A/N: Yes it's been so long. I'm very sorry but I had tonnes of work to be done before next year. Being an architect is hard and whenever I'm off work I just sleep. But I managed this so if it's another long hiatus, bear with me. I'm trying hard here and I even have the story panned out to a perfect 24 chapters. So please, it's long way to go but I promise I'd do by best to finish it. Thank you for sticking with me. <3

Pictures of an Idea

Shock is an understatement of what JB is feeling as he sees the woman he had given his heart to holding another man’s arm. Holding to her husband’s arm. The demons inside him had told him that it was just an act, she still seeks for him and that he had nothing to worry. But the guilt inside him is always putting him for reality.

Oh Seung Ah was never his to begin with.

“Teacher, what are you doing here?” Krystal asks and she walks towards the teacher. Krystal bowed at her husband. “Ah, I’m sorry. Are you on a date?”

“Oh, are you Seung Ah’s student?” the husband bowed back. “Please to meet you. My name is Lim Sam. I hope my wife doesn’t bother you that much.”

“She is Jessica’s sister too.” Seung Ah peeked at JB who is looking everywhere but at them.

“Ah, so you are a Jung too. Good looks really runs through the family.” Sam said and it bothered Seung Ah a bit. More to the fact that JB was walking around with a pretty girl like Krystal this late of the night. “Honey don’t take it the wrong way.” Sam mistakes his wife’s jealousy was for him.

“No of course not. You might not know this Soojung but my husband is actually your sister’s boss. I’ve met her a couple of times myself and connected the dots that you are her sister. Forgive him if you ever see her stressed. It is obviously his fault every time.” Seung Ah looks at JB again. “The world is really small.”

“Ah is that so.” Krystal bows to Sam again. “Thank you for taking care of her a lot.”

“Aish, don’t mention. She have done a lot for the company. I run the company on behalf of my mother who is the initial designer but I don’t actually know about fashion itself. The artistry is all on your sister and I am very much grateful for that.” Sam seems like a very decent guy. Even JB can’t deny that. All he had ever knew about the guy was pictures that Seung Ah had put up.

Seung Ah smiles, hiding her thoughts. “Are you on a date yourself?” She had to ask.

Krystal looks back, seeing JB behind him. “Ah this, not really….” Krystal really didn’t know what this is. “This is my dad’s… assistant I guess. He works at the gallery.”

JB couldn’t bring himself to say anything so he just bowed. “My name is Im Jaebum, please to meet you.”

Seung Ah bowed too, still smiling. “Very nice to meet you.”

Strangers they seem to be. JB didn’t dare to look up to either Seung Ah or her husband, feeling he might explode if he sees their eyes. It was guilt, betrayal, all the mixed emotions in him. He really felt like punching something right now.

“Well, we better run. The late night theatre would start in minutes.” Sam acquired them. “It is very nice to meet you both.”

“Yes.” Seung Ah finally catches JB’s eyes. “Both of you.” She thought she’d see pain but she sees his walls up, covering up all the emotions he had. Just like when she lost him once before.

Krystal waves to the couple and sighed. “She’s really lucky. Her husband seems nice.” Krystal commented. She looks back and sees JB sighing, somehow his face looks tired and a lot was in his mind. Somehow it urged her to say something. “Thanks for today.”

JB looks at her, his emotions is still unclear. So he just replied “Yeah” and walks along.

The rest of the night to Krystal’s house, he didn’t speak anymore word. While he thinks of nothing of the silence, Krystal had a lot of questions that she didn’t dare to ask him, and she could only walk behind him watching his back. She likes his back, somehow. But it seems to have more burden and she really wished to erase any feelings or thoughts about lifting his burden. Krystal snaps out of it with a new mission.

Erase these feelings.

JB walks into his apartment, sighing heavily. The rest of the day was a blur and he could think nothing but Oh Seung Ah and her husband. He ignored the text he received after he walked home.

“Why are you with Jung Soo Jung?”

“She’s still a minor you know.”

“Why aren’t you replying?”

JB really didn’t know why he was supposed to answer to her. Call him childish but he think he had a right to be angry. The walk back made him think a lot of things.

“She’s the wrong one. She’s the one who decided to cheat on him.”

“So what if I was seeing someone else. She had a freaking husband.”

“I’m not replying because we are not in a real relationship.”

Of course, he really wanted to make this stop because in the end, it hurts. He made himself hurt by going to her again and again. He was in it for what? He was triggered to love her unconditionally, but is this really love. Does love have to torture him?

He sighs again and suddenly he sees Jinyoung and Youngjae standing in front of him.

“What are you two doing here?” He asks.

“I’m crashing here, remember.” Jinyoung said. “Mark, Jackson and the others are celebrating with the crew but I got tired so I left. Youngjae is taking some of the dried fish back home so he came by for a bit.”

“Right.” JB forgets that Jinyoung had in fact just conveniently moved in.

“Hyung, you okay?” Youngjae asks.

JB can’t lie. “I have no idea.” JB sat on the floor, feeling tired. “I really don’t know.”

“Hyung. What happen?” Jinyoung kneeled down to his brother. “Hyung.”

“I don’t know how to leave her.” JB revealed. “Even if I just saw her happy with her husband, even how ed up this feelings are, I don’t know how to leave her.”

Jinyoung understood immediately. Oh Seung Ah. The woman that almost killed his brother.

“I saw her with him, and he’s a nice fella. Complete. Not a hopeless photog like me. I’m nothing. I can’t even feel a tiny bit of happiness when she went jealous.” JB went placid, the expression he had always takes in whenever everything is a burden to him.

“Jealous? Of who?” Jinyoung crossed his arms.

“Soojungie.” JB went point blank, as if it explains everything. When he sees Jinyoung’s confused face, he explained again. “Turns out noona is her teacher and we met her on our way to the gallery. The earth is not big enough I guess. Noona mistake our outing as a date.”

“Oh.” Jinyoung could actually understand how everyone could mistake their outing as a date. He ignore a pit of jealousy he feels. “Did you explain to Seung Ah ssi?”

“I don’t have the power to do anything right now.” JB sighs. “It was all in her court. I can only play by her rules. Maybe this is stupid and worthless, but somehow, I just don’t know how to get out.”

Jinyoung stayed silent. JB is first, his hyung is always first. It was Youngjae who talks now. His words after changed JB’s perception.

“Make it into your game.”

JB and Jinyoung looked back at Youngjae.

“Hyung, seeing you with Soojung noona made her jealous. So if you want to end your hurt, if you want her to actually finally come to you, make it into your game. Make Oh Seung Ah look by being seen with Soojung noona.”

“Yah, Choi Youngjae!” That made Jinyoung shuts him and scolds the younger one. “Youngjae is innocent, he thinks like a child. He doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”

“Ah, hyung, I mean…” Youngjae scratched her head. “It’s a suggestion.”

“A stupid one. Why are we putting Soojung ssi in the middle of this, you idiot!” Jinyoung shuts his eyes and looked back to JB, who surprisingly looked determined.

“He had a point though. After all this years, noona finally focused her concern on me.” JB’s eyes went dark and he actually considered to mix the lie.

“Hyung!” Jinyoung yelled at him. “You’re not considering this!”

“Why not?” JB thought Seung Ah have had her games, it’s time to take charge. “You have no idea what I’ve been through. I’m standing up for myself.”

“No, you’re standing up for your ego.” Jinyoung shot back at him. “She had always play with you and the stupid you are, you go back to her all the time, even if she’s the devil herself.”

“Yah, be careful.” JB stood up and looked straight into Jinyoung’s eyes.

“Hyung, if you do this, trust me, you’ll end up losing more than a high school girlfriend.” Jinyoung said.

JB rolls his eyes and took his bag, rushing out of his own apartment, leaving. The idea somehow etched in his head.

There has to be something that disgust her from him.

Krystal peeked at JB who is sitting in front of her. He had been quiet since yesterday as he sends her back home and today she realized he slept in the gallery. Something happened and she couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment he changed his mood.

They waited for Changmin to arrive and normally they would banter or insult the other. Yet there is JB, sitting quietly, scrolling his phone. Did something happen?

Krystal is not someone who starts the conversation and usually it will be JB’s first anecdote that triggers her sass. Though the awkward nature of the situation is getting to her. Plus she needs to get her operation to kill the feelings she had fast. So she just goes with it. “Yah, why are you so quiet?” Krystal sees him looking up. “Did something happen?”

JB looked at her, not feeling an answer to her question. Yesterday he got into an argument with Jinyoung because he actually considered Youngjae’s suggestion. He had focused all night on that idea, somehow the suggestion is swallowing him, and he tried not to look at Krystal, the mentioned piece in that idea. The unending texts he receives from Seung Ah is starting to be become fascinatingly annoying and somehow strengthen his desire to go for it. Something else is stopping him from doing it immediately. “Nothing.”

Krystal looks at him. Obviously something is wrong and she got up and took her purse with her. She sighed. “Fine.”

JB looked at Krystal scanning the cakes they have there. She came back after, continuing their silence. JB is kind of surprised that the short answer he gave her resolved them into his preferred silence rather than pushing it.

The waitress came and puts two strawberry shortcake in front of them and JB eyed Krystal.

“Supposedly they are very good. It’s my treat so eat up.” Krystal said without looking up and pulled her own desert. He eats like a pig so she thought that might cancel him out. She took a bite, no lie, it is delicious. “Oh my God.” She started squirming as she dug in.

JB smiles as he sees her sudden aegyo. Krystal is not really someone who acts cute so seeing her in her comfortable state is good to him. He took a bite. It is good. “Sorry for being an . I had a rough night.”

“I really don’t want to know what you did last night.” Krystal is more annoyed than usual when she heard that. He probably hooked up with somehow and she is still trying to adapt to her new feelings or more accurately, destroy it completely. She looks up to see him playing with the cake and laughing a bit.

“I told you I am not that promiscuous.” JB sat up a little straighter. “I went back home and somehow Jinyoungie who by the way is crashing MY place decided to annoy the heck out of me. For some reason it’s like a husband going back to a wife that scolds him for not washing the dishes. I was irritated so I left and slept on the gallery’s floor. That is how rough my night is. The floor is not comfortable.”

“Jinyoung ssi seems nice the other day.” Krystal sees JB looking up. His stare is not helping. “I don’t know what happen but the fact that you were the one who left means it is your fault.” Krystal said, trying to sass him out. JB eyed her.

“Thanks for the sympathy.” JB fakes a smile as Krystal just smirks. Their banter is coming back. She’s liking it too much.

“He told me he had been with you the longest.” Krystal sees JB looking up. “You guys are really close are you?”

“We take care of each other somewhat, so I guess we’re close.” JB nods. Somehow Krystal had made his anger towards Jinyoung lessen. “That kid is in trouble though. He looks like the calm and composed but when the clock ticks, he could erupt anytime.” Something else bothered JB. “What else did he say to you?”

“Nothing that I can use against you sadly.” Krystal blurts out. Nothing to make the feelings go away. “He complimented you a lot, which is a weird thing to hear.” It made her like JB.

JB watches and he thought if it were someone else, they would have asked details about what had happened but there she is, Krystal sitting there calming him without probing. Without actually taking the problem and expose everything on the table, he had felt so much better.

“Seriously, if you are that desperate just crash on the couch. I’m sure dad wouldn’t mind. You interrupt our apartment that often anyway.” She is quite surprised by her own suggestion. “What the hell am I doing?”

“I should just move in with you guys then.” JB sees the serious look on her face and he laughs. It’s good to get that out, a laugh that is not pressured to impress others. “I’m joking alright. Halmeoni would start staggering me with ‘appropriate’ Korean values if that happens.”

That reminds her.

“She did text me yesterday to see if I have arrived safely home.” Krystal pokes her cake and she sees JB froze. “I said I did even if we’re still at the showcase so your Korean values is still appropriate alright.”

“Since when do you two text each other?” JB is curious. His grandmother is up to something.

“Since she asked for my number so that we could both go to her favorite salon next month.” Krystal smiled. She liked having the older woman around. Her lack of older mother figures somehow speaks for it. “Don’t worry, you are off the hook. You can skip our date.” Hanging out with his crush’s grandmother who she pretends to be the girlfriend of is not a good idea.

“Gee thanks.” JB rolls his eyes. It is good that someone is actually hanging out with her. He isn’t exactly comfortable with old ladies poking him in the salon so to actually have a girl accompanying her isn’t too bad.

“But seriously, if you really need a place to crash, your back would need that sofa.” Krystal looked away, confirming that she might have gone too far to let a guy crash her home.

“I like the gallery though. It’s calm enough for thinking straight about your own life.” JB sits back, stretching a bit.

“Did you finally find regrets?” She meant it as a joke but she looks up to see him smiling sadly.

“I did, sort of. Somehow my friends is finally living up their dreams and I feel like I have none. It’s regretful that I wasn’t conscious enough about it earlier.”

“I thought your dream is to become a photographer?” Krystal watches him.

“It still is but sometimes, it just feel like I am not pushing enough.” Somehow, his real feelings floored and he puts out all of his honesty. He didn’t know what prompted this conversation. “I always had this feeling that I am not enough.”

What Krystal sees is a guy who have actually lost all of his confidence, a guy who might seem like he had someone beaten all the strength in him to push forward and is now just on a constant with the present without really moving. The arrogance that accompany him that annoys Krystal so much is lost and was only a mask to hide himself.

He just showed a side that was unfamiliar to her. JB is broken. Those wide shoulders of him dropped as he somehow became smaller. How the hell did the confident Im Jaebum became so vulnerable?

JB sees Krystal watching him. Suddenly his wall came up. He smiled brightly, covering up. “Look at your face. I was joking. Ignore everything I said.” Krystal realizes that he puts that cover a lot, something she didn’t realize before. She wanted to say something but nothing came out. She didn’t know what to say.

They were suddenly interrupted as the very much handsome TVXQ Changmin has graced them with his presence. JB’s work mode is already on and his shoulders went up, greeting the idol. Even if Krystal was pretty much charmed by Changmin before, all she could think was the façade JB is keeping and how it must be hard for him to put it up all the time.

Jinyoung silently repeated his lines for the audition. It is just an extra role but he thought he’d better start somewhere. Thing is, he self-destruct all the time and always failed his audition at the last minute. This is just an extra saying “Yah, what are you doing?” in a Busan accent. Jinyoung feels confident for it and thought to give it his best go.

His cell lights up and he sees his sister’s name on it. Jinyoung ignored it and just tries to focus on his audition. His arm is still sore but he thought nothing about it. He had been working a lot to get into an acting academy and now he is auditioning. Such bruise on the arm shouldn’t bother him.

“Park Jinyoung-ssi?” He heard his name being called. “You’re up.”

Krystal is in a daze as Changmin bowed and left. Seems like JB was on a roll as he actually asked the celebrity more than he did with the others. “You really put out a lot of questions.”

“That is because I don’t know him. Sure we can google him online but your dad was specific that he wanted to have a personal touch in his gallery. Just having a poster character of Changmin won’t do.” JB explained carefully and he sees her very intrigued. “The others we have met, I myself have known for a time being and I have an insight on what their characters are. Thus when we find photographs of them, we get the picture of the image that suits them, an image that says they are not just idols, they are humans. There is a lot of enigma that idol companies uses to venture idols.”

“Such as?” Krystal had to admit, this is quite confusing.

“Okay, let’s say, Sistar has a concept of being y and summer vibe. That is their go to as idols.” JB hides his smile as Krystal nods, firmly learning. “They were chosen for their talent obviously but companies have more things they see than just talent, they want personality etc. While they all look pretty with great personalities, they are a product of idols. Now if you asked them, Sistar particularly prided themselves for being great singers and I think to appreciate idols more, we should showcase them of what they want to flaunt instead of just a product.”

Krystal never thought that far and only mistook this project as a worship for idols. She is fascinated by how JB could go through into a deeper meaning of photography itself. “What about Changmin-ssi? What do you know of him?”

“I think more than anything, Changmin-ssi’s image is that he is a nice guy in public. But the way he answers just seems like he really wanted to be a fun person around people.” JB said. “I could be wrong, but we’ll meet him again and I’d probably ask him a little bit on what he would prefer to be portrayed.”

“Do you learn psychology or something in your university?” Krystal blurted out as they stood in front of their car.

“I don’t.” JB entered the car and starts the ignition while Krystal puts her seat belt on quietly. “But I was told before that I have an eagle eye on things and I have good judgments on people. So maybe it’s that meticulous psychology side or something.”

“Honestly, if you have told me this side of you when we were younger, I’d probably won’t believe you.” Krystal said.

“Am I that bad to your eyes?” JB laughs.

“Yeah.”

“Ouch.” JB smiles and his energy is somewhat back. “I’m curious, how you really see me? More than the ruthless promiscuous jerk.”

“Well, you seem like you don’t care about people and only think about yourself.” Krystal admitted. But now, everything about him somehow seems like blur. The confident jerk was a see through mask now. She sees him laughing at her statement. “I do sort of seen another side of you.”

“And what side would that be?” JB watches the road.

Krystal watches him quietly. “I’m not quite sure either. I’ll tell you when I figure it out.”

JB is confused. “Ok? I do have you figured out though.” That sentence itself sends butterflies to her stomach.

“You must have always labeled me boss’s bratty daughter.” She tried to sass again. She’s okay when they banter.

“Or Sica Noona’s bratty sister. I changed it up whenever I like it.” JB received a hit from her. “Okay, okay. Well, Krystal Jung is way complicated. She lives in a mysterious life, she has mountains high of confidence that can be a bit of a hassle at times.” He sees Krystal was about to hit him. “I’m not finished. Now Jung Soojung, she’s less of a mystery. She loves her dad and her sister. She cares a lot more about the people around her than she looks. She is always meticulous about which side of the bread she eats first. While Krystal Jung is pretty ethereal on those magazines, Jung Soojung is fascinating too.”

Krystal smiles, it warms her heart so much to hear that. The operation to kill these feelings; FAIL.

Oh Seung Ah stood in front of the gallery that JB had always talked about. The world is too small. She met both of her student and ex-student who she is ing on her night out with her husband. The fact that JB has yet to reply made her almost crazy so here she is looking for him. His apartment was empty so he must be here at work. Circumstances have stopped their relationship before and she wasn’t going to lose him again.

Suddenly, the pretty and kind student she always liked in Krystal have vanished. Krystal is the right now. Even if Krystal have explained that JB was only her dad’s assistant, Seung Ah knows when there is attraction. She knows the look Krystal is giving him, it is the same look any girls that were fond of JB would give him. But the difference is with Krystal was JB’s reaction. After he feigned on not knowing Seung Ah yesterday, he stood by Krystal, as if waiting to dodge the bullet for the younger girl.

He had that look. A look that she always thought was only reserved for her.

“She is dangerous. I always she knew she was.” Seung Ah whispers to herself.

“Ah, ‘Ho’ Seung Ah noona what are you doing here?” She looks back to see the other devil himself. Park Jinyoung.

Oh Seung Ah never liked the boy. She always knew he disapproved of her ‘relationship’ with JB and overheard them talking and Jinyoung was encouraging JB to move on from her. Nope, not going to happen. She might be the sweet teacher to her kids but Park Jinyoung was not one who deserved that side of her.

“I’m looking for my boyfriend, of course.” Seung Ah fakes a smile. “Have you seen him?”

Jinyoung rolls his eyes on the ‘boyfriend’ part. “He left home yesterday and didn’t came back yet.”

“What you share apartments now?” Seung Ah smirks. “Probably why he didn’t come back.”

“Well, I am crashing for the time being.” Jinyoung smirks back.  “Probably also why he crashed in Soojung’s house.” Jinyoung’s words silenced Seung Ah. Her smirk was gone and he wanted to laugh. “Ahhh, is that not something I should say?”

“Yah, Park Jinyoung.” Seung Ah warned him.

“You know this already, Seung Ah sem. I think Jaebum hyung deserved better than you. You play with his heart with poison and you still think you have any right to call him yours.” Jinyoung stared right at Seung Ah’s eyes. “Yesterday was brutal for him. But I think it is the beginning of a wake up call. The fact that you are here, I think you realized it too.” Jinyoung smiles mockingly at her.

“Realize what?”

“There is attraction between them. And unlike all those girls you chased away before, Jung Soojung had something the others don’t.” This took her attention. “She had his attention. Mighty competition don’t you think?”

“Yah. You think that girl is my competition. You forget that I have his heart since he was 17. Society might have separated us but, I’m not letting go.” Seung Ah caressed Jinyoung’s cheek which he refused. “Know your place, Jinyoung ssi. We all know he would have chosen me over you every single time, just like he did before.”

JB sighs as he parked the car in front of the gallery. He sees Krystal asleep in her seat. This is another side that JB had thought was cute from her. She is always easily asleep in the car since they were young. Whenever the Jung’s came to their house in Ilsan, the young sleepy Jung Soojung would be carried by her father out of the car.

He flipped his phone open. Another 13 text from Seung Ah. He thought about the things Youngjae had told him before.

JB looked at Krystal yet again. He’d be using her if he does goes through it. This game is a dangerous one. He never mix his life around the Jung’s with his private affair but somehow fate had decided to mix it all over. JB thought, “It’s not like we’re going to date, she doesn’t even like me. We just need to pretend like we did with halmeoni.” But the thing that bothers him is that he doesn’t exactly know what relationship she had with Seung Ah. The way Krystal called the teacher before seems like she is actually fond of the teacher. Is he allowed to mess even that now? He pushed his head down, seriously contemplating and denying.

Krystal wakes up and sees the familiar gallery. “Oh we’re here?” She looks beside her and sees JB’s head down and shoulders slumped. “You really shouldn’t do that. Oppa.”

That one word perked him up as he looks at her. She is still out of her mind but slowly realized she have spoken the exact word that made him smile like an idiot.

“Yah! That is great, Jung Soojung!” JB ruffled her hair and she swatted his hands away. “I never thought you had it in you.”

“No, I just blurted out okay. It’s no big deal.” Krystal takes her bag and went out of the car which he followed and called her to stop.

“Okay stop stop stop. OPPA shouldn’t do what?” He liked that he heard it loud and clear. He laughed when Krystal scrunched her nose at him. “Yah, Jung Soojung, you said I shouldn’t do something. Shouldn’t do what?”

Krystal really didn’t want to say anything. nowadays just runs its own course. And it did yet again.

“You shouldn’t slump your shoulders like that.” Krystal said. “I don’t know what happened to you but you seem to be awfully down these days and…” She tries to stop herself from blushing. “I don’t know, it’s just not fun being around with such a sappy guy all the time.”

She was worried. Krystal is that bad in expressing herself, worse than he is but she is actually a very caring person. He knows this since they were children but that side was focused onto her father or her sister. He didn’t know he’d finally be on that side too.

JB pats her head. “Thanks Soojung.”

He decided that Youngjae’s suggestion was a bull. It was childish. Anything between him and Seung Ah is between them. He found out that the reason behind his wait to pursue the idea is that Soojung is indeed a precious person.

He can’t hurt her. He won’t hurt her. No matter what.

That stays.

Seung Ah watches as JB being sweet with Krystal, and her anger is seen in her eyes. She stops herself for a bit as she took her phone, dialing a number.

“Sulli ssi?”

No one messes with the woman who is scorned.

To Be Continued