“OH !”

What the!

“Oh gosh!” I helped him get up and led him to the couch, “Your nose is bleeding”. I am frantic. I threw the meter stick as far away as possible. I hit him quite hard, it must’ve hurt really bad.

Strangely calm and collected, G-dragon points at the wooden cabinet in between two steel cabinets, “Get the first aid kit there” he instructed and I rushed to it. I looked back at him and got alarmed when I saw his head titled up.

Back in college, a friend and I enrolled ourselves in this medical rescue program where we learned basic first aid procedures, like how to do CPR and tend to small wounds, and stuff (including nose bleeds).

“Lean forward” I told him and he obeyed. I ran to my desk, grabbed the box of tissue and pulled out a good number of sheets, then I sat on the center table in front of him, “Gently blow your nose” I handed him the tissue, my hands are shaking as my nerves are all in alarm. Our eyes met. I sighed, “You trust me, right?” I told him and he narrowed his eyes as if saying I’ll-get-you-if-something-bad-happens-to-me. After blowing his nose, “I’ll pinch the soft part of your nose for a few minutes” I did that but blood is still dripping on the white carpet. “You shouldn’t tilt your head back during nosebleeds for you not to swallow blood” I keep wiping the blood off his nose as we wait for it stop. “Breathe through your mouth. This will only take a while” I smiled and he playfully hit my knee with his, making me chuckle.

The bleeding finally stopped after a minute or two, and the wait really got the best of me. At one point I already want to call for rescue, just because I’m not confident that what I’m doing is right. I checked on him further after that. Thank goodness he didn’t get any wounds from my beating.

“I thought you’re an intruder” I told him while cleaning our mess. He wanted to do it but I insisted and just let him rest.

“Why are you here anyway?” he asked, “You’re not yet fit to work. You heard your doctor clearly a while ago, you cannot stress yourself out for it can trigger bad headaches that will surely bring you back to the hospital again. Why can’t you just let Railey and Daryl handle this? They aren’t even asking you to help out. According to them you really pushed it till the end and won’t even back out” he is firing out and by the tone of his voice I can tell that he’s mad.

I finished wiping the carpet with wet tissue first (which didn’t do anything at all, for there are still stains), before joining him on the couch. “The girls are desperate to find a solution to the magazine’s problem. They may not tell it straight to my face, but I can see and I can feel that they badly need another head around here”

He ruffled his hair in annoyance and even turned his back at me. I totally understand why he’s acting like this. My careless decision to go to “work” is stupid because I’m not in good shape yet. I don’t know, but there’s a part in me that is strongly pushing me to do something and I’m honestly happy that I did it. One way or another, it gave all of us hope that the brand is going to make it through this big hump.

I hugged him from behind, my chin resting on his shoulder, “I cannot let this brand die” I told him, suddenly feeling emotional. I may not remember how I built this empire from ground-up, but I can feel a strong connection with it that not even my ed up mind can wreck. “I feel responsible for what happened” I continued and G-dragon turned to face me, “Upon checking things and reviewing reports, it’s so clear that something fishy is going on…and I cannot believe that I didn’t spot it right away. Just the mere fact that I agreed with President YG when he hired this hot dude…”

G-dragon hissed, “Hot” he shakes his head and I playfully punched his arm.

“He is hot!” I stick out my tongue that made him laugh. “Where was I?” I asked. “Ahhhh” I snapped my fingers, “It’s so clear that Maximo Sandoval’s motive in entering this company is not good at all. He invested to be able to get in and once he’s in…he began his dirty plan of pirating people and stealing our ideas by producing the exact same advanced issues that we made and are yet to be released. I don’t know how he did it…but I’m eager to find out. I will fight him. I swear! I will…because if I don’t” I paused and felt a lump in my throat, “YG Runway…the girls and I…along with all the people in it who worked so hard to keep its glory…will surely lose our home”

I do not even want to imagine how that day will go. I do not even want to think how bad things are going to be once this problem gets bigger than it is now. The possibility of us completely losing ground is high. We are in an unspoken crisis that is difficult to get out of, but with a solid team, we will definitely make it through.

“You will fight but not in here” G-dragon intertwined his fingers to mine, “You will work at home. You will work with limitations” his voice has authority in it. He’s not going to hear me protest. “I will not let you fight full-on…not when you’re still discovering yourself and especially not when you’re still too fragile to even be in a battle” he rubbed my arm and sighed, “To be honest, I don’t want you to work anymore…but because I can see the fire in your eyes that only shows whenever you’re so driven to do something, I will give this to you. But I’m telling you Clara Kwon, once this gets the best out of you…I will stop whatever you’re doing and I won’t care if you’ll hate me forever for it…and once that “hot dude” does something to you…I will bury him six feet underground with my bare hands”. This made me laugh so hard. It will be a David and Goliath fight between the two men.

G-dragon is understanding. He is the kind of man who gives in, to give way to you. I know that once things get crazy, he will pull me out of it in a heartbeat. That’s why, I need to move faster, just so I can do a lot for the brand before it gets crazier.

An hour and a half passed and we are still in my office, doing nothing but cuddling on the couch in silence. We did thumb wrestling for a bit before I got annoyed because he keeps on cheating.

“I remembered something” he broke the silence, “You actually pulled out almost the same “beat the intruder” stunt on me many years ago” he smirked and my jaw dropped in awe. I sit up straight and waited for him to continue, “I think it was before we even started dating and just like tonight…you are all alone in this office…working your out like a machine…” I laughed, “When I decided to pay you a visit. I wanted to surprise you so I didn’t call to tell you I’m coming…and the moment I opened the door…you sprayed pepper spray straight to my face…blinding me for minutes”

This is epic and really funny! How cool is it that certain moments seem to be repeating but with a little more flare to it?

“I’m sorry for making your nose bleed” I caressed his cheek and he acted like a baby who is crying but without sound, that makes me want to put him in my pocket because he’s just too cute. “And…I’m sorry for spraying pepper spray on you bajillion years ago. Gosh! That might’ve hurt!” I think I know where I got the spray. Back when I was still in New York, my Dad would always buy me cans of pepper spray and will constantly remind me to bring one every where I go for protection. I wonder if I still bring one anywhere now.

G-dragon wrapped his arms and legs around me, “It’s all good, babe” and buried his face on the crook of my neck, “I’ll wear an armored suit next time” he joked and it cracked me up.

As I catch my breath, “Or…you can just tell me you’re coming” I laughed again. I just keep seeing him in a full metal armored suit in my mind.

“You’re having too much fun!” he grabbed me by the waist and tickled me to no end.

We may be in our forties, acting like a young couple in our twenties who just started dating. Oh…wait…it honestly feels like that. I mean, I am still getting to know him while he’s showing me all sides of him, not to impress, but to remind me of who he is. Yes, we are old, but there’s nothing wrong with being sweet and romantic, and mushy, age is just a number and these cute but cringe-y stuff is for everybody. It knows no age.

Alright. Can you just bear with me? This is all new to me and I want to savor each and every minute of it. So yeah, just live with this cringe-fest with me.