"So, you are saying that your hot boss invited all of us to his house?" Hyoyeon said and squealed excitedly. Miyeon and Kyungsoo rolled their eyes. "Then what are we waiting for? Let's get ready!" she jumped up. "Text him that we are coming!" Miyeon looked to Kyungsoo and sighed. She took her phone and texted him. He replied soon, telling her that she and her friends are more than welcome to visit him.

"Are you alright? Can you go?" Kyungsoo asked her.

"I am. It's just that I'm confused. What is going on with him lately? When I was in the hospital, he told me that we were friends, he invited us to his house. I don't know what to think."

"Maybe he finally likes you", Kyungsoo said and she only shook her head.

"Did I tell you about that woman?"

He huffed. "Miyeon, that was almost two months ago."

"Not Gayoung, the other woman. The only woman he ever loved, to be precise." Kyungsoo frowned and took a seat next to her. "She got married recently. He told me that himself at the office before this vacation. He looked really hurt and sad. I think he still loves her."
Kyungsoo remained quiet. He looked into her eyes and saw the sadness and pain. He hugged her, wishing that her pain could vanish. "We don't have to go if you don't want."

"No, I'll go."
__________________________________________________________________________________________

Joonmyun's house was really close to the beach and it was huge. They stood outside just to admire its design. 

"I think you should seduce your boss right away", Hyoyeon whispered to Miyeon. "Just imagine, having a house like this..." Miyeon glared at her and they heard someone giggle. It was Joonmyun. He appeared in front of them wearing nothing but a pair of shorts. He smiled at them, welcoming them into the house. 

"Miyeon-sshi, are you alright now? Did you recover fully?" he asked while he led them through the house.

"I am, thank you."

They were soon in the backyard, where there was a huge pool and a table with a lot of chairs. Miyeon recognized Minseok and saw another man sitting next to him.

The two men greeted them and they all introduced themselves.

The other man was Changmin, whom Miyeon remembered from one of the meetings. Just a few minutes after they took a seat, someone came out of the house.

"Hello everyone!" It was Jongdae. He smiled brightly and introduced himself to Miyeon's friends. She was surprised that he was there.

"I had to come here and take care of my brother", he whispered to Miyeon later.

"Serve yourselves", Joonmyun said, pointing at the table and a bunch of dishes on it. 

The mood wasn't awkward as Miyeon thought it would be. Jongdae's jokes kept everyone entertained. Kyungsoo and Minseok found about their mutual love for food and since Kyungsoo was a chef, they had a plenty of things to talk about. Hyoyeon kept whispering to Miyeon how hot Jongdae looked in his tank top until the latter decided to tell her that he already had a girlfriend. Hyoyeon looked disappointed for a moment before she turned her attention to Changmin. Shim Changmin was a pretty close friend of Joonmyun. They went to college together and remained good friends after that. 

While the rest were chatting and eating, Changmin's attention was  focused on Miyeon. His eyes followed her every movement and that bothered Joonmyun way too much. He knew by the look in his eyes that his friend was up to no good.

"Miyeon-sshi, what do you say about the dishes?" Joonmyun asked. "They're not as good as the ones you make, though", he added with a smile.

She smiled shyly. "Everything was really great and much better than anything I've ever made."

"So, Miyeon-sshi, you are good at cooking?" Changmin jumped in. Joonmyun tried hard to suppress the irritation that was building up inside him and he smiled weakly at his friend, nodding. Somehow Changmin always managed to meddle in his conversation with Miyeon and that angered him.

Changmin chuckled. "Well then I hope that I'll have the chance to taste some of your cooking."

Miyeon nodded awkwardly, now feeling a bit intimidated by Changmin's look. She couldn't deny that he was very handsome and, based on the conversations they had during the evening, he was smart. But something about him was off.

"Joonmyun-sshi, where is the bathroom?" Miyeon asked. He got up, but Changmin put a hand on his shoulder. 

"I'll show her the way. I'm going into the house anyways", he said, glancing at Joonmyun, who gritted his teeth and nodded.

Miyeon followed after Changmin into the house. He led her to the bathroom and then went upstairs.
___________________________________________________________________________________________

"Wow! This kitchen is really big. I think it's bigger than the one I worked in on my first job!" Kyungsoo looked around the kitchen in Joonmyun's house. 
What were they exactly doing in the kitchen? Well, since Kyungsoo was a chef, Minseok insisted that he had to try at least something he cooked and Kyungsoo agreed immediately. It wasn't hard to get him to cook. Everyone was now inside the house, since it got really windy outside.

"How long have you been working for Joonmyun?" Changmin asked Miyeon. They were alone in the living room, sitting next to each other. The rest were in the kitchen, while Joonmyun was talking to someone on the phone and Miyeon prayed inwardly for him to return.

"It has been three years", she replied.

"He is a great boss, I'm sure". Miyeon smiled widely. Yes, he was a great boss. At least to her he was. "I mean, I've always admired him. He could always manage to make a balance between his job and partying." Partying? That wasn't something she expected to hear in the same sentence with Joonmyun."At least he was like that before, I don't know about now. Clubs, women, parties. We were both like that." Miyeon looked at him, confused. Why was he saying all of that? "I bet there are still women coming to his office, looking for him", he continued. "He was quite popular among the ladies." She clenched her fists tightly, looking away from him. Why did it hurt so much?  Changmin must have noticed the change in her posture and he shook his head.

"Forgive me, I'm just stupid", he said. She frowned, glancing at him. "Joonmyun is a great guy, I assure you." He shook his head again and got up. "I should have known", he muttered to himself and stormed out of the room. Miyeon was left dumbfounded by his behaviour, but soon other thoughts invaded her brain. I have to talk to Jongdae. As if someone had heard her, Jongdae appeared in the living room. He made himself comfortable in the armchair.

"Jongdae, can I ask you something?"

He was surprised by the way Miyeon called his name. No formalities. Something was wrong. "You can. And don't ever use formalities again with me, we're friends."
She blushed, realising that she had dropped the formalities, but she smiled after hearing his words. Now came the difficult part. The question. "Jongdae, was Joonmyun a player?"

Her question hit him more than he thought it would. He didn't want to question how and where could she get that from, he only knew that he had to give her an answer. "Let's go outside where we can be talk in peace."