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Chapter 4: “She can’t see the way your eyes light up when you smile- Taylor Swift”

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Yongkyung was presently having so many demands; and it was just the middle of April. Heechul, being the proud peacock he truly was, bragged about this amongst his staffers, congratulating them for a job well done. Sooyoung, having it her first week, was feeling awkward about what he said, thinking that she hadn’t done much anything that contributed to the sales of the publication. All she had so far for her first issue was a news article about the mayor’s return to Incheon, but it seemed too tiny compared to everyone else’s articles.

She was seated on the far corner, just across the News Editor’s office. That table was always jinxed for the newcomers, for the rookies who thought about working for Yongkyung. Since she was the newest, it belonged to her.

As the meeting ended, Sooyoung took the courage of entering his office, wanting to talk to him about a news article she was planning to write (another fake excuse just to get close to him). Excitedly, she sighed and knocked, hearing him call her from behind the door.

She opened it, seeing him stuck on his laptop again, eyes so focused. He was so handsome this way; as far as she could remember, he was always this cute back then. Sooyoung sat on one of his chairs, staring at him pleasantly.

“How may I help you, Sooyoung?” he asked in his business-like voice.

She cleared , handing him a piece of paper. “I’m not sure about the facts here; but I suspect some of it is true.”

Onew gazed at her, taking the sheet. “What have I told you about writing news you’re not even sure of?”

Sooyoung frowned. “Well, I just think it’s worth something. It’s quite interesting, you see. The old YeongSun Building is being torn down by the government, although I’m just not sure why, when, and how they’re going to do it. Is it okay if I ask help from you?”

Onew shrugged, keeping the paper into one of his drawers. “I’ll try to.”

“Thanks,” she replied, standing up and staring at his office. It looked much like his old office in SMEU, except this room was larger. He continued writing, ignoring the girl from messing around with all the things he had around him. She would just leave if she pleased, he got used to this long before Sooyoung even started working at Yongkyung. The windows behind him, all covered in blinds, reminded Sooyoung that he didn’t like the sunlight entering his office. At the walls were some newspapers framed, all of which were labeled under his name.

He got up, taking his things. “Sooyoung, would you mind? I have to get home. Is Chief in the office?”

She shrugged, surprised with what he said. “Why are you going home early? It’s just 2 in the afternoon.”

“It’s a Saturday,” Onew replied, moving passed her and towards Heechul’s room. Sooyoung curiously followed him outside, noticing that there was no one left in the office. Onew was already closing the door at Chul’s room, not looking back to see Sooyoung chasing after him. As she turned to go back to her desk and start leaving as well, a short girl, her now mousse brown hair tied into two tight buns, was staring at her with uncertainty, her mind excitedly calling Sooyoung but the words no longer escaped her lips. She was still gawking, a smile forming slowly before her blushing face.

Sooyoung at once recognized the girl, also startled to know she was actually here.

“Jessica?” She said, unsure of what to say. Maybe she was mistaken; it might not be her old friend from college.

The other girl nodded, opening her arms wide for Sooyoung to embrace her. And she did, ecstatic to see Jessica even at such a busy day.

“Oh my gosh. What a small world?” Sica commented, doubting her eyes. “You’ve got perfect timing, Sooyoung!”

Sooyoung looked at her with interest, like how any journalist would. “Why so?”

“I can’t believe you!” Jessica remarked at her reply. “I can’t believe you’ve forgotten my birthday. You have to stay for tonight and have some fun. I just live at Giseong, rented a small lot there. I used to live in an apartment. That is until a year ago, we moved to a different house.”

“How have you been?” Sooyoung inquired, letting her sit on of the desks. “I mean, this is amazing!”

“I’m doing well at a hospital as a med tech, been fine since then, I guess,” Jessica answered. “And you? What are you doing here?”

Sooyoung beamed at her brightly. “I’m working as a staffer here. What brings you here, unnie?”

Jessica laughed happily, realizing what a coincidence it is. “That’s good. That means you know---”

Interrupted none other than Onew himself, Jessica looked at the man with those charming eyes of hers. He approached the two of them with a warm wave, Heechul behind him, eying the three with curiosity. Heenim, being a man of many words, had seen loads of twisted storylines, from dramas to plays. He was aware love and how it evolved between two people, depending upon how the writer visualized his story. At this scene, he felt the smitten girl would finally meet her match, a woman who was better than her in so many ways.

Without another word, Jessica flopped herself towards Onew, hugging him tightly with care and longing. She gave him a swift kiss on the lips; Sooyoung on the other side looking like the whole world had gone mad. Onew glanced up at her, keeping it cool like nothing was wrong at all. He knew these two would finally get to know each other; why was Sooyoung accepted in the publication in the first place.

“Onew-oppa,” Sica said, arms still around him. “Are we going home now?”

. What did she just say?It was the only thing running through Sooyoung’s mind.

Onew pushed her away slowly, hoping not to insult how she felt. “Heechul-hyung’s coming. He’s bringing his wife. Is it okay?”

Jessica nodded, looking at Sooyoung and remembering she hadn’t introduced her to them. Sooyoung’s eyes were exerting tears, and as much as she tried, she focused solely to keep them inside before anyone saw it, especially Onew.

“I suppose you know her,” Jessica stated happily. “She was one of my roommates when we were still at SMEU. I can’t believe she was just hiding all these years in Yongkyung.”

“Ah, Sooyoung just started the other week,” Heechul interrupted. “But she has done pretty well.”

“Actually,” Onew butted in, rubbing Sooyoung’s hair messily like how he usually did back then. “She’s doing badly in the news division. That’s why she’s not getting any A’s from me.”

Sooyoung swatted his hand away, infuriated by the feeling of guilt and some sort. She saw how Sica’s eye flickered her way, but she gave her a cocky smile.

“He’s always kidding,” Sooyoung explained. “Of course, I’m doing well in News Writing. That’s like my main forte.”

“No,” Onew again retorted. “You’re forte’s gossiping. That’s your expertise. You’re only good at---”

She stuck her tongue out, hitting Onew by his arm that he felt it ache a little. Jessica sensed that her old friend was undergoing some mood swings, but she continued to stay happy and cheery.

“Shall we go now? Sooyoung dear, come along,” Jessica asked.

Sooyoung nodded. “Just a minute. I have to check my email. You people go ahead. I’ll lock up the office, Chief.”

Heechul threw the keys to the girl, lazily getting behind Onew and Jessica.

“I have to get ready for tonight. Our old friends are going as well. Onew-oppa, we still need to buy you a suit,” Sica declared.

“I don’t like suits,” Onew admitted, snickering as they started their way out.

With hesitation as Jessica grabbed his arm, Onew looked at Sooyoung awkwardly, trying to uncover her feelings. But she remained silent as the rest left, staying at her seat and started writing something on paper. From where she sat, she could hear Jessica’s quirky laugh, as Heenim joked around in the hallway. She could hear them talking, sadly thinking to herself of what to do now.

“Sooyoung, let’s go,” Onew came back for her, called her, and approached her now. He stood before her, as he irately pulled her arm. Sooyoung, being an easily aggravated girl, seized it back continuously.

“I’ll be down,” Sooyoung replied cheerfully as possible, hiding the annoyance. “Go on. You’re girlfriend’s waiting.”

“Can’t you hurry up?” he complained. “We can’t leave without you. Jessica refuses to leave without you.”

Sooyoung made a face, frowning and scowling upon hearing the girl’s name. Onew was aware of how she felt for him, but at times, he would make fun of it. She shook her head, looking away as he kept that gorgeous smirk on his face. “You jealous, Sooyoung?”

She laughed out loud almost wildly. “ no. Why would I be?” she couldn’t tell him directly. She shouldn’t. She mustn’t let him down. What they had was far over; she must not forget that because her job was at risk. Onew had his own life. She must learn to accept the truth and forget about how she felt towards him.

“Are you going to be okay?” Onew asked before putting his coat on, heading for the door.

Sooyoung nodded. “Of course. Tell them to wait for me. I’ll be down in a minute.”

“Can you...stop being dorky for a little while? Just for tonight? It’s kind of embarrassing when Jessica sees you that way,” Onew instructed her, her heart burning in distrust. He was trying so hard not to make a fool out of himself in front of his girlfriend. Jessica must be so lucky to have such a boring guy like him to boss around.

Instead of expressing how mad she was, she learned how to suppress it, knowing that Onew would not like to see her bad side. She agreed in repulsion.

“Of course, Chief,” she told him, smiling brightly. “I won’t let you down. I won’t embarrass you.”

“Promise me that,” Onew said, asking her in consideration.

She nodded with the sweetest smile. “Yeah, I do. I will.”   

He was satisfied with her answer. “Come on, I can’t show my face to them if I don’t have you with me. It’s going to rain soon.”

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Commuting had never been this hard, as far as Kyuhyun could remember. Incheon had been praised with overall traffic that afternoon. It was him and his luggage alone, and he had no idea where to stay for this weekend. Last night was a stupid night----sleeping in the parents of Sungmin’s house. It was an unplanned plan as he would put it; at first he sure he had it plotted it out. But Sungmin and his family left him to get on with helping Jessica get ready for the evening. And he didn’t want to stay with Granny to help wash the dishes. Because it was a very long trip from Busan to Incheon, Kyuhyun was too tired the following night that he overslept that morning. He had no alarm clock, so he was completely still groggy even at noontime.

As he could remember, he ordered the man to drive him to where his house was, hoping that he wasn’t too late. Seohyun had better not sold it or else she would not be happy in seeing him. It was little suburb they lived in, some houses were big, others smaller. His was one of the largest in the block. The house was a two-storey building, with the posts stoned like old castles and fortresses. He was inspired by the designs he would see when playing Starcraft. It was rectangular, with a large protruding area where the staircase is located. The roof looked like chocolate, and it was where the two would usually stay in late nights and early sunrise. At their backyard was the pool, nearly 8 meters deep at the farthest end. Surrounding this was a border of rose hedges, which acted as a fence. The landscaping was done by his friend Wookie, who offered this to him free.

The interior design was featured by Seohyun’s old friend Hwang Tiffany, maximizing the space as traditional and modern cultures collapsed with one another. The doors were still being slid, and its style was like the customary palace doors of Korea in the 18th century monarchies. Yet, when found inside, a western tinge of modernization engulfed the area. It was taken after how contemporary apartments would look like. But the habitual standings are still present, like the sofa and the flat screen TV. At the kitchen were cupboards and a large sink. There were three rooms upstairs; one being the master’s bedroom. Two of which were smaller but still contained ideal rooms any person would be comfortable in. The floors were wood tiled, and lightings were very natural.

He got off the taxicab, paid about six thousand won, and t