[CONTENTID1]ORANGE CREAMS AND PRALINE DREAMS[/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2]A Selection of Chocolate Boys[/CONTENTID2]

[CONTENTID3]

Finally, Suzy could let out a sigh of relief as she traced her footsteps up the stairs to her apartment block. Taekwoon stayed close to her, his hands crossed against his chest. He sported his sunglasses as his rigid face searched her distress. She made him promise not to let her parents know about her recent kidnapping incident. Besides, Jaejoong forewarned that he had that under control.

After all, who could have guessed that Jaejoong was a secret agent undercover?

She opened to start a conversation but her phone buzzed in her satchel. Her hand rooted through pen, paper and compact makeup before she pulled the device out and stared at the screen. Her first reaction was shock but soon it melted into compassion.

The message was sent by Myungsoo-- an unlikely candidate. In all her months in knowing him, Myungsoo never once called or texted her. A small smile crept up her face.

‘I hope you’re well.’

She reread the message a few times, her heart swelling inside her chest. She wondered what his facial expression consisted of as his fingers swept over the keypad. Was he truly concerned about her well being?

The phone buzzed again.

‘Sungyeol told me what happened.’

Suzy set off to write her own message: ‘Hi Soo.’

She paused, and erased that line. Perhaps he would not be too pleased if she shortened his name. Then again, why did she use a pet name in the first place? However, once Suzy reached the hallway to her floor, her phone slipped out of her palms. Her heart raged inside her and her insides churned as if she ate lead.

Her parents were moving boxes out of her apartment. When they met her gaze, a guilty shimmer encapsulated their physiognomy. Silver stained their cheeks and upon noticing their tears, she began crying too. She knew what happened, and she forgot how much financial trouble her parents were in.

Suddenly, she felt disgusted that she went off with her friends to celebrate while her parents had to face eviction on their own. She cared for her own social dilemma when she should have been a pillar of strength for her mother and her father. Now, Suzy only collapsed within herself and berated herself for being an incompetent daughter. She was supposed to be so much more…

Taekwoon slowly handed her a black handkerchief but she did not take it. Instead, she breathed the air in chunks until she inhaled her tears and choked on them.

Her mother pelted across and hid her away in the length of her embrace. Mr Kang only stared at the soles of his shoes; distraught and utterly devastated.

“It’s okay, my dear,” she reassured, “It’s okay.”

“Eomma,” Suzy sobbed, “What’s going on? Why did we lose the house?”

She already knew the answer-- Bok Choy. At this rate, Suzy did not understand if the universe hated her. She was kidnapped by an assassin the night before, had to race back to the city to retrieve Himchan from jail, and now she was to spend the rest of her days on the streets? She had seen homeless people before, draped in rugged duvets, with greasy hair and soggy garments.

The thoughts pricked her skin. She shivered momentarily.

“Have faith, darling,” Mr Kang said, and he wrapped his arms around her and his wife.

Suzy felt so safe inside their embrace. Even though her nose pressed against her mother’s shoulder at an awkward angle, her arms grew restive from gravity, and her father’s grip was too suffocating-- she felt safe. Home was not something that made an environment. Home was always that substantial feeling in her heart-- the idea that she was loved and adored by so many people.

More tears pricked her eyes.

“You can leave now, Jung Taekwoon.”

“I’ll still protect her,” Taekwoon’s soft voice broke through the air. “No matter what.”

“But--” her mother strained. “But we can’t pay you any more.”

“It’s not about the money…” Taekwoon sighed, and his voice lingered in the air.

Before he could elaborate his speech, the door swung open next to them and Heechul sauntered out. His hair had been dyed a luminous blonde that made him oddly look much younger. Heck, he looked as young as Jungkook but with an added maturity to his pretty features.

The Kangs split away from each other. Suzy’s father nodded and Heechul winked at them.

“There’s a spare room in the studio,” the eccentric man claimed. “I’ve set up beds.”

“Suzy will stay with you,” said Mr Kang. “We’ll be over at a friend’s house for the time being.”

Her heart skipped a beat as she frantically gazed from Heechul to her father. “W-wait, can’t I stay at Nana’s?”

But she paused. Would she really wish to be around Jaejoong? If she stayed with Krystal, she might have to endure the newfound love with her annoying cousin, Jongin. Jieun’s was not an option either. The girl was planning to move in with Joonmyun soon and the last thing Suzy wanted was to impede on their blooming relationship.

“I’ve told Nana’s parents,” said Mr Kang, “And they’re currently sorting something out.”

Suzy pursed her lips, wishing she had not suggested Nana’s house at all. The last thing she wanted was Jaejoong’s presence meddling with her heart once again. He was the dream she could never turn to reality. He was the fairytale not meant for her, and she realised this too late. For a long time, she chased after a dream, not knowing the consequences of what would happen if she woke up.

Now that she finally did wake, the dream effervesced into a bittersweet memory. That moment where she fell asleep in his arms, relished his kisses was like a distant sigh from a long time back. If he was around, the memory was no longer a haze, but a moment as clear in her mind as in her own heart.

“Are you sure?” Heechul raised a theatrical brow. “You can’t send Suzy there when Nana’s brother is over...You get what I mean?” A wicked grin spread across his face and Suzy felt as if her face was hit with an invisible rock.

The Kangs gaped at him as if he uttered a blasphemous statement. Mrs Kang, who deemed the whole idea of leaving her daughter alone with such a nefarious man, spoke up what she had been bottling inside all that time.

“How dare you bring Jaejoong into this, you sadistic man!” she shrieked but it was not enough to wipe the grin off of Heechul’s face. “Who says that I’ve faith in a monster like you?”

That was enough for Heechul’s lips to curl into a sneer. “Oi ahjumma! Careful what nonsense spouts from your mouth. I don’t look at Suzy in that aspect. Didn’t I tell you before? I only like women who are prettier than me, and you, ahjumma, should engrave this fact in your puny brain: Suzy is not prettier than me.”

Suzy could only refrain herself from smacking her own forehead while Mr Kang endeavoured to simmer the burning fire in the atmosphere. He admonished Heechul for deriding his wife, but he also tried to reassure his trembling wife that Heechul was far more trustable than she hypothesised.

Besides, it was not like their daughter would be left alone completely. Taekwoon was still around and there was Luhan and his parents to check on her too. At the mention of Luhan’s charismatic name, Mrs Kang’s eyes shimmered with delight. She instantly forgot her little spat with Heechul and endelved herself into a daydream where she wanted her daughter to wed Luhan in the future.

Mr Kang frowned, and added his own two cents into the daydream. “Actually, I prefer Shim Changmin over that pansy.”

Heechul clapped his hands and threw his head back as he howled. “I like the way you think, old man.”

“Changmin?” Suzy gasped, unabashed and perplexed. When did her father have interest in Changmin?

In any case, the Kangs bickered among each other and continued to do so when they kissed her goodbye and left her alone with Heechul and Taekwoon in the corridor. Jongin should be joining them soon, but Suzy doubted she would see him again. For all she knew, Jongin and Krystal might be searching for a place to move in together somewhere in the city.

She wondered if Krystal’s parents would accept him...the idea made her stomach squirm and she better not dwell on these ruminations if she wanted her lunch to remain in her stomach. Then, as she saw the two men staring at her with different intentions, a feeling of loneliness settled inside her.

“Right, let’s not waste time and get cooking some dinner,” said Heechul.

He turned to Taekwoon and passed his wallet to the stoic bodyguard. It hit off against his shoulder as Taekwoon blinked at him; confused.

Heechul snorted in derision. “What’s the matter? Cat got your tongue?” When Taekwoon did not answer, he added, “Would you look at that? He doesn’t speak at all. Right, slave, go and get some essentials for your master.”

Suzy stiffened. “Taekwoon’s not a slave. He’s my bodyguard.”

Heechul smirked. “Slave, bodyguard, what’s the difference? Is there a difference? He’s giving up his life to protect you...sounds like a slave to me.”

Suzy opened