~~~~~

“Then, Namjoo, will you marry me?”

It had been chilly that night when she returned to the hostel and found Jongin at the front of the building. The way he’d smiled at her, the gentleness he reserved just for her – Namjoo could still remember it so vividly, so clearly within her head that it felt just like yesterday when he proposed to her. Nothing special, not on one knee but by telling her what she was up against by marrying him. Namjoo had known and she had dove in.

They were nothing now.

Drawing in a breath to remind herself where reality was at, she pushed open the car door where she had remained sitting blankly the past 10 minutes. Jongin’s mall loomed over her. For several minutes she stared up at it like it was some unearthly human creation. Gripping her hand into a small fist she stepped forward.

There was more to live for now. Joohwan, his daughter, Kyung, and herself. She had gone through an evolution in the time of two years for the better and if she sunk, it would mean she had wasted every effort Kyung put in for her. Namjoo wouldn’t go there.

Stepping into the elevator she pressed the button for Jongin’s floor. Today she would make up for the work she hadn’t been able to complete yesterday. She would get those papers filed and put away so that she could return to the office and work with Kyung like she came here for. Jongin was just her boss. That was all. Nothing more.

The lift stopped and Namjoo about stepped out but halted when she realized it wasn’t the floor to Jongin’s office. Instead, her eyes met with Jongin standing on the other side. Without saying anything she stepped back to make way for him and turned her eyes to the floor. A small ache resided in her chest, which she believed would get better with time. It was just that she hadn’t expected to see Jongin so soon after returning. It wasn’t her fault her body was sensitive toward him in this manner.

The elevator opened and on Jongin’s floor this time. Keeping a distance from him, she followed him down the corridor and into the office. She realized it smelled different. He must have sprayed some air freshener or something, maybe to get rid of the perfume the other woman had left behind.

Without saying anything to him she walked over to the couch and sat down, pulled the laptop toward her and set herself to work. It would take weeks to get every single document in and that meant she would have to spend the next few weeks sitting in this room with Jongin.

If she had to be honest, she wasn’t happy about this. She wasn’t ready to be near him again, even if they weren’t within the distance to touch each other. Just knowing he was there in the same room with her made her uneasy, her heart throb, and sad. Namjoo couldn’t spend the rest of her life living on these emotions. She didn’t want to. It would have been better if she could have gone back in time and chosen never to target Jongin but it was no use even pondering over that aspect.

Right now all she could manage was to finish this work he’d intentionally given her and then leave his office when she was done. Once Kyung got her a divorce lawyer, she would end this mess she had started.

~~~~~

What would Namjoo say if he asked her to put on another wedding ring and sit with him at a table with Chairman Goo? If he gave her a list of what she might be up against with him, would she do it again?

This heaviness in his heart was drowning in uncertainties.

Glancing up from the papers he was unable to read in front of him, he stole a glimpse of Namjoo hard at work oblivious to him. When she left that morning, did she leave believing he and Yeji was an item? Had she noticed he was still wearing their wedding ring?

However much he looked at Namjoo she didn’t turn his way. She just kept pounding away on the keyboard as if it was what her life depended on. Propping an elbow onto the desk he rubbed his face. She’d only been here a few days in his office and he felt like he’d been sitting here a year with her, having gone nowhere.

The high afternoon sun was low in the sky. A pink orange glow stretching across the sky signaled that the moon was soon to be up. Namjoo hadn’t gotten up once but remained glued to her seat, typing away as she had been doing hours ago. With work now put away, Jongin remained in his chair behind the desk merely watching her through the narrow slits of his eyes.

How much longer was she going to keep this up? Her stubborn side always left him in awe.

Twisting his wrist he glanced at the time. Nearly 7PM, after work hours. Glancing back up at Namjoo again he leaned further back into his chair and crossed his arms. “How much longer are you going to keep this up?”

“If you’re tired, you can leave first. Give me the keys and I’ll lock up when I’m done.” She coolly replied.

“I don’t let just anyone stay behind in my office,” Jongin rebutted.

“Suit yourself and stay there,” she spoke all the while her eyes remained glued onto the laptop screen.

Jongin felt a nerve in him snap and his brows furrowed as he grew impatient with her. He scanned the tall pile of packets Namjoo had yet to get through. If she thought staying longer would help her get through the documents faster, she was wrong because he was preparing so much more for her to do.

Standing up he strode toward her and snatched the laptop, snapped it close, and tucked it under his arm. “It’s after hours. I want to leave and eat, and get some rest. So go home.”

With a turn of her head she shot him an angry frown. Getting up she demanded, “Give it back.”

“No.” he dodged when she tried snatching the laptop from him.

“I’m serious,” she growled. “I have work I want to finish. If you want to leave, you go yourself or you let me take this home.”

“Confidential files aren’t allowed out of my office,” he stated. “Work hours are done.”

He swiftly moved back when she lunged forward for the laptop. Namjoo huffed and glared at him and attempted to snatch it again. This time she got her hands wrapped around the laptop but Jongin stubbornly tightened his grip on it and they developed a tug of war. In the next split second the laptop slipped from both their grasps landing with a loud thud on the floor. Namjoo gasped, her jaw dropping. She quickly picked the machine up, trying many times to power it on to no avail. Then she turned to him angry.

“Jongin!” she screamed from the top of her lungs, fury seething through her airy breath. Namjoo gritted her teeth, her face flooded with reddened anger. Turning, she snatched her bag and stomped past him, slamming the door shut behind him.

Jongin clenched his jaw then wheeled around to hurry after her. He found her in front of the elevator waiting for the lift to come for her, her face twisted with indescribable rage. When she spotted him coming she turned in the other direction, quickly starting for the staircase. Somehow angry with how she was trying to walk out on him, he stomped after her with heavy feet. Just as Namjoo pushed the door open he grabbed her arm, dragging her around.

“Where do you think you’re going?” he demanded, tightening his hand around her lower arm.

“Going home,” she hissed. “It’s after hours, Jongin.” She shoved him back with greater force than he anticipated. “You’re not my boss right now.”

She spun around and he listened to the door click open as she pushed it again. Her footsteps clattered down the stairs, fading into the distance as the door began closing in his face. On impulse, he shoved it open and started down the stairs after her, finally catching up to her in the lobby.

Tugging her arm as he blockaded her he demanded, “Then what? If I’m not your boss, then what am I?”

Her defiant eyes poured into his and she didn’t try to twist away. Say it, he willed silently. That he was still her husband.

“I don’t know,” Namjoo calmly said with dissent. “Who are you?”

Blown by her answer, Jongin felt mentally slapped in the face. Taking advantage of his blankness she slipped out of his grasp, leaving him there stupefied by the unexpected words. Namjoo’s heels faded into the distance and a gush of wind flew in as the door flapped shut. A steamy emptiness floated through his chest, feeling once again stabbed by Namjoo.

~~~~~

Home was quiet. Jongin would have returned to his bedroom but paused in the hallway and turned toward Jaegeun’s. The young nephew was asleep, his mother sitting at the edge of the bed quietly singing while patting a gentle hand against his body. He wondered, then, if singing was a thing that ran in her family. When his father died Namjoo had comforted him by singing him to sleep.

She turned and looked at him, her sullen eyes suddenly somehow similar to the way Namjoo’s eyes used to look. Why hadn’t he seen the resemblances between the two?

“He just fell asleep,” his mother spoke as she walked out, closing the door after her. “He had a slight fever, so he didn’t go to school.”

“Was he…very upset?” Jongin asked.

“Is something wrong?” his mother wondered. “Why is Jaegeun suddenly like this?”

Jongin’s eyes moved toward the side. He was full of hesitance. To tell his mother about Namjoo or not? Would she be able to handle it?

“It’s…” it was difficult mentioning Namjoo to this woman. She was so weak and frail and had already taken so many hits. One look at Namjoo would break her heart. Jongin knew he wouldn’t be able to bring her back with his own ability, and she would never walk back with her own feet. Namjoo wouldn’t come because of him nor would she come because of her mother.

He and Namjoo were at odds right now with not a single string of hope left.

“It’s nothing.” He shook his head.

His mother stared at him for a long while, observing his expression for an answer. Deciding not to dig further she nodded. “Then rest. There are leftovers in the kitchen.”

Jongin watched the woman turn away from him and start toward her bedroom. Then he called out on impulse, “Mom.” Not his real mom but he couldn’t help it. Out of the blue he felt plundered by the guilt of being raised by her while Namjoo – the real daughter – had been pushed aside. “Mom…” it came out quieter.

“What is it?”

“Can you tell me again?” he asked. “About what happened?”

~~~~~

Namjoo didn’t even know why she was headed toward Jongin’s office the next morning. He’d gotten on her nerves so much last night she was almost ready to put in her resignation letter. She groaned to herself as she walked down the corridor, eyes sharp on the doors and ready to shoot lasers once she saw him.

“Miss?” the receptionist at the entryway called out. Namjoo halted and looked at the young woman. “Miss Yeji left this here. She’s says it’s for you.”

Goo Yeji? Had left something for her? Why, wasn’t this a surprise. Walking toward the shiny desk Namjoo took the gold envelope the receptionist held out. After walking into Jongin’s empty office she pulled out the invitation inside and in fancy letters read about the convention her father was holding that weekend. It was a must attend gathering.

Namjoo frowned as she stared at it. Why in the world was she invited?

Tucking the envelope away she looked toward the couch and noticed a brand new laptop on the table with a white note on it. The handwriting was not that of Jongin’s so she guessed it probably belonged to the secretary. The hardware had been restored and the information she’d put into the system was safe, so she needn’t worry about any lost work.

Immediately recalling their fight here yesterday she turned to look at Jongin’s empty desk, wondering what he was up to.

~~~~~

“Did you do what I asked?” Jongin questioned as they walked along the third level of his father’s mall. Instead of heading up to his office he’d gone out for a field observation with Secretary Hong.

“Yes, the laptop is in repair,” Secretary Hong informed, “and I also checked out Kyung’s internship in Britain like you wanted. Oh and, Miss Yeji sent over a mandatory invitation this morning.”

“Don’t end it there. I’m not someone you’re telling a story to.” Jongin sneered at the secretary, snatching the invitation from him.

“Yes, Chairman,” the secretary nodded his head obediently then resumed, “he wasn’t alone, Secretary Kim was with him. They lived together in a small apartment while he completed his intern at the law office. Secretary Kim enrolled into a technical college, completed her degree, and then became his secretary. They’re a buy one get one free couple.”

Jongin sent the secretary a glare at the comparison and listened to him apologize for adding the last part.

“Is that all you got?”

“I also found some records related to Secretary Kim but I’m not all sure they’re relevant to her work background.”

“What is it? Whatever you found, just say it.”

“There are records of her going to the hospital numerous times and others about seeing the head counselor, but they’re all confidential. I can’t touch them.”

The abrupt twist of his head surprised Secretary Hong whose eyes went instantly wide. “D…did I say something wrong, Chairman?”

“No, never mind,” Jongin muttered and slapped the binder he was carrying against Secretary Hong’s torso. “I have another assignment for you today. Go look for a Kim Hyeja in Muju.”

Departing from his secretary, Jongin rode the elevator up alone. Tearing the envelope apart he pulled out the invitation in fine print, scanning the content before tucking it back in. Another convention meant six boring hours of socializing, eating, and listening to a boring speech. Exciting.

Heaving a sigh with how Yeji and her father were just like parasites he headed toward the office, where Namjoo would be. Once again, just like yesterday, she was immersed in her work. So eager to leave, he thought as he sat down.

Lightly slapping his hand onto the desk he stared at Namjoo, soaking her side profile into memory. He’d only ever heard the story about Namjoo’s abandonment once. That was on the night he came home to announce her dead. Their mother, deplored by shock, had cried out the long story about how his father had taken her without knowledge of her two children; how Namjoo begged and cried, clinging onto her arm for her not to leave. Separation had caused both sides’ hearts to become torn with grief and misery. The money that Hunmi constantly sent to the village to support Namjoo and Joohwan had never reached them and in the end, they had left their aunt, disappearing from the lives of everyone.

The siblings had had no mother, no father; no protection and had always been without a place to call home.

So, he wondered, did Namjoo hate him? Was he dead in her heart like her mother was to her?

Jongin couldn’t stand the thought of being hated by her.

Pushing his chair back he stood from his chair and strode toward her, plopping into the couch opposite her. Namjoo was quick to shoot him a cold-eyed glare when he snatched the packet from her.

“It’ll be faster if we work together, don’t you think? If you want to leave my office so soon.” Jongin leaned back into the sofa, crossed his legs, and examined the dozen numbers and dollar signs on the sheet.

“What are you doing?” Namjoo demanded icily.

“What column are you on?” he asked. “B, C, or D? You’re not still on A, are you?”

Namjoo’s eyes hardened on him before she leaned forward to snatch the packet from him. His reflex was quick and he successfully dodged her attempt. “I’m offering you help. I’ll advise you to take it.”

“I never asked for your help,” Namjoo hissed swinging her hand out to snag the packet but he held it closer to his body to challenge her. Something about catching the steam in her eyes was satisfying that he wanted to do it more. “I mean it, Jongin. Give it back.”

He raised a brow, “Like I said, the faster you want to leave, the better it is for us to work together.” Turning his attention to the packet he began reading off it. “I’ll assume you’re on column B. First row sounds familiar,” he snickered, “four grand.”

Namjoo’s gaze turned intense before she lunged forward with her whole body rising from the couch to snatch the packet from him. The papers rustled between their fingers and he was quick enough to catch her wrist in time, holding her prisoner over him. Irritation burned in her eyes as he stared at her. His body sizzled and if he could close the gap between them he might be able to have her for a while.

“Do you hate me,” he wanted to ask, “because I took your mother from you?” but the words never came out.

His brow twitched and for a second his emotions sank into sorrow and longing, wishing he could hug her and ask her back home. It wasn’t the same without her. Nothing was the same.

Namjoo’s eyes burrowed into his but she said nothing. It was still the same, it still existed, was still there even if they were angry with each other for a thousand reasons. The pull between them that had started all of this was there.

Jongin’s insides wailed when the door abruptly opened and the receptionist’s frantic voice shouted, “You can’t go in there!”

Frustration burned him inside when he turned to find Yeji staring back at him and Namjoo, her eyes filled with surmountable displeasure.

***Oho! Jongin is starting to investigate Namjoo's past! If he could bring her a little bit of justice, maybe they could turn around but on the other hand, their relationship right now xDD there's spice and a little bit of sugar added

***if you consider all the factors surrounding kaijoo they're in a seriously messy situation