Chapter XIII: The Past and the Present

Dara's house: 6:45 pm

Dara had just finished getting ready. Hanbin had gone to Bom's house after karate practice so that gave her plenty of time to get ready. After the whole elevator incident, Dara had called Jiyong later in the day to actually specify what they were going to do since they never got around to it. As usual, Jiyong was vague and told her to just wear something casual. So she decided to wear some black pants, a beige full sleeves top and a matching jacket. October brought the cold weather down upon them without wasting any time.

She had just finished getting dressed when she heard the doorbell ring. Looking at herself in the mirror one more time, she got her purse and headed down stairs. She opened the door and found Jiyong standing there, looking more casual than she's ever seen him.

"Hi." He said gently as she closed the door.

"Hnn." He replied as he began to walk towards his car. Dara watched him as he walked away. Internally, she was screaming.

‘Five seconds into this so called date and he already managed to make me want to strangle him. That's got to be a world record.’ She thought as she sighed and followed him.

They got into his car and buckled up. Jiyong started the engine and began to drive into town. Dara just sat in the passenger's seat and looked around the car. It was pretty neat and very Jiyong-ish. It was completely black, leathery and corporate. The only indication of some kind of other life was the car seat in the back.

Dara glanced at Jiyong, who was concentrating on the road. She had to admit that he looked nice wearing casual clothes. He looked more approachable.

"So," she said to break the silence "Where are we going?" He looked at her from the side of his eyes for a second before looking back at the road..

"Are you hungry?" He asked.

"Um, yeah."

"We'll eat first," he said "Anything you want in particular?" He asked. Dara thought about it for a while. She really didn't have a preference and she hadn't had a lot of time to go exploring with the restaurants.

"Well how about the Yeolbong?" she asked remembering the outing with Ino and the kids. "It's pretty nice over there and I never really got a chance to see the Koi pond outside."

"Hnn." He said in what she assumed was agreement. He made a turn into the shopping district. After about fifteen minutes, they pulled into the parking lot of the restaurant. They were met with a hostess upon entering.

"Welcome to Yeolbong." she said. "How many seats would you need?"

"Two," said Jiyong. The hostess nodded and grabbed two menus from behind her and led them to their table. They walked to a different part of the restaurant then where they sat before. This one was a booth that was on the upper level of the restaurant and it was more secluded from the rest of the guests; perfect for some privacy with a great view of the Koi pond down below.

Jiyong and Dara took their seats facing each other. The waitress asked if they wanted to start off with anything to drink.

"Just water for me," said Dara. Jiyong said the same. The waitress left and said she would be back to take their orders. They both opened their menus and scanned its contents. Dara was scanning the menu for a bit and noticed that Jiyong had already put his menu down, clearly knowing what he was going to order already. Dara, having already decided what she wanted as well, kept the menu up in front of her face.

For some reason, she felt as though she had to hide from him right now. The car ride over here had been a silent one and the awkwardness was only growing. She made sure that the menu was directly in front of her, effectively covering her entire face from Jiyong. That is, until, the waitress came back.

"I'll have the roasted beef and tomato special," said Jiyong as the waitress wrote it down. She turned to Dara, who still had her menu up in front of her.

"I'll have the baked chicken and vegetable plate," she said. She reluctantly gave the menu back to the waitress and watched her leave. She had no choice but to face Jiyong, who had been looking at her the whole time.

"Are you done hiding from me?" He asked as he lay back in his seat.

"I wasn't hiding from you."

"Hnn," said Jiyong. Dara resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She had to keep the fact that he was her boss in the front of her mind. After all, this date was a huge gray area and she didn't want to take any chances. She still had a reputation to keep up after all. Neither one of them spoke for a few minutes until Dara couldn't handle the silence any longer.

"So…why'd you suddenly ask me out?" she asked while folding her hands together. She watched as his eyes darted from the wall to her eyes. Apparently, he wasn't expecting her to ask him that.

"Do I need a reason?" he asked casually. He could tell by the way her eyes narrowed that he had said something wrong.

"Well," she said with some restraint. "Having a reason would be nice. It's not like you randomly take people out to dinner just because you feel like it."

"Think of it as my way of saying thanks for letting me and Hayi stay at your place the night of the earthquake." He replied.

"Oh…well that was weeks ago… and you didn't have to take me out to say thank you." She said. She sat back in her end of the booth.

‘So this wasn't really a date? This was just a thank you dinner?’ She thought.

Part of her was relieved. It meant that there shouldn't be any more unease when she was around him. But then there was the other part of her, the one she was feeling right now, that was full of disappointment and embarrassment.

‘I guess I read too much into it.’ She thought.

She must have been daydreaming because Jiyong's voice brought her back to reality.

"Dara." He called out.

She snapped out of it and looked across at him.

"What?"

"You were spacing out again."

"Oh," she said dejectedly. She didn't argue against it because she knew she was lost in thought. Her tone of voice didn't go unnoticed by Jiyong.

‘She sounds disappointed.’ He thought as he watched her face.

He noticed how her eyes became a little dull after her gave her his reason. Actually, he didn't even know why he told her it was a thank you dinner when it was far from it. What was she expecting him to say? What should he have told her? Jiyong realized that he was getting nowhere with this "date" and decided to actually start a conversation for once.

"How's Hanbin doing in Karate?" he asked. He knew this was a good topic when he saw her form a small smile at the mention of her son.

"He's doing great," she answered. Jiyong noticed the shine return to her eyes. "He has a match coming up soon. I guess he's getting a belt with a color on it although I forgot which color."

"Most likely yellow." He said.

"How do you know?"

"I took karate when I was a kid."

"Really? Wow," said Dara interestedly. "So I guess you know the order of the belt colors then. So when did you start karate and how far did you take it?"

"I started when I was eight and continued through with different dojos until high school. I'm a black belt." He said. Dara's face looked surprised.

"That's impressive. Do you still practice?"

"Sometimes," said Jiyong. "It's not part of my exercise routine but I do it on occasion."

They continued to chat more about karate and working out in general until the food came. They thanked the waitress and began eating, both enjoying the silence for a bit.

 Meanwhile at the grocery store…

"I can't believe I lost him, that hyung." Seungri mumbled bitterly as he strolled into the supermarket. He had managed to successfully follow Jiyong for about two minutes before he was caught at a red light while Jiyong drove away to God knows where. Now, feeling completely stupid, he went ahead to fulfill his grocery shopping.

After strolling down the aisles of the store, Seungri paused for a bit and scratched his head.

‘Uhhh…what did Chaerin want me to get again.’ He thought as he tried recalling what she wanted.

"I think it was something about…RAMEN!" He shouted as he spotted his ever favorite ramen in ramen section. There was a sign above it that read "50 % off instant ramen cup, TODAY ONLY".

Seungri grabbed as many cups of instant ramen that he could carry and walked off to pay for them, completely passing the dairy aisle as he did so.

Back at Yeolbong…

Jiyong and Dara had finished their meals. Somehow they had managed to keep the conversations light and flowing throughout the meal and they were now heading out of the restaurant. They were greeted with a cold breeze once they stepped outside.

"What time is it?" asked Dara as they walked down the street. Jiyong looked at his watch.

"8:15," he said. "Are you going to miss your curfew?"

"Wow, Jiyong can joke around? Who knew?" She said with mock surprise. He pretended not to care about that remark as they continued walking down the street past the restaurant parking lot.

"Uh, Jiyong?" asked Dara. "We passed the parking lot." She said. Jiyong continued walking.

"You want to go home already?" He asked. Dara jogged a bit to catch up with him.

"Not necessarily," she said. "But where are we going?" She asked while buttoning up her jacket. It was getting a bit chilly outside now.

"Nowhere in particular. I just felt like walking."

"…O…kay," she said as she walked in place next to him. "Are you at least going to talk to me again?" She asked. He looked down and sideways at her.

"Because you remember what I told you at the Chinese place. I don't like silence." She reminded.

"Hnn," said Jiyong. "You talk too much."

"And you don't talk enough," she said smiling. "But I don't get how a sweetheart like Hayi can be so talkative when her father is practically mute."

"I could say the same for you," said Jiyong. "I guess you talk enough for you and Hanbin combined."

"My baby is an artist," she said proudly. "He doesn't need words to send a message. And he talks to people too. Just not to you and you already know why. But I told you, he'll be nice and polite from now on."

"Right," said Jiyong. "You'll be able to make it to Hayi's party, won't you?" He asked, just to keep her talking.

"Yeah I will," she said. "By the way, what kind of stuff does Hayi like? I'm going to have to shop for something for the birthday girl."

"If it's pink, she'll love it." He answered as they turned the corner.

They walked into a park and strolled over towards the lake that was not too far away. Dara seemed to like it.

"Oh I didn't know this park had a lake." She said.

"They have rental boats as well," said Jiyong. "They only rent them out on weekends though. Hayi apparently loves it."

"What do you mean apparently?"

"Jaejoong is usually the one to take her on boat rides," he answered as they sat on the bench besides the lake. "I've never really had the time to take her myself."

"Well it's not like Hayi's all grown up," said Dara. "You've still got plenty of time to spend with her. You are spending more time with her aren't you?" She asked as she leaned back on the bench.

Jiyong shrugged. "We've gone to the park a couple of times."

"Well that's a start," said Dara. "So have you been feeling any better? More relaxed?"

"Somewhat," said Jiyong. "At least as much as I can with people like you and the idiotanyway."

"Why do you call Seungri an idiot?" asked Dara. "He's so sweet and I thought he was your best friend."

"Hnn." said Jiyong. "What would you call a knuckled-headed?" He asked looking at her. The wind made her hair swing behind her head.

"I'd just call him sweet and loveable Seungri," she answered. "Besides, he has Chaerin to make sure he's stable. They really are a cute couple. Youngbae and IU too."

"I guess," said Jiyong, not really caring too much about the topic.

"How did you guys all meet anyway?"

"I've known Seungri since we were kids," said Jiyong. "We've pretty much been in school together since then. We met Youngbae and Seunghyun in high school and stayed in close contact since then."

"Awww," said Dara. "That's kind of like me. Bom and I met in grade school and, then I met IU in high school and I went to college with her as well. Funny how that works." She said while looking up at the sky. The stars were clearly visible as they filled the night's sky.

"Hnn." He replied leaning back on the bench. He looked directly over at the lake.

"Jiyong?" said Dara as she gazed at the sky. "Say 'Hnn' one more time and I swear I'll punch you." She said calmly.

Jiyong snapped his head in her direction. Dara was still staring up at the sky, looking perfectly composed and serene.

"I'd like to see you try…Dr. Park."

"Don't underestimate me Mr. Kwon," she said facing him. "I may not look like much, but I didn't get a reputation of having "Inhuman strength" for nothing."

Jiyong raised an eyebrow at that. "Inhuman strength?" he asked. "You?" He said while looking her up and down. He could help but smirk. That statement was just so contradictory to her overall appearance.

"What are you smirking at?" she asked. "I'm serious, I'll punch you…and it'll hurt." She said trying to convince him.

Jiyong was trying to keep his cool, but he couldn't help but chuckle at her.

"How did you manage to get that reputation?" He asked.

"It's a long story," she said. "But my appa had me enrolled in several self-defense classes when I was younger. It came in handy when I came upon some people who just can't take no for an answer. But that shouldn't surprise you. You said yourself that I'm pretty violent."

"Hnn," he said. Big mistake. Dara sighed, leaned back, made a fist, and swung right at Jiyong's left arm. He didn't seem to give any indication of pain, but she swore that she saw his eyes flinch for a second.

"I know that hurt you." She said scooting closer to get a better look at his face.

"No…it didn't," said Jiyong while trying hard to resist the urge to grab hold of his aching arm. He knew that was definitely going to bruise soon.

"You realize you just punched your boss right?"

"Yeah, I realized that my boss got punched by a little girl like me. Admit it Jiyong, that hurt you." She said.

"Dara, I'm perfectly fine," he said. His arm was actually throbbing now and he was glad that his jacket was there to cover the definite bruise that was forming right about now.

"I'm a doctor Jiyong, I can practically smell the pain," said Dara. "Oh come on. Is your male ego really so big that you can't even admit that that was actually painful? If it makes you feel any better, you can always think of it as getting punched by a police commander's daughter. Does that make it sound manlier?" She asked.

"Are you done mocking me?" He asked.

Dara laughed and leaned back on the bench. The wind was picking up and the temperature was dropping. The wind moved the clouds that were blocking the moon, allowing moonlight to shine down on the park. Jiyong watched as the light made Dara's fair skin illuminate with a slivery blue glow, making her look like an ethereal being. Her eyes also captured the moonlight, giving them a white shine over the deep hazelnut of her eyes.

Jiyong sat there, captivated by her beauty. He knew she was beautiful the minute he first saw her. But he never cared about such things in the past. Back then, women were the least of his concerns and he only began dating again solely for Hayi's well-being.

But right now, for the first time in his adult life, Jiyong looked at this woman; this annoying, aggressive, violent chatterbox of a woman, and thought of nothing more than just how beautiful she looked right now under the moonlight.

Dara looked away from the moon at Jiyong, only to notice that he had been staring at her for quite some time.

"What?" She asked.

"Nothing." He said as he looked out towards the lake.

"You were staring at me," she said. "Is there something on my face?" She asked uneasily as she dug through her purse for her compact. She stopped when Jiyong's hand came down over hers.

"You're fine." He said as he guided her hand away from her purse. He let her hand go when she dropped the compact back but not before giving it a light squeeze first.

"You're cold." He noted.

"Not really." She said as the wind blew in their direction.

"Your hands are like ice," said Jiyong. "You don't have to stay out here, we could go back."

"I'm fine Jiyong, besides," she said as she looked over towards the lake. "It's nice to just be out here and hang out. Between work and Hanbin, there's just never enough time to go out and be me."

"I would have thought someone like you would have had more of a social life," said Jiyong. "But I understand what you mean." Dara smiled at him.

"I know you do," she said softly. "You know, this is actually the first time in over two years that I've been able to go out without Hanbin," she realized. "Don't get me wrong, I love my son, but I could never bring myself to leave him with a babysitter and have a night off for myself."

"…You're just a good mother." He said as he looked away from her. Indeed she was a good mother; the kind of mother that he would want for Hayi.

"Thanks," said Dara. "And I know you're a good father," she said as he turned to look at her. "The way Hayi is around you, it's obvious that you're her whole world. Only a really good dad can make a little girl like her smile so big."

"…Her smiles aren't always real," said Jiyong. Dara gave him a confused look. "She smiles all the time. She smiles when I can't make it to her shows, or when I come home too late to play with her, or when I drop her off at her grandparents' house to attend to some business."

Dara looked at him with understanding now. Jiyong stared at his lap and really thought about just how much he's indirectly hurt his daughter.

"I never realized just how much I've missed out on her little life…until you made me look at it," he said as he redirected his gaze to Dara. "Hayi puts on a brave face for me. But she needs more than what I can give her."

"…I know that feeling," she said with understanding. "I know that feeling all too well. It's the same with Hanbin. I'm his mother and there's only so much I can do for him. But there are things that I just can't do; things that only a father can do with him," She her side and faced Jiyong wholly. "I guess it's the same with Hayi right?"

"I'm her father," said Jiyong. "But she's going to need a mother more than she'll ever need me."

"She's always going to need you Jiyong," she said. "Believe me. I know what it's like to only have a father. My dad was everything to me. He was my hero. I could never imagine my life without him. He tried his best with me, even though he was busy most of the time. You're a lot like him actually." She said as Jiyong turned to face her.

"But you're right," she continued. "There are some thing