Photo Finish

Wonderful Suprise

     Bring~
     The sun shined brightly through the drawn curtains, the spring-fall breeze flowing in through the open window. Birds chirped harmoniously in the trees. My eyes slowly drifted open and I checked the time. There was still and hour before I actually had to wake up for the shoot. I checked the text that had stirred me. It was Julian saying they were up and making breakfast. I smiled and replied that I'd be over in a bit.
      I rolled over with a satisfied sigh. Finding it was hard to stay asleep, I decided to just wake up. Upon opening my eyes again, my heart began to thunder in my chest. Asleep in front of me was Dae without his mask on. I ogled at him, taking in every gorgeous feature: his sharp nose, his thin but luscious lips. I didn't think I'd ever seen a more handsome face, and his jawline. It was so sharp that upon the slightest touch it could slice your finger off! His cheekbones were structured and tall, accentuating his small eyes...that were open.
     "What are you doing?"
     I quickly turned over. "Nothing. It's just—"
     "Oh, right," Dae said, rolling onto his back. "We were going to surprise you in the next week when we did the bed scene. I don't have my mask on in that scene and we wanted to get your reaction. You're very dramatic, so it would've been good for the camera."
     "Ha ha, very funny," I said sarcastically. "Since we're both up, you wanna come over for breakfast? Matte and Julian've been up for a while I guess and made some."
     "Are you sure? I don't want to impose."
     "Yep. If you don't get breakfast, I won't get breakfast." I slid out of bed and gave him a condescending smirk.
     "Hey—"
     "Well?" I asked, straightening the sweats and t-shirt I had borrowed.
     Dae sighed and reluctantly he began nodding. "Alright, let me get changed really quick. You do the same."
     "Okay!" I called, grabbing my folded clothes and running to the bathroom. I was about to put them on when I caught a whiff of the smell. It was God awful! The clothing reeked of alcohol. I poked my head out of the room. "Actually, do you think I could borrow these just until I change at home? The clothes I wore last night smell really bad."
     "Sure. It's just next door anyway. You can wait outside. I'll be right out."
     "Alright." I scurried to the door and stepped out after grabbing my shoes from the cubby. 
     The door opened a couple minutes later. Dae stepped out and I nearly choked. It was like an angel had graced me with its presence, from his salmon sweatshirt to his black ripped jeans. His hair, thick and luscious, was swept to one side in a very voluminous arch above his brow. I felt bland in his presence, like I shouldn't have walked out of his apartment with him. He almost seemed too good for a potato like me.
     "Laurraine?"
     "Eep!" I cried and hid behind the model. Peeking from behind him I saw that in the hallway with a bunch of bags was Emilia. Her mouth was agape and she had nearly dropped her bags.   "Oh it's just you."
     "Who's this?" She asked skeptically. I could tell she was thinking up scenarios about Dae and I.
     "This is the new model I manage and my co-actor, Dae Lee. He's also our new neighbor," I explained.
     "It's very nice to meet you. I'm assuming you're Emilia?" Dae went over and shook the hand with the least bags. "Although you don't really look like how Miss Yao described you."
     It finally caught on. I was so focused on what she was thinking that I didn't notice her new hair! It was shorter and she must've re-dyed it back to its original violet splendor. It went very well with her gothic makeup and style: a black and white striped crop top, black jeans and black platforms with a converse top to them. She looked completely different then what I was used to, but then again so did I to her. I was in male clothing again, but it wasn't my own.
     "Thanks? Yeah, I got my hair dyed and went a little darker today. But you!" She pointed straight at me. "Where did you get those clothes?"
     "Oh, she spent the night at my—"
     "They were a gift from someone at work! They're just a few sizes too big," I blurted, cutting off the confused male.
     "Okay..." Em drawled skeptically. She cracked open the door. "What smells so good?"
     "Some friends borrowed the apartment last night and made us breakfast. I was inviting Dae over for some."
     "Cool. You can go in, Mr. Lee."
     "Thank you," He said, passing her and entering the room.
     Emilia stalked towards me, wrapping her arm dangerously around my shoulder. I stiffened as she leaned her head towards mine. I avoided her glaring eyes.
     "He's as radiant as Jesus in spring."
     "Em..."
     "Doves were flying. I swore I heard a choir singing."
     "Em, please don't be mad. We didn't do anything, my clothes were just smelly and he let me take a shower and borrow his old clothes—"
     "One, I'm mad you didn't do anything. Two, those don't seem old. And three, I'm proud of you."
     "What?"
     "I thought you were never going to get over Lucas and stay a single hermit the rest of your life."
     "I told you I wasn't. And it's not like that!"
     "Hush, child. Mother knows best."
     I sighed, a smile brushing the corners of my mouth. She walked me inside and I was met with applause. Julian and Matte were in aprons in front of the stove laughing and clapping as I stepped in. I huffed, amused. Dae was sitting at the table eating some pancakes and bacon made for him.
     "Are they good?" I asked, sitting next to the model.
     "Yes, thank you." Dae leaned over to me. "You should probably go get changed."
     I looked down at my borrowed clothes. "You're probably right."
     I stood from the chair, catching the attention of everyone else in the room. The boys gave me a smirk and Em smiled. I lowered my head and shuffled back to the bedroom. I opened the closet door and scanned the rack. I pulled out a couple different ideas and tried them on. I settled with a grey crop-top sweatshirt, jean skirt, pink winter coat, and black knee high boots. I examined my reflection, fixed my hair a little, then applied a natural makeup look, collectively taking a whole ten minutes to complete. I emerged again with the folded clothing. Dae, finished with his breakfast, met me with his plate in hand.
     "Oh, give me that," Julian said, taking the plate from his hand and putting it in the sink. "You two should get going. You've got another scene and a promo shoot for the movie to do today. You two almost slept right through it."
     "Right. Thank you for having me, Miss Yao. I'll be going now."
     "OOOOOOH!" The audience cooed.
     "Having him over. I didn't -- get your minds out of the gutters!" I exclaimed, catching the model at the door. "Wait, let's go together. Maybe?"
     Dae looked up at me, slipping on his white sneakers with that irresistible smile of his. His eyes brightened and he nodded. He held open the door for me. Everyone was watching me leave, waving or looking proud. I waved at them, grabbing my keys from the key hook next to the door.
I followed my co-actor out the door and down the steps. Finding my Chevy Impala in the parking lot, I unlocked it and hopped in. Dae followed. I hooked up my phone to the Bluetooth stereo and began to play some music.
     "Deck the halls with boughs of holly!" The artist sang.
     Dae looked at me oddly. "It's not even winter."
     "What do you mean? It's November first!" I exclaimed, cranking it and driving to the agency.