After saying his farewells to Aurora, Jungkook heaved a sigh. He had tried to conceal his excitement as much as possible, but was overturned with emotion because of his previous behaviors.
Watching as Aurora's taxi disappeared into traffic, Jungkook returned into the building. Waiting for the elevator, he began to think.
Logan and I have been working for the same company this entire time...and I never saw him. Why is it that today of all days, he decides to pop up? Now Logan, master and I will be here, seeing each other frequently...
Jungkook clenched his fists. I want master to myself if she's going to work here...
Earlier, when Logan had left with Amy, his assistant was curious about Logan's relationship with the girl. "So, I presume that that girl is your girlfriend?"
Logan frowned. "Why are you asking?"
Amy shrugged. "Well, when I came to find you, you two were pretty intimate. It's pretty obvious, unless it's just a fling—"
"It's not a fling." Logan deadpanned.
Amy glanced at Logan as they continued walking. "Does your father know?"
"No, and he doesn't need to. That man ruined enough of my relationships." Sighing, Logan opened the door to his office and walked in. "The fact that I'm still working here is troubling enough. I just hope that job opportunity to Yonkers gets approved even faster."
Amy frowned. "Then I guess we won't be working together once that wish is granted."
"Yeah..." Logan mumbled as he sat at his desk. "...I guess that would seem to be the case." Looking at her, he replied. "I'll be sure to refer you to another boss. I don't want you being under the hands of my father. He'll use you too. I guarantee it."
Amy smiled. "I appreciate your concern, Logan."
Reaching for his phone in his pocket, Logan sent Aurora a quick text to make sure she was fine. "Amy, please get me the files from the basket over there."
Handing him the files, Amy backed away. "These are hers, am I right?"
"Yes," Logan confirmed, gluing his eyes to his desktop. "I need to put her in the records, now."
"Alright. After you do so, I will document a copy in the system for references."
"Thank you."
"Jungkook!"
Looking around, Jungkook saw that Jordique was calling to him. Approaching him, Jungkook replied, "Yes?"
"Mr. DeChart is looking for you."
Jungkook furrowed an eyebrow. "Why?"
"Why?" Jordique repeated in disbelief. "I-I don't know. He just told me to let you know..."
Jungkook was suspicious of Jordique's tone. But he pretended to be oblivious and complied. "Alright. I'll be going to see him, then."
Leaving the studio, Jungkook immediately went to Allen's office. Knocking, Jungkook walked inside.
Allen smiled. "Jungkook. How are you?"
A bit sullen, Jungkook replied, "I'm doing alright."
"That's good to hear." Allen pointed to the seat in front of his desk. "Please, have a seat."
Jungkook hated when Allen told him to take a seat.
Once he sat down, Allen cleared his throat. "I spoke with your master earlier. And I must say, she did an excellent job in performance. She passed the audition."
"She told me."
"She will begin her journey, starting tomorrow. So, I expect you to keep her up to date, and to encourage your peers to make her feel at home. Modeling isn't always a heartwarming and friendly business. It can be cutthroat, especially among your fellow peers."
"I'll be sure to protect her. I won't let anything bad happen to her."
"Now, you don't have to breathe down her back to make sure no one is trying to harm her. But just remember to be natural. I wouldn't want you to give off vibes of being overprotective, or worse—Aisha finds out that you're an android."
Jungkook's eyes averted to Allen's. "...what?"
"I am a very observant man, Jungkook. I can tell when my models are more intimate than usual. I will not get in the way of either of your two's relationship. But I will say this: It's best to be honest about who you are when you are dating. It's a sad showcase when the person you're pursuing has to find out something secretive the hard way or in a shocking moment. Trust me," Allen scoffed at himself. "I should know."
Nervous, Jungkook swallowed hard to keep his cool. "I-It's not like that, Mr. DeChart..."
"Are you sure?" Allen questioned curiously. "I'm usually never wrong about these things."
Jungkook pouted, only because he didn't want anyone else knowing his business about him dating.
"Is she harassing you, then?"
"N-No!" Jungkook yelped. "Aisha is a very sweet girl. She doesn't harass anyone!"
A small grin grew on Allen's lips. "I know," Sitting back in his seat, Allen locked eyes with the AI. "I would also like to make a proposition with you."
Unsure of what to expect, Jungkook hesitantly gave a listening ear.
"My son will be taking your owner out for dinner tonight. I want him to leave a good impression on her so that she could see how professional and family-like my company is. But knowing him, he will ruin things for not only me, but also himself. He thinks that he has everything all figured out and that he can outsmart me. Little does he know, that I am always ten steps ahead of the game. I need you to overshadow their dinner tonight, and to make sure that my son does not ruin Aurora's perspective of who I am or what this business is about."
"So, you want me to spy on them?"
"I wouldn't call it spying. More like, examining the situation to make sure nothing gets out of hand."
"I see..."
"Nonetheless, I am sure that you will do a good job in seeing through matters. You are a very intelligent being. I expect nothing but greatness out of your works."
"Thank you..."
"Even so, if anything happens, please inform me right away. I can't afford to have my son embarrass me. This is a matter of good will and judgement."
"I understand sir."
"If you do this, I'll also give you a pay raise. I'm sure you'd love that."
Jungkook's eyes twinkled. He thought that he could use the extra money, even though he didn't necessarily need it. He had plenty to provide for Aurora and to make sure the bills were paid effectively. Jungkook had no worries about owing money or being in debt to any cooperate because of irresponsible spending.
"Also," Allen spoke up. "I would like you to encourage Aurora to subscribe to these supplements," Retrieving a freshly printed sheet from his printer, Allen handed it to Jungkook. "I can tell by her body that she is undernourished and lacking multiple vitamins and other good nutriments for herself. She was raised in a foster home, yes?"
"...yes, she was." Jungkook nodded.
Allen shook his head. "The poor girl has so much potential to become a beautiful flower. But she needs the necessary love and growth to help her sprout and become a gorgeous plant. If you order these online for her and make sure she takes these every day, you'll see the development of her image grow."
Taking the paper, Jungkook skimmed through it. "This will help her?"
"It most definitely will." Allen smiled.
Folding the paper, Jungkook slid it in his pocket. "I'll be sure to talk to her about it."
"Make sure to convince her, okay?"
"Yes, sir." Standing up, Jungkook went for the door. Turning back, he asked, "Will that be all?"
Allen nodded. "Yes, Jungkook. You may leave now."
Later that evening, Aurora looked through her closet to see what outfit she could wear for tonight.
"I could wear that outfit I wore that night when I met that woman with Logan at that restaurant..." The tomboy mumbled to herself. Staring at the dress for a moment, she shook her head. "Let me at least check my other clothes, first."
Rummaging through her belongings, Aurora noticed that she had a wonderfully stitched dress that was black and has a sleek design that ran down one leg of the outfit. "Yeah...this will do."
Spreading it on her bed, Aurora chose a pair of shoes and a purse to match the dress, sitting them next to her closet. Placing her hands on her hips she exhaled. "...Logan said he'd be here around 7PM..."
Exhaling, Aurora decided to go shower and prepare herself.
Standing in the shower, the tomboy exhaled, holding her shoulders. Leaning her neck back, she purred as the hot water flushed through her thick hair. Her phone soon tooted, getting her attention. Leaning out the shower, Aurora reached for her phone, which was sitting on the towel rack. Eyeing it, she saw that it was Jungkook who texted her.
Swiping, she read the message.
JK: Hello, master. I was just wondering where exactly will Logan be taking you tonight...just incase anything happens, I want to be able to know where you're at, at all times. I don't mean to be overprotective...but I am just concerned.
Aurora chuckled. Wiping her hand on her towel, she replied.
A: To be honest...I'm not exactly sure. But I'll let you know when Logan and I meet up.
"And speaking of meeting up," Looking at the time on her phone, Aurora yelped. "I need to hurry up!"
Later that evening, Logan came and took Aurora to the restaurant his father intended for her to be taken to. He was a bit anxious and rather upset that tonight was a night built on his father's expectations. The entire day—in fact.
When they arrived, Logan was immediately escorted to a lovely table prepared for the two of them in the middle of other gorgeous couples.
Aurora made sure to send Jungkook the restaurant's location before she arrived. She knew that Jungkook wouldn't let her live it down if she had forgotten.
Once at the table, Logan pulled Aurora's chair out for her, and went and sat in his. The silence between them was a bit awkward. Although their misunderstandings were cleared up earlier, the chilling thought of how their day led to this moment remained.
Clearing his throat, Logan invited Aurora to check what she'd like from the menu. Aurora was a bit embarrassed. She was more familiar with high-end functions at this point. She knew that Logan and Jungkook would spend any amount of money on her—which made her uncomfortable.
"And don't be bashful," Logan reminded her as he eyed his opened menu. "Dinners on me."
Aurora nodded. "I'll order these..."
While their food was being prepared, Logan spoke up. "Aurora..."
Glancing at him, Aurora nodded. "Yes?"
"I...just need to say something," Closing his eyes, Logan breathed. "I'm truly sorry for how I behaved earlier. I know it was so misleading and uncalled for but, I really—sad to say—have a deep hatred for my father."
"...really?" Saddened, Aurora's eyes dullened.
"And I know hate is a strong word, I know. But, after what that man has put me through—for years—I just have to keep my guard up at all times. Just him knowing that I'm in a relationship with another girl is enough to spark a fire."
"Why would your own father do that to you though?" Aurora asked.
"Envy? Jealousy? Bitterness? Resentment?" Logan counted on his fingers, then looked up at her. "Need I go on?"
"But Mr. DeChart seems to be a good man...I don't know..." Aurora sighed. "It's one thing for me to say good things about him, but he is your father. You'd know him best, right?"
"Of, course..." Logan mumbled. "...my father had a horrible divorce years ago."
"...I'm sorry."
"It was good for him." Logan spat. "That man was conniving, and my mother had enough of it...though, she left me with him."
After the waiter came and dropped off their glasses of wine, Aurora asked Logan, "Why did she do that to you?"
"Well," Logan breathed. "My father won custody rights over me...and my mother had no money. At one point she was wealthy, but she foolishly signed it all off to my father, just because he had 'liability'."
"Liability...?" The tomboy repeated.
"Meaning, my father was responsible for a bunch of business corps at the time. She thought that the money would be safer in his hands. But over the years...his sweet and gentle façade was melting away. The divorce meant nothing though, because after mother was gone from the picture, my father was already involved with another woman. He'd been seeing her during their marital bond."
Aurora then recalled a time where she snooped through Logan's family album. "So then, that woman that I saw in that album at your place..."
"Yes, that is my stepmother."
"Wow..." Leaning back in her seat, Aurora was at a loss for words. "...that's a lot to take in."
"Yep, and I'm sure that you never heard Allen mention her or my mother, hm?"
"No, of course not. We're not close like that." Aurora grimaced.
"Well, my stepmother is very wealthy. She's a modeler overseas and is always traveling all over the place. I barely have any time to see her. Not that it matters. I'm fine with not having to look at a woman that helped ruin my parents' marriage. Nonetheless..." Logan's eyes averted to the table. His heart began to hurt. "...my real mother...is very sick. She's in the hospital. She's been in the hospital for months..."
Aurora was heartbroken and with mixed feelings for Logan's situation. She had no idea that so much was going on with him. Reaching for his hand, she held it gently. "...how is she doing?"
Logan placed his other hand over hers. "...not too good. Her cancer is a battle right now...and the doctors are growing more anxious by the day. They're not really sure how much longer she has to live."
"I pray that she makes it, Logan." Aurora whispered loud enough for him to hear. "If anything happens...I'm here for you. I know I can't do much but..."
"Just you being here is enough for me, Aurora." Kissing her hand tenderly, Logan looked into her eyes and smiled. "Don't worry about me."
"I'm guessing that's also the reason why you've been coming home so late." The tomboy assessed. "It's been like that since I've met you."
"Yeah. And work has me tangled, really. I meant it when I say that I'm trying to move out of York Seoul City and start over new somewhere else. I just need to get away from these nightmares that I'm living."
"I don't blame you..." Aurora mumbled as she leaned back in her seat. The two were quiet for a while after.