Caught

Hongdae.

The streets were abuzz with activity, as it often would be on the weekends.

In such a hip and famous area, pretty, stylish, and famous people should have been a common, expected sight, yet the passers-by could not help but steal glances at the yellow-clad pair walking down the street. The two looked very much like a picturesque couple going on a date, with their matching outfits and close proximity.

The girl held an ice cream cone, covered with ample toppings, in her hand. She was wholly focused on the icy treat, biting off little bits at a time. The young man accompanying her stared intently at his phone, yet his attention did not lax as he occasionally pulled the girl closer to him to avoid incoming walkers from bumping into her, his arm holding her waist protectively like a true gentleman.

Every once in a while, the girl would remember her partner, and raise her cone towards him to let him have a taste.

The combination of a beautiful girl and a handsome guy caught the attention of many—

—Including the paparazzi camping in the area, who were lying low in search of incognito celebrities. Lo and behold, their patience was rewarded.

There she was, rising star Lee Yeo Ri, famed for her refreshing smile in the VitaQua commercial, her appearances in various works, and her recently-released box office debut hit film, [Runaway Kids]!

Snap! Snap! Snap!

The sharp-eyed paparazzi caught her frame from afar, taking pictures of her and her date.

Once one paparazzo took notice of the young actress, all semblance of courtesy was thrown to the wind, and all the paparazzi in the area began openly chasing after her.

The girl seemingly noticed the attention, and immediately told her partner to put on his mask. Worried that she might be overwhelmed by the sudden bombardment of cameras, he pulled her close, eyeing the paparazzi warily. As if to avoid the public eye, the pair disappeared into the movie theatre.

Once the actress was out of sight, the paparazzi doubling as media reporters rushed to the nearest cafes, intending to borrow their wi-fi to submit the latest scoops to their bosses.

[Young Actress Lee Yeo Ri Seen With Older Man!]

[VitaQua Girl Out On Date In Hongdae]

[Actress Lee Yeo Ri Has a Boyfriend? Read This Article To Find Out]

Thanks to her past viral popularity, Yeo Ri's name smoothly climbed up the search rankings again.

If she had been a normal girl, such rumours would not have affected her, but Yeo Ri was the sensational new star of the entertainment industry, with a clean and pure image.

She was young, and had just entered the public's eye. A dating scandal could ruin her, especially with how critical the public was with celebrities dating.

The paparazzi had no intention of ruining the young girl's career, but with her current popularity, such a scandal was certainly clickbait-worthy. Being such a new artist, from a small-name company, they had no qualms about using her name for a few articles without running it through with her management first.

Several articles were posted in real time, with the involved duo none-the-wiser.

"I already booked the tickets," Gun replied, showing the e-ticket page to Yeo Ri.

They hadn't been sure what time to go to the movies, so Gun had booked all-day unlimited movie passes for them. It was a bit more pricier than regular tickets, but they had the freedom and leisure of choice.

With the pass, they were able to simply enter and watch any movie they want, as many times they want within the day.

"What should we watch?" Yeo Ri asked Gun, staring at the many 'Now Showing' movie posters lining the wall.

"This one." Without hesitation, Gun pointed to the 'Runaway Kids' poster.

Yeo Ri pouted.

"Do we really have to?"

"Why not? It's the movie you acted in; we should show some support," Gun replied confidently.

Yeo Ri huffed. Of course, it was a good thing to show support, and she hoped that the movie would do well, but she wasn't keen on watching herself on screen.

There was also the milestone pledge that the cast—her included—had made. If they managed to reach double their budget in profits, Yeo Ri would be forced to learn her co-star's song and dance. She didn't have much confidence in not making a fool of herself doing a boy group's synchronised dance.

From the looks of it, that day was soon to be realised...

Despite her inner protests, Yeo Ri silently allowed Gun to pull her along.

They skipped the concessions stand and went directly into the theatre for the next showing of 'Runaway Kids'.

...

..

.

"Can you reach her?"

President Park paced back and forth in the PR team's office.

Her small team consisted of only three staffs were swarmed with phone calls. The team leader's normally calm voice was screaming bloody murder at the person on the other side of the call.

"How can you do this, Reporter Kim! Where is your ethics?! Do we look like flies to you, huh?! You little—!" The team leader screamed expletives at the unethical reporter.

"I need you to report all the articles you can find. Get them taken down, no matter what," the other staff instructed the intern.

All of them bore stressed-out looks. It was the weekends, and what could have been a peaceful day was ruined by the sudden appearance of unverified tabloid articles.

The PR team was not unused to dealing with paparazzi, but they were rarely slighted like this. It was industry manners to at least warn or negotiate with the management about their artists' articles, but the paparazzi did not give them such a grace. They'd only discovered it because the intern was monitoring Yeo Ri's name searches.

Park Soo Yeon bit her lips worriedly.

Yeo Ri's phone was unreachable, and so was Kwon Tae Yang's. She didn't have much hope of reaching Manager Kwon, seeing as he was only a road manager and it was his day off. Despite his closeness to Yeo Ri, hierarchically speaking he didn't carry a lot of responsibility over Yeo Ri aside from accompanying her on her schedule.

She scrolled through one of the tabloids, zooming into the attached picture. The man's face was censored, but there was something familiar about him.

It wasn't until two hours later, after the movie ended, that Yeo Ri finally picked up her phone.

She was surprised to see so many missed calls from Mrs. Choi, Park Soo Yeon.

"Auntie? What's wrong?"

"Oh, Yeo Ri!" Park Soo Yeon sighed with relief. "Were you in Hongdae today?"

"Yes? Sorry for missing your calls, Auntie. We had to silent our phones for the movie."

"Oh no, it's fine... It's just... You're out with Gun, right?"

"Yes? Of course. Did you need to speak to him about something?" Yeo Ri glanced at her brother. Gun had stopped crying, but he still refused to let her go.

Apparently, the ending was so sad that he couldn't move on...

Yeo Ri helplessly patted the inconsolable man. "It's just a movie," she muttered under her breath.

"Huh?" President Park strained her ears, not catching her words.

"Sorry, Auntie, is there something wrong?"

"No... It's nothing. Just stick to your brother at all times and have fun. It's nothing serious. Sorry for calling on your day off," President Park answered with a light tone. Half her concerns were already dissolved upon confirming that Yeo Ri was with Gun and not any random guy.

"Yes?" Yeo Ri jolted in alarm. "Did something really happen?"

"Some paparazzi were spreading rumours about you being on a date earlier. It's okay, Yeo Ri-ah. It's a small matter; the company's already handling it. We'll make sure to protect you and Gun well. Just relax and have fun, okay?"

"Okay... I'm sorry for the trouble, Auntie. I promise I'll be more careful in the future," Yeo Ri sincerely apologised. She thought that she had been careful enough, thinking that she was hiding in plain sight, but her popularity preceded her.

She didn't even realise that she was so important that there were people so concerned about her just going out on her day off.

After the call with Mrs. Choi, Yeo Ri looked through the trending searches and found one of the tabloid articles.

She glanced through the article blandly. There was nothing profound about the scant few paragraphs alluding to her alleged scandal.

It was honestly so stupid—even if she was dating, so what?

She wasn't anyone important—not yet.

More copy-and-paste articles popped up, but Yeo Ri couldn't be bothered to react. There was even a preposterous article that the unknown man was one of her recent male co-stars.

Yeo Ri tugged at the sullen Gun, "Oppa, look, isn't this such a nice shot?"

Gun raised his head to look at the girl's phone screen.

A high definition picture of the two of them sharing a cone of ice cream, with his face blurred out, greeted his sight.

"Do you think the person would give us the uncensored version if I asked?"

"..."