Confused. Hurt. Betrayed. That’s what Himchan felt at that exact moment. He really wanted to believe that whatever he has just read was false, was just a rumour. “H-Himchan I-” Yongguk choked on his own saliva and couldn’t finish his sentence, panic starting to take over him.

“Is it true?” Himchan asked calmly, looking at the ground beneath his feet.

Yongguk wanted to say something but somehow his mouth just wouldn’t open. He froze on his spot, trembling and completely silent. His eyes wandered around the room, trying to find the right words but couldn’t. “I said, is it true?” Himchan asked again, raising his voice this time.

“Yes, but I can explain-” Himchan didn’t wait for him to finish his line and punched his best friend right on the face as anger took over him.

“Hyung,” cried Daehyun and Youngjae simultaneously, shocked at Himchan’s sudden outburst.

Daehyun immediately ran towards Yongguk – who was now lying on the floor, his bottom lip bleeding - while Youngjae ran towards Himchan, trying to calm him down. “Hyung, I know you’re angry right now but shouldn’t you be thinking about CL noona? Don’t you think that she could be just as confused and hurt as you are?” Youngjae tried to talk sense into him but to no avail.

Himchan managed to escape Youngjae’s tight grip and punched Yongguk in the face once again, causing the latter to whimper in pain. Fortunately, the manager came in just in time to grab hold of him and calm his anger a bit. “Fighting won’t solve the problem. You’re smarter than that, Himchan. You really need to calm down and get your together. Your wife needs you more than anyone at this moment,” said the manager firmly before shifting his focus to Daehyun, “And you, go get some ice for your hyung.”

‘Himchan and CL are believed to be in a serious relationship.’

‘Himchan and CL caught entering an apartment together.’

‘Was CL the cause of Himchan and Hyosung’s split?’

‘Himchan cheated on Hyosung with 2NE1’s leader, CL?’

‘Is CL two-timing Himchan with his own band mate, Yongguk?’

‘Yongguk and CL on a date in broad daylight.’

‘Is CL dating Himchan or Yongguk?’

Those were some of the stories that made headlines of almost every Korean tabloid and magazine that day. Both Himchan and CL knew very well that people would eventually find out about them but not to this extent. Everything was all over the place and blown out of proportion. CL did not cause Himchan to break up with Hyosung. Himchan did not cheat on Hyosung with CL. CL was not dating Yongguk and she was definitely not two-timing her husband. Well, as far as Himchan was concerned, at least.

“Look, I can explain,” said Yongguk, hoping that his best friend would give him a chance to do so but Himchan just remained quiet in his seat.

He felt really betrayed. He really wanted to give Yongguk a chance and believe whatever he was going to say but his mind was so confused. The photos of Yongguk and CL’s alleged dates weren’t helping at all either. There were just so many of them and to make things worse, the pictures were taken in different days. Himchan didn’t even know that his wife and his best friend – two of the most important people in his life – were in contact, let alone hanging out together that often.

“It’s true that I’ve met your wife behind your back but it’s not like what you think it is,” Yongguk continued to explain.

“Then what is it, Yongguk? Don’t you dare tell me that it’s just a normal outing between two friends because it seemed to me that you looked really close and comfortable with her,” Himchan retorted with a very hurtful expression.

Yongguk sighed in defeat, not sure how to explain himself. It really wasn’t as what Himchan thought it was but everything seemed to say otherwise, and it only made the situation worse. “Yongguk hyung is right, I can prove it,” said Zelo out of nowhere.

All eyes immediately shifted to the young boy at the door. No one even noticed that he has come into the room. “I was there,” he continued, “I was there with Yongguk hyung and CL noona. We always went out together, the three of us. Never just the two of them because we knew that it would raise suspicions among people. We’re not that stupid, Himchan hyung.”

“So, are you saying that you were willing to be the third-wheel just so they could date freely?” Himchan asked, totally misunderstanding everything.

“No, that’s not what I meant. I-”

“That’s enough, guys. I really do not need this right now. Just- Just leave me alone. I need time to think,” Himchan sighed.

“But-” Yongguk was about to say something but the manager stopped him and ordered everyone to leave the room and give Himchan some alone time to think as he has requested.

“Don’t worry about the press, we’ll deal with them once you’re ready. Get some rest. And… I think you should call your wife,” said the manager before leaving, shutting the door slowly behind him.

‘My wife?’ he scoffed at his own thought as he plopped his body back onto the bed. Himchan grabbed his phone from the nightstand and started scrolling through the photo gallery. A smile slowly spread across his face as he stared at their wedding photo. They seemed really awkward with each other and CL was smiling shyly in the picture, which he thought was really cute. He really missed that smile. He was actually going to surprise CL and fly back home in two days but his plan seemed to be ruined now.

***

CL was about to leave the recording studio when Taeyang suddenly came in, locking the door behind him. She was quite taken aback, especially when he was breathing heavily as if he had just run a marathon or something. “O-oppa,” she finally said something.

“Oh! Hi, Chaerinnie,” Taeyang gave her his famous eye-smile before taking a seat comfortably on the sofa.

“W-what’s up?” asked CL, a bit confused.

“Oh, nothing. Just thought that I’d hang out with my favourite dongsaeng for a while,” he replied coolly, motioning her to sit down across from him.

“Who are you and what have you done to my Youngbae oppa?” CL gasped dramatically.

Other than G-Dragon, Taeyang was one of CL’s oldest and closest friends in YG. She has known him for many years to know that he wouldn’t just suddenly want to ‘hang out’ with her unless he had a serious matter to discuss. “Spill it. I know you have something bothering your mind, what is it?” CL asked non-hesitantly, which kind of caught Taeyang off-guard.

“Well, how are you and Himchan? You guys doing okay?” he asked, concern was evident in his voice.

CL eyed him with questioning look before answering, “Yes, we’re fine.”

Taeyang, on the other hand, found it quite hard to believe what she has just said because it was obvious from her eyes that she was hiding something. “Are you sure? You know you can always talk to your oppa, right?” he asked again.

“Ugh, I hate you, oppa,” CL huffed, rolling her eyes.

“I know, I know. I’m the best oppa you’ve ever had,” he chuckled, earning himself a kick on the shin, “Ya! That hurts!” he cried, rubbing his shin to ease the pain while CL just laughed.

“Well, aren’t you going to tell me anything?” Taeyang was determined to make her talk and he succeeded.

“Yes, we’re really fine, oppa. We have our ups and downs, just like normal married couples do. It’s just that-” CL paused for a moment and let out a deep sigh before continuing, “It’s just that he’s been acting kind of weird lately.”

“Weird? How weird?” Taeyang’s eyes never left hers.

“He’s been having these secret phone calls for a few months now. I don’t know, maybe it’s nothing and I’m just being a paranoid,” she replied, leaning back on her chair.

“No, you’re not. It’s normal for wives to have that kind of hunch. But still, we can’t jump to conclusions just yet. Have you tried asking him about it?” CL just shook her head, agape – amazed at how good of a listener Taeyang was, almost like a counselor.

“Well then, you should. The important thing in a marriage is to always talk with one another. Don’t keep secrets or things will only get worse. If you have a problem, don’t be afraid to confront your partner about it. Talk it over and try to solve it together,” once again, CL just stared at her sunbae in amazement and mentally slapping her face for not confronting Himchan about it any sooner.

Silence echoed the room for a few moments. CL just remained silent on her seat, feeling rather awkward and unsure what to do or say. Taeyang, on the other hand, had his eyes closed and seemed to be lost in deep thoughts. “Are you guys planning on revealing your marriage in the near future?” he asked again, still with his eyes closed.

“Y-yeah, but we’re still waiting for the right time to come,” she replied simply.

“What happened if people found out about it first?” he asked; now looking at her straight in the eyes like he was searching for an answer.

“Then we’ll confront everyone together. This is our marriage and we’ll protect it no matter what people say or think about it,” she replied confidently.

“That’s great! ‘Cos it’s already all over the news,” Taeyang smiled while CL’s eyes widened in shock, “What? You just said that you’ll confront everyone, don't tell me you’ve changed your mind now.”

“N-no, t-that’s not it. I-”

“Oh, come on! You’re CL! You can do this! Go give your husband a call. Wait, he should be calling you by now,” Taeyang gave her a questionable look before gasping, “Right, I forgot about you and Yongguk!”

“Me and Yongguk?” CL asked with puzzled eyes, “Oh my God, no no no no no,” she started panicking and looking for her phone to call Himchan.

“What? What happened?” now it’s Taeyang who’s confused.

“It’s not like what people think. Yongguk and I are nothing! Himchan, I love you. And only you,” she continued to panic as tears slowly building up in her eyes.

She finally found her phone and immediately called Himchan. Nut as expected, he didn’t pick up. Nor did he reply any of her messages. “He must’ve misunderstood everything. He must’ve really hated me,” she sobbed as she knelt down on the floor, startling Taeyang.

He’s known her for years and never had he seen her broken like this. Taeyang couldn't help but to panic. “Shh, don’t cry. Maybe he just needs time to think. You can try calling him again tomorrow,” Taeyang tried to cheer his dongsaeng up, hugging her tightly, “You’re CL, remember? CL is stronger than this and would never let anything take her down.”

TO BE CONTINUED.

A/N: Ugh, sorry for this crappy chapter. I'll make it up to you in the next chapter, I promise. But I still hope you enjoyed this! Don't worry, CL and Yongguk are just friends. :P Nothing more, i promise. Haha! Anyways, as usual... upvote, subscribe and comment!! Thank you~ <3

p/s: HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!