Pass me by, I’ll pretend not to have seen those eyes
I’ll just say that I didn’t see you
Please just ignore me
Before my shaking heart collapses

"Finally." Woohyun pulled me into the fray of swaying bodies. Immediately I was tense. This man scared me. He was unpredictable. "It's really a shame that you didn't marry me. It's also a shame that you finally start showing affection to a man whose company is collapsing. Why else do you think he is pursuing you?" He gleefully whispered.

He was trying to break me. Make me sweat. But Sunggyu and I weren't in the relationship he suspected. We weren't even friends. Though as much as I tried to ignore them, Woohyun's words were bouncing around in my head. Sunggyu has pursued me in a way. Was it really just for the money? Was his company really going bankrupt?

Woohyun chuckled. I cursed myself. He was reading me like a book.

His lips pressed against my ear. "I don't believe you're in a relationship with Sunggyu. You're not a very good liar. Instead, I think you were just playing me. If I were to, I don't know, cause a ruckus..."

"What do you want?" My eyes went to him.

"Power, my dear. Always power. Since I couldn't marry you I want you to give up your shares of the company."

I jerked away. "All to prevent a scandal?"

"Then how about your private life in that little band of yours, what was it called...Infinity?" I didn't want to know how he learned of this. It proved how scarry Woohyun could be. "Revealing this could ruin their lives."

"What if I'm actually in a relationship with Sunggyu? He'd protect me from you."

"Would he?" I didn't know. He smiled. "If you're really in a relationship with him, prove it."

"What do I get out of it?"

"My sealed lips. I promise not to reveal your secret."

The song ended and Woohyun quickly slipped away while Sunggyu came up to my side. We began to dance. "What did he want?"

"It seems we're cursed. No matter what, in this world, there's no such thing as loyalty or purity. We do nothing but use...and are used in return." I was silent a moment. "Is your company really collapsing?"

Sunggyu looked surprised. "How...Whatever he said it's not true."

"So you're not pursuing me for my money?" I bit my lip. This question made me nervous.

"That was my mother's intention. From the beginning I had planned to send you away." He laughed. "But you beat me to it."

"But is your company struggling?"

"It is. What does that have to do with anything?"

"I have a proposal for you." I swallowed. There was only one answer to all of our problems. He didn't speak but just stared at me. "Marry me."

"B-bwoh?" He stumbled and lost count. It took a moment for us to get back into the flow of the crowd. When we did he asked me to clarify.

"You need money and I need to protect my friends. Woohyun threatened them. If it wasn't for that I wouldn't be saying this." Sunggyu's eyes looked sad for a moment but it was quickly masked. "Also by marrying each other it would get our parents off our backs. It's a win-win."

"What about marrying for love?"

"This is just temporary. We can talk about the details later. This isn't the time."

"Before I agree...What are you getting out of this?"

"I told you. My friends' safety."

"Is that all?"

"It's all the matters."

Sunggyu straightened. "Fine. I'll marry you. But you have to promise me one thing."

"What?" I reluctantly asked.

"Don't fall in love with me."

I laughed. "Sungyeol told me the same thing. He told me to never ever fall in love with you." I looked up at him. This was all business. By doing this I would be protecting my friends, Woohyun would back off, and my mother wouldn't have a reason to keep meddling. Also he was saving his company and even perhaps pushing his sister's wedding back. There wasn't any negative thing about this marriage.

Except...

"Then I'll say the same thing. Don't fall in love with me."

"Deal." With that he ducked down and pressed his lips against mine.

The cameras went crazy.

We savored a sweet kiss. It was quite scandalous to the public eye. Too much intimacy. Sunggyu was good at this. He was good at making this believable. For a second I thought my heart started to race.

~

Oh to kiss her again. My body was attracted but I forced my heart to turn away. She wanted this marriage to protect her friends and herself. I needed this marriage to protect my sister and the company. We all had things to protect.

But would it be possible to protect it all?

I leaned back and tilted my head the other way to kiss her again. It wasn't hard to make this believable. But if I was going into this marriage full force I was going to take every chance I got.

Her kiss was sweet and I hated it.

She asked me not to fall in love with her. I asked her not to fall in love with me.

I had heard of married couples learning to love each other but I didn't want that. I just wanted to love someone. Not force the feelings. Not pretend.

In the back of my heart I knew that the one I was kissing now is the one I wanted to love but I buried it deep.

I buried it deep.

~

Sunggyu pulled away and I could only stand there gasping for air. He had a smug look on his face. After blinking a few times I began to register that the paparazzi were asking us questions.

"How long have you dated?"

"When was the wedding?"

"Is this an arranged match?"

Sunggyu ignored them and used his jacket to cover me. We escaped into one of the private rooms.

Since I was still a little dizzy from the kiss, Sunggyu helped me to the couch. "It's too late to back out now."

"I never planned on it."

There was a slow clap coming from one of the chairs. We both spun around.

"I'm impressed. It was believable." Woohyun stood. "Let's see how long this charade will last."

I sat there numbly. Sunggyu squeezed my hand and I squeezed it back.

____________________

As a side note, all of the little quotes at the beginning of my chapters are lyrics from Infinite songs. All except the first chapter.