Spitting Image | Jeong Jaehyun

8

As Jaehyun took lazy steps towards his bedroom, he started to take off his watch and jewellery to place on the night stand, mentally noting to take a shower tomorrow morning instead of tonight. Sweeping his clothes off from his body as he changed into his sweats, his eyes flickered over the black marker lines along the back of his shirt. Out of pure curiosity, he straightened it to reveal the small message;

Thanks for being my fan - Kira Lee

He almost had to bite the bottom of his lips to avoid the small snort that emitted from him. He lightheartedly rolled his eyes before folding the shirt and placing it into the drawer on his nightstand for memories of his daughters first autograph.

His feet lightly treated towards Jihye's room as he poked his head in to make sure she was fast asleep before he went to turn the hallway lights off and soon his bedroom lights.

The small interactions with Kira earlier today replayed in his head as he placed both hands at the back of his head, laying down onto the bed. It struck a chord in him how she acted with Jihye and how knowledgeable she was. How she didn't make him feel awkward about being an idol, he wondered how she was so composed the whole time, yet if only he knew...

"Holy fucking shit" Kira cursed as she paced around the kitchen, remembering all the words she said to the same guy who's face was plastered on the TV screen in the living room while Haerin, Krit and Kai were huddled on the couch to rewatch NCT life in their apartment.

Of course she couldn't say to Jaehyun that she was a fan of him, her job was on the line, and yet of course she wont be able to tell her own friends either.

"Are you sure you don't want to join?" Haerin asked as Kira finally prepared her cup of tea. She reconsidered it for a moment, but the second she saw his face pop back up onto the screen, all she could think about what how much Jihye looked like her father.

"I'm good...thanks though" she mumbled, almost shuddering at the thought of her running her mouth and outing Jaehyun for his biggest secret.

"Im gonna go study in my room" she said, and her friends hummed in response, finding the scene of Haechan and Doyoung bickering as the group chose their bedroom funnier.

Kira entered her bedroom, which was surprising somewhat clean compared to usual, and she vowed to herself to keep it that way from now on. She took out her headphones from her bag, connecting it to her phone before she skimmed spotify for background music as she opened a fresh new page in her sketch book.

Undecided, she opted to shuffle all her liked songs instead, picking up her pencil as she decided to draw. The calming song played through her headphones making her sigh as she realised it was one of Jaehyun's unreleased solo songs.

The hair on the back of her neck stood up as the first verse kicked in, and she realised just how vivid his voice was. It was almost exactly like what she had heard earlier in person. Her hand went weak as she loosened her grip on the pencil slightly, the same idol she always had a fondness for, was now going to be a part of her life in a way she could have never imagined.

Her eyes softened as she let herself relax into the melody of the song, allowing her thoughts to run wild on how Jaehyun could have had a child this whole time, and how she was probably one of the only few fans who knew, she might've even been the only one.

With the help of Jaehyun's voice carrying so much emotion, letting herself explore her own, she tightened her grip on her pencil again, drawing feather-like strokes on the page as she drew the first thing that came to her mind. Which was Him.

She remembered him so clearly, the overgrown eyebrow hairs, the little bags underneath his eyes, how puffy they were, the whiskers and the dimples on his cheeks whenever he smiled. She didn't realise how much time had passed from shading and drawing until she looked at the clock that highlighted it was way past 1am.

She widened her eyes, taking off her headphones to realise the how was now pin drop silent and that her friends probably left already, having classes to tend to in the morning. She hurriedly packed away her things, breaking her promise of trying to keep the room tidy before hopping into her bed, stripping off all her clothes and opting to bury herself under the heavy duvet covers instead.

She relaxed and closed her eyes, preparing to sleep for the day that was ahead. She wasn't a morning person at all but now that she had a job on top of her full time degree, she was going to have to get serious, especially with exams coming up.

She smiled as she reminisced the day again, getting excited to see Jihye and mentally planning a few activities to do with her. She let her eyes get heavy as the tiredness began to set it, hoping she could wake up in time for her 9am.