His Best Friend's Girl

Jiyong hadn’t been trying to hide. Of course he wasn’t – he was a dignified twenty-eight year-old man with a never ending list of achievements under his gem-embossed belt.

So when he realized the horde of teenage girls had seen through his disguise – though who was he kidding with the sunglasses and beanie – he most certainly didn’t run away.

No, instead, the global superstar had simply walked briskly in the other direction of which the girls had been running after him.

Such was his predicament that he had to slide between little shopping carts in the streets of Hongdae, trying his best to use whatever little coverage he could get from the shadows of the strangers he passed by. They stared at him, clearly wondering why a large group of women were screaming G-Dragon’s name as they ran after him.

He knew this would be a terrible idea ever since Youngbae came up with it, insisting that nobody would recognize him as long as he kept his face covered.

Jiyong never wanted to smash his best friend’s face in more than he ever did presently, furious when he was forced to  break into a sprint as it began to dawn upon the crowd that a celebrity was in their midst.

As he hustled into alleyway connecting to the restaurant his best friend had recommended to meet in, Jiyong bumped shoulders with a petite woman, knocking the latter off of her feet and into the solid ground below them, her hand reaching out to grab ahold of his and drag him down with her.

When he regained his senses, Jiyong turned to help her out, mumbling quick apologies.

The first thing he realized was how beautiful the woman was.

She had huge obsidian eyes set against a pale face, red lips in a pout and cheeks flushing pink from the cold. Her black hair fanned about her face, long and slightly curled at the edges. She was slender, though she had curves in all the right places, her long legs spread eagle as she attempted to regain her balance.

“You could at least watch where you’re going,” she huffed, ignoring his outstretched hand and choosing instead to heft herself up. “Some people like to keep their bums off the winter-seasoned cement.”

Her voice was raspy, a little breathless, and Jiyong found himself leaning in to watch her closely. “I’m sorry. Are you okay?”

She looked up then, eyes spewing fire, when she realized exactly who she was speaking to. She gasped in surprise, one slim finger pointing at him, eyes growing wider with recognition and disbelief.

Before the woman could call his name, he clasped his hand over , pressing her against the alley wall as he glanced wildly around for his fans that had been continuously screaming after him. When he was in the clear, he looked back at her, liking the way how his touch sent a mixture of warmth and energy through his frigid veins.

He released her, feeling a jolt of pride when she blushed a perfect shade of dark crimson. She fidgeted, leaning closer against the wall as her eyes refused to meet his, clearly embarrassed by his unrepentant display of physical affection.

She spoke to the ground, “Uh, hey, I’ve got somewhere to go so–”

“What’s your name?” Jiyong interrupted her, unable to let the woman escape.

“Bom.” She replied quickly, still not meeting his gaze. “Nice meeting you!”

Giving a quick bow, Jiyong watched in humor as she ducked underneath the cage of his arms, attempting to rush off to whichever destination she seemed adamant on reaching. He allowed her a quick minute or so of pretentious freedom before he strode back up to her and gripped her elbow.

For the life of him, he couldn’t understand why it seemed so pivotal for his being to get to know the woman. Already she had him wrapped around her pinky finger, a clear indication of some bewitching quality she possessed, and he’d only just met her.

He had all intentions of asking her out, wanting to ditch his best friend, because the woman had enraptured him. She was gorgeous, almost heartbreakingly so, to the point where Jiyong simply knew he had to have her.

Her arm was too thin in his hands, underneath her coat that reached all the way to her mid-thighs. He could see the pale green turtle-neck sweater she wore under it, a scarf wrapped meticulously around her neck and feet covered by navy-blue boots with a synthetic fur lining in its insoles.

She dressed as warmly as the weather permitted her too, with little flakes of snow melting in her hair.

And Jiyong swore he fell in love right then and there.

Pulling away from him, Bom gave him a look that pleaded mercy. She seemed doubtful of his intentions, and extremely uncomfortable with the attention he was giving her; he couldn’t understand, though, for most women would fall over their feet in worship if he so much as sneaked a glance in their direction.

But he could tell she was different, that she was clearly unlike most women he’d come across in all his years of being a successful performer.

“You were heading in the same direction as I was.” He offered her a smile, hoping that it would be enough to placate her. “I wanted to walk with you there; someone as beautiful as you shouldn’t be walking these streets alone. There might be men out there willing to take advantage of you.”

At this, she raised an eyebrow. “How am I to know you’re not one of those men you speak about?”

Jiyong laughed, feeling his heart lighten at the refreshing distrust the woman held for him. “If I wanted to hurt you – not that I’m saying I will because I won’t – theoretically speaking, you would be under me by now.”

She kept her brow arched. “I don’t trust you but I know you’re desperately trying to avoid your fans, so I’ll let you slide just for this time.”

God, could she get any more perfect? He thought in awe, his mind already making up ways where he could sneak in a coffee date with her.

“Whatever you say,” he winked at her, eyeing her pale cheeks turning sanguine at his flirtatious gesture.

They walked to the restaurant in relative silence, Jiyong messing around with his phone and attempting to send an emergency message to Youngbae about his impendent need to cancel their lunch. He wanted to spend it with Bom, to get to know the woman even more. If fate would be so kind to him, he wanted to ask her out on another date, and another, all the way until she became well and truly his.

He hadn’t felt this way towards anybody for a long time. He had loved his old  girlfriend Kiko, spent a good five years with her even, and was forced to say a final goodbye to her when their relationship turned into a hideous nightmare. He had loved her, adored everything about her, and was keen on putting a ring on her finger before he realized they wanted two different things.

It was platonic, the end to their relationship, and Jiyong had moved forward with better ideas of who he wanted to settle down with.

Bom and her natural way of making him feel at ease, of setting his skin crawling with an unbeknownst emotion he couldn’t quite get a grip on, was the only implication he needed to know that he had met the woman of his dreams.

And when they entered the restaurant, Jiyong begrudgingly dragging his feet because he knew his time with her had ended – damn his meddlesome thoughts – the thing he least expected was Youngbae, seated at the hidden corner of the store, rising to his feet to welcome him with open arms.

He showed no indication that he was livid at his request to cancel their scheduled meetup.

Instead, Jiyong watched with a horrified expression as his best friend wrapped his arms around Bom’s tiny waist and pulled her up for a searing kiss.

It was then that he knew, without any form of doubt, that he was utterly ed.

-HBFG-

It turned out that the main reason why Youngbae wanted so desperately to meet with him was so he could introduce his girlfriend of two years – whom Jiyong had no knowledge about because his friend was deviously secretive in that way – and inform him of his plans to come clean with their relationship.

“I was getting sick of having to meet her secretly,” he admitted, arm around Bom’s shoulder as she plaintively ignored them and read the menu. “I figured since we’re older now, our fans have got to be more understanding, right? What do you think?”

Jiyong thought about how he wanted to rip Youngbae’s arm around her, as well as the infuriating jealousy that bubbled underneath his impassive demeanor.

She was his best friend’s girl.

That was a territory he couldn’t touch, nor go anywhere near.

It shouldn’t have to hurt this much, though.

“You should be asking our Hyunsuk-hyung about that,” Jiyong finally replied, letting a shaky breath out, trying his damnedest not to stare at Bom when she bit her lip in concern over his statement.

“Jiyong’s right, Youngbae,” she spoke for the first time, and as ridiculous as it sounded, he felt his heart break a little more. “Your company president needs to know about us before we can think further about going public; if the media catches hold of this, it’ll be difficult to put out the fire then.”

She was talking so comfortably with him, completely at ease with a normally reserved Youngbae’s affectionate touches. He was staring at her with adoration and a whole lot of what Jiyong suspected was love, and she bore a clear reflection of his emotions as well.

Clearly, he had faulted some god in his previous life for him to be punished this way. He hated the revolting bile drawing up his gullet as he watched his best friend kiss her cheek soothingly, murmuring that all would be well. He resented the pain that tore its way through his chest, almost clawing at his insides to be released.

Wanting a distraction, he cleared his throat, asserting himself between what had now become a couple’s private discussion. “So, how did you two meet? Youngbae never told me anything.”

His best friend, with his kind face and patient smile, turned to face him with an expression that didn’t need any other description but love. “At a broadcast, actually. Remember the episode on Running Man where I guested with Chaerin and the girls?”

Jiyong nodded, his face betraying no emotion.

Of course he remembered; he hadn’t laughed as hard as he did for ages during that particular episode. He had been in one of those ‘off’ times with Kiko, and was in a rather dark mood, when Chaerin forced him to sit down and watch his best friend make a fool of himself for the few minutes he had volunteered as a guest.

“She was an assistant PD,” he continued, giving Bom a tender smile. “And she was the one who contacted me first about guesting for a brief period of time – it was all a mess, actually, because it happened last-minute. Nevertheless, when I first saw her, I knew I had to agree to the slot so I could continue seeing her.”

The said woman snorted, pushing his face away from hers as she rolled her eyes. “He’s romanticizing it too much – basically, I screamed at his about appearing on the show until he got annoyed and said yes. Everything thereafter occurred due to his incessant need to ensure that a good image of his would be portrayed for the entirety of his role.”

Jiyong wanted to continuously bang his head against the table.

He remembered that day; a woman calling his manager as they were in the studio recording new music about him guesting on Running Man. Jiyong, frenzied by inspiration to finish his song, had adamantly denied the request, and passed the offer on to Youngbae without much thought.

If only I had said yes, he spat in his mind, if only I had been quicker . . .

“I see.” He gave them a smile, praying that they would buy his bluff of distorted mirth. “Well, it was nice meeting you, Bom-ssi, but I actually have something important to do.”

Youngbae sat up straighter, alarmed. “But you don’t–”

“I’ll see you soon.” He nodded at his best friend, shoving away from the seat, walking past the befuddled waiter who had just placed their orders on the pristine table. He heard a shuffling of chairs from behind his brisk pace and forced himself not to look in case he caught sight of something that would make him want to regurgitate his breakfast even more.

As he was exiting the restaurant, beanie pulled down enough to cover the top of his sunglasses and coat pulled up all the way to his nose, he felt a warm hand wrap around the crook of his left elbow, stopping him from his movements.

He didn’t need to look to know that it was her.

“I know you don’t want to listen to it, but please hear me out.” She begged, her voice low.

He turned, pulling her against him as he tugged them out into the cold February air. Dragging her with him, as inconspicuous as he could – cameras were everywhere, nowadays – he halted them in the same alley way they had walked side by side with from before.

“Tell me you don’t feel this.” Jiyong demanded roughly, leaning in closer until he was pressing her into the wall, hand out to cup her cheek and eyes seeking hers in a mad daze of confusion and disgruntlement. “Tell me you don’t feel what I feel.”

There were tears pricking in her eyes, he could see, and her face scrunched up in a twistedly hurt look. “Don’t.”

“Don’t what?” He gruffly asked, moving even closer so he was now pressed solely against her body, her lips mere inches away from his. “Because I like you, and I think it may be more, but clearly you failed to mention to me how you were already seeing my best friend!”

“We literally just met!” She cried, throwing her hands up to shield herself from his imposing accusations. “You can’t expect me to believe that you’re in love with me within the few minutes we’ve know each other!”

Jiyong pursed his lips. “What if I said that I did? Would that change anything?”

She was quiet, slowly removing her hands away from her face as she stared at him head-on, never once removing those gorgeous eyes of hers – ones that could read your very soul – to examine the man who stood in front of her impenitently.

“I love him.” She said, and his heart shattered.

He took a deep breath, letting the air blow between them when he let it out quickly. “And you’re happy?”

“I love him,” she repeated, squaring her shoulders with a dangerous glint in her black eyes, as if she was responding to the subtle challenge he was offering her.

“Not for long.” Jiyong pushed himself off of her before he walked away, hands itching to write the lyrics that had sprouted themselves in his ever tangled thoughts.

-HBFG-

Youngbae told him of their decision to tell their president and his resounding resolution to force them to remain silent about their relationship. He claimed that Hyunsuk-hyung wanted nothing but the best for their relationship, and by revealing it to the public, he was afraid Bom would be embezzled with hate and much skepticism.

Jiyong had to agree with his company president on that one; he himself wouldn’t dare hurt her as long as he could.

There wasn’t a day that passed without him thinking about her. All the songs that he made within the weeks since their first meeting were about her, from the love-sick tones to angst-filled melodies, Jiyong had done everything that was remotely possible to pen down his wayward emotions.

Nothing could satisfy him, especially when he was halfway through recording with the rest of his bandmates, and he’d catch Youngbae sending a text to her.

He couldn’t speak to anyone about this, since he normally would rant to Youngbae about the trials and tribulations of his nonexistent love-life or troubles. What bothered him the most was how easy it was for him to wish for Youngbae to end things with her or vice-versa.

He was a monster, someone who didn’t deserve the gentle, kind-hearted and generous Youngbae as his best friend. He was someone who he had become ashamed of looking in the mirror at, often finding the self-loathe brewing behind his hazel eyes that glared at his being.

-HBFG-

Jiyong had been looking forward to the finale concert of his group’s smash-hit comeback. After an exhausting and trying world tour, he was ready to simply kick up his feet and disappear into his private villa back in Jeju-do, seeking refuge and solace in his lonesome self so he could finally rid the copious amount of envy he held for his best friend.

He had seen the crowd of women, fans he’d recognize from over the years, and had been pleased and emotional beyond belief that after all these years they’d stuck with them, never leaving their side even as the going got tough.

Then, like fate was the cruel beast of nature it was, his eyes met those obsidian ones he had been dreaming of since he last saw her.

She was standing in the crowd, almost swallowed up by it, standing on her toes as she tried to catch a better glimpse of them. Standing in the VIP section, illuminated by the neon lights frantically running all over the audience, Jiyong thought she had never looked more beautiful.

Bom had a crown stick in one hand, the other lifting up the banner from the event his fans had planned from earlier. A huge smile adorned her face, one that brought his entire world on a standstill, causing him to lie to himself for a brief moment that his best friend’s girl was here for him.

Her eyes scanned the stage, searching, until they finally stumbled across his gaze boring down at her. She gave him a breathtaking smile, her lips stretched into a grin so tragically ravishing that he felt his heart squeeze a little, and waved the light stick at him.

He loved her. He did.

But she was his best friend’s girl, and he had been through so much with Youngbae; practically spent majority of his life with him going through such shenanigans together, to ever deny his dear friend the happiness he so richly deserved.

He would continue loving her, but he would have to learn how to let her go.

-HBFG-

A month later, secluded in the home of his villa, Jiyong lounged about the side of his pool lazily.

He could hear the crickets singing in the heat of the summer afternoon, his shades resting on the bridge of his nose as he allowed his inflatable float to drift him around the lukewarm pool, the sun kissing his previously pallid skin.

Relishing in the serenity of his quiet home, Jiyong was forced to dump himself in the water when the ringing of his cellphone interrupted his relaxation time.

Cursing and coughing out the water he had swallowed in his surprise, he pulled himself out of the water and dried off with a fluffy white towel, hands reaching for his still-ringing cellphone.

It was Youngbae. “Speak, filthy human, and make it quick.”

His best friend laughed, one that clearly seemed lighter and more relaxed since their vacation started after their finale concert had ended. “I missed you too, you piece of .”

“What do you want, Youngbae?” Jiyong sighed, placing the phone between his ear and shoulder as he picked at his toes. “I have a busy schedule of sleeping and generally messing around until Hyunsuk-hyung calls us back to the studio; which can happen anytime now.”

“Exactly my point.” His friend chuckled. “I was calling if you wanted in on that Mexican trip maknae was planning. Daesung and Seunghyun-hyung are in; we’re just waiting for you to reply.”

Jiyong complained. “Why am I informed of this only now?”

Youngbae replied, laughing, “Because, bastard, you didn’t bother reading your messages and practically turned off your phone the minute Hyunsuk-hyung declared us on holiday.”

“Is it just us five?” Jiyong wanted to know; he’d miss hanging out with his friends and the bull they gave each other.

A month after the year of sharing almost every day with each other had desensitized Jiyong. He missed teasing Seungri and joking about with Daesung, Seunghyun-hyung talking ceaselessly about his art whilst Youngbae sat aside and watched them all with a practiced patience.

It was quiet for a while on the other line until Youngbae declared, “Actually . . . we’re bringing other people too.”

And he didn’t have to ask who, knowing the answer already through his best friend’s reverent tone on the other side of the call. He chewed on his lip, the need to see her overpowering his rationality.

The month he spent locked up in his vacation home did wonders for Jiyong’s unrequited love. He had slowly, but indefinitely, smoldered the flames of what he pictured his love for Bom to be into mere embers, barely there but all the more glowing.

He couldn’t imagine what would happen, or what he would do, if he gave in the maniacal monster he had imprisoned within himself.

“Please tell me you’re actually booking a flight now and not thinking of a way to back out?”

Jiyong sighed. “Youngbae . . .”

“We haven’t seen each other for a month; Seunghyun-hyung’s estimated enlistment date is drawing closer. He wants to spend at least a couple of days with us, on a holiday he’s actually willing to pay for, so we can bond without the cameras and screaming fangirls.”

Well, , Youngbae was pissed.

“I’ll go,” he breathed, hating how a great part of him immediately looked forward to the trip not because of the reasons he was deluding himself into believing.

-HBFG-

Jiyong realized he should never let himself get roped into doing something he would clearly regret much later.

They were in the streets of the busy nightlife that was Rio de Janeiro, for once not surrounded by shrieking hordes of fans and unnecessary cameras. Here, in the crowded streets where people of all ages danced wherever they felt like it as loud music –a mixture of Mexican and a couple of English songs – blended in perfect harmony with each other.

In spite of the twinkling lights and the roaring crowd, all singing and happily moving about to the beat of the music, Jiyong’s attention was solely on the woman dancing with his best friend in the middle of the street.

She wasn’t exactly a dancer but she moved perfectly to the beat. Youngbae’s hands were touching her waist as she danced to the laughter and chuckles carrying quietly over the drums and trumpets that bounced off the pavements.

From the corner of his eye, he could see Seunghyun-hyung and Daesung moving around each other teasingly, both uncomfortable dancing with strangers and choosing instead to goof off with one another. Seungri was whisked away into the crowd with his current girlfriend – Jiyong didn’t know the name, for his maknae had way too many to even count – and had promptly disappeared.

Bom was dancing with Youngbae, her body swaying to the beat as her cheeks flushed red with exertion and joy from the moment. She stared at his best friend with eyes that clearly spoke volumes about her love for him, never once leaving Youngbae’s face as she allowed him to lead her into a rather intricate move.

Jiyong didn’t even notice when the plastic cup of some Mexican alcohol he had been consuming folded in itself from his clenched fist.

It was a bad, bad idea for him to come.

The green-eyed monster wanted to rip her away from Youngbae, wishing all sorts of hell to bestow upon his good friend.

And he hated himself even more.

“Why so sour?” Someone asked him in accented English.

He turned to face an unknown stranger, a beautiful foreign woman with tanned skin and luscious lips. She had a body that could rival any supermodel, though Jiyong supposed most Mexican women were inherently gorgeous in their own exotic way and were downright appealing to the unsuspecting male.

He shook his head, practicing his English for the first time in a long while. “Tired.”

“Come dance with me.” She invited, and he knew she was asking for more than just one dance from the way she her lips and suggested naughty things in her seductive eyes.

Before he could respond, he was pulled away from her, torn apart from the woman by a small force of energy.

Bom was dragging him with her, her expression so enraged he found it comical in his alcohol-induced haze. “Where are you taking me?”

She stopped then, abruptly, causing him to bump into her. “How could you just let that woman seduce you like that? You don’t know her from Adam – she could’ve used you and sell you out to the media!”

Jiyong guffawed, tearing his arm away from her grip. “Wouldn’t your boyfriend get the wrong idea, seeing you walk off me with like this?”

“You’re drunk, Jiyong,” she flushed, avoiding his scrutiny. “Go back to the hotel.”

“You can’t make me,” he stubbornly refused. “I’m here on vacation; I should be allowed to let loose and have fun before I get dragged back to the hellhole I call work.”

Bom looked up, her eyes pleading with him to understand. “Have you forgotten how popular you are? Just now, a couple of girls were staring at you, murmuring if you really were ‘G-Dragon.’ Youngbae diffused the situation by distracting them, calling Seunghyun and Daesung’s names out loud. They’re signing autographs and taking pictures right now.”

Jiyong kissed her then, for whatever reason he couldn’t fathom, encasing with his and pressed her supple lips open through her astonishment.

He felt her lean into the kiss, a very rapid second that passed too quickly, before she pushed him away, terror in her beautiful eyes. Her hand reaching up to brush her lips, she stared at Jiyong’s shameless self, revulsion taking over the clear shock on her face as she ran past him.

Yes, he found himself thinking later back in the hotel, nursing the black-eye Youngbae had given him so generously after he guiltlessly told him of his sin, this had been a very bad idea.

-HBFG-

It was on an ominous rainy day when Youngbae broke the news to him.

They were back in the studio, finishing up the final touches to their ‘MADE’ series album, when his best friend – though he wasn’t sure if he could still call him that, given the whole debacle of him unjustly kissing Bom – approached the agonized man.

“We broke up.” He murmured ambiguously, hitting the red button that Jiyong grasped tightly between the palms of his hands, effectively putting a pause to the recording.

 Jiyong was unsure of how to feel about it all.

In the months that passed since his horrible mistake, his relationship with Youngbae grew strained. The other members saw it, knew of its cause, and attempted to dissolve the rising tensions as quickly as they could. They tolerated each other, giving curt nods and grunts to necessary questions they’d ask one another, and Jiyong despised himself for allowing his misconduct to break the strong bond he formed with Youngbae.

These months taught him how precious his friend was to him, that he had been a fool for even thinking about stealing his best friend’s girl away from him and being fine with it.

Bom became a distant memory, one that he shut out with everything that he had.

“Aren’t you going to ask me why?” Youngbae questioned when he received no reply.

“Why?” Jiyong managed.

His friend leaned against the office chair, head lying on its headrest and staring up into the ceiling. “Because she was unhappy.”

Jiyong nodded slowly, distrusting himself to speak in case he took a step out of line.

Youngbae turned to look at him, expression pensive and thoughtful. “I saw the way you looked at her the first time, you know. I saw how you’d fallen hopelessly in love with her, seen how you wouldn’t looked away. I saw how every time she moved, you did too, like you were both magnets; opposing sides attract and all the jazz that comes along with it. And I sympathized with you because when I first saw her, I was the same as well.”

“I’m sorry,” Jiyong broke then, unable to bear the guilt that poured down on him, the malice he held for himself increasing tenfold.

His friend’s lips quirked up in a disbelieving grin. “You don’t get it.”

“What do you mean?”

“You didn’t see what I saw, then,” Youngbae moved to rest his elbows on his knees, lost in recollection. “I saw my girlfriend fall for you, too. I saw her eyes light up whenever I’d mention you, see the way her eyes would trail after your form when we’d watch our broadcast together on TV. She was in love with you, and she didn’t even know it, because she cared too much about me to ever hurt me in that way.”

He sat up, looking at Jiyong with clear, resolute eyes. “When I saw you kissing her back in Rio, and the way she looked right at you like she was seeing your soul, I knew that I had no chance in heck with her anymore. Yet I resisted, because I loved her and wanted her all to myself; Bom is a good person, someone with a heart of pure gold. She didn’t dare hurt a fly, and when she taught that she’d cheated on me with you, she spent hours locked in our hotel room refusing to come out until I promised her she wouldn’t have to see you again.”

“Why are you telling me all this?” Jiyong asked, feeling his heart grow heavier with every word that he spoke.

“Because I saw the woman I loved die each day she wasn’t with you. She tried, oh god, did she try her hardest to forget you, to put her all into our relationship. In the end, I guess, she loved you more than she ever could with me.” Youngbae took a deep breath. “I couldn’t sentence her to a love that was condemning her happiness; she means too much to me. So I broke her heart, told her that I couldn’t see her anymore.”

“Why did you do that?!” Jiyong demanded. “She loves you!”

He shook his head. “The moment you two crossed paths, Jiyong, she stopped being mine.”

-HBFG-

Youngbae had given him her address, sending his blessing with a wistful smile.

“Treat her better than I ever could, Jiyong,” he’d told him, hands clasping his shoulder. “Love her like you always had before.”

The memory of his best friend, performing the ultimate sacrifice by letting the girl he once loved go so that she could obtain her oppressed joy, ran clear and through his mind.

He wouldn’t ever be able to make it up to him, not in this life nor the next. Youngbae had proven once again that he was a saint, a pure-hearted man who wanted nothing from the world but attention towards the music he made.

Jiyong felt uneasy about going to see Bom so soon after their breakup, knowing the grisly details it would entail.

As her door hesitantly pulled open, the sight that greeted him was one that he wouldn’t be able to banish.

She was wearing an oversized shirt over leggings, barefoot and hair in a messy bun placed strategically above her head. Wisps of baby hair framed her seraphic face, her eyes glazed and bloodshot from all the crying he assumed she had been doing, lips chapped and cheeks stained with angry red blotches.

Yet she was still beautiful.

“What are you doing here?” She asked warily, voice small and exhausted.

Jiyong dropped the bag he had been carrying at his feet, tugging her to him and wrapping his arms around her. Her head fit perfectly in the crook of his neck, and she smelled of home and asphalt on a spring day.

She began crying, her fists hitting his chest as he allowed her to do so, wincing at the pain he felt from the unintentional abuse she gave him. Her tears stained his jacket, and he found that he didn’t quite mind it, gripping her closer to his chest and murmuring a never-ending array of apologies.

When she grew still, voice hoarse, Jiyong picked her up gently and carried her into the apartment she had.

He could see little mementos of her and Youngbae together, pictures framed proudly up on her walls, abject presents that were souvenirs he recognized from his best friend’s many expeditions he had taken with him. The floor was littered with his friend’s clothes, boxes of things that Jiyong was certain belonged to him, and felt the ever-present disgrace shed a light into their situation.

He placed her gently on her bed, wrapping her duvet around her.

Kissing her forehead softly, Jiyong left her to sleep in peace.

He sat on her dining table, the image of her and Youngbae staring up at him from its place on the wall opposite his seat, and tore out a piece of paper from the notebook he constantly carried around with him to write whatever random lyrics would come to his mind.

And then he wrote her a letter.

He told her of how much he loved her, how awful he felt having vehemently wished for her breakup with Youngbae, and the pain he’d suffered when he’d see her with him. He told her of all the times he thought about kissing her, holding her hand, hugging the life out of her. He spoke to her about the songs she inspired him to write, the good and the bad, and how much he had grown in the months that he knew her; a far cry from the carefree man he used to be.

He told her that this would be the last time he would see her, that he wouldn’t ever put her in such a place again, wherein her heart got broken because of his ridiculously stupid actions. I love you, he wrote, and that will not change.

But he had to leave; a relationship that started out with so much hurt and confusion, torment and distress was a clear sign that it wouldn’t be a great one.

He had caused her so much pain, caused the people he loved dearly and held close to his heart a magnitude of emotional wreckage – he couldn’t subject them to that anymore.

Jiyong placed the long letter on the drawer beside her bed, taking off the ring he always wore on his pinky finger and used it as a paperweight.

With one last look at the woman he loved to the moon and back, beyond any comprehension and understanding he could possibly muster, Jiyong left.

-HBFG-

“I’m glad you could make it, man!” Youngbae cried, grabbing him into a bear hug. “I thought you weren’t going to show up!”

“Dude,” Jiyong lightly shoved his best friend back. “I’m your best man, of course I wouldn’t miss you committing yourself to a lifetime’s worth of ‘The-Missus-Is-Always-Right.’”

His friend punched him in the arm, and he had to bite back a howl of pain; Youngbae had grown infinitely muscular in the years since their hiatus occurred, and the punches he threw now, Jiyong was sure, would be enough to knock the daylights out of his scrawny self.

Youngbae chuckled nervously. “I’m so nervous, I can barely stand still. How do I look?”

He turned around with a flourish, and Jiyong eyed him with a judgmental stare. Dressed in a plain black tuxedo, a bowtie replacing the traditional black tie that every groom seemed to love wearing, Youngbae was regal in dress shoes that were gifted to him by Jiyong’s newest collection.

Collaborating with famous designers had its perks, after all.

“Like a million dollars.” Jiyong smiled, giving him the thumbs-up. “Stop worrying; Hyorin will love you no matter how or what you look like.”

Youngbae had met Hyorin a year after their fateful talk. The actress had been promoting at the same time as his third solo album came out. Having worked with her for a music video on his second album, Youngbae’s manager suggested Hyorin to work with him once again for the next one, and soon they hit it spectacularly off.

He was utterly besotted with the woman, beyond head over heels in love, and she felt exactly the same way – Jiyong didn’t need to see her to know how much she loved his best friend.

After he and Youngbae completed their military enlistment, the latter proposed, and the whole world watched as his best friend revealed his fiancée off to an ocean’s worth of fangirl tears. Picked as his best man, Jiyong had been forced to a series of dreadful cold-feet moments, a bachelor’s party that resulted in Hyorin practically kicking his for subjecting his dear friend to catastrophic conclusions, and the inevitable best man’s speech he was sure he would up in one way or another.

“Hey, you, best man,” one of Hyorin’s bridesmaids called, interrupting his talk with Youngbae, “Hyorin says you need to go check on the ring bearer, see if he has the rings in place.”

He gave his best friend a look, rolling his eyes. “I’d tell you your future wife is a bridezilla but I wouldn’t risk getting a black-eye in this suit. Try not to swallow your dignity as a man while I’m gone, will you?”

Jiyong patted Youngbae’s broad shoulder, snorting a laugh when his old friend threatened to pulverize him.

He wasn’t paying any attention to where he was going, preoccupied as he was with the remarkable decorations that encompassed the church. Hyorin may be slightly deranged when it came to planning her wedding, but she had talent for picking out the perfect trinkets that signified her oncoming union with Youngbae.

With his staring into space, Jiyong smashed into a delicate, smaller body, both he and the stranger spiraling down onto the red-carpeted aisle.

“Ow.”

He’d recognized that voice anywhere.

Head snapping up, Jiyong found his eyes locked onto the obsidian pair he had always been dreaming of.

She looked the same yet different, hair curled on her head with little wisps running down to frame her face like they always did. She wore makeup that further amplified her doe-like eyes, lips tinted to a dainty pink, and cheeks a lovely shade of cherry.

She was ethereal, dressed in the bohemian-based gown that Hyorin had enforced all her bridesmaids to wear, and donned kitten heels. The pale lavender also matched her creamy skin well, creating a luminous glow about her figure that was near impossible to look away from.

And perched lustrously in the hollow of her neck was the ring he had given her, held up by a silver chain.

Jiyong realized he had been staring at her for far too long.

With nimble movements, he pulled her up with him, feeling the low rumbling of contentment build up in his chest.

“How . . . ?” He began, for he was certain he would’ve seen her name somewhere in the list Youngbae’s bride-to-be had forced him to memorize by heart.

Bom smiled, the image so radiant that he couldn’t help but fall in love with her all over again. “I was the one who directed Youngbae’s music video with Hyorin. She and I became great friends from there, and she wanted to keep my involvement with the wedding on the down-low – professionalism, and all that.”

She never lifted her eyes off of his face, and he as well, committing it to memory in case it was the last time he ever got to.

“You know,” Jiyong said, letting out the breath he had unknowingly been holding, “some people would like to keep their bums off the dusty, red-carpet of a bridezilla’s wedding.”

And then she laughed, so heartening and effervescent that Jiyong couldn’t help but chortle along.

They had the promise of forever in the end.

A/N: With that, this concludes my one-shot compilation in celebration of BIGBANG's MADE tour finale concerts! I hope you lovelies enjoyed reading this as much as I did writing it; and yes, BIGBANG wrecked me completely with their final concert today. Thank you for reading! If you wish to read more G-BOM goodness or a little of TOPBOM, feel free to check out my other works. ;) Once again, thank you!