OUT

Lee Haeun folded her arms across her chest and looked around, bored.

The house she was standing in was beautifully decorated, with pure white marble and dark velvet carpeting. A silver chandelier hung from the ceiling as the centerpiece. Walls were mainly adorned with large, life-size portraits of stuffy old people in haughty postures. Haeun couldn’t help but stare at one particular portrait of an old man who had a pointy chin and a goatee at the end of it; he looked kind of like Jafar from that Aladdin movie. Satisfied at having managed to entertain herself even in this painfully humorless environment, Haeun sniggered to herself.

“You shouldn’t fold your arms over your chest like that.”

Haeun jumped at the male voice which rumbled into her ear. She turned her head and instantly spotted Jackson Wang’s familiar, -eating grin. She frowned at him.

“Where the hell have you been? I was seconds away from stabbing myself with one of your mother’s silver forks just so I don’t have to stay here anymore,” she complained.

Jackson chuckled as he moved to stand in front of her. He was dressed well; Jackson knew how to carry a suit and his hair was styled up neatly, exposing his forehead. Haeun wondered how somebody could change their entire aura in less than a second. When Jackson Wang smiled or laughed, he looked like a naughty little child who had managed to stick his hand in the cookie jar. But when he dropped the smile and his eyes took on a more intense look, the same Jackson could make any woman’s turn wet with a single gaze.

Right now, the Jackson in front of her was the child-like one, and Haeun was not pleased.

“I was getting some drinks with my friends,” he explained happily. “You should come out with me and my buddies sometime. I could introduce you to Jaebum! He has a girlfriend already but she’s really uptight and kind of hates me so I’m thinking if he meets someone else-“

“I have no interest in meeting any of your friends.”

Jackson shrugged, unperturbed. “Fair enough.”

Haeun glanced towards the adjoining dining room. The doors were firmly shut. Behind those doors were some of the most important men in the country; well, the richest, at least. These stuffy family dinners took place at least once a month. The old men would come together to discuss the state of affairs; business dealings, political occurrences…? Haeun wasn’t sure what they talked about. It wasn’t as if her father would ever allow her to listen. After an elaborate dinner, women and children were banished to the rest of the house while the men shut their doors and smoked and plotted.

“Are you going to go inside with them?” Haeun wondered, glancing at Jackson. “I saw your older brother in there.”

Jackson laughed his usual high-pitched laugh. “Are you kidding? Walking in there this late would be suicide. I’m better off staying here and hoping my Dad forgot I exist. Is everyone else in the parlor?”

“Yeah. The women are all gossiping and drinking wine,” Haeun mumbled, rubbing her fingers across her temples. She’d barely just managed to escape from that vile place without anyone noticing. “One of the Ministers recently divorced his wife so they’re discussing how much of a she used to be and how she was probably infertile. I think the younger kids are playing in your garden.”

Jackson leaned closer to her and smiled. She could smell his cologne as his lips moved closer to her ear and brushed against it lightly. A shiver went down Haeun’s spine. “Oh? Should we play too? Maybe upstairs…?”

Haeun rolled her eyes and gently placed a hand on his chest to push him away. “Jackson. We almost got caught last time. Do you really want to go through that again?” she hissed.  

“That’s because we were in someone else’s house and I had no idea that room had a back door,” Jackson whispered. His hand slid down to her side and rested gently but firmly on her waist. Haeun felt her skin tingle at his touch through her dress. “This is my house, baby. I know all the corners. I’ve never been caught here before.”

, he was convincing. Jackson’s eyes had taken on that dark, determined look that made Haeun’s cheeks heat up without permission. They were standing in the foyer of his house where anybody could walk in, and yet Haeun was contemplating ripping that suit off him right there. 

“It’s not a good idea…” she tried to insist.

Jackson let out a low whine. “Come on, baby,” he insisted, hot breath fanning her neck and sending another tingle down her spine. “You never let me pay you back for that amazing you gave me last time the dinner was at your house. Tell you what. I won’t even take my pants off tonight. Let’s go in that little storeroom under that stairs. We’ll hike that pretty little dress of yours up and I’ll make you come with just my mouth.”

Jackson was a known playboy heir. The sort of guy who spent money without a second thought and who never seemed to care much about anything except having fun. But no matter how privileged and spoiled everyone claimed he was, there was one thing which Haeun had to hold to his credit.

Jackson loved giving pleasure just as much as he loved receiving it.

Which was how Haeun found herself pressed up against a wall and clutching onto a spare cupboard in one of the many storerooms in the enormous Wang mansion, as Jackson kneeled between her legs and worked wonders under her skirt with just his tongue. It was both slightly disappointing and impressive that he managed to make Haeun come within minutes. There was no teasing with Jackson. He liked to make people feel good, and he wasn’t ashamed of it.

“How was that?” he whispered, as he stood up and brushed off his knees. Haeun’s eyes were still closed, and she hadn’t quite recovered from the intense yet. Jackson grinned and pulled her into his arms, pressing wet kisses to her neck as he propped her up. Haeun’s knees usually gave out after he’d done something like this to her, and he could tell that she was still reeling from the . “I told you I could-mmm- could make you come with just my tongue. Is that amazing or what?” he chuckled against her neck.

Haeun blinked as she let her dress fall back to cover her legs and grabbed Jackson by the arms.

“That was pretty good,” she admitted breathlessly.

Jackson beamed. He loved praise and he especially loved when it came begrudgingly from Haeun. He gave her a long, deep kiss before pulling away and looking down at his own crotch. “Look at this little guy, baby. You made him that big with just your moans. Aren’t you going to do anything about it?”

Haeun couldn’t help but smile as Jackson pouted at her.

“Come here, I’ll rub you off,” she offered as she ed his suit jacket and began to fumble with his belt. Jackson was still pouting at her.

“But I brought a because I knew I was going to see you tonight,” he whined slightly. His hand up and down her back gently. “Come on baby, you didn’t let me inside you last time because I didn’t have a .  Let me you this time…”

Haeun shook her head. No way. Jackson was probably just as good at as he was at eating her out, but Haeun knew better. She was aware that he frequented the strip club in town, knew that he was probably sleeping with a lot of different women. The last thing she wanted was an STD. Who knew where his had been? But those thoughts were a little too mean to say out loud, so Haeun kept quiet.

“Not today,” she told him.

“You always say that,” he complained.

“Why are you so desperate to me anyway?” she wondered, shaking her head as she grabbed his zipper. “You probably have plenty of women willing to do it with you.”

“Who cares about them? I just really want to have with you.”

“It’s not that I’m the only person who messes around with you because she actually wants to, and not just because your daddy’s rich?” she mused as she finally managed to undo the zipper on his pants and reach inside with a giggle. To her surprise, Jackson suddenly flinched and stepped away from her sharply. She blinked up at him. “What-“

“You think I can’t get women to sleep with me willingly?” he asked sharply.

Haeun felt the atmosphere tense. She hadn’t realized that she might hurt his feelings; they joked about him being a boy all the time. How was she supposed to know where the line was drawn? She shook her head. “No, obviously you can, I’m not saying you’ve ever slept with a woman against her will, but-“

“But they don’t actually like having with me, they only do it because of who I am?” he clarified. Haeun didn’t know what to say. Jackson didn’t even sound angry. He sounded more resigned than anything else, as he pulled up his own pants and put his belt back on.

“Jackson…”

She was cut off by the sound of voices and running footsteps coming in their direction. Both Haeun and Jackson exchanged panicked looks and stepped away from each other, smoothing down their clothes before the door to the storeroom burst open.

“Got you!” one of the kids yelled out gleefully. He was about seven years old; the son of a businessmen who owned a chain of automobile companies. The kid blinked in confusion as he saw the couple inside the room. “Jackson-hyung? Haeun-noona? Were you playing hide-and-seek with us too? I don’t remember you being there when I started counting down from a hundred…”

Jackson caught on quickly and laughed, rubbing down on the boy’s head playfully. “Well, would you look at that? Minwoo caught us. I told you this was a place to hide, Haeun-ah. We should have gone upstairs.”

Haeun cleared . “Right. Whoops. Looks like we lost.”

Minwoo beamed at the unexpected pleasure of having caught two more people than he originally intended to, and ran out of the storeroom to find the rest of the kids. Haeun let out an audible sigh of relief and followed Jackson out of the storeroom. They came out into the foyer, where some of the women had gathered. Haeun winced as her mother came running up to her, looking slightly annoyed.

“Haeun! Where did you disappear to, I thought you were sitting in the parlor with us!” she scolded her lightly, looking at Haeun’s wrinkled skirt in a disapproving manner. “I’ve told you not to go off like that without saying anything!”

Jackson gave her mother a polite bow. “We were just playing hide-and-seek with the kids, Mrs. Lee.”

Haeun’s mother turned to look at him with a raised eyebrow. Jackson was charming, and most of the older women were enamored with his pretty manners and amusing sense of humor.  But there was more needed in life than charming behavior. Haeun’s mother not-to-secretly disapproved of Jackson, for reasons that weren’t exactly within his control.

“Is that so?” the older woman asked, glancing at Haeun with a tight smile. “You two should really join the adults instead of continuing to play with the children. I saw your brother Chansung joining the men for a drink, Jackson, I’m surprised you didn’t join them.”

To his credit, Jackson barely faltered. “I don’t know that I’m much use in there, ma’am.”

“Probably not,” Haeun’s mother replied coolly, before smiling at her daughter. “Darling, we should leave now. Your father already called the driver and the car is waiting up front. Say goodbye to Jackson and we’ll be leaving.”

Haeun raised an eyebrow at her mother coolly, before lifting a hand to wave goodbye to Jackson. Her smile was slightly apologetic but he didn’t seem to notice. Jackson merely gave Haeun a soft smile and nodded at her, while her mother pulled her away towards the front door of the house. The firm grip on her arm told Haeun that she was in for a scolding.

She got into the car, her mother right beside her with a tight-lipped expression.

“I’d really rather you didn’t see Jackson,” her mother told her bluntly, the moment the driver took off. Haeun’s father was sitting in the front passenger seat and didn’t seem to be listening to them. He was busy on his mobile phone. “If you had to see someone in that family then I wish you would’ve chosen his older half-brother Chansung. At least he’s set to inherit his father’s companies.”

Haeun bristled. “I’m not seeing Jackson. And I have no interest in Chansung either. He’s six years older than me.”

“Chansung is one of the few young men of your age whose fortune can rival ours. Imagine how uncomfortable it would be if an alliance were proposed between the two of you, but you’ve already dated his useless younger brother.”

“Jackson and I are not dating.”

Her mother glanced at her sharply before reaching into her purse and pulling out a small white handkerchief. She handed it to Haeun without looking at her.

“Wipe your mouth, your lipstick is smudged everywhere.”

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(2 Weeks Later)

“Seriously. Are you not going to come out tonight either?” Jackson Wang demanded, hands on his hips. He was standing in Jinyoung’s apartment, trying to convince his friend to go out drinking with the rest of them. “You haven’t come out with us in weeks. It’s bad enough that Jaebum’s stuffy girlfriend keeps me at arm’s length. Are you going to ditch me too?”

Jinyoung sighed and adjusted his glasses on his face. He was trying to read and Jackson kept bothering him. “I need to study, Jackson.”

“You always say that-“

“I’m serious. It’s an assignment for class, I have to do it.”

Jackson whined, making a puppy-dog face. “Please? Please, Jinyoung-ah, don’t make me go alone with Bambam and Yugyeom! Those two are uncontrollable when they get drunk! And Youngjae’s just going to keep hitting me and you know Mark speaks even less when he’s tipsy, he just stares into space-“

Jinyoung frowned. “Why are you going out with them if they’re so annoying?”

Jackson didn’t respond. Instead, he grabbed a chair and pulled it up to Jinyoung’s desk to look at what his friend was working on. “What are you doing? What class is it for? Is there anything I can do to help you get it done faster?” he asked in a rush.

“It’s for my credit course on corporate regulatory mechanisms. We’re doing a case study on the whole accounting fraud that came out into the newspapers recently. You know, the businessman who got caught and had to repay the entire amount he fraudulently obtained from investors by publishing misleading information-“

Jackson rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, fancy corporate stuff, who cares?”

“He committed suicide after the authorities concluded their investigation. I thought you would know about it. I heard it was your father who gave them the tip-off,” Jinyoung pointed out, eyes narrowed. He was aware that Jackson had little to no interest in his father’s business, but surely he’d read a newspaper in the last week?

Clearly, Jackson had not.

“My father gave a tip-off?” he asked suddenly curious. He leaned over and looked at Jinyoung’s laptop, reading out the news article that was open. “Managing Director of Azure Enterprises commits suicide days after financial scandal unearthed. Lee Jangkyu, 52, was found dead in his villa in Gangnam district earlier this week, having hung himself-what the !”

Jinyoung gave Jackson a startled look. “What? Did you know him?”

“That’s Haeun’s dad!” Jackson exclaimed, his eyes wide in horror as he ran his fingers through his hair. How had he not known about this? True, he didn’t really read or watch the news much, but it seemed like something someone should have told him about. “How did- what the- does it say what happened to his family? Where’s Haeun?”

Jinyoung cleared his throat. “It mentions that he has a daughter and a wife, but I don’t know what happened-“

Jackson ignored him, pulling his cellphone out of his pocket hurriedly and finding Haeun’s number. He hadn’t heard from her in the last two weeks. It wasn’t unusual for them; they didn’t talk much on a regular basis other than messing around whenever their families had dinner. He held the phone up to his ear desperately, but the automated voice told him that the phone was switched off.

“.”

Jinyoung gave Jackson a worried look. “Jackson, are you okay? Is this girl your friend, or-“

“I need to go.”

He rushed out of Jinyoung’s apartment and ran down the stairs to his car, which was parked outside. Bambam and Yugyeom were sitting in the backseat, waiting for him. They looked surprised when Jackson practically leapt into the driver’s seat and started the car.

“Whoa- what happened? Is Jinyoung-hyung not coming out with us after all?” Bambam asked, startled.

Jackson glanced at them with a tight expression. “Sorry, guys. I have to drop by somewhere else first.”

He mostly ignored their questions as he sped towards Haeun’s house. Jackson’s fingers were trembling slightly on the steering wheel. How had he not known that something this horrible had happened? He felt a surge of guilt. I should have read about this sooner. God knows if Haeun’s okay. Jackson couldn’t even imagine how she must be dealing with this. He pulled into the driveway of the house sharply and jumped out of the car.

“Hyung, whose house is this? It’s all taped off outside, look-“

Jackson marched forward and banged on the front door. There was no response. The entire house was silent, almost uninhabited. Yugyeom walked over to one of the windows and peeked through, using his height to his advantage.

“The house is empty,” he informed Jackson, placing a hand on the window and peeking inside. “Look.”

Jackson jogged over to him. “There’s nobody inside?”

“There’s nothing inside. Not even furniture. It’s literally just walls and carpet. I don’t think anyone lives here anymore,” Yugyeom explained. Bambam was looking at the name plaque near the gate, eyes narrowed at it.

“Lee Jangkyu? Hey; isn’t that the businessman who killed himself earlier this week-?“

. Haeun was gone. Everything was gone from the house. Where could she be? Jackson suddenly realized that he had literally no way to contact her. They didn’t have mutual friends, only ever talked when they met at social gatherings. He pressed his fingers to his temples, thinking hard. There had to be some way to know where she was. Maybe she had relatives on her mother’s side, maybe… 

Jackson took a deep breath, ignoring the confused questions that the younger boys were firing at him. Instead, he pulled out his phone and dialed the number that was only really stored in his phone as a formality; he’d never called it, not as far as he could remember.

Chansung answered instantly. “Jackson?”

He took a deep breath. “Hyung. I need your help.”

There was a brief moment of silence and Jackson heard his brother excuse himself from whoever he was with. When his voice was audible again, it was much quieter and a lot less pleasant. “Why the hell are you calling me when I’m at work? Jesus, Jackson, you’d better not be in jail or something-“

Jackson bristled. “I’m not. I just need some information.”

“About what?”

“Did you hear about the whole situation with Lee Jangkyu and his killing himself?”

“I don’t live under a rock, Jackson. I’ve been dealing with the aftermath of that ugly mess all week. Although admittedly, our company benefitted pretty nicely from that particular unearthing.”

Jackson felt nauseous.

“Do you know what happened to Haeun?”

“Haeun?”

“His daughter. And his wife too, for that matter. He had a family, you do know that, hyung?” Jackson hissed. “I came to the house, there’s nobody here. Their villa is empty.”

Chansung sounded exasperated. “Well, of course it’s empty. The dead man owes huge amounts of money to the investors, and as penalties for violating accounting regulations. They probably seized all his assets. I’d be surprised if his wife and daughter haven’t left the city by now. There’s definitely nothing left of his fortune once the authorities got their hands on it.”

Jackson felt his heart sink into his stomach. “Oh.”

“Forget it, Jackson. Don’t think about it too much. It’s not like Lee Jangkyu was innocent or anything. He tried to scam millions of investors, remember?”

Jackson didn’t want to hear it. He simply ended the call with his brother and put the phone back into his pocket, stomach churning. Was that it, then? Had Haeun and her mother left the city to save face since their fortune was gone? It was almost too difficult to believe. Why didn’t she call me? he wondered, but instantly felt stupid. He should have called Haeun. He should have done something to help her while he still could. Jackson stared down at the cellphone in his hand, disappointed in himself.

“Hyung.” Yugyeom placed a hand on his shoulder comfortingly. “Hyung… are you okay?”

Jackson forced a smile on his face. “Come on, let’s go to the club. I need a drink.”

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“Darling, why don’t you get us another bottle of whisky? And some ice for the table, okay?”

Haeun nodded obediently, as she hurried over to the bar to ask the bartender for another bottle of whisky for the group of old men sitting at the table. It was almost disgusting; all of them were above fifty and at least two of them were wearing wedding rings. Yet they sat at the best table in the strip club, while strippers sat in their laps and giggled with them.

“Table 3 wants another bottle of whisky,” she told the guy working behind the bar.

The bartender glanced at her and nodded, pulling down a pair of bottles from the shelf behind him. “The Armorik, right? Take two.”

Haeun hesitated, her fingers closing on the bottles. “They only ordered one…”

“Baby, they’re too drunk to notice,” he told her with a chuckle. The bartender was the only person who was nice to her during her first week on the job; if you could get over the fact that he addressed all the women as baby. He probably just couldn’t be bothered remembering their names. “Take two bottles. Trust me. You’ll get a better tip and the manager will be happier. They’ll drink it up.”

Haeun decided to trust him. Her head was still spinning from stumbling around the dark club and taking orders from the customers. Most of them barely spared her a second glance; they were too busy looking at the stage where women (and men) were dancing seductively in various stages of undress. Haeun placed the two bottles of whisky and a bowl of ice in front of the customers. One of them patted her lightly on the to show his gratitude, but immediately turned his attention to the stage again. He missed the dirty look Haeun gave him.

“Haeun! Haeun, come over here!”

Haeun flinched as she heard her manager’s loud voice. She hurried over to him, smoothing down the apron on the front of her skirt. It was the only thing that clearly distinguished her and the other waitresses from the strippers and her manager had firmly ordered her not to take it off so that she wasn’t confused with them. Not that it stopped some of the older men from copping a feel. It made Haeun feel nauseous. “Yes, sir?” she asked, reaching the man who was waving her over urgently.

“How’s that table doing?” he asked her.

“Fine. They’ve had about four bottles of whisky so far and they seem to be going pretty strong-“

“Good, good. You’re doing a good job. Another group just came in. They’re regulars, and I’ve seated them at table 6. Help Mina take their drinks in to them. It would be better if you recognized their names and faces so that you know to give them special treatment from next time.”

Haeun bit her lip and nodded. “Okay.”

The manager sent her off, and Haeun went over to Mina, one of the older waitresses who was placing their drinks on a tray. Haeun cleared to get her attention.

“Uh-unnie, the manager told me to help you…“

Mina gave her a sharp glance, before handing her a bottle of vodka. “Fine. But it’s technically my table so any tips are mine, is that clear?” she demanded.

“Okay.“

She followed right behind Mina as the older woman went over to one of the corner tables. It was one of the VIP tables that they reserved for special customers. The couches were pure leather and the table was more private than the rest. There was a group of about five guys sitting there and Haeun kept her eyes lowered as she helped Mina set the drinks out on the table.

“Thanks, Mina,” a familiar voice said with a chuckle. Haeun froze, her fingers still on the bottle of vodka as she recognized it. , . What was he doing here? She felt a shiver go down her spine as she felt Jackson’s eyes travel towards her. Her face was lowered and in the dim club, she hoped that he wouldn’t notice her- “Who’s this? New waitress?”

Mina nodded with a pleasing smile. “She’s Haeun, she started earlier this week.” 

There was a frozen silence. Haeun lifted her head and looked up, only to see Jackson staring at her with wide eyes. He hadn’t said anything yet. He began squinting, almost as if he couldn’t believe it was her. Haeun felt a rush of humiliation. Why does he have to be the one to see me like this? Anybody but him. She wasn’t sure why, but she felt like she would rather her own mother see her working in a strip club than Jackson Wang. Hands trembling, she stepped back and made a polite bow before hurrying away from the table.

I have to get out of here. I can’t let him see me. What would he think? That the cocky, pampered Lee Haeun is reduced to a part-time waitress in a strip club? The girl who thought she was too good to let him her because he might have STDs? The humiliation was suddenly too much to bear and Haeun had to blink tears away from her eyes. She’d never felt so embarrassed. Taking a deep breath and composing herself, she hurried back to the table of old men that she’d been serving before.

“Hi. Are you gentlemen doing all right, is there anything else I can get you?” she asked them politely, hoping her voice wasn’t cracking too much.

One of the men smiled at her drunkenly. He addressed Haeun’s s, despite the fact that he already had a stripper sitting on one of his knees. “We’re fine, darling. Maybe some more ice. This feisty little thing’s hot s keep melting it all-“ he teased, nuzzling his face into the neck of the stripper, who only giggled in response.

Haeun barely nodded, when she felt a firm hand grasp her elbow.

“Come with me.”

Jackson’s breath on the back of her neck sent a shiver down her spine. She closed her eyes for a brief moment, preparing herself for the humiliation she was about to endure. Then she turned around and faced him. “Jackson, I’m working-“ 

“Not anymore, you’re not.”

He grasped her arm firmly, and pulled her towards the exit of the strip club. They passed the manager on the way out and Jackson lifted a hand to greet the man. “Hyung! I’m going home early tonight. Bambam has my card, so he’ll settle the tab. Oh; and I’m taking Haeun with me. I hope she can cut out on her shift early for one night?”

The manager looked startled. “Uh- Jackson-ssi, she’s a waitress, not-“

“Yeah, I know,” he reassured the man, giving him a grin and a wave as he pulled Haeun along with him. She let Jackson lead her out of the noisy club before trying to yank her hand out of his grasp. They stepped out into the cool air of the parking lot. “Come on, my car’s over there-“ he insisted.

“I don’t want to go to your car.”

“You want to talk out here in the parking lot?” he demanded.

“I don’t want to talk at all. I have to work-“

“Haeun,” he said, the firmness in his voice causing her to fall silent. He was staring straight at her, hand still entwined with hers. Haeun felt her resolve breaking. She couldn’t do this anymore. She was tired, she’d never worked so hard in her life. She’d never had to deal with so much at once. The sight of Jackson looking at her with pity made her want to crawl in a hole and die. “Haeun, what happened?” he asked gently.

“What happened?” she repeated, shakily. She couldn’t believe he was asking her such a thing. “Pick up a newspaper, Jackson.”

“I don’t want to know what the newspaper says about your father. I want to know what happened to you. Are you okay? Where are you living? How are you dealing with all this?” he demanded.

“I-I don’t know.” Haeun voice cracked, giving herself away. Jackson placed his arms on her shoulders and leaned down to look at her. It suddenly struck Haeun that in the last few days, not a single person had genuinely stopped to ask if she was okay. The world was a cruel place. People either thought that she got what she deserved for having lived in luxury due to her father’s corruption, or didn’t care about her at all. Her shoulders began to tremble. The genuine concern in Jackson’s eyes made her want to cry.

“I don’t really know what’s going on, Jackson, it all feels like a bad dream right now.“

He pulled her into his arms, pressing her face into his chest as she let out a shaky breath. Haeun had been at the edge emotionally for a long time, and it didn’t take much to tip her over. He her back gently as he whispered into her ear.

“Hey. Hey, don’t cry. I’m sorry I didn’t find you before. I’m sorry I didn’t do anything. Let’s go back to my place. It’s cold out here. Let’s go back and talk.”

She followed Jackson to his car silently, not having the energy to resist. Jackson found himself looking at the broken girl in his passenger seat, his stomach churning at the sight of her. He’d never seen Lee Haeun like this. She had always been strong. Slightly spoiled, yes, but invincible, like nobody could really get to her. But the girl sitting next to him in the waitress uniform was hunched over, trying to hide her tears and her exhaustion as she attempted to keep herself together.

There was a wary look in Haeun’s eyes when she got into the elevator and they went up to Jackson’s penthouse apartment. He’d been living here since he moved out after high school; it was all paid for with his Dad’s money.

“Do you want something to drink?” he asked, as he pushed her to sit down in his living room. Haeun bit her lip. She’d never been in Jackson’s apartment before. It was extremely well-decorated and modern, with a largely black and grey theme. An enormous home theatre took up the entirely of one wall. Haeun sat down stiffly, her fingers brushing against the pure leather of the couch.

“Haeun? Are you listening to me? I can turn on the coffee machine. Or do you want some whisky-“

“No whisky, please,” she mumbled, her head in her hands. She had served enough whisky to dirty old men in that strip club to last her a lifetime. She never wanted to smell the vile drink again. Jackson said nothing, but the smell of coffee drifted in from his kitchen a few seconds later. He came and sat next to her, placing the steaming cup on the table on front of her.

“Haeun.”

She looked up at him.

“Talk to me. Tell me what’s going on.”

Haeun bit her lip. She’d thought that she’d never be able to face anybody from her old life again, but Jackson was an exception. He seemed genuinely worried, so she allowed herself to spill everything on her mind as she clutched the steaming mug of coffee. How the regulatory authorities had come to her house to arrest her father, how his lawyers had gone crazy. She talked about how they had to bail him out of jail, and how her mother had been crying the entire time. Haeun felt her shoulders tremble as she remembered the dead look in her father’s eyes coming out of prison.

“They all agreed to do it together,” she explained shakily, referring to the group of powerful men that had attended the dinner party just a few weeks ago; while Jackson and Haeun messed around in the next room. “They were all fudging the accounts so the company would look better than it was. The point was to attract more investments. But they conspired against my Dad. Those men sold their stakes beforehand and then tipped off the authorities. My Dad was the only one left at that time. The whole scandal benefitted the others pretty well, because now his market share is up for grabs. They knew they were ruining him; they just didn’t realize how much.”

Jackson felt nauseous as he listened to Haeun explain what her family had gone through. He suddenly felt dirty, almost guilty, as if he had been the one who’d done it all. Wasn’t it his own family who had betrayed the man and led him to kill himself? What did all those cozy dinners in each other’s houses mean if they each other so easily?

“Dad killed himself after they seized all the assets,” Haeun continued, tears spilling down her face. She’d never been close to her father, he’d always been too busy for her. But he was her father and she’d seen him hanging from a rope in his office. The image was etched into her mind. “We had the funeral last week. My Mom went crazy. She started screaming, throwing things around. To be honest, I don’t know what she was so upset about. The fact that he was dead, or that we had nothing left. She couldn’t take the press hovering around and following us, so she left for my aunt’s place in the countryside.”

Jackson reached over and squeezed her hand. He could tell that even the small gesture comforted her. He wondered how much hatred she had faced, how badly people had been treating her for even such a tiny act of kindness to feel like a gasp of fresh air. Haeun turned and looked at him with big eyes, answering the question he hadn’t asked.

“I couldn’t go with her,” she explained. Her voice trembled. “I couldn’t give up college. I have exams in a couple of weeks, I have research papers due next month. What am I supposed to do with my life if I just hide out in the countryside for god knows how long?”

Jackson bit his lip. “You could have tried to get away from it all for a while.”

Haeun shook her head. Her voice cracked as she spoke. “My dignity is all I have left. I couldn’t run away. I can’t. I need my degree if I’m going to make anything of myself. I never realized how important it was until now. So I sold some jewelry I had, and I moved in with a friend of mine. She agreed to let me stay with her, but I have to pay rent and my Dad can’t pay my college tuition from the grave so I needed a job and the strip club was all I could get on such short notice that would let me work nights-“

Jackson let out a soft sigh. “You should have called me before you did something that drastic.”

Haeun closed her eyes and bowed her head. She knew she should have called Jackson. All her other rich friends had left her. None of them wanted to associate themselves with the daughter of a disgraced businessman anymore. Jackson wasn’t like the rest of them, but there was still something that had stopped her.

“I’m not used to asking for help,” she admitted, ashamed. Her hands trembled. It was true. She’d never asked people for help, never had to beg for favors. Everything was handed to her the moment she wanted it, and Lee Haeun had never bowed her head in front of anyone before. “I… I’ve never felt so scared, Jackson. I never knew what a scary place the world was, how people treat you when they don’t need you anymore, when they suddenly decide you’re trash, I…”

She broke out into choked sobs, unable to say anything comprehensible. Jackson shifted closer to her and wrapped his arms around her tightly. His heart was breaking, watching her cry. It felt so real, so ugly, and he wished he could do anything to comfort her. Haeun didn’t deserve this. Nobody deserved this.

“You’re okay,” he told her gently. “You don’t have to be scared of anything. You don’t have to worry. I’m here for you. You have me. You’re not alone. Just say the word and I’ll take care of anything you need.”

Haeun clutched onto Jackson, unable to control her tears. It had been a long time since somebody had held her like this. After the whirlwind of the last few weeks, it felt oddly safe and comforting to have Jackson hold her tightly and whisper comforting words in her ear. His familiar scent, his deep voice was the only remainder of a life that had completely turned upside down. Her sobs slowly subsided and she wasn’t sure how long they sat in silence with him rubbing her back gently.

She slowly pulled away from him and wiped her tears.

“Sorry,” she mumbled.

“Don’t apologize. You did nothing wrong.”

There was a long silence. Jackson looked down at her and noticed that the cup of coffee he’d made her was lying untouched on the coffee table. He reached down to grab it. “I’ll heat this up-“

“Don’t go.”

He looked at her in surprise. Haeun was holding onto the edge of his shirt, looking at him with a broken expression. She didn’t want him to leave, didn’t want him to take even a step away from her. She knew it made her look pathetic, but Haeun was so desperate for human comfort that she would do anything at that point. Jackson looked down at her. “What’s wrong-“

“I don’t want to be alone,” she whispered. “I thought I could handle it, but being truly alone is terrifying, Jackson. Please don’t leave me.”

Jackson grabbed her and pulled her closer before kissing her hard. He wasn’t sure what made him do it. Haeun was attractive, yes, but seeing her so vulnerable and broken in front of him made him suddenly want to protect her. For a moment, Jackson wished he could wrap her up in his arms and shield her from the outside world. Haeun’s confidence was y, but her vulnerability was heartbreaking.

Haeun let her fingers slide into his hair as she kissed him back. It felt familiar, comfortable to be kissing Jackson and she let herself melt into his arms. She knew it was stupid. Jackson couldn’t do anything to save her, but she wanted to pretend for a few moments that nothing had changed.

He gently pulled away, his hands coming up to frame her face as he mumbled. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

Haeun bit her lip and nodded. “Yes.”

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Haeun woke in the early hours of the morning. The soft silken sheets were unfamiliar, but she knew exactly where she was. Pulling them up to cover her bare chest, she rolled over quietly.

Jackson was sitting on the bed beside her. His knees were pulled up to his chest, arms wrapped around them as he rocked back and forth slowly. Haeun felt something churn in her stomach as she saw the distant look in his wide-open eyes. Jackson’s mind was clearly far away as he stared steadily at the blank wall across from him. What is he thinking about? Why is he awake? She reached up and gently placed her hand on his .

“Jackson?”

He jumped, turning to look at her. Jackson’s gaze softened at the sight of a sleepy Haeun blinking at him and he smiled. “Hey. You’re awake. Are you hungry? I have some extra toothbrushes in the bathroom so you can shower, and we can go out to get breakfast-“

She bit her lip, wondering if she’d imagined the troubled look in his eyes. He seemed fine now.

“I have work,” she admitted softly.

“What can you possibly do at the strip club on a Saturday morning?” he demanded, bewildered.

“Not the strip club. I got another part-time job at a café on weekends. I’ll work there during the day and after my shift at the café, I’ll go to the strip club.” Haeun sounded exhausted even as she said the words. Jackson gave her a sharp look. He was pretty sure that Haeun was overworking herself. Yes, she needed money, but she had gone from never having worked a day in her life to working two jobs along with college. It was quite clear to him that she was losing her mind, but he didn’t know how to tell her this.

“Haeun, do you really need two jobs?” he asked, incredulously.

Haeun felt a burst of irritation. “Do you think money comes out of thin air, Jackson?”

“No, but you can’t seriously expect to manage everything on your own. I know there are people who manage multiple jobs and college, but you’ve never been one of them, you’ve never worked so hard. You just lost your father and you’re not even giving yourself time to grieve. So take it slow. You might just kill yourself from exhaustion-“

“What should I do, then? Should I starve to death while I grieve?” she demanded, voice cracking.

Jackson gave her a pained look. He didn’t want to upset her, but her insistence on doing everything by herself was scaring him. Haeun didn’t seem to be aware of the limits of her own capabilities. “You’re not going to starve to death. Do you think I would let that happen to you? I wouldn’t. Just trust me and take things slow for a while, let yourself rely on other people-“

“How do you plan to take care of me? With your money? You mean the money you got from your Dad, who in turn got it by ing over people like mine?” she snapped.

Jackson was silent. Her words struck him hard, and he suddenly felt a wave of shame. Who was he to tell her what to do? It was his family that had put her in this position. His father had tipped off the authorities and led Lee Jangkyu to kill himself in shame. He was the reason the girl in front of him was in shambles.

Haeun regretted the words as soon as they came out of . “Jackson, I didn’t mean that-“

“No, you’re… you’re right,” he said softly. He gave her a hesitant smile. “You’re right.”

“I’m not.” Tears were building in her eyes and she blinked down at the sheets, avoiding Jackson’s gaze. She wasn’t sure why her emotions had been so volatile lately. Haeun usually kept calm but for the past few days, she’d been saying things she didn’t mean and hurting people she didn’t want to. “I’m not right. It’s not like my father was innocent, he tried to cheat a bunch of investors too. And you’re only trying to help me, you’ve been so understanding-“

Jackson reached out and gently brushed his thumb across her face. He couldn’t look at the broken girl in front of him, knowing that there was almost nothing he could do to help her. “I want to help you.”

“Why?”

The question made him pause. Jackson hadn’t thought about why he was so determined to save Haeun. Did he love her? It was unlikely. Why was he so determined to do something for the girl, when nobody else seemed to care about her?

It was at that moment that Jackson Wang admitted something he’d been too scared to admit to anyone else; possibly even himself. He took a deep, shaky breath before answering.

“Because you’re living my worst nightmare.”

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Once you reach the top, the only way left is down.

Jackson felt uncomfortable as he walked down the luxurious corridors of his father’s company building, past huge glass walls and smooth elevators with a city view. He usually avoided coming here. The atmosphere was too serious, the employees all whispered behind his back and looked terrified when he addressed them. Oddly enough, he used to love playing in these same corridors as a child and letting the employees fuss over how cute he was.

Until the day he came to realize what the building represented, and it made him feel trapped. Until the day he realized the nice employees weren’t there to play with him, they were working their asses off day and night just to please his family.

He reached his brother’s office and ignored Chansung’s pretty PA. The woman opened , but said nothing as Jackson walked past her. Jackson was a nice guy, but he had a reputation for doing what he wanted and not letting anybody stop him. It was fruitless to try and prevent him from entering Chansung’s office if he wanted to. Jackson walked inside and stopped in front of Chansung’s desk, where the older man was sitting in front of his laptop.

“Jackson?” he asked, looking only mildly surprised.

Jackson was stiff. “Hyung, I need to talk to you.”

Chansung merely leaned back in his seat and raised an eyebrow. He was busy, he had enormous amounts of work to do, but he knew Jackson was persistent. It was better to deal with him sooner than later.

“I figured I might see you,” Chansung mused. “I hear you managed to track down Lee Jangkyu’s daughter and even took her home. Sleep with her all you want, but be careful. Women like that can’t handle having their lavish lifestyle taken away from them; they’re always looking for a way back in.”

“We did that to her,” Jackson said stiffly.

“The man killed himself, Jackson. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do. Like I told you earlier, I’ve been dealing with the aftermath of that messy scandal all week-“

“You mean counting how much money we made off it?”

Chansung placed his elbows on the desk, and frowned. “Yeah, we made money off it. Most of their clients and contracts fell to us once it was discovered that their company had defaulted. Why do you think father gave you the money to buy that new car last week? Look… forget about this and go get your girlfriend a gift to cheer her up, okay?”

Jackson closed his eyes. He knew that Chansung would show no sympathy. The two of them hadn’t gotten along in years. Chansung was almost always at work and Jackson never went anywhere near it. At least, not until now. He had decided that there was a limit to how much ignorance he could feign when it came to the man who sponsored his life. “What father did… it’s illegal, right? He sold his stake in Lee Jangkyu’s company because he knew it was going to go down once they exposed Lee Jangkyu. That’s insider trading.”

Chansung raised an eyebrow. “I’m surprised you know what insider trading is.”

“You’ve both committed a crime. What if the regulatory authorities get wind of that? How will we be any different from Lee Jangkyu and his family? Won’t we lose everything? Aren’t you worried?”

“I can see you are.”

Jackson hesitated. “That’s not-“

“You don’t make money in this world by playing fair, Jackson. It’s rather absurd that you’re 22 years old, and you don’t even seem to know that. Don’t worry yourself so much. Lee Jangkyu was stupid and trusting; father is neither. Besides, father’s been in a good mood since the scandal. Try asking him for that yacht you wanted last year and he might just buy it for you.”

Jackson felt sick as he walked out of Chansung’s office and stormed down the corridor into the bathrooms that he knew were at the end. He stood in front of the sink, feeling his heartbeat thud. He had known that his father’s company wasn’t exactly squeaky clean but the truth had never hit him this hard. One wrong move and I could be Haeun, he realized suddenly. This stupid company meant everything to his family and Jackson had no doubt that his family would fall apart just as badly as Haeun’s had, it anything were to happen to it. How would he live? How would he manage?

What if one day… it all just disappeared?

Jackson suddenly came to the realization that if things started falling, they wouldn’t just fall a little- they would crumble all the way to the ground, until all that was left was dust. He could suddenly picture it vividly in his mind. Authorities seizing his apartment, selling his car in an auction, his father being sentenced to prison while his mother cried, Chansung fleeing to another country to avoid prosecution. The papers talking about how the playboy Wang Jackson was now reduced to the streets.  

Oh, . 

Jackson wasn’t ready to lose everything. He just wasn’t ready.

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Haeun felt her head throb with exhaustion as she finally pulled the apron over her head and tossed it into the locker. The coffee shop was much easier work than the strip club. At least here, she was behind a counter and nobody could her. The worst customers could do was grumble if their order took too long. All the same, she’d been on her feet since 9 am and it was more than her body was used to handling.

I shouldn’t have stopped doing yoga, she mused to herself. She was suddenly reminded of the fancy, overpriced yoga studio that she and her ‘friends’ had frequented in her first year of college to get more fit. They ended up spending more time in the spa above it than doing any actual yoga. The memories seemed much farther away than they actually were; almost like a dream that was hazy.

“Oh my god. Haeun-unnie, there’s someone waiting for you outside. Do you have a sugar daddy, or something?” one of the younger waitresses chirped, coming into the back room with bright eyes. She had seen Jackson’s fancy sports car outside the café and freaked. “He’s so gorgeous!”

Another waitress scoffed. “Yah. If she had a sugar daddy, would she be working in a place like this?”    

“It’s probably just a friend,” Haeun mumbled, as she gathered her belongings quickly. She’d only been working here a week, and her co-workers had no idea that she was the daughter of Lee Jangkyu. She hadn’t been much of a socialite, and none of the papers which mentioned her after the scandal had managed to get hold of her picture. She wished Jackson could be a little discreet for once in his life. “I’ll be leaving. Good work today, everyone.”

“Good work!”

Haeun hurried out of the restaurant and saw Jackson’s sleek, black sports car in the parking lot of the café. She bit her lip and walked over to him. He stepped out and walked around the car, holding the passenger side door open for her with a grin. “Took you long enough to come outside. I thought that fellow waitress of yours was going to combust when she saw me.”

Haeun sighed. “Can you not come here and make a scene at my workplace?”

“What scene? I didn’t do anything. I was just waiting outside. Come on, it’s really cold out here. Get in.”

Haeun glanced warily into the car and sighed. She was tired, and she wasn’t sure if she was in the mood for whatever Jackson wanted to do. But he was giving her his usual cheerful grin and she couldn’t bring herself to say no. “Where to?” she wondered.

“Shopping. I need some new clothes and I want a woman’s opinion.”

“Jackson, I’m tired-“

“Come on! You’re one of the few people I know who has taste, and you’re the only female friend I have who isn’t a stripper. Not that there’s anything wrong with strippers. It’s just that the ones I know don’t have the best sense of fashion.” 

Haeun got into the car, ignoring the wide grin that Jackson was giving her. She couldn’t say no. He was one of the few people in her life who actually seemed to want to spend time with her. She wondered how the ever-popular Jackson could be free enough on a Saturday night to want to go shopping with her.

“Am I seriously your only female friend?” she wondered, frowning.

“Let’s just say you’re the only one with class.”

Haeun folded her arms across her chest and grumbled. “I wouldn’t know about that. I stopped thinking I had class after the day I you off in a five-year old’s bedroom at the Foreign Affairs Minster’s bungalow last year.”

Jackson turned and winced. “Yah. You think that was a good memory for me? I kept trying to look down at your face, but you were kneeling on a huge Winnie-the-Pooh carpet and I came to the sight of a fat, yellow bear belly.” He turned and gave her a cheeky grin. “Hey. I’d say you and I have ed around in more rich people’s houses than anyone else in this country, wouldn’t you?”

Haeun couldn’t hold back a giggle. “Probably.”

There was a brief silence and Jackson turned to look at her with a surprisingly gentle smile. “But yeah,” he said finally. “You’re my only female friend. You’re one of my only friends. I think along with Jinyoung and Jaebum, you’re the person I want to spend time with the most right now. Maybe even more than them.”

She was a little surprised to hear him say this. She knew that Jackson didn’t have many close friends; she didn’t either. It was a common thing when you were among the elite to not have a peer group you genuinely cared for. Then again, Jackson usually said whatever was on his mind. “Of course you like me more. I’m pretty sure neither of them has ever given you the of your life.”

“You really don’t let that go, do you?”

They pulled into the parking lot of whatever designer store Jackson wanted to go to. Haeun bit her lip as she followed Jackson inside. This was an extremely expensive place. She’d found a lot of the stuff here pricey, even back when she could afford stuff like this. Jackson didn’t seem to be bothered, though. He simply waved a hand and greeted one of the store employees who came running over.

“Bambam! Hey, how’s it going?” they exchanged a high five. Haeun watched as Jackson interacted with the slightly baby-faced (yet disturbingly tall) younger boy, wondering how they knew each other. This Bambam guy was even addressing Jackson casually as hyung, and they seemed close.

“Haeun, this is Bambam. Bambam, Haeun,” Jackson introduced them casually.

Bambam gave her a polite bow. “Is she your girlfriend, hyung?”

Haeun scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Trust me. If he had a girlfriend, he would not be allowed to visit strip clubs as often as he does now.”

“Strip clubs aren’t cheating.”

“Is that what you guys tell yourselves?”

Bambam looked at her with a big grin, seemingly amused at her snappy personality. He led them further into the shop, past rows of counters which were selling expensive makeup and perfumes. She took a deep whiff of something that smelled pleasantly flowery and smiled to herself. Jackson noticed and blinked at her. “You like the smell of that?” he wondered.

Haeun blinked. “Huh? No, it’s just… It’s Chanel. My Dad gifted me that perfume on my 13^th birthday, it was the first perfume I ever owned,” she admitted quietly. She still remembered him giving it to her, expecting her to be happy and excited but all she had done was complain that it smelled too strongly of jasmine. Her father had looked slightly hurt for a moment, and Haeun had felt so bad that she’d followed him into his office to apologize and give him a big hug. It was one of the few good memories she shared with her father, and the only way she knew that even though he was never around, he tried to love her in his own way. The scent suddenly brought back those memories.

Bambam didn’t notice how Haeun had suddenly gone quiet and how her eyes had glazed over slightly. He just nodded, sniffing the air thoughtfully. “Oh yeah. Ah-Reum- the girl who works at the perfume counter- seriously loves that . She sprays the Chanel tester around like it’s air freshener, the manager’s always yelling at her. Do you want to look at some perfumes?”

Jackson nodded. “Yeah, let’s look at perfumes.”

“What? No-“

“Ah-Reum!” Bambam called out, getting the attention of a young female employee who was standing near the perfume counters and trying to pretend like she wasn’t eavesdropping on them. She had light streaks of color in her dark hair and a cute smile as she greeted them.

“Ah- hello- Jackson-oppa.” Ah-Reum greeted him politely. The girl’s cheeks were flushed slightly pink and Haeun wondered if most of the younger girls Jackson came across treated the rich, handsome heir this way. Jackson didn’t seem to notice how flustered she was. He simply gave her his usual friendly grin.

“Ah-Reum! I see your hair is purple this week. Did you get it dyed again?”

She flushed. “Yeah, I… I felt like a change.”

“It suits you. Actually, everything suits you except that bright yellow you once tried,” he joked lightly. He pointed across the counter at a display of perfumes that was spread behind her. “Is that the perfume? The Chanel one?”

“Yes, that’s Chanel No. 5. It’s a classic; it’s been around for a really long time and it has hints of sandalwood, which is really rare. Do you want me to spray the tester for you?” she asked eagerly, holding up the tester bottle which looked close to empty. Bambam was muttering something about how she’d sprayed enough of it in the air and they could all smell it already, but Jackson nodded.

“Yes, please.”

Haeun tugged at his sleeve. “I thought we came here to buy you clothes. Why are we looking at women’s perfumes?”

Jackson glanced at her sideways. “Okay, I lied. I don’t really need any clothes. I just planned to blow a load of money tonight because I feel like it. How much does this Chanel stuff cost? Excellent. Get me a bigger bottle of that, please, Ah-Reum. Hey. What happened to that guy who used to work in the jewelry department? Mingyu? Let’s go say hi to him…”

Haeun felt her stomach turn. “Jackson, what are you doing?”

He glanced at her. “I’m shopping-“

“No, who the is that huge- bottle of Chanel perfume for?” she demanded.

“You, obviously.”

Haeun felt a burst of irritation. What was wrong with him? He’d brought her here saying he wanted her advice on clothes, but it was a pity trip? What the hell was she even supposed to do with an enormous bottle of Chanel No. 5? She opened to protest but Jackson was already walking away, following Bambam over to the jewelry section. She turned to Ah-Reum and gave her an apologetic look.

“Please don’t pack that. I can’t afford it,” she told her frankly.

Ah-Reum blinked. “I’m pretty sure Jackson-oppa’s paying for it-“

“No, please don’t pack it.”

“Oh-okay.”

Haeun hurried to follow Jackson, who was leaning over a counter with jewelry in it; unsurprisingly, women’s jewelry. He grinned at her as he pointed at a pair of pretty earrings with blue stones in them. “Yah. What do you think of those?” he asked. “Mingyu says they’re white gold, pretty classy, right? I’ve seen you wearing stuff like this before. Or do you like those twisty-looking silver ones better?”

“Can I please talk to you outside?” Haeun asked, her voice trembling.

Jackson barely glanced at her, his face almost pressing against the display glass. “Sure, but let’s pick one of these earrings, first. Oh! Show me those, I like the uh, those little dangly bits. What do you call those? They look pretty. Haeun-ah, try these on in front of that mirror over there.”

“Jackson.”

“What-“

“Is this funny to you?” Haeun asked, in a low voice. Anger was bubbling in the pit of her stomach and she suddenly couldn’t control it anymore. She would have slapped him, but she was conscious of both Bambam and Mingyu watching her closely. “Are you enjoying yourself? Throwing around your money and buying me perfumes that cost more than I could make in an entire year?”

Jackson blinked at her. “Yah. Can’t I buy my friend a present?”

“Not like this.”

“Why not? I buy Bambam stuff all the time. Right, Bambam? Remember that watch I got you last month?” he demanded, gesturing toward the younger boy who looked a little startled. Jackson turned and raised his eyebrows at Haeun. “Why can’t I buy you something? This money means nothing to me.”

Haeun closed her eyes. “I’m leaving.”

“What? Where are you-“

She ignored him, turning and walking out of the store without looking back. Her ears were burning in humiliation. What was wrong with him? Did he seriously think that the way he was behaving was okay, that he could bring someone who’d lost her father and her entire livelihood and show her all the things she’d never be able to afford again? Was he mocking her- look, you can’t afford this stuff anymore, you need someone like me to buy it for you? Haeun wrapped her arms around herself as tears came to her eyes. It was freezing cold outside and she’d barely made it to the end of the parking lot when Jackson grabbed her arm.

“Yah! Where the hell are you running off to- Lee Haeun! Stop!”

Haeun whirled around and glared at him, her eyes red. “Do you really think that your behavior back there was acceptable? Are you blind, or have you not seen me working my off, doing two jobs and giving up sleep and a social life in order to make minimum wage? Was I supposed to smile happily while you blew off money that could have bought someone groceries or food for an entire year?”  

Jackson looked angry. “I was trying to cheer you up-“

Haeun scoffed. “Cheer me up? I’m feeling humiliated because of you!”

“What’s there to feel humiliated about? I want to help you, I know you’ve been working your off and when I can afford this , then it means more to me that I can make you happy-“

“I don’t want your charity!”

There was a long silence. Jackson was quiet for a moment. His lighthearted expression had disappeared and his lips pressed together tightly. Haeun was staring at the ground in front of her, eyes filling rapidly with tears. He reached out to touch her shoulder.

“You are not charity.” His voice was firm.  

“It feels like it,” Haeun whispered. Her voice trembled. “Everything feels like charity. Nothing about this feels real anymore. I don’t belong here. I hate this life, now. I hate everything. I just want to get my college degree and get the hell out of this place.”

Jackson’s fingers on her shoulders tightened slightly. His gaze was soft. “You’re emotional. And that’s understandable considering everything you’re been through recently- with your father… your father passing, and-“

“Passing? He killed himself,” Haeun stated harshly.

Jackson flinched. “Yah, don’t-“

“Don’t what? Say it as it is? Reality has been hitting me pretty hard these days, Jackson. I’m tired of sugarcoating things. My Dad got scammed, lost everything he had and then hung himself in his fancy office. I have nothing left except my Mom; and even she’s losing her . I used to have two loving parents, my own car and chauffeur but now I take the bus alone, while people who used to know me stare at me with pity.”

Jackson lifted one of his hands to her cheek gently. “I’m not going to pretend I know what you’re going through-“

“Then don’t. Leave me alone. I can’t live in this world anymore. Stop buying me stuff. Stop trying to drive me everywhere in your car. Stop trying to make me feel like nothing’s changed. Everything has changed. I can’t slack my way through college like you. I have to take a student loan to pay the rest of my tuition. I have to work during all my free time.” Haeun took a deep, shaky breath. “Being friends with you is a luxury I can’t emotionally afford.”

“Are you stupid? Having friends isn’t a luxury, it’s-“

“Please.” Haeun’s voice was trembling. “Watching you spend money left and right while I have to work for every penny makes me feel bitter and jaded. I don’t want to resent you. You’re the only person that’s tried to help me since my life went to hell, but… I can’t, Jackson. Having you around is only making me more miserable.”

Jackson’s eyes flickered to the ground in shame.

“I’m sorry,” he mumbled.

“Don’t be. It’s not your fault. I used to be just like you, at one point but I just can’t handle that-“  

“I’m scared, okay?” he blurted out. His hands were trembling and he looked up at her wide eyes. Haeun paused; she had never seen Jackson look so vulnerable. His voice cracked as he spoke. “I’m scared to death. Everything scares me these days. I’m scared that you’re not going to be okay, that you’re going to hurt yourself trying to manage everything on your own. I want to help you, I want to get you out of this situation you’re in. But then I remember… what the can I possibly do for you? If things had been just a little different, it could be me in your place. It could still happen to me. I can lose everything just the way you did, so how can I possible guarantee you anything when I myself have nothing to my name?”

“Jackson…”

“I want to help you feel more secure,” he whispered. “I want to get you out of this, I want to make you feel safe again. But I realized today that I can’t do that when I’m so insecure and unsafe myself. When my own fortune and life could slip away from me any second.”

Haeun bit her lip. “Yah. These things don’t happen to everyone-“

“Don’t comfort me. I’d feel pretty pathetic seeking comfort from you, when you’re the one suffering in all of this,” he said, running a hand over his face. Jackson took a deep breath and looked at her, pleading. “I’m sorry. I’m a mess. But please don’t get mad at me and walk away, I can’t handle that.”

“I’m not going anywhere. You just weren’t listening to me.”

“I’ll listen. I’m sorry.”

Haeun stepped forward and hugged him, her arms tightening around his waist while he nuzzled his head into her neck gently. She could imagine how vulnerable Jackson was feeling. To be poor, to have to work hard to pay bills… that was one sort of difficulty, but living in a constant state of fear that you could lose everything was almost equally painful. She his back gently, closing her eyes and letting herself fall into his embrace.

Once you reach the top, the only way left is down.

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Haeun wished she could spend time with Jackson more often, but she just didn’t have the time.

As her graduation neared, her academics were getting more difficult. She had to submit papers, give exams and manage her GPA; all while avoiding the fact that she was the college’s hottest gossip. While all of Seoul might not have been able to recognize her, the chaebol Lee Jangkyu’s daughter was popular enough in her own University. It wasn’t easy to walk around campus alone, feeling eyes watching her every move with pity and disdain.

Her phone rang just as she reached the bus stop, books heavy in her arms.

“Jackson?” she answered.

“Hey!” he sounded more cheerful than he usually did. “Where are you?”

“Uh, I’m at the bus stop near my university. Why-“

“Stay there, don’t move.”

She sighed and hung up, smiling to herself at Jackson’s overdramatic personality. He often seemed frivolous and overbearing but Haeun had started to see Jackson differently in the past few weeks. Maybe because he was more sensitive than everyone seemed to think, and she’d caught a glimpse of the insecurities he hid so well under his mask of cheerfulness. Maybe his overbearing personality and tendency to pester people were only because he was afraid to be left alone.

Maybe, like Haeun, Jackson was really lonely.

He pulled up near the bus stop in his black sports car, and opened the passenger side door for her. Haeun got in, giving him a small smile. She hadn’t seen him much since the past couple of weeks, but Jackson had a huge smile on his face. He glanced at her books and rolled his eyes playfully.

“What’s with all those? Are you coming from the library? Nerd. All you business majors are the same,” Jackson complained. “Come on, I’ll give you a ride home.” 

“I have a test tomorrow,” Haeun admitted, as Jackson started the car in the direction of her flat. “I haven’t seen you in a while. I tried calling you over the weekend but you didn’t answer. Is that how Jackson Wang really is? He bugs the out of you when you’re busy but ignores you when you actually want to talk to him?” she demanded playfully.

“Yah… I was busy,” he whined.

“Doing what? Irritating people other than me?”

He sighed, and shook his head lightly. “You know, one day you’re going to learn how sharp your words are, Lee Haeun. Anyway. I was in the area and I thought I’d drop you off at home. What are you doing tonight? Don’t tell me you’re going to study or I swear to god, I will drive this car into that tree.”

Haeun gave him a small smile. “It’s Friday. I have a shift at the strip club.”

He nodded. “How’s that going?”

“Fine. Considering the manager is convinced there’s something going on between us, so he never dares to scold me and all the other waitresses hate me. I think one or two of the strippers think I’m intruding on their territory too. But other than that, yeah. It’s all sunshine and rainbows.”

Jackson gave her a sideways glance. “I would sound like a really big jerk if I told you that I didn’t like you working there, right?”  

Haeun shrugged. “Not if you can find me another job that pays as well and lets me work nights.”

“Yeah, fine. I won’t interfere. But there’s something that I kind of want to talk to you about. Although maybe tonight wasn’t a good idea anyway, Jaebum asked me and Jinyoung to have drinks at his place. His girlfriend’s out of town and he’s been all needy.”

“Jackson Wang is going to talk about being needy?”

He laughed sarcastically, rolling  his eyes. “Yeah, fine, laugh at me. Seriously, though. Give me a call whenever you have some time, okay? It’s kind of important. And a little urgent, too.”

“Now you’re scaring me.”

He chuckled as he pulled up near her apartment, giving her a soft smile. His eyes were shining slightly and Haeun suddenly realized that there was a glow in them; something she had never seen before. For the first time since she’d met him, Jackson looked truly happy. Maybe he wasn’t smiling as widely as he usually did, or laughing as loudly but there was something different about him.

“Jackson,” she said gently.

He blinked at her. “Hmm?”

“Nothing. Thanks for the ride. I’ll give you a call, okay?”

He nodded as she got out of the car and walked up to the entrance of her apartment, glancing back at the black sports car that was sitting still at the side of the road.

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Haeun sighed and pressed her fingers to her temples as she cleared away the used glasses from the table. She’d gotten stuck serving a huge group of girls who seemed to be on some kind of bachelorette party; they certainly weren’t going easy on the male strippers and drinks. They were pushing one girl in particular (possibly the bride) to keep taking shots of tequila and Haeun was mildly worried that the girl was going to puke all over the table soon.

“Can I get you anything else?” she asked, trying to be heard over the girls’ squealing as one of the male strippers on stage neared them.

Luckily, one of the girls heard her. “Yeah! We want more tequila. Let’s see. One for the bride, two, three, four… Cho Hee, will you drink another one? No? Okay. Four shots of tequila please!” she ordered happily.

Haeun nodded and headed back to the bar, just in time to see a new group of people enter the club. Her eyes brightened as she recognized Jackson; hadn’t he said that he was going to meet friends? He spotted her almost immediately with his quick eyes and waved at her happily. “Haeun! Over here! Hey guys, meet Haeun. This is Jinyoung and Jaebum, my best buddies!”

Haeun greeted them politely with a slight bow. Jinyoung looked extremely smart; he wasn’t really dressed for a club, wearing a comfortable beige sweater and a pair of glasses that suited a trip to the library more than a night at a strip club. Jaebum looked a little cooler in a plain shirt and leather jacket; but Haeun’s eyes widened as soon as she saw him.

“Oh; Jaebum-ssi, haven’t we met before?” Haeun asked lightly.

Jaebum blinked at her. “Sorry?”

“I’m Park Miran’s friend from high school, you both came to my birthday party last year. How’s she doing? I haven’t heard from her in a long time. Although I’ve been kind of busy, so-“

Jaebum wasn’t listening to her. He was looking around the strip club nervously, eyes lingering a little too long on the strippers that were dancing on stage. He cleared his throat and turned to her with wide eyes that seemed slightly drunk already. “Strip clubs aren’t cheating, right? Is it okay to be in a strip club if you have a girlfriend?”

Haeun hesitated. “Uh…”

“Yah, relax. You guys go get a table,” Jackson told them, clapping Jaebum on the back and sending both him and Jinyoung away. He turned to Haeun with a big grin. “Yah. Can you serve our table? We’re not going to drink a lot, we pre-boozed already. I just wanted to show this place to my buddies because they never come out with me.”

Haeun shrugged. “Sorry. I have my hands full with that bachelorette party over there. You guys will probably get Mina. Be careful with her. She cussed you out last time when you didn’t leave a big enough tip. I don’t think you’re her favorite customer anymore.”

Jackson nodded. “Okay. I’ll see you around. Take a break and sit with us if you have time. This might be my last time coming here and blowing money on this place.”

Haeun stared at him. “The last? Why?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know. I’m thinking I might stop spending money on stuff like this.”

“You’re not… you’re not dying, are you?”

“Very funny,” he said, rolling his eyes before he turned to leave. “I’ll see you later.”

Haeun nodded, turning around to get the tequila for her table. The bachelor-party girls were getting wilder by the second, and a couple of them had diverted their attention from the strippers and were eyeing up Jackson and his friends. Haeun couldn’t help but giggle as she watched the boys down more and more drinks from a distance. So much for ‘not going to drink a lot’. Haeun was amused as she passed Mina, and the older waitress looked annoyed.

“What the hell is wrong with Jackson’s friends?” she complained. “The broad-shouldered one starts freaking out whenever one of the strippers gets anywhere near him; you’d think they were going to him or something. The nerdy one seemed cute but he literally hasn’t said a word all night and he looks like he might just murder the bachelorette party.”

Haeun giggled. No wonder Jackson’s friends were as eccentric as him.

“Yeah? Well, we should start taking the final orders. I feel like we might have to get the bouncers to make the bachelorette party leave so that we can close up; they’re not done partying yet. The bar’s going to close  in ten,” she pointed out. Mina nodded and hurried away to inform the other customers that the bar was going to shut and that it was the final performance of the night. Haeun winced as she realized that one of the bachelorette girls had actually managed to puke in a corner; she was going to have to clean that up now.

Great. She sighed and went to get a mop and baking soda to clean it up, while the bouncers ushered the girls out. She had just begun to clean up the mess when a pair of arms wrapped around her waist lightly. She jumped, but the familiar smell of cologne and the expensive watch on the hand that was resting on her stomach told her that it was just Jackson.

“Yah. What are you doing?” she asked with a small laugh.

Jackson hummed lightly against the back of her neck. His voice was slightly slurred. “Hugging you. You’re kind of soft and warm. Have I ever told you that? You’re really soft. I love how soft you are. You’re really soft, Haeun. I’ve always wanted to hug you but I thought it was kind of weird.”

She felt her cheeks flush, but rolled her eyes. “I thought you weren’t going to drink much?”

“I wasn’t, but Jaebum kept drinking and I couldn’t lose to him.”

“Isn’t he still dating Park Miran? Is that why he seemed so guilty about being at a strip club?” Haeun wondered, thinking of her high school friend. They hadn’t seen each other in a while. She wondered if she should call Miran. It might be a little amusing to tell her about the antics her boyfriend had pulled while she was out of town. “Jackson, let go of me.”

“You’re soft. And you’re really pretty,” he hummed.

“I’m cleaning up puke, Jackson. If you push me forward any further, I’m going to step in it.”

“You’d be pretty even if you were covered in puke.”

Haeun bit her lip and pushed him off her lightly. Weirdly enough, even though Jackson was a flirt and had no qualms about proposing , he’d never called her pretty before. His words were making her flustered and she pushed him to sit down in an empty chair before finishing cleaning up the puke. He watched her silently, an unreadable expression in his slightly hazy eyes. When she was done and put away the cleaning materials, he stumbled to his feet.

“I’ll take you home-“ he began to say.

Haeun laughed. “Yeah, very funny. You are not driving in that drunken state. Hand over your keys, mister, I’m driving you home tonight.”

Jackson pouted but handed over his car keys obediently. They began to walk towards the entrance, Jackson stumbling slightly on his own feet. They had barely reached the door when the manager called out for Haeun to meet him. She sighed and glanced at Jackson. “Wait for me outside,” she told him firmly, before heading over to her manager.

“Good work today, Haeun,” the manager told her, handing her a white envelope.

She blinked at him. “Oh. Thank you. Uh, and this is…?”

He looked slightly amused. “It’s pay-day, darling. That’s your salary. Now get out of here, it’s getting late.”

Haeun nodded, turning to head towards the door as she held the white envelope between her fingers. She bit her lip and stared down it for a moment. She’d never gotten a salary before. It was the first money she’d made on her own, the first time someone had paid her for her hard work. It felt… unusually satisfying. Haeun smiled to herself as she tucked the envelope into her purse and found Jackson waiting outside, shivering in the cold.

“So much for drinking,” he grumbled. “This weather sobered me up in an instant.”

“I’m still not letting you drive.”

“Fine, whatever, just open the car so my balls don’t freeze and fall off,” he complained, jumping into the passenger seat as soon as Haeun unlocked his car. She smiled and started it up, pulling out of the parking lot as a thought occurred to her.

“Yah. Have you eaten?” she asked him.

Jackson blinked. “Not really. I was drinking most of the night. Why?”

“Let’s grab dinner.”

“It’s 2 am.”

“We can go to one of those all-night diners. I know one a few blocks away from here that’s always open, and they serve the best burgers. It’s my treat.”

He raised an eyebrow, a small smile appearing on his face. “Your treat?”

She blushed and bit her lip. “I know it’s not much… but I got my first paycheck just now and I want to treat you to something. It’s not that great and the cheap burgers just might give you indigestion at this time of night, but… I kind of want to do it. Please?” she asked softly.

Jackson glanced at her, before turning to glance at the window. “,” he muttered under his breath. “Well, if you asked me like that then I’d even give you a kidney. Yeah, let’s go to your diner.”

Haeun smiled as she turned the car around and headed towards the diner. She knew it was kind of stupid, but she wanted to share her first salary with Jackson. She probably wouldn’t have managed to make it this far if it wasn’t for him. Haeun had been on the brink of giving up and running back to her mother’s hometown in the countryside when Jackson had found her and showed her she wasn’t alone. A few burgers weren’t enough to make up for that, but it was a start.

They slipped into the near-empty diner and ordered their burgers before scooting closer to the heaters to warm up. Jackson was letting out rather odd-sounding moans as he pressed his frozen fingers to the warm machine and the waitress was giving them uncomfortable looks. Haeun couldn’t help but giggle.

“Yah. Shut up, you’re being too loud.”

Jackson ignored her. “I don’t care, I’m in heaven right now. Oh wow, this thing is so warmmm…”

“Why am I friends with you again?” she complained playfully.

“Because I have a heart of gold, and you know it. It could also be because of the . Is it the ?”

Haeun flushed. “Shut up-“

“Oh, don’t give me that pretty blush like you’re all innocent, there’s nothing I don’t know about you,” he told her firmly, as he continued to press his fingers against the heater. Haeun leaned back in her seat and nodded. Maybe that was true. Jackson had seen more of her than she’d ever revealed to anyone else before… and he still seemed to like her. The thought made her feel warm inside. He was being a cocky drunk, but it was true. Jackson did have a heart of gold.

“Here are your burgers and coke. Enjoy,” the waitress placed their orders in front of them and then hurried away, probably disturbed by Jackson’s odd noises. He ignored her and stuffed the burger into his mouth, taking two huge bites and swallowing them fully, before he heard a soft sniffling noise from across him. His eyes widened as he looked at Haeun, her head bowed slightly as she stared at the burger she’d just nibbled.

“Are you crying?” Jackson demanded, sobering up faster than he had out in the cold.

Haeun laughed slightly and shook her head, reaching up to wipe away a tear and looking embarrassed. She sniffled as she hid her pink cheeks from him. “No, I’m not. I just…”

“Does it taste that bad?”

“It’s the first food I’ve ever bought with my own money,” she admitted quietly. She was aware that Jackson was staring at her, and she suddenly felt a little stupid. It was a dumb thing to cry about, wasn’t it? People ate with their own hard-earned money every day, nobody got all sentimental about it. She tried to blink back her tears and focus on the burger in front of her. She barely noticed that Jackson had stood up, walked around the table and slid into the booth beside her.  

“Jackson, what are you-“

“, why do you have to be so adorable?”

He kissed her, softly. His lips tasted slightly of alcohol and mayonnaise, but Haeun still felt her heart leap in . It was a gentle, loving kiss that made her heartbeat thud. She’d never seen the look of adoration in Jackson’s eyes before and it made her entire body tingle with warmth. He chuckled slightly and pressed his lips to hers again.

“You deserve the world,” he told her softly, fingers coming up to her cheek. “And you don’t know how badly I want to give it to you.”

Haeun bit her lip. “You don’t have to,” she whispered. “I think I’m happy right now.”

“Are you really?”

She looked at him and gave him a soft nod. “I miss my father,” she admitted quietly. “And the way he died still haunts me, because I loved him, but I think I can eventually learn to accept the way things are. What I miss most is the sense of security he always gave me, but… I think I can find that elsewhere now. I know that I can take care of myself and that I can survive in this world. And I know that I have you to survive along with me, so it’s okay.”

Jackson’s eyes shone. “I’ll always be next to you.”

“I know. I believe you. You’ve never let me down.”

“Will you let me love you?” he whispered.

Haeun felt her heart leap at the thought. It felt like a dream. A few months ago, the thought of Jackson Wang saying this to her would have made her laugh. The idea of love would have freaked her out; she had never been ready for something like that. Then again, life had thrown a lot of things her way when she wasn’t ready, and she’d managed them all.

Haeun gave him a soft smile. “Will me saying no really stop you?”

He grinned a little playfully, the smile on her face relaxing him. “I’m only asking out of politeness. It’s really too late to turn back at this point.”

“Then sure. Love me all you want.”

“Even if I couldn’t do anything for you besides love you?”

“I don’t want you to do anything for me besides love me.”

He kissed her again, and Haeun kissed him back this time, her fingers sliding into his hair and pulling him closer gently. His lips caressed hers softly and slowly until he finally pulled away and took a deep breath, blurting out the words that had been on his mind for a couple of days. He’d been looking for the right moment to say them, but there was no time like the present.

“I’m breaking away from my family.”

Haeun blinked at him. “What?”

“I don’t want to be a part of what they’re doing. I can’t live on the money that they got by cheating people and defrauding others; sitting and waiting for the day that they get caught for it all. I want to live by myself. The constant fear that it could all disappear…” Jackson took a deep, shaky breath. “I know things aren’t easy in the real world either. I could fail and lose everything either way. But I’d rather it was my own fault and because I couldn’t do it despite trying my best, than because I sat on my and didn’t do anything.”

Haeun stared at him. “Are you sure?” she asked quietly.

He nodded. “I’m positive. I’ve been thinking about it for weeks, now. I thought about what I could possibly do to make a living for myself and whether I could manage giving up all the luxuries I got because of my Dad. I realized that I could sacrifice just about anything… except for one.”

Haeun blinked at him. “What’s that?”

“Organic green tea.”

Haeun couldn’t help it; a giggle bubbled up in and burst out. Jackson looked slightly offended and gave her a small pout. She was laughing at him. It took her a few seconds to digest the absurdity of his statement and realize that he wasn’t joking. Her smile fell as she stared at him. “You’re serious.”

He pouted slightly. “I am. I was wondering what the hell I could possibly do with my college degree in health sciences; I only majored in it so I could use it as an excuse to spend a lot of time in the gym. But I know a lot about organic food and healthy living. I noticed that this diner across the gym had closed down and the space is up for rent and I talked to the realtor. It doesn’t cost as much as you would think, they don’t have any takers.”

Haeun felt her heart skip a beat. Jackson was serious about this. For once in his life, he wasn’t joking at all. She could tell by the look in his eyes. “But… where will you get the money?” she demanded. “Are you going to ask your father?”

“I went to the bank for a business loan.”

“And?”

“And I talked to Chansung-hyung. He agreed to sign a guarantee for the loan. I know it’s not ideal, I wanted to break away from my family completely, but it’s not like I’m taking any money from him. He’s only signing as a guarantor in case I can’t pay it back. He probably thinks I’m going to flake out and come begging to him to repay the loan for me. But I won’t. The bank says they’ll grant me the loan once I get the document with Chansung’s guarantee and a concrete business plan.”

“But you don’t know anything about business.”

Jackson smiled. “I know. You’re the business major.”

Haeun stared at him for a long moment, as his words sunk in. Jackson was giving her a hesitant smile… he looked nervous, his eyes were wavering as he tried to maintain eyes contact with her. Haeun took a deep breath. “So you mean… you’re asking me to…?”

“Let’s do this together.”

Haeun felt constrict. “It’s… it’s not as simple as you’re making it sound. Your idea is wildly optimistic at best. We need to do a lot of research first. Are there other organic stores in the area, how will we manage to attract customers? We’ll have to spend a lot on advertising, and importing organic goods from abroad could get expensive because of taxes. Although stuff like green tea is mostly non-perishable and has a long shelf life so we wouldn’t face any immediate losses even if we couldn’t sell and we could expand into perishables later…”

He gave her a soft smile. “See? That’s why I need you. Are you going to let me this up by myself?”

Haeun nodded.

“Hell if I will. Let’s do it.”

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Haeun felt exhausted as she weaved through the crowded club, carrying trays of drinks and trying not to drop them despite drunken patrons bumping into her. They were having a special event for New Years’ Eve and the club was more crowded than Haeun had ever seen it in the few months she’d been working here. All the same, she’d managed to get herself a pay raise by working extra hours and staying behind to clean up.

The last few weeks had been hectic. She and Jackson had spent hours holed up in that stuffy all-night diner after her strip club shifts, drawing up business plans for the store. Jackson didn’t know much about handling a business or finances, but he learned quickly and deferred the major strategic decision-making to Haeun. On the other hand, his people skills were excellent. It was only after he’d made friends with the realtor and gotten the rent of the store reduced by almost a third that Haeun realized they made an excellent team.

Of course, things hadn’t been easy. Jackson closed the bank account into which his father used to deposit money, and sold his car. He even moved out of the penthouse apartment, shifting into a more modest apartment with Jinyoung. Jinyoung grumbled a little about how messy Jackson was as a roommate, but he didn’t seem to mind too much. It was only temporary until the store opened and started making some profits.  

“Haeun! Clean up table 4!”

She rushed to the table to clear it quickly, feeling her head spinning. She was exhausted. After her classes, she’d gone straight to the store where they were renovating the repainting the whole thing. Jackson was doing a lot of the physical labor, but there were other things to look into. Haeun mechanically cleaned up the table and tossed the trash away, when her manager grabbed her arm.

“Haeun. Do you want to leave?” he asked her kindly.

Haeun froze. “Can I?” She’d been roped into working tonight because most of the other waitresses were unwilling to work on New Year’s Eve and she couldn’t deny the bonus. But she was exhausted and it was nearing midnight and she really just wanted to see Jackson. “I thought you needed me to work, we’re not closing yet-“

“Mina turned up, she doesn’t mind taking the rest of the shift. Her date for the night stood her up, apparently.”

Haeun nodded. “Okay. If she wants to…”

“Okay. Finish that clean-up and you can leave.”

She beamed and rushed to finish it before tossing her apron in the back room and hurrying out. She was in a pair of old jeans and a t-shirt that she’d been wearing all day, but she didn’t particularly care. She grabbed her phone and stuck it between her shoulder and her ear while tying her hair hurriedly.

“Hey, baby!”

“Jackson! Where are you? Are you still at the pub with your friends?”

“Nah, those bastards all left me for their girlfriends already. I’m near the park because I heard there was a fireworks show starting at midnight. Aren’t you working?”

“I just got off,” she told him happily.

“Seriously? Well, hurry up and come to the park, it’s almost midnight!”

“I’m coming!”

Haeun half-ran to get a cab and hurry over to the park, where a lot of people were already gathering for the firework show. She managed to spot Jackson standing alone near a tree, arms folded across his chest as he looked up at the still-dark sky. Haeun rushed over to him and s her arms around him from behind, giggling lightly.

“Hi, handsome.”

Jackson turned around and beamed at her. “Hey! Damn it, I thought you would miss the firework show because you had to work. I was getting ready to pity myself for being all alone on a magical night like this, and everything. I even brought some booze in a paper bag to seem more lonely. Look.”

Haeun huffed. “Jackson, there are children here. Put that away.”

“Sorry. I just wanted to look the part.”

“Of what, a hobo?” she demanded, rolling her eyes. Her wrapped his arm around her shoulder and she snuggled into his side and inhaled his familiar scent. They sat in silence for a few moments, as Haeun’s mind whirred. It had been a long day but she was relieved that they could finally spend New Years’ together.

“Considering that we’re going to open the store soon after graduation,” Jackson pointed out, her arm gently as he looked down at her. “And we’ve been drawing up the business plans and renovating and painting the place and working so hard… I think it’s time we get to the fun part.”

Haeun blinked at him. “The fun part?”

“Yeah. Naming the place. Now I’m thinking that it would be kind of cool to have our names on it, kind of old style. Like Wang and Lee’s Organics or Wang and Lee’s Health Store, what do you think? It sounds classy, right? Like those old stores which have since 1874 written on them, and stuff.”

Haeun laughed. “Jackson, you can name the store whatever you want.”

“No, this is important, because we need to place an order for a light-up signboard and those things are expensive, okay? You can’t waste money on one if you suddenly decide to change the name. Which kind of got me thinking…” Jackson trailed off which a cheeky grin. “It might cause a problem if we get married. We’d have to get the signboard changed because it wouldn’t be Wang and Lee, it would be Wang and Wang. But that just sounds stupid. So I say we play it safe and just go with Wang’s Organics.”  

“Your idea of playing it safe is to remove my name from the shop?” she demanded, one eyebrow raised.

He cleared his throat. “No? So marriage is off the cards?”

Haeun smiled up at him and pressed her lips to his cheek. Jackson was flushing slightly and Haeun suddenly realized that he had been serious. Her heart swelled with affection for him and she ran her fingers through his hair gently.

“Jackson, I love you. But let’s take one reckless, life-changing decision at a time.”

He grinned down at her. “Sorry. I got a little cocky there, didn’t I?”

“A little,” she admitted, giving him a light frown. “Because even if you did propose and I did agree to marry you, nobody said anything about changing my name. I like the way Lee Haeun sounds. You can rest assured that even if we do get married, you won’t have to spend money on a new signboard. Happy?”

Jackson sighed. “All right, you’re the one running the show, boss lady.”

She smacked him on the arm. “Yah! Don’t-“

They were cut off by the sound of the countdown starting; people began chanting as they counted down from ten. Haeun beamed as Jackson joined in, excitedly counting down at the top of his voice before the first fireworks exploded into the air. They both turned and looked at the bright colors exploding into the sky, with the promise of a better year ahead. For the first time in the past few months, Haeun felt happy. Not hopeful that she would be happy in the future, but happy in that very moment.

Jackson turned and looked down at her gently.

“Thank you for trusting me,” he whispered as he leaned down to kiss her gently. Their lips pressed together softly as more fireworks exploded loudly into the sky. Haeun wrapped her arms around Jackson tightly and let out a relieved breath.

“Thank you for catching me on the way down.”

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