*SHK’s POV*

“So, you really think it would work?” Lee Jin asks me from her desk. She’s working overtime, planning the design of a new commercial building in the city and I decided to pay her a visit, bringing takeout food knowing her tendency to skip meals when she’s too caught up with work.

“Yes, I do. Well, I hope it will,” I say, taking a sip from my drink. “And besides, it’s not like I have any other choice. You know Appa, he doesn’t just give empty threats and I can’t lose Serenity resort.”

“I know,” she looks at me sympathetically. “But isn’t there any other way?”

“There isn’t, at least none that I can think of at the moment. It’s the best plan I can think of considering our options,” I sigh and fiddle with my custom made bracelet. “Can’t you just trust me on this?”

“Dear, I trust you. You know I do, but it’s just too risky. What if you get caught? What if your father finds out that everything’s just a lie?”

“Well, then. I’ll face the consequences. Whether I like it or not, he’s going to force me to marry Song Joong Ki, anyway. I have to take a chance. Just let me handle this, okay?”

“Okay, then. If you say so, but don’t say I didn’t warn you”

“You worry too much, sometimes,” I smile

“It’s because I care about you, duh?” She rolls her eyes and I laugh, recalling the conversation I had with my father today. I finally agreed to his decision on two conditions, one, knowing that he never backs out of his word, that he would give me his word never to sell Serenity resort. And two, that I would promise to give this engagement a “try” only if…

“Appa, please. I promise I’d really give this a try. I’ll try to work things out with him, but you also have to promise me that you won’t force me to marry him if, after all my attempts and efforts of trying to make this work, I still don’t want to marry him. Surely, you don’t want your only daughter to marry someone she despises, do you? That would be too cruel, Appa,” I said sweetly, trying to convince him.

“Hmm,” he seemed to contemplate and after a while he finally considered this, “fine. You do know how to pull some strings, young lady,” he said and I smiled.

“So, do you agree Appa?” I asked hopefully.

“Do you really promise to exert some effort to get to know him? Even to get to like him?” he looked at me doubtfully.

“Yes,” I said.  

“Okay,” he simply said.

“Okay, as in okay? That’s it?” I asked, wondering what the catch was.

“Yes. Song Joong Ki seems to be a good kid, you’ll eventually find it in you to like him,” he mused.

“You always seem to say that when you only met him about once,” I asked him doubtfully.

“I have my sources,” he said, smiling.

“You stalked him?!” I asked, mortified.

“Is that what you call it? Hmm, well I call it a survey,” he said coolly.

“What did you exactly do, Appa?” I asked him with narrowed eyes.

“Let’s just say I asked someone to do a background check on him,” he said, starting to leave the room.

“You what?!” I followed him as he whistled happily. “Appa, wait!”

“Oh, look at the time, I think I need to meet with Mr. Park,” he said playfully.

“Appa!” I said, frustrated.

“What? You don’t really think I’m letting my daughter marry someone I barely know, right?”

---

I walk to the windows and stare at the night sky, watching as the stars twinkle. “I’m making the right decision, right? You will guide me through this?” I ask them.

“You still think about him?” Lee Jin asks, interrupting me from my reverie. I stare at her in confusion and she continues, “that boy at the hospital.” And I instantly get her, thinking about the boy I met almost 20 years ago when I was only 6 years old.

I was crying, sitting on a bench at the hospital’s waiting area. My father received a call informing him earlier that day that my mother got involved in a car crash and we rushed to the hospital as soon as he ended it. I didn’t know exactly what was going on, but what I did know was that something wasn’t right and it involved my mom. She was not okay, Appa said.

A few minutes after arriving at the hospital, I heard my father cry. “Noo! There must’ve been a mistake. No, wake her up. Wake her up” I heard him scream. He cried so hard I felt myself wanting to tear up, too. After his sobs subsided, he approached me and got down on his knees to meet my eyes.

“Appa, where’s Eomma?” I asked, staring at his red puffy eyes.

“She’s gone, Hye Kyo. Your Eomma’s gone,” he said as tears ran down his face.

“Where did she go, Appa? Can’t we go with her?” I asked innocently, not really understanding why my usually strong, happy and brave father is crying.

“She’s dead, Hye Kyo. She’s not coming back”

I remember crying hard after he said that. I may not have understood fully what was happening, but I did understand what he meant when he said that Eomma’s no longer coming back.

“No, I want my Eomma. I want my Eomma back!” I said crying, alone at the waiting area. My father left me there for a while as he said he had something to take care of. “Eomma, come back please,” I wept.

I cried and cried until my lacy pink dress was soaked in tears. I cried until someone sat next to me. I looked up to see a boy my age with a bandage on his head and his left arm on a sling staring at me.

“Why are you crying?” he asked curiously.

“My Eomma left me,” I sniffed.

“Why, where did she go?”

“S-she, s-s-she died,” I sobbed and he let me. He sat there silently, keeping me company while listening to me cry my heart out. When my sobs subsided, he began to speak.

“See that?” he said and I looked up to see him pointing to one of the hospital’s windows.

“W-what?” I asked, confused at first, then realized that he was pointing to the sky.

“My Eomma once said that when people we love leave, they go there,” he said. “They become stars and they look after us.” I look at him, trying to figure out what he was saying.

“Your Eomma might be on her way there now, too. You don’t have to be sad anymore”

“B-but she’ll still be gone. I will no longer get to see her. I will no longer hear her voice,” I sniffed.

“You will, every night. My Eomma said, we can talk to them. They may not be able to speak to us, but we can listen to them here,” he said, pointing towards his chest with his uninjured arm.

“R-really?” I asked.

“The stars are our friends, they always listen,” he smiled and I finally found myself smiling back.

“Eomma, are you there already? Can you hear me?” I asked the stars. “Are you really going to watch over me from now on?” The boy next to me patted my hand and I found myself comforted both by the stars and the boy who introduced them to me.

We sat there staring at the stars for a while until Aunt Hyerin, Onew’s mother called me. I stood and started to go to her when the boy called me.

“Hey, kid. Don’t get sad anymore, arasso?” he said, now standing where I left him.

“Arasso,” I smiled and waved good bye.

 I’m still fiddling with the bracelet my mother left me when I answer Lee Jin. “Yes, from time to time,” I say, turning to her. “You know, sometimes I feel like I only made him up in my mind. I never saw him after that. I never even asked why he was there at that moment,” I say, turning to look at the stars again. “I wonder what his name was.”

--

I look outside the moving car as Appa and I travel to Song Regency hotel, where President and Mrs. Song are holding their wedding anniversary party. What was I thinking? Can I really do this? Tonight is also the night when my father and the other Songs will announce my engagement to Song Joong Ki. After that call I made, agreeing to his plan, we didn't get to talk again. What with all the meetings I had to attend to and all other business stuff my father is urging me to take part of. And besides, what will we talk about? We don't exactly have anything in common, well aside from the fact that we both hate each other and are forced into a marriage we both don't want.

I take a deep breath as we near the hotel. After tonight, everyone will know that we're engaged. After tonight, there will be no backing down. I tug at my gown, pleased at what I'm wearing. Appa specifically forbade me to wear a black gown. He seemed to read what I had in mind. For me, black signifies a funeral - my independence's funeral and Song Joong Ki's funeral too, if he ever decides to do something stupid tonight. I want him to see that though I agreed to his plan, I still don't like him and that getting engaged to him is like being buried alive. 

Instead, I purposefully wore a dark blue colored (which can pass as black once in the dark) strapless long gown, paired with matching heels, and a dangle necklace I designed for myself a few months back. Most guys are color blind anyway. Well, I hope he is, at least. I hope he'll get the back off vibe I'll be exuding. 

I wore my hair down, slightly curling it and put on some light makeup, so as not to appear overly prepared.

"Are you ready?" Appa asks me as soon as the driver stops the car.

"Never," I answer and he gives me a look. "Kidding, let's go Appa, I'm so excited!" I give him a fake smile and he raises his brow at me.

The venue is elegantly decorated with white cloth draping the tables and chairs and expensive flowers adorning each centerpiece and each corner of the hall. The place is illuminated by dull purple lights and you could tell from one look that the people hosting the party come from a wealthy family. 

"Chairman Song. Hye Kyo. We're so glad you could make it," President Song welcomes.

"Well, I'm also glad to be here. Great party," Appa says.

"Happy anniversary, President and Mrs. Song," I bow in greeting.

"Hye Kyo, you look beautiful, dear," Mrs. Song says, taking my hands.

"Joong Ki's in here somewhere. I wonder where he is," Mrs. Song starts to look around.

"That's okay, Mrs. Song, I'm sure there will be a lot of time to catch up with him, later," I say kindly, meaning to say that "later" at the moment means "never."

"Oh, your friends and Joong Ki's are here,"  she says and she gestures to one side of the hall, "I think I saw them sitting there."

I nod. "Excuse me, Appa. President and Mrs. Song, I'll just check on my friends," I bow and start to walk towards the direction Mrs. Song pointed to.

"You're daughter is reall well-mannered. I couldn't ask for a better future daughter in law," President Song says and he and Appa exchange a good laugh, making me want to gag.

 I spend the rest of the night talking to my friends and trying to avoid the gaze I know is piercing my back. I try to ignore him as he tries to catch my attention, pretending to be very engaged in my conversation with Ah In and Daniel, though the topic only involved new models of cars (which I find extremely boring). The time to announce the engagement is getting near and I'm getting extra nervous.

"Are you alright?" Lee Jin asks me.

"I'm fine. I'll just go get a drink," I say before she can protest. I go to the area where they serve the drinks and grab myself a glass of wine I am about to take a sip when..

"Are you avoiding me?" someone leans into my ear, and I almost spilled my drink. Surprised, I put my hand on my chest, trying to calm my heart which is beating wildly. I turn my head to see a grinning Joong Ki in a crisp black suit and white shirt underneath. 

"You startled me!" I accuse him.

"Not my fault you weren't paying attention," he says, smirking at my reaction.

"Whatever," I dismiss him as I head my way back to my friends' table. It must be time as I sight President and Mrs. Song as well as my father make their way towards the stage. He grabs my wrist and I look at him annoyingly.

"You still haven't answered my question," he asks.

"It doesn't matter," I say, struggling to get out from his grasp.

Before anything else, I would like to thank everyone for celebrating this occasion with us, I've been so blessed to have a beautiful and loving wife. Darling, thank you for 30 wonderful years.

"It does, to me," he says looking at me in the eyes. My breathing stops.

"So?"

"Fine! Yes! I've been avoiding you. Happy now?" I try to break my wrist free.

We also have two important announcements to share with you tonight. First, we are happy to announce the partnership between the Song chain of hotels and Song Group of Companies *applause*

"No" he's still not letting go of me.

"What do you want?!" I ask, really annoyed now.

Second, well, it's not only two companies which are about to get merged tonight, but two families.

"Why are you avoiding me? Did I do something wrong?" he asks, looking like he really wants to know the answer.

"In case you forgot, I'm not exactly fond of you. Just because I agreed to this, it doesn't mean that I instantly like you," I stare him down.

"What