|| chapter five ||
A/N: Mentions of alcohol and drinking, moderate amount of swearing ahead. Kids, you have been warned. 

"Hi, may we have the bill please?" Kim Jieun asked politely as they called over the waiter.

"Miss, excuse me, but your bill has already been payed in full," the waiter replied with a small wink, subtly motioning towards Nam Woohyun before bowing as he excused himself. Her curious eyes immediately landed on her companion, who became very quiet. Self-conscious, Woohyun avoided her gaze and resorted to mechanical eating just to make himself seem preoccupied. She was bound to figure that detail out anyway but deep down, he was still afraid of how she would react.

The look she gave him was an amused one, almost teasing even and Woohyun was finding it very, very difficult to swallow. If any of the girls he's taken out in the past were to see him like this, they would seriously be asking about what had happened to the smooth, charming, confident Nam Woohyun they knew? Being on a date with Kim Jieun made him feel like a quivering, shy, bumbling puppy who had just learned how to stand on its own. Well, a one-sided date anyway. Although it was him who invited her, to Jieun, they were just two university friends hanging out, having casual meal together.

"Really now?" she asked calmly, leaning closer, proping her cheek as she placed an elbow on the table. "You footed the bill? I thought we settled on paying for our own dinner."

"Ah, did we agree on that earlier? It completely slipped my mind," Woohyun mumbled in feigned innocence, panicking when Jieun pulled her bag close to her. "Don't even think about pulling your wallet out! No need to split the bill with me. It's just not proper."

"Woohyun, you don't have to worry about me monetarily. I'm not your charity case."

"But I've always been yours, non-monetarily. It's about time I started paying back."

"The way you're putting it makes me seem like such an angel when I'm not. It's fine, that's what friends are supposed to do," Jieun laughed, and Woohyun pouted, disagreeing with her previous statement. "Okay, okay, I give in, Nam Woohyun. Your gratitude has been duly accepted. But I'm paying for our icecream later."

Is that a date, then? he wanted to ask, finally seeing the golden opportunity to be suave about it.

Unfortunately, his question ended up going unheard because his phone had started blaring and beeping loudly, cutting their pleasant conversation short. He looked at the flashing LCD screen to see who could be calling.

Incoming call from 010-XXXX-XXXX, the phone displayed. Woohyun's expression changed into that of distaste. Despite being an unregistered number on his phone, he could still recognize who the caller was-- he's ran that number sequence too many times in his head, it was impossible to forget it so easily.

Park Hyomin.

This had been happening for the past few days now and he had been constantly putting it off, ignoring her every call. Hoya, in a wry joke, had adviced him to go buy himself a new phone, and several times, he had been so tempted to take his word. Why his ex-girlfriend wanted to make contact with him all of a sudden, he didn't know.

He didn't realize that he had been trying to burn a hole through his phone the whole time with his glaring. "Earth to Woohyun, your phone is going off," Jieun politely reminded, cocking her head lightly to the direction of his smartphone buzzing on the table. "Aren't you going to answer that?"

"Ignore it, the person on the other line will probably give up soon. It's not important anyway."

On cue, the ringing had immediately stopped and he let out a peace sign in victory. But just as soon as it stopped, it started ringing again.

Jieun gave him a pointed look after. "It must be really important if they're calling frantically like that. No one conveys an emergency via text." Woohyun, however, turned back to mechanical eating, the blaring phone falling on deaf ears. "Look, it's okay, I understand if you don't want to take a call, but at least, please turn it off. Not for me, but for the other people dining here. It's not polite," Jieun told off gently, looking around for anyone that might have been bothered. "Some people might be on very important dates right now."

Woohyun gave a soft apology for his selfishness and rudeness and turned the ringer off. He had even pulled it off the table and out of sight.

"Hey," Jieun eventually nudged. "I know it's not my business to ask what all this is about, but why don't you want to talk?"

"Because I don't get it. It's tiring, trying to decipher intentions, trying to explain your side of the story. Not once was remorse shown, and I get that, I distanced myself. So what does that person still want now?" Woohyun gritted, clenching the table napkin on his lap tightly.

"Well, how would you win this little guessing game of yours when you don't even want to talk about it? I don't know the exact reason. I know it has been unfair for you, but haven't you thought that you're being unfair to the other person who is trying to reach out to you as well? It wouldn't hurt to be the bigger person of the two of you, to be frank, to be clear about things, to set limits. You're obviously going to have your differences because you're two very different people, but you'll be better off attempting to right things compared to settling for it as it is, believe me," Jieun explained. "But, that's just my two cents on the matter, Woohyun; you would know best. If in the end your heart tells you otherwise, then by all means, I'll respect your decision."

"No, you're right. You're absolutely right, and I was being an immature prick about it," Woohyun agreed. "Can you excuse me for a few minutes? I'm going to take a call."

"Woongie? Oh, thank God the call finally went through! I was worried you had changed numbers," Park Hyomin's voice rang through from the other end. "I'm sorry this is so sudden and out-of-the blue, but I really need to talk to you. There are some things I'd like to tell you. Maybe over dinner? I'm over here at the Penthouse sky lounge. It's just me. I'll be waiting, alright?"

Of all the possible places that they could have been situated in, coincidence had somehow placed them in the same building just to toy with him. "Hyomin, I'm sort of in the middle of something right now."

"That's okay, I'll come to you the moment you're done, then. Where are you?"

Woohyun was sorely tempted to dismiss the call and tell her they would talk some other time, but decided otherwise. He had been avoiding confrontation for far too long. "No need. I think I can spare some time out. There are things I'd like to tell you too. See you in a bit?"

Once he had that down and final, he went back to tell Jieun that he had agreed to meet up and set things straight once and for all. That would also mean that he had to leave her on her own for quite awhile.

"N-Now?" the girl practically blurted, surprised by the quick turnout of events. "I don't mind waiting, but, right now? Hold on-- are you sure about this? Are you prepared for it?"

"I've got it all cleared out in my head since day one. The sooner it's settled, the better, right?" The smile on Jieun's face matches his own, and it made him feel all the more courageous to stand by his decision. "Though I'm not overly fond of the idea of leaving you here on your own for the meantime. I don't know. Table No. 7 seems to be itching for me to leave. I've been catching him stealing glances at our table since we got here-- I'm honestly this close to having him arrested."

"I won't let him woo me away, I promise!"

Woohyun beamed as she drew a small cross over her heart-- it was cute how she had adapted to his little quirk of reassuring promises.

"Having the courage to face your problems head on is half the battle won. You'll be fine, Woohyun," Jieun encouraged as she sent him off. Before he leaves the restaurant, Woohyun passes and gives Table Number 7 a glower to warn him that if he tried anything funny with Jieun, he'll be sorry. Satisfied that the guy began cowering in his seat, he smiled at him and left curtly.

"Woongie, I'm glad you made it!" Hyomin exclaimed with a demure wave, standing up to greet him after spotting him at the entrance. Once he had gotten to her table, she handed him the restaurant's menu. "Have you eaten? I'm starving! Let's order all your favorites."

"I've already eaten, thanks," Woohyun refused politely.

"Drinks, then?" she offered again, "I heard their soju cocktails here are amazing!"

"Really, Hyomin, I'm full. Besides, I can't get drunk tonight, I'm with someone important."

Seeing that he wasn't going to take it, Hyomin pulled the menu away dejectedly. "Ah, is that so? One of your family's business clients?" she asked, noticing how sharply dressed he was for the occassion. "Woongie, that better not be a fixed marriage. I don't think I can take it if you end up agreeing to it."

Before he used to think that her petname for him was really cute; now hearing it only left him bitter. It made him feel like a used-up toy who had been heartlessly thrown away once its purpose had been served. Woohyun was clearly not in the mood for any cuteness and jokes as he continued standing there, a serious expression plastered on his handsome face. He practically refused to sit down and refused to stare at anywhere else but her.

"Well?" Hyomin began awkwardly, motioning to the free chair across hers. "Please do sit, it might take awhile after all. We definitely have a lot of catching up to do."

"There's nothing more to talk about, Hyomin. I only came here to clear things out."

"Clear things out? Woohyun, I don't understand you at all--"

"You speak as if you don't remember what happened between the two of us. As if you don't remember what you've done. You keep hanging around me within a visible radius, you keep calling me, you keep trying to grab my attention. Why? What are you trying to play at?"

"Don't you understand? Minho was not my best decision ever, and after being with him, I realized that I love you! I still love you! I never stopped loving you, Woohyun-ah. My heart doesn't understand being apart from you."

"But I did. I got over it. I don't feel the same way as I did and I don't think I ever will. You put me through so much. Do you even understand how much pain I had to go through? This isn't just about you, Hyomin. Relationships don't work that way."

Hyomin had stood up by now, shaking her head, unable to take in all that he was saying to her. "No. No, you don't really mean that, right? I don't believe you!"

"I don't want to be unfair to you. I don't want to sound mean to you, but I have to be honest with what I'm feeling. We draw the line here, Hyomin. You said it yourself that night you left me: we're over. So now, I'm begging you, please just give me my space."

It was painful for him too, walking away from her broken figure, knowing that they were once something. He knew on firsthand basis how it felt like to be left behind by the person you loved. Although not-so-fresh now, the wounds inflicted were slowly healing, due to the help of a certain someone he had come to really care for.

And that certain someone was probably worrying right now as to why he was taking rather long, wondering about the current state of his emotions-- after listening to rant after rant, she knew him too well. Either that, or she was busy drooling over which icecream flavors she would pick and the toppings that she would match into her 10-scoop sundae tower. Woohyun couldn't help but break into a small smile at the thought. Kim Jieun was too cute.

He had been too preoccupied with sending in a text message saying he'll be right downstairs that he didn't notice Park Hyomin following him all the way to the elevator, just in time before the doors closed. Things were working into her favor right now, she had managed to catch him alone as well, and currently, they were the only two in. It was also going to take awhile from the topmost floor down to the lobby.

"Please, don't do this, Woohyun," Hyomin begged, seizing this opportunity as her last appeal. "I know I've done something terribly, terribly wrong. I know I've hurt you so badly. I want to straighten things out with you. I want to make up for it. It's not hard to forget about us, right?"

"You don't have to make up for it," Woohyun replied softly. After what she had done, it still didn't feel right to see her throwing away her pride so desperately like this all because she wanted him. "I don't blame you. All I need from you is time and space."

Before he knew it, he felt the collar of his shirt being abruptly tugged downwards and something crash onto his lips. Woohyun felt two, slender arms wrapping around his neck, steadying him as lips pressed more firmly and desperately against his. Park Hyomin was kissing him-- her last ditch effort to get her point across. She used to do this a lot when they were still together. One kiss from her and they'd both immediately forget that they were quarelling. But it wasn't the same, not this time.

Politely, Woohyun pulled away, breaking the kiss. He unwrapped her arms, gently placing them back by her sides. "I'm really sorry, Hyomin," he mumbled apologetically, stepping out of the elevator. Just before the doors closed, from his peripheral vision, he could see her slump down onto the ground, trying to hold a wretched sob back in. He couldn't leave her alone like that, but personally going back for her would be subject to wrong interpretation, so he ended up calling one of Hyomin's attendants from home, just to make sure.

"Good evening, it's Woohyun."

"What a pleasant surprise, young master Woohyun! I thought I'd never hear from you ever again!"

"Hyomin-- she's not in a good state to be alone right now. Please take care of her for me."

Jieun kept drumming nervous fingers onto the dining table, unable to keep herself from fidgeting. Was Woohyun okay? He sure was taking awhile. The guy had exceeded the ten minute allowance he had promised, and although she didn't mean to rush him, she was highly tempted to check on him. 

"Still up for some icecream? I'm on my way back," his message read. That made her feel very relieved. So she decided to go and wait for him by the main elevator. Playfully, Jieun pulled her long hair over her face, messing it up a little. Now that she knew how easy it was to trick Woohyun, she was planning to scare the pants out of him. At least they could both have a good laugh about it, and it could take his mind off his problems, even for awhile.

Her eyes grew as wide as saucers as the elevator gave a soft 'ding', signalling that it had arrived on the designated floor, and the doors opened. Jieun just happened to walk in on Park Hyomin and Nam Woohyun locking lips. Thankfully, neither had noticed her presence there because that would have been very, very awkward, especially with her looking like a madwoman who had just escaped from a mental assylum. In her embarassment, she made the fastest dash of her life, hiding by the fire exit stairwell as she heard the elevator doors close.

Her heart began pounding painfully against her ribcage, partly because of her preliminary shock... and partly because she was bothered by what she had seen. 

All she knew was that she needed to get away from there, and quickly.

Incoming call from Peter Parker.

Great! Woohyun must have already noticed that she was missing. Jieun couldn't bring herself to respond to his calls out of her embarrassment so she quickly typed in a message to keep him off for the meantime. "Sorry, ice cream some other time. I realized I have to be somewhere else right now, it's urgent." Where were all her big words about not running away from problems earlier? It was pathetic that she was such a hypocrite. But there was really no way she could face Nam Woohyun right now. Not after seeing something as private as that.

In her haste to get away, she carelessly bumped into someone while running along the sidewalk. She wanted to cry in relief right there and then upon seeing the person she had bumped into. "SUNGGYU!" Jieun half-wailed as she got up, throwing her arms around him. She could not be more happier to see her brother there.

Sunggyu himself was stunned at first but warmly responded to his sister's gesture of affection, returning her embrace. "I thought you were out having dinner with a friend?"

"I was, but it made me feel bad knowing you'll be spending your night off all on your own. I wanted to hurry home... then poof, you're here!" she responded before taking him by the hand. "Come on brother dear, why don't we call it a day and head on home?"

"What's the rush? You sound like you're being chased--" Sunggyu shot back quizically before his eyes widened to its allowable extent, "-- Kim Jieun, please don't tell me you've broken the law or gotten into a gang fight!"

"None of that, let's just say dinner didn't end well. Can we not talk about it, please?" Jieun responded honestly, sticking her hand out to hail a cab. One pulled over right away and they quickly clambered in.

((((( )))))

Depressed and unable to take the fact that Woohyun had really left her, Park Hyomin ended up drinking herself to the point of alcohol intoxication. When her attendants finally got to her courtesy of Woohyun's phone call, she was a complete wreck from all her wretched sobbing. She kept begging out for more alcohol at the sky lounge bar when she clearly could no longer hold her alcohol in and threw a nasty fit when they refused to serve her any more. The security on duty had no choice but to her out of the premises for disturbing the peace.

"Young miss!" Saera, her main attendant called out in panic, running to her aide in attempt to stop the girl in her charge from downing any more shots. Currently, a bottle of Vodka lay open on the counter. The moment Hyomin had gotten home, she immediately went on to ransack the kitchen for more alcohol. The girl couldn't even sit up on her own anymore. In between drinks, all she could do was cry and throw up. 

Grabbing the girl by the midsection, she peeled her away from the kitchen with much difficulty for Hyomin began resisting. "Pardon my words, young miss, but look at you right now. Spare some dignity for yourself: next-in-line to the most prestigious fashion-line in the whole of South Korea, acting like this over a boy. He's not the only boy available, Miss Hyomin, it's not the end of the world for you--"

"But I want Woohyun!" Hyomin continued sobbing. "And what I want, I get! The Woohyun I know isn't like this, Saera. He's lying-- he said he doesn't love me anymore-- he's lying! I know he loves me! I know he still does!"

"Young miss, maybe it's best if we call your parents--"

"THEY CAN GO ON AND GET DIVORCED FOR ALL I CARE-- I WANT WOOHYUN! I WANT HIM BACK! I DON'T CARE ABOUT ANYONE ELSE, ALL I WANT IS WOOHYUN! WHY DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND THAT?!? WOOHYUN IS MINE! MINE!"

It was a major struggle on the attendants part to calm down the hysterical girl, with all her screaming, thrashing and kicking. Park Hyomin eventually out in exhaustion, her energy completely spent. They couldn't help but feel sorry for the young miss-- she was really taking it in hard. Still, they weren't in any position to pull Nam Woohyun into this despite what was happening. The poor boy didn't deserve any of this either.

((((( )))))

After mulling over it overnight, Jieun decided that she couldn't keep running away from Woohyun forever just because she was embarrassed. Instead, she would go and do what good friends would do: if they were able to settle their problems as a couple and got back together, she should respect Woohyun's decision and be happy for them. If they didn't... for sure someone really needed his go-to confidante right now.

Jieun managed to spot Sungyeol and Hoya over by the greenhouse balcony-- maybe they knew where Woohyun was. She had hung out with them a couple of times only, but they were enough for her to deem the two as fun, decent guys. Sungyeol was loud and quirky, whose high spirits and weird ideas never seem to run out. Hoya, who was oozing with manly charm, actually had a cute boyish side to him. Their friendship with Woohyun seemed like an odd mix at first glance, but the two managed to balance out the sometimes overly-dramatic, greasy but sweet Woohyun. Being with the three really reminded her of her brother and his best friends and their equally odd personality mesh. The two groups had really a lot in common; if they bothered to see eye to eye just even once, they'd discover that they really didn't have much differences to go about in the first place.

They seemed to be caught up in a very serious and deep discussion, she didn't dare interrupt. But Jieun's ears couldn't help perk up upon hearing her name being mentioned so casually, and although she knew it was wrong, she still leaned in to listen.

"But Yeol, that's not what I'm really worried about here," Hoya murmured grimly. "Say that does happen. What if Kim Jieun finds out that Woohyun befriending her was all a set-up? That this was all done to affect Park Hyomin in some way? That this was done for the purpose of reputation building? What do we do then?"

Jieun ended up clutching the strap of her bag so hard that her fists turned white and taught. She was tense all over, unable to understand the surge of mixed emotions that started to surface.

Used. That what she was.

She had been right all along that this wasn't about Sunggyu, but she had been wrong on Woohyun's intentions to befriend her. She had been too enthralled, too blinded by cheesy grins and one-liners to see through it. Boys were all really the same after all. Having heard enough, Jieun pulled away before she could be blinded by her anger and wreck havoc onto the two physically. In her hurry to leave, she bumped into one of the pots, sending it crashing from its fall.

Both Sungyeol and Hoya heard something shift outside, a small pot breaking, effectively putting their conversation to a halt. 

“What was that?” Sungyeol questioned, his eyes wildly scanning around. There was a shelf of potted plants that partly blocked the entrance from view, so they weren't able to see what or who had broken the pot.

"I don't have a good feeling about this," Hoya admitted, shivering as a sense of uneasiness crept through his veins.

"Hey!" Woohyun called out, overjoyed to see her that day. Somehow, Jieun didn't notice him and kept walking, so he followed, catching up to her in fast, long strides. "Where'd you run off to all of a sudden last night? I hope that emergency wasn't bad and that everything's doing okay."

His question fell on deaf ears. Instead of responding, Jieun sharply cut corners, making an abrupt turn for the hallway on the right, into an area filled with a huge throng of people heading for afternoon classes.

That could not be a good sign. Woohyun engaged despite the thick crowd, keeping his gaze locked on her so he wouldn't lose her in the sea of people. "Hey, are you alright? Is there a problem?" he managed to gasp out once they both got out of that hallway, which continued onto the ones leading into the arts building which were completely deserted.

Jieun's pace quickens, so much that she's speedwalking across the hallway and she looked like she was sorely tempted to make a run for it. 

"Kim Jieun, are you... avoiding me?"

His voice turned out quieter, smaller and unsure... almost hurt, even. Jieun stopped in her tracks and for the first time since their encounter that day, turned around to look at him. Her eyes were cold as steel, sharp and unreadable. Her lips were pressed thin into a hard line. "Was it fun?" she finally asked.

The obvious, molten white anger searing through her tone of voice surprised him. Woohyun had never heard Jieun sound this furious, not even with their near-brutal encounter with Kang Minho. "W-What are you talking about?"

"Well-played, Woohyun. Well-played," Jieun immediately retorted back, her voice lowering several notches as she simmered to a slow boil. "All this time, I trusted you. I felt sorry for you, I listened to you. I actually gave a flying about you! Yet you took me for a fool-- a pet, a plaything even, you complete ! You and your friends!"

Woohyun couldn't bring himself to say anything after her outburst, overwhelmed by her anger and hatred.

"I can't believe I almost lik--" Jieun continued, cutting herself off mid-sentence. She closed her eyes, letting out a deep exhale to release the pent-up tension before speaking once again. "You know what? Never mind. To hell with all this."

Watching Kim Jieun breaking off their friendship and walk away (Woohyun would eventually realize) was one of hardest things he had to do in his life. It was pure torture on his end; the thought of her disappearing from his life forever made him panic. He knew he couldn't just stand there and let this pass-- he had to do something. Woohyun's feet found the courage to go after her. Remorsefully, he reached out for her arm, pulling her back slightly, beckoning her to stay, to not leave him.

"Look, Jieun, I'm sorry."

"For what?" she challenged. Right now, she sounded more hurt and pained than angry, but she was more than willing to give him a chance to explain himself. "Go on. For what?"

"For whatever it is," Woohyun whispered, unsure of what else he should say. "I'm just... sorry."

"Wrong answer, Woohyun," Jieun told him softly, shaking her head as she slowly backed away from him. Her eyes gave away the hurt and betrayal she had been bottling up. "You shouldn't apologize if you don't even know the reason why you're apologizing."

((((( )))))

"Oppa, can you please check on Jieun today?  She looked a little out of it today, suddenly called in sick and we're all worried. Woohyun-ie isn't responding to our messages either-- he didn't come to the cafe today. Is something wrong?"

Sunggyu re-read Luna's text message for the nth time in a row before sighing and closing his eyes. The sudden drop in his sister's usual calm, relaxed mood was unsettling for him, more than the confirmation about Nam Woohyun being involved. He decided that being there for her was top priority, and it would somehow quell his worries. Finally deciding on his preliminary course of action, he ended up calling Dongwoo.

"Dongwoo, I'm asking you the favor of a lifetime, and I'm sorry if this is such a last-minute request. If you're available, can you cover for me? Just for today?" Sunggyu asked.

"Sure, anything for you, Gyuzizi! After all, I owe you one for last time. Consider it my thanks for subbing for me when noona was in the hospital-- it was your day off and you had your gig too," Dongwoo chattered happily on the other line before double-taking their whole conversation. "Wait. Is something the matter? Are you sick?"

"It's not me, it's Jieun. I think she's umm... how shall I say this? Er... heartbroken."

"HEARTBROKEN?!?" his friend screeched wildly into the phone, forcing Sunggyu to pull his own away from his ear to protect his poor eardrums. Dongwoo sounded absolutely livid. No one breaks their Princess Jieun's heart, and anyone who dared to do so would-- well, let's just say that he was sure to end up with a broken face, courtesy of him and the rest of the gang. "You can count Myungsoo, Sungjong and I in on this. Who's the unfortunate guy we're going to beat up today?"

"No, no, no!" Sunggyu immediately dissuaded. As much as he wanted to run off and break the guy's nose, none of them were supposed to know about Woohyun. "There will be NO beating of people up! I don't think Ji would like us intervening."

"But is she alright? What do you plan on doing then?"

"Luna says she called in sick at work today, so for sure, she's on her way home. I think I need to stay with her here. Jieun's not the type of person to do something crazy and rebellious, but it's best for me to keep a close guard. Other than that, I'm completely stumped on what to do, Dongwoo," Sunggyu admitted. "How am I supposed to know how to deal with a girl in times like this?"

"Problems like this have no one-step quick fix solution," Dongwoo calmly reassured. "You're her brother, Gyu. You'll just know, believe me."

Taking her Oxford shoes off, she was surprised to see another pair still there, which was weird. Sunggyu would never leave the house without donning on his prized high-top black sneakers. Jieun could also hear music coming from inside the house; she could recognize the comfortable croon of Nell and Kim Jongwan's voice anywhere. That only confirmed her hunch. Sunggyu was home.

With one eyebrow raised, she made her way to the living room to find her older brother lounging about on their couch, his face buried in one of the pillows. "Hello, you're home early. What happened?"

"Why are you back so early?"

"I asked you first, Gyu."

"Dongwoo asked to fill in for me when his elder sister gave birth-- he has a niece now, by the way-- so this time we're swapping shifts. That gives me the day off," Sunggyu mentioned, getting up from his spot on the couch. "Hungry? I can fix you something. I think we still have some leftover apple pie from yesterday."

"No, it's fine. You have that," Jieun murmurs. She found his earlier response rather weird. Knowing her brother, he'd use that wisely and save the return favor for either an emergency or a really important occassion.

"You still haven't answered my question, Ji. Is everything alright?" Jieun only remained silent, her mind drifting off elsewhere. "Is it Nam Woohyun?" Sunggyu asked carefully, deciding not to beat around the bush any longer.

His name escaping her brother's lips definitely got her attention and she looked up, wondering how he was able to come up with that conclusion. Sunggyu was avoiding her gaze, seemingly guilty and regretful that he had even mentioned Woohyun to her. "I... sort of figured out. Sorry," he admitted shyly, showing her the cap that Woohyun had left behind. He had kept it safely tucked in one of the living room shelves.

"May I be excused for awhile? I think I need time to clear my head," Jieun requested after a moment of silence. Without even waiting for a response, she made her way to the backyard.

After giving her some time for herself, Sunggyu found her later sitting by the backyard porch, leaning on one of the posts. The air was cool, the night was quiet save for the occassional chirping of crickets. Overhead, the moon was nearing its full roundness.

"Can I sit here beside you?" he asked quietly, and she gave a little nod. So she wasn't totally avoiding him. "Do you want to talk about it? You don't have to if you don't want to," Sunggyu tried again as he joined her on the porch, making sure to still give her her much-needed physical space. There wasn't anything he could do but wait it out once she said she refused. Unfortunately, Jieun had taken his good intention in the wrong way.

"Yes, yes, you told me so," he heard Jieun mutter sadly as she twiddled with the hem of her jacket, almost as if she was berating herself. "You were right, boys like him are jerks. Please don't rub it into my face. That's absolutely the last thing that I want to hear right now."

"What kind of brother would that make me if I did that? That doesn't make me feel the least bit happy," he hummed, "Are you mad at me for finding about Nam Woohyun?"

"No," Jieun whispered, straightening up. This time, she looks straight at him with a guilty expression on her face. "I think I should be asking you that, Gyu. Are you mad at me... because I kept these things from you? Because of Woohyun?"

"No, never. Even as your brother, it's not my right to enforce on you whom you could befriend and whom you're not to befriend."

With her initial apprehensions gone, Jieun decided it was okay now to start talking about it and Sunggyu was all ears, listening carefully and patiently. By the time she finished her narration, tears were already streaming down her face. "I guess what they're saying is true. Sometimes, people come into our lives as blessings. Some as lessons," Sunggyu mused as he wiped her tears away and enveloped her in a warm hug. "And you are very much valuable, don't you ever let anyone make you believe otherwise. Your value doesn't decrease based on someone's inability to see your worth, Ji."

Jieun only hugged him tighter, touched by his kind words. What did she ever do to deserve such a nice brother?

"Seeing you crying like this, I might end up crying too," Sunggyu admitted with a loud sniffle. Surprisingly, Jieun lets out a small snigger after that, trying to hold back her amusement. Unable to help it, she broke out into fits of child-like giggles. "Are you laughing at me?"

"I'm sorry, it's funny! You're such a big crybaby in real life, but only I know that! Everyone else thinks otherwise!"

"HEY. KIM JIEUN, I'M BEING SERIOUS HERE!"

Jieun ended up cackling all the more. Sunggyu was more than relieved to see some of her sadness melt away, even if not fully. "Thank you, Gyu. I'm more okay now," she mumbled cutely when the laughter had finally died down. "You always have the right words to say to make me feel better."

"That's good to hear then. But just because he's ruffled a few feathers, I'm still making sure to beat his sorry in come election time to avenge us both, don't worry," Sunggyu joked wryly. "Well, I may have had a few setbacks lately with my running mate suddenly turning against me, but I'll manage."

"That's the spirit."

"But Kang Minho, that bastard, really."

"Let him be. You don't need that lying cheat, Gyu, you're actually better off without him. I don't understand why you picked him in the first place, he was always a self-centered jerk," Jieun huffed in her distaste. "Speaking of, have you found a replacement vice presidentiable yet?"

"I'm still working on that. Unless you do take up my offer. Think about it, how tyranically I'd run the school, with you at my right hand," Sunggyu joked.

Sunggyu had turned in earlier for the night for he had to scour the university library early the next day for some research paper, but not before making sure that Jieun was okay and in high spirits. Despite this, the girl still found herself unable to fall asleep easily. Her intended trip to the kitchen for a glass of water ended up in a short trip over to Zorro, and thank God too, because the two siblings had practically forgotten to put out the candles for the night. Thankfully, nothing caught fire.

She thought about her brother's words from earlier. "I'm sure that goes both ways," she mumbled to herself, blowing out the red candles one by one. "Blessing, lesson-- whatever I was to you, hopefully you had something to learn as well. Hopefully your mind isn't too closed to see that you're not only hurting other people, you're also hurting yourself. For that, I feel truly sorry for you, Woohyun, that you reached a point in life wherein you had to resort to lies and flattery out of desperation. Hopefully you'll never have to go through that ever again."

Jieun stood outside for just a little bit longer, looking up at the night sky. The moon brought over such a calming effect, lulling her into drowsiness. "It's rather pretty today, don't you think, Zorro?" she mentions before chuckling to herself. "I must really be out of it. What am I doing, talking and venting to a stone statue like this? It can't even hear me."

"But thank you. Thank you always for keeping my brother safe from any harm and hurt. You've done a good job," the girl greeted, patting the stone statue in affection before turning in for the evening. "'Night, Zorro!"

((((( )))))

Several small lit candles were arranged in a semi-circle, illuminating several items that had been readied particularly: a piece of worn cloth. Some strands of hair. A photo of his likeness. Somewhere to the side, a doll made of straw. First, she had burned the photo, watching as the flames slowly the edges and eventually the entire thing, before collecting some of the ashes, placing it into a tiny drawstring pouch filled with old herbs and the like. The cloth and hair followed suit and were stuffed in. Taking a calligraphy brush, she dipped it into the ink...

... Nam Woohyun, she wrote out onto the body of the straw doll in heavy brush .

The inked characters glistened under dim light. Tying up the drawstring pouch with a red string with it, she then carefully dipped the little straw doll, the last and most important piece for the ritual's completion, into the glass mason jar filled with water. The talisman she had gotten from the temple mudang had been pasted onto the outside surface, serving as a medium for the love spell's activation-- a spell to bring back the lover that what was once at her side.

"You'll come crawling back to love me soon enough. You're mine and mine alone, Woohyun-ah. No one else's," Park Hyomin murmured to herself, watching as the ink began to swirl and color the water. Satisfied, she placed the jar that contained her now-completed shamanic voodoo spell on her bedside drawer before heading to her bathroom to do her usual face and skin cleansing maintenance.

In her haste to finish up the mudang ritual, she accidentally missed out on a certain specification written on the little scroll of instructions that had been handed to her. It had specifically told her to write the name of the ex-lover onto the body of the straw doll. RED calligraphy ink was to be used on ex-girlfriends, BLUE calligraphy ink on ex-boyfriends, it read.

Moonlight crept through the room, casting an eerie, luminous glow onto jar and its redenning water.

((((( )))))

Having nowhere to go, Woohyun decided to head home instead, ignoring Luna's messages inquiring about Jieun. The girl made it pretty much clear that she didn't want to see him around nor be around him, so he had to avoid NIT and the staff altogether. It wasn't like he was going to be able to concentrate on studying anyway. Mr. and Mrs. Nam were surprised to see him home rather early, but seeing their son's downtrodden expression, they decided to let him cool off until he was ready to willingly and openly talk.

The two siblings were finally getting ready for bedtime when Boohyun decided to speak up about it. “Hey, hyung. Did you and noona fight?” he asked quietly, not wanting to beat around the bush any longer. Before Woohyun could even question how he had jumped to that conclusion, his younger brother opened his mouth once again. “You came home really early today. That’s how I figured out.”

Woohyun admitted it with a small nod. "I did something stupid. I don't think it warrants forgiveness from someone as kind-hearted as her. It shouldn't. I don't think your noona wants to see me ever again."

Of course he knew. It was clear as day what Jieun was so angry about, he just didn't have the courage to admit it outright. Somewhere along the way, it had shifted from to 'let's just get this over with and be friends' to 'let's be friends' and the moment he realized that this wasn't a game to him anymore-- the moment he realized how important Jieun was to him, how she was one of the best things that came to him at his time of need, he started to dread the hate he'd receive once she found out. How word about their little operation got to her was a mystery to him.

"Do you miss her?" Woohyun asked, breaking the silence. Boohyun nodded solemnly. "Me too. I miss her too."

"Are you giving up just like that because you think Jieun-noona won't forgive you? Said who? Have you even thought of asking?" the younger boy mused. "Can you even hear yourself right now? The Woohyun-hyung I know isn't a quitter. My brother, he's not the type to give up so easily because he always puts his heart into everything that he does. That's why I know that he'll find a way to fix it. That's what I like about him the most."

Woohyun was moved by the sincerity of his younger brother. He didn't know that underneath all their bickering and arguing, Boohyun thought of him in very, very high regard. And although he was young, barely even ten years old, he had a really honest way with his words. 

"It isn't like you, being this quiet and sulky. So hurry up, be happy again and fun again. It's boring and lonely if you're not like that."

"Boring?!?" Woohyun raged in jest after hearing that. "Why you--? Come here!"

And so began the barrage of playful tickling and noogies, yells and screams. Boohyun was somehow glad that his brother was feeling better already. Eventually the two got tired of horsing around and ended up dead beat, but still laughing, on their respective beds.

"Thanks, chum. I'm okay now. I'll be okay," Woohyun reassured and reached out to give the boy's hair an affectionate ruffle. "We should both go to bed, you've still got soccer practice early tomorrow."

“Right. Good night, hyung.”

“Good night, brat—“

Even Woohyun paused midsentence, shocked that a female voice had spoken from out-of-the blue, repeating his exact same words. Boohyun was giving him a weird look, meaning that the high-pitched, squeaky, and rather feminine voice had indeed come from him. Woohyun immediately cleared his throat several times. After a few coughs and grunts, he felt his voice returning back to its normal octave and manly grit.

“Sorry, something must be wrong with my throat. It's fine now. Go to sleep, Boohyun.”

“Okay,” Boohyun responded warily, pulling his comforter over himself before switching off the lamp by his bedside. Woohyun himself did the same, snuggling into the comfort of his own blankets and pillows once the room became dim. The only dim light shining upon them right now was that of moon's, seeping through the curtains.

Woohyun hadn't even closed his eyes for ten minutes when a soft red light illuminated the room, catching his attention. "Boohyun, play with your action figures tomorrow, it's time to go to sleep!" Woohyun hissed, pulling his blankets over his head. A few minutes had passed and the reddish glow still persisted. "Nam Boohyun, last warning or I'm telling mom!"

There was no response from his younger brother. Frustrated, Woohyun peeled off his blankets to find the whole room lit by an eerily lit, which seemed to be coming from the light outside. "Boohyun?" he whimpered, glancing over to his brother's side of the room, only to find the young boy already asleep, unfazed by the weird surroundings.

Just as he was about to get up from bed and march himself to the window to see what was going on, a sudden, heavy drowsiness overcame him and his senses. Before he knew it, Woohyun had fallen into a very deep, unrousable slumber.

((((( )))))

"Is your brother still not up?" Mrs. Nam asked softly. "Would you be a dear, son, and go wake him for me?"

Boohyun only shook his head as his mother helped him tie the laces of his soccer cleats. "Is it okay if we let hyung sleep in just this once, mom? He looks like he needs it. Hyung looked really tired and upset."

"D-Did he say anything last night? Is he okay? He hasn't been saying anything to us! Is it the university? Is he having a hard time? Shall I go over and fix this?"

"Mom, it's okay. Maybe Woohyun-hyung isn't say anything because he doesn't want to worry you and dad," the boy mused. "He said he'll be fine and I believe him."

Mrs. Nam's heart swelled upon hearing such caring words from her youngest son. "Although you two fight and bicker everyday, you really love your hyung, don't you?" she asked him as she smoothed down his hair. "Alright, son, I get you. Let's trust in your brother in this one."

“Woohyun, we’ll be leaving now to pick up our guest. Will you be alright alone?” his mother asked gently, although there were still hints of worry laced into her tone. Woohyun had only reassured her that he had heard her loud and clear by sticking a thumbs up outside his blankets before resuming his light snoozing. “Okay, I'll take your word for it. Bye Hyunnie, we'll all see you later tonight.” With that, she had planted a kiss on top of her son’s head before pulling Boohyun along.

It took quite awhile for Woohyun to finally get up and out of bed. He stretched a little, ignoring the extremely loose feeling of his tee which now felt ten sizes too big, before dragging himself into the bathroom he shared with his younger brother. Boohyun's pajamas from the previous night were haphazardously scattered on the floor. Sighing, Woohyun bent over to pick them up and toss them into the hamper, "Nam Boohyun, serious--"

He immediately clutched his throat and attempted clearing it with grunts and coughs. His voicebox was acting up again; his voice sounded weird and unlike him. What had he eaten yesterday? Was it a sore throat? Was something stuck? Was a nerve pinched? Why wasn't he feeling anything? Should he go see a throat doctor today and have it checked?

Woohyun quietly made his way into his own bedroom, intent on searching for some lozenges for his throat in his bathroom's medicine cabinet. He walked up to the mirror where it was located and after clearing the fogging glass a bit, froze in his place. The reflection in the mirror was definitely not of him staring back. With long, curved eyelashes and bright doe eyes, a cute button nose, plump, luscious, pink lips, pale complexion, and silky black hair that curled lightly at the tips-- it wasn't even a 'him', for Pete's sake!

Panicking, he looked behind him to see if there was anyone else standing there, but found no one. Next, he ran his hands over his face and hair to verify it. His hands then ran over his chest area, which felt heavier, fuller, rounder-- it was sizes way too big to belong to a healthy and fit man. He tried to claw at his back, finding an attachment or latch of somesort, thinking that this was a prank, but he found none. Not wanting to believe it, he glued his eyes shut, whimpering as his hand slid down lower onto his body...

A high-pitched, shrill, girly scream echoed throughout the Nam residence that morning, courtesy of none other than young master of the house, Nam Woohyun.

Or rather, young miss.

A/N: Forgive me for the amount of angst in this chapter, but let's shift the mood a bit now! HERE WE GO FRIENDS, NOW THE PARTY REALLY BEGINS! THE GAME, MRS. HUDSON, IS ON! (Sorry to have that written in capslock, and for the Sherlock reference, but I'm excited for what happens here on out and hopefully you all are too!) Now the question is, whodunit and how was it possible? You're all free to speculate, but stay tuned for the next chapters for the chronicles of Nam-princess! We're going to slowly unravel this mystery too while we're at it!
Additional notes:
^{- 1}Mudang is a shaman priestess who perform rituals for cleansing and the like-- and yes, they still do exist and are quite modernized nowadays.
- Surprise! Surprise! The reason Kang Minho cornered Kim Jieun in Chapter 1 is finally revealed. Yup, Minho was supposed to be running under Sunggyu's party, but the guy had ulterior motives to desert him come Filing of Candidacy and run as president instead. Kim Jieun finds out about this from the big mouthed freshman cronie and decides to confront him about it... and thus the sequence of events leading up to Woohyun and Jieun finally interacting :)

PS: Park Hyomin's part-time job (if she had one)? That creepy lady in Infinite's 'Bad' MV. (But seriously, that girl gives me the heebie-jeebies!) Who didn't get creeped out by her the first time you saw that MV? [WARNING: NOT FOR THE FAINT-HEARTED, CLICK IF YOU DARE] (Salute to the actress, whoever you are! They should give you an award or something!) 
See, even Hoaegi and Dinowoo agree. Have courage, H! :)