Taeng let out an irritated sigh when he heard the other line go straight to voicemail for the nth time that night. He checked his text message to clarify the time her schedule ended. She was supposed to be done an hour ago. Taeng ran his fingers through his short but thick, brown locks.

Taeng understood that their relationship were to be kept down low. Not much knew about them except Jessica's company and a couple of his friends and family. He knew that SM was not fond of Jessica having a boyfriend but he didn't care. He loved her too much to not have her as his own. The company had no choice but to compromise with him. The compromise, however, did not fall in Taeng's favor, always having to fit into her busy schedule and not being able to have public dates. He’s been told countless times that having an idol as his girlfriend was going to be a challenge, especially when she was the main vocalist of Korea’s National Girl Group, but being the stubborn man he was, he didn’t listen. Love was definitely blinding.

His thoughts were pushed back when he felt the machine in this hand vibrate.

“Babe. Where are-” A fatigue voice interrupted him.

“Taeng, let’s cancel our date tonight. I’m very exhausted. The girls and I had a very rough day and I really don’t feel like going out.”

“Oh.” Silence took over the couple’s conversation. They were supposed to celebrate their 9-month anniversary tonight. He exhaled hot air out of his nose, letting his frustration out before speaking to his girlfriend. He knew better not to show his anger because being an idol was very tiring and Jessica’s health was first priority.

“Do you want me to pick you up and drive you home?” he spoke softly.

“I’m staying with the girl’s tonight. I have another schedule early tomorrow morning. I'm meeting with Blanc's new designers.”

“Oh…” Silence once again found its way into the couple’s conversation.

This time, the tired ice princess broke the silence. “I’m going to sleep now, Taengoo.” She let out a yawn; he was then greeted with a dial tone. Not even a good night was shared.

Another frustrated sigh was released. “Yeah..I love you, too…” He threw his phone on the table.

“I’m sorry Sir. But our restaurant will be closing in 15 minutes. If you could kindly order now, our chefs will have enough time to cook your meal.” a waitress informed him.

Taeng stared at his glass of water, not giving attention to the waitress. His thoughts were clustered just like his relationship.

“Sir?”

“Sir? Are you okay?” Taeng finally heard her say. He shook his head in hopes to get rid of his thoughts and fixed his attention to the waitress. “I’ll just order the special for today, to go.”

The waitress furrowed her eyebrows. She studied the young man in front of her, noticing how his mood was different from when he entered the restaurant. She could only nod, not wanting to assume anything and made her way to the back of the kitchen.

-

Taeng lifelessly entered his car. He immediately found his hands gripping the steering wheel tightly, fingers numb as blood was unable to travel through his tight grip. He loosened them once he noticed his knuckles turning white, only to beat the steering wheel with his fists.

An agitated roar harmonized with the horn of his car. It echoed within the parking structure, his scream an octave lower.

“She must really be worth the wait.” He re