Pushing the glass door open, Chanyeol was the first to step into the gleaming clean lobby. Hearing the squeaking on the marble tiles, Seohee looked up from where she was seated and waiting, ran to the small group that had gathered and hugged Chen.

'Jongdae!'

Chen kissed her lightly on the lips before daintily tapping under her eyes with his fingers. 'You've got dark bags under your eyes, Missy. Didn't you sleep well?' 

'I was worried.'

'My girlfriend, worried? Aigoo, that's not the girl I know and love.'

'Jongdae, this is serious-'

Chen shook his head, 'the more serious you think it is, the more stressed you'll get. Today is the day I get to meet your parents, that's all. It's the day I've been looking forward to for a long time.'

'Jongdae-ah...'

'See? Not so scary when you put it into perspective and see it from a different angle, is it?'

Chen hugged Seohee tightly, kissing her hair as Chanyeol and Ah Ri stood next to each other feeling awkward as neither were sure how to act like they were in love. An elevator door opened and a smartly dressed woman in a navy pencil skirt came out.

'Chanyeol-ssi, Seohee-ssi: your parents are ready now.'

Chanyeol stretched out his hand behind him for Ah Ri to take. She placed her hand in his and he gripped it firmly, partly to reassure 'his girl', the other reason being that he was scared as well and wanted to reassure himself. Chen held out an arm for his girlfriend to take and link with but Seohee shook her head, opening her palm out.

'Let's hold hands.'

'You told me before that you'd never hold my hand ever again because it gets too sweaty.'

Seohee glared at Chen. 'Yah, Kim Jongdae!'

Laughing, Chen highfived her open palm and held on to her hand. 'If it gets sweaty, you can't complain and blame me.'

'I'm not letting go of you. Not for the world.'

Satisfied with her answer, Chen lightly squeezed her hand and they followed the secretary to the elevator.

 

Inside, Ah Ri looked around nervously despite Chanyeol still having hold of her hand. The lift itself had a deep crimson carpet and even with shoes on, she knew how lush the carpet would feel if she lay down and rolled around on it. The ceiling was a mirror and the light was a mini chandelier. The mirror reflected the crystals and made everything seem like it was sparkling and dazzling.

'Ch-Chanyeol...' she squeaked, tugging him gently 'Chanyeol, this is-'

'-so freaking cool!'

Chen looked around wistfully, pointing at things as they whizzed past floors.

'Seohee-ah, isn't that a... Picasso? That's a Picasso painting?! A-a real Picasso piece of artwork?!'

He was more dumbfounded than a toddler in a sweet shop who had just been told they could eat as much as they wanted and he continued to point things out- things that impressed him, things that astounded him and things that amused him. The lift took it's time as it climbed up to the 38th floor and to shut her boyfriend up after reading the secretary's disapproving expression, she leant back and rested against Chen's front, her hand still firmly gripping his.

When the doors pinged and the lift came to a halt, Ah Ri gulped, feeling the air rush out from her lungs. She felt dizzy with worry so Chanyeol put an arm on her shoulder, just as Luhan had advised he do.

'If you ever think she looks nervous or looks like she's about to you know... hurl- you need to reassure her it's okay. Pat her knee. Put your arm around her. Hold her hand.'

Feeling Ah Ri relax beside him, Chanyeol couldn't help but be pleased that Luhan had chosen to give up on you. Someone who knows exactly how to make a girl feel relaxed when they've got the future of 3 people resting on them is surely a genius. With those tricks working a charm on Ah Ri, Chanyeol noted that they'd probably also have worked on you too. And then where would he have been? Cast on the sideline like some sidekick character in a typical teenage drama.

Pushing everything out his mind, he took the lead, stepping past the secretary who did a double take and tried to gain control again.

'Chanyeol-ssi, if you'd like to follow me this w-'

'I know where I'm going,' Chanyeol growled, 'and we'll see ourselves in. No need to announce our arrival.'

Seohee nodded indignantly, 'it's only our parents.'

The secretary bowed and quickly left and as soon as she was gone, Chanyeol patted his forehead with the back of his hand to wipe away the sweat. He rapped his knuckles on the door before resting his free hand on the handle, waiting to be invited in. Glancing back at everyone, he saw Chen glance at Seohee who gave Ah Ri a quick smile.

'Come in!'

He heard a heavy sigh come from Seohee but she looked up and nodded at Chanyeol, mentally telling him to push the door open to 'get this damn thing over and done with'. Another quick squeeze from Ah Ri told him that she was ready too so he pried the door open and proudly walked in, hand in hand.

 

Inside, the parents stood up to greet their offspring's partners and handshakes took place everywhere.

'Dad, this is my boyfriend.'

'Chen. Nice to meet you, sir.'

Ah Ri bowed politely to Chanyeol's parents who weren't as forthcoming as Seohee's, much to his dismay. Once everyone had taken a seat, Ah Ri felt a little less nervous but her heart was still pounding in her chest. Seohee still hadn't let go of Chen's hand. 

'So...' Seohee's father started, 'how did you meet my daughter?'

'We were classmates back in elementary school, sir.'

'Who's your mother?' Seohee's mom asked, 'do I know her?'

Chen shook his head, 'my parents didn't ever pick me up from school because they were working. I walked home every day myself.'

'Carry on,' Seohee's dad said, 'when did you begin dating? It must be quite recent.'

'No, we dated during high school-'

'But we moved to America-'

'We dated before she moved.'

'When I came back, I performed one night at the university and he appeared in front of me during the interval. I hadn't thought I'd ever see him again.'

'I literally died when Seohee left me for the US. I was completely broken by it.'

'I'm so sorry, Jongdae-ah-'

'Jongdae?' Seohee's dad looked confused, 'isn't your name Chen? Aren't you Chinese?'

'No, sir. My real name is Kim Jongdae.'

'Why are you going under Chen then?'

'I moved high school a little while after Seohee left and when moving, I wanted a clean and new slate. A fresh start, as it were.'

Seohee's mom looked confused and it worried her daughter a little. She didn't want them to ask why he wanted a new slate. She didn't want them to ask about what Chen had done whilst Seohee was in America. She herself knew about his 'ladies' man' hey-day but she didn't exactly want her parents to know too. She had brushed it aside, knowing that now she was the only one he would ever lay eyes on but whether or not her parents would accept that was tricky.

'Why a fresh slate?'

Seohee cursed under her breath and squeezed Chen's hand hard. He smiled and knew what she wanted him to say, their thoughts completely in sync.

'I was so upset when she left and I told myself this new start would be the start of me living again. I grew as a person when I became Chen. I matured. And when I saw Seohee again, everything just made sense. It sounds silly but it was like fate had done that to us. It had torn us apart for me to grow up and realise how much we loved each other.'

'And you got back together as soon as you saw each other?' Seohee's mom said, trying not to smile.

Both Chen and Seohee nodded firmly. This was when Chanyeol's mother leant forwards. 

'He's certainly not as handsome as my Chanyeol-'

'Mother!' Chanyeol said, surprising himself at how he had even managed to call her that.

 

The small interjection from Chanyeol's mother meant however that it was now Chanyeol and Ah Ri's turn to be scrutinized. It should have been easier as Chanyeol had to prove to his parents that knew almost nothing about him that he was in a firm and strong relationship. It would have been like convincing a stranger only these strangers were clever. They worked in business where if you are fooled, you lose. Chanyeol was going to have to pull out the big guns.

'So...'

'Ah Ri.'

'Right. Ah Ri-ssi, you started dating my son around a year ago.'

'That's right. It was around the time I had just moved to Korea.'

'You're not originally from here?'

'No, I've been living in England.'

'So you can speak English?'

'That's right.'

Chanyeol's father also leant in, now intrigued by the girl his son had as a girlfriend. 

'What did you do as your first date?'

Ah Ri grinned, putting on her best excited face. 'Oh, it was so lovely. It wasn't a scheduled date but I was heading down to a local café to meet up with my brother who lives here and Chanyeol happened to be nearby, waiting for our friend Luhan. I was a little lost so I asked if I could borrow his phone since I was yet to recieve my SIM card. Then when I met my brother, Chanyeol called his mobile phone and asked to speak to me. It was really sweet,' Ah Ri burbled, 'I had never been so flattered in my life. He told me that he wanted to meet up with me and that if I thought he was crazy, that was okay too but we met up later that evening in a park, had a walk around and just chatted. It was so nice.'

'Sounds pretty cheap to be honest,' Chanyeol's dad said.

'Father!'

'Money shouldn't matter when it comes to love.'

'If you can't-'

'Money can't buy you happiness.'

'It can buy you houses and cars-'

'But will you ever be happy with such a materialistic life?' Ah Ri replied back, standing her ground cooly. 

It was incredible for Chanyeol to see. It was almost as if Ah Ri had taken on your persona but her shaking and weak hands underneath the table told her otherwise. He leaned in to her, gave her a very light kiss on the cheek so as to not scare her and whispered in her ear.

'You're doing so well. Thank you so much.'

Chanyeol's father chuckled, 'I hope you're keeping my son in check.'

'Of course I'm keeping Chanyeol in check, sir. Who do you think wears the trousers in this relationship?'

'Ah Ri!' Chanyeol said, playing along, 'you know who wears the trousers!'

'Yeah,' Ah Ri shrugged, laughing, 'me.'

Chanyeol feigned irritance and flicked Ah Ri's nose. She laughed again, her hair flowing loosely, framing her face. He tucked a strand behind her ear and smiled. Chanyeol's mom also smiled at first, only she then frowned as a thought crossed her mind.

'Ah Ri-ssi, why don't you call Chanyeol, 'oppa'? Couples always call each other by pet names these days. It seems like you're being a little too formal.'

'Ah, mom, that is-' Chanyeol tried to intervene.

'Let her speak.'

'I-I...' Ah Ri felt her mind go blank, 'I-I... I don't like to call him 'oppa'.'

Chanyeol slowly turned to look at Ah Ri. Where is she going with this? I don't like where this is going, at all. 

'I find that... Err... Oppa is too generic.' Ah Ri nodded, knowing where she was going to take this, 'I don't like to call Chanyeol, 'oppa' because it's not special enough for him. Neither is honey nor sweetheart. It doesn't fit Chanyeol enough.'

'What do you mean? I thought all girls like calling their boyfriends 'oppa'?' Chanyeol's mom said, still frowing. 

All eyes were on Ah Ri and she gulped but tried to stand firm.

'I've called previous boyfriends 'oppa' but none of them compare to Chanyeol. Why use the same nickname for Chanyeol as I did for them?'

'So you don't have a nickname for my son?' Chanyeol's mother deduced, 'what sort of relationship is this?'

'No no! I do! I do have a nickname for Chanyeol.'

'What is it?' Chanyeol's dad asked sternly, waiting to hear the answer, 'well? What is it?'

'It's... It's...' Ah Ri paused and racked her brain. She tried to think of the times you had spoken about Chanyeol. What was it she had said? God... I should have listened... 

Chanyeol was about to talk to rescue her but she smiled, her face lighting up.

'Prince Yeollie. That's what I call him. He calls me Princess and I call him my Prince. It's cheesy but I like it a lot more than 'oppa'.'

Chanyeol turned to look at Ah Ri, his brain going into frenzy. How Ah Ri knew about his private nickname with you was what he wanted to know. Perhaps you had spoken about your nicknames to her? Well, that must have been it. It couldn't have been that she had simply overheard the two of you addressing each other that way. He hoped it wasn't that she had simply overheard and that you had actually talked about him, referring to him as your prince. The sheer thought of that sent Chanyeol into heaven and he beamed at his parents as well as Ah Ri, who was now starting to enjoy herself. 

 

They had forgotten about Chen and Seohee momentarily. The couple had sat silently listening to Chanyeol and Ah Ri breeze through their interrogation. When Seohee's father turned back to face his daughter and her boyfriend, Seohee instantly knew he wasn't happy.

'Seohee, why didn't you tell me about your boyfriend?'

'You never asked.'

'I don't need to ask to know about my daughter's life.'

'I'm an adult, dad.'

'You weren't when you were in high school,' he said, 'why didn't you tell me then?'

'I-'

'Did you lose your ity to this guy too?'

'What?!'

'Answer the question, Seohee!'

'Sir-'

'You- Chen or Jongdae or whoever- you stay out of this-'

'Dad! You can't ask me stuff like this! It's private!'

'There are no secrets in this household!' he yelled, 'so tell me! Was it this boy you lost it to? This... good for nothing-'

'Jongdae isn't good for nothing! Dad, how dare you!'

Chanyeol and Ah Ri watched the scene unfold before them, eyes wide in disbelief. Chanyeol's parents, however heartless they were, also showed a small amount of remorse for Chen and Seohee's mother sat still and unmoving. Once her husband was in a rage, there was no stopping him. Even his darling daughter could have no say. 

'What talent does he have?' he snarled, 'what talent does he have that can match up with his?!'

He pointed at Chanyeol who bit his lip immediately, suddenly feeling awful for bringing his friend along for the meeting only to be battered and humiliated by none other than his girlfriend's father. 

'Seohee, I thought you'd have better taste in men.'

'Dad! You can't say that!'

'Did you really let this creep touch you?'

'Creep?!' Seohee was enraged now, 'who are you calling a creep?!'

'If you can't marry Park Chanyeol-ssi, you should marry one of those boys from America that we met. One of the ones you dated?'

Chen looked confused and Seohee shook her head, her eyes getting wetter and wetter.

'I didn't date anyone in the US! I just lied to you so you'd let me go out!'

'What?'

'I've only ever dated Jongdae...' Seohee whispered, 'and I love him.'

'You're joking,' her father spat bitterly, 'you mean to say you love this guy? This guy who has no political or wealthy status? A guy I doubt even knows half of you-'

'Sir, I know my girlfriend very well. And to answer the question Seohee's been dodging so neatly, if I'm the only boy she's ever dated, do you think she's lost her ity to me?'

'You!'

'Dad!'

'Honey!'

Shouts errupted across the table as Seohee's mother pulled on her husband's arm to get him to sit back down in his seat. He had turned red with anger but Seohee glared at him none the less.

'If you're really so interested, yes. I lost my ity to him recently. That's right, dad. He didn't put pressure on me to do anything. He waited for me until I was ready and then we did it and it was great. Do you know why? Because I ing love Jongdae and you telling me who to marry isn't going to change that.'

'Yah! Seohee! Where did you learn to speak like that?!'

'Where did you learn to insult someone that means so much to me like that, father?!'

Chen shook his girlfriend's shoulder lightly, 'hey, it's okay. Don't get so worked up,' not noticing her father's judgemental stare. Tipping point was approaching for Seohee. Just as Huiling had found hers, she was about to find her own too. 

'He's no Park Chanyeol, this one. There's no hope for him.'

Seohee stood up abruptly, letting go of Chen's hand which had grown sweaty in fear. 

'He's ugly and doesn't have a future. I don't-'

The door slammed before he could say anymore. Seohee had left. Everyone from the Chanyeol party sat stunned into silence and Chen rose from his seat too. He bowed a full 90 degrees to Seohee's mother and when her father looked away, he did the same to him too. He also bowed to Chanyeol's parents collectively who nodded their heads in acknowledgement and then he ran out of the door to catch his girlfriend.

 

 

 

 

---

BADAM BADAM BADOOM! Was the meeting what you expected? Better than expected? Let me know!

I also have an update on Project Hard Copy! I'm currently working through editing 'That Girl, That Boy' and writing/ planning the two other angst stories. However, whilst I was away (I think I've said this already), I picked up things for the packaging and since I seem to at creating cover art/ posters, I'm thinking about opening a competition to design the front cover.

Of course, I'm going to have to lay down some ground rules (like what color scheme, what kind of genre and style I'm looking for etc) but it's pretty much be free reign! It's just an opportunity for every talented reader of mine to take part in (and of course if I pick your cover, I'll send you a copy of the book for free!). I'll be writing a full post on it later (possibly mid next week?) but I'll link to it in an update for you to check out if you're interested. I absolutely loved the posters I was given so I figured, why not ask for the cover art too? ^^ 

Just wondering however, is anyone interested? Or should I just ask someone directly without making it into a competition? I'd preferably like to make it into a competition as it just means I can get some readers involved and it'll become a really nice project and yes, I'm rambling again but this is what you get after 5 periods of psychology back to back. 5 PERIODS. FROM 10.30AM TO 1.30PM. I'm gonna be a crackpot like my baby chanyeol every thursday from here on till next year YAY WOO

Either way: BIG THANKS for all the support guys, I really don't say it enough! I love you!