"It is not the bruises on the body that hurt. It is the wounds of the heart and scars on the mind that do,"

“Welcome back Agassi,”

Lines of maids and butlers gathered at the grand entrance of the Jung mansion, bowing 90 degrees to Yongmi as she entered. She smiled and waved them off as she removed her sunglasses. “No need to be so polite. Where’s appa?”

The head butler gestured her across the big stairs with chandeliers hanging from above to the dining area where a long table was situated with old roman paintings and vases decorating the marble walls.

“Appa!”

An old man with a stone face, seated on the end of the long table lowered his newspapers and nodded at his daughter’s return. “Sit. We have a guest joining us,”

Yongmi bit her bottom lip. “I thought it’s just a meal between-“

She stopped short when she noticed the ends of her father’s brow turning downwards. She buried her disappointment and obediently sat on the seat beside her father. Mr Jung folded his newspapers and handed it to the maids on duty.

“Why are you back?” He barked.

“To visit,” Yongmi mumbled. Mr Kim stayed silent, the wrinkles on his forehead becoming more prominent as his frown deepens. Yongmi straightens her back and cleared before repeating once again but louder. “I’m here just to visit, appa,”

Mr Jung nodded. “There better not be any issues with the branch company I sent you to be in charge of. No child of mine will bring disgrace to the family. I’ve prepared so much for you, you better not make me regret,”

Lifting her chin, Yongmi spoke fluently with the confidence and authority she was trained to possess. “Rest assured, appa. I have never failed you nor do I intend to,”

Mr Jung watched his daughter with his perceiving eyes. Yongmi did not lower her gaze and smiled inwardly with contempt when her father’s eyes displayed approval.

Maids started approaching the table with an assortment of dishes. Hot steaming plates were set on the table and Yongmi eyes sparkled with hidden delight when she noticed how most the dishes were indeed her favourite.

“Go ahead,”

At her father’s command, Yongmi gracefully picked her spoon and indulged herself with the nostalgic beansprout soup.

“Master Jung, your guest has arrived,”

Yongmi watched her father from the corner of her eye as he sat straighter with a small smile. “Yes. Bring him in,”

A fair skinned male with sharp piercing eyes and neatly combed black hair entered the room. He was wearing a dark blue collared office shirt that showed the outlines of his toned body nicely.

He was no doubt handsome, but that didn’t stop the scowl from crawling on the corner of Yongmi’s lips.

“Chairman Jung,” he bowed politely and turned his gaze to the Chairman’s beautiful daughter, his smile dropping and his eyebrow twitching slightly. “…Yongmi,” he finally acknowledges.

“Jaebum,” she replied, trying her best to hide the venom in her voice as much as possible.

“Sit Jaebum-ah. There is something I wanted to discuss with you about,”

Jaebum’s smile returned. The same fake smile Yongmi wears just to entertain her father. Erasing all form of emotion from her face, she scooped another spoonful of soup.

“My father informed me that there was a proposal you have discussed with him about,”

Chairman Jung hummed in agreement, resting his back against the cushioned chair. “Yes. Yongmi returned at a perfect time. I was going to tell her about it too,”

Yongmi’s hand froze and she slowly lifted her head. Jaebum seemed equally confused too. Acting as though she was not bothered at all, Yongmi asked ingenuously. “And what would this proposal be, appa?”

“Your marriage,”

The smile on Jaebum’s face remained as he nodded but only Yongmi could identify the anger and spite hidden behind his irises because she was mirroring it too. “Are you saying that I am to be wedded to him?”

Chairman Jung’s voice lowered by an octave. “Are you displeased with this arrangement?”

Yongmi’s hand trembled. She has worked so hard to achieve this point of success. She shan’t give up now. “No, appa. I am not,”

Chairman Kim smiled and lifted his hand to the food before them. “The date of your wedding will be further discussed. Now, we eat,”

Suddenly, the soup didn’t taste as delectable as it did before.

Outside the grand entrance of the Jung mansion, Jaebum loosens his black tie that was suddenly constricting his path of air and stormed down the steps which lead to the driveway.

“You said we wouldn’t see each other again ever since we made that deal. So why the am I getting married to you?”

Yongmi waited with crossed arms to make sure the doors were closed and that no maids or gardeners were present near their vicinity. “Trust me when I say I am as repulsed as you are. I don’t make deals just to break them,”

Jaebum turned abruptly, his sharp eyes fueling with rage. “I’m sick of your lies! I’m done cleaning up your . I better not hear anything regarding this absurd proposal or I swear, our alliance is over,”

Yongmi’s eyes darken at the mention of the alliance. “It is rather impractical to bring your personal feelings into business. I expected more from the heir of the IM Company. Behave yourself, Jaebum. I will not fail just because you are upset with some arranged marriage,”

How Jaebum wished he could yell and chuck a knife into her direction. He hated how Yongmi was standing all high and mighty above those steps as though she really possessed the power to rule over his life whenever she wanted.

But she wasn’t wrong. He was being foolish.

He had always known a day like this would come where he had to give up the remaining of his freedom to be another chess piece in his father’s game of monopoly. He just didn’t think that day to be today.

Ignoring the urge to murder, Jaebum grabbed the top of his car door but stopped before he enters it. “Why are you really back?” he asked without meeting her gaze.

Yongmi bit the inside of her lip. “You know very well why,”

The metal of the car door left imprints on his rough palm as his grip tightens. “Cut the bull,” he growled, making the back of Yongmi’s spine tremble although she would never admit how Jaebum actually scares her sometimes.

“Got7 never fails with their missions, especially the ones from the Thorned Tiger, so why the hell are you really back?”

Yongmi kept silent, the chewing on the insides of her lip growing more forceful.

Her being unable to answer brought a lightbulb to light on the top of Jaebum’s head. Suddenly Yongmi didn’t seem as powerful