His black cover iPhone vibrated twice before her red cover iPhone began ringing. He reached for the phones and saw that it was their respective agencies. “It’s the agency.” He muttered as he passed her phone to her. They exchanged a puzzled look as they answered their phones. They were both frowning when the calls ended. They just sat in silence for a full minute, lost in their own thoughts. A million things ran through their minds.

A picture from their late night supper at his restaurant with the RM team after the annual award made headlines. They were told that fans got it from one of the PD’s social network account. The group photo went viral because the two of them were embracing each other in it.

“I’m sorry.” He broke the silence. Their eyes met for the first time ever since the calls ended. He held her delicate hands in his and continued, “I won’t let anything hurt you.. us.. I’ll do anything to pull us through. Don’t let this affect you. I’ll take care of it. Don’t worry, okay?” He smiled at her apologetically.

She nodded her head with a frown on her face. “Oppa, I’m fine. I’m more worried about you. You need to work on your album; concentrate on your music.” She paused for a moment. Then her gaze softened as she intertwined her fingers with his. “Kang Gary, you need to promise me that you will not keep anything from me and that we will work this out together.”

He felt amazed by her love and care. He chuckled at the thoughts of having her in his life. She glared at him with a questioning look. “I’m sorry. I’m not laughing at the situation. It’s just.. It’s just that..” He lifted his hands to cup her face, her soft cheek with his thumbs. “.. you’re an amazing woman.” He finished off his sentence with a kiss on her forehead.

Their only concern left was how to respond to the media. The slightest rumor could spell the end for RM and MC. They had to deny it since it wasn’t the right time to reveal their relationship. Their respective agencies responded to the media that afternoon while they met up with the other members at a local cafe with private rooms.

They were about to apologized when Jae Suk cut them off. “Yah, what are you guys doing? There is nothing to apologize. We were all in it together.” The rest nodded their heads in agreement. “Isn’t denying a bit absurd?” Suk Jin asked out of concern. “Hyung, what are you saying?” Jae Suk patted his long-time friend on the shoulder. “I mean isn’t it obvious that these two are together?” Suk Jin said while pointing back and forth at Gary and Ji Hyo.

Kwang Soo, Dong Hoon and Jong Kook laughed out loud. Jae Suk shook his head in disbelief. “Hyung, of course it’s obvious to those around them. If they admit to it now, it might be blown out of proportion. It’s a group photo, so it’s still manageable. Moreover, we shouldn’t let anything personal affect the show.” He explained.

“Give it a few weeks, everyone will forget about it. Just stay low for the time being.” Jong Kook advised the couple. “That’s right. Just be careful with your actions and words until then.” Jae Suk added on. “Noona, you can take me along on your dates to be safe.” Kwang Soo said jokingly and they all laughed. “What about filming? Should we keep a distance?” Gary asked for their opinions.
“Hyung, just be yourself. If you deliberately keep a distance, it’ll seem awkward. You’re just too obvious when you’re not yourself.” Dong Hoon reminded Gary. The rest nodded in agreement. “He’s only natural when it comes to Ji Hyo.” All of them laughed at Suk Jin’s remark except Gary. He was looking at Ji Hyo. She had not spoken a word since arriving.

“What’s bothering you?” He asked her softly, his voice full of concern. Her expression was unreadable but something was definitely bothering her. Gary’s question made the rest stopped laughing as they turned to look at Ji Hyo. She was staring at the floor, avoiding eye contact with everyone. Jae Suk and Jong Kook gave Gary an enquiring look. Gary shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. He too had no idea what was bothering her.

As usual, everyone waited for Gary to make the first move in anything related to Ji Hyo. “Honey.. what’s wrong? Everyone’s worried about you.” He put his hand on her back, it gently in an attempt to get her to open up. When she shifted her eyes from the floor to Gary, Jae Suk added encouragingly, “Ji Hyo ah, anything can be solved and we’re all here for you.” Then all of the sudden, tears welled up in her eyes and she started apologizing. “I’m so sorry for causing all this trouble. I was too reckless.” The feeling of guilt and anguish overwhelmed her.

Her sudden outburst stunned everyone. Gary was unable to react as he was part of the whole issue while the others were contemplating the right thing to say. Gary’s mind drifted back to that evening at the award show when it all started and the burden he felt when he first heard the news from his agency. He thought she wasn’t affected by the news as she seemed so calm and collected earlier. Pangs of guilt washed over him when it hit him that she must’ve been bottling it all up inside her, blaming herself for everything. He shut his eyes and cursed silently.

The room fell silent as everyone was unsure what to say to the couple when Jae Suk spoke up. “Look, as I said earlier we al