The next day wasn't any better. The smug look on Jiyeon's face made her want to whip it off with a baseball bat in Chanyeol's room, but the sympathetic looks she was receiving from his sister, parents and other present cousins made her feel worse. Mommy Park (as she secretly calls her) had immediately ran to embrace her the moment Valerie showed her face in the living room, taking her by surprise. Daddy Park gave her an apologetic smile and patted Chanyeol on the shoulder, while Yoora kissed both her cheeks and whispered assuring words to her after a brief hug before going to half embrace her brother from the side.

Showing her face at the table where Chanyeol's grandmother was also present proved to be a great difficulty for Valerie, but she was stubborn in her own way. Despite the glare the old lady sent her, Valerie still approached her by the head of the table, bowed down to her and wished her a good morning. The lady sneered at her, looking very much like that famous grumpy cat online, but she smiled at the woman and went to sit next to Chanyeol.

Unable to stop himself, Chanyeol leaned to kiss her temple, much to her surprise. She turned to him and blushed. Chanyeol chuckled and messed her hair before dropping his smile altogether when he met his grandmother's stern gaze.

"Well, shall we have our breakfast served?" Daddy Park asked, breaking the silence, before signaling the maids to bring out the food.

Valerie was seriously taken aback when the various types of food was brought out from the kitchen. There were scrambled eggs, sandwiches, toast, sausages and many more - she couldn't even keep track - and yet there were still more to come. She glanced at Chanyeol who sheepishly shrugged. Just then, one of the maids accidentally tripped and knocked a glass of ice chocolate onto her blue dress, making her gasp and shoot out of her chair.

Valerie swore someone snickered from the side.

Sighing, she looked down at her dress before taking in the side of the maid crouching down on her knees, bowing her head. But what really caught Valerie's attention was the blood oozing out from her palm.

"Oh my god, you're bleeding!" she cried and threw herself to the young maid who seemed surprised at her action. Valerie turned to Chanyeol and quickly asked for some tissues she could use to wipe the blood. "Here, wipe it all away first." she told the maid who stuttered at her orders but quickly did as she was told when Valerie looked at her.

"Miss, I'm so sorry about your dress."

Valerie looked down at her attire, suddenly remembering that the girl had dropped some drinks on her. "Oh this? Don't worry about it. Let's go take care of your wound first," she said and carefully stood up, pulling the girl up by her elbow.

"But miss-"

"Can someone help clear the broken glass on the floor?" Chanyeol's voice was heard.

Valerie gave him a thankful look and pulled the baffled young maid into the kitchen. "Where's the first aid kit?" she asked, looking around before resting her gaze onto the girl.

"Uhm, on the top shelf."

Valerie walked over to the shelf she had pointed, letting out a satiesfied sound once she got the first aid kit before running back to the other. She sat the younger down on the stool by the kitchen counter and immediately began to work on bandaging her cut, making sure there was no small pieces of glass in her wound.

"Y-You didn't have to-"

"Shh," Valerie playfully silenced her with a smile. "I want to." After making sure the cut was clean and bandaging her palm, Valerie let out a satisfied smile. "There, all done!"

The young maid smiled and bowed her head. "Thank you so much. Uhm, your dress, miss?"

"Ah, don't worry about it. I don't really like it anyway," Valerie revealed with a snort. "My friend bought it for me years ago just to spite me. I didn't know why I even packed it with me for this trip."

The girl giggled at the face Valerie was making, making the elder smile.

"Thank you so much for your help, miss."

"Please don't call me that," Valerie told her. "You can call me Valerie, or just Val."

"But-"

"Don't worry about it. Miss is too formal," she snorted. "Anyway, what's your name?"

The girl blushed and ducked her head. "Byul."

Valerie blinked. "Byul? As in 'star'?" The girl nodded shyly at this. "Oh wow, what a beautiful name."

The two ended up talking together for half an hour, forgetting that one was supposed to have breakfast while the other to serve the Park family. Valerie found out that Byul was merely nineteen years old, still studying at a nearby school with the Parks paying for her tuition. Byul's mother also works for the family, however she is currently at home taking care of her eldest daughter who had recently given birth. The other maids walking in and out of the kitchen kindly smiled at her as they worked, and she apologised for imposing. However, they were more than delighted to have her in the hot, crowded kitchen since they liked talking to her. Valerie went as far to having her breakfast in the kitchen with the maids instead of sitting outside with Chanyeol's family.

There are no tensions hanging in the air here, she had thought.

Another presence in the kitchen made the maids freeze moments later and Valerie turned to the newcomer and frowned at the sight of Jiyeon. The girl glared at all the workers standing around the kitchen. "Don't you people have work to do?" she barked. "Everyone's done with breakfast, so clear those things up. I can't believe I have to actually tell you guys what to do."

"Sorry, miss." came their simultaneous apology, and they quickly scrambled off to work.

Byul turned to Valerie with a small smile and bowed her head before heading off to the dining room, receiving a glare from Jiyeon who stood by the doorway as she tried to walk pass her. Jiyeon's gaze then landed to Valerie and she smirked. "So you're now making friends with peasants? What, do you think it will make grandma open her arms for you?"

Valerie rolled her eyes from where she sat. "First, those people are not peasants. They're human beings, pretty much like your pathetic self." Jiyeon narrowed her eyes at this. "And secondly, I'm not trying to get her to open her arms for me. I just need her to know that I'm with Chanyeol, and I'm not going anywhere."

Valerie didn't know what prompted her to say that, but she felt oddly satisfied once she let it off her chest.

The enraged look on Jiyeon's face also happened to be a great bonus.

"You-"

"What are you doing here, Jiyeon?" Their heads whipped around to the doorway where Chanyeol stood with a blank stare. Jiyeon unconsciously grimaced at the look on his face but frowned deeply when the man's gaze softened as he turned to Valerie. "Tell me you ate your breakfast." Chanyeol said- almost sounded like he was begging actually, raising a brow to his 'girlfriend'.

Valerie chuckled. "I did. Sorry I ended up leaving you alone out there. Talking with everyone back here is so much fun! Did you know that it's like a restaurant back here? The cooks are always cooking!" 

Chanyeol laughed at Valerie's rambling before tilting his head out the door. "Come on, Ahyoung. Yoora wants to go to the beach with the others."

Her eyes lightened at this. "Finally!" she cheered before getting off the stool and taking Chanyeol's hand, literally dragging him out of the kitchen in her excitement.

Jiyeon's jaw tightened more even as the couple disappeared from her sight.

"I can't believe you actually ate breakfast with the maids."

Valerie froze at the recognition of the voice before an annoyed sigh escaped her lips. "Didn't I tell you to stay away from me, Sehun?" she asked, eyes never leaving the book in her hand.

"You're still pretty much the same," Sehun continued like as if he didn't hear her the first time. "Always so kind to others and unprejudice. You're clearly still pretty much strong-willed and stubborn. When everyone starts to think that you're this sort of like badass chick, you throw them off by sitting under an apple tree reading a love novel."

Valerie sighed again and closed her novel with too much force. But still, she didn't turn to look at him and instead kept her gaze forward where some gardeners were working on some flowers at the other side of the courtyard. "What do you want, Sehun?"

She heard him sigh and suddenly she could feel his body heat next to hers. With a jerk, she scoots to the other side, glaring hard at him when the man gave him a hurt gaze. "Am I really that bad, Ahy-"

"Say my name one more time and you can say goodbye to your balls, you little piece of ." Valerie threatened through gritted teeth. One could actually see the smoke coming out from her ears as her face gradually turned red. "Now, you'd better tell me why you're here, disturbing my peace and quiet."

"I just... wanted to talk to you." Valerie scoffed. "I do, Ahy- Val. I just missed talking to you."

"Well I don't," she seethed. "I don't even want to exchange a word with you."

"You are now."

"That's because you wouldn't leave me alone!"

Sehun's eyes drooped at the tone before he let out a heavy sigh. He ran his fingers through his hair and leaned back against the tree, eyes staring into nothing. "You have no idea how much I miss you, Val."

She snorted. "And I should care, why?"

"And I'm sorry for hurting you like that. I didn't mean to-"

"Didn't mean to what?" Sehun turned his head when he heard the poison in her tone. Her head was bowed down as her fists were tightened on the hem of her dress, and her voice was suddenly dark and heavy to his ears. "You didn't mean to cheat on me with my roommate and killed her?"

Sehun's eyes widened at this, their eyes meeting coldly. "I didn't kill her!"

Valerie scoffed and shook her head in disbelief. "You're so ing stupid, Oh Sehun. Why did you think she went out for a drive in the middle of a winter storm? She tried to kill herself, but thank the Lord that didn't work. And now she's tied to a wheelchair for the rest of her ing life just because you told her that she was a ing mistake."

"But she was!" he immediately argued. "I wasn't in love with her. We fought that night, Val. And I was drunk! I was upset!"

"So was I! But did you see me getting drunk and banging your roommate and then hurting him?"

"Then what'd you want me to do? Throw you aside for her? Bull!"

"It's not like I wanted you back after you ing cheated on me! Should I also remind you that it happened just three weeks after you proposed to me?!"

They didn't realise when but they were both suddenly on their feet, standing just a few steps from each other like as if they were ready to snap at each other's necks. They were both panting after all the yelling they did, and none of them realised that they had an audience until someone purposely cleared his throat aloud, snapping them out of their turmoil. Valerie swallowed hard at the faces of Chanyeol's family staring at them, and she could even see his grandmother at the balcony of her room, looking at their direction. These should've bothered her, but it didn't.

Instead, she was more nervous when she caught Chanyeol's eyes and looked away when she saw the questions in them.

"I-Is everything alright, dear?" came the voice of Mommy Park before her attention turned to her own nephew. "Sehun? What's going on?"

"I-"

"I'm so sorry for the ruckus," Valerie quietly apologised, bowing her head to the woman. "Please excuse me."

She quickly made her way pass the crowd, ignoring Chanyeol's call and ran up the stairs. She stopped once she reached the second floor as the door at the end of the hall opened and Granny Park stepped out.

"Come into my room." was all she said before she turned back inside.

Valerie swallowed hard and quickly dragged her feet into the woman's chamber.

"Well, that wasn't what I expected."

Everyone's head turned to the newcomer's voice, revealing Jongin with a woman standing by his side. Her eyes were trained onto Sehun, and one could feel how sharp her gaze was even as she stood from a far. Chanyeol recognised her as Sora, Jongin's PA, but apparently she had risen from her position as a PA to girlfriend, if those interlocked fingers weren't a clear indication. He sighed and turned around to face Sehun, immediately meeting the other's intensed gaze.

"I want you to stay away from her," he told him, his deep voice sounding menacing. "Come near my girlfriend one more time and I will ing kill you."

He ignored the surprised gasp of his mother and continued to glare at his own cousin.

"So now you're willing to choose a girl over me?" Sehun questioned, his face stoic.

"Yeah, just like how you chose stupidity over a wonderful woman."

Sehun's eyes widened and Chanyeol narrowed his eyes dangerously at the younger for the last time before turning to head into the house. His purpose was to chase after Valerie but he froze when Sehun spoke once more. "I know she still loves me! And I'm going to get her back!"

Without turning his head, he growled. "Try, and you'll wish you were never born."

"Enough of this," his father scolded them. "Oh Sehun, what has gotten into you? Is it true what Valerie said?"

"No, it's not!" the younger denied. "I-"

"Sehun," came another voice and Chanyeol turned his head to the side to see Baekhyun shaking his head at the younger. "Don't do it, Sehun. You know what you did was wrong. It's time you face your own problems."

"But Baek-"

"Leave Valerie alone," the man continued, glancing at Chanyeol. "She's happy with Chanyeol now. Don't make things worse, man."

"You knew about this?" Chanyeol asked, frowning deeply.

Baekhyun shrugged. "I'm not surprised that you don't. Valerie must've been so hurt about it."

Glancing at the woman's ex-boyfriend from over his shoulder, Chanyeol seethed. "Yeah, apparently so."

Meanwhile, Valerie was very close to just breaking down under Granny Park's stern gaze. She was standing by the door with her head down, yet she could feel the woman's eyes on her. Valerie couldn't possibly imagine what the woman had in her mind at the moment. Probably immense hate for her for appearing into her life.

"You dated my Sehunnie?"

She swallowed. "Yes, ma'am."

"Did he really do what you said he did?" Valerie chewed onto her bottom lip guiltily and nodded. The old lady sighed and Valerie suddenly felt like she could breathe again when she felt the woman's eyes leaving her figure. "I didn't know my boy could ever do such a thing."

Well now you know.

"Do you love my Chanyeol then?"

The question brought her by surprise and she snapped her head up so fast that she could immediately felt the pain in her muscles. "What?"

"I asked, do you love my Chanyeol?"

Valerie was at lost for words.

Author's note:

Something different than the original story, isn't it? Do you like it so far though? Originally, this story has like 13 chapters, but it may pass that point with the revamp. I just hope you guys will enjoy it!