Losing Love

Chapter 6

Dara found an empty practice room. After confirming from one of the YG staff that the room won't be used for the rest of the day, she locked herself in. She sat on the floor, her back flushed to the wall. Her mind was in a whirl.

She sighed once again. It's been proving to be a day full of sighs. Sighing was the only thing short of crying that she could do to release her emotions. She would not want to start crying. Not here at YG. At the privacy of her home, maybe, but certainly not here. Because once she does she might not stop. And whatever options inked inside the envelopes won't surely involve Dara crying like a sailor's wife whose ship sank.

The clock showed five minutes to 12pm. She reached out for the enveloped marked Option A. Written on a piece of paper was a short statement.

“G-Dragon suggested to Sandara Park that they have their photos taken in that pose as a joke, and photos were taken. It was a joke that turned into a dating rumor. They are not dating.”

She laid the paper flat in front of her then proceeded on opening the other envelope. Inside was a similar looking paper but the statement there was longer than the first one.

"G-Dragon and Dara Park have decided to reveal to the public their love relationship.  They have been together for quite some time but at first decided to keep their relationship between themselves.

They said that they are sorry for not telling the public about it all this time but they felt that they needed to keep private their first few years together. They wanted to grow as a couple first before letting others in on their relationship.

The couple have been thinking for a while now on how and when to make their relationship known to their fans, especially with numerous false rumours linking both of them to different personalities. They have finally decided to put a stop to all the speculations and come clean with it."

If she was given these two options last year, she would have chosen the second option in a heartbeat. But after hearing Sajangnim's words, she was no longer so sure. She felt the fatherly concern and worry behind their boss's almost unemotional voice. The talk also made her realize some truths about herself. Things she never really put into words before were brought out in the open.

She wasn't getting any younger. She looked young, younger even than some of her juniors but it would be hypocrisy on her part to say that she was unaffected by the so-called biological clock. Especially with Jiyong releasing cryptic public statements about his future lovely wife and baby, she has felt the pressure. It would be so easy to just choose Option B.

But YG's words struck a chord in her. She kept pushing it at the back of her mind, but it was true she would sometimes think lowly of herself. She can't help but agree with what others are saying sometimes that she had no talent. That she was just a pretty face who knows how to sing but is not good at it. That's why she works doubly hard at practicing on everything.

When she achieved some success in the Philippines, she knew that part of her success was due to the fact that her Korean heritage made her stand out from the crowd. There were others with more talent than her. Her management team advised her to exploit her novelty. That's why she was marketed as the quirky krung-krung there.

The public loved her then because she was different but it was not entirely her. She was just repackaged to be a more colorful version of herself. She was realistic enough to be aware that the novelty might fade in time and in fact, it did.

When she became part of 2ne1, it was one of the best parts of her life. She made lasting friendships with her bandmates. She was able to experience a lot of things. She was able to explore other aspects of herself.