Being called greedy and a gold-digger was one thing. Having money thrown at him was a whole other thing. Lu Han had been furious as he glared down at the money bills lying on the sand, insufferably angry at how mister filthy rich could throw money at his face as if he was some homeless beggar. Even homeless beggars had pride, and that person surely knew how to crush the last bits of it. Lu Han had been so close to leaving those bills on the ground, so close to saving the last small piece of his pride, but in the end he crouched down in defeat to pick them up one by one. It was never painless, never not humiliating, but he was learning to cope with it. Money was money, and he was not going to complain about how it was given to him.

The boxes felt much, much heavier as he brought them back to his sadly looking excuse of a car. He had to go back to the hostel. Minseok has been urging him to get back as soon as possible and Lu Han was sure Minseok was going to kill him if he did not show his face as soon as possible. He let out a tired sigh before sitting down on the driver’s seat, lazily pulling the safety belt while leaning back against the seat exhaustedly. His t-shirt was sticking against his skin uncomfortably and he was sure he was sweating like crazy. He must look like a complete mess after spending hours on the beach.  

“Lu Han-ah,” He spoke to himself as he started the engine, “when are you going to find your multimillionaire? When are you going to find someone that’ll be able to provide you a car with air-conditioning and a happily ever after?” Lu Han took a deep breath before he started to motivate himself, the hope never dying, “One day… One day you’ll find the one.”

One day... His prince would come.

»

The best rings did not come from those who only prided themselves on the numbers written on the price tags attached to their products. No, the best rings came from those who did not value a title but a belief. Lee Minhyun lived in a small house close to the beach, the view of the sea being the first thing he saw the moment he looked out the window, and Sehun was certain only artists who knew what they were doing could truly appreciate this aesthetic beauty that could bring out the best of creativity.         

“Here’s the ring you’ve asked to be made, mister Oh,” The old man said as he sat down in front of the young man, “True Love.”

Sehun’s eyes glinted as he looked at the ring in the small box, perfectly made, “I never expected anything less than breathtakingly beautiful from you, Lee Minhyun seonsaeng-nim. You’ve once again proved yourself to be worthy of the fame surrounding your name.”

The old man shook his head at this, a smile gracing his old features, “No, no, such compliment isn’t one I’ll ever be worthy of receiving,” He said before gentleness washes over his face as he looked at the ring, “but this is indeed my gem. True Love is made to wrap itself tightly around the finger of the one, not letting go. Once you find that person,” The creator of the ring pointed at the ring, “True Love will make sure to tell you.”

Sehun thinks about Kyungsoo, thinks about how the ring will be tightly wrapped around his slender finger when he will wear it, and it made him feel satisfied. The most perfect ring for the most perfect lover, soon to be fiancée. Sehun takes a good look at the ring before gently putting it back in the box.

“And it’ll never let go of the one?” Sehun asked, eyes shining.

The old man nodded in satisfaction, “When you find the one, the ring will never let go. Even if this person tries to take off the ring, this person won’t succeed. And when it’s not the one, no matter how much you try, the ring will never fit perfectly.”

Sehun smiled confidently before closing the box.

True Love. When you find the one, it will never let go.

»

“Minseok, come on, you know I wasn’t out playing-” Lu Han said as he retreated, hands up to defend himself while Minseok hovered over him dangerously.

“What did you do then?” Minseok said while using the spoon was holding onto to poke the other’s cheek, “How many times did I tell you already that you should stop dreaming about your love life being like a fairytale! Stop dreaming about finding a prince on a white horse!”

“Hey!” Lu Han said defensively, “What’s wrong with dreaming about finding my multimillionaire! It’s not like I don’t have the looks to match up with him! And how many times do I have to tell you that I was out to earn money today!”

Minseok heaved a sigh, spoon moving away which Lu Han was very relieved about, because the metallic object was digging into his skin way too dangerously, “You didn’t try to sell some crazily expensive bubblegum to unknowing strangers again, did you? Come on, Lu Han, I can’t save you every time-”

“No, no, no!” Lu Han quickly said, “Come on! I’m here, aren’t I? That’s most important, right?” A bright smile crept on his lips, “Tell me, what am I supposed to do?”

This made the slightly older male look up with defeated smile, “Yeah, yeah, that’s true. Okay, come on, I put some orders on new curtains, and they should arrive at Zitao’s stop today. I need you to pick them up.”

Lu Han groaned at this, “I just came back, Minseok!”

“You’re the one in charge of driving around doing the less strenuous things, Lu Han! And it’s not even that far! You’ll be able to make it before dinner,” Minseok said with finality.

Lu Han pouted unhappily, “Fine.”

Minseok gave him an appreciative smile, “Thank you.”

One last smile and Lu Han was on his way back to his car again. Honestly, he had hoped Minseok would just tell him to clean some rooms, but instead he had to go all the way to Zitao’s. More importantly, he was hoping that he stay a little longer in the hostel, in the hope to find some prince charming wandering around. May meant breaks, and breaks meant potential future husbands walking around. Deep inside Lu Han thought that it might be exactly this reason that caused Minseok to order him drive around picking things up, just so he would not supposedly disturb the customers.

He noticed that the sun was slowly but visibly beginning to set, brightness being exchanged into a soft yellow and warm red. It was quite a view, and it made him feel happy to drive. Driving kept his mind off of things, attention being taken by his surroundings. He hummed to his current favorite song as he swiftly made a turn, grimacing slightly when he heard the loud rumble coming from his car. He did not have the money to fix it, so may the Heavens spare him and let his car live on just a little longer.

Another turn was made without much effort and thought, Lu Han’s eyes wandering around the street before something, or rather someone, caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. His eyes widened impossibly wide and heartbeat increased explosively as he saw the person running on the street, eyes looking around frantically as if he was running away from something and completely oblivious to Lu Han’s car only a distance away from him. All Lu Han could do was pull himself out of this fear that froze him for a moment and quickly press his foot against the brake, praying for a miracle to happen so he would not hit the other.

Their eyes locked with each other for a brief eternity before his car came to a stop and the stranger fell down. His heart dropped at the sight, his mind forcefully pushing away the possibility that he had hit the other. Lu Han was too frightened for these kinds of things, has too little self-control to cope with these situations, and the way his pulse echoed in his ears made him feel nauseated.

One second passed. Ten seconds passed. He was not sure how many seconds passed before he was able to bring himself to take off the seat belt and rush out of the car, the shock having perplexed him for a short period. He ran to the front of his car, looking around for others with horrified eyes – although he was not sure whether he wanted anyone to have seen this or not – and gulped down harshly when he saw nobody. He fell down on his knees when he saw the stranger lying on the ground, eyes closed. His eyes widened as the recognition hit him.

It was mister filthy rich.

“M-Mister…” Lu Han said tentatively, hand carefully reaching for his face in the foolish hope that maybe one touch could make the other open his eyes, “Mister, p-please… Please o-open your eyes…”

He was scared. No, he was downright horrified and frightened to death and helpless and in despair because he simply did not know what to do. He never wanted to harm anyone, never had any thoughts of inflicting any pain on anyone. However, here he was, the victim lying right in front of him, his precious life lying gingerly in Lu Han’s weak hands. The burden was suffocating, and when Lu Han saw the small wound on the stranger’s head, blood slowly coming out like shy poppies blossoming, he could only snap his eyes shut, letting the hopelessness wash over him.

He might be a cheat, but he certainly was not going to become a killer.

He opened his eyes, gaze falling on the unconscious male with despair before he decided to pick the stranger up, opting to carry him to his car. The male was slender, small waist but broad shoulders that cut into his own skin, but it nevertheless took quite some effort to get the other over his shoulder. His eyebrows were knitted together as he tried his very best not to let the other fall off. He struggled with the door but soon he was able to get the other inside the car, dropping him gently on the passenger’s seat. And that was when he realized something crucial.

He did not know what to do.

Police? Hospital? Lu Han could not think rationally. He could not organize his thoughts. He could not seem to decide what to do. He just really did not want to end up in jail. He just really did not want to end up having killed someone. He was scared, might as well be called a coward, but he really did not want his life to end up in prison. His hands darted into the stranger’s pocket, in the hope that he might find a wallet or a cell phone that could give him any other options. Anything. Anything that could provide him an option of informing someone without letting anyone know that he was the person who had hit him. His breath hitched.

He found none. 

No wallet. No cell phone. Nothing that could even tell him who this person could possibly be, other than being mister filthy rich. Lu Han’s hand slowly moved to his own mouth, trembling fingers blocking the frightened gasp he so desperately wanted to let out. And the more he watched the unconscious young man, the more scared he got.

»

“You think he’s dead?” The male asked in a sharp tone, watching how the car hit the person they had been chasing after.

His companion shrugged his head, “He seems to be bleeding and unconscious, and the best thing is, we didn’t even have to get our own hands dirty. He’ll be very pleased with this.”

“Indeed, it makes everything a lot easier for us,” The male responded, “since he never saw our faces. It doesn’t matter whether he’s really dead or not, we just needed to get rid of him. With no money or anything to identify himself with, together with his wounds, I wonder how the great General Manager Oh is going to get himself out of this mess.”

They both give the scene one last glance before smirking and walking away, satisfied with having their mission completed and done.