Author's note: Hey all! After writing the "Elphena" fan fiction, I never knew that I'll get inspired to write another fiction again. After watching Kyuhyun's drama "Bong Soon, A Cyborg in Love", the story inspires me to write this. "That's it! I have to write this story! Instead of a cyborg/technology, what if a person falls in love with a fiction character that is turned into a real human?" I thought. And after drawing out a 12-notebook page-outline (one chapter per page), I'm even more excited to write this new fiction! I'll try to finish it by the end of this summer. There's no way to finish it by the end of this month because I have plans coming up, and I still haven't finished my Japanese revision, I feel so bad right now! XD But...nothing can stop me from bringing this new story alive. :) So...hope you enjoy this new fiction!
Modern Prince
Written by: Michele Hii
Chapter 1: Madame Cyprine
I dropped my hands from the Macbook Pro keyboard and stretched my arms while I yawned like a lion. It was 3pm and I still had scenes to draw and colour on my computer. Sigh...if only I could have slept early night, I would have a fresher mind to finish these few animation frames.
"Hey, Phelia!" a familiar voice approached from the door. I turned back and saw a skinny man in a white buttoned-up shirt and tight black jeans that made his figure scrawnier than before. He pulled a smirk as a couch cushion flew up from his hands like he was throwing a grenade.It landed right on my face.
"What was that for?" I laughed as I nestled the pillow down on my lap.
"To wake you up, silly." he laughed back.
"Really, Jordan." I rolled my eyes but smiled back.
My old college mate and director of our new Disney's Pixar film project, "The Sapphire Key", grabbed a spare chair and sat next to me,"So how are the frames going?"
"Pretty good, I guess. There's still a lot of layers to be added in this scene."
"What scene?" he craned his neck and he looked closer to the computer screen,"Ah! When the boy retrieve the key."
"Yeah, it's hard to add the sparkle around the key."
"I'm sure you'll figure it out. You're an animator after all." he smiled.
"Thanks."
"Anyway, you've been here for five hours. You should go for a break."
"I'd love to,but I've got to finish these."
"Phelia, as a director, I would be happy to hear that. But as a friend, I hate seeing you working too hard with sleep deprivation."
"Mmm...maybe you're right."
"Wanna go for a short walk in the city? We can pick up some iced drinks on the way."
"Sounds good." I got up and grabbed my purse.
"All right! Let's go!"
The colourful campus brought life to my eyes as we walked down the corridor. Glass shelves with big collections of action figures and dolls from all of our movies were arranged neatly at both sides. Once we went down to ground floor, we were greeted by character statues, from Nemo to Sheriff Woody to Sadness. A group of staff were around a ring of couches playing a Truth or Dare game. They waved as they spotted us.
As we arrived at the parking lot of the studio, I skipped to his black Subaru.
"Shotgun!" I grinned as I stopped to the door of the front passenger seat.
"Why do you have to say it? It's just two of us." Jordan laughed.
"I know. I just like saying it and I love sitting in front." I giggled.
"You're still weird as usual." Jordan laughed and got in behind the wheel.
* * *
"You don't have to pay for my Oreo slush, Jordan." I frowned. We walked down a narrow alley with our hands numb by our iced drinks. I wondered why did we came to this part of the street. I had been living here in Emeryville, California for four years now, yet I had never discovered this area before. It was quiet and slightly dilapidated, with an uneven walkway and a smoky odour that smelt like incense from a Chinese temple. Still, we kept on walking until we passed by a store on our left. It was painted in mint green with bold stickers on a slightly cloudy window that said "Kaboom".
"Kaboom? What is this? A magic store?" Jordan snickered.
"It looks like one." I peeked through the window, "I see crystal balls and worn-out-looking thick books and oh...flying brooms!"
"What the hell..." Jordan murmured but he squinted to see the things arranged on the shelves.
"I want to take a look!" I suggested, "There's a lot of unique stores like this in Hollywood but not here in this small city."
"Are you crazy?" Jordan asked, looking surprised, "Why do you even wanna go in?"
"Why not?" I shrugged, "Plus, work doesn't end till 8pm today so I want to be energized before working on the animation again."
"Okay...okay fine..." he sighed and opened the door. A tiny bell that hung above the other side of the door tinged.
"Welcome!" a lady who looked like in her 60s greeted from the counter on the further left. Her silver hair was tied into a bun that poked from her scarlet bandanna.
"Hi!" I smiled. Jordan waved.
"Welcome to my store! Guess the magic word works the charm." she winked.
"Magic word..." I repeated before nudging Jordan on the arm, "I told you it's a magic store!"
"Why yes it is!" the lady hooted, "Spell books, wands, witch brooms, crystal balls, magic cards...this store has everything!"
"Wow!" my eyes sparkled as I looked around the shelves.
As I picked up a translucent crystal from a shelf near the counter, my peripheral vision caught the lady staring at Jordan. He had a childish scowl, and the lady decided to start a conversation with him. He replied back but his eyes were fixed on me, begging me to quickly end my wandering eyes and scram out of the store. Tsk...this guy...he didn't have a single interest in magic and enchantment.
"By the way, everyone calls me Madame Cyprine. I've been owning this store for quite a while now." the lady put out her right hand. Jordan looked at her wrinkly hand and then back into her emerald eyes. I looked at him in surprise as he refused to shake hands with her but nodded instead.
"May I ask what's your name?" she smiled again.
"Uh...Jordan." he answered.
As Madame Cyprine continued to distract him, I suddenly saw a slightly thick book sticking out from a stack of encyclopedia-size ones. Curiously, I pulled it out.
"Ah! That's a lucky notebook!"Madame Cyprine's voice was excited when she saw me taking it.
"This one?" I lifted it up.
"Oh yes!" she nodded, "If you write something that comes from your biggest dreams or desire, that notebook will grant your wish."
"Wow! Really?" I exclaimed,flipping through the semi-white pages.
"Dear, I'm telling the truth!"
"Are you really gonna buy that? It's just a notebook! Wait,how much does it costs?" Jordan asked.
"30 dollars."
"Are you serious?" his eyes widened.
"I'll take it!" I announced.
"Huh?" Jordan squeaked.
"I'll buy this notebook." I said as I walked to the counter,
"Excellent!" Madame Cyprine grinned. Her teeth flashed a brilliant white.
"Phelia, don't you think it's a little expensive?" Jordan snatched the book away from my hands.
"Hey!"
"Looks like you got a nitpicky friend here." Madame Cyprine chuckled.
"Sorry about...uh...my friend here...he's probably woke up from the wrong side of the bed this morning." I said.
"I can tell." she nodded, "Boys, eh?"
I can feel him glaring as we giggled.
I grabbed the notebook back from Jordan's grip and paid it with cash. Jordan looked at me with a hyphen formed on his lips, but I ignored. She handed me a receipt and held my hand which took me by surprise, "You can literally write anything here, my dear. However," She suddenly leaned close to my right ear which sent a chill at the back of my neck, "...someday your wish will not give you happiness." "What do you mean?" I asked. She stood back upright and answered, "Just be careful what you wish for, that's what I meant."
"Oh...okay." I nodded.
Jordan dashed out of the door without taking a glance. I waved goodbye to her as I left with the black hard cover notebook in my hands.
"Don't you find that lady a little...creepy?" Jordan asked.
"Creepy?"
"Don't you see? She's probably silently putting a spell on you to lure you to buy...that."
"Jordan...buddy...sometimes you've got to be a little open-minded." I sighed,patting him on the shoulder.
* * *
I shook my head in dismay as I noticed a few street lights that were turned off close to my house. Seriously, it had been two weeks since the street lights had gone off and not even a single person came by to fix them.
Luckily, the headlights of my car broke the darkness of the night. The garage door automatically lifted up as I parked my car safely.
I felt a strange sensation while holding the magic notebook. It was like it quietly transferred a surge of energy through my veins till it reached to my heart. I felt like I was urged to write something as soon as possible. Once I made it into my home, I immediately refilled my purple detox water bottle before heading upstairs. A story idea was instantly drawn in my head during the process.
"Maybe this would work." I agreed to myself. My mind replayed a made-up scene of my new story idea as I sat at my study desk in my room. The energy that filled my insides swelled even more when the cover of the notebook was flipped open. Grabbing one of my best fountain pens, I started writing and a smile crept on my face as I jotted down the scene in my head onto paper.
*
Chef of Sun Yang
Written by: Phelia Song
Chapter 1
"No! No...no...no...nope not even this one....ewww what the heck is this? Pig's poop?" the prince made a face as he faced each candidate.
There was still a long line of chefs, eager to win Prince Joo Yoon's heart with their best dishes in all of the kingdom of Sun Yang. However, what they hadn't found out yet,was that he was a spoiled single child of the royal family. They thought that he was a handsome,sophisticated 23-years-old man with high potential to take over the solar throne in the near future, but they had no idea how picky he was when it comes to luxury, especially food. All he cared about was finely-cooked meals, fresh from a festival feast.Ever since he was little, he was dissatisfied with the food cooked by the royal chefs hired by the emperor and empress. As the kitchen team were switched every four to five years, new meals were brought to the royal family. Everyone enjoyed every new dish except for Prince Joo Yoon. He admitted that he had different taste buds from other people. Everyone didn't understand on why Prince Joo Yoon disapproved of the taste of every food while they all agreed that the food were delicious. It was no wonder that he became as puny as his own skeleton.
Evening passed by, and he rejected every single one of the candidates with critical comments. When the hall was once again empty, Prince Joo Yoon said, "I'm not hungry. All the tasting has weakened my appetite."
"Do you maybe want to have some dessert, Your Majesty?" a soft voice suddenly appeared from the doors.
"Who's there?" he sat bolt upright with eyes the size of saucers.
Two lines of knights in sheepskin armour turned their heads sharply to the entrance and held their swords in the air. It went so quiet you could hear the wind whistling. One minute later, a fair-skinned girl wearing a long-sleeved white and pink dress tiptoed through the doors. All eyes were on her as she carried a small steel pot towards the prince.
"I'm sorry, Ma'am, but the chef selection has ended." he said.
"I know, and I'm really sorry, Your Majesty. I should have come earlier." she curtsied. Her strong hands gripped the handles of the pot that somehow caught the prince's attention. But he still kept a poker face.
"Shouldn't you be playing hopscotch with your siblings?" he scoffed.
The girl stared, but showed off a sweet smile,"I hope you like sikhye."
The prince raised his eyebrow, "Sikhye? What in a thousand stars is that?"
She smiled and cleared her throat, "Sikhye is a traditional Korean dessert. It's made of barley malt powder and rice."
"Sounds unpleasant."
To his surprise, she responded with a laugh. A laugh that was as sweet as bells. He stared at her as if she was unlike the 500 chefs he met earlier. A different human being.
"I believe you have not tried this famous dessert before, Your Majesty. Everyone here in Korea has tried it before!" she laughed.
Joo Yoon stared, dumbfounded.
"I'll let you have a sip,if you like, Your Majesty." she winked and fished out the pocket of her dress for a silver spoon.
"Well...I..." he mumbled. He watched in surprise as the girl gingerly walked up the stairs; her eyes watched over the liquid that wiggled on the spoon. The knights' jaw dropped as they eyed at her in fear. Luckily, the prince didn't say anything. She finally reached to the top and held the spoon towards his mouth. Her other hand was cupped down like a bowl.
"Your Majesty." she smiled. The prince suddenly found himself opening his mouth. The girl bravely slipped the drop of mystery into his mouth.
"What do you think, Your Majesty?" she asked.
Prince Joo Yoon swallowed and suddenly, he showed the same reaction when he first heard her voice from the entrance.
"Mashita!" he gasped and immediately covered his mouth with one hand. The girl was back down from the stairs and giggled softly.
The prince cleared his throat and looked back with a stoned face, "Well...I've never said this before in my life but..." he gulped, "your sikhye is...surprising."
"Glad you like it, Your Majesty." the girl smiled.
"Be at the royal kitchen by sunrise tomorrow. The servants will take care of you." he uttered.
"I'll be honoured, Your Majesty." she grinned.
Prince Joo Yoon strutted down the stairs and had a couple of knights behind him to his bedroom. He closed the doors behind him and sat on his bed.
"What just happened?" he said as he stared at the wooden floor. He couldn't stop replaying the scene in his head for what seemed like forever.
"Sikhye is a traditional Korean dessert. It's made of barley malt powder and rice." the girl's gentle voice echoed.
"Sikhye eh?" he mumbled. He was too lazy to change into his sleepwear. He just removed the thick layers of his prince clothes and threw the silk blanket over him. He dozed off as the lights were switched off minutes later.
*
"Done!" I yawned. I dropped my pen and rubbed my eyes while looking at the time on my iPhone 5S, "Wow...12:40am already? I...better get some sleep."
It seemed that the notebook had let me to write the story without stopping, like a flowing river. I went to wash up, change into a tank top and shorts, and slipped under the covers of my queen-size bed which was placed next to a side table with a copy of Super Junior's "Devil" album on it. Yeah...I know...I'm a K-pop addict. No biggie. I scrolled through social media for Super Junior updates on my phone for a good half an hour before my eyes gave up to stay awake.
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