Superstar From Age 0

The kitchen of the accommodation where they would stay for the next two weeks was bustling.

It was thanks to Charlie and his father, who rolled up their sleeves to cook.

Mina was helping the two men who were making French home-cooked meals, and she looked very excited.

“Mina, you look so happy.”

“It's rare to see home-cooked meals unless you’re invited.”

“That's true.”

Ji-yoon and Seo-jun finished packing their bags with a smile.

The accommodation in Paris had two bedrooms, a living room, and a kitchen. It was cozy like a home, with decorations and interiors that were different from Korea. It felt like they were on a trip, but also like they were in a normal house.

The view outside the window was also different from Korea.

“There are books here! Oh, they're in French…”

Ji-yoon, who was excited by the books, put them down with a disappointed expression. She could speak English well thanks to Seo-jun and Mina, but she didn't learn French.

‘Come to think of it, seo-jun said he could speak French too.’

Seo-jun could speak several languages besides Korean and English.

He said he didn't learn them formally, but just picked them up enough to have daily conversations by watching works from those countries.

‘That's amazing too. I'm still struggling with English.’

Ji-yoon smiled and looked for books in English among the books on one side of the living room.

“Ji-woo, what are you doing?”

At Seo-jun's question, Ji-woo lifted his head and said, “I'm sending an email to Professor Albert to let him know that I arrived in Paris. But I wonder if it's rude to send it now? It's already evening…”

“Isn't email okay? It's not a text or a call.”

At Seo-jun's words, Ji-woo nodded and focused on sending the email again.

She seemed to be choosing words and revising sentences with gratitude.

Ji-yoon, who couldn't find any books to read, gave up and took out the pamphlet of the international book fair that she brought from Lyon station.

The international book fair, which lasted for ten days, had many related programs and she was looking forward to it.

“Grace likes books too, right?”

“She said she likes reading more than writing. She also helped her sister write [Eclipse].”

“Really!”

It seemed like it would be fun to wander around the book fair alone, but it would also be nice to do it with a friend who shared her interests.

“Seo-jun, do you know what genre Grace likes?”

“Hmm. I have a list of books that she recommended as interesting. Oh, do you want to talk to her?”

“…Should I?”

Seo-jun smiled and invited Ji-yoon and Grace to a group chat.

Grace, who had often heard about Seo-jun's friends, sent a message happily.

The language of the conversation was English, so Ji-yoon's messages were a bit short and slow, but looking at the piled up messages, it seemed like they were having a good conversation.

Seo-jun put down his phone and checked the schedule for the next two weeks.

The two-week program at Le Cordon Bleu that Mina would participate in and the two-week class that Ji-woo would audit were technically only held on weekdays.

So, today and tomorrow, which were Saturday and Sunday, seo-jun and the kids had no schedule at all.

And from Monday, all the schedules would start.

The international book fair was also scheduled to start on Monday.

So the kids decided to rest or sightsee on the weekends when they had no schedule.

‘Where should we go?’

He had been here several times on family trips, but it was the first time for his friends, so he thought it would be nice to see places like the Eiffel Tower or the Louvre Museum that you have to see when you come to Paris.

He felt more like a tour guide than a tourist, looking for the best route.

“/Let's eat, everyone!/”

A little later, charlie's father's voice was heard. Seo-jun and the kids smiled brightly at the French dishes that filled the table.

***

The next day.

Seo-jun and the kids went out for sightseeing in light clothes. Charlie also accompanied them as a tour guide.

The bodyguards, who had received the itinerary for the day from Seo-jun last night, were waiting in front of the accommodation.

They followed them cautiously.

“/It's more comfortable than I thought./”

“/Right./”

The two bodyguards, who were disguised as a couple, looked at the kids who were walking ahead and smiled.

When they first got the request, they thought it would be hard because the client was Hollywood star Seo-jun Lee and people would flock to him, but they were walking around comfortably.

“/They just look like Asian tourists. It's hard to find us when there are many tourists./”

“/And they say there are some celebrities with bad personalities, but none of them are like that./”

The woman nodded at the man's words.

“/And we got to see a great game./”

“/Wow. That was awesome./”

They came to protect him, but there was no problem, so they felt like they were traveling rather than working. Well, it faded quickly because the person next to them was a coworker.

But they didn't forget their job. Their eyes were constantly checking on the kids.

-/Team A. Right. Black hood. Be careful./

A voice came through the earphone.

The eyes of the two bodyguards moved according to the voice.

Right, black hood.

A man wearing a black hooded jacket, with his hands in his pockets and walking with a slightly hunched posture, caught their eye.

Ooh, seo-jun and the kids, who were admiring and taking pictures, didn't seem to notice at all.

“/Should we go?/”

Team A moved.

It was faster than normal walking, but it didn't stand out among the tourists who were moving quickly to the next destination. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

He looked like a pickpocket who was targeting tourists rather than Seo-jun Lee. He might have a knife or a weapon to cut the bags, so they were careful as they walked. They kept walking.

As they walked towards the pickpocket in the black hood,

Thud!

It was natural to bump into him.

The pickpocket staggered as he bumped into the burly man.

“/Oh! I'm sorry!/”

“/Are you hurt anywhere?/”

A cutter knife rather than a knife.

The bodyguards, who were disguised as a couple, made a fuss and glared at the pickpocket with sharp eyes.

They didn't let their guard down in case the pickpocket attacked.

The noise attracted the attention of the people to the couple and the pickpocket.

The pickpocket panicked and quickly left the scene.

Another accident was prevented in advance by Team A and the bodyguards nearby, who smiled.

“…They’re bodyguards, right?”

They could see that scene as they were taking pictures.

They were surprised and spoke in Korean instead of English.

“That's right. What's going on?”

“/It looks like a pickpocket?/”

“Is that so… Charlie? /Do you understand Korean?/”

Charlie smiled and answered as Mina and the kids were startled.

“A little?”

“A little.”

“/…Jun. Evan and Rachel might be interested in Korean works and have accurate pronunciation, but I'm just an ordinary viewer. This is enough for me./”

Charlie shook his head as Seo-jun corrected his pronunciation.

“Korean teachers are too strict.”

“/…Where did you learn the word ‘strict’? And why was your pronunciation accurate just now?/”

Seo-jun looked at Charlie incredulously, and Charlie and the kids burst into laughter.

“/I watched some Korean variety shows and they were fun. I learned from them. I still don't know many words and grammar, but I can speak a little Korean. Oh, Ji-yoon. Grace can also speak a little Korean./”

“/That's good. Lucky!/”

“/Then did you teach Seo-jun French, charlie?/”

At Mina's words, charlie nodded.

“/Yes. But Jun learns faster than me. He knows ten things when he sees one. /Right? He improved quickly./”

“/Well, I watched a lot of French works too./”

“/…You don't get better at a foreign language just by watching dramas or movies, seo-jun./”

At Mina's words, the kids nodded repeatedly.

“/That's true. But we should be careful./”

It was as Ji-woo said. They couldn't be too relaxed and walk around just because they had bodyguards. They never knew when an accident would happen.

“/But it's not good to be too nervous either./”

“/Right. It's a trip. We should enjoy it!/”

The kids headed to the next tourist spot with bright faces. The bodyguards quietly followed them.

***

Monday morning.

The accommodation was noisy. It was because Mina, Ji-yoon, and Ji-woo were moving around excitedly and busily.

“I couldn't sleep well because I was so excited.”

“Me too.”

Ji-woo, who was packing her notebook and pen for the class, nodded at Mina's words. Ji-yoon also packed and unpacked various things in her bag for the international book fair.

“Ah, will this be too heavy to buy books?”

She took them out again.

“/You all look very excited./”

“/Right./”

Seo-jun laughed at Charlie's words, who came early to the accommodation to go to Le Cordon Bleu with Mina and have breakfast with them.

Soon after.

As soon as it was time to leave, Mina grabbed her bag and got up from her seat.

“/Then we’ll go first!/”

“/See you later./”

Charlie got up and followed her with a smile.

“/Have a good class, both of you./”

“/Mina! Fighting!/”

“/Be careful./”

Mina left for Le Cordon Bleu with Charlie, with the farewell of her friends.

“Then let's go too.”

“Yeah!”

Seo-jun, Ji-yoon, and Ji-woo checked that the door of the accommodation was locked and went out.

They headed to the bus stop to go to Paris 5 University.

“Why are you so nervous?”

Seo-jun asked Ji-woo, who looked a bit tense.

Ji-woo sighed and answered.

“I'm afraid I won't understand the class.”

“It's weird if you understand everything. You're only a freshman.”

“That's true, but… I feel sorry if I don't understand the class when the professor gave me permission.”

Seo-jun and Ji-yoon nodded as if they understood.

“He knew you were a freshman in the email, right? Then he must have considered that.”

“Right. It’ll be fine.”

“…I hope so. I studied in advance in Korea, and I'm prepared to record it for review, but what if I still don't understand?”

Typical Ji-woo.

Seo-jun and Ji-yoon admired him. She seemed to have prepared a backup plan on her own.

“I’ll help you too. The class is in English, right? I've watched a lot of American medical works, so it’ll be helpful.”

Ji-woo felt more confident at Seo-jun's smiling face.

“…I trust you more when you talk about works, seo-jun.”

“Me too. It seems like you memorized all the medical terms in the works.”

Ji-yoon nodded repeatedly. It was unbelievable that indirect experience from ‘I saw it in a drama’ could be so reliable.

Soon, the bus to Paris 5 University arrived. Seo-jun, Ji-yoon, and Ji-woo got on the bus and chatted softly.

“By the way, what field does the professor teach?”

At Ji-yoon's question, Ji-woo spoke with a proud voice as if she was bragging about her own work.

“Professor Albert is a neurosurgeon. The Pitie Hospital in France is world-famous for neurosurgery, and Professor Albert is one of the best experts there. He specializes in the brain part of neurosurgery. He has also published a lot of papers related to brain nerves. This special lecture is also about his new paper…”

Seo-jun and Ji-yoon's mouths opened wide at her enthusiastic explanation. He seemed to be a very impressive professor.

“Neurosurgery is divided into brain and spine parts, right? Professor Albert is a brain specialist. He has published a lot of papers on brain nerves. This special lecture is also about his new paper…”

Seo-jun and Ji-yoon blinked their eyes quickly at her enthusiastic explanation.

Isn't that too hard?

But seeing Ji-woo's bright expression, she seemed to do well, and Seo-jun and Ji-yoon soon smiled.

A little later.

The bus stopped at a bus stop near Paris 5 University. Ji-woo, Ji-yoon, and Seo-jun, who seemed to have forgotten their worries and were excited, got off the bus.

As they walked towards Paris 5 University with their friends, seo-jun noticed someone in front of the university gate.

He seemed to be looking at them with a welcoming expression.

“Ji-woo, did someone say they would come to meet you?”

Ji-woo, who was admiring the scenery of Paris 5 University with a flushed face, came to his senses and turned her head at Seo-jun's question.

“Oh. Maybe an assistant or a staff member… Professor Albert?”

She spoke with a flustered expression.

The middle-aged man, who was approaching them with a happy expression, smiled broadly.

“/Oh! That's right! Nice to meet you, Park!/”

He was Albert Mohr, a professor who had one of the best skills in the world in the brain part of neurosurgery.

He came out to meet the young student who had bravely and boldly asked to audit his special lecture by email.