The Name Game, Ch. 1
Fandom: You're Beautiful
Title: The Name Game
Pairings: consistent with This Above All and I'll Be Good For You
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: The A.N.JELL-verse belongs to the Hong sisters, creators of You're Beautiful.
Author's Notes: Yes, I am still alive. I hoped to post stuff last month, but had to deal with writer's block and my day job kept me really busy. There are still a lot of distractions, but at least the writer's block seems to be gone.
Thank you to everyone who reviewed Coming Home Now - min7girl, naddyamal and writetress! Have a good week, everyone!
THE NAME GAME
Chapter One - Mother Teresa
"And what about you, brother-in-law?" he asked Tae-kyung. "What's your code name for my sister?"
"That's easy," the vocalist replied. "Mother Teresa." - "I'll Be Good For You," Ch. 5
"It's Teacher's star!"
"Mr. Star! Mr. Star!"
Hwang Tae-kyung smiled stiffly as the pre-schoolers of the Mother of Mercy Children's Home descended upon him in an adoring swarm. Although he was the leader of A.N.JELL, one of Korea's most beloved idol groups, and thus a public figure, he preferred receiving his adulation from the relative safety of the stage or recording studio.
His girlfriend, Go Mi-nyeo, sadistically let the children chatter and demand his attention for a good long while before intervening. "That's enough now, children," she said, gently dispersing the crowd and making her way towards him. "Have we all forgotten our lessons on manners?"
"You waited ten minutes to remind them of their manners?" Tae-kyung murmured, arching an eyebrow at her.
She grinned unrepentantly. "It wasn't that long, hyung-nim."
"Whatever." He put an arm around her shoulders, drawing her to his side. "Just don't leave me at their mercy anymore."
Mi-nyeo blushed as her young charges giggled or gagged, depending on what they thought of public displays of affection. "Why don't we go inside?"
They herded the children into the pre-school classroom, and Tae-kyung smiled when he saw that the walls were still plastered with pictures of stars. "What are we going to do today, Teacher?" asked a little girl named Hee-yun. (Tae-kyung remembered her name because she was one of the neater, better-behaved ones.)
"Well," Mi-nyeo replied thoughtfully, "I think we'll start with a story, and then we'll have some drawing time before our counting lesson. Then, since Mr. Star is here, why don't we play a game after class?"
The kids cheered. "Will it be a messy game?" a little boy named Chong-pil wanted to know. (Tae-kyung remembered his name because he seemed to enjoy getting Tae-kyung dirty.)
"I'm still thinking about it," his teacher told him. At that, Chong-pil gave Tae-kyung what could only be called an evil smile, but Mi-nyeo pretended not to notice.
Of course, Tae-kyung was expected to help not just with the game, but with the rest of that day's activities as well. He helped Mi-nyeo read a storybook to the children, naturally playing the male roles; and helped supervise the drawing and counting lessons.
Quite a few of the children produced drawings of him, which they presented to him after the activity. He accepted them graciously, even as he wondered whether there was any more space on the studio walls on which to stick them. His bandmates sometimes teased him that he was getting too narcissistic, but they all understood that Tae-kyung just couldn't bring himself to throw away or ignore any of the children's efforts. He liked that the drawings never showed him onstage - they were of him alone, or with Mi-nyeo, or with one or some of the kids themselves, but never as a "star" in the grown-up sense of the word. It was refreshing to be liked not because of his celebrity status, but because of his association with someone else who wasn't even famous; sort of like going incognito, and you didn't need a disguise.
After the day's lessons, it was time for the game. Just as Chong-pil had hoped, it was going to be a messy one, because Mi-nyeo took her class out to the playground, where she distributed plastic rain ponchos and water pistols.
She gave her boyfriend a sweetly sheepish smile as she handed him a pistol and a raincoat. "It's just water, hyung-nim," she said. "That's clean, isn't it?"
It was, essentially, but there was something else that he found problematic about the game. "You're letting little kids shoot at each other with guns," Tae-kyung growled, pulling the raincoat over his head; since it was child-sized, it barely reached his knees.
"They know that they're just water pistols," she explained. "And I'm very strict about the rules."
He had his doubts about his notoriously soft-hearted girlfriend's idea of "strict," but in this case she proved true to her word and watched the children closely to make sure that they didn't hurt themselves or each other. Any child shooting someone in the eyes or ears, or using the game to tease or bully one particular classmate, automatically had to give up their water pistol and sit down.
With one single exception (a certain budding sharpshooter who didn't need to be named), the children all obeyed the rules and had a very fine time running around, squealing and getting wet. The plants got a good watering, too.
And like the queen bee of a very noisy, plastic-clad hive, Mi-nyeo was in the middle of it all, resolving disputes, soothing the ones who fell down, and getting in a few shots of her own as well. Sometimes - OK, lots of times she acted as though she were barely older than her students; and while it aggravated her boyfriend on occasion, Tae-kyung also knew that it was precisely her childlike approach to life - her sense of wonder, and faith in the rightness and goodness of things - that made her so special to him.
A splash of cold water right smack on his forehead brought him back to earth. Tae-kyung sputtered, wiped the water away and narrowed his eyes at his assailant, who darted away, snickering.
He glanced at his girlfriend to make sure that she wasn't looking, then gave chase, shooting water at any part of Chong-pil he could reach.
Title: The Name Game
Pairings: consistent with This Above All and I'll Be Good For You
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: The A.N.JELL-verse belongs to the Hong sisters, creators of You're Beautiful.
Author's Notes: Yes, I am still alive. I hoped to post stuff last month, but had to deal with writer's block and my day job kept me really busy. There are still a lot of distractions, but at least the writer's block seems to be gone.
Thank you to everyone who reviewed Coming Home Now - min7girl, naddyamal and writetress! Have a good week, everyone!
THE NAME GAME
Chapter One - Mother Teresa
"And what about you, brother-in-law?" he asked Tae-kyung. "What's your code name for my sister?"
"That's easy," the vocalist replied. "Mother Teresa." - "I'll Be Good For You," Ch. 5
"It's Teacher's star!"
"Mr. Star! Mr. Star!"
Hwang Tae-kyung smiled stiffly as the pre-schoolers of the Mother of Mercy Children's Home descended upon him in an adoring swarm. Although he was the leader of A.N.JELL, one of Korea's most beloved idol groups, and thus a public figure, he preferred receiving his adulation from the relative safety of the stage or recording studio.
His girlfriend, Go Mi-nyeo, sadistically let the children chatter and demand his attention for a good long while before intervening. "That's enough now, children," she said, gently dispersing the crowd and making her way towards him. "Have we all forgotten our lessons on manners?"
"You waited ten minutes to remind them of their manners?" Tae-kyung murmured, arching an eyebrow at her.
She grinned unrepentantly. "It wasn't that long, hyung-nim."
"Whatever." He put an arm around her shoulders, drawing her to his side. "Just don't leave me at their mercy anymore."
Mi-nyeo blushed as her young charges giggled or gagged, depending on what they thought of public displays of affection. "Why don't we go inside?"
They herded the children into the pre-school classroom, and Tae-kyung smiled when he saw that the walls were still plastered with pictures of stars. "What are we going to do today, Teacher?" asked a little girl named Hee-yun. (Tae-kyung remembered her name because she was one of the neater, better-behaved ones.)
"Well," Mi-nyeo replied thoughtfully, "I think we'll start with a story, and then we'll have some drawing time before our counting lesson. Then, since Mr. Star is here, why don't we play a game after class?"
The kids cheered. "Will it be a messy game?" a little boy named Chong-pil wanted to know. (Tae-kyung remembered his name because he seemed to enjoy getting Tae-kyung dirty.)
"I'm still thinking about it," his teacher told him. At that, Chong-pil gave Tae-kyung what could only be called an evil smile, but Mi-nyeo pretended not to notice.
Of course, Tae-kyung was expected to help not just with the game, but with the rest of that day's activities as well. He helped Mi-nyeo read a storybook to the children, naturally playing the male roles; and helped supervise the drawing and counting lessons.
Quite a few of the children produced drawings of him, which they presented to him after the activity. He accepted them graciously, even as he wondered whether there was any more space on the studio walls on which to stick them. His bandmates sometimes teased him that he was getting too narcissistic, but they all understood that Tae-kyung just couldn't bring himself to throw away or ignore any of the children's efforts. He liked that the drawings never showed him onstage - they were of him alone, or with Mi-nyeo, or with one or some of the kids themselves, but never as a "star" in the grown-up sense of the word. It was refreshing to be liked not because of his celebrity status, but because of his association with someone else who wasn't even famous; sort of like going incognito, and you didn't need a disguise.
After the day's lessons, it was time for the game. Just as Chong-pil had hoped, it was going to be a messy one, because Mi-nyeo took her class out to the playground, where she distributed plastic rain ponchos and water pistols.
She gave her boyfriend a sweetly sheepish smile as she handed him a pistol and a raincoat. "It's just water, hyung-nim," she said. "That's clean, isn't it?"
It was, essentially, but there was something else that he found problematic about the game. "You're letting little kids shoot at each other with guns," Tae-kyung growled, pulling the raincoat over his head; since it was child-sized, it barely reached his knees.
"They know that they're just water pistols," she explained. "And I'm very strict about the rules."
He had his doubts about his notoriously soft-hearted girlfriend's idea of "strict," but in this case she proved true to her word and watched the children closely to make sure that they didn't hurt themselves or each other. Any child shooting someone in the eyes or ears, or using the game to tease or bully one particular classmate, automatically had to give up their water pistol and sit down.
With one single exception (a certain budding sharpshooter who didn't need to be named), the children all obeyed the rules and had a very fine time running around, squealing and getting wet. The plants got a good watering, too.
And like the queen bee of a very noisy, plastic-clad hive, Mi-nyeo was in the middle of it all, resolving disputes, soothing the ones who fell down, and getting in a few shots of her own as well. Sometimes - OK, lots of times she acted as though she were barely older than her students; and while it aggravated her boyfriend on occasion, Tae-kyung also knew that it was precisely her childlike approach to life - her sense of wonder, and faith in the rightness and goodness of things - that made her so special to him.
A splash of cold water right smack on his forehead brought him back to earth. Tae-kyung sputtered, wiped the water away and narrowed his eyes at his assailant, who darted away, snickering.
He glanced at his girlfriend to make sure that she wasn't looking, then gave chase, shooting water at any part of Chong-pil he could reach.