They continued to eat, Kayla enjoyed everything, it was something different from what she was used to, which was nice. Finishing the one pancake and taking another piece of the fish cake, everything was so delicious. She looked over at the stack of pancakes wondering if it was appropriate to just take another, better yet, have another. Slowly she looked up a Kyu Jong who gave her a knowing smile.

“Please have another, there’s plenty.”

Kayla smiled, “It’s ok?”

“Of course, that’s what they’re there for, go on,” he gestured.

She reached out and tried to pick it up with her sticks, but since it was so large, she was having a hard time. Trying once more, she got one end when suddenly another pair of chopsticks got the other end and carefully moved it to her plate.

“Thanks,” she said, looking up at him.

Kyu Jong nodded, “It is hard sometimes with things like that.”

“Yeah, I bet you don’t have a hard time.”

“I still do with some things, but don’t compare yourself with me, different circumstances.”

“I know, but it’s frustrating,” she sighed, tarring apiece off and putting it in .

Kyu Jong chuckled, “Don’t let it be, just take your time. If you have patience and continue to practice, it will come to you.”

They finished eating and Kayla helped him to clean up despite his insistence that she didn’t have to. After they headed into the living room and Kayla sat on the couch, she watched as Kyu Jong went around and lit a few candles then one on the table in front of her before coming around to sit next to her.

“I see you burn candles a lot, hey, even the ones I got you,” Kayla smiled.

“Yes, I find it relaxing, especially when I’ve had a long day at work,” he smiled softly.

She nodded, “I know what you mean, sometimes I’m so stressed after work I need to find ways to relax.”

“You should, don’t let it effect your health.”

Kayla chuckled, “I’ll do my best. Oh by the way, Chanile wanted me to formally invite you to our next monthly Friday night get together. It will be held at her apartment and she really wants you to come,” she announced.

Kyu Jong smiled, a faint blush falling on his cheeks, “Really? That is nice of her, when is it?”

“This Friday, I know it’s kinda short notice, so if you can’t, we’ll understand.”

“Ani, I think I can.”

“Yeah? Great, I’ll let Chanile know. As it gets closer, we can pick a time to meet up and I’ll drive us over.”

“I can call a taxi…” He started.

“No way! Why would you do that when I’m going to the same place? No, you’re coming with me and that’s it. We can stop by the store and I can get something to contribute.”

“Ok then I will get something to share too,” Kyu Jong stated.

Kayla smiled, “Sure if you want to.”

He nodded and Kayla looked away for a moment before looking back over at Kyu Jong who smiled gently at her.

“I had plans for Valentine’s Day, but they got cancelled, Terrance cancelled them,” she said suddenly.

Kyu Jong’s smile faltered a bit.

“We were  supposed to go to dinner and then a movie, but he called and called fifteen minutes before he was supposed to pick me up,” Kayla said, she didn’t know why she’d told him, but she couldn’t help herself.

He watched her steadily.

“I went out and bought this damn dress cause I thought he’d like it and it ended up being a waste. When you came up, I’d just thrown the gift I got for him out he didn’t deserve it. I knew it, somewhere in the back of my mind I knew he’d screw me like this, so I wasn’t really surprised, but angry. I shouldn’t have done it, bought this stupid dress and that damn gift, just…” she stopped, sighing. She looked up at Kyu Jong who was frowning now, “Why do I keep doing this? I am setting myself up for it, I swear. I get why my friends don’t want to hear about it, what’s wrong with me? Seriously, I’m so stupid,” she groaned, burying her face in her hands.

“Yah…yah!”

She lifted her head to find Kyu Jong staring at her, a hint of anger in his eyes.

“Do not say that, you are not stupid.”

“Yes I am, a glutton for punishment.”

“Ani, you are hopeful.”

“No K, stupid, trust me. The hope I had for Terrance has faded, but I just keep holding on like a fool.”

“You love him,” Kyu Jong said matter of factly.

She shook her head.

“Ne, if you didn’t you wouldn’t be putting up with this; you would’ve let him go long ago. Because you love him, you will continue to put up with it,” Kyu Jong stated.

Kayla looked over at him, startled, was he right?

“Will it ever stop?”

Kyu Jong continued to look at her, “When you stop loving him, you won’t put up with it.”

“How can you be so sure?”

He smiled gently, “Because Kayla ssi, when you love, you love fully and while you make think your hope for him is gone, I do not think so. It is why you keep holding on, why you keep waiting. It does not make you stupid, it means you are committed,” Kyu Jong finished.

“Well then I’m stupid for being committed,” she stated.

Kyu Jong sighed, shaking his head in amusement, watching her. Kayla gave him a small smile and he looked at her for a moment longer before he stood, heading down the hallway to she assumed his room. A few seconds alter he came back, a small narrow box in his hand. He sat back down and looked at her again.

“This is for you,” he said, handing her the box.

“For me? K!”

He smiled, “Open it, please.”

Kayla bit her lip and slowly opened the box, her eyes widening. Inside was a bracelet, it looked to be made of stones; in the center was a charm with the word “Strength” on it.

“The stones are agate; they are known to give you mental and emotional strength. It is my hope that you’ll wear this whenever you need a reminder of how strong you are and also for those times when you feel you need more strength,” he explained.

Kayla looked up at him, “K, it’s beautiful, I can’t take this.”

“Yes you can, it is a Valentine’s gift, you have to,” he smiled, taking the box from her hands.

Kyu Jong carefully pulled the bracelet out and hooked it around her left wrist.

She looked down at it, “I love it K, it’s perfect, thank you.”

“You are welcome, but there is one thing missing for this evening though.”

Kayla looked up at him, “What’s that?”

He smiled and turned towards a candle on the table, he had produced a stick looking thing in his hand with what looked like some sort of white paper on the end. Carefully, he held the end over the flame until it lit up, Kayla’s eyes widened as the flame rose higher and then shot up, there was a soft woosh and that white piece of paper was suddenly replaced with a rose. Her eyes widened more and Kyu Jong turned to her.

“A rose, Happy Valentine’s Day Kayla,” he said softly, holding the rose out to her.

“Oh K! That was so awesome! I loved that!” She exclaimed her heart racing as she reached out to take the rose, staring at it in wonder. “That was so cool K!”

He shook his head, blushing lightly, “Ani.”

“Yes it was, I’m so impressed, that has got to be one of the coolest things anyone has done for me!”

Kyu Jong chuckled, “I am glad you liked it.”

She continued to stare at, shaking her head a bit. It was so simple in a sense, but it was just right. She smiled and stood, and got the small package from the shelf she’d left it on and brought it over. Sitting back down, she handed it to him.

“For you.”

Kyu Jong’s eyes widened, “Really?”

“Yeah! Open it!”

“You shouldn’t have done this Kayla ssi.”

“You shouldn’t have either,” Kayla said, raising an eyebrow.

He nodded, chuckling again, “Fair.”

He carefully opened the package, tarring the wrapping paper off and opening the lid and pulling the tissue paper out, his eyes widening. He carefully pulled the object out, holding it gently in his hands.

“I saw it and immediately thought of you,” Kayla said softly.

Kyu Jong looked the blown glass dolphin over before looking up at her in question.

She smiled a bit, “I’m sure you’ve heard about dolphins. Everyone loves dolphins; they’re extremely intelligent, gentle. They’ve saved peoples lives, countless fishermen have been helped by them. They’re friendly, sweet, everything you are K. Smart, kind and gentle, you’ve helped me countless times in the short time I’ve known you. You are this dolphin honestly,” she finished.

Kyu Jong looked up at her, his eyes were watering, “Thank you Kayla ssi, it is beautiful,” he whispered, bowing his head slightly. Kayla stared at him and he looked away, wiping at his eyes.

“K…”

He looked back over at her, “He is a fool you know.”

She frowned “What?”

“He really has no idea, I’d consider myself lucky to have…” he stopped, sighing heavily.

“Who? K?”

He looked at her for a moment before setting the dolphin down and reaching out, taking her hand.

“I know it is not right, but I’m hoping you’ll grant me one request for tonight,” he said softly.

Kayla wondered what was going on, he looked so serious, “What K?”

Kyu Jong watched her carefully, “There are only a few hours left, but I was hoping you’d do me the honor of being my Valentine,” he whispered shyly.

For some reason, her heart dropped, “Oh…”

“I know you have Terrance but…”

“No no he’s not here, he didn’t even…” She stopped, looking at him.

“You don’t have to, it is kind of silly, but I heard that kind of thing is done here. I didn’t have anyone to celebrate with initially, until you. I know it’s not my place, but since things didn’t work out, I’d like to do this for you.”

Kayla smiled, “You know something K? You’re pretty amazing.”

He blushed, “No, I’m not. I shouldn’t be doing this, it is wrong.”

She shook her head, “I don’t think so, not at all. You’ve certainly acted as if you were my Valentine. It’s definitely been the best Valentine’s Day I’ve ever had,” she smiled and she meant it.

None of the other Valentine’s Days she’d had had even come close to this and they’d been way more elaborate. This had been small, but just right as far as she was concerned.

“It is? You don’t have to say that Kayla.”

“It’s the truth! You took what was going to be a crappy night and made it ten times better, thank you.”

Kyu Jong shook his head, but smiled.

“So yes, I will definitely be your Valentine for however much time we have left and beyond that even,” she winked.

His eyes lit up, “Thank you Kayla ssi!”

“No K, thank you.”

He nodded, “Well, we can still watch a movie if you’d like.”

Kayla nodded, “Yeah, that’d be great.”

“Here, see what you can find, I’ll be right back,” he announced, handing her the remote and standing and heading into the kitchen.

Kayla turned the TV on and started flipping through the stations. She looked down at the bracelet on her wrist and smiled, it really was beautiful. She couldn’t help but think if it’d been Terrance, he would’ve gotten her some over the top gaudy piece of jewelry, but this…this was special because it wasn’t over the top, it was perfect. She found a movie and hoped Kyu Jong would like it and set the remote down and waited.

A few minutes later the scent of popcorn filled the air and a short time later Kyu Jong made his way in, tray in his hands. He sat and set the tray down, on it a large bowl of popcorn, a plate of her favorite ginger cookies and two mugs of tea.

“Wow, this is really nice, popcorn, cookies and drinks, nice set up. Are you sure you were planning to be alone?” Kayla grinned.

Kyu Jong smiled, “Ne, I got the popcorn to have while watching dramas, I got lucky and now I get to share with you, this is way better than being alone,” he said softly.

She shrugged, “I dunno, being alone can be a good thing too.”

He nodded, sitting next to her, “Ne, but it is not good all the time. I am…lonely a lot, it’s nice to have company. I know there are people at work, but when I come home, I am alone.”

Kayla looked over at him and frowned, “Aww K.”

He shook his head, “It is understandable, it’s only been a few weeks that I’ve been here, and I’m a long way from my home, family and friends.”

Kayla nodded, “I know this isn’t your real home and…we’re not the friends you’ve been with, but we’re here, you don’t have to feel so alone. I’m always here for you, we can always hang out if you don’t mind hanging out with a woman, you know when you don’t have anything going on with the guys from work, I’m here,” she offered.

Kyu Jong looked at her, his head tilted to the side as he studied her.

She shifted uncomfortably, looking away, “I mean, I know I can be kinda weird and I’ve got issues and all…”

“You are very generous Kayla.”

She lifted her head to see Kyu Jong smiling gently at her.

“I do not think you are weird at all, everyone has issues, you’ve been a very good friend to me. I just worry, I don’t want to annoy or bother you. You and hyung have both been so kind.”

Kayla waved him off, “Stop that.”

“Ani, it’s true. You barely knew me and yet you’ve opened your home to me.”

“No big deal, you needed help, you’re in a foreign country, you didn’t know anyone, hell, I’d hope someone would do that for me in that situation. Don’t mention it K, really.”

“But…”

“Nope, no more. You are not alone, not anymore. When you’re feeling lonely, call us, one of us will more than likely be available to do something at some point.”

Kyu Jong chuckled, “I will remember that.”

“Good, let’s watch this movie ok?”

He stared at her a moment longer before nodding.

A Few Hours Later

Kayla slowly opened her eyes, stretching a bit. She looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings and remembered where she was. Turning her head, she saw that Kyu Jong was also asleep. Rubbing at her eyes, she stood, gathering up the empty dishes and brought them into the kitchen.

After washing them and managing to put them away, she made her way back out. She picked up the remote and turned the TV off. Walking over to the couch, she grabbed a throw pillow and carefully put it under Kyu Jong’s head before taking the blanket he had over the back of the couch, which happened to be the one she got for him. Smiling she draped it over him, he continued to sleep peacefully

Kayla studied him for a moment thoughtfully, “Thanks Kyu Jong.”

Quietly she turned, making her way out, locking the door after her.

The Next Day

Kayla put the dishes away and was heading into her room to get ready to get dressed to go out to meet Chanile, when there was a knock at the door. Frowning, she made her way over, unlocking it and swung it open, sighing.

“Can I come in?”

“Sure,” she stepped back as Terrance made his way in. “Make it quick, I have to go out.”

He turned to look at her, frowning, “I’m really sorry Kayla, I know you’re mad.”

“I’m not mad, but I am in a bit of a rush.”

“I’m trying to apologize for last night here,” Terrance said, a hint of annoyance in his voice.

“I know and I appreciate it, but…”

“Why are you in such a rush?”

“I told you, I’m going out.”

“Where?”

“To see a friend.”

“What friend?”

“Does it matter?” Kayla sighed, “I need to go, don’t worry about last night. I’ll talk to you later,” she said, turning towards the hall.

“Is it your upstairs neighbor? Is that why you won’t say?” He said suddenly.

Kayla stopped.

“It’s him right? You’re going to see him.”

Slowly she turned to look at Terrance who was watching her steadily.

“Why don’t you just admit it Kayla?” He said bitterly.

“I’m going to see Chanile, not that it’s any of your business, but what if I was going to see Kyu Jong? Do you even have the right to care at this point?” She stated coolly.

Terrance’s gaze hardened and they stared at each other, neither saying anything else. Just then, there was another knock at the door. Kayla took a breath and breezed past Terrance.

“Kayla wait…”

She pulled the door open and groaned inwardly, she didn’t need this now.

“Hello Kayla.”

“Hello Mrs. Hartland.”

Linda Hartland stood in front of her, looking formidable and smug. It was quite the change from the kind woman Kayla had once known. Her grey hair betrayed her youthful looks and designer clothes. Her perfectly done hair and make up reeked of money, a sign of the money she’d recently come into. Gone was the soft features and warm  blue eyes, now covered with a coldness she’d never experience from the woman until this last year.

“Can I come in?”

“Of course,” Kayla said, stepping aside as she made her way in, closing the door.

She was immediately assaulted with the scent of heavy, expensive perfume; it hung in the air like a cloud of smoke.

“Terrance I thought you said you’d only be a minute, we’ve got to go,” Mrs. Hartland said.

“I know Mom; it’ll just be another moment.”

“I think we’re done here Terrance.”

He shook his head, “No.”

“Terrance, she said you were done, you two can always talk later, this is important,” Mrs. Hartland pressed.

Kayla rolled her eyes, giving a harsh soft chuckle.

“Kayla…”

“Terrance now and Kayla,” she started, turning to Kayla, “I would appreciate it if in the future you’d realize how important Terrance is to our company. He had many responsibilities and things he must do. Anything that you two need to do or discuss should be done on your own personal time, not the company’s time. The appointment you made a few weeks ago was in appropriate and highly uncalled for; I did not find it amusing. Please do not let it happen again, do you understand?”

Kayla raised an eyebrow but said nothing, her anger rising.

“Good, now…”

“No, not good and I’m sorry, I do not understand,” Kayla said quietly but firmly.

Mrs. Hartland looked at her, “Excuse me?”

“I didn’t make that appointment to be funny, I had no choice.”

“Oh please Kayla…” Mrs. Hartland huffed.

“No, I did not. I did it because I had no other option. I do not see Terrance from one week to the next. This so called “personal time” we don’t have, ever and that’s because of his job.”

Mrs. Hartland gave her a smug smile, “Terrance is important to the company as I’ve already said.”

“Fine, then me making an appointment in the future won’t be a problem. Since there is no personal time allowed him, I will need to use company time to see him,” Kayla reasoned.

Mrs. Hartland glared at her, “Do not be smart Kayla,” she said coldly.

Kayla grinned, “You wouldn’t want that right? I’m to stand in the background and take the few moments you allow him to have with me like a good girlfriend, right?”

“That’s right!” Mrs. Hartland spat.

“Mom!” Terrance frowned.

Kayla chuckled, shaking her head and Mrs. Harland frowned.

“Sorry, but I can’t do that. Until I have more time with him, I will continue to do what I need to to see him,” she shrugged, staring steadily at Mrs. Hartland.

Linda Hartland glared at her before turning and making her way out, slamming the door after her, Terrance stared at Kayla in shock.

“You can let yourself out,” she said, before turning and heading down the hall to her room to get ready.

~~~

“Can you believe the nerve of that woman? Who is she? I feel like I never knew her, this is insane. She’s so different and in a completely bad way too,” Kayla stated, pacing.

Chanile shook her head, sighing.

“She seriously thought she could stand there and talk to me that way and I would just take it, seriously!”

Chanile sighed again.

“I am absolutely disgusted and I’m tired of being respectful when it’s not both ways. She’s blatantly making a joke of our relationship and I’m really getting sick of it honestly.”

“What did Terrance say? Did he stick up for you?”

“No, of course not, why would he and run the risk of making his Mom mad at him?”

“He’s such a wiener, seriously,” Chanile frowned.

Kayla grinned, “I guess he can be.”

“Let’s talk about someone better, is Kyu Jong coming over on Friday?”

She nodded, “Yeah, he said he should be able to make it, we’re gonna come together.”

“Good, let me know if there’s anything in particular he likes so I can make sure I have it.”

“Will do, I do know he doesn’t really like pizza.”

Chanile frowned, “Wow really? Hmm, I’ll have to come up with something else,” she said thoughtfully.

Kayla was still upset, she couldn’t help but think about Terrance and his Mom, things with her were starting to get ugly. She wasn’t sure what that woman was capable of, now that she had money that made it a lot easier for her to play dirty. What she did know was that she was sure she hadn’t seen the last of her.

“What are you fiddling with?”

She looked up to see Chanile looking at her wrist thoughtfully. Kayla looked down; she hadn’t even realized she was doing it.

“Oh this is a bracelet Kyu Jong gave to me last night.”

Chanile blinked, “Last night as in Valentine’s Day? He gave you a bracelet? Why him and not Terrance?”

“I was supposed to go out with Terrance, you know, we’d been planning it for awhile.”

Chanile nodded.

“Yeah, but at the last minute he cancelled.”

Chanile sighed heavily, anger apparent in her features, “Prick.”

Kayla couldn’t even argue with her, “While I was waiting for him, Kyu Jong came up and convinced me to go out with him.”

Chanile’s eyes widened, “Go out?”

“Yeah, he was going somewhere for the evening and wanted me to go with him.”

Chanile looked intrigued, “Oh really? I take it you went.”

“Yeah, I didn’t want to, but somehow he to convince me to, I’m glad he did cause I did really end up enjoying myself. Somehow he managed to eventually help take my mind off of how mad I was at Terrace.”

Chanile grinned, “Mmm hmmm, so where’d you go? What’d you do?”

“He took me to an outdoor market, then we went for a walk in the park, he got us cups of cocoa, he really loves whipped cream,” Kayla giggled, remembering him wearing it.

Chanile shook her head in amusement.

“So after we came home, I went to his place and he made us dinner and…”

“Wait, he cooked for you?”

“Yeah! He’s done it before, but this time felt special. It was really nice, he made Korean food and it was really delicious.”

Chanile sighed, “Guys here just don’t do that. Does he have a brother by chance?” She asked hopefully.

Kayla chuckled, “Biologically no, he’s got a younger sister, sorry.”

Chanile slumped back on the couch, “So, go on,” she sighed.

She chuckled, “Not much else, after dinner he gave me the gift and also created a rose from fire and…”

“What? A rose from fire?”

“Yeah! It was some sort of magic trick but it was really cool, I was totally overwhelmed.”

“Where can I get my own Korean man?” Chanile whined.

Kayla blushed, “He’s not mine Chanile, and we’re just friends.”

Chanile looked at her and smiled a bit, “Right.”

“Anyway, we watched movies and he made popcorn and even asked me to be his valentine, isn’t that sweet?”

Chanile rolled her eyes, “I don’t want to hear anymore.”

Kayla giggled.

That Night at Acting Class

Kayla watched as Lejna came in, making her way to the back, coming to sit next to her.

“Hey, how are you feeling?”

“Fine, one hundred percent better.”

Lejna smiled, “Good.”

“How was your Valentine’s Day?” Kayla asked.

Lejna shrugged, “It was ok, didn’t do much. It would’ve been better to have someone to share it with. My parents have offered to set me up with one of their friend’s songs, but no…” Lejna sighed.

Kayla smiled sympathetically.

“How was yours? Did Terrance go over the top again?” Lejna grinned.

She shook her head, “Nah, he never showed.”

“What?” Lejna frowned.

Kayla smiled, looking down at the bracelet, “It’s ok; it still ended up being the best Valentine’s Day I ever had.”

Lejna watched her in confusion.

“Hello!”

Kayla turned to see that Kyu Jong had arrived and was now sitting next to Lejna. Lejna turned to see Kyu Jong and smiled weakly.

“Hello Kyu Jong, I didn’t even hear you come up.”

Kyu Jong smiled, “You were talking to Kayla ssi, and I didn’t want to interrupt.”

“O-oh…”

“Hello Kayla,” Kyu Jong smiled.

Kayla looked at him and smiled, “Hey K.”

“How was your Valentines Day Lejna?” Kyu Jong asked.

Lejna looked over at him and frowned a bit, “Not so great, didn’t really do anything.”

“Oh? I am sorry to hear that. I actually brought you something,” he said suddenly, reaching into his coat pocket.

Lejna blinked, “What? For me?”

He smiled and set a small box of chocolates down as well as another small wrapped package, “Happy Valentine’s Day Lejna, sorry it’s a little late.”

Kayla grinned, looking over at a stunned Lejna.

“For me?” She said, whispering this time in awe.

“Ne, go on, open,” Kyu Jong said softly.

Lejna hesitated a moment before reaching out to take the package, tarring the paper off and then opening the box to reveal a large, thick bar of soap, there looked to be bits of flower petals throughout it.

“It is handmade soap, I hope you like it,” he said quietly.

Kayla smiled softly as she detected the faint sheen of tears in the young woman’s eyes. Slowly she turned her head to look at Kyu Jong.

“Thank you, I love it,” she whispered.

“Good, it’s not much; you never mentioned having a boyfriend, so hopefully I am not doing anything inappropriate.”

Lejna shook her head, “No, not at all. There’s…there’s no one, I’m single.”

“Ahh ok makes me even happier that I got something.”

“I feel bad, I should’ve gotten you something Kyu Jong, I am sorry,” Lejna said softly.

“Ani, it’s fine, I don’t need anything. You being my friend is enough, besides, it’s just a little something I saw that made me think of you.”

“Well I really appreciate it.”

Kyu Jong smiled and gave her a small bow. Kayla watched the whole interaction thoughtfully, it really was quite sweet for Kyu Jong to do that and it was plain to see that Lejna was truly overcome with emotion. It made Kayla long for those moments; it was sweet and simple, uncomplicated. Still, she couldn’t complain, he’d given her that moment, actually several of them last night.

Just then, the director walked in and class started. Kayla saw Lejna looking at the soap, still in awe; she really seemed to be taken by the fact that Kyu Jong had given her a Valentine’s Day gift. It didn’t surprise her too much, she hadn’t known him long, but it seemed like the kind of thing he’d do.

After a brief discussion on some elements of how to properly get into character, the director then announced the would be doing an exercise to help with emotions. Everyone was to pair up with the pesron to their left and each pair would get a senerio to practice then present to the class. Each senerio dealt with some specific emotion that the audience had to try to figure out from the performance. Kayla smiled to her partner and looked over at Lejna who ended up partnered with Kyu Jong. Lejna looked a bit shocked still and stiffened slightly when Kyu Jong received their sceniero and moved in closer to show it to her. Kayla stifled a giggle, maybe Kyu Jong could help her to come out of her shell a bit, he always seemed to bring out the best in people.

Kayla looked at their sceneiro for her and her partner, turning it so she could see it too. They’d gotten anger and talked about the best way to approach it. After agreeing on a method, they started practicing. After the allotted time of fifteen minutes, class resumed and the first pair went then the next and the next. Finally, it was Kayla and her partner’s turn. They made their way up to the front and acted out their sceniero. It didn’t take long for everyone to figure it out and they made their way back to their seats and then Kyu Jong and Lejna went up.

Kayla was excited; she’d never seen Kyu Jong act and was anxious to see his skill level. She watched as they started, Lejna pulling her phone out and acting as if she were texting someone while Kyu Jong sat at the director’s desk. Just then, Lejna acted as if she’d just gotten some disturbing news. Kyu Jong got up and walked over to try to help her, but she wouldn’t allow him, too distraught. Kayla watched intently as Kyu Jong continued to try to console her, eventually needing to pry the phone from her hands and pull her into his arms. Kayla’s eyes widened and she saw Lejna stiffen for a moment before relaxing fully against him, burying her face in his chest as his arms came around her gently.

The director then called for the audience to guess as Kyu Jong and Lejna pulled away from each other. There were various shouts, someone eventually guessing grief to which they were advised they were correct. Kayla watched as the two made their way back, she was impressed; he’d done well, very well. It was too bad it hadn’t been longer; she would’ve liked to see more from him. Kayla looked at Lejna as she sat, she looked dazed.

“Good job, you two did well,” Kayla smiled.

Lejna looked over at her and gave her a dreamy smile. Kayla chuckled, shaking her head in amusement. By the time all the pairs finished, it was time to go. They gathered up their stuff and headed out. Lejna said her goodbyes before leaving, thanking Kyu Jong one last time for the gifts. Kayla lead Kyu Jong to her car and they both got in.

“You did a great job with Lejna, it was very natural. I’ve been anxious to see you perform,” Kayla announced, pulling out the parking lot.

“Thank you, Lejna is very nice and easy to work with and work off of, she’s got great timing. I really enjoyed her performance,” Kyu Jong stated.

“Yeah, she’d definitely a favorite of the director, even though she doesn’t seem to realize it.”

A short time later, they arrived home, Kayla said goodnight and went inside, the hug between Kyu Jong and Lejna lingering in her mind.

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A/N: Hi all! Sorry it's been so long, been working a lot and so tired, took me forever to write Chapter 15, I'm always a chapter ahead, I hope to start 16 soon. I may take a mini break from this story to work on small projects so I don't burn out on this, so if anyone is also a SHINee fan, be on the lookout for that if you're intersted and possibly some other SS/Romeo things.

Alright, back to this story. I love that Kyu Jong asked for her to be his Valentine, so romantic, something we don't really think about here anymore. While writing this, I thought about what animal/mamial reminded me of Kyu Jong. Of course Triple S's think of gorrilla's and then of mantises and I suppose so, but I always felt as if there were something else. Anyone who knows me well knows I love astrology, Kyu Jong is a pisces, which is a fish. I happened to look up some pics of blown glass objects as that's what I wanted Kayla's gift for him to be and found a dolphin and was then reminded of his sign and realized how perfect it was. I found the pefect figurine/fish and the rest is history! Kyu Jong sure seems happy with it, mission accomplished! So we finally meet Terrance's mother and I bet you're wishing you hadn't, she's pretty nasty, we get to see who exactly Kayla is up against and this woman's mindframe. Expect more from her, she's not going down without a fight. Lejna, isn't she so cute? That hug, man, I want a Kyu Jong hug!!

On another small sidenote, I got my copy of the Eternal 5 album and guess what? I got Kyu Jong's card, I take that as a sign 😉. Thanks for all feedback/comments, a special thanks to those I've never heard from before, it is appeciated and I hope you'll continue to do so and of course to my regulars. All feedback and comments are always welcome! Thanks for reading and I'll see you next update!

~MO