Jaejoong’s life was once magical, lively, and full of smiles and laughs. That was, until terrible events had happened. When his father had passed away, he was severely depressed. When he broke up with his girlfriend, he had no company. His life turned bitter and cold, as he continued to work and live.

“Jaejoong-ah, have you eaten?” Jaejoong’s mother asked, smiling softly. Jaejoong signed one last document and looked up at his mother. He smiled gently and shook his head as he folded his hands together.

“Aniyo, Omonim. Shall we go out and eat?” Jaejoong asked politely. He knew that his mother was still upset about his father’s death. He knew that he had to always study well, keep the business up and going, and be polite to his mother. He even knew that he had to smile, but he could sense that his smile wasn’t has lively and bright as before. To his surprise, his mother shook her head.

“Ani. I actually have someone to meet after this. I was just worried if you had eaten, that’s all. You’ve been looking quite pale, like a ghost,” his mother laughed. “You look just like your father when he was younger…”

Jaejoong pressed his lips into a thin line. He wasn’t sure what to say. All he said was, “I see…”

“Jaejoong-ah, don’t you agree that it’s time for you to get married?”

“Omonim, I’ve told you already, I’m still young–”

“You’re 25 years old, son.”

“I thought all I had to do was keep up with business and study hard! I’ve been doing that for the past few years!” Jaejoong exclaimed. To him, the topic about his future love-life was a complicated topic to handle. He didn’t want to marry anyone, but at the same time, he wanted to please his mother.

“That was what you had to do, and I appreciate it! Really, Jaejoong, I do! It’s just that I thought you wanted some help with business managing. I met a great man and he has a wonderful daughter–”

“Let me guess, I’m going to marry her?” Jaejoong asked, heaving a sigh. Jaejoong’s mother pressed her lips into a thin line.

“Well…that was what we hoped would happen, but if you don’t want to, I perfectly understand–”

“Omonim, I’ve been doing perfectly without anyone’s help. All I need is someone to believe in me,” Jaejoong sighed.

“I do believe in you, son–”

“Then why do I have to marry that girl?” Jaejoong snapped. His mother suddenly became quiet. She her lips uneasily, and then stared at his son.

“Her name is Jung Jessica. She’s 22 years old, and she’s very kind. Although you might want to stay in the good-side of her. She tends to be shy around boy, so don’t rush things. She will be meeting you at dinner–”

“Eh?! Omonim, you arranged a dinner meeting? I have work–”

“Kim Jaejoong!”

“Omonim, this is an outrage! I refuse to go to dinner!” Jaejoong shouted, standing up and tossing his arm to the side. He accidentally knocked out a stack of paper he had just put in order. He heaved a heavy sigh and sat back down. He pressed a button on the side of the table, which glowed bright red.

“Send in Changmin, please,” Jaejoong commanded, as he lifted his finger off the button. He stared at his mother and ran his fingers through his jet-black hair. “Omonim, I’m just not ready–”

“I know,” his mother interrupted. She stood up and stared down at his son. “I know you’re not ready to be engaged with another woman, but I just thought it would help the business grow, that’s all. If you don’t want to, I understand. I will be at dinner and personally tell them that my busy, and hard-working son was just too busy to have a small chat at dinner and–”

“Omonim.”

“–How my son just worked too hard to have some fun–”

“Omonim…”

“–And how I had to tell them and be embarrassed about–”

“Omonim!” Jaejoong shouted, slamming his fist against the table. His mother jumped in shock and shot a glare at his son.

“You have issues, young man! Fix that before you come to dinner at eight,” his mother snapped, as she walked away. Changmin just opened the door and was shocked to see Jaejoong’s mother. He politely bowed as his boss’s mother left without a greeting. Changmin scratched his head and stared at Jaejoong.

“Hey Jaejoong-ssi. So what did you need me for?” Changmin asked, closing the door behind him. Jaejoong pointed at the scattered documents on the ground.

“Organize those for me,” Jaejoong demanded, as he continued to sign some more papers. Changmin nodded his head and happily went to organizing Jaejoong’s mess.

As Jaejoong signed paper, he slowed down his pace and then looked up a bit. He scrunched his eyebrows, thinking about the dinner and the girl he would meet.

I guess it’s not good to judge her when you didn’t meet her, Jaejoong thought. He glanced at the clock. It was six. Two hours before his mother would arrive at dinner. 

Aish, who cares, Jaejoong thought, shrugging the thought of the mysterious girl off. She’s just another girl who would fall in love with me because I look good. Besides, no one can replace Yoona from my heart.

After a few minutes of silence, Jaejoong got up immediately which caused his chair to fall backward. Changmin quickly looked up with wide eyes.

“Jaejoong-ssi…”

“Aish! I hate Omonim for making me feel so guilty when I judge someone without knowing them!” Jaejoong shouted, ruffling his hair. He looked at Changmin, who looked shocked and scared. “You! Make sure you complete most of my documents by midnight. I have to go to dinner at eight.”

“B-But sir–”

“I don’t care if you can’t copy my signature perfectly, just sign the damn papers,” Jaejoong grumbled, putting his coat on. Changmin pressed his lips together for a moment, and then smiled.

“Yes sir, have a good dinner.”

“I better have a good dinner,” Jaejoong grumbled, walking out of his building.