Evenstar

42. Kwan Dae Eun

Dae Eun didn't know when it started, but she began seeing her name in Twitter threads a month after Taehyung left for the Bulletproof tour. Videos from her birthday at Geumsan resurfaced and some ARMYs were trying to get a clearer picture of her face from the hazy footage. There was a renewed effort to find out who she was.

It scared her.

She saw the conversations before June even alerted her to them, but she suspected that June knew more about what was happening than she was willing to tell. She didn't broach the subject with her friend though, thinking that June would let her know if there was really a cause for concern. No communication at this point was a good thing, she thought. But then June finally called.

"Besh..."

"Hi bestie, what's up?" Dae Eun felt cold even though it was summer as she sat at their shop during a lull in the day.

"I didn't want to tell you because I thought it would die down." June had tried to influence her Twitter followers to ignore what was being posted. "Someone posted a grade school photo of you on Twitter."

Dae Eun couldn't respond. How could that happen?

"Besh, I suggest not to log into Twitter for now. I'll just let you know if something's up. Don't read the posts and threads."

"It's where I get the latest news and footage from the tour, June. I have to be in Twitter."

"Doesn't Taehyung update you?"

"He does, but I just want to monitor them from ARMY's view. Is it bad, June?"

"I don't know where their information is coming from, but there's talk that your appa forced Taehyung to sing during your birthday, that Taehyung had to travel all the way to Geumsan despite being busy just to comply with the request."

"How are they coming up with these theories?" Dae Eun felt her anxiety rising.

"I'm suspecting that someone from Geumsan is feeding them. Would you have any idea who?"

"No, June. My dad already talked to all our workers and asked them not to give any information about me or Taehyung. They also deleted their posts on social media related to my birthday."

"It's okay, Eun-ah. This will die down. Just don't read the posts. These people are from the far end of the fandom. They don't represent ARMY. How are you, by the way? Still no manager for the shop?"

"Appa already found someone. He'll be starting by the end of May and I can go back home."

"That's good, besh. Let's get our focus back on farming."

They talked some more on how great the Bulletproof tour was doing before hanging up. Dae Eun wondered what she should do. She didn't want to worry her appa and make him think negatively of Taehyung and ARMY, but she was also worried that things might get out of hand. She would follow June's advice and stay away from those threads - for now.

Chiyue Nara was doing very well. Sales was consistent, and occasionally the celebrities they usually delivered to would drop by and say hello, encouraging more customers to buy their products. Eunji and Ji-Yoo felt that they should be expanding soon, but Dae Eun wanted time to assess how their farm could meet the demand before discussing any plans for expansion.

Her Taehyung oppa called everyday to ask how she was doing and tell her how they were doing, too. He was always tired but happy, and Dae Eun understood that this was really the work he enjoyed and thrived in. They were different in this aspect. She didn't like the idea of living in the limelight, and this unwanted attention from ARMY already disturbed her. From her adventures on Twitter, she also found threads filled with hate about her oppa, and she treasured and followed the ARMYs that countered those who spread the hate. Unlike her though, Taehyung knew the things to ignore and the things to place value on, and he was able to enjoy the attention without being torn by the bashing.

In the days that followed, she couldn't help but read the posts about her anymore, but she never told Taehyung about them when he called. She didn't want to worry him. There was time enough to discuss this when the tour was over, for now all she wanted was for her oppa to focus on his work and finish the tour well. But the posts were getting more personal and scathing, and she suddenly remembered what she felt when she was bullied at grade school. It was so bad for her that her parents decided she should just get away from them and study abroad. She wondered if, this time around, she would need to run away too, and what running away from this situation meant.

By mid afternoon people flocked to the shop to have coffee and pastries, others to have a heavier snack or ice cream to relieve them from the heat outside. She stood up from the table to give more space to the customers when she heard someone call her name.

"Kwan Dae Eun-ssi, I haven't seen you in a long time!"

Dae Eun turned and saw that it was Jo Iseul, the proprietor of Seoul Comfort Food. She bowed hello to him and he approached her.

"Are you having coffee here?" he asked.

"Um, no I was just about to leave."

"Oh, that's too bad. I was wondering how your farm is doing. Are you delivering to this shop, too?"

"It's doing alright." She didn't want to prolong the conversation because the shop was so small and people around them could hear what they were saying.

"You know, Ae-Cha told me to ask you out. I keep calling, did you change your number?" He searched his contacts list and recited her cellphone number.

"Ae-Cha? My cousin?" Dae Eun then realized how he was able to reach her directly.

"Yes, we're college friends. I hope there's no hard feelings. You know, business is business and I like to separate that from other ties. My family and friends understand this. Are you staying in Seoul?" He was blocking the line and there were people behind him, waiting for the line to move.

"Um, I'll be heading home in a while. Sorry."

"Well, okay then. Good luck to you." Jo Iseul asked their staff if there were strawberries left, and when he was told it was sold out, he turned around and walked out of the shop without looking at her again.

Dae Eun breathed a sigh of relief. He really irritated her. She found him so crass. She would have a word with Ae Cha once she got back to Geumsan. Before she turned around to go to the counter, she saw the young people in line that were earlier behind Jo Iseul. There were five of them and they were looking at her from head to foot, their stare landing on her wrist where she wore the trinity band from her oppa. Dae Eun's heart froze when she realized they were ARMY.

All of them were wearing the same band too.