She sat and read the comments, one after the other as her finger clicked on the refresh button for the umpteenth time. She had been doing this for the past hour ever since her manager called her and said the article for her Sina interview came out.

For the 10 years Kim Soeun had been in the Korean Industry, she had always taken her fans' and netizens' opinions into consideration. Sometimes their comments were positive and refreshing and other times, she wanted to click the dislike button.

Today's article, however, was different. All she saw was line after line of painful comments. Her hands were shaking as she scrolled down, hoping with a very vulnerable heart that someone may have something nice to say but there was barely anything that could bring her spirits up.

"Kim Soeun should've been considerate to the fans and Song Jaerim."

"This show is scripted. I don't understand why people thought Solim were any different."

"This couple was too good to be true. It seems like it was because it was actually too good to be true."

"Song Jaerim really likes Kim Soeun but her comment makes me think that this is just a show for her and nothing else."

"They won Best Couple but there was nothing between them to begin with."

"I don't like Kim Soeun. She should be kicked off We Got Married."

Her hands fell into her lap and she fell back into her chair, staring at the laptop screen filled with blazing, hurtful comments. She felt the tears welling in her eyes, burning them, but she shook her head and refused to cry.

All she could think about was him: Song Jaerim. He who would definitely search up her name and come across the headline: "Kim Soeun says that there's no possibility of her becoming a real couple with Song Jaerim." He who would initially be sad but would understand her response. He who would read the hurtful comments and not take them well. He who would protect her to the point that he would risk his growing success to put her in a better light. He who had waited so long to get a breakthrough and when he finally did it, something had to go wrong.

She ruined it. She knew it. She ruined it for them. They were doing so well and they were both so happy doing the show. It was their escape from their busy, stressful lives. They could relax, unwind and simply be themselves and were surprisingly getting a lot of love from the nation and internationally for their honesty and sincerity.

Soeun had always had a pure, sweet, daughter-in-law image ever since her debut and her company had wanted her to maintain it but in 2014, upon joining the show, she realized that people could love her for who she was, for her bold, honest-self.

That honesty had lead to the blunt answer when asked if she would have a private relationship with Song Jaerim.

"No. Definitely not. It will not and should not happen. We meet bi-weekly and we are both very busy so we barely have time to contact each other. Therefore, having a private relationship will be hard."

It had been one of the most difficult questions of the interview and she least expected a question like this to come up. Jaerim had had a Sina Interview three weeks prior to her's, and he had relatively less nerve-wracking questions than her.

She had told the truth; the truth about the show's structure and how having a private relationship was almost impossible for two, busy people doing a bi-weekly, variety show. She had refrained from talking about her feelings because those, she wouldn't have been able to deny. She liked him and he liked her. He was the man that she had dreamt of, from his hard-working ways to his sincere and affectionate side.

She had a deep attachment for him, in ways that she couldn't even wrap her head around, but she knew that the mere thought of him as someone else's man gave her an impending headache. She could see a future with him, maybe even marrying him for real, but she would never reveal their relationship to the public until they actually got married. She had seen far too many actresses who had lost their popularity and success due to dating scandals. There was no point in destroying his and her rising career with something like that.

So then if I was merely trying to protect us, how come it still hurts?

Soeun shut down her laptop and dragged herself to her bed, on which she hopelessly fell. Her cellphone was safely clutched in the palm of her hand as she stared at the screensaver of her and Jaerim holding the Best Couple Award. That award had come unexpectedly because they both had no idea that they were loved so much. She understood a bit why the fans were hurt, but she didn't understand why it had raged on to the point of asking her to leave the show.

A tear fell on her pillow, staining it with the pain of despair and betrayal. Just then, her phone buzzed and she got a text.

Olla-appa: I saw the Sina Interview. Don't worry. I'll fix this.

She read it once, twice and one more time and before she knew it, she was crying shamelessly into her pillow, clutching her phone tightly to her heart.

She hated him.

She hated him because he was making it impossible for her not to love him.

He was so kind, so considerate, so understanding, never blaming her or burdening her with something that was clearly her issue.

Another vibration from her phone shook her out from her tearful state.

Olla-appa: Do you have an event to attend tonight?

She was quick to reply.

Soeun: Yes. I should probably start getting ready.

At the thought of that, she rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand. She was going to need a lot of makeup today.

Olla-appa: I'm finishing my drama shooting at midnight. I'll drop by afterwards.

When she had said barely any contact in her interview, she had been truthful. They hadn't seen each other much outside of We Got Married, besides two or three friendly meet-ups at her apartment or his.

Soeun: Okay. Be careful of paparazzi. I feel like they are near my house these days.

Olla-appa: Don't worry. I know my way around ;)

She said goodbye first and he followed suit. She got up and went to her vanity table to see her complexion. Red, blotched and bloated, but there was a smile on her face that he had managed to put on.

⊱✿ ✿⊰

She wore the couple ring to the Art Live Event by Carte Blanche. She had never worn it in public before as she didn't want to draw any meaningless attention, but today she hardly cared. She wore it for the fans, but mostly for Jaerim. The ring was her subtle message to him that he was very important to her.

She arrived back home after 1 am that night. If Jaerim was coming over, she expected him to have gone by now but she was surprised to find a tall figure standing in front of her door.

Her heart went erratic upon seeing him. His gaze met her's but her's was a blur and she didn't realize she was crying again until he took her key, opened the door, guided her inside and sat her on the couch. He sat on his knees in front of her, watching her with concern, automatically bringing his hand up to massage her cheek and wipe the falling tears.

"Don't cry, Soeun-ah. You didn't do anything wrong."

She shook her head because she wasn't crying about the article anymore.

"I know but I'm worried about us," she said through hiccups. He was surprised and hurt to see her in such a fragile state but Soeun had let all her walls down at this point. She preferred to keep a calm, collected and tough exterior but she couldn't muster the energy to force it anymore, especially in front of him. Since the day she met him, he had put her compartmentalized emotions out of balance and she could no longer keep them bundled and hidden from the one who had tugged at her heart. The sobbing didn't cease so Jaerim got up from the ground and sat by her on the couch and he gently rubbed her back.

"It'll pass. You're strong and I'll make sure to clear it up on the show," he said and followed through with a faint kiss on her head.

She got tired from crying eventually and gave in to his comforting words, looking at his face, that was always cheerful for her even if he was bearing his own pain. He wiped her tears with his thumb, patted her rosy cheek that was stained with a bit of run down mascara and he gently pulled her head down onto his lap.

"Go to sleep, Eun-ah," he said softly as he gently her hair.

Fifteen minutes later, Jaerim noticed that Soeun's body had fallen into a regular pattern of breathing and she was purring lightly. He took that as a sign that she was fast asleep so he picked her up in his built arms, made his way to her bedroom and safely tucked her under the covers.

He stood there for a while, looking at her angelic face, and he prayed that she would always be this serene and peaceful in the future, not having to bear anymore pain. His loving instinct prompted him to push back her brown locks from her forehead and place a kiss there and then with a whisper goodbye, he his heels to walk away.

"Oppa...don't leave me," Soeun said so softly, that it was almost inaudible.

His ears heard her voice nonetheless and he came back to her bedside.

"But it's getting late. I need to go." He wanted to kiss her again, pick her up in his arms and never let her go.

She shook her head slowly.

"Don't leave me, even after the show ends."

Jaerim's world stopped for a second. Those words had more meaning to him than anything Soeun had ever said.

His mouth was ajar for a few moments before he processed her words and finally exhaled, after realizing he had been holding his breath.

"I won't as long as you promise not to."

Soeun nodded obediently and sealed her promise with an adoring smile.

"Don't go tonight either," she added shyly, reaching out for his hand.

He swallowed but took it without question and seconds later, he was under the covers, encircling Soeun in his arms as she snuggled into his broad chest. Even when her world outside was tough to bear, inside Jaerim's arms, her world felt safe. It felt peaceful.

"I love you," she mumbled before drifting off again into dreamland, her words causing his heart to flutter in unimaginable happiness.

Life has ups and downs.

With success comes failure.

With fans come anti-fans.

With love comes hate.

But without the bad, he would have never gotten the good.

He would have never gotten the one person he wanted the most.

Kim Soeun was his.

Today. Tomorrow. Forever.

A/N: I wrote this oneshot in one night because of the backlash Soeun is getting after her Sina Interview. I wrote this as my support for Solim. It disheartens me that a simple, typical wgm answer that so many idols have given in the past, turned into such a big deal when it came out of Soeun's mouth. I do hope fans get over this and the negative effect doesn't jeapordize Solim's stay on We Got Married. Please spread positive thoughts and support Solim.

#BelieveinSolim