"You have to lose sometimes Chae Yoon." 

"I'd lose Namjoo for you." 

Luhan gritted his teeth

"Leave her out of this." 

Chae Yoon pressed her lips together, nodding. "Maybe I can if you tell her about us first."

Luhan's eyes hardened. 

"After all, she will discover this truth sooner or later, so why not from you? If she hears it from another mouth, the only conclusion she can come to is that you've used her to get to me. Namjoo, who always puts her all into friendship. 'He lied to me, this jerk used my good feelings and stabbed me in the back. After all I've done, he only took me for a fool. How stupid I must have looked and I didn't even know it. I was nice for no reason. I'm such an idiot.' And do you think she'll come back to you after that?"

Chae Yoon smiled, stepping forward again. "Either way, if I tell Namjoo I like you; she'll still drop you just like that. Even if you're the last man on earth, Namjoo will still give you up to me. It'd be shameless of her to pick up trash I've left behind. Namjoo even said it herself." 

Luhan felt like biting his tongue. His biggest fear at the current moment was never seeing Namjoo again.

"There's no reason for you to keep lying to her about our relationship. You could have told her just like that, but you didn't. You say you don't want to hurt her, but you're going to be the first one to do it. Who should you be angry at? Me or yourself?" Chae Yoon laughed with a slight smile. "Compared to Ki Chan, you can't even protect point-one-percent of her feelings." 

"Is that all? You're going to push me into a corner so that I'd give up?" 

"You're scared, aren't you?" Chae Yoon tried. "You're going to regret it at the end. You're going to think you should have chosen me. All you have to do now is count down the days till Namjoo finds out."

Luhan's hand formed into a fist when the devil finally walked out. 

He knew Chae Yoon was right. At the very beginning he could have told Namjoo about him and Chae Yoon and she still would have come back. They were too far now for him to do it. If he told Namjoo, she'd tell him to go back to Chae Yoon. He'd never see her again then.             

He dreaded every single thought of it. He was too attached and letting Namjoo go wasn't an option for him.                                     
     
"====="

A twelve hour shift had exhausted Namjoo, but just thinking about how she wouldn't be eating her meal tonight alone energized her. Calmly approaching Luhan's place she knocked and waited. Luhan didn't come to the door as expected so she knocked again and waited. Namjoo pressed her ear to the door, but couldn't hear anyone inside. 

Luhan should be inside, she was certain of it. Grabbing the door knob she found it strangely unlocked.

Poking her head inside she called out, "Luhan." 

Then turning her head saw Luhan sitting by his couch drinking. He didn't look like he was in the mood for socializing tonight. Namjoo had wanted to eat, chat, and stay over a little while but it didn't seem like it would be happening. 

"Are you ok?" She walked in. 

He didn't answer. Luhan continued taking sips from his can of beer. She hadn't seen him like this since the very first time she met him. Hesitant to approach she set the bag of fried chicken she'd come with on the table. 

"I'll leave this here," Namjoo told, "eat it when you're hungry. I'll go now." 

Turning around she took a step toward the door. 

"Don't go." His voice stopped her. 

Slightly turning her head she listened to her heart race. 

"Don't go," he said louder, "Namjoo." 

Pressing her lips together she started toward the fridge and grabbed a fresh can of beer. Walking over casually she sat down beside him. She could at least sacrifice dinner for him even though her stomach was crying. 

"I'll have a drink with you then," Namjoo knocked her can into his playfully. "I guess this is a nice way of relaxing." 

"Do you hate liars, Namjoo?" 

"Depends," she answered. "But lying isn't considered a good thing. Knowing that you used up your good feelings for something no one appreciates, it's something that makes you feel bad. That's not a good thing either."

"So that's the way it is, huh?"

"Why?" She turned to look at him. "Did something happen?" 

"No," he replied. "I just wanted to get drunk enough to say the things I haven't been saying."

Namjoo turned to look at him unsure of how to reply.  

"Namjoo, we're mutual right?" 

"Ok!" Namjoo knocked her can into his again. "We are."

Turning to look at him she laughed and smiled. 

"After I finish this, I'm going to sleep for a while ok?" Namjoo said. "Wake me up in thirty minutes." 

"====="

Namjoo knocked out in less than a minute. Luhan watched her sleep before peering out the window. How much longer would he have nights like this? 

After clearing the cans away he finally lay down burying his face into Namjoo's shoulder. It was warm and comforting. 

“Namjoo, don't hate me." He said. "Don't ever hate me.” 

Clamping his eyes shut for a few seconds he turned so that his back was to her. He slept for a few minutes before his eyes suddenly opened when Namjoo threw her arm around him. The warmth of her hand penetrated through his shirt. He listened to Namjoo utter some noises before quieting. Slightly turning his head to look at her he pressed his lips together and to his back.  

Why did Namjoo have such ability to make his heart go crazy over small things like this? 

Flipping onto his side he peered into her face. He was strangely sober and his body heating up. Those eyes, that nose, and those lips...he wanted them. He wanted to kiss her, make love, snuggle and cuddle with her. He wanted to show Chae Yoon he was serious about Namjoo and that she would never stop him, but the truth still shone strong. 

Namjoo still loved Kai and would in time leave him. 

Her fingernails dug into his back as she snuggled her face into his neck. Luhan's eyes remained open the whole time and gulped when he felt her toes press into his legs. Biting his tongue he eased a hand against her back hoping the peace between them would last as long as possible. 

A few hours later after he'd tucked Namjoo into his bed and he lay on the couch all he could think about was what he would do now. The room turned from a pitch black to daylight as the sun shone in and he hadn't slept the whole night. When he heard Namjoo getting up he pretended to sleep until he heard her in the kitchen. He'd give anything up to have a week's worth of meals with her. 

Suddenly sitting up he watched her move around in his kitchen as comfortably as she belonged there and how right it looked. It made his heart flutter. 

"Awake?" Namjoo greeted. "Want to come eat? I have to leave in a bit." 

Standing up he asked, "You work?" 

"That and a meeting." Namjoo smiled and sat down. "The chicken still looks good. I'm so hungry." 

Luhan watched her sit down and thought how the whole picture looked perfect; with Namjoo accompanying him for breakfast and sleeping in his house. 

"Were you cold last night?" Luhan asked. 

"What?" Namjoo looked up. "I don't remember. What are you doing? You don't want to eat?" 

"Of course, I'll eat." He replied sitting down. 

When Namjoo left he could only think about the day when Namjoo would find out about him and Chae Yoon. Once she did she'd tell him to treat her friend right; love her a lot as he'd never loved anyone else before and he'd hate those words. Namjoo would never see him again and he'd live in misery again. 

He dreaded the day Namjoo would tell him to leave. 

He didn't see Namjoo for half a week until he suddenly woke up in the middle of the night with his phone ringing. 

"I...had a nightmare." He listened to Namjoo's shaky voice. 

A moment of silence ensued. 

"Can I come over for a bit?" 

"I'll come to you. I'll be there really quick, ok?" He promised getting up from his bed.

When he arrived at Namjoo's she looked as disoriented as he did in mismatched shoes, a leather jacket, t-shirt, and sweats. Namjoo had a large blanket wrapped around her and her hair was a mess, twisted in all ways possible. 

"Are you ok?" He worried. "What'd you dream about?" 

He followed her in and watched her arms shoot out right and left, "Monsters, ghosts everywhere! They were pulling at me, telling me to go with them!" 

"Is your place haunted?" Luhan glanced around.

Namjoo turned around to shoot him a look before shuffling toward her couch. He noticed she'd all the lights in her house and thought she was cute for doing so. 

She plopped down onto the couch and immediately stared at the TV. 

"What kind of cartoon is this?" Luhan asked. 

"I don't know." Namjoo shrugged. "It's the only entertainment on right now." 

He listened to her yawn and smiled. "Don't you think those kids are having hallucinations?" 

Luhan chuckled to himself and turned for Namjoo's reaction and breathlessly snorted when he saw she was asleep. 

"You're always falling asleep on me." 

Reaching for the remote he turned the TV off and leaned against the couch to watch her sleep. Another smile crossed his face as he watched her. Namjoo's head was drooping off to the side making it look like her head would pull the rest of her body down. Leaning over he gently grabbed her, cradling her head before letting her sleep against him.

"====="

Namjoo twisted onto her back, throwing her arm and legs out as she opened her eyes to stare at the ceiling. It took her a moment to recall that Luhan was just here last night and immediately sat up. A groan bellowed out of her at the thought of him carrying her to bed. She wasn't sure how many times it had happened already, but she was embarrassed. 

Rubbing her face into her hands she got up and walked out of her room. Clattering sounds resounded throughout her kitchen when she neared. Luhan was still there fumbling around in her kitchen to prepare breakfast. The sight was cute and amusing to see, so instead of letting him know she was awake she stood there watching. She wanted to wait until Luhan noticed her so she could make fun of him, but he was too absorbed in his tasks. 

"If you break anything you owe me twice the price," Namjoo walked in. 

Luhan turned around surprised, "I didn't know you were up." 

"What are you doing?" 

"Making scrambled eggs." 

Namjoo eyed him and tried not to laugh at how hard he was making it look. 

"Are you free this weekend?" He asked. 

"I have some time Saturday." 

"Lets go out for dinner," Luhan suggested. "I have something to tell you." 

"You do?" Namjoo glanced up at him curious. 

"Reserve that time in your schedule for me." He reminded before quieting. 

Namjoo glanced up at him again trying to hold back a smile. Exactly what would he have to say to her? She felt a little excited to listen to what he had to say. Namjoo would anticipate it. 

"Dinner?" Chae Yoon repeated. "You're having dinner with Luhan this Saturday?" 

Namjoo sipped at the slushy she'd ordered and peered around the streets. They were sitting outside a restaurant for lunch to relax with the warm air. There were bike riders and couples holding hands as well as singles out and about. No clouds seemed to have formed around the sun that afternoon leaving the sky as clear as possible

"Is it a date?" Chae Yoon asked. 

Namjoo eyed a pair of women whose arms were full of shopping bags, "No."

"Then...why?" 

"He said there's something he wants me to know."

"Oh really?" Chae Yoon raised her brow with a grin. 

"I think I might want to tell him something too." Namjoo smiled shyly to herself. 

"What is it?" 

"You know, when you first told me that men and women always fall for each other either at the right or wrong time, I thought it was a bad thing. I thought about it and I guess it's not such a bad thing. It's just something that happens." 

"And what about it?" 

Namjoo thought about it carefully before saying, "I think I like Luhan. He makes my heart flutter and..."

Chae Yoon stared at her hard with eyes burning into her. 

Oblivious Namjoo continued, "I think he likes me too." 

Chae Yoon let out a snort without meaning to and Namjoo stared at her. 

"What?" Namjoo asked wondering what Chae Yoon's reaction meant. It made her feel...bad.

"Sorry," Chae Yoon covered with her hand. "That's silly." 

"What is?" Namjoo asked.

"Just because a man has been nice to you and keeps you company doesn't mean he has feelings for you. He's probably just using you to fill up his empty space. Didn't you say before that he was depressed? You can never trust them. Luhan is playing with you."

Chae Yoon's words of assumption stung, but Namjoo tried not to let it show. 

"But I can feel it. I can't explain it to you..."

Chae Yoon grabbed her hand silencing her, "I know people like him. Don't trust him. If he says he loves you, don't ever believe him. You're just going to get hurt." 

Namjoo stared at her friend swayed by her warnings. She was sure, too, that Luhan was the same as her. 

"Is that why you and Ki Chan don't like him?" Namjoo asked flustered. 

Chae Yoon stared back at her holding eye contact for a long time, "Yes. Luhan's a bad person."

***Finally getting closer to what you've all been waiting for. Results of confrontation next chapter

***You know when you lie to a person, the lie just continues building up and it gets more difficult to tell the truth. And when you know when you've been lied to, it hurts and the pain is hard to describe; there are no exact words for it but you feel a sense of betrayal. So even if the dialogue and descriptions don't come out well, I hope you can see from both Luhan and Namjoo's point of views. 

***In Namjoo's case, it becomes an even bigger blow because she's been genuine and sincere all along and has built feelings for him over time. Plus, all along Luhan knew Namjoo has been hurt by lies already, so when she does find out she's gonna blow realizing everyone has been lying to her. After all, she's been keeping a lot of her emotions locked up.