CHAPTER 9. ANOTHER DEAL?

With a stuffed dog tucked under her arm, Ha Ni plopped down a seat near the balcony after she made sure the Baek Family all went to bed. She stared at her broken phone, but her thoughts were far from it. She was reliving the events of the night, feeling thankful to Jin Woo and confused at Seung Jo.

What do you think Chi-chi? That was the name of her favorite stuffed dog, her grandfather’s gift to her when she was young.

(flashback)

At the car.

Ha Ni quietly sat in the passenger seat while Seung Jo drove. He did not drive towards their house which was just 5 minutes away by car from where Ha Ni encountered the ert man.

Awkward.

Seung Jo stopped the car in a nearby park.

“Just what are you doing out of the house at this time? Do you know my mother called me to look for you? She’s so worried and you were just out there with a guy!”

Ha Ni temper rose. “I wasn’t out with a guy!”

“And where have you been? I’m sure your classes ended hours ago…” He continued, not one bit controlling his irrational way of thinking.

“I went to a mall and I lost track of time. I rode a taxi, it broke down and I had to walk home. Satisfied?” Ha Ni explained.

“And what was that guy doing out there with you?” Seung Jo asked.

Ha Ni wanted to hit him. Aish stupid jerk!!! “Stop calling him ‘that guy’. His name is Park Jin Woo. He already explained what happened, in case your pea-sized brain failed to record it.” 

Seung Jo looked at Ha Ni angrily, but he was quite unsure what he was really angry about: A. being nagged my his mom to look for Ha Ni, B. seeing the ert man almost attack her or C. Jin Woo being there.

‘Or Jin Woo getting there ahead of me.’

Ha Ni got confused when Seung Jo did not answer her. He seemed quite immersed in his own thoughts.

“Baek Seung Jo! I've said you are an idiot. Did you hear me? Jin Woo already said I almost got into trouble with a ert. I got lucky that he was there and he saved me!”

‘I know…I saw what happened…but why did it have to be him there?’ Seung Jo's mind said.

Seung Jo continued ignoring her and just drove the car home

“He already helped me twice today. I hope I can make it up to him soon,” Ha Ni continued unnecessarily as she followed Seung Jo into the foyer of the house.

Seung Jo looked back at her and flashed a questioning look.

“I met him at the university today. He helped me when I fell down. I think he’s nice… unlike some people I know.” Ha NI looked pointedly at him.

Seung Jo ignored her innuendo and said sternly “Don’t tell omma what happened tonight.” He paused for a while before adding, “And don’t see him again. I don’t trust him.”

Then he walked into the house, leaving Ha Ni confused.

(end of flashback)

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Ha Ni fell asleep for a while in the balcony, with Chi-chi trapped under her chin. She was woken up when she felt someone’s foot nudging her leg.

“Yah! Wake up!” Seung Jo said and continued to poke her leg.

Ha Ni rubbed her eyes and looked confusedly at Seung Jo. “What are you doing here?”

Seung Jo crossed his arms. “I should be asking you that. Why are you sleeping here?”

“Is it not allowed?” Ha Ni challenged.

“Not really… but you snored like a piggy and disturbed my sleep.” He gazed at and seemed to see something gross. “And rub off the drool stains.”

Ha Ni’s eyes widened and tried to wipe off imaginary drool from . “What? And I snored?!”

Seung Jo turned away and snickered.

Ha Ni lost her temper and flung Chi-chi at Seung Jo’s back. Her thoughts of asking him about the Jin Woo scene completely fled her mind.

“Yah! Why did you do that for?” Seung Jo turned around and picked up the poor doggie. Chi-chi’s droopy eyes looked straight into him. 

“Why do you have to keep messing with me?” Ha Ni asked as she grabbed back her doggie. She really had no idea why Seung Jo seemed to like making her life unpleasant.

“You don’t know?”

“Would I even bother asking if I do?”

Seung Jo ignored Ha Ni's sarcasm and unflinchingly answered, “Because I want to…” 

“Huh?”

“Because I don’t like you.”

Ha Ni felt shocked at his answer. She did not expect Seung Jo to be so frank about it. 
 

And just what did I do to you, jerk? Ha Ni's irritation increased.

“If you don’t like me, then I don’t like you ten times over!”

Seung Jo smirked. “Is that so? Then why did you have to offer yourself and strike a deal with my father? Gold-digger.” He coughed the last remark.

“Excuse me? What did you just call me?”

“Why that look? Isn't that right? You agreed to marry me to get your company back. Then what does that make you?”

“Absolutely not a gold digger! I just need to get back what rightfully belongs to us.”

“Well that’s not the case from what I understood from my father. He helped the company get out of a tough hole and saved it. He bought the shares fairly. Even your parents agreed to it.”

“They might have agreed but I didn’t. I still don’t.”

“That’s exactly why you’re here…See? I am right.”

 “My staying here doesn’t have anything to do about it. My parents don’t know anything about the deal…they just trust your family too much. And had I known the person I will have to marry is this kind of jerk, I wouldn’t have agreed in the first place.”

“You can back out, you know. The earlier, the better.”

“Don’t worry, I’m seriously thinking it over." Ha Ni looked at him skeptically and asked, "Why are you so keen to kick me out when I didn’t even to anything to you?”

“Because you are runing my plans,” Seung Jo replied.

“Hah! I have my own future and dreams ruined, too. And what plans of the great Baek Seung Jo did I manage to wreck? As I see it, you are still living your life as usual… while poor me has to put up with your attitude.”

“Stop sounding like the abused kitten here, miss. You were the one who dragged me into this. Right from the beginning I knew I’m going to have to marry someone my parents chose for me someday. And I plan to have the time of my life before that happens. But thanks to you, it came earlier than I expected!”

Ha Ni was shocked at his revelation. She never imagined anyone willingly allowing to be set up in an arranged marriage.

“To be nice to me is the least you can do.”

Ha Ni went back to her defensive stance. “How can I be nice to a person who doesn’t even have any kind bone in his body?”

“Then how can you get your company back then? You have no choice. I am the only choice, so deal with it!”

Ha Ni’s curiosity got the better of her. “Why did you allow them… I mean your parents to put you up for an arranged marriage? I am doing it for a good cause…but you? Don’t you know that business marriages almost always end up in divorce and suffering? Business people see it as a good opportunity, but marrying for money is just unthinkable.” Ha Ni endlessly said her piece of mind about arranged marriage, just like in the essay she submitted in highschool.

Seung Jo cut her litany. “Don’t you lecture about arranged marriage. You might be forgetting, you are the one who’s gonna marry me for money.”

“Yah! How many times do I have to say it? I AM NOT MARRYING YOU FOR MONEY! It’s to save our company.”

“Sounds same to me...”

Seung Jo saw Ha Ni about to fight back once more, her hands prepared to hit him. He grabbed her arms and said, “Look. You keep telling me you did it for a good reason…so why don’t you stop acting immature and let’s just think of a way to make this work…at least for now.”

Ha Ni seemed to fail hearing the things he said, and what got stuck in her ear was the “stop acting immature” comment.

“So I am immature? And what about you-----”  Her words were cut when Seung Jo suddenly put his hand over .

“Can you just stop talking? I’m going to kiss you if you don’t.” Seung Jo warned, his patience running out.

Ha Ni’s eyes widened at his threat. Then she slowly nodded to appease Seung Jo and removed his hand from .

“Both of us don’t like it but we have to…so for now, why don’t we just go with the flow. Live normally. Pretend like it’s nothing.”

“Is that possible?”

“For me, it is. I don’t know about you.”

Ha Ni did not want to feel defeated and nodded. “Of course, I can.”

“Good. The what we need is a set of rules we should follow to make this work.”

“Who’s gonna make the rules then?”

“Both of us. You write your conditions and I’ll write mine.”

Ha Ni thought for a while. This is the best option for now. At least I get to make my own conditions. “Okay, fine.” Ha Ni started to walk away to the direction of her room.

Seung Jo called her back. “Where are you going?”

“We need to write them down, don’t we? I’m gonna grab some paper and pen.” Ha Ni continued and disappeared into her room.

Minutes later, Ha Ni came back, with a stash of paper and pens. “Here. Let’s start writing. How many do we write?”

“Five each. Give your best shot, those conditions will be your lifelines.”

“Game!”

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A/N: I noticed I update once a week on the average. Busy. Jin Woo on the enxt chapter. Enjoy reading. :D