"N'y pense même pas."
--
Well, what do we do now?" Jungkook decided to break the ice of silence.
"What else? Deal with it." Lisa muttered before going inside the house, leaving Jungkook outside.
Lisa couldn't sleep that night. She was tossing and turning around in her bed, not knowing when will sleep finally kick into her system. The events kept bothering her head as she blinked, staring at the dull ceiling.
"What do I do?" She asked herself. She's now alone in this house with a man. She still can't grasp that fact. Heck, she had the urge to leave this place now.
"No. Endure this Lisa. You have to. You just have to ignore his presence and you're good." Her subconscious told her.
But that's the thing though. Ignoring him won't be an easy task. She's been telling herself to ignore him since the beginning but she always breaks and forget that every time.
She groaned as she hugged her pillow tighter.
Meanwhile, in the master's bedroom, Jungkook was wide awake like Lisa. Not for the same reason though. He's sitting on the bed with his back leaning against the headboard, his phone in his hand.
Jungkook:
I'm sorry :(
Jungkook:
Please answer my calls Heejin.
Jungkook:
I know I broke my promise again and I know you're mad. Something came up that's why I couldn't come over.
Jungkook:
I miss you, babe :( please stop ignoring me.
Heejin:
Seen 10:47 PM.
Jungkook groaned in frustration. The girl seen zoned him yet again. It's his fault. If only he went to her after he took Mara to her room then Heejin won't be ignoring him right now. He could've asked Mrs. Kim to take care of Mara but he didn't.
But he would admit that he's guilty of what he had done to Mara. He would admit that he went too far. And that's what made him stay. He may not like her at all but he's not heartless. He knew it was his fault why Mara fell sick.
"You're seriously asking? Well, then I'll tell you something. Never invade my personal space without my permission if you don't want me to do that again."
"I did something wrong first? That freaking kiss! You-"
"Well, we're not like those married couples."
Jungkook sat there, his phone long forgotten and now his mind was focusing on Mara's words.
What the hell was happening with her?
The girl did change so drastically he's not even sure if she's the same girl that he married before she went to Japan.
Before, she was so obsessed with him. Now she doesn't even want to stay in the same room as him.
He still thinks it was all an act, yes. An act for her to get him. Another trick to make him fall for her. Because that's how she was. Mara Manoban would always have a trick in her sleeve. But now a little part of him was not even sure anymore. He was good at predicting her motives before but now he's a little bit confused.
Confused because that day when he had tackled her down on her bed for being stubborn, he looked into her eyes. He saw how uncomfortable she was just by looking in her eyes. He could tell they were real and genuine. He somehow heard the abnormally fast beating of her heart when they were close to each other. He saw the blush that crept on her cheeks and ears when he was nearby.
Something that she never did before.
Not to mention, the kiss they shared after that dinner they had at his family home. Mara initiated a kiss many times before. So it confused him why it's such a big deal that he kissed her.
He thought maybe because it's the first time that HE kissed her first? But shouldn't she be happy? Why the heck did she got mad and even put tons of salt all over his breakfast as revenge?
It was just a freaking kiss.
He can't help but run a hand through his hair in frustration and let out a sigh. Everything was just confusing him. Even his actions were confusing him.
"Samarah, what are you up to?" He whispered to himself as he sat there.
He knew Mara was always confident around him. She was never shy to show and tell what she wants from him. She could handle physical contact and proximity very well. She even initiates it a lot before which annoyed him so much.
But the girl that was with him now... seemed shy and reserved around him.
The only thing that was the same as before was when they fight. The arguments and stuff. Mara was feisty. She was not one to back down when they argue.
And that's something that he's impressed with her even though he doesn't like her.
She's a woman who can hold her word and her character. She can fight and defend herself.
With those thoughts, he remembered the first time they met. That memory was engraved in his mind. He could still recall the strong aura that the girl gave off that time.
Flashback
"I want you." Jungkook raised an eyebrow when those words left the girl's lips. After many persuasions from his mother, he finally gave in to meet the girl that his parents have been pushing him to marry.
"And what makes you think that I'll let this marriage happen?" Jungkook asked and he watched her red lips turned into a smirk.
"I know it will happen. I get what I want Jungkook." Mara smirked before sipping on her glass of wine, her eyes never leaving his.
"I refused. No marriage will happen between us." Jungkook stated firmly.
"Oh? Your parents already agreed. We'll get married in a month and you can't do anything about it." Mara stated. It was Jungkook's turn to smirk.
"Don't underestimate me, sweetheart. You don't know what I can do." Jungkook told her.
"Oh, I know what you can do." Mara smiled before leaning towards him. Jungkook sat still and watched her with sharp eyes.
"You can do me good. Make me scream your name. I look forward to the wedding night the most." She whispered seductively. Jungkook's expression darkens, the smirk slipping away from his lips and Mara chuckled as she leaned back on her seat.
"Don't even think of refusing. Just give in." She said and Jungkook shook his head.
"No." He answered before he stood up. He was about to leave but her next words made him stop abruptly.
"I'll see you at the altar Jeon Jungkook. That will be the day where you'll witness me officially become a Jeon and your wife. I'm looking forward to it."
Flashback Ends
He hated and despised her from that moment on. She indeed got her way and married him in the end. Heejin and he had a huge fight because of that and she didn't talk to him for almost three months after he married Mara.
Jungkook closed his eyes briefly, not wanting to remember further. He wanted to forget those bad memories.
"Don't be so cold towards the girl Jungkook. It's been a year you know. If you can't accept her as your wife then try to accept her as a friend."
"Ugh seriously." He groaned when he suddenly remembered Taehyung's words. What he said was impossible. He can't and will never accept her as his wife nor his friend. Taehyung, of all people, should know that.
"Stop overthinking Jungkook. You need to see Heejin soon." He whispered to himself. And with that, he cast those unanswered questions aside and laid down on the bed.
After he fixed this problem with his girlfriend, he'll try to figure out Mara's intentions and plans. That girl is full of mischief and devious acts. It's the first time she made him confused about her actions. Indeed she had him confused now but he'll enlighten himself soon. He'll figure out if she's just acting like a nice girl to make him fall for her or if she did change for the better.
But in all honesty, it would be better if it's the latter choice.
~*~
Morning came quickly. Lisa stood in front of the mirror, doing her makeup. She just got out of the shower a few minutes ago and now she's already changed into her work outfit for the day. She's taking her time getting dolled up as she already made breakfast earlier before she went to take a shower.
She was just about to put her lipstick when she heard Jungkook from the master's bedroom.
"What the heck? Is this even possible?!" She heard him say and Lisa wondered who's he talking to. Probably his girlfriend.
"This is starting to annoy me!" She heard him again and she finally decided to check on him. Once done with her lipstick, she went to the master's bedroom.
"Shit. Why is this so difficult to do?!" Lisa heard before she quietly turned the knob of the door, opening it.
And there he was, sitting on the bed with his laptop opened. His eyes were glued to the screen and his hands were fumbling with his tie. She heard what the laptop was playing and she immediately realized that he's watching a video or something.
Jungkook pressed play again and a monotone voice of a woman resonated inside the room.
He's watching a tutorial.
"Okay, you got this Kook. Learning to tie your necktie should be easy. You're a man." She heard him say and she had to stifle her laugh.
Jeon Jungkook learning to fix his necktie all by himself? Let's see if he can succeed.
She leaned her shoulder on the door frame as her eyes focused on Jungkook's form. Her lips were curled up in amusement.
"Fck. How do you do this?!" He exclaimed again after a few minutes. "Mrs. Kim I swear ugh! You better come back soon."
And that's where Lisa finally decided to let her presence be known.
She cleared her throat. "Need help?"
Jungkook was startled by Lisa that he slammed his laptop shut and looked at her with wide eyes. Lisa raised her eyebrows in amusement.
"Since when did you come in?" Jungkook glared at her.
"Long enough to see you struggling," Lisa stated.
"I'm not struggling." He said.
"Sure." Lisa shrugged. "Fix your necktie then. I'll be in the kitchen."
Lisa was about to leave when Jungkook spoke once more.
"Wait!" Jungkook called her and she can't help but let a smirk write on her lips.
Lisa turned to him. "Yes?"
"Do my necktie." He told her before he stood up.
"What's the magic word?" Lisa asked.
"Penis." He blurted out without thinking and Lisa was taken aback. The amusement now long gone along with her smile.
"What did you say?!"
"I said please." He corrected. And there Jungkook noticed the red tinge that easily crept up her cheeks. She was flustered. He expected her to play along with the innuendo but she ended up blushing furiously.
Lisa snatched the necktie from his hand.
She quickly wrapped it around his neck, over the collar of his dress shirt.
"Never knew you'd blush over a word," Jungkook commented as he stared at her. "It's so not you."
"Whatever," Lisa mumbled and pulled on his necktie resulting it to tighten around his neck.
"Oww. Hey!" Jungkook frowned.
"You're too tall. Bend down." Lisa told him. Jungkook rolled his eyes before he did what she told him.
Lisa's breath hitched when he bent down a little too much and now their eyes are staring straight to each other, their noses almost touching. If she leaned forward a bit more, their lips will meet immediately.
Jungkook tilted his head a bit when Lisa stood still, just staring at him.
"Hurry up and finish doing my necktie. We're gonna be late, dummy." Jungkook whispered and Lisa swore she smelled his minty breath.
"Y-you bent down a little too m-much." Lisa stuttered nervously before she stepped back a bit. Jungkook's eyebrows furrowed.
"But you said-"
"Shut." Lisa glared before she went back to doing his necktie at a good distance.
A few seconds later and Lisa's done with fixing his necktie. Before Jungkook could say anything, she bolted out of the room, her cheeks still burning.
~*~
"Eonnie, can I ask you something?" Lisa asked Jisoo as she stared outside the window.
Jisoo hummed in response.
"How do Mara act around here? Well, not just here. How does she act around everyone?" Lisa asked her. Jisoo paused from what she was doing and looked at the younger who seemed to be in deep thoughts.
"Why are you asking?" Jisoo asked back confused as to why Lisa was suddenly asking her that.
"I think Jungkook's getting suspicious of me," Lisa muttered, recalling what just happened earlier this morning. She doesn't know if it's just her or Jungkook's giving her the doubtful eyes as if he's questioning and judging her actions. As if he's trying to figure out something while staring at her. The questioning look that he gave her when she blushed over that one word that left his mouth didn't go unnoticed to her eyes as well.
She's positive that he's suspicious of her already. And fck was she nervous about it.
She's just thankful that she's not dense to not notice those. Chaeyoung did say she can easily read people.
"Well, Mara's the complete opposite of you," Jisoo told her.
"How so?" Lisa asked again.
"I do not know how she acted towards Jungkook but I do know that she's the strict type here in the office." Jisoo began. Lisa shifted her chair to looked at the older.
"Strict type?"
"Yeah. People fear her here because she's a perfectionist and once you've done a mistake on your report, she'll immediately fire you." Jisoo told her.
"What about the elevator matter?"
"Yeah, that too. She hates riding the elevator with the employees." Jisoo nodded. "You know, acting like Mara shouldn't be hard here. You just need to be more strict and less nice to everyone. Treat people more professionally. Be a bit more direct and blunt with your words when talking to the employees."
Lisa listened carefully as Jisoo continued to give her advice and tell her stuff about Mara's ways here in the office. She took note of every detail that she's saying.
"Lastly, your expression should be hard and intimidating. Something that will make people think immediately that you're the boss here. An expression that will make them think that you're not someone to be messed with. Oh, and if you're going to smile, make sure that it will be small and curt. Don't give them a big smile because that's not Mara." Jisoo explained.
"I see. I'll make sure to remember everything you said Eonnie. Thanks." Lisa told the Older.
"Anytime Lis. If you have more questions about Mara here in the office, don't hesitate to ask me." Jisoo smiled before going back to her work.
Lisa gave a thankful nod to her Eonnie.
Hours flew by and the next thing they knew, it's already eight in the evening. Jisoo left the office first because her husband already came to fetch her. Lisa on the other hand, carried a paper bag as she went to the elevator.
She traveled down to the parking ground where she usually parked her car, well Mara's car not hers.
She got in and pulled on the seat belt, strapping herself to safety. Once done with that, she brought the car to life.
But she's not going home yet though. She's meeting someone tonight.
~*~
"Taehyung-ssi?" Lisa called when she saw a familiar guy sitting on the corner table of the restaurant. The guy looked up upon her call and there she saw Kim Taehyung again.
"Hi!" Taehyung greeted her with his famous rectangular smile and gestured her to sit on the empty seat across him. She sat down carefully.
"Thank you for coming," Lisa told him.
"It's not like I'm busy." He chuckled. "So, why did you ask to meet me?"
"I wanna give something back to you," Lisa said before handing him the paper bag that she was carrying earlier.
Taehyung took the bag and peeked inside. He saw the coat that he lend her that night at the supermarket. Taehyung couldn't help but let out a chuckle.
"You could've just had Jungkook to give this back to me you know." Taehyung smiled before placing the paper bag on the floor beside him.
"I couldn't ask him plus I want to thank you again personally. I owed you a lot and I wanna make it up to you." Lisa said. In all honesty, she's becoming shyer as minutes passed by. His intense gaze making her red for no reason.
Well, she'll admit to herself that she kinda developed a crush on him even though she only met him once before. That's why she's blushing and all. But who wouldn't have a crush on him?
He's tall, manly and breathtakingly beautiful. His deep voice was what attracted her the most. Not to mention, he's a gentleman and a nice person. Just the perfect ideal man for Lisa.
"It's fine Mara. I did what a gentleman should." He said and Lisa couldn't help but wish every man were like him.
A waiter came to give them menus.
"Go ahead and pick what you like. Dinner's on me." Lisa smiled and Taehyung grinned at the mention of free food.
As Lisa looked back on her menu, she heard her phone beeped. She took it off the table and opened the message that she received.
Jungkook:
Where the hell are you?!
Oh shit. She forgot one person tonight.
Lisa:
Out.
Jungkook:
Out where?!
Lisa:
I won't be home to make dinner.
Jungkook:
What? Don't even think about it. Get your ass home right now!
"It's Jungkook huh?" Lisa looked up when she heard Taehyung spoke.
"Yeah," Lisa answered.
"Let me guess, he's home and found no one so he's demanding you to go home?" Taehyung asked as a teasing smile appeared on his lips.
"How'd you know?" Lisa asked with wide eyes.
"He told me his mother asked Mrs. Kim and Jinhee to leave you two alone." He replied.
"Oh."
"Yeah. I kinda find that funny. He has no one now but you." Taehyung chuckled.
The waiter came back and they gave him their orders. Lisa had finally decided to put her phone on silent mode, not caring if there's a starving bunny at home.
The dinner went smoothly with Taehyung. She had fun talking to him. He's very charming.
"Thank you so much for the dinner, Mara. I'm very much full." Taehyung told her as he walked her to her car. Lisa couldn't help but chuckle.
"No problem Oppa." She said without thinking and immediately placed a hand over her mouth in surprise. Taehyung laughed.
"We never really talked before but I'm glad we do now. You're nowhere near the things Jungkook told me about you." Taehyung smiled.
"What did he say about me?" Lisa couldn't help but ask curiously.
"Just things you shouldn't worry about. I don't judge people just based on what others say." Taehyung told her and Lisa just wanted to melt then and there.
"And I don't mind if you call me Oppa. I know you're younger than me." He added with a wink.
"Thank you." Lisa smiled.
"Well get in. I'll only leave once you're safely inside." He said.
Lisa went inside the car immediately, with some take out in her free hand. Of course, she had to buy something for Jungkook. Lisa wondered what's he doing right now. She watched Taehyung waved at her before he turned around and walked towards his car.
Before she starts the car, she decided to open her phone. Her eyes immediately widened when she saw so many missed calls and texts from Jungkook.
Uh oh.
Her heart started to beat rapidly when she saw his last message.
Jungkook:
Having fun with my Hyung huh? You're dead once you come home.
Well, you're in trouble Lisa. Shit.
--
"Don't even think about it."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Hello! I kinda lied when I said there won't be Taelice in this fanfic lmao.
Thank you so much for 12K reads.