Date Started: 23rd December 2018

Date Completed: 10th May 2020

Song Recommendation: Wendy - What If Love

Minor Pairings: TaengSic & JoyGi, kinda.

 

This is supposed to be a blind date au!!! How did it end up with 19k words!!!

Fair warning up ahead: I don’t know about fashion.

 

 

"Please my beautiful sister, you're the only one I can count on!"

 

Seunghoon was on his knees, begging for his frowning sister to change her mind. Meanwhile, Wendy thought he was a major idiot and she wondered how this was the person supposedly in charge of their family's business.

 

"Look, why don't you just text her and tell her that you really can't make it this evening? I'm sure she would understand."

 

"I told you I don't have her number. Eric said that if I have her number, I might cancel the blind date or something, so he was adamant about my not having it."

 

Now he was using one of his infamous puppy eyes, one that Wendy had grown to love and hate over the years. She loved it because he was after all, her brother and he could be cute sometimes (not that she would say it out loud in front of him). But she also hated it because that was his ultimate weapon to convince her to do the things she would not normally do.

 

No matter how annoying Seunghoon could be, she would not want people to get the wrong idea of her brother. He was a sweetheart and kind to a fault, but he was also devastatingly loyal and a bad decision maker when it came to non-work-related matters, especially when it came to his friends. His duality had always been a curious case for the people around him - but more of a bane when it came to his only sister.

 

This time, he dug another hole for himself and now it was up for Wendy (again) to clean up his mess. Seunghoon, in his usual carefree way, had promised Eric that he would go on a blind date with one of Eric's friends' sister, forgetting completely that he had another outstanding promise made with his best friends.

 

It went without saying that he would choose his best friends over a woman he had not even met yet, but his conscience wouldn’t let him to just ditch the meeting and let his date wait. Seunghoon was also too scared to inform Eric about his predicament because he knew that the guy would fry his .

 

So, he pulled out his secret weapon: his sister. Over the years, Wendy was always the one who had to clean up after his mess, and occasions such as this one was not unusual for the siblings. When Wendy let out a long sigh, Seunghoon knew that his sister had given in to his request. He leapt on his feet and hugged her, jumping with joy and dragging Wendy along with him - to her dismay and amusement.

 

"Thank you, the best sister in the world! I'm sure it will turn out just fine."

 

"If anything goes wrong, I'll kill you after I get back."

 

"Don't worry, what's the worst thing that could happen? She might just throw her drink to your face and storm out of the restaurant, like in the movies. I doubt that she'll kill you or something like that."

 

"Oppa... Do you want me to change my mind about going?"

 

"I was just kidding my little sister! Who knows? You might even get along well with her, better than I ever could!"

 

Seunghoon had a lopsided smile plastered on his face and his eyes were glinting, but too bad Seungwan missed the mischievous expression on his face that she had always associated with something bad.

 

*

 

There was no name or a face Wendy could attach to her brother's blind date, which made sense considering that was the whole concept; but still, she wished she did not walk in the restaurant feeling so out of elements and at loss of who she should be looking out for. Wendy was always prepared for a lot of things - that was just who she was. She was not spontaneous nor very impulsive. Heck, she even carried around a huge bag most of the time, filled to the brim with so many things she thought she might need.

She did not know whether she should praise or curse her brother for choosing one of the restaurants in town that was owned by their family to be the meeting place. Seunghoon was clearly ready to brag about his association with The Velvet but if anything went wrong with the date, he might have to suffer from endless questions and teasing from the staff there that knew both of the siblings well. That was essentially the place where they grew up, having foods ranging from porridge to caviar being cooked for them with their parents being away everyday due to their business.

 

Dread settled in Wendy’s mind as she realized that if anything went wrong, Seunghoon would not be the one teased by their staff, it would be her.

 

“Hey Wannie, why are you here? I thought Hoonie was the one who booked the table for this evening?”

 

A familiar voice gently called out Wendy’s Korean name and she turned around to see Yesung, one of the servers there looking at her with a frown on his face. She could see more curious eyes behind him too, some even making way to where she was sitting. Soon enough, Yesung was joined by Henry and Heechul, both flanking his sides, sporting their usual ‘big brother’ look whenever they thought someone was making Wendy uncomfortable.

 

“It’s Wendy, Yesung.” Henry began.

 

“Yeah, she told us last time she came here, and you still don’t remember? She didn’t study in Canada just to be disrespected like this.” Heechul added.

 

Wendy rolled her eyes at both of them. Her eyes flitted to the entrance for a second, just to ensure that Seunghoon’s date was not there yet before she turned to look at the men. “Don’t you have work to do, oppas? You’re always bugging me whenever I’m here.”

 

As expected, Henry let out a loud gasp, clutching his chest while Heechul faked a dramatic cry. Yesung sighed at his friends’ antics.

 

“For real though, Wendy. Why are you here, sitting at Seunghoon’s reserved table? All of us were prepared for his blind date, just like he asked us, but he didn’t say anything about you coming instead of him.”

 

Wendy had an omen that something disastrous was about to happen. Knowing her brother’s over-the-top nature, he probably had prepared a big surprise in store which completely contrasted her more reserved personality. A sweep at what the three men before her seemed to confirm her worst fear: they were dressed far too nicely in fancy dress suits and not their usual uniform with white shirt and dark blue waistcoat. All of them smiled sheepishly when they realized Wendy had gotten wind of what was up.

 

“Oppa, whatever Hoon oppa asked you to do, please cancel it. I’m here on his behalf because he can’t make it and that’s already bad enough. I really, really don’t want to make it any worse than it already is.”

 

Wendy clutched Heechul’s arm desperately, hoping that she could somehow persuade them to give up on the idea, but her heart sank when Henry and Heechul shook their heads. Yesung was her only hope, but looking at his conflicted face, she knew he would just tag along with his friends in the end.

 

“Don’t worry, Wannie. We got this covered! Who knows, you might be the one scoring tonight.” Henry ruffled Wendy’s hair lightly.

 

“Yes, just leave it to oppas okay? You don’t have to worry about a thing. Oh! Kyu just gave us a signal, the date is coming. We’ll leave first and come back later for...our thing.”

 

Wendy would probably have gotten Heechul in a headlock just so that he could elaborate more on this ‘thing’ but there was a more pressing matter in hand right now. She nervously looked at the entrance where a woman with long, raven hair wearing a black long coat was talking to Kyuhyun, The Velvet’s maître d'. Wendy could only see the side of her face but she could feel a familiar tumble in her heart when she caught a glimpse of the long nose bridge and the bright red lips that moved alluringly as the mysterious woman spoke. Her hair seemed to complement the movements she made, gracefully falling to the side of her face, adding a mysterious vibe to her, or twirled beautifully with each step she took.

 

Not to sound very gay, but this woman was totally her type. Women with straight long, black hair always had some kind of effect on her and Seunghoon’s date somehow seemed to own one that was of top-notch quality, which Wendy did not even know was possible for any mortals (celebrities did not count, they were the perfectly blessed demigods in Wendy’s opinion).

 

Wendy snatched the glass of plain water in front of her, gulping down in quick successions when their eyes momentarily locked. She choked a little when she saw the goddess frowned before making way to her table. By now, she had left her coat by the entrance and beneath the coat was a stunning black dress that clung perfectly to her figure. Wendy did not even know how long she stared, gawking until the woman stood across the table.

 

“Seunghoon-ssi?”

 

*

 

If Joohyun was stronger than she was right now, she knew she would have punched her twin.

 

Alas, she had to refrain herself because firstly, Junmyeon towered over her with a significant advantage in strength and secondly, her brother chose the right place and time (for him) to sell Joohyun to the devil.

They were having a family dinner in an upscale restaurant and it was their first time to be gathered after a few months when Junmyeon suddenly put down his cutlery and cleared his throat, drawing everyone's attention to him.

 

“Urm, this might be abrupt but mom, dad, I got Joohyun a blind date.”

 

Everyone widened their eyes at the announcement and Joohyun found her cheeks hot from anger. This was new to her. She absolutely had never given her permission nor implied she wished to be dating someone anytime soon, so who was Junmyeon to be interfering with her dating life or lack thereof?

 

At least Junmyeon had the audacity to look embarrassed when his eyes met Joohyun’s.

 

“Jun…It's nice of you to be so concerned about Hyun but isn't it up for Hyun to decide if she wants to get into the dating scene at all?”

 

The patriarch of the family, Bae Dongyoung, chided his second child while his wife, Min Hyorin sighed. Even the youngest child, Bae Yerim was looking at her brother with disapproval.

 

“I know, dad. I'm sorry, Joohyun. I was at a business meeting the other day when Eric mentioned that one of his friends was being pressured by their parents to get married. I unknowingly blurted out that Joohyun is single too, and things just escalated from there.”

 

Junmyeon seemed genuinely sorry about the whole thing, causing Joohyun’s heart to soften a little. She knew her twin was a sweetheart, but his desire to accommodate his friends’ needs often frustrated all of them to no end. That was the main reason why Dongyoung had not entrusted their business empire wholly to him, because of his tendency to trust his friends a little too much.

 

“You essentially sold unnie for a business deal, oppa. I thought you're better than this.”

 

Yerim tutted but Junmyeon quickly jumped in to defend himself.

 

“That's not true! We had finished our work discussion then. We were just catching up on life and somehow the topic just came about. Besides, all of you know Eric. He's a decent guy and his friends are great too. I'm sure he won't let Joohyun meet anyone bad.”

 

Indeed, they knew Eric. The young general manager was a social butterfly and had dropped by the Baes’ household several times, enough for all of them to be acquainted with him. Joohyun might not be actively involved with the corporate world, but she had bumped into him a few times in her line of work as well due to his extensive network of friends.

 

Joohyun sighed. She was mad but at the same time, she knew her brother just wanted the best for her and would never intentionally harm her.

 

“Who's the girl? I’ll go if I know or at least have heard of her. I don't want to go and meet a complete stranger.”

 

All colours seemed to drain from Junmyeon’s face. His eyes flicked around, looking anywhere but his family members while his lips were pursed thinly, trying to stall the inevitable. He only blurted out the forbidden name after Yerim kicked him with all her might underneath the table.

 

“Seunghoon! And it's-he's a he. Not a she. Urm, I'm so sorry.”

 

Now Joohyun was seriously considering if her brother ever thought of her as a sibling at all. She was livid - everyone else at the table was.

 

“Oppa, you're an absolute dumba-”

 

“I raised you to be respectful, Bae Junmyeon! Why-”

 

“No, no. I won't go. Are you out of your fuc-”

 

All around, three voices started to raise their protests and Junmyeon shrank, melding into his chair when Hyorin placed her glass on the table with a loud thud, causing everyone to stop mid-sentence.

 

“Silence, all of you. We're in a public space.” There was barely anyone else around their table but the whole family did as ordered, no one dared to defy the matriarch. She usually spoke softly and rarely got angry but if she did, they knew not to challenge her (everyone learned this from first-hand experience, and the whispers among Dongyoung, Junmyeon and Yerim were that Joohyun was the one who got to inherit this legendary temper).

 

“I'm disappointed in you, Junmyeon. I expected you to know better. Do you think your older sister is a tool at your disposal that you can use in any way you please? Have you no respect for her uality when out of everyone here, you should know better her struggle and pain before she came out to us?”

 

Junmyeon lowered his head, ashamed. His mother's words were harsh, but she raised an important point. He certainly did not think of Joohyun as a mere commodity, never would. She was more important to him than his own life, which rang true for Yerim too. Junmyeon was the first person Joohyun had trusted with her uality in the family and when Joohyun came out, she was gripping his arm so hard, scared of their parents’ reaction.

 

When Dongyoung and Hyorin hugged Joohyun and told her that their love for her would not change just because she loved a woman, Junmyeon was crying alongside Joohyun, sharing his twin’s joy over their parents’ acceptance.

 

“I'm sorry mom, I really am. I feel so bad, but this blind date really doesn't have to be anything too serious. I just thought it would be a good distraction for Joohyun since...her. Even Eric has agreed that nothing would change if this date doesn't work out, it can just be a friendly date. I will free my schedule for the evening to drive Joohyun to the set place and pick her up just so we know that she's fine. I just thought meeting new people would be good for Joohyun.”

 

Junmyeon really did sound apologetic. Now Joohyun understood slightly why he was acting all out of sorts; he must have been worried about her these past few months when she buried herself in work, ignoring the world around her.

 

Putting her anger aside, she did recognize the name Junmyeon mentioned. Son Seunghoon, the heir for Toronson Electronics. Among the rumours about him were that he was a talented businessman, kind and humble for his position and was into e-sports, always too eager to sponsor any championships, so Joohyun had never crossed paths with him due to their different interests. He seemed like a decent person, but too bad he was a male.

 

Joohyun sighed. “If I agree to go, can you tell him that it’ll just be a friendly outing? That there is not a chance in he-” Joohyun paused when her mother threw a warning look at her direction, “-aven that I would be romantically interested in him?”

 

Junmyeon perked up, almost like a puppy by Joohyun’s affirmation. “Sure! I mean, I don’t have his number, but I’ll tell Eric right now and make sure he passes the information. Don’t worry, Hyunnie. I’ll be your driver too!”

 

With that, Junmyeon dashed out from the dining area, startling a few patrons. The elder Baes frowned at their son’s uncouth behaviour before turning to look at their eldest daughter, concerned over the sudden change of mind.

 

“Joohyun, you don’t have to give in to him you know? It’s okay to say no sometimes.”

 

Hyorin began and her husband nodded in agreement before adding his own thoughts. “This might embarrass him a little but at least he will learn to respect your boundaries. He’s 28 but he’s still acting like a child; it’s unbefitting for a Bae Holding heir. Now if it’s you who’s at helm-”

 

“Honey, no business talk, please. We agreed to let Joohyun decide the right time for her to help Junmyeon, so let’s focus on the issue at hand.”

 

“Oh, don’t worry mom, dad. I definitely won’t let him off the hook easily. I plan on making him my slave for a while, maybe a week, fortnight the most depending on how the ‘date’ goes.”

 

Yerim chuckled to herself, happy that for once it was not her problem that brought headache for the whole family. She kept a tally board in her room, really, for all the times a family discussion transpired due to one of their antics. Hers and Junmyeon’s sides were filled with stickers but for Joohyun, there were only four stickers. Yerim remembered all four incidents because Joohyun rarely caused any trouble but when they had reason to worry about her, she sure made it matter.

The first was when Joohyun decided to study fashion design instead of business management like their parents had planned. Next, when she came out to the whole family. The third one was the time she announced she had a girlfriend and their parents freaked out because ‘oh my god oh my god someone is going to take their baby away from them’. Yerim had good eyerolls over her parents’ theatrics that day.

 

The final one was the most painful, and she hoped to never see it again. It was the time Joohyun told them that she had broken up, and that her heart was shattered. If Junmyeon was there for Joohyun at the beginning, it was Yerim who fell to her knees and hugged her broken sister in the end. The three of them had their differences as siblings but Yerim knew they were inseparable.

 

“Seems like our maknae is having fun. How’s school?”

 

“School’s great! I have to compose a song for my final project this semester and I’m done with the lyrics.”

 

“And the melody?” Joohyun’s eyes twitched with amusement when she saw Yerim made a face at her question.

 

“I don’t seem to have any inspiration just yet...but I really hope I can find one that suits the song soon. 1000 deserves the best!”

 

“1000 is the title?” Hyorin enquired. Yerim was majoring in music - and minoring in business. Not the most ideal combination out there but at this point, both her and her husband would be grateful enough if any of their children were interested in their empire. Other families worried about having too many people wanting to take over the company but in their case, they had to beg their children to do so. It was difficult to reach a middle ground for both Joohyun and Yerim, but they got there somehow.

 

“Yes, it’s about having been together with someone for 1000 days and feeling grateful for their presence. I’m picturing a slow tempo melody to go with the lyrics at this stage.”

 

Yerim explained while shoving more food in . Joohyun crinkled her nose in disgust but the elder Baes just looked at their youngest fondly, glad to see her eating so well and happy in doing what she did.

 

“Sorry I’m a bit late, I managed to get hold of Eric.”

 

“So, did it all work out well?” Dongyoung crossed his arms and stared down at his son. Junmyeon gulped, avoiding his gaze once again.

 

“Urm, yes. Let’s finish our food and go home.”

 

*

 

“Seunghoon-ssi?”

 

Joohyun hesitated when she looked at the girl sitting at the table she was directed to. The girl sported a trendy haircut these days - shaggy charming or sharming - and was wearing a loose white shirt and a pair of black jeans, very much in contrast to Joohyun’s own dress. This was starting to look like a bad idea and Joohyun was regretting her decision to show up at all.

 

At least the girl was cute, she would give her that.

 

“Hi! Sorry, you must be surprised. I’m Wendy. Seunghoon is my brother and he can’t make it today. Here, let me help you.”

 

Wendy stood up suddenly, pushing her chair loudly which made a loud screeching sound that drew everyone’s attention to them. Wendy’s fair skin turned into a gentle shade of red as she bowed to random direction around her, muttering her apologies before she rushed over to Joohyun and handed her a light pink blazer.

 

“You can use this to cover yourself. I’m sorry, I’m a bit clumsy.”

 

Wendy apologised a lot, Joohyun noticed. She took the offered blazer and frowned in confusion. When Wendy gestured to her legs, she understood what it was meant for. She really did not need it but out of politeness, she accepted it anyway. She draped the object over her knee, covering a good part of her legs. The smile Wendy had when she looked up made the fashion disaster almost worth it, but Joohyun was still uneasy about the whole thing.

 

She was ditched by her actual date. The audacity of men.

 

She wondered if it was too soon to call Junmyeon who was waiting outside the establishment to come in and rescue her.

 

“I know this is a bit abrupt, but-”

 

Whatever Wendy was about to say drowned in a violin sound that popped out of nowhere, startling Joohyun. Wendy’s mouth hung wide open, seemingly in disbelief when Henry and Yesung suddenly stood beside their table, bowing with a serious expression.

“Welcome. We hope that you will enjoy your date here at The Velvet today. My name is Henry.” Henry began, bowing exaggeratedly.

 

“My name is Yesung and I will sing a serenade dedicated to the new couple in making.”

 

Wendy and Joohyun wanted to protest, but the clapping around them killed the words building up behind their throat. Wendy only managed a squeak while Joohyun grunted before taking a sip at her glass of water, staring daggers at the non-animated objects before her.

 

Henry began to play his violin while Yesung whipped out a microphone and started singing. The guests cheered and sang along with Yesung, encouraging both the men to increase the volume and made it more of a talent show than a serenade.

 

The of the event was when Heechul (literally) waltzed to their table, carrying a bottle of expensive champagne before pouring it dramatically in front of them.

 

“This one’s on the house. I hope missus will have a great time here, and maybe even beyond this place.”

 

Heechul, the exasperation of a man, had the nerve to wink at them before taking his leave, pulling along his two friends in a graceful movement. They exited their pretend stage with loud clapping following them - everyone seemed happy to be surprised except for two people.

 

The intended recipients of the surprise just sat at their table, stunned. Joohyun gripped the glass she was holding tightly while Wendy just stared blankly at the space the men occupied moments ago - too scared to look at Joohyun.

 

When she finally did, her eyes widened at the sight of glass in Joohyun’s hand and she abruptly stood, bowing while apologizing profusely.

"Sorry! My idiot oppa just remembered he has a match this evening, so he sent me here instead! I had no idea he had all these events planned. I'm really sorry, you can even choose to leave if you want to!"

Wendy sounded like she was on the verge of tears and Joohyun felt bad because she honestly seemed really sorry about the whole situation. Wendy seemed sorry from the start, really. Maybe Joohyun was approaching this the wrong way. She was not the only miserable soul here.

"It's okay. Urm, please have a seat. I don't mind having dinner with you at least."

 

Joohyun saw bright eyes peeking from her bangs that were half-covering them. "Really? You won't storm out and leave after throwing a glass of water on my face?"

"...Would you prefer for me to do that instead?"

 

"Ah, no, no! Sorry, my brother was the one who planted that idea in my head. Thank you Miss..."

 

“Joohyun. Just Joohyun.”

 

Wendy did not seem to recognize Joohyun, despite the latter being a rising name in the fashion world and she wished to keep it that way, albeit temporarily. Introducing herself with her family name might ring some bells in the girl’s head though, if she was indeed from The Son family so Joohyun opted to leave it out.

 

“Okay, Just Joohyun.” Wendy grinned and Joohyun smiled back, wishing she could act annoyed, but Wendy’s happiness was truly infectious, and the little dimple at one side of her cheek Joohyun had spotted amplified the effect.

 

A waiter came then, someone who was not Henry, Yesung or Heechul. The trio was probably hiding right now, knowing that they should not test Wendy’s wrath. The waiter, Ryeowook, tried his best to act professional but he still accidentally called Wendy by her name since he was another one of the original staff members there who were close to the younger Sons. He rushed away after apologizing and taking their orders, and Wendy let out a relieved sigh.

 

“Seems like the staff here know you well.”

 

Joohyun remarked lightly, to which Wendy grimaced.

 

“Urm, yeah. I’m a regular here.”

 

“I see.”

 

Their conversation felt awkward and forced - until another man walked over to their table, ruffling Wendy’s hair as he brought in their appetiser.

 

“Hey Wendy, long time no see. Can’t believe you’re all grown up now. And you’re having your first date in Korea here out of all places? Man, I can’t believe you’re this brave. I remember us threatening the boys you brought here before, letting them know that if any of them dare look or touch you in the wrong way, they’ll lose their little brothers down there. Of course, we went a bit softer on the girls but those were the ones that hit you hard, eh? I still remember-”

 

The man - Minho, according to his nametag went on a long rant and did not stop even when Wendy looked at him, mortified. She signalled everything she knew about shutting people up while Joohyun just watched on, amused by the whole exchange. Eventually, Wendy resorted to whisper-yell.

 

“Oppa! She’s not my date! She’s Seunghoon oppa’s date, but he can’t make it, so he sent me.”

 

That stopped Minho’s tirade. He whimpered weakly, realising his blunder. He couldn’t take his exit fast enough, but not after apologizing to both of them. At this point, Wendy looked ready to bolt. Joohyun thought it would be a shame if she did, since there was something in the rant she heard before that caught her interest.

 

“So...a regular?”

 

Joohyun tested the water and her brain did a little dance of victory when Wendy seemed relieved by the question. Clearly, she was expecting Joohyun to ask about something else first.

 

“Well...it’s one of the restaurants my family owns, actually. I guess my brother really wanted to impress you. I can’t believe he even planned a performance with the boys, urgh. He could have at least cancelled it since he won’t be around.”

 

Joohyun laughed, genuinely laughed when she saw Wendy puffing her cheek, miffed by the whole situation.

 

“They all seem to dote you so much, it’s endearing. Were you not in Korea before? I mean, the name Wendy kinda gives it away but still...”

 

“Yeah, I studied in Canada for 6 years and rarely came back during the time, so I didn’t get to see them much. I just got back to Korea half a year ago actually, so I’m still in the process of re-adjusting myself to everything.” Wendy’s eyes widened suddenly. “Oh sh-shoot. I’m supposed to be promoting my brother to you, not telling you about my life story like it’s my own date. I’m sorry. Urm, Seunghoon oppa-”

 

Joohyun reached out to touch Wendy’s hand suddenly, stopping the girl mid-sentence.

 

“Don’t worry, I don’t mind. This is preferable for me, actually.”

 

There was a small, knowing smile dancing at the corner of Joohyun’s lips that she hoped Wendy would understand. The girl appeared confused initially, but when it dawned on her what Joohyun was implying, Wendy straightened up like she was jolted.

 

Oh. Oh.

 

Joohyun chuckled, finally releasing her hold. She dug in her food, looking away from Wendy in hope the girl could find her composure.

“So, what do you do for a living, Joohyun?”

 

That was fast. Joohyun quirked her brow, taken aback that Wendy sounded different from previously. She glanced at the girl in white and was pleasantly surprised when she saw the girl looking more confident of herself, staring at Joohyun with a warm smile. Now that this was actually their date, both of them were more relaxed around each other.

 

At least, Joohyun wished that Wendy thought this was their blind date as well.

 

“I work in the fashion industry.”

 

Joohyun kept her answer short, preferring to hide her actual career. What she did not expect was Wendy turning this small titbit of information to her advantage.

 

“Oh? Are you a model?”

 

“Wendy-ssi, I don’t think I’m qualified to be one…”

 

“Well, the fashion industry doesn’t know what they are missing, then. You’re beautiful.”

 

Joohyun felt an unfamiliar heat travelled to her face, ushering a faint blush. Her line of work put her under the scrutiny of many, requiring her to put on a confident front. Given that she was dating someone for a good part of her professional life, she was not wavered by anyone easily.

 

But Wendy?

 

God, she was a good kind of different.

 

They continued chatting as they breezed through their main course, dessert and coffee, leaning towards each other more as the night grew. Joohyun learned that Wendy was a composer with a rad senior co-worker and that she baked to release her stress. Wendy would learn that Joohyun was passionate about her work and fashion (although she made it as vague as possible) and that she was afraid of animals. They shared stories about themselves carefully, but aplenty and not once mentioning about their family status although it was obvious that both of them were raised in a similar wealthy environment.

 

It was refreshing for Joohyun to know that her net worth was not the reason why her suitor was interested in her. Wendy listened attentively and kept asking questions, albeit being respectful about it. In a way, Wendy reminded Joohyun a lot of...someone she should not be thinking about while she was on a date with another person.

 

Joohyun shook her head off, trying to wriggle away the thoughts that would lead her to sadness again. When she came back to her senses, Wendy was peering over her, concerned coloured her expression.

 

“Is everything alright?”

 

“Yeah, sorry. I guess I was just tired since I came straight from work.” A lie, but Wendy did not have to know it. Joohyun pressed her lips together to hold a chuckle from erupting when she saw Wendy widened her eyes, not even hiding her surprise and wonder.

 

A girl claiming that she worked in the fashion industry, acting all mysterious about her nature of work and came to her date wearing uber nice dress would surely get anyone’s brain gears running, and that was exactly what Joohyun intended to do.

 

She wanted to occupy Wendy’s thoughts for a long time, as she was sure Wendy would be in hers.

 

“Oh, yes! I’m sorry for taking so much of your time.” There it was again, the apologetic nature that stole Joohyun’s attention resurfaced. For a moment, Joohyun felt like the progress they had made disappeared and brought them back to platonic dance as Wendy fumbled in her seat, standing too quickly to pick up the tab.

“Don’t worry about the bills, Joohyun. I will get it.”

 

“Bills? Don’t worry Wendy! It’s on the house! Just make sure your date gets home safely,” Heechul, who had been finding excuses to linger around their table since one and a half hour ago hollered at Wendy, resulting in the girl glaring at her. The man laughed heartily, happy to annoy Wendy one last time before she took her leave.

 

Joohyun stood too, ready to head out when she felt a presence looming beside her, clearing nervously before holding out a palm.

“May I lead you out?”

 

Wendy was avoiding Joohyun’s eyes, looking around them instead as she swallowed nervously. Joohyun smirked and took the offered hand, passively holding it as they walked to the entrance of The Velvet together.

 

Joohyun stretched her neck, looking for Junmyeon’s car and barely noticing the white Mercedes among the other expensive foreign cars.

 

“How are you going home? Would you like me to send you? I parked my car in the back-parking lot.”

 

Wendy offered, swooning Joohyun once again with her manners. Much as she enjoyed the date and wished to accept Wendy’s offer, regret seeped in since Junmyeon was really waiting for her outside the restaurant, as he had promised. It was unfortunate, but it was probably for the best since allowing Wendy to take her home was a move too bold (in her opinion) for a first date, not that she would be opposed to it if this was under normal circumstances.

 

“It’s okay, Wendy. My younger brother is already waiting for me.”

 

“Oh, then let me you to his car then.”

 

“It’s alright, he parked his car near the area so he will be here shortly after I call him. Please get going, Wendy.”

 

As soon as the words left , Joohyun was horrified because it sounded too much like a dismissal, a polite ‘Please leave and I hope I never see you again’ people use on their blind dates and the change in Wendy’s expression seemed like she had interpreted it as such.

 

“Well...okay then. Thank you for tonight, Joohyun. I had a grand time. I, uh, hope I’ll get to see you around some time?”

 

Joohyun opened to give a response similar in nature but before she could say anything, Wendy hastily waved at her and jogged away, quick to escape when the awkwardness between them grew. Joohyun considered shouting at Wendy, but that was not befitting of the establishment nor any of their reputation, so she held herself back, just sighing when Wendy disappeared from sight.

 

She strolled to Junmyeon’s car, all the while thinking to herself about the date she just had. It was her first date after years and surprisingly, she enjoyed it a lot more than she thought she would. Wendy was kind, humorous and passionate - similar to Joohyun’s ex. Thinking about her made Joohyun winced, but at least the sting in her heart did not seem as deep as before.

 

Tomorrow she would give Wendy a call, she thought as she entered the car. Wait, maybe she should wait for several days? A week would make her seem not too desperate. Yes, 7 days-

 

Oh no, they did not exchange their numbers once throughout the whole date.

 

Joohyun groaned, waking up Junmyeon who was sleeping with his seat reclined. Her twin brother yawned and rubbed his eyes, getting ready to drive them home. He grumbled something, but Joohyun paid no heed to the man. Her mind was filled with regret out of her missed opportunity, wondering for a hot second if she should ask Junmyeon to get Wendy’s number.

 

Her pride held her back, Junmyeon should not be given the satisfaction of knowing he was right. He would give one of those ‘I told you so’ smirks and Joohyun would never hear the end of it. Such occasions of him being right over her were rare, and he would milk them for all they were worth.

 

“So, how was the date? Did you have fun? Are you meeting him again anytime soon?” Junmyeon started his questioning after they entered the highway, noting how quiet Joohyun had been about the date. “As friends, of course.” He added after an afterthought.

 

“Hurmm, he didn't show up.”

 

“Damn! Then did you just sit there for 2 hours??*

 

Junmyeon braked suddenly, them to lurch forward. Joohyun let out a loud yelp and slapped his back once she had gotten her bearing again.

 

“What the hell, Jun?! You could’ve gotten both of us killed!”

 

“I would rather die than let anyone disrespect my sister and get away with it! Let me call Eric and find out where Seunghoon went. He’ll-”

 

Another slap on his arm worked to shut him up. The man let out a small ‘ouch’ and pouted while looking at Joohyun, who glared at him.

 

“Can you at least listen to me first before you kill us both? No, Seunghoon didn’t show up, but he did send his lovely sister on his behalf. Now can you drive us home? I’m exhausted.”

 

Given that Joohyun was super cranky for unknown reasons, Junmyeon did not comment on Joohyun’s choice of word (lovely, huh?). Instead, he silently obliged and drove the car up to the expressway, glancing at his older sister after a few moments of silence.

 

Joohyun’s eyes were closed, probably already lost to the world by the way was opened slightly and her head lolled to the side of her seat. Junmyeon slowed down the car, carefully reclining the passenger seat while driving, doing his best to not disturb Joohyun in the process.

 

When he was done, he focused on the road again, lips slowly curving into a knowing smile.

 

*

 

“Do you remember the girl you went to see on behalf of me?”

 

Wendy froze in place, almost dropping the bowl of cookie mixture she was holding. The Girl. The reason behind her constantly baking these days, singing along to music turned out too loud in hope of drowning her embarrassment because her optimistic really thought that somehow in the middle of their conversation, Joohyun implied that she would prefer for it to be their date instead.

 

Yet, she asked Wendy to get away from her after the date (it was more dramatic in her memory) and they did not even exchange any form of contact details to get in touch again afterwards, not a phone number, an Instagram account or twitter handle - nada.

 

Wendy Son Seungwan? More like Wendy Boo boo Son the Fool Seungwan.

 

“Uhhh, yeah. Why?”

 

“This might sound crazy, but I felt so bad about the whole thing, since you said she had been so nice to you although you were there just to replace me. So, I got in touch with Eric...and guess what?”

 

“What?”

 

Wendy’s heart sank, she had a feeling that this conversation was really, really going somewhere she would rather it not be and when Seunghoon beamed with his too radiant megawatt smile, Wendy closed her eyes and accepted her impending doom.

 

“Eric gave me her brother’s number and I got in touch with him...so now we have a double date with them! Wouldn’t it be nice? The more the merrier.”

 

Wendy’s response ranged somewhere from a flat out ‘No’ and a more solid ‘What the , Seunghoon’ and she settled for somewhere in the middle.

 

“I don’t think I would want to go on any dates right now, Hoonie. I have too much on my plates.”

 

“Come on Wan, it would be great to meet new people! You haven’t made a lot of friends yet since you came back. Besides, you can befriend Joohyun - that’s her name, right? - if anything. It will be fun, I promise! If anything goes wrong, at least it’ll be a good bonding time for us siblings.”

 

The readers would have noticed the familiarity of this reasoning, but as Wendy was just a puppet in the grand scheme of this universe, she reluctantly went along with her brother’s idea once again.

 

She could not deny that a part of her wanted to see Joohyun again, anyway.

*

 

Wendy thanked the gods when she saw that Seunghoon did not choose The Velvet as the venue for their double date. It was bad enough to be teased the first time around, but she did not think she could survive it twice in a row. Especially now that Joohyun would be paired with Seunghoon instead of her, that would surely get any tongues to waggle.

 

This time, he chose a humble family restaurant specializing in tteokbokki. It seemed very far from his preference as he preferred western or Chinese food more, but it was right up in Wendy’s alley, so she did not complain. As she got immersed in the menu, she got startled when Seunghoon, who was sitting beside her stood up straight, pushing his chair with a loud noise (their parents would have frowned at that) but she followed suit.

 

Against her wish, a smile made way to her lips when she saw Joohyun walking in with a man who looked very similar to her. Joohyun was wearing a form-fitting blazer over her white shirt, paired with tight black jeans, looking like she just walked out from a power meeting she chaired and executed effortlessly. Their eyes met and Wendy thought Joohyun’s red lips almost formed a smile, but it was interrupted when the tall guy beside her bent and whispered something in her ears, causing Joohyun to frown and looked up to him.

 

Now, they were just arguing among themselves in shout-whispers, killing the earlier charismatic look they exuded as they walked closer to the table. Wendy and Seunghoon stared at them awkwardly, wondering how they should react to the situation. However, as they approached closer to the table, they seemed to have resolved whatever issue transpired between them, giving the siblings a warm, professional greeting.

 

The newcomers took their places at the other side of the table. Strangely, Junmyeon was pushed to the inner seat, sitting right in front of Seunghoon while Joohyun took her place in front of Wendy. Wendy thought that it seemed like she was the one on a blind date with Joohyun instead of her brother and the mere suggestion caused her to blush. She ducked her face, looking very intently at the menu instead of meeting Joohyun’s eyes.

 

“Thanks for arranging this meeting, Seunghoon. You have no idea how excited Joohyun was when she heard about this, guess she really wants to see you.”

 

The men at the table laughed, but the women paid no heed to them. Wendy shyly smiled, avoiding eye contact but Joohyun stared at Wendy intensely, not taking her eyes off the girl for a second.

 

“Sorry Joohyun-ssi, I couldn’t make it to the date because I had a PUBG tournament on the day. I completely forgot about it. That’s why I suggested this meeting, since I would like to apologize.”

 

Wendy felt slightly nervous when she saw Joohyun smiling at Seunghoon sweetly. She thought Seunghoon had ruined his chance with Joohyun when he said something that stupid, but Joohyun seemed unbothered by his confession that he ditched their blind date just to play games. Then again, Seunghoon might be a bit of an insensitive idiot but he was definitely handsome. In fact, he had the kind of look that would look good beside Joohyun; they would suit each other well.

 

‘What the am I thinking?’ Wendy scolded herself inwardly, before angrily scooping a piece of fishcake in , drilling in her mind that Joohyun was there to meet Seunghoon, not her.

 

The conversation went on to dull, shallow things that Wendy could not bother to care about but a statement from Seunghoon brought her back in the conversation.

 

“I was surprised when Junmyeon told me you like tteokbokki. I mean, the heiress of Bae Holdings like tteokbokki? Wow, you’re completely different from the rumours I’ve heard about you.”

 

Wendy’s breath got caught up in .“B-Bae Holdings? Heiress?”

 

“Oh, you don’t recognize them, Wendy?” Seunghoon gestured at the two siblings, Junmyeon grinned while Joohyun’s brows furrowed as she watched Wendy’s reaction. “I thought Joohyun would have at least told you about it since you said both of you talked...anyway, Junmyeon and Joohyun here are Chairman Bae’s eldest twins, the ones that would inherit the company. We have met them several times when we were younger, but then they left to study at a boarding school in Japan and of course, after they came back, you went to Canada. Guess it’s bad timing all around huh?”

 

Seunghoon laughed, and Wendy looked at Joohyun. Her voice was monotonous when she responded.

 

“That’s interesting, Joohyun told me that she’s working in the fashion industry.”

 

“That’s not wrong, noona’s passion is fashion design, that’s why she started her own line. Even during the proposal stage, her brand received a lot of hype.” Junmyeon quipped cheerfully, oblivious to the amplified tension in the air. “She’ll come back and work for us in a few years’ time though, that’s the agreement with Dad. Also, you should call her ‘unnie’, Wendy. She’s older than you, we’re the same age as your brother.”

 

Junmyeon teased, and Wendy let out a strained laugh.

 

“Of course, where are my manners? Joohyun unnie, you should have told me all these earlier. Maybe I should be more interested in the family business, then Seunghoon doesn’t have to brief me about the both of you. I’m sorry for not recognizing you in the first place.”

 

Wendy stood and playfully bowed, causing Joohyun to reach for her drink and finished them in gulp. She wanted to intervene the whole conversation, to put a stop to it before things worsened but the two men at the table clearly had different ideas.

 

Instead, they started talking about dating history. Joohyun's dating history, to be more specific.

 

“Seunghoon, I don’t think you’ll have any chance at all with my sister. She still hasn’t gotten over her ex, so I would advise to thread carefully.”

 

Junmyeon said, half-joking, half-warning Seunghoon but while the man just waved it off, Joohyun panicked and Wendy felt like colours drained from her face.

 

“Oh...she…she didn’t tell me that when we met at The Velvet.”

 

“No wonder you didn’t mention anything about it. Bad Wendy, what would you do if oppa falls for Joohyun?” Seunghoon joked, but only Junmyeon laughed. Wendy looked at Joohyun, who was pleading with her eyes, trying to explain something without words. She averted her gaze and looked down, choosing to stir her