It took Jimin and Eileen forever to drive down the Champs-Élysées. Traffic was unbelievable. As they inched along, Jimin wracked his brain for something to talk about. He was feeling a little exhausted from all the mental effort he’d been making to converse in English.
Suddenly, he thought of the artist district. “Have you ever set up an easel along the artist district here? Showed off any of your paintings?”
“Me? No way. I’m not good enough to be up there.”
Jimin turned wide eyes towards her, his eyebrows nearly smacking his hairline in their hasty ascent skyward. “Are you kidding me? You are fabulous. Your paintings most certainly belong up there! You are a rising star!”
Eileen glanced over at Jimin and smiled. Then she spoke quietly, “Thank you, Jimin, for your faith in me.” She wanted to kiss him for his kindness, but instead she had to focus on the road before them.
As they made their way from the Arc de Triomphe to the Place de la Concorde, the cars ahead of them came to a standstill. Jimin stared out the window at the shops surrounding them. They had driven a little ways past the roundabout near the Arc de Triomphe and were now sitting in front of the Nike shop, a Five Guys burger joint, and the ritzy Sephora. He could also see the Disney store up ahead and smirked as he considered buying a Disney princess doll for Jin. As they continued to wait for traffic to commence moving, Jimin studied the line of cars ahead of them. Why on earth did it take so long to travel along this road? It was only about two kilometers long. Finally, they were heading up the street once more. He stared out the window as store after store made an appearance.
Just then his stomach growled, and he remembered that he had wanted to try a little cafe owned by a friend of a friend. It was around here somewhere. He began to crane his neck as he looked all around trying to locate it. He didn’t see it.
He turned towards Eileen. “Are you familiar with a little cafe called Le Maillot?”
“Port Mallet? That’s one of my favorite places to eat! I know one of the owners, Chun. She is the sweetest lady. She’s from Hong Kong!”
“Yes,” Jimin nodded. “A friend of mine knows her. Where is it? I don’t see it.”
She turned and looked back over her left shoulder. “It’s back there on the other side of the Arc de Triomphe. It’s on the Avenue de la Grande-Armée.”
“Wait. It’s on ARMY Avenue?” Jimin started laughing.
Eileen stared at him, stumped. What was so funny? “So what’s with ARMY? That’s your fan base, you said?”
“Yes. We are their Bulletproof Boy Scouts, and they are our ARMY. That’s what BTS stands for in Korean – Bangtan Sonyeondan – Bulletproof Boy Scouts.”
“Oh.” Now she understood. Sort of.
Jimin glanced at the clock. It was nearly two o’clock already! No wonder he was so hungry! They had driven right past the little cafe, and now they were headed the wrong way on a street that appeared to be never-ending!
Eileen read his mind. “When we get to the end of the Champs-Élysées, I’ll find a parking space, and we can take the metro down to the Arc, and then we can walk over to the cafe first, if you want. Then after lunch we can tour the Arc and walk down the Champs-Élysées before we come back to my car.”
Jimin grinned his agreement. He just hoped they found the end of this street soon.
Eileen glanced at him. “But we’ve got to get you a shirt, hat, and sunglasses first.”
They both fell silent as Eileen battled with traffic and Jimin gave his brain a rest from English.
—
Finally. At last, they made it to the end of the Champs-Élysées. And then they finally found a parking space. They must have spun around the roundabout ten times flying down its spindles until they eventually found a place to park. It was a little bit of a walk to the metro. But they passed the necessary shop on the way, and Eileen picked out a pair of dark sunglasses for Jimin – to hide his beautiful eyes from recognition. Then she picked out a hat for him – that didn’t make him look like a fisherman! Last, she chose a long-sleeved, black shirt that made him look stunning. Almost too good. She considered putting it back. Would anyone recognize him in it? He looked like he belonged on a stage.
He stood in front of the mirror, the midnight shirt open over his white muscle shirt, and Eileen thought she might faint. Or cry. A few more hours, and she would never see him again. Right? She stared at his beautiful reflection. He was so gorgeous. Every girl in the world must want him.
How had she found the courage to kiss him this morning? It seemed like a million years ago. Now as she gazed at the outfit that was supposed to disguise him, she felt isolated from him. As though he had just stepped into the persona he was avoiding appearing as. She couldn’t see how she would ever fit into his world. Glitz, glamour, the spotlight, the world stage (literally), fame, fortune, screaming girls.
She was just a wee lass from Ireland. Fleeing for refuge to Paris, to hide in the art district from her father’s fists. She was a nobody. She didn’t deserve a guy like this. He was clearly a superstar. A superhero. Every girl’s dream. And with so many girls chasing him, why would he ever choose humdrum her? As tears pricked her eyes, she turned away from him.
But Jimin had been watching her face in the mirror. Fascinated, he saw a myriad of emotions playing out across her features. Then he saw tears suddenly spring up in her eyes. What was wrong? Why was his Eireen crying?
He reached for her as she turned away. “Eireen?”
His hand came down on her forearm, his fingers brushing her skin and sending a thousand tiny winds whispering along her nerve endings. She stood, rooted to the spot for a few seconds, then she cleared her throat before speaking.
“We should go check out now, so we can head to lunch.”
Jimin listened to her momentarily, but they were not done with this conversation, not by a long shot. She tried to pay for him, but he refused her, pulling his credit card out and handing it to the clerk. Eileen still wasn’t meeting his eyes.
She stood staring out the window, wondering how she would keep from crying again. She suddenly felt very sad. And she was no longer hungry at all.
