Kris’s man secretary was waiting outside for me, and after hiding as many electronics as I could without Mother noticing, I finally realized that the guy looked sixteen.  His skin was flawless, and his hair was perfect.  He probably could’ve been a celebrity if he wanted to…did I mention that his skin was flawless?

“Ready to go, Miss Hanbyul?”

“Are you sure that you can drive?” I asked with concern, squinting because of the bright sun.  “I mean, I don’t think that kids should be driving fancy limos—”

“I’m older than Kris.”

“WELL…THAT’S AWKWARD,” I announced.  “There is NO WAY that you, with your perfect skin and youthful looks, could be older than Kris, who, let’s face it, needs some good moisturizer.”

He laughed.  “I’m a few months older than he is.  Nothing much.”

“Then, if you insist that you’re older than Kris, please tell me the secret to your eternal youth sometime.”

“My name is Lu Han, and I’m Kris’s secretary.  I’ll be picking you up every day,” he replied, ignoring my last comment. 

Actually, I was surprised that Lu Han handled my comments with grace.  Usually, when I acted like a sarcastic (which I’m really good at), people get mad or begin to hate me.  Usually both.  I used to go to family gatherings until I was banned for my “crude behavior” and the fact that I “ate all the food”.  Mother and Father get really scared whenever I open my mouth, but this guy, Lu Han, seems pretty chill about it.

Lu Han opened the door for me, and I hopped in the backseat.  From inside my shoe, I pulled out my phone, which I had somehow managed to sneak past Mother’s hawk eyes.  I opened my phone and opened my manga app.

Lu Han got in the front seat, and we were soon on the highway. 

Meanwhile, as Zoro and the others were saying goodbye to their ship, I felt my eyes watering.  Tears soon began to roll down my face, and I cursed under my breath.  Zoro…Luffy…You guys have worked so hard.

“Miss Hanbyul, are you okay?” Lu Han asked, looking in the rearview mirror with concern.

“Yeah.” My voice shook. 

His eyes widened.  “Are you…crying, Miss Hanbyul?  Would you like me to pull over?”

“S-Sorry.  When I read comics, I tend to get a little emotional.  Hm…maybe really emotional.  And don’t be formal.  I hate that.”

“Comics?” Lu Han’s eyes brightened up.  “You read comics?”

“Yeah…One Piece.  You read comics too?”  My heart started to beat really fast, and my palms became really sweaty.  I wiped the tears away from my eyes.

Lu Han chuckled.  “I do.  Kris teases me for that.  He always tells me that girls don’t like me because I’m always talking about comics.”

“AH!  MY MOM TELLS ME THE SAME THING!” I exclaimed.  “Except guys don’t like me because I’m rude, I hate most people, and I’m kind of irritating.”

“One Piece is one of my favorites.  I also really like Full Metal Alchemist—”

“—Oh my gosh, you are amazing.”  He doesn’t even CARE that I’m a sarcastic ?

“You know, if you ever want to read something, I have a whole bunch of manga and manhwa at my house.  You can borrow stuff.”

“Wow.”  Mother, forget the arranged marriage.  I’ve found my dream guy.  I want to get married to Lu Han.

“This is the first time a girl has been interested in my comic obsession.” He laughed.  “My girlfriend absolutely hates it.”

DAMN IT!  TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE!  I tried to hide my disappointment by grinning.  In fact, I smiled for so long that my face muscles began to hurt.

“Don’t tell anyone, though.  It’s a secret.”

<:>

Lu Han pulled into some fancy building, and I was too shocked to notice anything else besides the big skyscraper thing.

“Kris…works here?”

“He owns this building, Hanbyul.”

I nodded.  “Typical.”  Rich people always seemed to own buildings.  My dad owned three at his prime, and now he owns one.  I bet Kris owns, like, seven.

“I’ll take you to the top floor, then.”  He opened the car door, and I got out.

“Top floor?” I bit my lip.  “You mean…like…up there?” I pointed to the highest floor I could see.

“Is there something wrong?”

I lied.  “Ah.  Well…not really.”

“Fear of heights?”

I shook my head.  “More like a fear of elevators.  I mean—I mean, I CAN ride an elevator, but it…sometimes I really feel sick afterward, and I don’t like that feeling.”

“If you want, I can call Kris down here instead—”

“No,” I replied with a weak smile.  “I don’t want to bother the royal jerk while he’s working on some stupid important thing and thinking about a girl who cares about people and is good at cooking.”

“Well, if you insist,” Lu Han replied.  “I’m sure he’ll be happy to see you.”

“Heh.  I’m sure he will.”  Like I said before, if I’m going to be forced to hang out with Kris for hours and hours, I’m not the only one who’s going to be miserable.