"Nope."
"Ha, wait for it. I promise you'll be surprised."
"It sounds like you know about it, want to give me a hint?" smiling, Lisa probed.
"Nope, Jungkook will kill me. Bye." Then, Bambam stopped replying.
She knew that Jungkook treated her like a queen; therefore, he was definitely going to make a big deal out of her birthday.
Born in March, Lisa was an Aries.
Most of the Aries had emotional OCD, would never forgive cheaters, and found it hard to fall in love.
If an Aries fell in love, they would stay in love with that person for the rest of their life...
Stubborn Aries led a tiring life.
When Lisa got home after work, Jungkook was already back.
"You're home early today."
"Yeah."
"What do you want to eat tonight? I'll cook."
"We're not eating at home tonight."
"Not at home? Where are we going? What do you feel like eating?" Lisa asked with a smile.
"We're going back to the Jeon mansion for dinner."
"Why would we do that?" Lisa felt uncomfortable at the mention of the Jeon mansion.
"You're my wife, you need to go back with your head tall. Plus, didn't you announce that you would go back with me to have dinner that day you went to the mansion?"
Lisa was speechless at the thought of that, "I said that when I was angry just to piss off your mom. Of course I wasn't actually going to go, why did you take me so seriously?"
"You said so, you have to keep your promise. Plus, my mom might be waiting for you at home."
"Ha... don't scare me, why would she be waiting for me? To chop me into pieces?"
"It's okay, your husband will be there, no one will do that to you."
Then, ignoring Lisa's objections, Jungkook put a jacket on her and led her out the door.
"I might have to drink with dad, why don't you drive, doll?"
"Sure."
"Driving your car," Jungkook suddenly said as he watched Lisa walk towards his Maybach.
"Isn't my car at the shop?" Lisa was surprised.
"No, not that one, this one." He pointed at a shiny new silver Audi R8 beside him.
"Ahem... you bought me a new car?"
"Yeah, it's a little cheap, but Audi is a low-key brand and agrees with your style. Plus, this was shipped from Germany so it's very safe to drive. The car suits you."
"Cheap? Are you kidding me, Kook?" Lisa was speechless; did Jungkook really think that she didn't know anything about cars? This model, along with its top-tier configurations, cost at least 2 million. It wasn't cheap at all.
"I originally had my eye on a limited-edition Ferrari, but it was a little too flashy and therefore, unsafe."
Lisa, "-_-"
"This one's good! Ha, I'll drive this one." Compared with flamboyant Ferraris, Lisa much preferred this Audi.
If she drove a Ferrari to South Side, the entire hospital would blow up...
Lisa carefully took the keys and got onto the driver's seat.
Jungkook got onto the passenger seat and helped Lisa buckle up her seatbelt...
"Doll, drive slowly. My life is in your hands."
"Don't worry, you'll be fine." Then, Lisa stepped on the gas pedal, and the car shot out onto the streets, leaving Jungkook in shock...
He wondered if buying Lisa a sports car was the right thing to do...
– The Jeon mansion–
Jungkook and Lisa got off the car, and he took out a few boxes of organic red ginseng and sea cucumber from the trunk of the car.
He was well prepared...
"Let's go, don't worry." Jungkook held onto Lisa with one hand and pressed the doorbell with another.
"Mrs. Jeon, the young master is back!" The housekeeper was obviously happy to see Jungkook.
Mrs. Jeon came downstairs wearing a dark red dress, and her expression changed as soon as she saw Lisa.
"Mom, I brought your beloved daughter-in-law back home for dinner." Jungkook smiled as he tightened his grip around Lisa's hand.
"I think you've mistaken, I don't have a daughter-in-law."
"You're so funny!" Before Jungkook could answer, Lisa walked into their house without a speck of nervousness.
Jungkook walked in after her and placed the presents by the door.
"Mom, Lisa bought these."
"Take it back, I don't want them," Mrs. Jeon said angrily.
When her son called this morning to tell her that he was coming home for dinner, she was so excited that she and the housekeeper made 16 of her son's favorite dishes.
However, he also brought back the plague, talk about feeling distressed.
"Where's Dad?"
"Reading."
"Mom, is dinner ready?" Jungkook asked.
"It is, but... we've only made enough for 3. I didn't think you were bringing someone home," Mrs. Jeon emphasized.
Lisa smiled, and intimately put her arm around Jungkook's. "That's okay, my husband won't mind eating less. I'll just eat from his portion."
Mrs. Jeon was furious; just as she was about to erupt, Jungkook lovingly caressed Lisa's head while looking at her tenderly, "Okay, eat whatever you want, however much you want."
"Okay, I won't hold back."
Lisa smiled, completely ignoring Mrs. Jeon...
Just then, Mr. Jeon came downstairs. "You guys are here?"
"Dad, this is Lisa." Jungkook introduced his wife proudly.
"Hi, Uncle Jeon." Lisa smiled.
"Uhm, let's sit." Mr. Jeon didn't say anything else; he didn't look happy, but he wasn't angry either.
He had already accepted the truth – his son was married to this woman.
The four of them sat down by the giant dining table and went through an awkward dinner.
Mr. Jeon glanced at Jungkook. "Kook, come upstairs with me, I need to talk to you about the company."
Jungkook looked at Lisa with a worried expression on his face; she smiled, as if saying that it was okay for him to go.
Mrs. Jeon bared her fangs as soon as Jungkook left.
She hatefully stared at Lisa. "What are you trying to do? What did you tell my son? How did you trick him into bringing you here?"
"I didn't say anything. I remember telling you that I was going to come for dinner a few days ago, did you forget?"
"I can't believe that you actually came. Let me tell you... leave, I don't want to see you again, and take your stupid stuff back with you, I don't want them... I won't accept you... even if you suck up to me and buy me things." Mrs. Jeon threw the presents hard onto the floor.
"Ha... you make it sound like I want to accept you. The truth is, I didn't buy any of this, Jungkook did. Did you really think that I'd spend a penny on you, given our horrible relationship? Don't think too much. You can throw all that away, but you'll be throwing away Jungkook's money. Oh... right, I forgot to tell you, did you see the Audi R8 parked up front? Kook bought it for me as a present. He will buy anything for me as long as I want it. Didn't you say that I wanted a portion of your wealth? You're right, it sure feels good to be rich..."
"You're such a thick-skinned woman, I really don't understand why my son would fall in love with you. I can't believe you have the audacity to say all that in front of me. After everything you did, isn't your ultimate goal to get my son to spend money on you? If you want money, just tell me, I'll give it to you, I don't mind helping the homeless. Once you get money, get the hell out of our faces, you nauseate us."
"I'm sorry, but you won't be able to give me the amount that I want. I want the whole Jeon Corporation."
"You..." Furious, Mrs. Jeon felt short of breath and fell back onto the couch.
Just then, Jungkook and his father came downstairs...
Just as Mrs. Jeon was about to cry and complain, Lisa immediately went to help her up. "Auntie, are you alright? That was so dangerous, why did you have to wear high heels at home? You could've injured yourself!"
"You..."
"I'm sorry, I can only call you 'auntie'. After all, you and Uncle didn't give me permission and your blessings." Lisa continued to smile, pushing Mrs. Jeon's words back into her mouth.
Jungkook came downstairs with a smile on his face, "See, she is unhappy because you haven't given her your blessings."
"Yes, we do need to do that. Let's pick out a date and hold a make-up reception for the two of you," Mr. Jeon said slowly.
"Thank you, Uncle." Lisa smiled as she walked up to Jungkook.
Mrs. Jeon was so furious that tears welled up in her eyes; however, she couldn't say anything, because Lisa had stuffed her mouth with a metaphorical sock.
"What's wrong? Why are you crying? You just slipped, didn't you?" Mr. Jeon walked over to his wife and helped her up.
"Thank you for dinner, we will get going now. We'll make sure to come to see you guys more often." Lisa emphasized 'more often'.
Then, she locked arms with Jungkook and left...
As soon as they left, Mrs.Jeon sat on the couch and began wailing.
"What on earth did I do to deserve this, why would Kook marry a woman like that? He's pushing me off a cliff."
"What's wrong...?" Mr Jeon was confused as to why his wife was agitated.
"Did you see the show that little vixen just put on? She has our son on a leash and is pretending to be a good daughter-in-law in front of us. You have no idea what she said to me when you guys were upstairs just now."
– Inside the Audi R8 –
"Did I go too far just now?" Lisa asked quietly.
"Why would you say that?"
"I made your mom so mad that she cried."
"Ha... it's her fault too, why would she pick on you? The older people get, the more childish they become."
Lisa knew that she wouldn't be able to lie to Jungkook, because they knew each other too well.
She wondered if Jungkook would feel upset with her for doing this.
Lisa fell silent...
"Are you not happy? Don't you like the car?"
"No, I do, is this my birthday present?" Lisa asked.
"Birthday present? Of course not, how lame would I be to use this as a present?"
"I heard Bambam say that you had a surprise for me."
"That dude... he can't keep secrets. I told him not to tell you."
"He didn't say anything, he just told me that there was a surprise waiting for me. I look forward to it."
"You'll find out soon." Jungkook smiled mysteriously.
The next day, Lisa drove her new car to South Side.
It really did cause a scene...
Although a lot of the people here drove BMWs and Mercedes Benz, there weren't a lot of sports cars, and although an Audi R8 wasn't as expensive as a Ferrari or a Lamborghini, it was still considered a luxury car, and cost no less than a Porsche or Maserati.
She purposely chose a turtleneck to wear, because Jungkook went crazy on her last night...
Last night was wild. It was even difficult for to walk as she felt seeping soreness into her bones. Jungkook left hickeys all over her neck, so she wore a turtleneck so others wouldn't see.
With her beige turtleneck, white casual pants and ponytail, she looked really young.
The truth was, Lisa was only 24 years old. She was young, the youngest head nurse at South Side.
She was also the strictest and most respected head nurse, with a stellar reputation. She was great, aside from her slight indifference towards others.
"Woah... Head Nurse, did you win the jackpot?" After seeing the car, the little nurses chattered and interrogated her in her office.
"My boyfriend gave it to me." Lisa smiled.
"Your boyfriend is a second-generation heir, isn't he? He's really rich, buying you an expensive car."
"Yeah, he's somewhat rich. We're getting married soon, that's why he gave me a car."
Lisa didn't want the others to think that she was toying with rich men, so she made it clear that she was getting married.
"That's great, you're marrying into a rich family!"
"Not a rich family, just a well-off one." Lisa was modest.
"Head Nurse, you have a delivery! Please sign for it!" a nurse outside shouted.
The other nurses immediately left the office, leaving no one but Lisa inside it.
The delivery boy slowly walked in...
"What delivery?" Lisa randomly asked.
"Me."
Lisa looked up in surprise upon hearing the voice; it was Jimin's smug face under the yellow baseball cap.
"Jimin? Why are you dressed like that?"
Lisa almost went crazy when he saw Jimin posing as a delivery boy...
"The media has been following me really closely, so I have to be careful during the day."
"Do you need me for something?"
"Can't I come to see you because I miss you?" Jimin casually pulled up a chair and sat down from across Lisa.
Lisa fell silent...
"I'm sorry about Seulgi."
"Don't apologize, it's not your fault." Lisa looked up at Jimin.
"I didn't hurt you, but you were hurt because of me. It's the same thing. It's not my fault, but Seulgi tried to get rid of you because of me. Thank god you're okay, or else I'll regret it forever."
"Don't say that, you sought revenge for me. You sent in the evidence, didn't you?"
"Yeah, I gave her a chance, but she didn't take it. If she told me the truth, I only would have banned her and maybe lock her up for three or four years."
"But she was sentenced to 8 years. I heard that she lost the second trial. You made sure of that, didn't you?" Lisa heard from Bambam that Seulgi wasn't happy with the results of the initial trial, so she appealed, but the appellate court upheld the original sentence.
"Yeah, 8 years is a light sentence for her."
"It isn't. She's a celebrity, eight years in jail will ruin her."
"Do you feel bad for her?" Jimin asked her with a smile.
"Of course I don't, I'm just speaking the truth."
"So... is it also the truth that you used me?
Lisa froze for a second before replying, "It is the truth, but I didn't do it on purpose."
"It's okay, I don't blame you. Not a lot of people can see through me, but you found my pressure point. God purposely arranged our encounter but didn't give me a fair chance. I think he's playing a joke on me..." Jimin smiled bitterly.
"So you're here to complain to me?"
"Of course not. I told you, I missed you, so I wanted to come and see you. You're never on Instagram; I keep checking, but you're never on."
"I don't use Instagram often."
"Add me on WeChat."
"No."
"Tsk tsk... you're so mean." Jimin smiled, he didn't think that Lisa would be reasonable anyway.
"You got a new car?" He saw an Audi R8 parked at Lisa's usual spot.
"Yeah."
"Jungkook's so cheap. If you were my wife, I would buy you a Bugatti Veyron."
Lisa, "-_-"
"I like Audi. It's about the brand and has nothing to do with money."
"Hey, Lisa...?" Jimin's voice suddenly became deep and thoughtful.
"Yeah?" Lisa looked up.
"Do you know what I like most about you?"
"Nope."
"I love it when you play an arrogant bitch, it's so adorable!" Jimin broke into hysterical laughter.
Lisa, "-_-"
She had to admit that she finally found someone creepier than Sehun – Jimin.
"Get me some water, I'm thirsty."
Lisa picked up a disposable cup and poured him some water.
"It's your birthday soon, what do you want as a present?" Jimin asked nonchalantly after drinking the water.
"How did you know?"
"Haha... if I wanted to, I could get information on anything."
"I don't want anything, you don't have to buy me a present. I won't accept it."
Lisa knew that Jimin always burned money like it was paper... It scared her...
She was never going to accept anything expensive from him.
"As your good friend, I would like to buy you a present. Is that a problem? Don't be such a Miss Prissy Pants, tell me, what do you want? If you want it, if I can get it..."
"Jimin..." Lisa bit down on her lips and said.
"Yeah?"
"We... were never friends." Lisa stared into jimin's eyes and said, word for word.
Jimin felt like something deep down was slowly tearing his heart apart. It was really... really... painful...
"Yeah, you're right, we... were never friends," Jimun looked down and repeated what Lisa said.
Jimin felt like he was crazy in love with Lisa, but Lisa never once accepted his nice gestures. She didn't want his presents and didn't let him help her with anything...
She was aware of her place from the beginning. She didn't need others to remind her not to get too close with Jimin...
"I'm sorry, I might've been too harsh, but..." Lisa felt bad, seeing Jimin so battered.
"It's okay, I know how much I'm worth to you. I know that I can't, at least not right now, compete with Jungkook. But Lisa, remember this. Maybe I used to have a shit reputation and used to be an asshole, but from now on, from this moment, I'm going to work hard... to become an important person in your life, even if I can't take Jungkook's place. I want to become someone who is important to you, whether it's your friend or lover. I will work hard to achieve my goal, and I don't plan on giving up."
Jimin's words shocked Lisa to her core...
She didn't think he was joking. Lisa was worried, she wanted to make things clear to Jimin so he didn't keep fantasizing about them.
"Jimin, don't be like that, we will never be together and will never..."
"There's no such thing as 'never'. God is mysterious, I believe there's a reason why he planned for us to meet. I don't believe he did it just to screw me. Bye." Then, Jimin turned around to leave before Lisa had a chance to respond.
Lisa was left alone in her office, feeling bad...
Ultimately, relationships have to be a two-way street; she and Jungkook were perfect right now, although they put a lot of effort and care into maintaining their relationship.
But she knew who she loved and treasured the most in this world.
Not only did Jimin's involvement affect their lives; more importantly, with Jimin's family background, he didn't have to be known as the 'third person' in anyone's relationship. Jimin never had any shortage of girls around him. Yet, for some reason, he seemed to be in a trance, and the only person he wanted was Lisa.
Distracted, Jimin left South Side. He changed out of the weird delivery man outfit and into luxury brand clothing. Then, he drove his eyeball-grabbing Lamborghini all the way to a club.
"Hey, you're here early today." Bang Chan was surprised to see Jimin here at the club and not his company.
"You seem to be in a bad mood, what's wrong? You look like you need a woman to satisfy your needs." Taehyung laughed.
Jimin didn't say anything; he went up to them, sat down, poured himself a glass of liquor, and drank it all...
"It's her birthday soon."
"Who? Whose birthday?" Bang chan was confused.
"Who else? Your mom? Of course the girl he's in love with, who else? Why, do you want to impress Lisa on her birthday?" Taehyung immediately guessed Jimin's thoughts.
"Yeah, I need some ideas, what should I give her? I want her birthday to be unforgettable."
"That's easy, take your boat out from the dock and sail to international waters. Then, party for 24 straight hours, from dawn to dusk," Bang Chan suggested.
"Tacky," Jimin said coldly.
"What about booking Ritz Carlton and throwing her a birthday party? You can invite all the celebrities from your company."
"That's too high profile, the entire world will know about it the next day."
"I'm out of ideas. Taehyung, it's your turn now." Bang Chan's two ideas were rejected by Jimin, so he threw this hot potato over to Taehyung.
Taehyung smiled wickedly; Jimin knew that his mind was up to no good.
To no one's surprise, Taehyung said slowly, "In my opinion, you shouldn't be too flashy about it. Take your RV and drive her up to the top of the mountain. You guys can look at the night skies, enjoy a candle-lit dinner, and drink some wine. Then, you can drug her and have some next level car sex with her."
"If I sleep with her, she'll be mine, right?" Jimin asked.
"Correct." Taehyung nodded.
"You can fucking go and eat a fat dick! I knew that you were incapable of coming up with good ideas. I'll think about it myself." Then, Jimin got up to leave.
"Hey, you just got here, are you leaving already?" Bang chan didn't want Jimin to leave yet.
"You guys have fun drinking, I need to clear my head and think."
"Holy shit, is he for real? I've never seen him so serious about anything, not even Bighit's annual festival, okay? Lisa is a fucking goddess who managed to tame this wild horse..." Bang chan exclaimed.
"Don't tell me you didn't know, I thought she was a goddess a long time ago. Not only did she marry Jungkook, Jimin is also head over heels whipped. Did you think she was just an ordinary woman?"
"Her looks are unique and have to agree that she is pretty. She's got the strong and charismatic aura, but she definitely is not the most beautiful woman in the world. I mean there are more prettier girls than her."
"A woman's level of attractiveness doesn't come from her looks, because looks don't last. They need to have ways." Taehyung smiled.
"You mean to say that... Lisa has a lot of tricks up her sleeve?"
"I'm not saying that, but I do know that she's really good."
Taehyung had more or less heard about Lisa's past; she was an incredible woman.
In high school, she was involved in a lot of interesting incidents, and therefore Jungkook fell crazily in love with her.
Most interestingly, during Jimin's stay at South Side, Lisa never treated him with a good attitude.
However, for some reason, this young master completely fell for her – holding a stereo below her apartment kind of love, unable to get his head out of his ass kind.
One could say that Lisa was playing hard to get, but the truth was, Lisa didn't play; she was just hard to get...
She didn't want his multi-million-worth sportscar, and she didn't want his multi-million-worth jewelry set. This was the first time in Jimin's life where he couldn't give someone a gift.
It wasn't true to say that Lisa despised money. Everyone liked money, but Lisa wasn't a greedy woman.
She didn't have a reason to accept expensive gifts from Jimin...
She had correct values and was a woman of principle...
However, Lisa sure had a lot to worry about, since Jimin was a suitor with no principle...
*
That night after work, Lisa got home early and kneaded dough to make some scallion pancakes from scratch, along with a light tomato-cucumber soup.
She had just poured the soup into bowls when Jungkook walked in through the door.
"What delicious food did you cook me today? I smelled it from afar."
"It's really not that delicious, I just made some simple scallion pancakes and soup today." Then, Lisa carefully came out of the kitchen with the bowls.
"I am extremely lucky to have married a virtuous and hardworking woman."
"Then can I say that I'm proud to have married rich?" Lisa smiled as she reached out to untie her apron. However, Jungkook was one step ahead of her – he walked behind her and gently took it off for her.
"Didn't I tell you not to cook so often?"
"But I got off work early today and didn't have much else to do anyway. Ha, come, let's eat."
Jungkook took off his coat and sat across from Lisa. The duo enjoyed a simple dinner together; the TV was on, and they would occasionally glance at the news.
Lisa loved their simple life; she had wanted this for a long time.
It felt safe, was simple, and gave her happiness...
After dinner, Jungkook went up to the study to work after cleaning up the dishes. Lisa, on the other hand, curled up on the couch and watched a Kdrama.
At a little past 10 PM, she felt sleepy, so she went upstairs to take a shower. Then, she rolled into bed.
By then, Jungkook was done with work as well. After taking a quick shower, he got into their bed and pulled Lisa into his arms.
He lovingly kissed her again and again...
"You're so sappy..." Lisa giggled.
"You're my wife, I will never get sick of kissing you."
"That's a given. If you kiss someone else's wife, then you'll be in trouble..."
"You always have such a quick mouth... there's only one way to deal with people like you."
"What's that?" Lisa was confused.
"Like... this," Jungkook said as he lowered his head and gently bit her plump lips. Lisa was caught off guard.