She invited them to a fast food restaurant for a meal. Hoseok was hesitant to reject, so there they were.
The four of them sat at the same table together. Seokjin sat beside Wendy, and Jiah sat beside her boss. Across from Jiah was Wendy, and she felt awkward with the woman's soft gaze fixed on her. An aura of elegance emanated from her, leading Jiah to assume that she came from a wealthy family and was possibly more educated than herself.
Then there was Hoseok. He tended to be quiet most of the time, but the quietness he displayed now was different. There was no shyness in his demeanor. He stared straight at the wall behind Seokjin, his jaws clenched, yet he sat humbly and stiffly. Jiah was certain that his hands were clenching and unclenching under the table.
'Who is this girl?' she wondered.
Their food, except for Wendy who only ordered fries and a soda, had arrived long ago and remained untouched. Wendy had an arm positioned under her breast, and with her slender hand, she controlled the bites she brought into her mouth. After pushing a small piece into her mouth, she rubbed her fingers together to remove the residue from the fries.
Her chuckle was soft, and it even melted Jiah. "Why aren't you eating?" the woman asked in a gentle tone.
No one answered until Seokjin spoke up, "It's impolite to eat before our boss, don't you agree?"
That was a ridiculous excuse, especially considering he was the oldest one there.
Confused, Jiah arched her eyebrows. "Boss?"
Seokjin replied, "Yes."
Wendy turned to look at the quiet man beside him and smiled. "Congratulations," she said with the same softness in her tone.
Wendy seemed to have a close relationship with her boss in the past. However, she didn't seem to know how he got the boss position. If she knew, she wouldn't have reacted with such confusion.
"How are you and Yoongi?" Wendy asked.
Seokjin answered again, "I'm great. Same goes for the ramen head." Wendy laughed at his joke, which seemed to help lighten the tense atmosphere. Seokjin then looked at Hoseok and added, "And what about Jiah's shadow? I don't know."
"Jiah?" Wendy looked at her. "Your name is Jiah." Her tone was confident yet still soft.
Lee Jiah nodded.
A smile spread across Wendy's lips. "Are you Seokjin's girlfriend?"
Jiah gasped, flustered. She frantically waved her hand, denying, "No, no, no, no. I'm not Seokjin's girlfriend."
Wendy's smile became lopsided. "Hoseok's girlfriend then?"
"Oh, no! Not his either," Jiah answered, and Wendy chuckled. "I'm Hoseok's P.A."
"Oh!" The blonde exclaimed, raising her eyebrows. She looked at the stiffened Hoseok. "I'm sure Hoseok has troubled you a lot."
Jiah waved her hand dismissively, let out a breathy laugh, and said, "He hasn't done anything like that. He's been a good boss."
Chuckling, Wendy commented, "I've known Hoseok. He's quite a troublemaker."
She heard Seokjin mumble, "Agreeable. He's given me and his sister a lot of headaches."
Wendy continued, "He used to get caught skipping classes just to hang out at the cyber café. He hung out there to watch dancing vi—"
A harsh tone interrupted her as Hoseok, the man of the topic, cut in. "When did you arrive?"
Seokjin and Jiah were startled by the intonation in his voice. Surprisingly, Wendy remained calm.
Wendy answered, "Last Sunday."
"Why?" Hoseok asked in a deadpan tone.
Her eyebrows jumped. "Why? South Korea is my birthplace."
Jiah was amazed at how calmly Wendy handled the situation.
"You spoke as if you never wanted to return," Hoseok said.
Unsettled by the unexpected atmosphere, Seokjin unwrapped his burger, looked out of the window, took a big bite, and started chewing.
"But I never said I wouldn't visit," Wendy calmly responded. She took a sip of her soda and then Hoseok fell silent, his gaze shifting to the window.
Jiah wondered about the story between them that had caused Hoseok's sudden change. It felt foreign, and his words left her feeling cold.
Wendy, too, seemed to have noticed the cold shoulder Hoseok gave. Inhaling deeply, she smiled and glanced briefly at Jiah. She uncrossed her legs and arms and said, "It's nice to meet you, Jiah. Please send my regards to Yoongi."
With her mouth full, Seokjin gaped at Wendy and asked, "Are you leaving already?"
"Yup. I can't stay long," Wendy said. The blonde then shifted her focus to Hoseok and added, "I hope we can meet again." Her words received no response, so she slowly stood up from her seat and mouthed "See you" to Jiah and Seokjin.
And with that, after putting on her coat, she walked away from them. Her ankle boots clacked against the floor with each casual step she took. Upon hearing the wincing noise from the entrance, Seokjin slapped Hoseok's arm, gritting his teeth as he chided, "What was that for?"
A grimace appeared on Hoseok's face as he rubbed his throbbing arm. He snapped back, "What was what?"
Seokjin seemed baffled by his response. He said, "When will you learn to let go of the past?"
Hoseok retorted, "I've let it go."
"What's with the gloom when she was here then?"
"You don't understand, hyung," the guy in the hoodie muttered, shaking his head.
"I know I don't, but you don't need to give her the cold shoulder."
"It's better if you keep your mouth shut." The tone he used scared Jiah. There it was, Hoseok slowly unleashing his anger. "You know nothing about what happened between us. It's better if you keep your mouth shut!"
On their way home, the car fell silent once again. It was colder than the weather outside, so cold that Jiah's inner self felt frozen. She wished she could do something to melt the cold, but upon noticing Hoseok's frowns, she chose to remain frozen. Frozen like the cold wind and snow.
**********
Prior to that day, Yoongi had mentioned that letting Jiah accompany Hoseok alone didn’t sit well with him, so he planned to go with them. All the staff promised to meet at the boutique, except Jiah, who was given an excuse to get ready at home. Wheein took charge of grooming Hoseok after receiving a visual example of Jiah's desired curl.
Even though they didn't have many customers that day, the preparation for the event kept them busy. Wheein curled Hoseok's short hair into a soft, wavy style. He mumbled through the contents on the paper he held, moving from one paragraph to another.
Hoseok's slender silhouette was enhanced by his French rose suit, revealing the charisma he typically hid. His white formal shoes shone brightly. He had to admit he was nervous, but the chewy chocolate Jiah bought helped to lessen his anxiety.
Once Wheein finished styling his hair, she turned off the hair tools, but Hoseok remained focused on memorizing his speech. His eyebrows were furrowed, and he continued to chew on something.
"I'm done with your hair," Wheein said.
Hoseok glanced at her briefly, twitched a smile, and then returned to his paper. "Thanks!" he said.
"May I leave?"
"Yes, you may," he replied, his eyes still fixed on the paper.
With that, Wheein left. Hoseok became fully immersed in his mental recitation and the context of the speech that Yoongi had prepared.
Reading, memorizing, reading. Chewing, reading, chewing. He continued until Seokjin came into his office. "Hey, you need to go now," Seokjin said.
Hoseok stood up from the chair but found himself frozen with a thought.
'Wendy.'
**********
Even though they had arrived at Kang's company, Hoseok still had the paper in his hand. They stopped in front of the revolving door when Yoongi turned his head to look at him and said, "Bring the paper with you."
Hoseok exhaled and replied, "I don't think it'll be a good idea. They'll look down on me."
"Who cares? It's the same for emcees and news reporters who still rely on cue cards and projectors." The older man could be right. Then, Yoongi turned to Jiah and asked, "Are you ready?"
Jiah nodded before facing her boss. Hoseok felt his cheeks heat up as their eyes accidentally met. "Hoseok?" he heard her say.
"Y-yeah?" he answered.
"Are you okay?"
"W-well… yeah," he lied. How could he be okay? Standing beside a beautiful woman, how could he be okay?
Jiah wore the dress they had bought prior to the day, with her hair half-up. Her makeup seemed more than usual. Her curled eyelashes, rose gold eyeshadow that complemented her eyes, thin eyeliner, and perfectly shaped eyebrows matched her face. She looked more feminine and mature, and his heart skipped a beat upon seeing her.
Oh, don't get him started on those pink, glossy gradient lips!
"Why are you blushing?" Yoongi asked as soon as Jiah went to talk to the receptionist. "Don't tell me the thought of meeting Wendy got you excited."
Then, it struck him. "Wendy is here? How did you know?" he asked, surprised by the news.
"I've been doing my job. What did I say last time? I said the whole family of this shit is gonna come, didn't I?"
Hoseok was speechless.
He should have paid more attention when Yoongi announced it to them. Of course, he was aware that Wendy was part of the family, but he didn't expect her return to be related to the event. "Does that mean Soohyuk is here too?" he asked.
Yoongi scoffed, "Are you dumb? He ran away with your sister. Do you think he dares to come back?"
The older man despised the family, and visiting that place seemed to have triggered his anger. Hoseok remained quiet until his assistant returned to inform them that they were ready to go.
This time, Yoongi walked in front of them, guiding them to the hall. Upon their arrival, the doormen opened the massive mahogany door. They were greeted by the chattering of businessmen and flashes from camera lights.
Yoongi gave them a cold, nonchalant look, his hands in his khaki coat pockets as always. Jiah seemed uncertain of how to present herself, but she managed a small smile. Hoseok remained stoic.
As the flashes subsided, Wendy entered the scene. Her long blonde hair was tied into a low ponytail. She wore a sleeveless black short dress with a halter neckline. The skirt reached her thighs, and silver and shiny vertical lines glittered around the dress. Her long, silver brandy earrings swung as she leisurely approached them in her black stilettos.
"We've been waiting for you," she said, smiling at them. "Welcome to In-Kang's and Company, Jiah!"
His assistant smiled back and bowed to thank Wendy.
Yoongi spoke, "When does the event start?"
"It'll start shortly," Wendy replied. "Damn, it's been so long since we last met. You never change."
Yoongi let the comment pass and returned her smile.
After a few moments, they were guided to their seats. A few familiar faces greeted them, and Yoongi was the one who often answered any questions that came their way. New faces also came to greet them—some were friendly, some adopted a fake tone, and some loved to brag—and Yoongi entertained them all.
Hoseok still couldn't comprehend how the older man managed to handle all these people. Yoongi did an excellent job of masking his true emotions without changing his demeanor.
"Are you okay, Hoseok? I heard you'll be going to the stage in a few minutes," Jiah said, and he turned to look at her. Her proximity caught him off guard, and he almost stumbled backward. If it weren't for Yoongi's empty seat beside him, he might have fallen to the floor.
"Oh-oh-oh." He looked away and only glanced at her every now and then. "I'm-I'm okay."
"Are you sure? Do you want more chocolates?"
"Oh, uhh… No, thanks. I'm-I'm good."
Jiah giggled, giving him a nose-scrunching smile. "Okay. You can do it!" She returned to her seat and looked around.
He absentmindedly touched his collarbone, a habit he didn't realize he had. His eyes scanned the hall. The last time he had visited, the walls were painted gray. That day, the walls were white with vertical golden tiled stripes spanning from the start to the end of the building. The changes in interior design did nothing to ease his anxiety.
There was nothing he could do except keep the lines of his speech intact in his mind. Then, he wondered what was taking them so long to start.
'Shortly, my ass,' he thought.
Soon enough, the hall door opened. All heads turned toward it and stood up. A middle-aged man in formal attire stood under the large doorframe. The CEO of the company wore a huge grin and walked down the aisle. Beside him was a young man in his twenties, wearing a black turtleneck, gray coat, and dress shoes, standing proud but appearing cold. Colder than Yoongi. That was the CEO's son.
On the other side of the CEO, the spot that was supposed to be Soohyuk's remained empty. However, Wendy soon joined them and filled the vacant spot, walking with them before moving to the stage. The woman's demeanor never changed—always elegant. They looked superior until Mr. Kang's biological son stiffened, staring wide-eyed at Jiah.
"Lee Jiah?" Mr. Kang's son said.
Jiah stiffened as well. "Kang Maru?"