Someone You Loved

Five

Five

     Hyun Been sighed, staring at her bedroom ceiling.

It was already two in the morning but she was fighting with her eyes that were ready to drop, hoping that Yeon Seok was already on his way home.

After being away for an out-of-town filming for his new movie, her boyfriend was coming home. Earlier, however, Yeon Seok called to inform her that he would be coming back later than he informed him. The director from his previous TV drama hosted an impromptu birthday party. It was also a celebrational party after recently receiving an award for his last project. Checking her phone for what seemed like the hundredth time, Hyun Been nearly groaned when no she saw that there was no update from him.

Trying to stay awake, she grabbed her book on the nightstand but before she could even start reading, a message popped up on her phone. A hint of disappointment hit her when she immediately checked her phone only to see that it was from her cousin Poppy. A news article with Lisa's, her cousin, and a film director, name on it, was shared in their family's group chat. Messages by her younger brother and cousins instantly followed. Seeing as they were all awake at that time of day, they were probably together since it was Friday.

Hyun Been clicked the link that led her to the whole article. It was about Lisa's next project, a collaboration with a film director who was, according to the article, multi-awarded. Curious, Hyun Been decided to do a little reading about him. Despite having family members, a boyfriend, and close friends working in the entertainment industry, she knew nothing about who's who in their world. Oftentimes, she had to ask them about the people they were working with if she wanted to be able to connect and understand when they talk about their work. Or at times, although rarely, she relied on the internet, just like now.

About to close the browser after reading an article featuring the director, another news article caught Hyun Been's eyes. It had Yeon Seok's name on the headline. For the years she knew him, she had always avoided reading any news about him. Not wanting someone to learn something about her from other people, let alone the internet, she extended the same respect to him. People could easily twist things just to create a buzz, and they have it worse in their line of work.

That moment, though, she was unsure why, but she clicked the news article without fully reading the headline.

Hyun Been's initial assumption about the news being work-related turned out to be wrong. As she read through the article, a frown slowly etched on her face. The article, albeit not directly, was hinting that Yeon Seok was in a romantic relationship with a previous co-star. Several photos, taken at the same event that he was attending at the moment, accompanied the article. Scrolling through the several photos included, a specific photo stopped her fingers from moving. 

A sudden pang hit her chest as she stared at the photo. It was a photo of him with a woman whom she recognized from the few times that she watched his works as his co-star from his past project. If Hyun Been remembered correctly, the birthday celebrant was the director of the project. 

Yeon Seok was captured talking animatedly and laughing with the woman, while the people around looked at them fondly.

As she scrolled for more, another photo caught her eyes. At one glance, they looked like lovers sharing an intimate moment, smiling as they talked with each other, oblivious to their surroundings. They looked good together, even Hyun Been could see that.

Was the pang in her chest the same as what the other women felt when they saw their boyfriends in these kinds of photos with none other than the woman she was romantically linked to?