn't make any difference.”

“Let's just go home,” Kyungsoo said, going outside. “We'll have plenty of time to argue then.”


******


Julia leaned over and stared forlornly at her bathtub. It had been three days since her water had been shut off for maintenance and she was dying for a hot shower. I would get the apartment with corroded pipes, she thought frustratedly. She'd considered going down to the SM building, but according to Youngjun the showers there were for idols and trainees only. She didn't see any other choice. She dumped all of her toiletries into a bag and took the elevator up to the next floor.

This is humiliating, she thought as she trekked down the hallway. She knocked on the door and waited. It took a minute, but the door finally cracked open and Minseok peered out. “Yes?” he asked, noticing the bag slung over her shoulder.

“I was wondering if I could use your shower,” she said, the words grating on her pride. “I haven't had water in my apartment for three days and I can't go to the SM building. Please?”

He sighed and let her into the apartment reluctantly. “The bathroom’s down the hall,” he said, pointing. “I'm the only one here right now. Do you... need anything?”

Julia shook her head. “I'm good. Thank you,” she said, bowing. This small gesture seemed to surprise him and he returned it immediately. “I'll, uh, be in the living room until you're done.” He sat on the couch and Julia heard the TV click on as she made her way to the bathroom. It was large, with two sinks and three shower stalls equipped with long white curtains. She closed the door and turned on the nearest shower while she dug her shampoo and shaving cream out of her bag. She stripped and stepped into the shower carefully. The hot water felt glorious against her skin and she spent a solid minute just standing in it before starting on her hair. It was cut in a short pixie style, so it didn't take long. For the millionth time she considered dyeing it brown, and for the millionth time she decided to keep it blonde. What kind of blonde wants to have brown hair? she chided herself. Besides, Mom would kill me.

She finished washing and decided to quickly shave her legs and underarms. She was nearly done when she heard a door slam somewhere in the apartment. She realized Minseok hadn't said when the others would return and she finished as quickly as possible. Just as she turned the water off the bathroom door opened and she froze.

“Min?” Junmyeon called. Julia didn't know what to do, her heart pounding in her chest. Where is Minseok? she wondered as she scrambled for a plan. She heard him take a step into the bathroom and she decided to have some fun. “He’s not here right now!” she said loudly. The footsteps stopped immediately. “Julia?” he asked uncertainly, as if he might have hallucinated hearing her voice. She poked her head out of the shower and gave him a smile. “In the flesh,” she replied. “Just the flesh, actually.”

Junmyeon's ears turned dark red and he blinked rapidly. “Oh, uh, I didn't realize, sorry, um…” he started backing out of the bathroom, still stammering.

“Wait!” she said. “Could you… hand me my towel?”

This request made him blush even harder, but he complied, keeping his eyes on the floor the whole time. “Are you trying to flirt?” he murmured. Julia laughed and took the towel from him. “Why, is it working?” she teased. He laughed too and the tension eased. “Just lock the door next time,” he said, closing the door behind him.

Julia dressed quickly, then repacked her things and left the bathroom, tousling her damp hair with her fingers. Junmyeon was in the kitchen making a smoothie and he smiled at her as she came in. “Want one?” he asked, holding up a carton of strawberries.

“I'm not sure I should stay,” she confessed.

“I am,” he said authoritatively, adding the berries to a blender on the counter. “It's about time you started getting used to us.”

“I should really give them some-”

“Space?” he finished. “It's been three days, Julia. They've had all the space they need.” He turned the blender on, preventing her from replying. Maybe he's right. I have to make friends some time. “Okay, one smoothie,” she agreed as he turned the blender off. Junmyeon grinned and poured her a tall glass of foamy pink smoothie. He stuck a giant straw in it and handed it to her. “Sit down,” he invited, gesturing at the empty bar. She set her bag on the floor and sat down before taking a large sip of her smoothie. “This is delicious,” she said, taking another drink. “What's in it?”

“Strawberries, pineapple, orange juice, almond milk, spinach and protein powder,” he said, pouring himself a glass before cleaning everything up.

“I thought men only drank smoothies with raw eggs and kale.”

“I'm on vacation, remember?” Junmyeon teased, glancing at her as he put the fruit back into the fridge. He grabbed his smoothie and joined her at the bar. “All I'm missing is a mini umbrella.”

Julia took another long sip. “What happened to Minseok?” she wondered, looking around the empty apartment. Junmyeon shrugged. “I don't know. I thought it was him in the shower earlier. Sorry again,” he apologized quickly. Julia brushed it off. “I'm not embarrassed. Just think, if you'd walked in ten seconds later you would've seen a lot more than my face.”

Junmyeon choked on his smoothie and spilled a little as he laughed. Julia handed him a napkin just as Minseok came out of a back room. “What's all this?” he asked, looking at Junmyeon questioningly.

“We're on vacation,” Julia announced, toasting him with her smoothie before taking another sip. Minseok's reply was forestalled by the door opening and the other members flooding in. None of them noticed Julia, too busy plopping down on the couches or disappearing down the hallway. Julia winked at Junmyeon and said nothing.

“I’m starving,” Baekhyun announced, going straight to the fridge.

“We just ate!” Kyungsoo exclaimed. Chanyeol and Jongin both made a dive for the TV remote and scuffled for a moment before Chanyeol arose victorious. Junmyeon gave Julia an amazed look, shaking his head at his oblivious friends.

“Um, what is this?” Sehun asked, coming out of the bathroom with Julia's shampoo in his hand. “Someone switch brands recently?”

“It's mine,” Julia said nonchalantly. All of them jumped and turned to look at her. “Why are you always lurking out of sight?” Jongin demanded.

“I'd hardly call this lurking,” Junmyeon commented, stirring his smoothie. “It's not her fault you're all oblivious.”

Jongin got up and disappeared down the hallway without another word. Sehun set the shampoo bottle on the counter and followed him.

“Looks like someone's not enjoying their vacation as much as everyone else,” Julia murmured.

Notes