NNK = Neo neun ket

OK, because NNP means Neo neun pet, I decided to twist it a bit. Just in case of any copyright infringement, mehehe.

Read on your own risk, but I do hope it's not boring^^
Names of the persons are full of hidden meanings:
Jebi: Violet (as sumire)
Minam: ee... actually everyone knows the meaning of it
Ryeon: Lily (as yuri)
Moon Jagi: moonjagi means a doormat
Ki Myohan: kimyohan means queer, strange

Dramatis personae:

Jebi: our female protagonist

Minam (stage name: Peach): our…umm, let’s say male, protagonist,

Ryeon: female friend of Jebi

Moon Jagi: Jebi’s boyfriend

Ki Myohan: ex of Jebi

Lots of annoying characters and gap-fillers, unused here, but usually overused

Stage:

Some big city, not important, more details unnecessary cause it’s a big allegory.

Time:

Spring – summer

                                                                        Prelude

            On days like this usually only small signs can point out that some calamity awaits. Things like those are most likely neglected, or treated as not important, and thus overlooked. Ominous signs are reserved for Doomsday. And no, the first episode of the drama with acting furniture is not THAT sinister sign of the approaching Apocalypse. Nevertheless, it may signify something. But the feeling creeping around the ankles like a heavy, dense fog, reaching higher and immobilizing with terror is that kind of sign. There is this suspicion of some bad luck coming our way, and even in the middle of a tropic heat, we can feel a glacier melting down our spine. It can of course be a true glacier in Switzerland, eventually someone (in)voluntary put a cone of ice-cream on our back.

Today was this day Jebi thought everything went awry from the beginning, when she tried to put on her skirt she bought last month. It was too small. It shrank! It’s always clothes’ fault. Always. But even that couldn’t stop her from trying to put it on, but then a button, this small, vicious button, just popped out and landed exactly in the middle of her cup of a black coffee. It’s not like she was a fan of a black coffee, she forgot to buy some milk, and the last one she bought was sour as hell. If Hell has a taste. No wonder, expiration date was set to the last week. She should be grateful that it didn’t walk out from her fridge on its own, but this very morning Jebi had no time to think about the secret life of sour milk.

She sighted seeing the suicide of the button, and reached for the cup to took it out, but suddenly the cup just sighted like she did (a mocking fella as it is) and split in two, leaving all coffee and dead button on her (too tight) skirt and carpet. Silently counting to ten to release her stress, Jebi decided to take the skirt off and she cleaned the carpet immediately. While having a good time with bubbles, she suddenly realized that her kindergarten period of life had gone quite a long time ago, and now she was facing a big delay for work. With haste she changed and was ready to go, being happy that subway was not crowded, people were smiling and the weather of March was pleasant.

‘It’s all my imagination. If I find this as my bad luck, it will become my bad luck. It happens. Skirts are supposed to get tight, cups are supposed to get broken.’ She sorted out her thoughts in her head, as usual. Bad thing, she had the habit to do it also at loud, not seeing the strange faces of people around. ‘Buy yourself a cat, lady’, she heard suddenly and realized it was to her. “Did I just talk at loud?’

— Yes you did, writer just slacked off and forgot to add a hyphen and a new line.

— I am very sorry for causing you to feel less comfortable than usual. — she said with a hint of a mocking smile she borrowed from the aforementioned cup of coffee. — But I do not find it as disturbing as your smell.

Happy with her victorious point, she triumphantly got off the train and after three seconds when door behind her closed with a hiss, this look on her face went a bit paler than usual. She got off at the wrong station.

            Finally, she got to the big building she was working at. Amazed by the number of heavy equipped police officers and SWAT members, she asked the reception desk lady about the reason.

— Seems like there is some kidnapping case. — nails of the woman were as sharp as talons of the hawk, but she had no intention of stopping to sharpen them even more. Jebi had to acknowledge and praise in mind her preparations for the eventual fight mano a mano. She took a quick glance at her own short and manicured nails. She would fail with those…

— But why kidnapping?

— Looks like one of the readers didn’t like the article about the connections between teddy bear producers and cocaine smugglers. He said that he wants the journalist dead.

   Jebi nodded and not only after three seconds did she realize that the author of the article was... After two hours, they heard shots and police officers, in kevlar armors, went down in regular squares, and among them was the unfortunate reader, shot in both legs.

            Her supervisor, pale as the Fourth Raider of the Apocalypse, summoned her before his white face.

— You have caused us troubles in the past! We had to deal with the producers of strawberry toothpaste you described as “addictive”, we had angry mobsters-turned-priests asking why the interviews with them were so short, and now this! From this day forth, you shall work in the women’s department, describing hairsprays! Not such big events if you cannot handle those.

— It’s not my fault… — she tried to defend herself, but her voice sounded like a mouse against the big, bad cat. — Squeak, squeak…

— Now what?? Are you mocking me??

            When remembering his last words, she regretted she couldn’t control her thoughts to remain inside the head, and she cursed her weakness in preventing them from being blurted out.

— … And then he told me to move to women’s department.

For a short time there was a silence between two people sitting at the restaurant. It was so still, they could almost hear the fly in the air. Of course if there was a fly in such fancy restaurant like this one, it would be closed down immediately, so it was just a metaphor to illustrate how silent they were. And along with those two, the whole restaurant went still, listening to their conversation. Plants bended as much as they could, not to lose a word from their dialog, napkins were pale with anticipation of the next words, glasses of water trembled slightly with pure imagination of what might happen next. Only knives and forks lay down still, unmoved. But metal is usually unmoved. Except for its atom level. But no one looked through the microscope at the electrons. So, as much as they were ignored, they ignored everything and everyone else around as well.

— It will be better if we break up.

Jebi looked at this man for a moment, pondering his words. It wasn’t much to ponder, on grammatical and vocabulary level it was ridiculously simple, also the meaning was obvious. But Jebi had this peculiar habit of thinking about everything. So she thought about what he said for a moment.

— Why? — she asked after ten minutes of silence. Water in the glasses stopped to tremble, that was the scale of the emotions that were flowing between those two, and water didn’t want to lose a drop of their conversation. It wouldn’t anyway.

— I found my own path in life. I can’t always live in your shadow. I want to stand on my own.

— Ki Myohan, you were always envious of my achievements, you couldn’t share the joy of my success with me. If breaking up makes you feel good, I will gladly accord you freedom, but remember, there is no going back. Plus, give me back the keys. So there is no going back, literally.

The man put the keys on the table, and in the same time one glass of water screamed on top of its bipolar particles in terror, when Jebi took it and committed the murder with a cold blood by drinking it all. He got up, and Jebi suddenly felt the betrayal and sadness.

— Oppa… — she tried her last resort.

— If you’re trying to be more familiar, I think unni would suit better.

Jebi, as usual, frowned and in complete silence let him go, wondering why he walks in such graceful and swinging way. Then the water she drank enlightened her and few things happened at the same time: she looked down his legs, and the word “unni” came to mind. The reason behind his swinging walk was simple, albeit expensive – Jimmy Choo’s stilettos.

— Damn, he walks in those better than me.

But the day hasn’t ended yet.

                                                                        Overture

            Maybe she should take a cat? She changed the channel and poured herself a little more wine, and her imagination just went wild doing this. She pictured herself as an old hag in the tower pouring the secretly concocted potion. For whom she made it and what exactly was it for, it was far beyond her soberness. And in the same time she was changing the channel again, she heard a thud on her balcony. She lived on the fifth floor; it was the highest apartment in this exclusive neighborhood, so it couldn’t be from the balcony above. She opened the door and for quite long moment she looked at the mess of pearl chains, ripped jeans, silk blouse and more unidentified silk.

— Help me. — silken clump spoke suddenly in a low voice. It could be a guy, but pearl chains were so out of the idea of it. Then again, Ki Myohan went away for good in high heels. She grabbed lying mess and brought it to the room. Suddenly, it bounced to its feet and before her a quite tall mummy was standing. Actually, it wasn’t the real Egyptian mummy, writer is well aware that they are all DEAD, but the resemblance was striking. This mummy standing before Jebi was emaciated as if it was starved to death and after that, some priests from Kingdom of Nile River took away all of its internal organs. She suddenly remembered how the brain was removed from mummies, and shivered, looking suspiciously at the one trying the loose the corset. So she had before her a zombie from the ancient Egypt.

— What were you doing on my balcony?

— Oh, it’s not like I wanted to be there in the first place! I was just practicing for my next role in the play “Fiddler on the Roof”. And suddenly I felt like those clouds wanted to embrace me, so I wanted to embrace them first, and I fell.

Now she was sure. When mummy woke up, it didn’t have time to look neither for the jars with its internal organs nor the brain as well.

— Since you’re fine, go home.

— Can this place be my home for some time?

— Give me one good reason for it.

— I don’t have a home… — mummy evidently watched “Shrek” and tried to pull off Puss in Boots’ eyes. Unfortunately, Jebi saw it too.

— Kitties without home go to the animal shelter.

— I can be your servant!

— I don’t need a servant or a maid. I don’t need anyone, to be perfectly frank.

— But maybe you need some comforting arms? — mummy’s voice was full of erotic charm.

— Perhaps, but I’m not interested in women.

Mummy hissed and with one theatrical gesture torn off the corset, and with that, involuntary, all the pearls just fell down like a snow on the floor. Jebi took a critical glance that didn’t change her mind.

— Yes, as I said, I’m not interested in women. Even with such low voice like yourself. So, don’t test my patience and get the hell out of here!

— But I’m a guy… — mummy looked around, feeling the heart pounding like mad because this woman had some strange charm that drawn everyone around to her, plus he was sure some of the pearls were under the sofa.

— You really want to stay? You can, under one condition – you will be acting as my cat.

— A cat? — mummy raised his perfectly trimmed brows in disbelief. — Ah well, what the hell, I’m adorable anyway! You got yourself a kitty.

— Good. First thing, we need to castrate it. — Jebi leered when she saw how the face of the mummy went from pale to ash-grey. — But I guess there is no need for it.

                                                                    Interlude

            Jebi’s first month in the new department was bad. So bad she started to eat ice-creams with cherry syrup she hated. On top of that her new kitty was annoying. He was eating her plants, like
a regular cat, he tried to climb on her curtains and when he tore it off, he just made himself a nice dress. He slept in her bed, despite having own room. But what’s worse, he commented harshly on her wardrobe.

— Are you sure he’s not a girl? He has better locks than me. — said Ryeon, Jebi’s best friend. They were sitting in the café, sipping some latté and remembering their younger days. Ryeon was
a jewelry designer.

— Nah, he’s a boy. Or a very disturbed little girl. He asked me to go to watch his performance this Saturday. Apparently, he’s some dancer, but I have the impression that whenever he falls, he will have no strength to get up. I can’t imagine what kind of dance he can do. Maybe I should go to check it?

            And so they went. And while waiting for the ticket, Jebi felt a pat on the shoulder. Ryeon’s face shrank with disdain, but Jebi had this elated expression etched on her face. The expression that only teenage girls have, when they see their idol. For the observer standing two steps away, it displays itself like a fascinating phenomenon. It starts as some innocent blush, when hearts pumps a bit more blood then it should for its own good, then the eyes become covered with mist. It’s not the tears, it’s not the fatigue, it looks like a delicate haze clouding the vision. It surely does. Then, the eyes change rapidly. Their iridescence disappears, and a new gaze comes to play – a fierce, radiant gaze, more powerful than Cyclop’s stare. They will see everything, they will perceive the smallest detail even hundreds feet away, and they will see foes everywhere. This is a very dangerous stage. Many scientists sacrificed their lives and constructed complicated devices just to foretell this change in the behavior of the group, usually referred to as “fangirls”. It was necessary – to avoid any casualties around the aforesaid group in their so called “arousal phase”. But their attempts failed, because this group is as unstable as the flu virus and is mutating too rapidly. Therefore, measures taken to explain it scientifically remain useless. Apart from the protuberances on the Sun and life forms found on the bottom of the oceans, it remains one of the biggest mysteries of the world.

Anyway, Jebi recognized her first, or second… to be perfectly frank – nevermind, crush. They were chirping to each other for the whole time, and Ryeon felt she’s close to being seasick. But when the play started, the silence on the audience part, and even more loud music from behind the curtains, forced the newly found lovers to remain quiet. It was “Cinderella” with the modern twist. Jebi, perplexed as she was, took a quick look at the leaflet, and around. Apart from few guys, the whole audience was formed with two demographics: young, teenager girls, and women definitely around their menopause.

Her cat played the role of Cinderella, so she felt pride that it was the title role, but the play itself was disturbing. Or brave. Or just stupid. Anyway, it was more colorful than any Bollywood director on meth could even imagine. The main twist was twisted around the gender of our Cinderella. Because the family was male, there were no step-sisters, but step-brothers, and Step-Father who abused little Cinderella. The name itself came from two words: cinder + umbrella, because the young, frail boy was usually walking to a market holding lacy, ash colored umbrella. And he danced with it when nobody was home, à la Rihanna. Of course, there was a good Godfather Fairy giving the jewels and beautiful dresses to Cinderella, who during the ball was the most beautiful and enchanting girl, dancing with… actually her dancing was weird, and this captured Prince Char Ming’s eye. Prince fell madly in love with Cinderella, but little did he know about the terrible secret. Finally, after duels with handfuls of diamonds and after rescuing Cinderella from the hands of her… his bad Step-Father (Cinderella was kept in a really creepy basement with just one mirror and was tied town with chains of pearls, poor soul), Prince Char Ming proposed to his beloved. But, halas! Poor Cinderella without her clothes was just a boy. Not an average boy, because still with perfectly trimmed brows, wavy hair (in the shade that lovely contrasted with his peachy complexion) and girly behavior, but a guy nonetheless. At the end of the play, Prince Char Ming just overcame his doubts and proposed to Cinderella once more, knowing who he was (probably as the only person in the play).

Jebi was excited with the play, Ryeon a little less. OK, lets be frank, she didn’t like it. The former crush of Jebi was excited as well. His name was Moon Jagi, and he was like his name. But Jebi was indifferent to it few years back, and seemed like she was indifferent now. The reason why Ryeon didn’t like him was her best kept secret. Probably she knew nothing about it as well.

In the next month the relationship between Jagi and Jebi developed and became almost pre-nuptial-like. Poor kitty displayed anger and disappointment in many different ways: he was disappearing for a few days to mate with other kittens, but bored with their constant praise, he was coming back to win the heart of Jebi. The other times, he was sleeping at Ryeon’s place, happy to see her work. But Ryeon took his keen interest into her work as a trait of his will to learn, and told him countless stories and facts about minerals, their features, where they are found, how the cuts and shapes are called, but Minam was interested only in their glitter. He was never bored with trying them on, he liked to parade with diamond bracelets and earrings, and with Ryeon they sometimes performed, what they called “theme parties”. They dressed up as people from a certain period and tried the jewels on. After few of them, Ryeon noticed that Minam preferred to wear dresses. And he looked prettier than her. Answering her question he said:

— I have to. I always play females on stage. I’m okama.

— You mean oyama? — Ryeon leered.

— Damn, I should have learned Japanese properly… — murmured Minam.

Whenever not in Ryeon’s place, not in Jebi’s place, Minam wandered through the big city, hanging around with friends or luring young girls into his trap of charm. He had tons of charm and displayed it willingly.

We must say it honestly – he had an amount of charm available for every witch that has ever lived. Every time he was prancing on the streets, swinging his hips in tight jeans, even trees stopped for a while and tried to reach him. Wind was kissing him, sun was showering him down with rays, lightning up the golden sparks on his locks. Everyone behind him wondered if they could even go on a date with such fine-looking lady, and it all almost made his heart explode with gaiety. Joy. Whatever. But it all wasn’t what he wanted. He knew that he surpassed his friends in dancing and singing. He knew he could make every girl swoon at his slightest frown. He knew he looked the best in ivory and pink. But there was one dream he could not fulfill. He wanted to play Hamlet. Not because of the complicated psyche of a young, doomed Prince of Denmark (he wasn’t even sure what was this Denmark anyway), but because he was a Prince, hence – royal jewelry and beautiful clothes. Moreover, Hamlet was male, so he wanted for Jebi to see him as a man. He could even play Ophelia, no, he felt so much power inside, that he knew he could, in fact, play all of the characters!

His first audition was laughed off.

            But fret not! He was always repeating this to himself and it helped. He started to believe that the way to Jebi’s heart led through real stages and plays. Minam believed she will see him in a more mature role as the possessed fiddle in “Fiddler on the Roof”. But Jebi didn’t come. Instead, around two hundred of his fangirls gathered at the hall, and after receiving flowers and chocolates, underwear and pendants, he came back to the training room and threw everything away (except for pendants and underwear). The rest of the dancers/actors/whatever raised their perfectly trimmed brows in a mute question. Two of them came closer and said:

— You were today really good! We are thinking about our next play, and we think about twisting Romeo and Juliet…

Sudden thought occurred under perfectly stylized hair of Minam, or Peach, as he preferred to be called inside the group. It was so sudden that it astounded even him, not used to this kind of events. After few moments of a heavy thinking, he heard members of the group talking about the way of twisting Romeo and Juliet.

— And what about this? — Minam… ok, Peach, clasped and looked around in sheer delight over his concept. — Lets make Romeo a cat, and Julia his owner. Romeo is not a cat, of course (chuckles), but he was cursed by the evil witch in the tower and he has to remain in that form until some noble lady will love him for something more than beautiful eyes and soft fur…

— … that is why I thought it would be good for our next project to not be a typical adaptation, but rather a modern drama. Like… Julia is waiting for the heart transplant, and she’s in love with Romeo who is a gang leader. She is a novice in some convent, while she gets the donor, she learns that the heart is from Romeo who died on his way to hospital. She dies on his grave.

            Somehow Minam thought his idea was unfairly treated. He came home in a bad mood. First thing he saw was a wedding gown. And this ruined his mood even more. Even Fashion TV couldn’t disperse the clouds of his bitterness. When Jebi left the bathroom, he went there and spent inside two hours, carefully examining his face and body.

— What do I lack the other guy has? — he asked, hitting the mirror with clenched fist, not too hard not to ruin the manicure and skin. Mirror mocked him with sneer and answered:

                                    O, The Fair One, with soft and alabaster skin,

                                    With hair like glowing silk and expressive eyes!

                                    Thou have thousands maids at your every whim,

                                    But me, a Mirror of Truth who can tell no lies,

                                    Thinks you need a flesh and a bit less cream.

Minam nodded in approval, although he didn’t quite understand anything more than two first lines. He came out, and saw Jebi emptying third bottle of wine.

He sat close to her and couldn’t even manage to check his hair, when she suddenly started to sob and took him into her arms.

            — He was kissing some other girl! — she started, gulping down her tears along with the rest of wine. — And I even bought the wedding dress!

Minam thought it’s his chance to possess her with his charms. And maybe persuade to changeher clothes.

— Now all I’m left with is one cat and this ridiculously great apartment! How can I ever live with that!

— Song is the best…

— Ah, shut up! Tell me some story instead.

He knew THIS was the moment!

— Long time ago, in a city called Somewhat-European-Cause-It’s-Fancy there was this Princess. Princess was full of charm and bad taste in clothing, but somehow she could attract everyone. One day she found a cat. It wasn’t of course a normal cat, but a beautiful Prince cursed by the evil witch in the tower. Princess loved her cat and spoiled him with collars studded with gems, luscious room full of soft pillows, and the most delicate, diet food. Cat was happy and wanted to cure Princess from her bad taste in clothing, but then another Prince appeared. This bad person kidnapped our Princess and forced her to wear khaki clothes which were completely out of fashion. Cat rescued his owner, a beautiful Princess who pledged her love for a cat, who turned out to be an insanely handsome Prince, who took Princess to his stylish castle. Their love was growing even bigger than her dressing room.

— This is the dumbest story I have ever heard. — Jebi left the sofa and went to her room.

                                                                        Closing

            A week later she went to see the performance of Minam’s group. The show was called “Lady of the Rings”. She had the impression that the plot wasn’t much original, but she enjoyed the feria of colors, beautiful characters and quick action. Her cat, who was no longer her cat, as he said it few days ago, was playing the role of an astounding beauty called Meowine (a feline impression must still haunted him), who used all her charms to seduce members of the Fellowship of the Bling, and eventually caused its breaking. Two of them escaped her plush prison and went West carrying a heavy burden – one Ring. The only ring that was without an eye of any kind. Their mission was kept in secret, because they were bid by… well, secrecy. When Meowine learned they wanted to change that beautiful Ring, she dispatched her army to capture them. But Westerners also knew about the power of the Ring. Many battles has they fought, many people and other races have lost their lives, and dark clouds from the menacing Western Countries, along with their emerging forces drove Meowine to aid those two knights. Dark, primordial forces of the West saw the Ring as the source of all the queerness of this world and wanted to destroy it, Meowine wanted to have the Ring for herself, and those two just wanted to add one emerald eye to it. And maybe few diamonds at sides.

            Meowine was first to reach it (Jebi saw the elated expression on his face, actually under the complete make-up of Peach, and she though he’s such a great actor in expressing pure delight over a jewel. But after a second, she remembered all those happy moments she bought him new collar or scarf, and suddenly this expression seemed natural. Too natural.) and she forced workers to put a big diamond on the Ring. This way, a flash of multicolored light flooded the goldsmith room and changed everything. Western armies had to retreat in panic. All countries were turned into pastel, happy, colorful and cloudless land. Those that weren’t pastel, became dark, under Twilight impression lands where everyone was clad in black leather and wore eye make-up. To just look more mysterious. Scene became a whirlpool of glittering silver and bedazzling gold, sparkles exploded in the air, everyone was humming, and in the middle of this tempest, an explosion sound was heard. That was the emerging of a new Meowine who reinvented herself. She was now in a sequined corset and fishnets, with Ring who shone on her finger like a star. Actually it looked more like a full moon.

— This is the Ring who binds them all!

            Audience was overwhelmed with delight. And Jebi, for a second, thought maybe this play had a second meaning. But she didn’t care, she was cheering actors as everyone around her. This was her goodbye to Minam, and he saw her from the stage. Tomorrow, the whole group was going to a worldwide tour. That is: seven neighboring countries so far.

            Will they find a way to be together? Will Minam really go and leave Jebi behind? Will the Ring be destroyed eventually?

This is an open ending provoking many philosophical questions, arousing suspicion and disbelief, leaving warm feeling in the hearts (and empty bottles of anti-indigestion pills) and hoping for no sequel.