♠ FIFTEEN ♠ 

These past few days, the Lee household was in a state of more hustle and bustle than usual: Hoya’s birthday preparations were underway. After much of his older brother's pestering, Sungyeol finally decided to let him in on the plan because Hoya was never a big fan of surprises anyway. In the end, it turned out that Hoya was mobilizing their plans for his own party faster and more efficiently than they were, which was a good thing, because that gave them much time to juggle school, business and their personal lives.

That didn't mean they were foregoing their birthday surprise for him on the actual day though. They had gotten him a customized soccer jersey signed personally by Christiano Ronaldo himself. How Sungyeol managed to procure it-- it'll forever remain a secret to the rest of them.


Jungyeop, his grandchildren, Sungjong and Dongwoo had all been seated by now at the dining table of the main Lee mansion for an afternoon coffee and tea break. Once everyone was indulged in their respective snacks and drinks, he carefully cleared his throat to catch everyone's attention. “Well, Sunggyu, your birthday is coming up exactly a month after Howon’s.”

“Yeah. April 28th,” Sunggyu nodded, missing the underlying intention that Jungyeop had in mind. His boss Woohyun was too caught up in his own thoughts as well to notice where this conversation was headed.

"Any plans, son?"

"None in particular. Usually we just have cake and a nice dinner with friends and that's it. It's really okay, Grandpa, I'm used to not having a fancy club party anyway." That was the truth. Also, it would bother Sunggyu's conscience if they threw a lavish birthday party for him. He was only Henry's stand-in after all. He didn't deserve such a grand celebration from people who weren't even blood-related to him.

The old man slowly nodded, deciding to tread on the topic he was about to bring up with more care. “Is that so? Then that would be perfect! Because I was thinking of having your introductory party on your birthday.”

Sunggyu's desert fork dropped to his plate with a loud clutter. Woohyun practically spat his coffee back into his glass, some dribbling down his chin, much to his seatmate Hoya’s disgust. “What?” he spluttered, getting up whilst wiping the spilt coffee off his chin. He wasn't the only one who stood up to protest. Of course, the one directly involved did too.

This was exactly the moment he had been dreading when he agreed to Woohyun's plan. He didn't want to be locked down for good into something that he wasn't and live a lifelong lie of pretending to be part of the Lee family. "Isn't that a bit too sudden?" Sunggyu tried weakly.

"If you're worried about the preparations, it can be done. I shall personally see to it myself."

"I don't think I can... well, it's too much, and--"

“Why not? I want the whole world to know that my precious grandson has finally been found and is home with our family!"

"Well I'm not comfortable with the idea of the whole world knowing-- does everyone need to take a day out of their busy schedules just to be informed about that?"

"Sunggyu, it's an exaggeration. Our family has received so much joy and blessings this year, it's only right for us to share it with our family's friends and associates. It's a once-in-a-lifetime thing-- the money will always come and go, but this doesn't."

Hoya shifted uncomfortably in his seat and Sungyeol had his mouth agape as they watched Sunggyu simmer to a slow boil. Dongwoo worriedly observed the back and forth rally between the two. Knowing his hyung so well, Sungjong began signalling to Woohyun that Sunggyu's patience was wearing thin. Getting the hint as well, the Nam heir attempted to intervene before this conversation got completely out of hand, but he was too late.

Sunggyu finally snapped.

"Look, I don't want it, alright?!?"

Even Jungyeop was taken aback by his sudden outburst. Sunggyu pursued on his point, his fists clenched.

"Right now, there are no words that can fully express how thankful I really am for everything you've done for me. I've never asked for anything, I've never made any demands yet you still continue to make sure I'm okay and comfortable. It's hard for me because I've been used to working hard for things on my own-- I just need more time to take in all of this. Can't I at least have my way, just this once?"


Everyone held their breaths to the conclusion of this unusual situation in the household. This was the first time in a long while that anyone had stood up in blatant protest to Lee Jungyeop, the last person being Lee Jinki, coincidentally. The look on Seulbi's face was somewhere between shock and awe at what he had just done. He didn't even want to look Nam Woohyun in the face, lest he ended up punching the guy for putting him in such a distressful hole.

"Sorry, may I be excused?” Sunggyu finally announced, unable to take the scrutiny. Sunggyu didn’t even wait for a reply and stood up to leave before he could manage to say harsher words and slip up in the process. Out of his frustration, he was really close to blowing up and revealing their secret deal with Woohyun to the rest of the household. Right now, he couldn’t care less if he went to jail for it. He just wanted out! They could only watch as he angrily stormed off and out of sight.

“I--I can go check on him,” Dongwoo offered.

“Give him time to cool off,” Sungjong declined, shaking his head. “Hyung isn’t the most sociable person in the world when he’s fuming. He’s the type to keep things to himself and walk it off on his own.”

The disappointment on Jungyeop's face was clear and it was unsettling to those who were present. Woohyun cleared his throat, deciding to step in for his hired employee. “Abeonim, I don’t think hyung meant to snap at you. If we'd take a look at this from his point of view, it's overwhelming to take in at one time-- a family, a high social status, a good future, and a big responsibility such as Woollim. With all due respect to his and your wishes, I think we should wait until Sunggyu-hyung is fully prepared to willingly carry the Lee family name and the Woollim name.”

"But when else? When else, my son?" Jungyeop's main concern was that he might not have much time left to celebrate it with his long-lost grandson due to his ailing condition.

“We can have it on my 21st birthday. I don’t mind sharing the limelight with Sunggyu. We can have a grander celebration then,” Seulbi suggested. “Two years should be enough time for him to ready himself and to fully think it over. Or it's really just as Woohyun says, abeonim. I don't think he'll be be happy if we impose on him. Give him awhile, okay?”

Despite encouraging words from the two, the rest of the meal was continued in dreadful silence.


Later that night, Sunggyu slowly stuck his head out of his room. After checking that the hallways were void of people, he slipped through the crack of his bedroom door, attempting a mad dash for the main entrance, unseen by the public eye. Unfortunately for him, he just had to run into Seulbi who was making her way upstairs. He attempted to saunter back into his room but Seulbi had already seen him sneaking out outright. Instead of turning to the left wing where her room was located, she made a sharp turn to the right, intercepting Sunggyu as he tried to walk it off.

"Look, I'm not in the mood for this. Move, I'm in a hurry," Sunggyu excused, but Seulbi was persistent, downright blocking his way once again after he had walked a few steps forward.

“If you have plans of running away from home, sorry, but I can't let you do that."

Seulbi's words had him stumped. How on earth had she reached such a mundane conclusion? Sunggyu tried to look at it from an outsider's point of view: he had just come from an argument with Lee Jungyeop and he was sneaking around the house in a hoodie and a snapback, lugging a full backpack around. Of course anyone was going to assume that he was indeed running away from home. 

“This isn't what it looks like, I swear," Sunggyu explained. "Byunghyun called, he said he really needed extra hands at the bar for an event happening tonight. I was going to go and help him.”

"Oh. Err... sorry."

With that, she stepped back and had no qualms in letting him pass through this time. Sunggyu did a double take just to make sure he wasn't imagining things, but she had even shooed him away with her hands, urging him to hurry.


Seeing that there were no urgent schedules for the day, most of the family drivers were allowed to get off from work early to be with their families. Despite his urgency, he didn't have it in him to suddenly impose on them to drive him to Hongdae. Dongwoo had already gone home, and there was no way he was going to face Woohyun. If he hadn't been so meddlesome by sticking his nose into their business, he would have gotten out of this by now and they wouldn't be having this problem.

There was no other choice but to flag a cab from the main guardhouse, which he had to walk all the way to. Minutes later, a black sedan pulled up next to him. The windows rolled down to reveal one Lee Seulbi behind the wheel.

"This is stupid," he automatically declined before she could even say anything to him.

"Didn't you say you were in a hurry? It's faster this way. Get in. I'll drive you there."

"Pssh whatever, kid."

"If you're not giving me a clear answer after this, I'm going to turn the car around. You're not going to make it to the guard house anyway. Your call, ahjussi."

Grumbling, Sunggyu adjusted his backpack slung over his right shoulder and clambered into the passenger seat, deciding to take up on her offer. 


The drive had been particularly pleasant despite Sunggyu sulking part of the way to the city. As they drove past Incheon bridge on their way to Seoul, his mood had lightened considerably as he interested himself with the different coloured LED beams that brought more grandeur to the bridge come nighttime. Seulbi could only shake her head in amusement-- what was with him and his fascination for lights?

Finally, they were nearing their destination. Seulbi slowly pulled over as they approached the bar Sunggyu had previously worked at, speaking up. “Around what time do you think you’ll be done? Do you need me to pick you up here or at your friend’s house?”

Bothered by the fact that he was being babied. “What are you, my mother? First you insist on sending me off, then you were so naggy about the seatbelt, and now you're setting a curfew?”

Despite the prissy response, she decided to take it calmly and maturely, not wanting to start an additional round of arguments. "You're rather hot-headed today, for some reason. How are you getting home then?"

"Cab."

"Do as you wish. Just message me your plate number--" Seulbi began, but immediately faltered once she felt him glaring at her again. "Fine. I'm not going to care if you come home late."

Seeing that was settled, Sunggyu pulled the door latch. "Don't wait up."

"Who said I was going to?"

With a deadpanned look, she leaned over to pull the passenger door shut, gassing hard on the pedal to prove her point. She drove a few meters forward down the street where she could make a proper U-turn. As she cruised by the bar once again, Sunggyu was already nowhere in sight. But more importantly, it was that night's line-up that caught her eye.

Tonight, LIVE!
Strawberry Fields
N.I.T
EYE CANDY
You Are My Oppa!
 

<<<< >>>>

Sunggyu barely managed to squeeze into the place due to the sheer number of people lining up outside the place. No wonder Byunghyun had sounded so desperate for help. The place was already jam-packed this early on. Lee Byunghyun, Yoo Changhyun-- or Ricky-- from the alternate shift, and the new guy Choi Changjo were already busy running from the washer's area, to the back alley, to the freezer and whatnot.

"Yah, you said you needed my help?" he announced to signify his presence. "Where do I start?"

Byunghyun couldn't be any happier to see him there. "Thank God you made it! I owe you a whole case of beer for this one, man," he grinned.

"I'm hurt. Just that for extra hours of my time in exchange for labor? Too cheap, Byungie," Sunggyu huffed took off his cap and ped his hoodie, hastily folding it in his arms.

"Still so greedy!" his former co-worker chuckled. "Hey. Did I disrupt you on your date or something?"

"Bull. What made you think that?"

"You're looking rather dapper."

Sunggyu looked down to see that he was still wearing a white long-sleeved polo and some gray slacks. True enough, he had not managed to get out of his 'Henry garb', as he so despisingly labeled it, slipping on a hoodie and snapback once he had received Byunghyun's text message for help. Shaking his head, Sunggyu only chucked his hoodie into the guy's face. "Yah, you're misreading things. I came straight here from my new job. No more talking and hand me an apron. Do you need my help or not?"

Needless to say, Sunggyu never thought he'd actually miss working his off like this for a bunch of extra thousand won.

Byunghyun gave him a quick rundown of that night's event while he settled into the pace of helping out with the drink stocks and the glasses for the mobile bar. Four bands were set to play that night. Nothing about that was unusual to Sunggyu, because, hello, this was Hongdae, and once a month 'Sound Day' was held for musicians from the indie scene. However, they weren't expecting this massive of a turnout at all. The staff felt extremely overwhelmed that Byunghyun had no choice but to import a few trusted friends to help out, even for a bit.

Seeing that there was still much to do, Sunggyu. decided to cut the chitchat for the mean time and get to work. "Could you move this empty crate out the back please?" Byunghyun requested.

"Sure."

With the crate in his hands, he was just about to open the backdoor to the kitchen when it already burst open for him.

“Oh. Hey there."

Sunggyu almost dropped the wooden crate onto his toes, a silent scream plastered on his face. He was so close to having a heart attack after Lee Seulbi suddenly popped up from out of nowhere. “YOU?!? HOW DID YOU GET IN HERE?” he screeched at her. "YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED IN HERE!"

Seulbi pointed nonchalantly to her left. “The back gate was open. You should have it closed down before some people even attempt to sneak in from back there.”

He was having none of it. “Why are you here? You're supposed to be on the way home!"

"Relax. I didn't come here to babysit you--"

"You have ten seconds to get your home this instant, young lady or--or-- I'm calling Woohyun!"

Seulbi brushed past him, unfazed by his threats. "Oooh, I'm so scared."

"YAH! GET BACK HERE!!"

Byunghyun was pleasantly surprised to see Ms. Woollim there in the premises. He was curious to know if they did get together after the whole encounter back then. "Don't be rude, Gyubear," he teased. "Aren't you going to introduce your friend?"

Sunggyu didn't even have to do it for her. The ever respectful one due to her social breeding, Seulbi gave her usual polite bow, her default Woollim heiress mode kicking back in action. “Good evening, I'm Lee Seulbi."

Ricky immediately extended his hand, which Seulbi politely shook. "Hi, I'm Yoo Changhyun, you can call me yours... I mean, Ricky."

"I'm Chai Chongjo-- uh, Jo Choichang, no--," the new guy mumbled, seeming a bit starstruck. "Choi Changjo! Gosh, you're pretty."

"Lee Byunghyun. We already met, but it's nice to get reacquainted!"

"Yeah, I remember you from back then," she murmured and that was enough for Byunghyun, who ended up grinning, grateful that she was still familiar with him. "Thank you for taking care of my cousin during his duration of work here."

"Sunggyu? Nah, don't mention it! He's such a handful, your cousin--" Wait. Cousin? Byunghyun's jaw dropped open. All this time, he had been assuming that she was Sunggyu's girlfriend. He knew that she was one of the inheritors to Woollim too. So that practically made Sunggyu...

"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND? YOU? WOOLLIM? YOU'RE PRACTICALLY--- YAH!!!"

"Shh! Please, shh!" Sunggyu tried to ease. He had to shut this guy up before word got to several more people. He was lucky that both Ricky and Changjo were too busy staring dreamily at Seulbi to even comprehend their co-worker's yelling.

"IF YOUR GRANDFATHER FINDS OUT I'VE FORCED YOU INTO MANUAL LABOR, HE'LL HAVE ME BLACKLISTED ACROSS THE CONTINENT, YOU CRAZY SCUMBAG!"

"Byunghyun, shut up, get over it and get to work! I'll explain after we finish emptying those cases, I swear!"

The guy gave him one judgmental look before he ushered his two companions back to work. Meanwhile, Sunggyu gave Seulbi the crossest glare he could muster, and she only replied with a light shrug, unable to see what she did wrong. As promised, Sunggyu told Byunghyun the shortcut version of how he became Henry Lau of the Woollim group of companies. After the guy's initial outburst, he seemed to be taking it in pretty calmly. Sunggyu had pleaded with him for the nth amount of time with Byunghyun not to let the information leak out.

"He's right. Please keep this a secret for us," Seulbi requested as well. "It could put Sunggyu in danger, that's why we're careful about who we're relaying this information to."

"If it's you, how could anyone say no?" Byunghyun grinned. "I swear to protect it on my honor, princess."

Sunggyu scoffed at the sheer amount of grease in that statement. Now that that agenda was over, he had one more thing to address before finally getting back to work. "I'm not through with you yet," he called Seulbi out before she could even think of sneaking away unscathed from his wrath. "Why are you here?"

"I already told you. I'm not here to babysit you."

"Oh really? If you were here to see the show, then why couldn't you come through the front door like a normal person?"

"Because I couldn't with the number of people plugging up the entrance, doy~?"

She had a point. "Speaking of which, the crowd's surprisingly large tonight. Is this because manager-hyung finally managed to snag 'You Are My Oppa' for the main act?" Sunggyu asked, turning to his colleague.

"While going around, I've managed to snoop around on information. It's Eye Candy's crowd," Byunghyun replied. "They're actually overshadowing the main act, it's amazing."

"What's with the big hype?"

"Beats me, really."

Seulbi looked eager to participate in their current conversation. "So it's really them. Is this their first time playing here?"

"Well, they've been playing gigs here every once in awhile but they've never been this sought for! They started out as a..."

"... highschool band from Duksoo," Seulbi politely filled in.

"Yeah. They used to join local music festivals back in that time, and everyone thought they were really cool, being able to balance their studies and music like that. The girls from the neighboring schools would always take a sidetrip to their school, hoping to catch a glimpse of them. I would know, our high school is Duksoo's neighbor. They were really popular back then! They could have been an actual idol band; they were doing really well, but their music stint ended so suddenly."

"Their leader and frontman's father passed away and he had to step in and earn the bread for his family," Seulbi added knowingly. "Their lead guitarist decided to pursue his studies elsewhere."

"Are you a fan? Is this why you're here?" Sunggyu asked increduously. Though he knew by now not to question Seulbi's taste in music, it still surprised him that she knew so much about a band who was from the indie scene, down to the last detail of it. Seulbi didn't say anything in response and quietly kept to herself. Sunggyu had already heard of them before when they started getting popular. He's also seen a few of their recent gigs the year he started working here at Hongdae and he had to admit despite their cheesy name, the indie band sounded pretty good.

Though nothing could topple "Beat", in his honest opinion. He had his pride too.

<<<< >>>>

Everything went smoothly thereafter because the Hongdae busboys were so inspired by her presence there. Seulbi had offered to help out, feeling guilty for bypassing entrance fees but the Ricky and Changjo wouldn't let her, instead giving her the VIP treatment complete with complementary orange juice. ('How'll she ever learn anything if you spoil her like that?' Sunggyu argued). The demand for glasses, ice, and alcohol were dwindling down as the people indulged into the music. It came to the point that Byunghyun and the rest could handle the task without Sunggyu's help, and so he decided to let his friend off earlier. Perfect timing too-- Eye Candy was up after this last song.

"Come on, Seulbi," Sunggyu ushered as he slipped his snapback and hoodie on. "We'll watch this one before heading home."

"No, it's fine! I--I think I'll watch from here," Seulbi squeaked, refusing to budge from the kitchen.

"Nonsense, you can't see anything from here. We can head up in front if you want; there's a shortcut that takes us directly to that fire exit door close to the stage area."

"You go do that. I'll stay here."

He wasn't going to take no for an answer. Despite Sunggyu's attempts to drag or shove the girl out towards the crowd, she remained perfectly rooted to her spot. By now, it had turned into a mini game of tug-of-war between the two of them, with Seulbi childishly gripping as hard as she could at the door frame, planting one foot on the opposite side to keep herself stable. "WHAT. IS. WRONG. WITH. YOU. ALL OF A. SUDDEN?" Sunggyu screeched at her, punctuating each break with a good pull at her free arm.

"Sunggyu, let go! Leave me alone!"

"You have a crush on the frontman, don't you?" Sunggyu teased, raising his eyebrows in playful jest. "Ah, maybe it's the lead guitarist!"

"I want to stay here!"

"What did you come here for then?"

Seulbi was being surprisingly difficult today, more panicky in contrast to her usually calm demeanor that it was so unlike her. It took a little while, but Sunggyu managed to finally pry the heiress off with one sharp tug. Seulbi felt the wind get knocked out of her as she slammed into his back due to the force. The crowd around them was starting to get on their feet as the brief introductions were made.

Without further ado folks, EYE CANDY!

"Shit." Seulbi squeaked, quickly turning away, her back now to Sunggyu's and to the stage.

"Lee Seulbi, what is with you?" Sunggyu hissed at her, but it went unheard. The stage lights shone on just as the opening drum solo boomed through the venue, accompanied the loud cheers of their fans and all who came to see tonight's gig.

[Shut Up Flower Boy Band - Lee Minki - Not In Love]

Sunggyu had to pinch himself thrice to make sure he wasn't seeing things.

"Ah, I should have guessed. No wonder it got crazier today. L's back," Byunghyun hummed as he stood right beside them. He stayed for a few more seconds to watch before tending back to his job. But that was enough to knock Sunggyu back into a state of reality-- this was really happening, it wasn't an illusion.

L Kim was the lead guitarist for Eye Candy.

Despite being positioned over at the far right hand corner of the stage, he still stood out due to his strikingly good looks. That brown leather jacket he had on only enhanced that bad boy appeal of his. Everyone screamed in giddiness everytime he did some fancy razzmatazz on his electric guitar. He wasn't just there to be the band's official mascot. He practically killed it with each and every note with every guitar riff. Sunggyu had to hand it to him; the guy had superb skills.

"You knew?" he asked her. He didn't even need a concrete reply. Why else would she know so much about them? Seulbi continued to stand back-to-back with him, unable to bring herself to face the stage, even after the first and second songs were over. It must have been uncomfortable for her, and Sunggyu realized how insensitive he was being by forcing her to be out here. "Do you want to go back?"

"I'm okay. We're already out here, let's just stay like this for awhile. I want to listen," she told him. Sunggyu could only nod numbly in agreement, not wanting to impose on her.

Two-thirds through the whole setlist, Seulbi finally mustered enough courage to peer out from Sunggyu's shoulder and take a look at the stage. He wasn't grinning from ear to ear like his bandmates were but she knew this was the happiest that Myungsoo had ever been since coming home to South Korea, and that made her feel much more at peace. There were more or less 300 faces in here, doubling the capacity of the place, and she was somewhat at the back area. What were the odds that he would manage to single her out?

Feeling a bit more reassured because of that, she finally decided to step out of Sunggyu's shadow, holding her own little spot not too far behind him. But at that moment, when Myungsoo looked up after rallying one of his guitar solos, his line of sight coincidentally landed towards her direction.

It was brief, but their gazes met. She could tell, because the way his eyes widened in surprise perfectly mirrored hers.

Her first instinct was to run away from all of this. It was stupid of her to come here. Before she knew it, her feet began moving on their own, trying to get away as quickly as possible, her hands pushing things away as she tried to escape the great sea of people. Her ears droned out several loud complaints, her lungs refused to cooperate and her senses were starting to shut down.

Meanwhile, the loss of warmth behind him caught Sunggyu's attention. "Hey, are you still breathing back there? Seulbi?"

Still no response was heard from her despite him nearly shouting over the music. It dawned on him that the heiress was already missing from his side. He tried to scan around for any signs of where she might have gone, but the crowd was too thick to give him a good vantage point. There was some movement stirring a good distance from his back. Someone was trying to counterflow the direction of the crowd-- Lee Seulbi was bulldozing her way towards the main exit. Panicked, he tried to go after her, only for his attempt to be resisted by the impatient crowd.

Even with much difficulty, Seulbi managed to exit the venue. A group of men had made blatant cat calls at her but she ignored it and rushed passed them, making her way to where she had parked the family sedan.

She had been unaware that a stranger began following her the moment she had stormed out of the bar, not until she had made a couple of turns with the guy suspiciously still tailing behind her. Seulbi shrugged the thought out of her brain, leaving it to doubt as she continued on her way.



Sunggyu cursed at his rotten luck as she ran off. If anything happened to his precious baby cousin, Nam Woohyun was going to make sure he was never going to live to see the next day.

Gritting his teeth, he decided to force his way back towards the kitchen, bolting out without even paying head to Byunghyun and the guys, who were calling after him, wondering what was wrong. By the time he had gotten to the road at the entrance of the bar, the girl was nowhere in sight. Sunggyu began craning his neck for any signs of where Seulbi might have gone. Ruffling his hair in his frustration, he decided to run off into the direction his gut feeling was leaning towards.



Her gut feeling from earlier was right. By now, the heiress could ascertain that she was indeed being followed by this sinister man in a trenchcoat-- everywhere she turned, he followed. If she pushed through with her plan of heading back to the car, it could spell trouble for her. That could give him a clean get away after whatever misdeed he had been planning.

It was simple. Right now, all she needed to do was to stay calm, be alert and get to a main road where it was open and public with several possible witnesses. Except that Hongdae wasn't a place that she was very familiar with. Myeongdong, Agpujeong and Cheongdam in Gangnam, yes, but not Hongdae. Her next best plan of action was to casually call someone, while subtly explaining her need for help. As long as there was a witness, then she had a higher probability of saying safe from harm. Quickly, she took out her phone to dial up Sunggyu.

The number you have dialled cannot be reached right now. Please try your call later.

Of all the times his phone couldn't be reached, it had to be now. She repeated dialling several times only to get the same automated answer prompt. "Kim Sunggyu, who on earth could you possibly be talking to at this time?" the heiress hissed to herself. "Pick up already!"

All this she did while carefully taking note of the landmarks and constantly walking in better lit areas, keeping left every time she had to make a decision at a road fork. She could tell that the person following her had some inkling that she had been going in circles, for he had picked up his pace and began closing in on her. The douchebag also began whistling-- whether it was a signal to some other accomplices or a psychological thing to intimidate her, it sent chills up and down her spine.

Now he was six arm widths behind her. Five. Four...

“LEE SEULBI!”

Seulbi looked ahead to the distance at sound of her name. Finally, the main road was just in sight, a good few meters ahead. Her knight in shining armor looked like he had just ran a whole 10-kilometer marathon to get there. Even with the brim of his cap casting a shadow on part of his face, she was still able to tell it was him. Not thinking of anything coherent at that moment, she let his name slip unconsciously from her lips.

"... Myungsoo."



It was as if everything else around her froze in time. Seulbi was in a complete daze as Kim Myungsoo raced down the street to meet up with her. Her bottom lip quivered, but she managed to call out to him again, "Myungsoo, you--"

Seulbi was unable to finish her sentence. A pair of strong, familiar arms wrapped around her, teling her she was safe from harm. Feeling conscious about the sudden proximity, Seulbi tried to move away but he held her even closer. Despite his external icy appearance, he still smelled like talc and the ocean and summer, sending a wave of nostalgia rushing over her. She could feel the deep heaving of his chest, his heart thudding against his rib cage. Seulbi could only clench onto the hem of his leather jacket, hesitant to return the gesture of affection.

“Sorry,” Myungsoo apologised in between heavy pants and gasps for air, exhausted from running around. “I shouldn’t have let you walk off like that— it was stupid and irresponsible of me. I’m so sorry we fought. I’m here to make up for it now.”

She tried to speak but no words would come out and they stayed that way for a couple more seconds. Feeling the presence that had been following her saunter and disappear off into the nearest alley, Seulbi cleared . "You can... umm... you can let go now."

"You're not hurt anywhere? Are you alright?" Myungsoo asked as he pulled away to respect her wishes.

"Yes."

"Let's get you home," he announced, a boyish dimpled smile gracing his fine features. "Where's Shimgoon?"

“I didn’t come here with Shimgoon. But the car's parked by an empty lot near APM mall."

He nodded once to signify that he understood, reached out and gently took her hand, leading her towards the main road. His fingers were still as rough and calloused as she remembered them to be. Seulbi found herself staring at his back, unable to peel her eyes away-- this felt too surreal to be even true. Myungsoo slowed down his pace considerably and they continued on their wordless stroll down Hongdae that spring evening, shoulders brushing against the other's as they walked side by side.

The moment they had gotten into the car and she had shut her door, Myungsoo's smile dropped, replaced by his usual stony, cold glare. His words sounded gritty, cross. “Are you out of your mind? Do you have any idea what time it is? You know it's not safe for a girl to be walking alone in dark alleys at night. What were you even thinking, coming here to Hongdae? What if I didn't arrive on time?"

Seulbi refused to answer that, slightly dissapointed at herself for keeping her hopes up when she knew that it had all been an act to throw off her pursuer. Also she never liked being barraged with questions when she was being scolded, because it only made her want to clam up even more.

But Myungsoo, acknowledging that he had been too harsh on someone who had gone through something traumatizing, softened his tone considerably after seeing her cringe. "Are you really sure you're okay?"

"I'm fine."

Myungsoo shot her a side glance. Despite her tone sounding relatively calm and fine, she was clenching her fists tightly, telling him that she was still shaken from that near encounter. "Your lying skills are still horrendous, I see."

"Hey!"

Despite the jab, he didn't say anything more about it and started the car. In no time, they had drove around the venue, opting to enter from the back instead. From outside, they could hear You Are My Oppa! bringing the house down with their music. How they managed to garner so much fans with a super greasy bandname such as that was a mystery.

Myungsoo pulled over within walking distance of the back alley and got out of the car. Seulbi was quick got out to follow before he could even contemplate on hopping over the fence with the use of a dumpster. "Why did you come after me?" the heiress finally asked.

"Byunghee's going to have my kicked," Myungsoo groaned to himself, blatantly avoiding her question. He had run out before their last song, leaving his bandmates to cover for him. The only thing he managed to snag on his way out was his cap.

Typical of him to ignore anything that made him uncomfortable. "My condolences. I'll send a flower wreath to Jeguk, don't worry," Seulbi replied, crossing her arms. 

"Here."

The next thing she knew, he was already fitting his cap onto her head. "To ward off harmful people. If you get hurt, it'll be an annoying mess-- it's my head that Nam-pabo will be after if you get into trouble." His tone was still so careful and considerate when he spoke to her. "Next time, don't come looking for me. I already told you I don't want to have anything to do with you anymore."

"I... uhh... didn't come here because I was looking for you."

Myungsoo was looking at her with an amused smirk on his face. "Really."

"I'm here because of..."

"YAH, LEE SEULBI!"

That sharp tone of his cut through the night air, making her cringe. "... Sunggyu," Seulbi finished with an audible groan.

Kim Sunggyu was definitely out for blood. His small eyes were wide as was allowed, his nostrils were flaring, and she could almost swear she was seeing smoke from his ears. He looked like an angry bull, ready to charge. Seulbi turned to signal to Myungsoo to book it out of there before her cousin saw him, but he had already slipped into the back entrance. "Condolences," he mouthed in jest, perfectly throwing back what she had with earlier before disappearing into the darkness, leaving her stumped and on her own to face her cousin's wrath.

The boys in her life were such gentlemen.

“What the heck, Lee Seulbi? Of all the times for your phone to be busy-- who were you calling in the first place?” Sunggyu complained, a deep frown very evident on his face. No wonder why he hadn't been picking up. They had been dialling each other's numbers simultaneously the whole time.

She couldn't even keep a straight face on. "Woohyun?"

"Sure, 'Woohyun'," he repeated, adding bunny ears to quote her cousin's name. "Why did you suddenly run off? Where have you been all this time?"

“I… uhh, went to get the car. Where I parked had a cut off time,” Seulbi answered with awkward pointing which only raised Sunggyu's suspicion. Her tone was awkward too, even the way she was leaning against it looked rather forced.

"Uh-huh, really now. Has anyone ever told you that you are a terrible liar?"

Yes, approximately five minutes ago. I get it, I . Seulbi wanted to snap. "Sure. Doubt me all you want, but the point is, the car's here and it's time to go home. Knowing abeonim, he's still up by this time, waiting for us worriedly. I think you have some apologizing to do."

That made Sunggyu feel a whole lot guilty. He had to carve it into his head that to them, he was Henry and not plain, regular Kim Sunggyu. "About that... I might need your help."

"Way ahead of you," Seulbi replied with a small smile. "We can stop by at nearest desert cafe. But before we go, can I say goodbye to Byunghyun and the rest?" Sunggyu consented to her request, wanting to do the same as well. “What’s with the hat?”

"How about we play the quiet game? First one to start talking loses, starting... now!"

"I'm serious, what's with the hat?"

"I now see why Sungjong thinks you're an occasional idiot."

<<<< >>>>

True to Seulbi's speculations, Jungyeop was indeed waiting for them to come home despite constant urging from his three grandsons to call it a night. He situated himself by the welcoming area, waiting for any signs of his grandchildren's arrival home. Once he had heard a car pulling up at the driveway, he rushed out to greet them with Woohyun, Sungyeol, Hoya, Dongwoo and Sungjong in tow. Seulbi handed the key over to one of their servants to park it at one of the garages of the compound.

With an orange cake box in his hands, Sunggyu bowed apologetically to the elder before handing the box over.

"What's this, son?"

"A peace offering. Err... Seulbi told me that your favorite was carrot cake," Sunggyu began, unable to look the elder in the eye. Suddenly, his shoelaces were the most interesting things in the world. "About earlier... I'm really sorry I hurt you. I've reflected on my actions-- it was really wrong and rude of me, and..."

Jungyeop's booming laughter echoed through the Lee mansion, offering a sense of comfort and warmth. "None of that now, let's put it behind us like grown men. I'm just glad you're home safely, Sunggyu," he grinned, clapping a hand onto the younger's shoulder, even ruffling his hair slightly. And just like that, the weird tension disappeared, much to everyone's joy.

"I've done a little reflecting as well, Sunggyu," Jungyeop continued as ushered them all into the house to share the cake. "That's why I've decided to respect your wishes, son. No introductory balls until you decide you're ready for it."

"Really?"

"I mean it!"

Over by the corner, Woohyun breathed a big sigh of relief that this problem of theirs had been deffered. It had been a really close shave, this one.

"Which is also why I've decided to call in an old friend of mine to help you ease into the adjustment of our lifestyle. Mrs. Im would be delighted to have you under her care for the weekends."

It was Hoya who made the normal situation seem awkward. He ended up snorting in laughter until Sungyeol slapped him in the shoulder. Hoya retorted with one of his own because Sungyeol was trying not to laugh as well. Woohyun looked like he was seriously going to have convulsions, Dongwoo was consoling him by patting on his shoulder, while Seulbi just looked... evil. Her expression gave off the impression that she was anticipating his impending doom, and that she was definitely getting herself front row seats for it, complete with a lazy boy chair and a bucket of freshly popped corn.

"Who's Mrs. Im?" Sunggyu voiced out.

"A handler, Sunggyu. You'll be learning about proper etiquette and conduct, family history, public speech, and the like. Your four younger cousins and Dongwoo have gone through this when they were younger and they had much fun going through it. What do you say?"

"That uhhh... sounds great!"

NOT. No wonder the four were acting weird! They were clearly laughing at his imminent misfortune. Sunggyu's scowl screamed 'NAM, WHAT IN TARNATION HAVE YOU GOTTEN ME INTO?'. Woohyun only glared back, silently telling him to put up with it because it would do him some good anyway. The better he played the part, the less suspicious everyone would get.

"Hyung. It'll be a cinch, don't worry," Sungyeol teased, playing with the older one, snagging the snapback and keeping it away from Sunggyu's reach. "You'll love it!"

"Don't miss us too much on the weekends," Hoya joined in.

"He really won't be. Mrs. Im agreed to the idea of you three joining to help your cousin out!" Jungyeop announced. "Dongwoo and Sungjong are welcome to join of course, though I highly encourage you two, especially Sungjong."

Even Sungjong looked a bit confused at the mess he was entering into. "Excuse me?"

The three looked at each other, giving each other silent screams in panic. Their time spent with her was memorable for the wrong kind of reasons-- she was hellish chaebol heir bootcamp incarnate and they'd really not go through that again. Seriously, they'd take anyone over Mrs. Im any day! Seulbi, on the otherhand, was grinning from ear to ear after hearing that she was getting away from this free and was this close to doing a happy dance to spite them. While they were still blubbering, seemingly at a loss for any coherent thought, Sunggyu haughtily swiped his hat back.

Cap.

Seulbi paled. She had left it in the car!

But that wasn't the problem here. The car was in the Nam's garage. And Woohyun would be using it tomorrow, and there was no way that he wouldn't recognize something that belonged to Kim Myungsoo. Once she was sure no one was looking, Seulbi slipped out quietly and sprinted for the said garage. 

"And our dear Seulbi shall begin receiving mentoring straight from Woollim's supervisors and financial advisors," Jungyeop announced once all the hullaballoo about the dreaded Mrs. Im had passed, only to find his granddaughter missing. "Seulbi?"

"Oh good God, not again! Where could she have run off to this time? I'm not going on a manhunt twice in one night," Sunggyu groaned, instantly slapping his hand over his mouth. Too late. Woohyun had overheard and was silently demanding for an explanation.


Meanwhile, Seulbi had made it to the garage in record time. Usually these cars were left unlocked, but with their respective keys deposited at the guard's station.

"CapCapCapCapCap," she chanted repeatedly as she shifted her way through their array of vehicles for the black sedan she had used earlier, and found it parked exactly where she had picked it up earlier. Quickly, she wrenched open the door, almost throwing herself into the back passenger seat just to grab Myungsoo's cap on the far end. On the way back, she attempted to fold it in hopes of concealing it but she had ran into Woohyun, Sungjong at his heels. The cousins had split up and spread out in search; the two of them thought she might have returned here and they were right.

"You disappeared so suddenly-- what do you have there?" Woohyun asked. Seulbi immediately slipped the cap behind her back, and despite that quick maneuver, it did not go unnoticed by Sungjong.

"Nothing important, really," Seulbi grinned back at her cousin guiltily.

"You wouldn't be running back for it though if it weren't important."

Knowing that she had been caught red handed, Seulbi had no choice but to show the cap she had been attempting to hide. "Ah, this is mine," Sungjong suddenly announced, surprising the two as he gently took it from the heiress hands. "I left it in this car on the ride back from school and I only remembered about it this evening, so I asked her to take it with her once she got back home."

Seulbi nodded in agreement to everything that he said, not sure about Sungjong's intention of helping her weasel her way out of this. "Yup, it almost completely slipped my mind. See, it's really nothing that important."

Woohyun bought their arguments with no more qualms and ushered the two back inside the Lee mansion, with Sungjong in possession of the cap that whole time during their mini-cake party. Later that night, when the household had dwindled down into slumber, Seulbi received a text message from Sungjong, asking her to meet him by the fountain.

By the time she got there, he was playing around with it, inspecting the head gear from time to time. "I hope I didn't disturb your sleep. Here," he said, extending his arm to hand it back to her the moment he saw her. Seulbi gave him a small nod of her thanks before taking it from him. "Before you leave, Seulbi, I hope you don't mind if I ask a few questions."

"Go ahead, shoot."

Seulbi had been mentally prepared for this, armed with adequate responses to his possible questions. For sure, he was going to ask about the cap's owner and why she had rushed back for it. Seulbi's alibi? Kim Jongwan from Nell. Sunggyu was going to about it once that lie got to him, but she'd take that any day rather than telling the truth.

"We all know you went with Sunggyu-hyung, but this... why do you have L-hyung's cap with you?" Sungjong asked calmly. He'd seen this hat before; it was the same one the guy had on when they were at the ramen stall. Despite the curious innocence in his question, Seulbi found herself at a loss for words, not anticipating this. Lee Sungjong's skills of observation and sense of intuition were amazing.

"L Kim and you. What are you?"

A/N: dundundunduuuun~ CLIFFHANGER! So let me throw Sungjong's question to you, dear readers. What's the deal between Myungsoo and Seulbi? Romeo and Juliet? Starbucks lovers? Vampires that sparkle in the sun? I'd like to know what you're thinking. Also, special appearances by Teen Top and yes, I own no rights over Eye Candy-- that solely belongs to Shut Up Flower Boy Band, which by the way our dear Myungsoo is in. If you haven't seen it, I advise that you check it out! :)

And TADAAAA! Poster is up! It's simple, but I hope you're digging it as much as I do! Love it or hate it, let me know too. All credits go to Paper Heart Graphic Shop!