Jong Kook was finally given a “go” to come home after spending a night at the hospital. Dong Hoon and Ji Hyo assisted him in checking out, but it was Dong Hoon who took him home. Jong Kook had sent his personal driver to drive Ji Hyo home, since he couldn’t do it himself.

Dong Hoon, who was on the driver’s seat, looked over at his best friend. He noticed his “big brother” smiling to himself, looking out the window, then glancing down at his phone.

“Jong Kook, what’s up with you?” He finally asked.

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“You’re very smiley. You’re not a smiley person.”

“I am!” Jong Kook whined. “You just don’t see it as much.”

“Exactly. What’s got you smiling like that, anyway? A girl?”

Jong Kook grinned and peeked at the phone in his hands again. Dong Hoon took a left and finally arrived at Jong Kook’s street.

“It’s her, right? The one I saw you hugging at the hospital?”

“You saw?” He gaped at Dong Hoon.

“Pfft, why do you think I took longer to come back, Jong Kook?” Dong Hoon said smugly, stopping the car in front of Jong Kook’s house. “I was just outside the door the whole time, waiting for her to come out.”

Jong Kook laughed heartily. “Thank you, little brother.”

~

Ji Hyo arrived at her house, and set down her bag on the dinner table. She went to the fridge to get herself a glass of water, and when she opened it, she heard her phone beep in her bag. She grabbed the water pitcher and dashed for her bag. She checked the notification and saw Jong Kook’s name. She smiled.

“Did you get home safely or do I need to fire Min Seok?”

“I got home safely,” she replied to his text. “Are you settled now?”

“Sort of. I just need to take a shower.” She was about to reply to him and a follow-up message appeared. “Was that too much information? I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. I need to get ready for bed, too.”

“Oh. Okay. Talk to you in 30 minutes? :)”

She grinned at the sudden emergence of an emoticon. She didn’t know he sent those, too. “Ah huh. :)” she replied.

~

“I prepared a whole speech for you, you know.” He sent her the text message. “Okay, maybe not ‘prepared’, but I definitely wanted to say more than that.”

“Seriously?”                                                                 

“Yeah. But, I was sort of embarrassed, I guess. With my face, voice, and all.”

“Well, just know that I accepted it one way or another. :)”

“Wait, calling you in 10 seconds from... now.”

Just as she finished reading his last text message, Jong Kook’s name popped up. She clicked “Accept” and said, “Hello?”

“Hey.”

“So...”

“I just wanted to tell you my speech. Well, I didn’t want to text it to you because that would seem like I don’t care, right?”

“Oh. That’s why-”

“And I wanted to hear your voice before I fall asleep.”

She giggled. “Wow. That was so cheesy.”

“Let me just warn you that that will happen a lot, Ji Hyo.”

“I better get myself prepared.”

They both laughed. A few minutes later into their conversation, Ji Hyo yawned.

“Are you getting sleepy?”   

“Sort of. It was a busy day. If I fall asleep on you talking-”

“Actually, what I’ll say can wait. You should rest already. That was dumb of me for not realizing sooner. Good night, Ji Hyo.”

“It’s fine, I just-”

“You need to sleep.”

“Actually, you do, too.”

“Right. Sleep tight, Ji Hyo.”

“Good night, Jong Kook.”

And they were both smiling as they fell asleep.

~

The next day, Ji Hyo sprinted to the elevator because she was almost late. She needed to be in the office in three minutes. Ji Hyo saw three people walk in the elevator, and she screamed, “Please hold the doors!”

A hand materialized from inside the elevator to keep it open. She finally entered it, still panting from her rush, and looked at the person next to her to say “thank you.” Her eyes widened and a smile was on her face realizing who it was.
“Hi, Ji Hyo,” he greeted her. “Good morning.”

She bowed to him slightly. “Good morning to you, too. Thanks for keeping the doors open.”

“Anytime.” He smiled at her.

~

He opened the door and let Ji Hyo enter the office before him. Ji Hyo bowed to him and said her thanks. She scampered to her office space and dropped off her belongings on the desk. She turned around and walked over to Kwang Soo and Jae Suk’s side when she heard the commotion behind her.

“Dong Hoon, is that really you?” Soo Hyun greeted the older man, giving him a hug. Suk Jin followed him, and so did Joong Ki. “We missed you here!”

He walked around the office, eyeing the desks which were now occupied by Ji Hyo, Jae Suk, and Kwang Soo. He noticed the desk across Jong Kook’s office that was occupied, too. “Let me guess, that’s Ji Hyo’s spot?”

The smirks on his colleagues’ faces around the office were enough for Dong Hoon to know the answer. “I knew it.”

He peeked at Ji Hyo, who was still standing in the middle of Jae Suk and Kwang Soo. She felt her cheeks heat up, and she just wished that the ground would swallow her up already. Ji Hyo was startled from her musing when she felt Jae Suk elbowing her teasingly and Kwang Soo soon joined in, too. Kwang Soo may have hit her too hard, for she muttered, an “ouch.”

“Hey, don’t do that to her! Jong Kook will have your head,” Dong Hoon said before walking towards Jong Kook’s office.

Kwang Soo gulped, already knowing the possibility. “Understood, Sir.”

Ji Hyo looked up at Kwang Soo, amused at what she’s seeing. “Kwang Soo, I’ve never seen you like this.”

“I’ve never been threatened like that, either!”                                           

“Dong Hoon!” Jong Kook shouted from inside the office. He quickly stood up and met his “little bro” in the middle, pulling him in for a hug. The staff exchanged smiles, thinking that Jong Kook finally have his brother back. He’ll be in a better mood, now. Or so they hoped.

~

Before lunch time, Jong Kook approached Ji Hyo at her desk. He stuck the sticky note on her computer monitor and left after doing so. The whole office, Jae Suk and Kwang Soo, mostly, craned their necks and awaited Ji Hyo’s reaction. They caught the smile that slowly spread on her face as she folded the sticky note and put it in her notebook.

“Look at her, she’s being all smiley, too,” Jae Suk commented, eyes still on Ji Hyo.

“Jong Kook’s like that, too,” someone behind them said, making the two snoopers jump. The short man laughed and patted the two on the back. “Maybe she’ll be the one who’ll make him change his ways. It’s so rare to see my big brother being like that.”

“Being like what?” Jae Suk wondered.               

“Genuinely happy,” Dong Hoon replied. “It’s been a while.”

~

Ji Hyo walked to the designated spot that Jong Kook had mentioned in the sticky note earlier. It was at the bench beside the company building, and she noticed the characters on the sign that says “Han Eun Go’s bench”. She wondered who that person is, having her name etched on the company property. She whipped her head around when she heard a car pull over, and peered in as the windows rolled down.

“Let’s go?” Jong Kook said, leaning over the passenger seat to see Ji Hyo. A part of him wanted to see if she was disappointed that he didn’t open the door for her, but another part of him thought that she might not want to be treated like that. His thoughts were pushed away when she grinned at him and opened the door, getting in the car without a sign of dissatisfaction.

“Where are we going?” she asked him cheerfully, putting on her seatbelt. “Will we make it back on time?”

Jong Kook nodded, turning to the exit of the driveway. “We’ll make it on time. I promise.”

She fell silent, observing which streets and freeways he’s taking. She wanted to guess where they’re going.

“Do you like going to the park?” Jong Kook suddenly asked.

“Yes!” she exclaimed, turning to him, who has a smile on his face. “Is that where we’re going?”

“You’ll see.”

She crinkled her nose at him, but beamed once she saw where he was pulling off to. She recognized the place— she’s seen it on the news every year. They were going to the famous park that holds the Cherry Blossom Festival in Seoul. She leaned closer to the windows to see the flowers— which were all not blooming because they weren’t exactly in season, but the sight was beautiful nevertheless. Jong Kook glanced at how animatedly Ji Hyo was “ooh-ing” and “ahh-ing” at the scenery, and he couldn’t help but smile. For him, it always makes his heart skip every time he sees her with her guard down and just living for the moment.

“Have you been here before?” Ji Hyo turned to look at Jong Kook to ask her question, but immediately put her attention back to the floral view.

“Yep,” he answered, finding a perfect parking spot. “I’ve been here twice, I think. Take off your seatbelt and let’s go find a spot.”

Jong Kook got out of the car, who was then followed by Ji Hyo. “Wait, Jong Kook!” she called after him. “I just realized... we don’t have food.”

He smiled at her and walked to the trunk of the car. He opened it and pulled out a picnic basket and a cooler. “Trust me, I’m prepared for this.”

She giggled and made a grab for the basket. He shook his head and asked her to carry the picnic blanket instead. She took the blanket and closed the trunk of the car. They walked side by side, with Ji Hyo pointing out possible locations of the “perfect spot.”

“Okay, so you chose about four sites. Do you want to sit on every single one of those?” Jong Kook laughed.

“If I say yes, would you think I’m crazy?”

Jong Kook nodded his head, which earned his a playful punch on the arm from Ji Hyo. “Let’s go to that one!” she said, grabbing his arm and leading him to the spot under one of the trees with the most blooms.

She set the blanket on the grass, and Jong Kook put down the basket and the cooler. They finally sat next to each other and breathe in the fresh air.

“Twenty minutes in this place isn’t enough,” she commented. “Thank you for bringing me here.”

“You’re welcome,” he replied. “We can stay here as long as you please.”

She laughed at him incredulously. “We have to go back to work.”

“Actually,” he said as he opened the basket full of food. “I gave everyone a half day off.”

“You what? How did you even tell everyone?”

“Via e-mail. It’s not that hard to do a group e-mail, you know.”

She laughed. “Am I not included in the group e-mail?”

He shook his head. “Nope. Kimbap?” He said as he took a piece of kimbap and placed it in front of her. She gladly ate it and gave a thumbs up.

“Mhmm, this is good. Where’d you get it?”

“From my house,” he said cooly.

“Your house?”

“I made it myself,” he took another piece and put it in his own mouth.

“You know how to cook?” she said in amazement.

He nodded. “It doesn’t look like it, huh?”

“Not at all.” She stuffed her face with another piece. She surveyed the food that they have in front of them. Fried rice, dumplings, and even rolled omelette. She saw him take out a jug of what looks like a smoothie from the cooler. “You’re a man full of surprises, I see.”

“I am, aren’t I? Are there anything you want to more about me or do you want to keep on getting surprised?” He asked her as he poured her some smoothie in her cup.

“I want to ask questions, instead,” she declared after she thought about it quickly. “It would be easier for us to know about each other that way, right?”

“I’d like that,” he said, smiling at her. “We’ll be truthful, okay?”

She nodded. “It’s all in the past. We don’t mess with those.”

“Go on, shoot.”

“Okay... Hmm... How many girlfriends have you had?”

He laughed. “That was quick!”

“Come on! Just answer it!” She, too, laughed at her own question. Well, she was curious, and he did say that they’ll be truthful.

“I’ve had one serious girlfriend in the past and a few flings,” he answered, eating some of the omelette. He looked at her face and she seemed to be satisfied with his answer, for she was nodding. “My turn? How many boyfriends have you had?”

“One,” she said, looking down and playing with the straw of her smoothie. "It was a nightmare, really.”

One look on her face and he knows that he shouldn’t dawdle on the topic. So he cleared his throat and said, “Your turn.”

“Oh, this isn’t really what I want to ask you, but who’s Han Eun Go? I saw the bench in front of the office building and was just curious...”

Jong Kook smiled and looked at her face. “My mom.”

“Ohh.”

“It was there because that’s where my father proposed to my mom. It’s romantic of him to propose to her in front of the office, right?” he said sarcastically.

She reached out a hand and enfolded his with hers. He put his hand over hers and smiled a thankful smile.

“Sorry for bringing it up,” she said, her head down in shame.

“Don’t be sorry for that,” he quickly told her. “Look at me, come on, look at me.” She slowly lifted her head up and searched his eyes. “You’ll find about it sooner or later, okay? Don’t worry about it,” he said encouragingly. “Anyway, is there anything else that you want to know?”

She was grateful for the diversion of the subject. She was already feeling sorry for bringing up such negative feelings from him. But she smiled at him— a truly sincere smile. “Why did you decide to court me instead of just... you know how everyone is nowadays. Just a few exchange of texts, a few “I like yous”, and they’re already together. So, why choose this,” she gestured between them, “instead?”

I'm not even sure about this chapter. *sigh* But, sorry for the super late update! (Oh, and gosh! That Escape Crisis thingamajig! Oh my goodness!)