Baekhyun's POV~ 

It's already been a week since we returned from our trip and everything was back to normal. Working everyday and night with Mina cursing at me; it's like nothing has changed between us. 

Nah, that's a lie. 

There was definitely a change in the atmosphere. She may not have been any different, but I knew there was no longer any pressure or burden on her shoulders after she talked about her father with me. She's still hard to understand, but that's fine. I managed to open her heart up, so I can manage to understand her whether it takes me months or years. 

Not only that, but hearing her say, "Goodnight" and "Good morning" sounded different from the usual. It's not like she wasn't being sincere before when she said it, but there was more affection now. Has she finally understood what love is? Don't tell me...has she fallen for me? 

"Baekhyun! Why the hell did you eat my pudding?! You jerk!"

Nope. She definitely does not love me. 

"I only had one," I said as I was fixing my tie in the bathroom. 

"That was the only one left!" she shouted from the kitchen. "God!"

I snickered and looked at myself in the mirror one last time before I walked out. She was already standing in front of me with her arms crossed and breathing heavily. 

"What?" I asked and she frowned, angry. 

"That was my pudding! I even wrote my name on it!" she said and I tried hard to not laugh. 

"Love, we live in the same house. We share things in our house," I said and walked passed her. "What's yours is mine and what's mine is yours."

I looked over my shoulder to look at her reaction and she was ripping my guts out, mentally; I could tell from the glare she gave me. 

"Mina, I'll buy you more on the way back home. I'll even buy you cupcakes and flowers. That's what girls on their periods like, right?" I asked and she was even more angry. This is something I'm totally used too; every month this happens and food, especially sweets, calm her down. 

"I want a bucket of ice cream too," she said and I chuckled. 

"Got it," I said and looked at her as I tied my shoes. "Want a new puppy while I'm at it?"

"You're teasing me again, I know it," she growled and I laughed. "Bacon is already enough."

I smiled and waved bye to her. 

"I'll see you in eight hours," I said and she turned her head away, her way of telling me to get out. I gave one last chuckle and left the apartment. 

At work, I was greeted by the staff and made my way up to the elevator when Secretary Moon ran up to me, almost out of breath. 

"Uhm, getting a workout in before work?" I asked with an eyebrow raised and he shook his head. 

"Up," he said catching his breath. "Upstairs, Mrs. Kim is waiting for you. She's been waiting for an hour now, but I didn't know you were coming in late."

Just hearing the name got me annoyed. I let out a sigh and crossed my arms. 

"What does she want? I don't recall making an appointment with her," I said and he finally was breathing steadily. 

"She won't tell me. I tried calling you, but your phone was off. She said it's personal, family matters," he said and I furrowed my brows. What does she want to talk about now?

"Where is she?" I asked. 

"In your office," he answered and I nodded. 

"Thanks, you're free to go," I said and entered the elevator, pressing my floor with the doors sliding closed. 

There were a lot of thoughts going on in my mind as to what Mrs. Kim wanted to talk about. All I know is that it has to do nothing with business. Was it about Mina? Her husband? Me? My family? 

The elevator dinged and the doors opened. I walked down the hallway and to my receptionist. She stood up and bowed. 

"Please prepare some tea for me and my guest," I said and I entered my office to see Mrs. Kim sitting on my chair behind my desk. 

There was something about the way she was sitting there; it was as if she owned this place and that this office was hers. 

"That's quite rude of you to be sitting in my seat like that," I said and set my work bag on my tiny leather, black couch. "Why don't you come join me over here while we discuss this 'personal, family matters'."

"I kind of like it over here," she said while looking at what seemed to be freshly, painted nails. I sat down on the couch and crossed my legs. 

"Whatever suits you," I sighed and my receptionist walked in with a silver tray filled with sweets and tea. She set it in front of me on the coffee table and excused herself out. 

"Now tell me, what is it you want to discuss? I've got quite a busy schedule today," I said as I poured myself a cup of tea. 

It was obvious that she was delaying her answer and she used my seat to sway around. Was she testing my patience?

"Mrs. Kim, if you're only here to play around then I ask that you leave and head over to the park across the street," I said as calm as possible and she giggled. I kept my eyes on her and she smirked a smile before meeting my eyes. 

"Are things going well with Mina?" she asked and hearing her name made my heart race; not in a good way though. 

"Things are going just well," I said and sipped my tea. "Why do you always want a report on our progress?"

"As her mother and soon to be yours, it's only right for me to ask how things are going," she answered. 

"Then all I can say is that she and I are doing fine," I said and silence took over; the only noise was the ticking of my clock hanging on the wall. 

"...have you fallen for her yet?" she suddenly asked and I felt my heart stop for a second. I set my cup on the table and looked up at her. 

"What do you mean?" I asked and she smiled. 

"Have you fallen in love with her, silly," she giggled and I let out a sigh. 

"I have," I answered her honestly. I swear, I saw the corner of her lips twitch. 

"You have?" she asked, wanting to confirm it and I nodded. "That's a surprise for you to love a child like her."

I clenched my fists and turned my attention away from her eyes. 

"Its hard to not fall in love with a woman like her who gets more charming by the day," I said and glanced up to Mrs. Kim, then it went silent once again. I continued to look at her and she was smirking; it was kind of creepy. But I knew she had more to say, she was just waiting for me to ask. I let out a sigh and leaned back into the couch. 

"Mrs. Kim...why are you really here?" I asked and she smiled, shifting her position. 

"Baekhyun, do you know that your father has appointed me as the lead for this new project of yours?" she asked and I felt my heart race. I didn't know about it and I didn't like the sound of that. 

"Why you?" I asked, showing my disapproval in my tone of voice. 

"Because I have more experience than the both of you combine," she simply said. "And because I have the money and power."

I furrowed my brows and swallowed hard. 

"Is that really the reason? Because you have the things we don't have?" I asked and she nodded. 

"What other reason do you want? Without me your project set for Japan will never be a success," she said with pride. "Please do realize that you and your father's company need me hence why you're marrying my daughter...for business benefits. I mean, I'm glad you love my daughter but remember that the reason for this marriage proposal was for business only."

I felt my heart drop as that was true at first, but it's not like that now. 

"But don't be alarmed, Baekhyun," she said with a crooked smile. I clenched my fists and she stood up from my seat, walking to the door. 

"I'll make sure this project goes as planned and that it becomes the best you'll ever see as I am now in charge," she said and opened the door. "I'll be looking forward to working with you, my precious son-in-law."

She emphasized the last words and I felt my body burn in anger. Once she was out, I let out the breath I was holding in and stood up, running my fingers through my hair. I bit my bottom lip and left my office. 

"Oh! Baekhyun-ssi, your meeting with Mr. Kang-"

"Delay it to another 15 minutes," I told my receptionist as I quickly walked passed her and made my way to my father's office. 

I got in the elevator and pressed the button to his level. 

What the hell was he thinking? Why didn't he tell me? Why her of all people?! 

The elevator dinged open and I walked out to see my father happily talking to one of his colleagues. I frowned and made my way to him. He saw me and smiled. 

"Baek-"

"Meet me in your office. Now," I said and didn't dare to greet his colleague. I entered his office and placed my hands on my hips, pacing around. 

Seconds later my father entered with a concerned look. 

"Baekhyun, what's wrong?" he asked with his baritone voice sounding smooth. 

"What exactly happened during the time I was out of town?" I asked, trying hard to not make it look like I was glaring at him. He furrowed his brows and cocked his head to the side. 

"What do you mean?" he asked and I exploded. 

"Why did you make her the lead?!" I shouted and he was shocked to see me like this. "Why didn't you discuss this with me?! Who are you to decide all of this on your own?!"

I was now breathing heavily and my father was no longer happy; I could tell he was furious with my attitude. 

"Why don't you calm down first, then we'll talk," he said as his voice seemed louder and stronger in my ears. 

I swallowed hard and took a seat in the chair in front of his desk as he sat down in his chair. His expression was intimidating, but I kept my gaze firm. 

"Explain to me what you did," I calmly said. He let out a sigh and placed his hands on his desk, interlacing his fingers together.  

"While you were away, I came across some difficulties with our potential partners," he said hanging his head low. "Out of nowhere they started to back out one by one because they had no faith in us. They believed we wouldn't succeed with this project and that it'd all be a waste of money, time and effort."

I frowned. 

"What the hell," I whispered, confused. 

"I did the best to keep them, but they refused to stay in contact. That's when I met Mrs. Kim on my way home and she offered to help as long as I made her the lead," he said and my brows met in the center of my forehead. 

"Abeoji, we could've figured out a way to do this project ourselves," I said and he shook his head. 

"Its harder than you think it is, Baekhyun-ah," he sighed. "With no partnerships and sponsors, this project would surely fail. With Mrs. Kim in charge, she'll be sure to save it with the money and power she has."

I hated the way he was saying this. We can't always depend on her...we can't always depend on money and power. We need to grow and strengthen ourselved with our own power. 

"But why her?" I asked and he looked at me. 

"Baekhyun, you know the answer very well yourself," he said. "After all, you are marrying her daughter so that we can receive benefits through them. If it weren't for you and Mina's marriage, she would've never helped us."

I felt a lump grow in my throat. Marriage...that's all they see; my marriage with Mina. The marriage that would help them....

"Baekhyun, I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, but we need Mrs. Kim," he softly said and I stood up from my seat. "Although she is in charge of this project-"

"Postpone it," I said and he looked confused. "Postpone her position as the lead. Let me try to solve this problem myself."

"But-"

"I don't care if I put my life at risk here. I don't care if it takes years. I don't want the time, effort and brainstorming you and I did to go to waste," I said with determination. "This is also our first project together as father and son. We shouldn't give up so easily because the people we trusted backed out on us. We may not have the money and many resources, but I want to continue this project without Mrs. Kim interferring."

"Baekhyun," he quietly said my name with a proud smile. The least I can do for my father is to give him hope. 

"I'll do whatever I can to make this project go as how we planned it, not as your son, but as the future CEO of this company," I said and bowed to him before walking away. 

I stopped at the door and turned to look back to my father. "And please...please don't treat my marriage with Mina as a way to recieve their benefits. I'm marrying Mina because I love her not because of business or anything else related to that topic."

He seemed a bit surprised, but he smiled and nodded. 

"Now if you'd excuse me," I said and walked out. I let out a long sigh and felt pressure on my chest; it's going to get tough now. 

Mina's POV~

I was out in town with Bacon enjoying the new weather of fall. It was still hot out, but the changes of color in the leaves was enough to let everyone know it was a new season. Not only that, but with Bacon growing bigger, it was enough to let me know that time was moving forward. 

We were at an open field and Bacon was running around chasing after the birds. He made sure to look over his shoulder every once in awhile to make sure I was still here watching him. He's seriously so similar to Baekhyun that it made me giggle. 

I continued to watch Bacon when I felt someone tap my shoulder. I jumped in surprise and looked behind to see Junior happily smiling down at me. I slight gasped and widened my eyes. I haven't seen him in awhile, so it was weird to see him again. 

"J-Junior!" I exclaimed, not that I was excited to see him though. "W-what are you doing here?"

He jumped over the bench and sat besides me. 

"My parent's restaurant is just across the street and I saw you," he grinned. 

"How did you know it was me?" I asked and he shrugged. 

"I didn't," he answered with a light laugh. "I saw a pretty girl alone and I thought I'd talk to her."

"What a creep," I said and he laughed. 

"I was just kidding!" he said and looked out to the field. "I just had a feeling it was you from your figure."

"That's even more creepy," I said and he pouted. 

"I'm not a creep or some stalker," he said and I didn't change my expression. "It's normal for friends to recognize each other even from a distance."

I slightly widened my eyes and looked at him. 

Friends...? He's still calling me his friend....

"What? Don't tell me...I've charmed you?" he asked with a goofy grin and I snorted. 

"Don't get so cocky," I said with an eye roll and there was a nice breeze that passed us. Bacon returned back to me and jumped up on the bench to lay next to my thigh. 

"Oh, who's this?" Junior asked, leaning over to pet him. 

"This is Bacon, Baekhyun bought him for me," I said and Junior smiled at me. "Why are you smiling like that?"

He snickered and shook his head. 

"Its nothing," he said and straightened himself up. "I was just thinking about how much Baekhyun cares about you."

I felt my heart race and I asked, "What do you mean?"

"I bet Bacon was bought to fill in the space of Baekhyun's absence when he's not home?" he wondered and I was amazed at how smart this person was. From my reaction Junior said, "I hit the bullseye."

"He said it was to keep me company and from feeling less lonely," I spoke without thinking. Junior continued to smile and he patted my head, taking me by surprise. 

"He really does care about you," he softly said and ruffled my hair. "And caring for someone is way of showing that person they love you."

I felt my heart thump against my chest. After hearing that, my mind was filled with Baekhyun and his never ending kindness. He really does love me...he's even told me himself that he does. 

But I can't make him love me any deeper than he already does. 

"He only cares for me because he's a nice person," I said, denying the truth. Junior didn't look too happy hearing that. "He's only like that because he was forced to marry me."

"Marry?" Junior asked and I realized I spoke without thinking again. "That's something new to me."

"Well...," I hesitated, trying to think of a lie to cover it up. 

"You don't have to hide it from me," he said with a gentle voice. "I'm your friend, you can tell me anything. I won't judge or criticize you. I won't interrupt you. I'll listen to whatever you have to say."

Now that's new to me. No one...no one has ever offered to lend an ear. All the people I claimed as my friends only asked me to lend them money, to join them in a smoke session or have a drinking contest. Some of those "friends" even asked me to sleep with them, seducing me and others already touching me. No one has ever listened to me. 

"Mina, you don't have to tell me now, but please do rely on my more," he said with a sweet smile. "After all we are friends."

That word again...friends. What is his definition of friends? Does he want my money? Does he want to sleep with me? Or is he being sincere and he just wants to be there for me as my "friend"?

After a moment of silence, Junior broke it with a sigh and a soft smile. 

"Wanna come over to the restaurant and have dinner there? It'll be on the house," he offered and I felt my stomach growling at the thought of food. 

"What about Bacon?" I asked and he leaned over to scratch Bacon behind the ear. 

"My parents wouldn't mind, but the customers would, sooo...we'll just have to sneak him in the back and keep him there," he snickered and I agreed to have dinner at his family restaurant. Besides, who doesn't like free food?

We both walked across the street to the restaurant and went into the back alley and through the back door to the kitchen. There were workers cooking and cleaning as we walked through; Bacon was kept secured in a different room. 

Junior and I walked out of the kitchen and into the main area where customers were eating. 

"Yah, Junior! Where did you go? I was loo-" an older woman in her early 40s said midway until she saw me. "Oh~! Who's this young lady?"

I looked at her blankly and Junior snickered, "Don't get the wrong idea, umma. She's just a friend, her name is Mina."

His mother didn't seem to quite believe him, but I really was just a friend. 

"Whatever you say~" she said in a singing voice and she escorted us to a table. "Mina, you should try the galbi here, my husband makes the best in town."

"He does," Junior agreed. "His japchae are amazing too!"

"Then I guess those are what I'm getting," I said without even looking at the menu and Junior's mom smiled happily. 

"Coming right up. Junior, come help me for a bit too," she said and walked away. 

"I'll be back," Junior smiled and followed behind.

I sat in my seat alone and looked at my surrounding. It was a tiny restaurant; kind of cozy. I felt like a creeper too watching others eat their meal. 

"...I heard from a worker that things aren't going well," I overhead a man talking to another at the table behind me. "Their project is going to fail."

Whatever they're talking about sounds so boring. 

"But rumor says it that someone else has taken over. I heard she's the richest and most powerful in the business industry," another man said. Why am I still eavesdropping?

"Really? I heard that Baekhyun-ssi is going to handle this on his own," the man from before said and my heart skipped. 

"Baekhyun?" I whispered his name and glanced over my shoulders to see that there were three businessmen. 

"How is he going to do that," the cubbier man scoffed. "They lost all sponsors and partners. They should just let Mrs. Kim handle the situation."

I slightly widened my eyes at the mention of my mother. What's going on? Why are the two planning? No. What is she planning?

The men were done with their dinner and stood up, walking passed my table. 

"Baekhyun-ssi is going to have a hard time trying to make this project a success," the taller man said. 

"Yeah, he'll have to stay up countless nights to find people," the chubby man snickered. 

"I just hope he doesn't trouble us," the last man said and they were out the door. 

I frowned and my heart kept racing; it wasn't good though. I remember Baekhyun telling me about a project that was planned for Japan; he was so excited about it too. What do those men mean that they lost everything? Is it failing? What is Mrs. Kim plotting? Is Baekhyun alright?

"Hey, brought you what you ordered," I heard Junior's voice from behind and I snapped my head up to him. 

"Oh, thanks," I said and caught myself off guard. When did it get so easy to thank someone?

Junior set the tray of food down and asked, "Did something happen?"

He asked and I looked at him, confused. 

"I can see the wrinkles forming in the middle of your forehead," he snickered. I couldn't even feel my face changing and he sat down across from me, reaching over to poke my forehead. "The wrinkles will deepen if you keep doing that."

I whacked his hand away and bit my bottom lip while looking down to my lap. All I could think about was what I had heard earlier. 

"I don't know what it is, but if you have to go then go," Junior said and I looked up at him to see a soft expression. "I'll pack your dinner."

"But-"

"Its okay. It seems urgent," he smiled and stood up. "I'll meet you at the back with Bacon."

And before I could even say anything else, he grabbed the tray and left with my food. I stood up and walked out the restaurant to the back alley. I entered the back door and grabbed Bacon while waiting for Junior. It wasn't long when he came back with a plastic bag filled with containers of food. 

"My mom packed a little extra," he sheepishly grinned and I thanked him, then started walking down. "Hey!"

I glanced over my shoulder to him. 

"It's getting darker out, so be careful on your way home. I'd walk you, but my parents need me," he said and I nodded. 

"I'll be safe," I said and walked on, but I wasn't walking home. No...there was no point on going home when there would be no one home. Instead, I decided to pay a little visit to the house I was raised in. The house where everything went downhill...the house where that btich lives.