"Out with it… what were you so preoccupied with?"

"It's nothing"

"Come on…"

Kyu Jong pressed on, knowing that something wasn't quite right with his usually cheerful cousin.

He had found Hae Yeon in a daze at the garden of the hospital, and it became evident as she
remained unusually silent throughout the car ride.

"Why would someone just disappear and stop communicating with you?"

"Disappear?"

"It's a friend I got to know at a seminar…"

"Did you fight over something?"

"No"

"Perhaps this friend has got something that he or she can't talk about?"

"Something that he or she can't talk about... "

As he watched Hae Yeon continue stirring and staring absent-mindedly at her iced-tea,
his gut feeling told him that it was a guy she was thinking about.

"Is that friend a guy?"

"N-no... it's not that…"

"I wonder if the otter will still stand a chance…"

"Otter?"

"The friend of mine you asked to be introduced to. He's on his way here"

"When did I… Oppa! You knew I was just kidding!"

"I can't just cancel on him when he's coming over"

"Oppaaaa!"

Looking at how she was whining and panicking, he was glad that she was back to her usual self even if it was just for a while.
 

"It's ok to just get to know a new friend. Why are you so flustered over it?"

"You didn't tell me about it!"

"Oh, he's here… Young Saeng hyung!"

"..."

As if hearing the similar name wasn't shocking enough, Hae Yeon stared in disbelieve as her
sight turned to the person Kyu Jong was waving at. 

Though he was sporting a new haircut, Young Saeng looked visibly worn out.
He also appeared to have lost some weight.

Young Saeng too was surprised upon seeing the familiar figure beside his friend, but he managed
a smile as he sat down opposite her.

"Sorry I was late. How have you been?"

"Do you already know each other?"

Kyu Jong looked in astonishment as his pal took the initiative to speak to his cousin.

Hae Yeon however looked slightly uncomfortable as the corners of formed a smile in response.

Hae Yeon's POV
What am I supposed to do now that he's suddenly in front of me?
There's so much I want to find out but it just feels kind of awkward… 
I know I can't just remain silent…

"I've been good"

"Remember the time I was seriously injured? Hae Yeon was the one who saved me.
So she's the cousin you've been talking about… "

"So he was the one whom you borrowed my shirt for?"

Kyu Jong turned to Hae Yeon, who gave him a nod and then turned around to pass a menu to Young Saeng.

"Did you hurt yourself again?!"

Hae Yeon exclaimed as she saw the visible scars on Young Saeng's outstretched hand.

Reflexively, he hid the hand as he browsed through the menu.

"It's nothing much. We get these a lot in our line of duty"

The usual gentle smile on his face was gone, and he seemed distant.

It was hard for Hae Yeon to not notice it, and she struggled to find a way to keep the conversation going. 

"Just… try to be more careful"

"Don't worry about me. Yah Kim Kyu Jong, shouldn't you be introducing your cousin to
Hyun Joong hyung or that horse? You wouldn't want her to be worrying so much, don't you?"

"No that horse is out"

"That's true, Hyun Joong would be a better choice. Speaking of which, he should be returning home soon"

Young Saeng's POV
Hae Yeon ah, I'm sorry for doing this…
I really can't risk letting you get hurt, even more now especially you're Kyu Jong's cousin.
He wouldn't forgive me if anything happened to you...

"Young Saeng-ssi! Kyu Oppa! Thanks for your concern, but I'm fine"

Hae Yeon's POV
Why does it hurt so much to hear him say this? 

The rest of the dinner went on with the trio chatting as per normal, but Kyu Jong had pretty much
gotten the picture of what was going on. He made up his mind to talk to Young Saeng as soon as
he had the chance to, and immediately did so when Hae Yeon excused herself to the washroom.

"Was she the reason you turned up at my place that night for a drink? You were with her just before that?"

"..."

"What's going on? Now that I recall, Hyung Jun did mention that you were spending a lot of time with a girl…"

"Kyu Jong ah, I'm sorry. She shouldn't get too involved with me"

"What are you talking about now? How could you just toy with her feelings and disappear as you wish?"

Kyu Jong's POV
Sorry Hyung. This is my cousin we're talking about. 
I can't just sit back, knowing that she'll be hurt...

"Disappear?"

It was true that he had been ignoring calls and text from Hae Yeon, but Young Saeng was more
surprised that Kyu Jong had found out. And he seemed really upset about it.

"I've never seen her look this lost… please stay away from her if you're not serious"

.............................................................................................................................................................................

hope you've all had a good week!
anyways, just wanna let ya all know that i probably won't be able to update next week as i'm having a really busy work schedule.
will try to find time to edit & post up a new chapter as soon as possible~
hello~ are there any new readers around?? really hope u will all drop a note once in a while ^^
take care everyone!

love,
joelle