"𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘮𝘺 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘯𝘨?"
"𝘉𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘴."
❝It was only a kiss. Youngseo and Sunghoon actually slept together.❞
STRESSFULLY RUNNING A HAND THROUGH HER HAIR, Hyejin repeatedly pressed the elevator button. "C'mon, c'mon, c'mon." She muttered under her breath, nervously looking around.
"Can you calm down?" Yeonmi asked, momentarily looking up from her ipad.
"Yeonmi, do not tell me to calm down right now." The girl in the long pink floral dress ordered, giving her secretary a desperate look. "It's not like I'm standing here with my makeup and hair professionally done, wearing a, you know, a pretty romantic dress, with...you know what? Maybe we should just go-"
"Nope, we violated too many traffic laws getting here just for you to decide you want to leave." Yeonmi extended her arm over Hyejin's chest, shooting her a stern look.
"Hari could find out that somebody took pictures of her and Jihoon but when she was Shin Hari and not Shin Geumhi and sent them to my parents who are now at Jihoon's apartment, another time." She shrugged with a poor convincing smile.
"Hyejin."
"Yeonmi, please. I can just tell her later!" The dark haired girl pleaded. "Just let me leave-"
"Hyejin." Yeonmi said through gritted teeth which shut Hyejin up. Nodding behind her, the girl in pink confusedly turned around.
"Oh."
"Ms. Choi, Ms. Kim." Sunghoon nodded politely, giving Hyejin a warm smile, despite her frazzled expression.
Looking at Taemoo with wide eyes, Hyejin remained frozen, ignoring his confused gaze until Yeonmi nudged her side. "Is Hari here?" She exclaimed surprisingly loud, catching the attention of employees walking by them. "Is Ms. Shin here?" Awkwardly clearing her throat, she forced a strained smile onto her face.
"She doesn't clock in until two." Sunghoon explained, glancing between the two.
"That's right." Yeonmi hummed, swiping through her ipad. "We're supposed to be meeting her and Youngseo for lunch right now."
Breathing out any feelings of annoyance, Hyejin smiled at Taemoo and Sunghoon and bowed politely. "Sorry for interrupting your schedule, thank you for letting us know."
"Could I to talk to you-"
"Reservation, is that what you said Yeonmi?"
"I didn't mention-"
"Reservation at 9:30?" She gasped a little, staring at her friend with wide eyes.
"Hyejin-"
"We should really get going then."
✧༺♥༻✧
"I'll tell you what." Youngseo let out a deep sigh. "I was in agony craving for this spicy tteokbokki all day.
"What's the matter? You've been whining about being stressed out all day." Hari asked, glancing away from the cup in her hand.
"You're not ready for this. I don't even know where to start." Youngseo shook her head.
"Perhaps, start at the beginning?" Yeonmi shrugged, handing Hyejin her bottle of water.
"Actually, I have something to say too." Hyejin dropped her head into her hands with a deep sigh.
"Stressed minds really do think alike. What's your story?" Youngseo laughed.
"Great minds think alike." Hyejin sternly corrected. "I can't be stressed because I don't work well under stress, and my hair starts to frizz up, and my t-zone starts to get oily-"
"If you're going to ramble all day, I can just go first." Youngseo offered, pointing at herself.
Nodding her head limply, the three girls watched Youngseo with furrowed eyebrows as she remained quiet for a few seconds, looking in between their eyes. "Okay, I slept with Cha Sunghoon."
"What did you say?" Hari shook her head.
"We slept together." Hyejin's head shot up at this while Yeonmi let out a loud laugh. "But, I couldn't remember any of it! So I just ran out of there telling him that it didn't count."
"You did what?" Hari put down her chopsticks.
"I know. I'm crazy." Youngseo frowned.
"I'm shocked you actually slept with him. Even worse, you don't remember any of it." The brunette said. "I'm speechless. I don't know what to say."
"What if you didn't sleep with him?" Yeonmi shrugged, leaning back in her chair. "Mr. Cha is respectful, I doubt he'd sleep with you while you were intoxicated."
"Unless both of you were intoxicated?" Hyejin chimed in with a shrug of her own. "I don't know, this is so crazy!"
"I know this is crazy!" Youngseo exclaimed. "I feel like I'm losing my mind right now. What the hell! Seriously, how can I not remember sleeping with someone? It sucks, 'cause...you all know how much I'm into Sunghoon, don't you?"
"Of course we do." Yeonmi hummed, mid-chew.
"I think my doorman does too." Hyejin chimed in, "He asked me how you two were doing the other day."
"So why...why can't I even remember details for such an important moment between us?"
"Even so, how could you tell him that it didn't count?" Hari reprimanded with a shake of her head. "The poor guy, he must've been shocked."
"It was just because I was so flustered, I wasn't able to think straight." She frowned, looking down disappointedly.
"Then you should've just told him that you don't remember it."
"She's right." Yeonmi nodded. "Now he's just going to go around thinking that you really do want it to be nothing."
"Hey!" Youngseo shouted, scaring the three around her. "Why would you make me do that? He'll think I'm the kind of woman who gets drunk and goes around...doing that. No way." She grimaced.
"Or, he'll think you got drunk that one time, and only did it that one time with him. Because you like him." The girl in pink shrugged, waving her chopsticks to emphasize her point.
"Then it'll probably just hurt his pride. Yeah that's true."
"So what now? What's your plan?"
"I have absolutely no idea." The girl in the orange trench coat shook her head with a deep sigh. "What about you Hyejin? What did you want to tell us?"
Swallowing harshly, Hyejin gave them an awkward smile.''It's fine, we can talk about it another time." As soon as she said that, her phone vibrated repeatedly in Yeonmi's hand, causing all four heads to turn towards it "You want to give that to me?"
"Thanks to you we had a great time." Yeonmi read out loud before glancing at the girl beside her with furrowed eyebrows. "Hyejin, is this a picture of you and Taemoo? And a picture of Hari and Jihoon? Please say hi for me to your boyfriends?"
"Why does she wanna say hi to my boyfriend so bad? Does she not know what boundaries are? I knew she had another intention behind begging me to meet my handsome boyfriend." She scoffed in offense as she snatched her phone back. After a moment of silence, she slowly glanced up to see the girls staring at her in shock and giggled nervously. "Fake boyfriend, because you know, we're fake dating, so I have to-."
"Hyejin, what are they talking about? Because for some reason they're calling President Kang your boyfriend and President Choi Hari's boyfriend." Yeonmi cut her off.
"Long story short?" Hyejin sighed. "Taemoo and I coincidentally stayed the weekend at the same hotel as everybody else, he played the role of my boyfriend the whole time, and we kissed. Then-"
"You kissed?" They all exclaimed in shock.
"It was only a kiss. Youngseo and Sunghoon actually slept together." She defended.
"That's why you were acting so weird around him earlier." Yeonmi said in realization. "You two still haven't talked about the kiss."
"Basically." Hyejin sighed with a shake of her head before continuing. "Hari and Jihoon were acting very lovey dovey on that trip and he brought his boat over so we could go fishing. And somebody took pictures of them together and sent it to my parents."
"What?" Hari mumbled. "You're joking, right?"
"You remember that bastard who recorded those secret videos of us? Well, apparently President Kang and Jihoon helped his past victims file lawsuits so he gets a harsher sentence." Youngseo said.
"Which is why the lawyer told us she was already on the case!" Yeonmi exclaimed in realization.
"I remember thinking, weird, why'd they do that? Turns out they only did it because they were into you!"
✧༺♥༻✧
Staring at herself in the long mirror, Hyejin patted down the long blue dress with a frown. "What's wrong?" Yeonmi asked, walking into the room filled with makeup artists, hairdressers, and seamstresses.
"I don't know." She sighed, glancing at the women through the mirror. "It's just...it's just-"
"You want to enjoy your event, but you can't because you're thinking about the kiss."
"Why can everyone read me so well?" Hyejin huffed with a roll of her eyes before deflating. "I have everything I dreamed of as a child in the palm of my hand. My dream job, you, Hari, Youngseo, and now Taemoo. But I just can't help thinking that I pushed him into this."
"What do you mean?" Yeonmi inquired, putting her clipboard on the small glass table next to the mirror.
"He never bothered with dating and I was just convenient for him." She shrugged, biting the inside of her cheek. "I was a business opportunity, our relationship which is now all over every news outlet, gives his company even more publicity, and it gets his grandfather off his back."
Frowning slightly at her crestfallen expression, Yeonmi let out a small sigh. "Do you really think he'd go through everything he did just for some publicity he doesn't even need? And his grandfather has been off his back since you two went to that concert."
"I know." Hyejin sighed, repositioning the ruffles at the top of the dress. "What if he just kind of tricked himself into thinking he's into me?"
"Ms. Choi, it's time for you to come out."
"She'll be out in a second." Yeonmi said, giving the man a nod before helping Hyejin down. "Listen. Just think about going out there and working your magic. Anyone would be lucky to have the privilege to be with you." She hummed, gathering her hair and bringing it over her shoulders.
✧༺♥༻✧
Rushing out the elevator, tote bag slung over her shoulders, Hyejin quickly removed her mask as she neared the filming site. 'Uh, Ms-Ms. Choi?"
"Ah, yes! Ms. Yeo." Hyejin let out a sigh of relief at the sight of a familiar face. "Do you know where Hari is? She called me and told me to stop by for a while."
"She's over there!" Kevin exclaimed excitedly, giving the girl in black a what she assumed was supposed to be a charming smile.
"Thank you." She bowed politely before rushing over to where he had pointed.
"Finally!" Hari let out a deep sigh at the sight of Hyejin. "What took you so long?"
"I was home, I'm sorry." Hyejin quickly apologized as she took out her makeup bag.
"The one time I need your help you decide to be at home?" Hari said, ignoring the eye roll she got in reply.
"Why'd you even need my help? There's a bunch of makeup artists here."
"I didn't really need your help, I just assumed since we're sort of going through similar things right now, it would be easier dealing with Minwoo with you here." She explained sheepishly as Hyejin softly blended in the blush on her face.
Pausing her movement, she softly tilted her head with a small pout on her face. "You could have just asked me to show up."
"Would you have come?" Hari said, knitting her eyebrows together. "Even with the possibility of you seeing President Kang?"
"Of course I would've come." She chuckled, lightly powdering Hari's face. "What kind of friend would I be if I didn't?"
"A terrible friend."
"Thanks for that." Hyejin snorted, putting the few products she took out, away. "Alright, you are good to go."
"Do you really think it won't be awkward?"
"What won't be awkward?"
"Hyejin?"
"Okay, it might be a little awkward with the whole love triangle, but it's not like Jihoon is here."
✧༺♥༻✧
"She's going to do great, you know." A clearly very drugged Hyeji said, slumping onto Hyejin's shoulder just as they were doing the last touch up.
"Alright, off you go." Uijoo mumbled watching Kevin drag her away. "Ms. Shin is very reliable, she'll get the job done."
Laughing nervously, Hyejin nodded along. "I don't doubt that." Giving her one last smile, Uijoo walked away to join the two and sat down just as a cameraman approached Hyejin.
"All right everyone, let's get started."
"You said you'd wait till Ms. Shin contacted you first, didn't you?" Sunghoon questioned as the three men walked side by side.
"Sunghoon, Sunghoon, Sunghoon." Jihoon tutted with a small shake of his head. "You just don't get it do you?"
"Could you please elaborate?"
Letting out a deep sigh as they neared the corner. "Is this what drug addicts face? Because I was so used to seeing her everyday and now that she's purposely avoiding me, it's seriously hurting me in every way. Shin Hari is giving me withdrawal symptoms."
"I don't think that helped anyone understand it any better."
"So you're telling me my sister ignoring you isn't bothering you?"
"Whatever, it doesn't matter." Taemoo cleared his throat. "Let's just-"
His sentence was cut short by a dramatic gasp from the man in the gray standing beside him. "He really is trying to steal my-my-" He paused with furrowed eyebrows, before letting out a noise of annoyance. "It doesn't matter! He's trying to swoop in. And she's just watching!"
"Hyejin?" He mumbled, his head snapping over to where Jihoon was angrily pointing. Ignoring the quiet, mad mumbling coming from the man beside him, Taemoo watched stuck in his place as Hyejin gave the cameraman an encouraging smile, her rosy cheeks pushing into her eyes.
"Why are they shooting together?" Jihoon finally huffed out a whine, moving closer. "Let me ask that backstabber." Before Sunghoon could drag him back, he had already quickly made his way to where Hyejin was standing with her arms crossed. "Hey, why didn't you tell me-"
Turning around towards the familiar voice, Hyejin's face scrunched up in confusion. "Jihoon?" In the same second, a quiet gasp left her mouth. "Jihoon! What are you doing here?"
"I came to catch a glimpse of Hari!" He quietly exclaimed. "Why didn't you tell me they were filming together?"
"I hope you know how stalkerish you sound-"
"Wait, shush. Hari's speaking."
"Should I cut up the vegetables in advance while you're cooking, Chef Lee?" Hari asked, pointing over to the washed vegetables laid out in the basket in front of her.
"Okay, you got to see her face and hear her speak, it's time for you to leave." Hyejin said, putting her hands on her brother's arms and attempting to turn him around.
"No, no." Jihoon gently pushed her hands away, his eyes never leaving Hari's face. "I want to make sure that bastard Minwoo behaves."
"Why do you even hate him so much?" Hyejin sighed, finally caving in just as Hari finished cutting the first onion.
Rolling his eyes at the memory, Jihoon clenched his jaw as he crossed his arms over his chest. "That day when I was supposed to take Hari to the hospital, I took her to her house instead because she refused to go anywhere else. And when we got there, she was already feeling better, but I walked her to the door and confessed."
"You told her you liked her?" Hyejin repeated, letting out a small hum. "She never mentioned it."
"Yeah well before she could even reply to me, Minwoo came from inside the chicken shop and put on his good boy act. Doesn't he have a girlfriend?" Before Hyejin could reply to him, she saw Hari look up from the cutting board, her hands never stopping as she glanced between the two siblings, and occasionally Minwoo with unease.
"Cut!" The director shouted as everyone around gasped at the red liquid squirting from the cutting board.
"Blood! Blood! Blood!" Hyeji exclaimed just as Hyejin quickly grabbed Jihoon's arm and pulled him back despite her shock.
"Are you okay, Hari?" Minwoo asked with wide eyes as the crew watched with hands over their mouths.
"Yeah. This isn't blood. I accidentally pressed on the sauce bottle. Sorry, everyone." Hari shakily explained as she held up the bottle. "I'm okay."
✧༺♥༻✧
Walking out of the bathroom with her hands deep into her dark trench coat, Hyejin slowly came to a pause as a body stopped in front of her. Slowly dragging her eyes up, she came face to face with Taemoo. "It's been quite a while."
"We ran into each other yesterday." Hyejin reminded him with a small smile just as they both glanced at each other's outfits. "Guess we coincidentally matched."
They remained quiet for a minute until she finally let out a deep breath. "Taemoo, our kiss-" Before she could finish, Sunghoon approached the couple quickly.
"Jihoon and Ms. Shin are running away from your parents and the Chairman. They're now heading over here."
Glancing between the two quickly, Taemoo panicked and grabbed Hyejin's hand and pushed Sunghoon towards his now approaching grandfather. The two ran down the hall Hyejin just came from, taking the first turn they saw. "Why are we running away from your grandfather? He loves me!"
"That's before he thought we had something to do with Jihoon cheating on Shin Geumhi. And before he found out the basis of our relationship." He panted as he led them into the cafeteria. Running into the most discreet corner, Taemoo gently placed Hyejin's back against the wall, shushing her as his grandfather entered. "Damn it, my leg." Dagoo cursed.
"Chairman Kang."
"I don't have the energy for this." The older man huffed, his cane hitting the floor once more. "Where is that boy hiding? Tell him to show his face right now!"
"Careful, sir. The employees are gonna hear." Sunghoon attempted.
Keeping her head down, Hyejin took short breaths as she listened. "You! I want you to go and tell him he's going to have to start going on blind dates again if he's not planning on actually getting with Ms. Choi." Looking up at the man in front of her, Hyejin's breath hitched when she saw he was already looking at her. Eyes slowly taking in his face, she couldn't help but notice how his ears were turning red, the way they always did in the cold.
Once the sound of Dagoo's cane faded, Taemoo stepped back, shoving his hands into his pockets. "I already told my grandfather that this was a business proposal."
"Oh." She mumbled, her eyes refocusing onto his eyes.
"Better to get it done this early."
"Better to get it done this early." She repeated with a nod. "Go on those dates, Taemoo."
"Are you saying...you don't want to give us a try?" He slowly asked, looking between her eyes intently.
"What I'm saying is maybe I'm just not ready for a relationship." She forced a small smile, shrugging her shoulders.
"You? The same person who signs her name with hearts on everything, has a wall dedicated to movie quotes about love in her office-"
"That's me romanticizing the idea, Taemoo. That doesn't mean anything." Hyejin scoffed with a shake of her head.
"You didn't let me finish" He pushed, never moving his gaze from her eyes. "You're there for your friends in a heartbeat, your brother can only talk about how highly he thinks about you, you're always putting people before yourself, no matter how hard you try to make people believe otherwise. And you're going to stand here and tell me that you, Choi Hyejin, the people's sweetheart, aren't ready to let someone treat you the way you deserve?"
Heart stopping in her throat, Hyejin stared up at him with her mouth slightly agape. "You might not have believed me yesterday, so let me say it again. I like you, Hyejin, and I do have feelings for you. And I'm not going to give up. Reject me and I'll just keep asking, again and again and again, because I'd rather you reject me than not want me in your life anymore. You need to brace yourself. Trust me, this is just the beginning of us."
"Why are you so good at making things difficult?" Hyejin tearily chuckled, ignoring the way he got closer. "You being so nice to me makes me want to believe you mean what you say to me. I just can't help but think how convenient I am for you." She sighed. "I do want this. I want this more than you think, Taemoo. But do you?"
Taking his silence as an answer, she scoffed, shaking her head as she attempted to walk past him, only for him to grab her by her shoulders, pushing her against the wall once more.
"Whatever it is that you doubt about my feelings for you, I will do everything that I can to make sure you see how sincere I am." He said, lightly grabbing her chin and tilting her head up so she was making eye contact with him. "So please, just give us a chance."
Maintaining eye contact with him, Hyejin slowly grabbed the folds of his suit, her eyes betraying her and trailing down to his lips. Freezing for a moment, ignoring the rise of her heart race, she let out a sigh before pulling him down and interlocking their lips. Taemoo froze for a second, which resulted in the women quickly pulling away.
"I-" She was suddenly cut off when his hands found their way onto the rosy cheeks he's been thinking off since the previous night. Giving her the softest smile Hyejin has ever received, evidently made her forget everything but the need for his lips on hers once more. "Just kiss me." She sighed, her hands making their way onto his wrists. And he wasted no time in obliging.
authors note;
❣️ are we alive after this very lengthy confession from Mr. Kang taemoo, babes?
this is a very very very long chapter but I hope you guys enjoyed it anyways! I do have a question, I know I asked it before but do you guys like long chapters like this or prefer shorter ones like the previous two? please let me know!!
all I have to say is you guys are going to hate me for this next chapter bc our favorite couple is not getting together quiteeeee yet
anywaysssss I love you guys, thank you for reading, mwah 🤍