Addicted to you | Lee Know

11

It was a random Tuesday when the rumors started. Someone had snapped a picture of Minho at the airport. He was holding his phone, absentmindedly pushing hair out of his face with the back of his hand, unaware that the screen was on. It showed his background, which was a picture of me, holding all four cats while making a cute face into the camera. The picture spread rapidly across all social media platforms, thrusting my face into the public eye.

And to make matters worse? He didn't even know yet because he was currently on a 10-hour flight to Australia. My phone was blowing up as people I knew recognized me from the photo. Panicked, I tried to call him, even though I knew his phone was on flight mode. The call went straight to voicemail, exactly like I aspected. The next hours were tumultuous. I followed every hashtag on all social media platforms. After two hours, people began to speculate if it was me. Apparently, a girl from my old school recognized me and made a TikTok about it.

Three hours in, people found my Instagram, prompting me to change it to private. Still, thousands of follow requests poured in. After six hours, I couldn't keep it together, holding onto Dori and sobbing uncontrollably. Finally, after ten hours, I got a call from him. I picked up my phone immediately. "Minho—" I started, but he interrupted me instantly. "I'm so sorry. I didn't realize the screen was on. It's all my fault," he said. "No—no. It's not your fault," I mumbled. "Are you crying?" he asked, shocked. I sniffled. "I just don't know what to do. They already found all my social media accounts, and they're sending very mean messages," I sobbed. I received a lot of DMs on Instagram, some from crazy fake accounts threatening me.

"I'm booking a flight home," Minho finally said. "No!" I cried. "Are you out of your mind? You have like a ton of stuff scheduled." "I don't care. I need to be with you right now," he simply said. "No! I'll handle it," I answered quickly. "Fine, then I'm booking you a flight to Australia," he said. "I need you with me to think straight, Nuri." I sighed. "Okay," I whispered.

"Listen, pack your things. I'll call my mom so she picks up the cats, and I'll book you the next available flight. I'll call someone from the company to pick you up, okay? I'll call you after that and tell you the details. Can you hold on alone for a little longer?" he asked. "Yes. I need to call work and take time off," I mumbled. "Okay. Wait for my call and start to pack," Minho said before hanging up.

Twenty minutes later, there was a knock on my door. I looked through the peephole, scared that people found out my address, but it was only Minho's mother. I let her in quickly. I had met her before, but we didn't see each other often. Still, she pulled me into a hug. "Minho told me what happened," she said calmly and rubbed my back. "I'm so scared," I cried and buried my face in her shoulder. "It's gonna be fine, sweetie," she said. "They hate me," I sobbed. "They're sending such mean messages, and they are saying that I don't deserve him."

"Honey, not every single one is hating you. The haters are just the loudest ones. I'm sure the bigger part of Stay will love you," she said. "And honestly, I think no one deserves him more than you. I'm so glad he found you!" I sniffled. "Really?" I whispered. "Really. Now come on. I'm staying with you until you know more. Let's start packing your things," she said. I nodded and went to get my suitcase.

***

I got out of the plane, hot air immediately hitting my face. The next flight was the same evening, and a nice lady from JYP accompanied me to the airport along with two security guards, just in case someone already recognized me. Luckily, no one did. But I was grateful that they wanted to keep me safe. After I got my luggage, I walked up to a man holding up a sign with my name on it. Minho told me that he had an interview scheduled and that someone would bring me to the venue.

And before I could even think, two men accompanied me into a big building with lots of people. Everyone was staring at me. I had the feeling that everyone here knew who I was. I lost it again when I saw Minho walking towards me. He pulled me into a hug quickly. "Don't cry, Baby," he whispered in my hair. He led me into a room after that, sitting me down on a chair and kneeling down in front of me. "I can't tell you how sorry I am," he whispered. I looked down at him. "I told you. It's not your fault," I said. I calmed down a little bit.

"I should have been more careful," he said. "I mean, people would have found out eventually... but I was just so scared because you weren't with me, and I couldn't even call you," I sobbed again. He sighed and nodded, standing up and pulling me to his chest again. "Management told me to not address the rumors for now and stay quiet until they work something out. They aren't allowed to ask any questions about it in the interviews or we won't do it, so don't worry," he said and gently squeezed my hand.

I nodded. "And if you don't want to go public, we don't have to," he continued. "I want to. It would be so great to not hide anymore. But I want it to happen with you together, not when you're ten hours away," I explained. He slightly nodded. "You're right," he mumbled. We just stood there for a while. "Do you want to watch the interview?" he asked. I slightly nodded. "I don't want to leave your side again."