‘’What is this all about, dad?’’ he fought, finding the idea of marriage annoying by itself. Only now he managed to get a girlfriend and get over his brother’s soon to be wife so how could his father push him against the wall like this? It was mean, inconsiderate, stupid, childish...the list could go on and on. Jiwon could just call out many adjectives to characterize his father’s actions. They still would make no sense. No matter what his father thought, Jiwon couldn’t simply stand this.

‘’It’s about our future, son. We have to think ahead.’’ he defended, resting his hands over the wooden table as Jiwon scoffed at this ‘’So you’re marrying me off to a stranger? Why didn’t you ask my opinion on this? I don’t want to get married.’’ he argued back - marriage was just a very important step and in his point of vision, it was scary. Very scary.

His father sighed at his son’s behaviour, deciding to comb his fingers past his grey hair that was styled upwards for this specific occasion. He wanted to look nice in front of his sons. ‘’It’s something you’ll thank me for, later on.’’ he continued, convinced he had done the right thing while Jiwon only scoffed, once again. ‘’The right thing? What do you mean by that? There’s no right thing in allowing my brother to choose who he wants to marry and setting me off with someone I don’t even know. How is that the right thing, dad? I have a girlfriend that I’m in love with, can’t you understand that? If I’m here today, it’s because of her. I didn’t want to come but she convinced me to.’’ ‘’That’s her job.’’ his father shouted, slamming his hands on the desk.

Jiwon gasped, looking at his father, quite shocked with his behaviour. ‘’You’re marrying my friend’s daughter and that’s final. I can’t call it off now. It’s a promise I made to him...and son, it’s not that I don’t want to see you happy but...this is business. We need to get you married as soon as possible so you can have someone to pass the company to.’’

The younger stood there quietly. He opposed what his father just said. He wasn’t going to marry someone he didn’t know. He couldn’t, even if the company’s future relied on it. ‘’Are you saying I can’t build my own family with Lia? Why is that? Is she unable to give me a son I can rely on?’’ he asked, offended as his father groaned, feeling frustrated at his son’s behaviour. ‘’She’s a nobody. She happened to stumble your way, Jiwon. She is someone you should keep...as a friend, not as a lover.’’ his father commented, trying not to get too mad at his son who didn’t like what was being said. ‘’I want my grandchildren to be living like royalty. She can’t provide you that.’’

‘’If the ing problem is you grandchildren than I’ll provide for them. I’ll give them whatever they need even if I have to work all day. Are you saying Lia and I can’t provide what’s necessary for your grandchildren? Let me tell you that if any kid comes to the world by that woman you’re trying to set me off with, the kid is going to suffer more than I am suffering right now with your stupid decision.’’ with this, he turned his back and walked to the door. ‘’Sure, I’ll marry together with my brother.’’ he barked out, annoyed with the conversation he had with his father.

Jiwon’s head was a mess, more than it was supposed to. Just how in the world was he supposed to tell Lia he was going to get married? It was even stupid when he just told her he would fight for them and this was just the opposite of what he said he’d be doing. Just who would do such thing? It was out of what anyone could possibly expect anyways.

His priority was to check up on Lia - he would find the moment to let her know about this. He knew he would but he didn’t want to spoil their relationship more than it was necessary. Biting his lip, the male thought of going home and simply let Lia think over the situation first but as he rode his car and started the engine, his brain changed the initial plan. If he let her think over it, he could be too late. And probably he was just being selfish in both cases but he had honestly, strong feelings for Lia.

As he drove, he heard the silence of the busy city at night. There were no excessive annoying horns everywhere since the traffic was mostly gone. Now, only the empty streets with those street lamps that emitted a strong light over a small area, were left. And the silence somehow terrorized Jiwon who was trying to prepare himself for the scenario he was about to face. Lia was just probably left in tears, blaming him for not being good enough and ignoring all the hints she has been dropping over not being comfortable.

Coming to think of it, it wasn’t that his mother didn’t like the girl - she was actually fond of her - but know Jiwon was engaged only lead her to think that it’d be mean if Jiwon lead her on, letting her hope grow on something that he couldn’t make happen. That was the reason why she didn’t look happy to see her - it was rather a way to protect her than actually making her feel bad.

‘’Aish mom, why didn’t you say it?’’ he groaned as he stopped the car in front of Lia’s house. The lights were off in the whole house but he could see the living room had some strong lighting. It was just the television. Lia used to stay in the dark when she was sad - it was something that didn’t happen often. In fact, Jiwon only dealt with it when her high school boyfriend broke up with her because she spent too much time with Jiwon. After that, she was always some kind of lightbulb that would light up not only on emergencies but regularly to guide Jiwon through his hardest paths. She was always there for him and he wanted to be there for her too.

While exiting the car, he felt his heart beat faster against his chest. He had agreed to get married but how was he supposed to tell Lia that? He recalled having a conversation with Lia over what they could be someday and once, during high school, on one of those days where the lunch hour seemed to be dragging itself longer than it was necessary, Jiwon found himself asking Lia about what she could see herself as in just a couple years. She answered honestly, talking about her goals and how she was going to make it, getting Jiwon to smile widely. So, he asked over ten years what would her life be and he was surprised to hear she was planning on doing things on her own - not once had she mentioned about a boyfriend, a husband or a male in general.

‘’What about marriage? Don’t you want to get married?’’ his curious self asked her who thought for a few minutes over the yes or no question that seemed so hard to answer. ‘’I’m not interested in marriage or what so ever. I can be happy with someone without being married. And in all honesty, me and my husband will just get tired of each other after a while...you know how I get when I fight.’’ she chuckled quietly at the thought. This memory was kept alive in Jiwon’s brain, making him sigh as he now, stood in front of the main door. He was aware that what he had to say would get him on her black list, even if it wasn’t his fault. The male never wished to break her heart but he was pushed against a wall, having a knife pointed against his neck. He was forced to make a choice.

Jiwon didn’t bother to knock. He knew where she hid the spare key, that granting his way past the door. He quietly walked in, seeing Lia sitting by the couch as she stared at some papers in the dark. She wasn’t paying attention to the TV that was on. He didn’t like the fact she was using the light that came from the TV to read the words on the paper - she would hurt her eyes from the lack of luminosity coming from the device.

‘’Lia…’’ he whispered as he closed the door, surprising the female who quickly took the paper into her fist, turning into a small ball. He approached her, watching her look at him with the tears she had been crying, stuck onto her cheeks. He frowned at the sight, taking a seat by her side and reaching for her hand. Once she understood what he wanted - the papers - she pulled them behind her back and stared at him in the eyes ‘’What do you want?’’ she asked in a quiet tone - it was almost like that voice didn’t belong to her.

‘’We need to talk…’’ he sighed quietly, indicating her that the guilt he carried in his voice would make her regret even letting him know where she hid the spare key she used when she forgot her keys at home. ‘’If you came here to break up with me, then just leave. I’ll consider that your attempt to make things right.’’ she told him, standing up and quickly moving to the room she usually slept on. Jiwon’s features collided into a huge frown. This was not exactly what he came there for. He came to ask her to help him stand strong and fight against his father who wanted to part the both of them. But after what he did to her.... was she even considering raising a finger against his family.

With a sigh, he stood up and followed her who was now staring at her phone quietly. The words she read off the phone made her smile but the feeling of hate they brought to her, made her eyes cry. Her grip tightened on the phone as she let her hand down. She looked up at the male who stood by the door. Frowning, she walked up to him and slapped his face, harshly. He stared at her quietly, wondering why she did this even though he deserved it. Did he deserve her to explain the reason why she slapped him?

‘’Why did you do it?’’ she shouted at him, making him wonder what she was talking about. Even though there were quite a few words that suit the occasion, the male kept quiet and stared at the female, asking her with his eyes, to develope the subject a bit more so he could at least justify himself to her. ‘’Why did you… why did you tell your father?’’ she punched his chest this time, leaving him confused. ‘’Wasn’t...it what you wanted?’’ he asked her, feeling his upper body balance back and forth as she hit his chest.

Lia didn’t seem pleased with his answer. Was it because she wanted it? Wasn’t it because, he too, wanted it? She sniffed quietly, wiping away her tears as he indirectly just let her know how he felt. For him, it didn’t matter if they were together or not, he just wanted to to get over his brother’s soon to be wife...because it was wrong, or so she thought. ‘’Because I wanted? It doesn’t matter right now. Please leave.’’ she pointed to the door. His eyes didn’t dare to look at where her finger pointed, even if he liked the white door she had asked him to buy a couple years ago while she was thinking of moving out her parents’ house. The male stood still. He may have done wrong before but he didn’t want his wrong doings to haunt him down when he had the chance to make it right still.

His hands reached for her face, taking it in between them as he appreciated her features. His thumbs caressed her cheeks gently, allowing the female to relax under his touch. Even though she was still crying over the message she received, his touch helped her get back down to Earth where her feet seemed too heavy to take a step by herself. Before she knew it, her hands were over his shirt, holding tightly onto it like he did to her jacket just so many times when he was lost in thoughts. ‘’Why does your family hate me this much? What did I do?’’ she whispered to him as he brought her into his embrace.

The female cried against his chest, thinking that things couldn’t get worst than they were in that moment. Jiwon released a soft chuckle - his family didn’t hate her, if anything, they hated him because he was being forced to do something he didn’t want to do. ‘’They don’t hate you. My mom loves you.’’ he told her, knowing that he shouldn’t pronounce his father’s feelings for her in the same sentence. It’d be opposite to what his mother felt for the young girl he was in love with. Lia pulled back and looked up at him. His eyes were on the wall where their picture rest against. It was maybe from the first Christmas she spent with him. ‘’I think you should go, Jiwon. If your father sees you here…’’ she stopped, making him look down - how did she know about his father.

‘’Did my father say something?’’ she pulled her phone up, showing him the message she just got from his father. Lia was fired, not supposed to be close to Jiwon because Jiwon was the son of the CEO while she was… just someone who stumbled across Jiwon’s path. Basically what he said to Jiwon. The male sighed. ‘’You’re coming to work tomorrow.’’ he warned her but she stepped back and shook her head slowly. ‘’Just go back.’’ she asked him and sat by the bed, taking the paper she threw away in her hands again. She held onto it tightly, making him understand she had something to tell him.

‘’Are you sick? Is that why you’re pushing me away?’’ he asked, staring at the female who smiled a bit at him ‘’I wish I was dying, instead.’’ she commented, shrugging her shoulders as she stared at the ball of paper she made. He sighed quietly ‘’I don’t care what my father says about you and me. I want to be with you and he’s just not going to come in the way.’’ he told her, nodding firmly to her who smiled at his words.

‘’But there’s something you need to know…’’ both spoke at the same time, surprising each other. Lia bit her lip, knowing she would regret asking it and keeping the information to herself about what she had to tell him. ‘’You go first.’’ she still managed to push those words off her lips, surprising the male who nodded firmly - he had to be honest with her.

‘’I’m getting married.’’