~1~
“Alright Jiyoon, again one more time from the top.” I said, trying my best not to sound frustrated. The poor girl had been recording for hours and as good as she sounded on most days, today her voice just wasn’t having it, and it was wearing on her.
“O-Ok, I’ll try my best. Sorry.” She said softly into the mic.
“It’s alright, take your time.” I replied. I got out my phone and flipped through the notifications, grinning and shaking my head at the stupidity of my friends. Just as I looked back up to adjust the levels slightly, her voice cracked horribly, making me wince. I put my phone back in my pocket and tapped the window, giving her the “cut” signal after her eyes met mine.
“Ok Jiyoon, why don’t we call it a day.” I said, making her eyes widen and a look of panic settle in.
“But...but I’m on a deadline! If I don’t get this recorded today, we will have to book a whole separate session and m-my manager won’t be happy about that.” She said, worrying her hands and biting her lip.
“I’ll talk to him. Wait, where did he go?” I asked, leaning from my studio chair and noticing the absence of her manager from outside the studio.
“I think he went to get me something because I’m stressed. Please, please can we just try again?” She pleaded, her voice wavering slightly. Oh God, please let her not cry, especially with her manager MIA.
“Jiyoon honey, if you keep going like this when your voice is as tired as it is, you’re going to strain your vocal cords and really be out of commission. We can book more time, it’s not that big of a deal.” I replied, trying to diffuse the situation and try to put her at ease. I swear I saw her eyes start tearing as she shook her head.
“No, I have to! It will cost them more money and my manager already says he has to spend too much money on me to keep me pacified and not stressed-out and...and...“she said, starting to breathe heavily. Ah shit here came the water works. I pulled my headphones off and stood up, but by time I got to the door and opened it, she had burst into sobs. I walked over and took her headphones off, placing them around the mic before patting her back awkwardly from beside her.
“Hey, it’s alright. I’ll talk to him when he gets back, ok? I will smooth things over and tell him it’s my equipment acting screwy. It will be fine.” I said softly, trying to reassure her. She turned towards me and buried her face in my chest, letting out loud sobs. Damn, the pressure must have really gotten to this poor girl.
“I w-wan my b-blankie.” She cried, making me scrunch up my forehead in confusion. Did she just say her blankie?! She was in her mid-twenties, surely, she didn’t mean a security blanket.
“Did you just say your blankie?” I asked softly, thinking if I was mistaken, at least the misunderstanding might lead to a laugh. To my shock, she actually nodded her head against me, and she let out more pitiful sounding cries. Well, I’ll be damned.
“A-alright. Um, where is it?” I asked, wondering what the hell was going on.
“My backpack.” She sniveled.
“Where is your pack?” I asked, not remembering her coming in with one.
“Manager oppa.” She cried, looking up at me teary eyed. I nodded at her and went to leave, only to have her cling to me, whimpering with tears streaming down her cheeks.
“Don’ leave me!” She cried, wrinkling my shirt in her fists.
“Jiyoon honey, I am going to see if he left the pack outside, ok? But I’ll be right back.” I explained as she nodded through the sobs. I walked back out through the door and thankfully saw her backpack sitting in the corner by the entrance. I walked over and unzipped it, relieved to see a small fluffy blue blanket stuffed inside. I pulled it out and tucked it under my arm before zipping her bag back shut. As I walked back through the door with it, her eyes widened and she reached out for it, making grabby hands almost the way a toddler would.
“Blankie!!” She responded, gripping it from me and curling it in one arm, rubbing her tear-stained cheek against it.
“Come on, why don’t we have a seat until he gets back, ok?” I suggested as she plopped her thumb in her mouth. She nodded and took her free hand, gripping the bottom of my shirt and followed me out of the booth as I led her to the couch on the back wall of the studio.
“Look, I’m sorry if I was too harsh on you and upset you in any way. I didn’t mean to be.” I said, not really thinking I had been, but if this girl was in such a fragile state as she seemed to be right now, it may not have taken much to set her off. She shook her head and sniffled, still keeping her thumb in her mouth as she began to suck on it.
“Cuddle me.” She said around her thumb, making my eyes widen. She wanted me to what?! I was not friends with her, I would barely call her an acquaintance. She was a client!
“Jiyoon, I don’t think that’s entirely appropriate.” I started before she took in a shuddering breath through her nose, her eyes looking teary again.
“Cuddles.” She whimpered. Jesus, anything to keep the tears at bay.
“Alright, alright.” I said, swallowing as I lifted an arm and wrapped it over her shoulders awkwardly. She scooted close to me, drawing her legs up to her chest before leaning onto my shoulder. I felt her nuzzle her head against me, making me wrinkle my forehead even more. What the actual hell was going on??? I fished my phone out of my pocket and began to text her manager, letting him know he needed to get his ass back here on the double.
“Whatcha doin’? She asked around her thumb.
“I’m trying to find out where your manager is.” I said as I completed the text.
“He a meanie.” She responded in pouty tone, making me chuckle.
“Why do you say that?” I asked, as she sighed.
“He leaved me here.” She replied, making her voice smaller.
“I’m sure he will be back soon.” I responded. She let out a huff before squeezing closer, almost climbing in my lap at this point. Several moments of silence went by as I waited for a text back or for her to snap out of it, but within that time, I felt her getting heavier against me. I was at a loss as to what to do, so I simply sat there with her, waiting for salvation. Twenty minutes or so later, her manager practically burst through the door, huffing and puffing as if he had run a marathon. He looked at her and then at me, his eyes widened.
“What....what happened?” He asked slowly, almost seeming afraid.
“Between her voice being absolutely exhausted and my equipment not working properly, I suggested we call it a day, resulting in what I can only assume is a mental breakdown.” I responded, motioning to the sleeping girl against me with my free hand.
“My deepest apologies Mr. Min! You were never meant to see this, no one was.” He said, running his hand back through his hair nervously.
“What the fuck is going on? She needs help, obviously!! Is she being treated for something?” I asked as he let out a sigh.
“No, it’s nothing like that. I can only hope you will keep this little incident to yourself and not alert the media. It would destroy her career.” He pleaded, making me bristle slightly that he didn’t seem phased by seeing his client curled into my side with her thumb in her mouth and a blankie tucked in her arm.
“I will if you tell me what the hell is going on!” I repeated, feeling frustrated.
“She isn’t having a mental breakdown. This is how she deals with extreme stress. I was going to get her favorite treats to help de-stress her, but she slipped before I could get back.” He replied.
“Slipped? What does that mean?” I asked, getting irritated with his vagueness.
“She is a little. She goes into regressive states to de-stress.” He replies.
“A little? What?” I asked, feeling extremely confused.
“Look Mr. Min, with all due respect, it is very complicated and involved, so if you want to know more about it, I suggest doing some research. I would explain more, but we are already running behind schedule as it is. Can you please just forget about this whole incident and let us re-book her for another day?” He asked, making me sigh.
“Alright, fine. Call me when you get your schedule squared away and we will book the time. Can...can I get up now?” I asked, looking down at her.
“Let me wake her.” He replied, sitting on the other side of her. I sat there as I watched him wake her and speak to her the way an adult speaks to a child for a few minutes until he simply put her blankie away, and she almost snapped back to her old self just in time for them to rush out. What in the world did I just witness??
