Strawberries | SKZITZY

51 ~ Late night calls

The glass door of the auditorium opened to an array of red seats which would soon be filled with audience. The front panel was to be occupied by the 5 judges and behind them were seats dedicated to guests of honor. The stage was spacious and slightly elevated from the ground level to give the audience at the back a better view. Huge red velvet curtains framed the main performance area and overhead, there was mounted a row of modest spotlights and a camera on a metal rig.

"Wow! It's huge." Lia exclaimed behind Yeji who was peeking through the door.

There were staff still finishing up the technical preparation for the competition.

"They are going all in this time!" Chaeryeong surprised the two by appearing from nowhere.

"Girl! You scared me!" Lia slapped her arm at which Chaeryeong giggled.

"Why are you out?" Yeji asked. Only a while earlier, they announced on the speakers that the participants were all to stay in their waiting room and get dressed for the competition that was set to start in an hour.

"I just came from meeting my mom." Chaeryeong couldn't explain further as Yeji's phone rang. It was Ryujin calling. Assuming that she would urge them to get back faster, Yeji didnt bother to answer the call and instead hastened back to the waiting room.

The room was oddly silent. The two Shin sisters were almost always arguing about something so it was unlikely for it to be so quiet and what was more concerning was their turned backs when the other girls walked into the room. They stood politely and humbly like an important figure was infront of them.

"Ryujinie.." Yeji called softly once she walked in. All the stylists were gone.

There was an eerie seriousness that they walked into and none of them was taking it well. "Yeji- Unnie.." Yuna walked towards the other girls and it was then that they were able to confirm the presence of another person in the room.

"So you are Yeji?" A lady, possibly way older than her mother, but with a way better maintained skin and appearance, appeared in front her. Every stride accentuated with elegance, her eyebrows thick and mean, and her words carried a heavy weight of authority as she flaunted her versace bag.

"You are cute but I don't see why my grandson would be so obsessed with you." She tapped repeatedly on her chin, feigning thought.

Was she saying that her grandson was way out of Yeji's league or was she praising Yeji? Her brain lagged a little because she couldn't understand why anyone would say something like that unprovokedly, especially to a person they are meeting for the first time.

"I beg your pardon?" Yeji asked politely. Ryujin behaving herself infront of this elderly, meant that she was of high importance and status.

"I see so this is where that necklace went..." Hyunjin's grandmother touched the hermes necklace Yeji was wearing. It was her birthday gift from Hwang Hyunjin. "And here I was wondering, where he spent all that money on. You are the fisrt girl he's spending so much money on. It made me curious about you."

The grandmother was initially not planning to interfere in their relationship. After all, her grandson was known to date a different girl every other weekend but this particular one was lasting longer than expected. Additionally Jeon Somi wasn't sitting idly either and had done her best to instigate the old lady to take action. And so she did.

"I'm sorry but may I know who you are?" Yeji was nervous. Despite figuring out who she was, she dared to ask.

Instead of replying, the lady turned back and sat on the couch. "Girls, give us some privacy please." She had a sinister grin as she crossed her legs.