CHAPTER Twentyone

Taeyeon yawned for what felt like the hundredth today. Despite the time, she already felt drained of energy. She had spent the whole night cramming for her last exam because her afternoon was spent the Jang family. Poor Taeyeon was only able to receive an hour of sleep before she had to rush to school and back home to finish packing

Junsu had noticed her tired eyes and pale skin and kindly informed her that the hour or so flight to the Philippines would be a rest for her. Unfortunately since it was her first time on the plane, she found herself nervous and scared throughout the whole fight. It also didn’t help that Wooyoung, who was seated to her right was chatting with the flight attendant the whole trip.

Taeyeon followed the two men as they maneuvered through the large crowd of people in the airport to a secluded area (which Junsu called as the VIP Waiting Room). In the room, Jessica, Tiffany, Taecyeon and Yoona happily greeted the three.

 Yoona was the first to spot her tiny cousin and began walking towards Taeyeon. When Taeyeon noticed, a bright smile spread across her face and she dropped her small luggage to the floor and embraced Yoona into her arms. Yoona hugged tightly as Taeyeon rubbed her back. Confused with her public display of affection, Taeyeon was still happy to know that her cousin had missed her dearly like she had missed her.

Taeyeon lightly laughed, “I missed you too, Yoon but you need to let go of me before I suffocate in your hair”

This time Yoona laughed but pulled away as requested. “I missed you, Taeyeon”

Taeyeon was caught by surprised once again with Yoona words. She didn’t even know when was the last time Yoona spoke about her true feelings. She didn’t know what happened these last few days but nonetheless she was thankful.

On the other side of the room, the rest of the group had cheerfully greeted each other after a few days apart. They (mainly Tiffany and Jessica) discussed the events that occurred without the three. Wooyoung seemed exceptionally happy when Tiffany had embraced him and exchanged a few words before she left with Jessica to greet Taeyeon.

The group was split into two vehicles: Taeyeon, Yoona, Wooyoung, Junsu and Jessica, headed back to the mansion, in one car and Tiffany and Taecyeon in another (since they were headed off to a meeting).

In the first car, Taeyeon easily fell asleep while Jessica, Junsu and Wooyoung conversed. Yoona who was sat in the middle between Taeyeon and Jessica pay no attention to anyone and checked over the reports that Taecyeon needed to be reviewed. Over the years, Yoona became the master of blocking out unwanted thoughts and feelings with busying herself with whatever. At this moment, she focused all of her attention on to the papers, blocking out the events of last night and this morning.

The night in the cave had sparked greater understanding between the two. The rain painfully reminded her of her father’s death and everything bad that occurred in her life. To think that her savior was the very man who inflected pain in her life in the last few months. Taecyeon, strangely reminded her of her father, safe and secure. His arms comforted her like how her father had done when she was younger. Not even Taeyeon’s soothing voice could even calm her down as quick as Taecyeon’s warmth could.

Though the morning was extremely uncomfortable and confusing for Yoona. She had woken up back into the comfort of the bed rather than the coldness of the cave. Yoona had no recollection of how she got back to the mansion or how she could even sleep through the thunderstorm last night.

“Oh you’re awake”

Yoona looked up to see Taecyeon fully dressed and drying his hair with a towel. His face was mixed with surprise and embarrassment.

Last night events were still clear in their minds.

“How did I get here?”

Taecyeon walked across the room to grab his gold watch, hiding his redden face as he spoke, “Ah – I carried you back when the rain stopped” 

“Oh”

Silence soon filled the room as Taecyeon walked around the room, grabbing his sunglasses and the documents he needed for today’s meeting. Yoona remained in bed and realized that she was out of her wet clothes from last night and changed into warm pajamas.

“Did yo- Who changed me?”

She didn’t know why but she was stumbling with her words.

 Taecyeon slowly stood up, scratching the back of his neck; his face was a new shade of red, “Well you see… By the time we got back, everyone was already asleep and your clothes was still damp from the rain and - and with the next week filled with meetings and appointments, I – no, I mean, you couldn’t afford you being sick so I, hmm, changed you…”

He didn’t know why this topic causes so much embarrassment but he found myself shuttering and mixing up his thoughts like a young teenager.

Yoona’s face turned red also realizing that Taecyeon had once again seen her body. She had suddenly become self-conscious of her body.

“I swear, I-I closed my eyes and, I-I-“

“Thank you…” Yoona mumbled, unable to meet eye to eye with her own husband, but this time it wasn’t out of fear, “For finding me”

Taecyeon stood in disbelief, unable to gather his thoughts. Unconsciously a small smile formed and a warm feeling spread across his body.

Yoona was brought back into reality when she felt Taeyeon’s head resting on her shoulder. Her head quickly moved to the other side but continued to bob side to side.

Junsu, who was front of Taeyeon noticed found her bobbing to be cute.

“She must be tired” He commented to the group.

Jessica, who was sitting in the passenger sit, also turned around to find Taeyeon fast asleep with her head move around.

“Tiffany told me she’s been working double time at her job and I think she just finished her exams”

Junsu frowned, “I wonder why she didn’t even mention this earlier. No wonder why she looked so pale today”

When the car had a small bump, Taeyeon woken up, startled. She looked around her surroundings, confused and still not fully awake. She rubbed her sored neck, unhappy that her nap had been cut short.

“Hey there sleepyhead” Jessica smirked, trying to hide her laugh.

Taeyeon blushed realized Junsu and Jessica had their eyes on her,

“I’m sorry,” She mumbled. There were a few things Taeyeon disliked; one happened to be feeling like she was the center of attention.

Jessica looked at her watch, “We won’t be arriving back for another half hour or so. I know you’re really tired”

Taeyeon nodded, already resting her head against the window. After a few minutes, she began drifting off into sleep but she could have sworn she saw Wooyoung staring at her, with an annoyed face.

Yoona sat quietly in the bedroom. With Taeyeon taking a nap, Tiffany out with Taecyeon, and Nickhun busy with a fansigning, Yoona found herself with nothing to do. Everyone else had left to go on adventure but since she didn't feel close to anyone else, she decieded to stay back. 

She had just finished reviewing the reports given by Taecyeon and decided to something productive. Since her father passed away, she hated sitting still. Yoona, along with Taeyeon were busy bodies that constantly need to be on the move. 

Yoona ended up in the kitchen, cooking up a feast of Korean dishes. Cooking was something that always calmed her nerves and something that was naturally good at. When she was young, she secretly desired to become a chef but her dreams died when her father passed away and when her mother became ill. From then on, Yoona learned that not everyone could be able to achieve their dreams. 

"What do you have there?"

The deep voice came from right behind her. She jumped in surprised and turned around with a ladle in her hand. Nickhun stood along a few inches away, his head dipped low, meeting her eye-to-eye. Her reflex caused her to lean back from their closeness, and her heart began to beat faster than usual.

Yoona didn't know why her body was reacting like this but she didn't like it one bit. 

Nickhun chuckled at her inability to meet his eyes. She was too innocent and naive, something he always wanted one a woman. He took a step back, with a smirk on his face, and Yoona finally relaxed. He was quick to notice that redness in her cheek and he found myself smiling wider. He was enjoying this way too much. 

Yoona turned around and concentrated on the dish in front of her. "When did you arrive?" 

"Not too long ago" He didn't add that he had been watching her for the last few minutes. Nickhun knew that his actions and feelings were in the wrong but he couldn't stop himself. Yoona was being his addiction. 

Wait. No. Stop. He mentally scolded himself for thinking so selfishly. Yoona wasn't someone he should be thinking about.

He pretended to yawn, "I think I'll take a nap, I'm feeling tired from today's activities" 

Yoona nodded but didn't turn around, she waited until she heard his footsteps disappear before she let out a sigh. She doesn't understand why her heart would beat faster, and her stomachs would do flips whenever Nickhun was around. Perhaps it is because Nickhun was the very first male friend Yoona had ever had. 

Yes that's is the reason. 

Yoona cleared her mind once again and began cooking. 

After a few hours of more cooking and a fail attempt of baking, Yoona had finally decided she was done. Yoona had even earned some complements from the maids. 

She checked the time and realized that soon everyone would be arriving back. This included her sister-in-law Tiffany and Taecyeon. With the assistance of the maid they had set up the patio into a beautiful dinner table. The large rectangle table was covered with a white lace cloth. On the table laid simply patterned china and two large lanterns. Around the patio were smaller versions of the lantern. 

In the midst of checking on the food, the group had arrived back. Their noses were filled with delicious smelling aroma. Everyone gathered inside the living and Chansung and Jay entered the kitchen due to their curiosity. They found Yoona and a few of the maids preparing the dishes for dinner. Yoona seemed to be taking the lead, as she ordered the maids around. 

"Hey Yoona, we're back" Jay announced. 

Yoona turned around, once again a ladle in her hand. "Oh... Okay" She said awkwardly, "Dinner will be ready soon" 

Chansung mouth dropped, "Wow... Did you make this all?" 

Yoona nodded, feeling slightly embarrassed. 

Noticing her awkwardness, Jay dragged Changsung back out so Yoona could finish her preparations. By then everyone was already outside in the patio, admiring all of Yoona's hard work. Jessica and Jay began to argue about Jessica's lack of homemaker skills. Chansung was being cooed by Junsu because of hungry, as he said, "was going to be the death of him". Hyoyeon and Junho were upstairs waking up Taeyeon and Nickhun. Taecyeon was in his room, checking on his emails.

With everyone preoccupied or away, Wooyoung was left with Tiffany. His heart leaped seeing her this morning. Her smile and warm voice washed away all the aggravation from last night with Taeyeon and his family. 

Not only did he end the night off with an argument with Taeyeon and to top things off, his mother called him about his cousin's wedding at the end of the summer and requested that he'd bring Taeyeon as his date. A whole summer pretending to date a girl who drove him nuts. Perhaps he could work out a way for them to break up before hand?

"You look so focused, do you want to talk about it?" 

It was Tiffany's large brown eyes that he first noticed. He didn't even realize that he zoning out. 

He smirked, "I didn't know you were keeping a close eye on me" 

Tiffany swatted his arm and rolled her eyes, "Don't be silly, Wooyoung"

"You're very funny, I can see why your girls fancy you" 

He leaned closer, with a small smirk, "That's not the only thing they like" 

Tiffany stared for a few seconds, open and closed. She was speechless

His smirk grew bigger. Finally Tiffany was falling for his cha -

"Hahahaha" Tiffany's hand covered , "You and your jokes, I love them" 

When she stopped laughing, her eyes landed on her brother, "Look, I need to talk to Taecyeon. It's was good talking to you"

Tiffany left the wounded Wooyoung in the corner. Alone. And very very embarassed and hurt. 

Hyoyeon and Junho entered the patio with Nickhun trailing right behind. He was still half asleep from his short nap. 

"Guess who we found?" Hyoyeon joked as the couple grabbed seats in between Junsu and Tiffany. 

Nickhun smiled at the group. By now everyone had already gathered to the table and the food was being brought out. He was happy that Junsu and Wooyoung were back. The group didn't feel complete without everyone. With a bright smile, he grabbed the empty seat beside Wooyoung.

"Welcome back boys." He patted Wooyoung’s back and waved to Junsu, who was acrossed the table

Junsu smiled, "Thanks, I'm glad you are all enjoying my beach house" 

"Don't worry now, Khun. With your concerts and promotions done. I'll show you what fun means" Wooyoung joked.

This earned the group to laugh. Wooyoung was a very moody person, one moment his smiling and joking around and in another he's cranky and annoying. But whenever Tiffany was around, he was always cheerful. 

At this moment, Yoona entered with the last dish in her hand. Everyone began to clap at the chef. They were all smiling warmly. Tiffany stood up, her hand extended to Yoona. 

"I heard for the maids that you did everything yourself" 

Yoona moved closer to Tiffany, feeling uncomfortable with the attention. She quickly put the dish in the center and sat between Tiffany and Taecyeon.

She quickly scanned the table and slightly frowned. 

"What's wrong?" Taecyeon whispered, noticing the change in expression

She hesitated at first but after a few seconds she replied, softly, "Taeyeon isn't here. Why isn't she here?" 

Taecyeon took a quick look at the table and noticed the empty chair. "Where is Taeyeon?" He asked the group, on behalf of Yoona. 

It was Junho who answer, "She seemed really tired still and asked to skip dinner" 

Junsu frowned, "She skipped lunch too" 

"She's tired. She needs her rest" Hyoyeon spoke out.

Tiffany shook her head, "Didn't someone say she stayed up all last night?"

Junsu nodded.

Chansung's stomach ruined the conversation with it's rambling, "Aish! Can we eat now? I'm straving"

The group laughed and the topic dropped. Everyone began to dig in, complimenting Yoona for her great skill in the kitchen. The dinner consists of loud conversations and even louder laughs. The group told of their adventures in this tropical country; Nickhun shared his crazy stories about his fans; Junsu spoke about his blind date with one scary woman. 

Dinner went great and everyone (Chansung) ate the last bit of all the dishes cooked by Yoona. At the end, the maids cleared off all the dishes and left bottles of alcohol for the group. 

By midnight, the three girls left to Tiffany's room for their own private chats and Yoona left to sleep in Taeyeon room. The boys drank to their hearts content, fooling around. Slowly one by one the boys returned back to their rooms, tired and tipsy. The only two left were Jay and Taecyeon. 

"So..." Jay broke the comfortable silence between the two friends, "Your head is finally screwed straight" 

"Yah!" Taecyeon threw a light punch on Jay's arm but laughed, “What do you mean?”

"I'm serious Taec. I'm glad you found Yoona and not -" He cut himself short, "I mean I'm happy to see that you two are in better terms. I saw you guys talking during dinner"

"She actually replied to me" 

The two laughed, "I can't believe it only took a thunderstorm to make Yoona start talking to me normally" 

Now what it is going to take for your heart to trust Yoona? Jay asked himself, as he threw a glance at Taecyeon who was staring into the ocean. 

"Look Taecyeon... About yesterday at the gym, I didn't mean to -" 

"No no" Taecyeon cut him off, "Don't you dare apologize and make me look like the bad guy" 

Jay laughed and rolled his eyes. 

"We're alright though?" 

Taecyeon looked at him with a weird express, "Who are you? And what did you do to Jay Park?"

"Shut up man!" Jay pushed Taecyeon, "You don't understand how it feels to be married to Jessica. That woman always wants talk about out feelings!"

Taecyeon laughed, "Don't worry, I'm not your wife... We don't need to talk about our feelings like that" 

The two boys stopped talking for a few short minutes, letting silence take over. They watched the waves crash onto the sand.

"If Yuri ever came back into your life.... What are you going to do?" 

"I" He opened and closed his mouth. For a few minutes, it was silent as Taecyeon tried to gather his thoughts and feelings,

"I don't know anymore..." 

For the first year that Yuri had left him at the alter, Taecyeon was filled with anger and questions. Rather than attend his first year of university or assist his parents with the company, he drunk his emotions away and had plenty of one-night stands. After awhile, Taecyeon lived his life aimlessly: Partying it up at nights and sleeping during the day. Nothing much had changed, not even his heart.

Jay watched, as Taecyeon was lost in his own thoughts. When Jay left a year and so ago, Taecyeon was ill-tempered and terrible drunk. Jay left with Jessica, with full of worries of how his best friend would turn out. When the news of the wedding to Im Yoona broke out in America, Jay was filled with confusion and deep concern. He knew this marriage wasn't out of love. Jay was informed of news of the newlywed couple for the group. He knew how Taecyeon hated Yoona at first. How he avoid her at his own home, and even her voice would bring him into an angry session.

When he returned to South Korea, he was quick to notice the changes in Taecyeon whenever he was around Yoona. He became cautious of his actions when Yoona was at his presences. Without Taecyeon realizing, he was changing. Jay was shocked when Taecyeon was the one whom found Yoona last night. Jay also noticed their interactions, their small conversations and brief exchange of food. He knew now that Yoona was beginning to trust his best friend. 

Though their relationship is now finally on right track, Jay had no hopes for them to become romantically involved. Taecyeon had made it clearly that his heart only had room for one person, Yuri. And time wouldn't change his heart. 

Yoona stood near a table full of food - alone. In her hand, was a non-alcoholic drink because Taecyeon would not allow her to drink a sip of alcohol. She could feel eyes staring at her in every direction but pretended not to notice them and the feeling of discomfort and kept her eyes in a direction of where Taecyeon had disapeared to. This was first time Taecyeon had left her side at any meeting or event. The torn expression on Taecyeon's face when he was called to a private meeting with some of the board of directors replayed in her mind. Even though she wanted him to stay, work was more important than her comfort right now. 

Another five minutes had passed and an empty glass, Yoona had still reminded in her spot. Unconsciously she grabbed a piece of gown. When she realized she was clutching on Tiffany's dress, she quickly smoothed the dress. The dress was one shoulder light blue gown; it was tight around the top until her hips and the grown flowed down with ruffles.  A few people had attempted to speak to her but failed when they realized how unwilling she was to converse. No one dared called her rude or anything mean because of the fear that could come with speaking ill about Taecyeon's wife, so instead they called her shy because she wasn't use to all the attention and limelight.  

"I hate these kind of parties, don't you?" 

Yoona turned to her side to find a beautiful woman. She was probably the same age or near it. Her tan skin was flawless and shined against her straight black hair, and red backless gown emphasizes her slim body.

The question was directed to towards her. 

"It's just so boring. All everyone does is eat and stand around. I wish they actually played good music - but I shouldn't talk since I dance to the type of music. I wish I never needed to attend these types of events but my fiancé drags me to these events "  

Yoona nodded, thinking oddly of the woman that keeps talking.

"Oh! I'm so sorry for ranting to you. You're probably the only woman at this event who doesn't need a cane yet!" 

She extended her hand, "You must think I'm rude for no introducing myself earlier, my name is Kwon Yuri" 

But before Yoona could shake the women named Yuri's hand, tall young man approached the women. They whispered closely for a few minutes before he left her once again with Yoona. 

The woman turned to Yoona once again, with bright smile on his face, "I'm sorry that was my fiance telling me that we need to go now. It was really nice to meet you, I hope I can see you around when I return to Korea"

Kwon Yuri. Where had she heard that name before?   

But before she could think deeply into it, a warm hand pressured on her back and caused her to jump. She turned to owner of the hand and found Taecyeon. 

"Did I scare you? I called out your name" He said sheepishly 

Yoona looked away, feeling warm with just a simple touch. "It's fine" 

"I was able to compromise with some of the board of directors. They also seem excited for you to work in the company - they've seen your grades and work, and they are pleased"

As Taecyeon rumbled, he led them into the empty garden for more privacy. Yoona patiently listened - as she normally did - and allowed him to fill her in anything that seemed important to him. She preoccupied her time staring at the pond under her, watching her reflection. She didn't know when he stopped talking but when she finally looked up, she found him staring at her. 

"What?" She blurted out, feeling more awkward as more time passed. 

As if a spell had been broken, he snapped out of his trance. Yoona still had her eyes on him, confused to why he was staring her so intensely. Other the other hand, he couldn't find himself to look back at her. He didn't know when or how but in the middle of speaking, he was suddenly speechless as he stared at her side profile. Her white skin shined, her eyes - which were cascaded down- was shimmering against the moonlight. She probably didn't even know that her lips had formed a small smile. 

How could he be so blind not to notice her natural beauty? 

 author's note: Finally chapter 21 is out! woot! exams are done for me and I've offically finished my first year of university *happy dance* this chapter was actually cut short because of request of an update. originally this chapter was to finish their trip but i felt bad because i don't know when i'll finish the other half. so as requested i'll try to do shorter chapters. on another note, guess who finally made her appreance? kwon yuri and she's getting married too... ouuu you can only guess what drama will happen next. i realized how slow the relationship between the main characters are going so i'm trying to speed up the pace without making unrealistic. 

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