“Yoogeun, are we there yet?” the supposed-to-be-chaperone asked the kid who was ironically leading the way to his school. “Why are you in a hurry? There’s still time before your class, right?” she questioned as she was dragged by the hand by the little kid.

“Noona, if we come early, I can still show you around my school!” The student kept on jumping and hopping as he could not contain his excitement and his overflowing energy. Good thing that Sulli could still get hold of his hand.

As the two walked on the steep streets of Ihwa-dong, the neighborhood where Yoogeun’s school and the Chois’ apartment belong, Sulli feasted her eyes on the colorful murals on every wall. Different painted images ranging from dandelions, cartoon characters, and abstract paintings could be seen on the outdoor exhibit.

“We’re here!” Yoogeun announced that they already reached their destination, making Sulli jolt, still amazed at the wonderful views of different artworks of the neighborhood.

The school wasn’t really particularly big. There are several classrooms for the kindergarten and the school offices, and an outdoor space that seemed to be used to accommodate special school events.

“Where’s your classroom, by the way?” Sulli asked the enthusiastic kid who was still dragging her arm. They happened to meet a lady who appeared to be one of the teachers, carrying some papers and folders.

“Good morning, Teacher Seohyun!” Yoogeun greeted the lady with the familiar energy he always had.

“Good morning, Yoogeun!” Seohyun bowed slightly to meet the short height of the kid.

“Noona, noona, she is Teacher Seohyun.” Yoogeun told Sulli. “And Teacher, she is Sulli-noona,” the kid introduced his teacher as well.

“Nice to meet you, Ms. Sulli.” Seohyun smiled and offered her right hand for a handshake. “I am their section’s homeroom teacher.”

“Nice to meet you too, Ms. Seohyun.” Sulli accepted her approach and shaked her hand.

“By the way, this is the first time I’m seeing you, Ms. Sulli. Mrs. Heenam usually brings Yoogeun to school. May I know your relation with Yoogeun?” the poised teacher asked politely.

“Umm, I’m actually their…”

“Noona is hyung’s girlfriend!” Yoogeun suddenly butted in the ladies’ conversation.

“Oh, that’s good to hear! Minho is a good man, I’m telling you.” Seohyun flashed a smile.

“Oh no, no, no!” Sulli glared at Yoogeun. “Yoogeun, it’s not nice to interrupt other people when they’re talking.”

Sulli went back on her talk with Seohyun. “I’m sorry, he’s just joking. Umm, you can say that I’m his brother’s acquaintance.” She laughed nervously.

“Oh, alright.” Seohyun smiled once again. “Ms. Sulli, it’s really nice to meet you. By the way, I have to go now,” she uttered, ending their small conversation. “And Yoogeun, please go now to your classroom. Classes are about to start.”

“Oh sure, nice meeting you too.” Sulli returned her smile with a smile too.

Walking at the busy sidewalks of the business area of Seoul, Sulli remembered her conversation with her boss.

“Hey, I would just like to inform you that Yoogeun has classes tomorrow. As a part of your work, you will be also taking him to school and fetching him from there, is that clear?”

Sulli nodded. “Ok, that’s fine with me. Anyway, I know that I can’t stay here forever and forever be working for you, so I decided to try looking for a job tomorrow.”

Somehow, Minho felt some sadness with what she told him. Ignoring those unexpected feelings, he gave his reply. “You’re right! It’s also not in my plan to let you stay here longer. It’s a good thing that you know.” He was still trying to comprehend what he said.

Somehow, Sulli felt some unexplainable sadness with what she heard. “O-of course! Well, I have to prepare what I need for tomorrow.” She left afterwards, preoccupying herself with the things she will be needing.

Sulli proceeded inside the building of Chrome Industries. “Good morning. May I ask where the HR department is?” she inquired at the receptionist.

While waiting, she saw a familiar car outside the main entrance of the establishment.

“Oh my, it’s one of the Aeon company cars!” Without hesitating, she quickly left the building, avoiding herself from being seen.

“Why didn’t I think of that! They might find out and discover who I am, then they will take me back to my grandfather!”

And so, the job hunting failed for the poor Sulli.

“Noona, look at my stars!” Yoogeun showed off his arms stained with blue ink shaped into stars, feeling proud.

“Very good!” Sulli ruffled the kid’s hair, amused by his enthusiasm.

Both of them were walking towards the exit when Sulli sighted the homeroom teacher getting in a car with the help of a young, good-looking man. Yoogeun noticed it too.

“Did you know, noona? That’s Teacher Yonghwa, Teacher Seohyun’s boyfriend!”

“Really? How did you know about that? You’re such a gossiper, aren’t you?” she said, pinching the younger one’s cheek.

Yoogeun laughed sheepishly. “I’m just telling the truth!”

The maid hummed a simple tune as she dusted off the walls. She seemed to be getting used to the work inside the house. Inevitably, she noticed the picture frames hanging on the wall. Printed on the one of the glossy sheets enclosed in the glass and wood were a picture of a family consisting of a middle-aged couple, a younger self of Minho, and a child who looked like two to three years of age who was carried by his father.

“Aww, I presume that the baby was Yoogeun. His cheeks were so chubby that I want to pinch them so hard!”

She stared at the picture a little longer and focused on the young Minho. “In fairness, he’s already cute even when he was younger. Maybe he already made a lot of girls cry back then.” She nodded, convinced with her assumption.

Knocks were heard afterwards. “Wait, I’m coming!”

Obviously, it was the master of the house. He removed his denim jacket after arriving and sat on the couch. “So, what happened to your job hunt?” he asked teasingly, smirking.

Think, Ssul, think! Of course, you can’t tell that you can’t find because you’re a chaebol’s granddaughter.

“Umm, i-it was not successful. There were no available jobs for me.” She laughed nervously, scratching her head.

Hearing her answer made his heart slightly jump for joy, but he didn’t understand why.

“Ah! That’s sad to hear though! I thought you’re leaving soon!” he teased once again.

Sulli scoffed. “Hey, are you really that excited to see me leave?”

Minho roared a laughter. “I was just joking! Don’t worry and take your time.” He slightly bobbed his head sideward, sighing a relief.

“Hyung! I have some news for you!” He heard his brother as he rushed outside their room.

“What is it?” he asked, curious at the sudden announcement of his brother.

“Teacher Seohyun already has a boyfriend, and he’s our music teacher!”

His face obviously gloomed at the news. “Is that so…?”

He rose up from the couch. “Umm, I’ll just take a breather upstairs.”

Sulli noticed the sudden change in his facial expressions. “Hey, you’re not eating first?”

“Uhh, later.”

“Minho, Don’t you ever forget to send me off tomorrow at the airport before I leave!” she reminded him with a commanding tone.

“Of course! Why wouldn’t I be present at my bestfriend’s departure tomorrow? I should see you one last time before you go to the States!” he stated out.

“And, I need to tell you something really important tomorrow,” he continued.

“Oh really? Fine, remember to arrive earlier than 5 pm tomorrow, or else, you might not catch up with your bestfriend. Bye!”

And with those last words, Seohyun ended their phone call.

“Cheer up, hyung! Past is past. There are still a lot of woman out there. You wouldn’t know, she might just be around the corner, breathing the same air as you do,” Taemin gave his reassuring advice to his older colleague.

Minho sighed. “It’s not that easy, Taemin. If I just had the courage back then, I shouldn’t have waited before she left to States. I should’ve had confessed to her earlier.”

The two gentlemen’s heart-to-heart conversation was interrupted when their boss approached them, and he looked like he was in a good mood. “Since our sales for today is really strong, I’ll give you both a bonus!” With that, he left them, smiling.

Taemin snorted. “Maybe, he just won at his poker match. The customer count seems normal as usual.”

Standing at the doorstep, Minho raised his arms, holding a transluscent plastic bag with a box of fried chicken and drinks inside. “Who wants fried chicken?”

“Yay, fried chicken!” Yoogeun jumped and rejoiced.

“What’s the matter and you bought chicken?” Sulli asked out of curiosity.

“Ah, my boss at the café gave us bonus,” Minho answered. “Let’s go! It’s better to eat this at the rooftop.” he suggested and forced a smile on his lips.

The child felt his eyes drooping after making his tummy full with his feast of fried chicken. “Hyung, I’m already sleepy…” Yoogeun yawned.

“That’s because you ate so much! Brush your teeth first then sleep, ok?” Minho ruffled his hair before sending him off.

After he made sure that his brother already left, Minho opened a can of beer. “Do you drink?” he asked Sulli.

“Umm, I’ve drank wine before. Is that the same with beer?”

“Wow, that’s so luxurious of you!” He handed her a can of booze, then he started to drink his portion.

All she replied was an awkward laugh. “And why are you drinking right now?” she asked while opening her own can.

“It’s just because I want to drink. Are there any problems with that?” he reasoned out and took another gulp.

“I just felt like it has something to do with Yoogeun’s teacher. Tell me, is that a problem of the heart?” Sulli nudged him.

“Actually, that’s it.” Every sentence followed a sip of the alcoholic drink for the man.

Sulli also had her gulp. “So tell me your story then, if that’s fine with you.”

“How should I start?” He collected his thoughts with another intake of beer. “Well, Seohyun was my classmate when we were in high school. Umm, actually, were closer than that.”

“So, she was your girlfriend then?”

“Nope, she was my bestfriend.”

Sulli nodded. “Ah, so this is a story about friendzone?”

He continued his story. “When we were in 11^th grade, she told her friends, including me, that she will be going to the States to continue her studies.” He finished his can and got another one.

“So, what happened afterwards?” Sulli took another sip.

The tipsy man started to sob. “I was such a coward.”

“Huh?” Minho’s words confused her.

“If I just confessed earlier…” Teardrops began to emerge from his eyes.

“I was planning to confess my love to her before she could leave, but on the day of her departure…” He couldn’t control his sobs anymore.

“On the day of her departure, my parents had an accident…” His sobs turned into strong howls. Sulli tried comforting him with a hug.

“I was already ready to leave the house, then the phone rang. That’s when I learned about what happened to my parents.”

Sulli continued to soothe his back, hoping that her actions would make him feel better.

“They were caught in a car accident. Their car crashed… and that’s what lead them to their death.”

He couldn’t control his emotions anymore. Remembering those painful memories made him needy of any physical interaction at that moment. He looked so miserable, wanting some actions of caring and understanding from someone. In addition, the influence of alcohol in his system was not helping him think straight.

Minho released himself from Sulli’s arms that were trying to comfort him. He stared at her face for a while. He held her shoulders firmly, securing her place, not letting the woman move. Slowly, he closed the distance between their faces, and finally, planting his lips on hers.

A/N:  Was this a fast update? Did you enjoy reading this chapter? Haha, it's already past midnight since I finished this chapter. I couldn't stop from writing this or else I might have felt lazy afterwards. I haven't checked yet if there are any errors on grammar and spelling though.

Anyway, yay to the 17 upvotes and to the 100+ subbies! Thank you very much for reading and subscribing to the fanfic of this amateur writer. Please do leave comments about the story, your ideas, your analysis, or anything. Don't you know how many times I check AFF to see if there are any notifs? It makes my heart flutter seeing "new story comments" on my notifications. 

Once again, thank you very much!