Feeling so drained by her emotions, she asked Chaerin if she could pick up Haru at Kmag the next morning. She doesn’t think that she had enough strength intact to have another go with Donghae again. Especially after that interview that Yoona did with one of the TV shows her mother is watching last night. She didn’t want to but her eyes just couldn’t seem to shy away from it. Yoona seems to become a lot more popular now as the host cited all her accomplishments and the charity she’s been doing. Yoona just seems to smile shyly.

“You’re living like a celebrity Miss Yoona,” the host joked. “Well, that’s the price to pay for being a social figure. And a very gorgeous one at that.”

Yoona just laughed daintily at that. “Stop it.”

“There’s been a lot of intrigues in the internet about you and one about your wedding that is circulating that is cancelled and about your ex. The CEO of Fishy Ideas. Some say he was seen with you at a restaurant when you came back? Are you guys back together now because it would be like Brangelina.”

Yoona chuckled as she waved her hand in dismissal. “Oh my god, no, that was just a friendly talk. He’s my best friend since… you know, I was young. He was happy for me… for my wedding. And my wedding is still on, by the way.”

“Well, I’m sure that any guy who would end up marrying you would be the luckiest of all.”

Yoona chuckled again. “Thank you but… let’s just talk about the foundation shall we?”

“Of course, of course,” the host said as he laughed in embarrassment.

She felt like a stone is stuck in making it hard to swallow so she just scooted next to Haru as he sleeps last night, comforted that out of every mistakes she had made, it resulted with one good decision.

She put all of her concentration at work after Chaerin picked Haru up and told her grandmother Lee is setting up a huge playhouse at the garden for Haru. She was at least thankful that Haru is loved by everyone. And she was thankful that Kwanghee had given her so much to do that it’s taking her mind off her personal life. Maybe she could ask for more when he gets back. She hasn’t heard from Kwanghee since yesterday and she hoped he was deliriously happy wherever he is while she sulk in here all by herself.

It was already past lunch when she finally saved the final draft of the presentation and sent it to Kwanghee’s email stretching her neck from side to side. Her stomach’s already growling and she was about to stand up when her phone rang. It was an unknown number. She hesitated before answering it, dreading who it might be this time. If this even relates to Donghae, she’s going to turn off her phone all day!

“Yes?” She answered in a clipped tone.

“Dara, it’s me, JoKwon. It’s Kwanghee.”

She arrived at the hotel room JoKwon is staying at minutes later with her brows creased in concern. JoKwon just told her to come quickly and the worried voice in his tone made her worry more. She pressed the doorbell and JoKwon opened it.

“What happened?” She asked when she saw the weary expression on his face. She stepped inside without waiting for him to answer and scanned the room for Kwanghee.

“He’s in the room,” JoKwon said and Dara immediately strode over to it. She found Kwanghee sitting on the floor with his head on his knee. And he was heaving as he cried violently. She immediately knelt down next to him and touched his arm.

“Kwanghee…,” Dara said in a whisper.

Kwanghee lifted his tear-streaked face as he looked at Dara. The misery and dejection and panic are evident in his face. “Dara,” he sobbed. “My father found out. He knows! He knows now!” His voice is so broken that Dara had a hard time understanding him. “That man… that congressman who saw us in the Philippines… he had me watched! He had us followed in Busan and then sent the pictures to my father! And to the media.” His hand was shaking as he took his phone and showed her a news article in the internet with him and JoKwon. One was them holding hands and then the other was at the pool in a resort in the Philippines. He cried even more as he dropped the phone on the floor and cried on his knee, his shoulders shaking. Dara looked at JoKwon who was standing at the door looking like he was regretting coming to Korea and causing this turmoil in Kwanghee’s life.

 Dara sat down on the floor in front of Kwanghee, not really knowing how to comfort him. His broken out sobs sounds so painful that it’s hard for Dara to be here without knowing how to help him.

“He was goading the media,” Kwanghee continued looking up at her again and it took a minute before Dara realized he was referring to the congressman. “He said how can a Governor handle the city when he can’t even handle his own family? How can he solve the city’s issues when he doesn’t even have any idea on his son’s homouality? He was targeting me to get to my father and… and my father would see this as a big blow… I can’t….” The rest of his words were drowned out by his sobs, tears streaking relentlessly on his face.

Dara knew how much Kwanghee had tried to please his father to make him proud of him that even if she told him that the Governor should it up no matter what Kwanghee preferred to be, it wouldn’t help. It would probably make him bawl a lot more. She doesn’t know what to tell him. She doesn’t know what to do for him. Would it help if she just barge into the Governor’s office and tell him off? His bodyguards would’ve probably block her with a gun before she can even get inside his office.

Kwanghee looked at her with a frenzied expression in his eyes. “Dara. Please help me. Please!” He clasped her hands.

“Of course I’ll help,” Dara said empathically. “Tell me what you need me to do.”

“Let’s get married.”His voice broke but he was looking at her like he is asking for a lifesaver. Dara opened but no words came out. Her head turned to JoKwon who looked like he was ready to cry too and then he turned and closed the door behind him as he walked out leaving Dara with Kwanghee. She looked at Kwanghee again and he was clasping her hands tight.

“Please!” Kwanghee said desperately. “This is the only way I can think of. Please! Please!”

Dara stared at Kwanghee. Her friend. Her bestfriend. She would do anything for him but she wanted to make sure he knows what he’s talking about. “Are you sure? Is this what you really want?”

“I can dispel all these by any news of me marrying. I can tell my dad these are groundless rumors. Please! Please!!”

Dara watched his face stained with tears and her mind flashed back to the times when she was the one looking like this and he didn’t leave her. So there’s no way that she’s going to leave him. “Then let’s get married,” she answered quietly,

Kwanghee let out a cry and Dara pulled him into a hug patting his back for comfort. “Thank you,” he said as he sobbed on her shoulders.

She had managed to calm Kwanghee after hours of him crying relentlessly and thanking her at the same time. She left him sleeping on the bed while hugging a pillow, his anxious expression not leaving his face even as he sleeps. She found JoKwon standing near the glass window and neither of them exchanged a word. Neither of them knows what to say so Dara just left. JoKwon wouldn’t want to talk to her anyway. The girl his boyfriend has just proposed marriage to. Even if he knew how much Kwanghee loves him, the idea of him marrying someone else must’ve been paining him as much as it’s paining Kwanghee. They were left with no choice but to accept what life has taken them now. They can’t force Kwanghee to confront his dad and everyone else. They can’t force him to go against the society’s rules and his father’s rigid control. He was trapped. And neither of them is willing to leave him. Especially when he was crying out for them. She let out a sigh as she drove back to Kmag. It’s already close to 5 and she decided to just take her bag from her office, pick up Haru and go home. She’s had enough emotional uproar to last her a month.

She stepped out of the elevator and strode directly to her office.

“Miss Dara,” her secretary said standing up. “There’s someone looking for you.”

“Who?”

Her secretary looked behind Dara and she turned around. At her haste to get her bag, she didn’t notice that someone is sitting there at the couch. She slowly stood up and gave Dara an awkward smile as she put her hands in front of her while holding her purse.

Her tensed shoulder got even more tensed when she realized who it was and she refrained herself from throwing her hands in the air in absolute aggravation over the load of emotional baggage she’s forced to carry. What is it now?! She let out a small sigh instead as she looked into the pretty face of Im Yoona.

Donghae slumped down on the sofa as he rolled his tongue inside his cheek while looking at his phone, contemplating whether to call Dara or if she would be more mad if he did. He ran back to the all the things that happened last night and the only thing he could conclude on is that she might be in bad mood already when he acted drunk and she probably thought he was making fun of her. He drummed his fingers on the edge of his phone while tapping Dara’s name to call but his finger hovered on the call button before he hit the back button and closing his phone again. Aish. His nerves are getting the best of him.

“Uh… what are you doing?”

Donghae looked up at Siwon sitting behind his desk with a wry look in his face as he watched him suddenly enter his office in CSW and slumping on his couch without a word.

“I’m just trying to relax,” Donghae responded throwing his phone beside him and letting out a breath.

“And you wanted to do it in my office?” Siwon asked.

“Your office had a lot more calming effect,” Donghae said.

Siwon shook his head as he returned his attention back at his work. Donghae rested his head down on the headrest looking up at the ceiling, his mind running back on how mad Dara was last night. She wasn’t just mad. She was furious. He let out a big loud heavy sigh wondering how he should apologize. It seems like that is only thing he’s good at lately. She probably doesn’t want to see him if she called Chaerin to pick up Haru rather than calling him. He let out a heavy sigh again.

“Are you going to be doing that for the rest of the day?” Siwon asked sounding exasperated.

Donghae looked at Siwon’s dry expression. One of the reasons he went to Siwon’s is because he wouldn’t ask questions. And he had a lot more suggestions on what he should do without making fun of his plight which he bet that the other guys would the instant he showed up.

“Dara’s mad at me,” Donghae muttered.

“When has she not?” Siwon said.

“I don’t know what the hell am I supposed to do,” Donghae said. “I know I deserve it. But… she should at least tell what she wants me to do.”

“What if she told you she wants you to leave her alone?”

“Except that,” Donghae said with a scowl.

“Have you also seen the news going around that Yoona is cancelling her wedding because of you?”

Siwon suddenly asked.

“As long as Yoona and I know the truth, then that doesn’t matter to me,” Donghae said dismissively. They only met up for lunch once and the gossip already turned to them getting back together. He turned to Siwon again. “What was she like when she was working for you?”

Siwon rolled his eyes knowing who Donghae is referring to. “Ah no, not that question again. C’mon! You’ve asked me that for a thousand times already!” Then he muttered, “I never should’ve mentioned she worked for me.”

“I just want to get what she’s like,” Donghae said. “I don’t remember her but with you telling me things about her makes me feel like I know her.”

Siwon sighed heavily as if having Donghae inside his office everytime he runs into a rift with Dara is a big burden. “She’s strong willed. Hard-worker. Oh. She punched Kraz. You know, my manager in the Writer’s department.” He feels it’s so ridiculous of telling this to him over and over again. “Look, why don’t you just go up to her and tell her exactly what you want to do instead of going through all this….” He spread his hands not sure of any terms on what Donghae is doing.

Donghae made a face. “Because I can’t.” He slouched on his seat again. “What if she told me she doesn’t want me anymore? That’s worse than rejection so I’d rather just be hanging around acting clueless.” Then he muttered, “I can’t believe I’m so stupid.”

“That’s no news for us,” Siwon said sarcastically.

“She told me I’m a wuss,” Donghae said with a scowl.

“You are,” Siwon responded.

Donghae’s scowl went even deeper. He took his phone and stood up. “Relaxing in your office is no fun anymore. I’m leaving.”

“Thank God,” Siwon said with a smirk. Then he called after Donghae. “Bring your son when you get back here next time. Maybe I can be more accommodating.”

Donghae just made a face at Siwon before closing the door behind him.

She looked even more beautiful than she did on TV