It has already been almost three months since their vacation in Jeju Island. During the past months Nichkhun and Victoria were able to enjoy their time together as couple immensely. Although Nichkhun weren’t able to come to school as much as he used too, but whenever he had time he would always come to school to spend time with Victoria. Victoria was grateful for him because she could see that he was extremely busy with his work. For the past months Nichkhun had been all over the world. He had been in Japan several times to promote his old drama series, to shoot some CFs, held fan meeting. He also traveled to China and Taiwan to promote the drama there as well.

In addition to promoting his drama series, he also had numerous photo shoots for magazines and various products endorsements, some took place in Korea and some took place overseas. Victoria had gotten used to the fact that they would be in different countries and in different time zone by now. She was proud of her boyfriend, she was proud that he was able to receive much love from the public, but it did not lessen the aches she felt in her heart. She missed him terribly. She knew that this was part of the deal for being his girlfriend; to have to hide their relationship from the public, to spend the days away from each other on a different continent and to have to communicate through text messages most of the time. However, she was able to endure it all because she loved him dearly.

It was already in the middle of October when Nichkhun’s schedule overseas died down; Nichkhun would have a few days of rest before his busy schedule began again with the shooting of his new drama series and organizing a fan meeting, one which he hadn’t had in over 5 years. He was determined to take full advantage of the next few days of free time with Victoria as much as possible.

On the last Friday before the drama start shooting Nichkhun had told Victoria that after he had finished with the clothes fitting session earlier in the morning he would arrived at school around 1 PM to pick her up for lunch at La Caffe. He parked his car in the school parking lot waiting for Victoria to finish sending all the kids home. When all of her students were collected Victoria quickly got into the car and gave her boyfriend a kiss

“I missed you Khun~~ I missed you so much~~” said Victoria while wrapping her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek

“I missed you too honey….I’ve missed you so much” said Nichkhun while hugging her tight

“How was the clothes fitting today Khun? Did it go well? Do you have any pictures? I bet you looked great in it hehehe” asked Victoria smiling brightly

“It was…ok honey…it was good…the clothes look great” replied Nichkhun trying to look lively to match her energy

Victoria could sense that something was bothering him. There was a sense of nervousness in his voice and an uneasiness expression on his face.

“Are you ok Khun? You seem a little nervous….are you ok? Is something bothering you?” asked Victoria looking concerned and worried

“I’m just tired honey…I’m ok…sorry for making you worry” said Nichkhun smiling encouragingly at his girlfriend

“Are you sure Khun? Honey if there’s anything bothering you, you could tell me you know that right?” said Victoria looking deep into his eyes and reached out to caress his cheek

He grabbed her hand, smile brightly at her and said

“Of course I know that honey…I’m really ok, just a little bit tired that’s all. I’ll be ok. Come on let’s get going shall we? The others are probably waiting for us already” said Nichkhun cheerfully and began to take off from the school

Victoria didn’t know what the make of it. She still felt that something was bothering him, but she was willing to accept his reason of being tired as the cause of it because she didn’t want to force him to talk to her. She dismissed the feeling and told herself that he was probably just tired and didn’t want to make her worry

When they arrived at La Caffe all of their friends were already there. Nichkhun fell right at home again. The uneasiness in his eyes was gone and he became the same dorky Nichkhun that Victoria knew. She was relieved to see him back to his normal dorky self. After lunch Nichkhun and Victoria headed back home to spend the rest of the evening together. It had been a long time since Nichkhun had stepped foot inside her home because he had been extremely busy with his work. Upon entering her home, Nichkhun felt at ease and at peace again. He loved her house, ever since the first time that he stepped inside on the day that they came back from Jeju Island

Victoria’s house was a small 2 stories house on the outskirt of Seoul. Upon entering the front gate there was a small, but nicely kept lawn on the right with a medium size Japanese chestnut tree with an old wooden swing hanging from the branch and a wooden bench sitting not far from it. Nichkhun could picture her parents sitting on the wooden bench looking over as young Victoria enjoyed herself on the wooden swing. Next to it was a small rectangular plot with shrubs of white hibiscus, Jeffersonia Dubai and Iris odaesanensis planted. Nichkhun could still remember how beautiful it was when the flowers were blooming. He could still remember purplish Jeffersonia Dubai and white snowflake shape Iris odaesanensis bloomed the last time he was here.

Inside the house on the first floor was an open space that divided into two functions. On the right hand side was the family room that had a big navy blue plush sofa sitting next to the windows with white shutters that looked out on to the lawn. There were several potted plants placed on the window sills and a couple of large bean bags spread on the floor. Opposite the sofa was the television set and hanging above it on a light blue wall was a family portrait of young Victoria smiling brightly in the middle with her arms wrapped around her parents. Next to the television set was a small wooden mantle with lots of family picture frames on it. On the left side wall was a small book shelf packed with different kinds of books. On the left side of the house was the family kitchen and a dining area.

It wasn’t a fancy house by any means. The decorations and furniture were simple but tasteful, but what made Nichkhun fell in love with this house was because he could actually feel the loving memories that Victoria shared with her parents. This is the house that she grew up in, this is the sofa that she spent her days watching drama series, this is the kitchen where she spent her time cooking and sharing meals with her parents. Outside in the lawn was where young Victoria spent her summer days swinging under the chestnut tree. This is the house where she built her memories.

 “Welcome to my humble home” said Victoria smiling to Nichkhun upon entering the house

“It’s the loveliest home honey….I loved it here ever since the first time because this is where my Victoria grew up” said Nichkhun in all honesty while smiling and looking into her eyes

Victoria and Nichkhun spent the rest of the day at her home. When it was time for dinner Victoria went inside the kitchen and cooked dinner while Nichkhun sat at the dining table watching Victoria prepared it with love and adoration in his eyes. He turned towards Erummie who was sitting right next to him and said

“Look Erummie…look at our Victoria…isn’t she the best? She’s pretty, she’s kind and she can cook too!!” said Nichkhun trying to find an accomplice to show his girlfriend off even if that accomplice happened to be a dog was still good enough for him

“Woof woof!!” replied Erummie enthusiastically

Erummie POV

“Of course she’s the best!!!! My Victoria is the best!!!”

Victoria couldn’t help but laugh at her boyfriend’s cheesiness.

“Ok finished! Let’s eat. Sorry I didn’t have anything much left in the fridge. I could only make kimchi chigae and fried rice” said Victoria looking apologetic to her boyfriend

“It’s ok honey….as long as you made it, it’s good enough for me” said Nichkhun reaching out and hold her hand to comfort her

After dinner they moved to the living room where Victoria the television and began to watch her favorite drama series. It was amusing to Nichkhun the way Victoria was so passionate about the drama series. Whenever the villain came out she would start pouting and sticking her tongue out to the villain on the television, or during the love scene she would started giggling and smiling at what was going on in the drama. It was completely adorable to Nichkhun to witness. She was as open as a book.

“Who is your favorite actor?” Nichkhun asked suddenly

“Sung Seung Hun-sshi !!” Victoria immediately answered with dreamy eyes

“What?? You supposed to say me isn’t it??” pouted Nichkhun

“It’s different, I like him as an artist, but I love you as a man Khun” said Victoria looking into his eyes

“I love you too….I love you very much” answered Nichkhun smiling brightly

“You love me very much huh??....How much??....Ummm what if I get sick and needed a liver transplant would you give up your liver for me?” asked Victoria smiling and looking at her boyfriend with her big eyes

“You already have my heart and now you want my liver too?!!?” said Nichkhun loudly with his eyes bulging and pretending to be shocked at what his girlfriend is asking of him

“Kekeke…..yes, I want every part of you Khun” said Victoria looking into his eyes

“Ok, ok, ok….you can have everything…my heart, liver, spleen, lungs anything you want honey…I’m all yours” said Nichkhun and leaned in and kissed her deeply

After the drama series ended and it was time to sleep they proceeded up to the second floor of the house. Victoria’s bedroom was on the right hand side while her parent’s bedroom was on the left.

Upon entering the room Nichkhun could see a white big plush queen size bed in the middle of the room. Next to the bed on the right was a little night stand and a white Victorian style vanity set. The white closet was situated right next to the bathroom entrance on the right. Opposite the bed in the corner of the room next to the windows was a small work table and adorned on the wall next to the table were several different sizes of picture frames on it. Nichkhun walked over and began examined those pictures on the wall. There was a picture of young Victoria with a braided hair laughing on her swing, another picture of Victoria in her high school uniform smiling brightly at the camera and a candid picture of Victoria Luna and Krystal in their college year smiling and laughing together.

“It’s perfect honey” said Nichkhun with a big eyes and turned towards Victoria

“It’s not…it’s just an old house” said Victoria smiling and refuting his statement

“It’s not about the size of the house honey…this is where you grew up…this is where you built you memories…that’s why it’s perfect” said Nichkhun in a loving voice while staring at Victoria

“Thank you Khun” said Victoria smiling brightly and tip-toed up and kissed him

-----------------------------------------

It was already 2 AM but Nichkhun was still wide awake. He was lying in bed still holding Victoria who was already asleep tight in one arm after making passionate and sweet love to her earlier in the night. He could still taste her sweet lips in his mouth, still could smell her scent on him, still remembered her touch, still remembered the pleasure sensation that he had while he was making love to her. It felt so good to him, but he also felt guilty for hiding it from her, for not telling her what really happened earlier at the clothes fitting session that morning. He didn’t know how to tell her, he wasn’t sure if he should tell her. He didn’t know how to tell her that he had met Gyuri, the woman who broke his heart, the woman whom he once loved with all his heart and soul at the clothes fitting session that day.

Flashback

Nichkhun parked his car at the underground car park of MBC building and stepped out of his car and proceeded to the elevator and press “up”. When the elevator door opened he stepped inside and pressed 8 to go up to the 8^th floor. When he arrived at the 8^th floor he proceeded to the meeting room where he was supposed to meet the rest of the production team to discuss the project. He entered the meeting room to find the director, producer, script writer and costume director were already there.

“Hello and good morning everyone. I’m sorry for being late” said Nichkhun and bowed down to greet everyone in the room

“No...no you’re not late Nichkhun-sshi…come on in we’re still waiting for the Senior Brand Manager of “Zephyr” clothing line who are the main sponsor for the clothes you’ll be wearing in the series and who will be your  personal stylist on set as well. She should be here any minute now” said the director 

Nichkhun sat down opposite from the director and a few minutes later a woman stepped inside the room

“I am very sorry for my tardiness. My name is Park Gyuri. I’m the Senior Brand Manager of “Zephyr”  clothing line. Nice to meet you all” said Gyuri and bowed to greet everyone in the room

Nichkhun’s heart dropped the second he heard her voice. It was even before she said her name, he knew it was her. He could never forget her voice, it was already engraved in his mind. Nichkhun was frozen in his seat. He didn’t dare look up to see her, but he could tell that she was looking at him, he could feel her eyes on him. He became agitated, he wanted to get out of the room, but he couldn’t….not without making it suspicious for everyone else. He took a deep breath and gathered all of his courage before he stood up and face her

“Hello I’m Nichkhun. Nice to meet you Miss Gyuri” said Nichkhun with a little bow. Their eyes met and his heart stopped. It was really her and she looked even more beautiful than the last time he saw her. Time hadn’t harmed her at all. She still looked radiant and elegant just as he remembered. She was wearing a simple knee length black long sleeve dress, a color open toe heels that accentuated her curve and her long beautiful legs perfectly. She looked absolutely beautiful

“Hello Mr. Nichkhun. I’m Park Gyuri. Nice to meet you too” said Gyuri and bowed back at him but when she was straighten herself up from the bow, she glanced her eye up and looked him in the eye. That was enough to send chill down his spine. It was enough for his heart to skip a beat. Nichkhun quickly looked away and sat down at his seat, trying really hard to recompose himself. It took him several minutes to adjust his expression and gathered himself. However, when he turned around Gyuri was sitting right next to him

“Ok now that everyone’s here let’s begin the meeting shall we? First of all I would like to thank “Zephyr” clothing line for sponsoring our series. Our Nichkhun will sure look great in those clothes of yours and I’m actually surprise that a person of such high position as yourself would be doing the clothes fitting for us” said the director

“Oh you’re flattering me director. It’s the person that made the clothes, not the other way around. Nichkhun-sshi made those clothes look great and of course I have to be here myself to make sure that Nichkhun-sshi look the best for this role” said Gyuri with a little smile on her face

“Hahaha well that’s true our Nichkhun would make everything look good” said the director

“Now that everyone is here shall we start director?” asked the costume director

“Oh yes, let’s not waste any more time…let’s start the meeting” said the director

“The purpose of this meeting is for us to do some clothes fitting for our main character Nihkhun-sshi. We need to determine what kind of clothes he’ll be wearing in the drama that would best suit the character as well as the situations in the scripts. Should we proceed with the first set of clothes?” said the costume director and everyone nodded their heads in agreement

Nichkhun was nervous, he felt like he couldn’t breathe. He didn’t want to have to step into a room and be left alone with her. He didn’t know what to do. His heart was racing, his palms were sweating, but he had to do it. There was no other way, he got up from his chair and walked towards the room at the corner and went inside with Gyuri right behind him.

“What are you doing here Gyuri?” asked Nichkhun once the door was shut behind them and looking straight into her eyes

“I’m here for work Khun” said Gyuri looking right at him without an ounce of fear or guilt in her eyes

Nichkhun couldn’t take her stares, he had to look away from her gaze. He always lost when it came to her gaze. She always had this ability to pierce through his soul with the way she looked at him, he never really understood how she did it. He only knew that when she looked at him he felt like she was seeing right through him.

“But why do you have to do it yourself?? You’re Senior Brand Manager now” said Nichkhun frustrated

“Is this not the time to talk about us Khun…everyone is waiting for us..…here…..go on and change into this outfit and come out for me to have a look” said Gyuri and handed him a set of light blue shirt with white collar and a pair of beige khaki pants

Nichkhun didn’t have any other choice but to do as she told him. He went behind the curtain and changed into the outfit and stepped out and stood in front of a mirror a few minutes later. Gyuri was eyeing him up and down with a calculating look on her face. Then she approached him and stood behind his back, she reached up and ran her hands along the length of his shoulders. Then she began adjusting his collar while eyeing him in the mirror. Nichkhun’s heart dropped again. He stood there motionless because of her gesture. It was what she used to do for him when they were still together. Then she came around and stood in front of him and began to roll up the sleeves of his shirt. Naturally her hand would touch his when she was rolling up the sleeve, Nichkhun’s hand twitched as her fingers slightly touched his hand. She noticed it too and suddenly looked up and looked into his eyes. Nichkhun stepped away immediately and began to roll up the sleeves himself while walking out of the room.

After spending 3 agonizing hours doing clothes fitting it was finally the last piece of clothes to try on. It was a navy blue 3 piece single ed suit that fit him perfectly. He stepped out from behind the curtain and Gyuri’s eyes immediately brighten up at the sight of him. She walked over and stood in front of him reached up her hand and began to run her fingers across the lapel of his suit without saying anything and suddenly she stopped and rested her hand on his chest, she could feel his heart beating fast. She looked up into his eyes and said

“Let’s go somewhere we could talk after this Khun” said Gyuri in a soft and calm voice

Nichkhun was stunned. He was standing there looking into her eyes and after a long pause he said

“I have an appointment that I have to keep” said Nichkhun and removed her hand from his chest and then walked out of the room

After the clothes fitting session was over Nichkhun immediately left the building, but since it was still too early to pick Victoria up he decided to drive around town and gave himself sometime to contemplate what had happened today. Nichkhun didn’t know what to think. He was shocked to see Gyuri again after all this time. It was unexpected that she showed up at this time in his life, when he had finally moved on. He couldn’t deny that there were some feelings left in him. He wasn’t sure if it was love, but he knew for sure that she still had an effect on him just from the way he responded to her presence and her touch. It was frustrating for Nichkhun to realize that. He didn’t want to admit that he still wavered at the thought of her or at the sight of her and that was the reason why he rejected her invitation even though he had to admit that part of him wanted to say yes. There were so many questions that he wanted to ask her, but he was afraid of his own emotion. He was afraid of getting close to her again, of being near her again

“Don’t be stupid Khun….get a grip of yourself god damn it!! Don’t let her get to you again!” said Nichkhun out loud trying really hard to convince himself to stay strong

End of flashback