Hyun Joong was whistling a happy tune. He had been so happy ever since he and So Min became close friends. He must admit that friendship was all there was to them at the moment but he was hoping that it would progress to something more than that.

“You look so happy with yourself”, Yonghwa commented to him. He visited Hyun Joong that day at the K Broadcasting and Talent Agency.

“Yonghwa, it’s been a long time. Let’s go inside”, Hyun Joong smiled and led his cousin to his office.

“Don’t tell me that you and So Min are already together?” Yonghwa asked as he seated himself on one of the couches inside the office.

“Not yet…but I know in time we will be. As of now we’re just friends”, Hyun Joong replied.

“That’s good…by the way; invite So Min tonight for a dinner. I told Shinhye about her and she’s excited to meet the person who bewitched your heart”, Yonghwa said amiably.

“Sure. Have you told Shinhye about your feelings for her?” Hyun Joong asked.

“Yeah. I did more than that…I even asked her to be my girlfriend…”

“And?” Hyun Joong prompted.

“She agreed, Hyun Joong, we’re officially together now. We even asked her parents’ blessing and they granted it to us”, Yonghwa happily replied.

“How about Cho Kyuhyun and the marriage agreement between them?” Hyun Joong asked a bit worried.

“We’ll fight the agreement…we’ll elope to another country and endure the scandal no matter what as long as I and Shinhye are together. Her parents will stand with our decision”, Yonghwa replied with determination in his voice.

“That’s a very good decision, Yonghwa, I support you 100% with your decision and I’ll back you up whatever happens”, Hyun Joong agreed with his cousin.

“But…I feel uneasy with Joo Hyun; she’s getting to be really pesky these days. She had gone to see me at the university yesterday afternoon and she even introduced herself to Shinhye. I felt so irritated that Shinhye even noticed it”, Yonghwa commented her irritation about Joo Hyun reflected on his face.

“That’s a problem really…Joo Hyun looks like a determine woman to win you over. I think she loves you that much”, Hyun Joong commented.

“C’mon, Hyun Joong, Joo Hyun does not love me at all. She’s just obsess with me because if she really loved me all these years, she would have tried her best to have me then…why only now? She’s just obsess with the idea of winning me from another woman”, Yonghwa reflectively said.

“Maybe…but the thing is; you have to be careful around her and don’t let her have the opportunity to get between you and Shinhye”, Hyun Joong adviced Yonghwa.

“You’re right about that. Anyway, I’ll see you tonight, Hyun Joong”, Yonghwa said as he went out of the door of Hyun Joong’s office.

Hyun Joong smiled as he dialed So Min’s number. After a couple of rings, So Min answered his call.

“Hi, Hyun Joong”, So Min happily answered.

“Hi, do you have anything to do after your shift at the library?” Hyun Joong asked.

“None. Why?” So Min asked.

“I’d like to invite you to dinner. Yonghwa’s girlfriend arrived from Incheon and they invited us to go to dinner with them”, Hyun Joong replied.

“Really? Okay…I’ll be delighted to accompany you to that dinner invitation”, So Min immediately agreed.

“Thank you so much, So Min. I’ll pick you up around 5:00 this afternoon, okay?” Hyun Joong said.

“Yeah…I’ll see you then, bye”, So Min said.

“Bye, So Min”, Hyun Joong ended the call.

“Is that your prince charming?” Bom teasingly asked.

So Min tried to conceal her smile but she failed.

“You’re falling in love with him”, Bom said.

“No…I’m not. He’s just a friend. I’m still in love with Kyuhyun”, So Min replied.

“You’re mind is saying that you still love Kyuhyun but the truth is you’re already falling in love with Hyun Joong”, Bom persisted.

“No, Bom, Hyun Joong is such a good friend and a good person. Besides, he and I are not of the same world”, So Min reasoned out but it did not convince her friend Bom.

“He might be rich but the way I see him he is a far cry from Kyuhyun. Hyun Joong really likes you for you not because you’re someone whom he needs to make him feel that he isn’t a total pushover the way Kyuhyun did”, Bom reflectively said.

“Bom, it’s better to stick with who I am than to make myself believe that someone like Hyun Joong will be different from Kyuhyun. Kyuhyun used to be like that at the beginning…caring and adoring until such time that his real nature was revealed to me”, So Min said sadly.

“So Min, in this life we risk things…without taking risks then we’re not living…we’re simply existing and existing is not enough in this world. You must learn that in risking things we learn and we become stronger. Give Hyun Joong a chance…give yourself a chance to get to know each other. Don’t let Kyuhyun’s betrayal sear your heart completely”, Bom adviced So Min.

“I might give him a chance to get to know me and I might give myself a chance to get to know him and love him but how can I when what I feel for him….the love I’m starting to have for him is more than what I felt with Kyuhyun before. Can I risk my heart again? If Hyun Joong betrayed me, too; could I survive it?” So Min told herself as she sat on the chair at the front desk of the library.

So Min could not find the right answer to the questions plaguing her; thus, she decided to spend her afternoon working at the library. She tried her best to forget her worries and focused more on her tasks. She was still working when someone called her attention.

“May I borrow something?” someone asked.

“Yes, what book would you like to borrow? Isn’t it on those shelves?” So Min asked.

“I’d like to borrow you”. It was Hyun Joong with his handsome face and heartwarming smile.

“H-Hi”, So Min surprisingly said as she too smiled at Hyun Joong.

“Didn’t you agree to have dinner with me and my cousin and his girlfriend? Why aren’t you ready yet?” Hyun Joong asked.

“Ah…I’m sorry…I’m so busy here but I didn’t forget that I promised you that. I’ll just ask Bom to remain here instead”, So Min said. She was about to go when Bom suddenly appeared.

“No need to look for me, So Min. I’ll take care of closing the library. The maintenance people are still here. Go and have dinner with Hyun Joong”, Bom said giddly and she even winked at Hyun Joong who smiled broadly at her.

“Let’s go”, Hyun Joong said.

“Okay. See you tomorrow, Bom”, So Min said as she picked up her things and went outside the library with Hyun Joong who assisted her to the passenger seat of the Land Rover.

At the distance, Kyuhyun saw everything…

“So you already found someone to replace me, So Min. You already found someone who moves in the same world as I. You’re starting to feel happiness and will soon start a new life while I’m still here a puppet of my family”, Kyuhyun told himself as he watched the Land Rover sped on the road.

Kyuhyun decided to follow the Land Rover and what he saw angered him more. Hyun Joong entered an Italian Restaurant with So Min and there they met Yonghwa and Shinhye.

“Yonghwa, Shinhye, good evening. I would like to introduce to you this fine lady, Jung So Min”, Hyun Joong said as he approached the couple who was laughing softly at the things only two of them knew.

“Good evening, Yonghwa, Shinhye”, So Min greeted in her soft voice and she bowed to the two.

“So Min, please don’t be too polite. Come here sit beside me. A friend of Hyun Joong is also my friend”, Shinhye friendlily said as she gently sat So Min beside her. “Yah, Hyun Joong, she’s really a beauty how are you able to have a friend as decent and as beautiful as her?” Shinhye added which caused Yonghwa to chuckle softly.

“Why? You don’t think that someone as handsome, intelligent and gentle as me won’t have a friend as beautiful as So Min?” Hyun Joong asked pretending to be affronted by Shinhye’s comment.

“Quickly…tell me where did this rogue meet you?” Shinhye asked So Min excitedly.

“Ah…we met at the library. I’m a public librarian”, So Min replied hesitatingly prepared to see rebuke on the eyes and face of someone as obviously rich and beautiful as Shinhye was.

“Really? At the library…hehehe…I bet he gave you a lot of trouble finding books. Hyun Joong has never been good in selecting and reading any books he is more suitable in playing video games and making himself a pest. But my Yonghwa here…he is different…the kindest and most intelligent of men I’ve ever met”, Shinhye said smiling at So Min. So Min relaxed her stance because at that moment, she never saw any condemnation from Shinhye’s eyes or her demeanor. Instead, Shinhye continued holding her hand friendlily as though they had been friends for such a long time.

“Said like a loyal girlfriend”, Hyun Joong jokingly commented.

“Of course…Shinhye loves me and is loyal to me. So why don’t the two of you cease your bickering and let’s order our repast?” Yonghwa suggested happily.

“That would be better in order to silence Shinhye’s bickering lips”, Hyun Joong jokingly said.

Shinhye did not say anything she just pulled out her tongue at Hyun Joong causing Yonghwa, Hyun Joong and So Min to laugh at her antics.

“Whooa, pasta and iced americano are the two most palatable dishes in the planet”, Shinhye said afterwards.

“Yeah…the first time I ate here with Hyun Joong and Yonghwa…I noticed how delicious their pasta is”, So Min agreed.

For the past hour, while Hyun Joong and Yonghwa discussed about the latest trends on business and sports; the two women discussed fashion and literature.

“I very much enjoy dining with you”, So Min said as they were at the parking lot.

“I’m glad that you came with Hyun Joong. I really like you a lot, So Min. I hope that we can be friends for a very long time. Please take care of Hyun Joong. Seeing him this happy is a rare thing…he is so focus on his work that most of the time he forgets how it is to be happy but I can see that you’re the reason why he is smiling happily again. He is like a brother to me since he is cousin to my Yonghwa and from the bottom of my heart I thank you”, Shinhye said as she politely bowed to So Min.

“I and Hyun Joong are just friends, Shinhye, I’d be honest and tell you that I haven’t yet forgotten the love that I have for my former boyfriend”, So Min said.

“Time heals all wounds and as time passes love blooms between two people especially if they would always be together to understand each other”, Shinhye meaningfully said.

“Shinhye, baby, let’s go now”, Yonghwa called.

“I’ll see you again, So Min”, Shinhye friendlily said before she walked towards Yonghwa’s Volvo.

“You seem to be getting along well with Shinhye”, Hyun Joong commented as she assisted So Min to the passenger seat of the Land Rover.

“Yeah…she’s really a very kind person…simple despite the obvious wealth that surrounds her and her family”, So Min commented.

“Yeah…she’s that and more that’s why she is able to capture Yonghwa’s heart”, Hyun Joong said as he started the ignition and maneuvered out of the parking lot.

At the distance, Kyuhyun fisted his hands on his side….

“So even Shinhye found his perfect match with Yonghwa despite being promised to me. So you think you can all be happy while I suffer alone? This I tell you…you’ll never be happy as long as I’m miserable!” Kyuhyun angrily said as he drove on his way.

Hi everyone! I really want to have a KHJ and JSM with JYH and PSH moment so I decided to have both our favorite couples in this chapter. They were so happy here that I hope their happiness would always be but trouble would be brewing in paradise soon courtesy of Kyuhyun and Joo Hyun...a lot of tears and anguish along the way but I'm not losing hope for them because love always triumph in the end despite all the evil things and sufferings they would encounter along the way. Please stay tune, friends. By the way, thank you so much for subscribing, reading and commenting on my story. Love you all so very much....