“You lied to my face,” she looked at him, conflicting emotions tearing her apart, her voice quavered. “You lied about everything.”

Sehun stood inches away from her, his face looking guilty as ever. She’s not meant to know the truth like this, he thought. “I wanted to tell you,”

“When?” she demanded. He had never seen her upset, her eyes glaring angrily at him, “You made a fool out of me,”

He avoided the eye contact, his jaw clenching before responding, “I know you’re angry,” he said softly, “But nothing’s changed, I’m still me. I’m just,” he paused momentarily, “I’m just more. The old Sehun is still here,”

She responded nothing but looked at him. She didn’t know how to trust him anymore. What else is he hiding from her? She didn’t know. Seeing her hesitation, he stepped closer but she retracts back immediately as if she didn’t want him to get near her.

“What else did you do?” she asked him, her voice shaky.

Then it hit her. She looked around the place she called home for the past few months, and a displeasing feeling struck her. It was offered to her right on time, she realized, as if it was planned beforehand that she’d reside in this huge place after leaving her old one. She covered as she dropped on the couch, “This place.” She spoke lowly, “Was this one of your doings?” she asked him.

She cringed when he didn’t answer. Instead, his eyes were sad and filled with guilt as he sees her.

“Oh God,” she whimpered. The angry tears pooled in her eyes. She feels cheated. Everything was planned. She was just a pawn in his game. That thought angered her, “And here I am, thinking how proud and accomplished I was, when everything was offered on a gold platter to me,” She croaked, “How stupid was I?”

“Haru, you’re not. I swear-“

“Why did you do it?” she asked, interrupting him. “Do I look that pathetic? Because you pity me?” she accused him. “Did you think that low of me?”

Sehun furrowed his eyebrows as a slight hint of anger flickered in his face. He starting to lose his cool a bit, “I want to apologize,” he spoke lowly.

“Good,” Haru answered sarcastically. No point in apologizing once the damage is done.

“Let me finish,” he said, this time looking directly at her. “I said I wanted to. And then I realized that I am not sorry.”

She looked at him angrily as he looks back at her. The air between them quickly changed into something else.

“Yes. I lied.” Sehun admitted. “But I didn’t regret any of it. Given a chance, I’d do it again,” he said unapologetically.

Haru didn’t bother wiping her tears away, “You’re an .” She said, and this time she sounded like she meant it.

Sehun stared at her, speechless, and then his mouth snapped shut with an audible click. “I am.” He admitted.

“This is the kind of man I am.” He said, looking slightly disturbed at the sight of her tears. “I don’t care about anyone else or their lives. What's wrong in getting rid of what’s in my way? I like you; I did it because I like you. I just wanted you to live your life the way you wanted,”

“This is not how I wanted it,”

She's tired of arguing with him. Truth to be told, she’s tired of herself. Every time she had something, it was only moments away until it slipped across her finger.

He reached for her face to wipe off her tear but she flinched. “Did you hide it from me because you thought I might use you for your wealth?” she asked. She knew he had trouble trusting and opening up to people, maybe it’s because of who he is, she later assumed. “What if I want to use you now? What if I decided to be with you only for your money? Will you still like me?” she asked, her voice trembling with contained fury.

“I don’t care,” he said softly. “I don’t mind if you use me. If it’s you, I don’t care about anything else.”

She looked at him, as if he’s lost his mind. She scoffed and walked away, her stance looked too exhausted to argue with him any longer.

"It's not my fault I care about you," he said, anger building behind his own voice. “I love you,” he blurted out, and it was the first time he said those words to her. He raked his fingers through his hair roughly, clicking his tongue in annoyance, “I love you, Haru.”

She stopped, but did nothing to respond to him. She closed her eyes and sighed quietly, her forehead wrinkled in distress.

“I’ll pay you back,” she said instead, ignoring his confession, “Give me two weeks, I find another place to stay,” She walked towards her room, and closed the door behind her, feeling too dizzy after all the mess.

To her surprise and relief, she was so tired from everything earlier that she fell right asleep.

If she had any dreams, she didn't remember them.

//

She was just plain, mousy Kim Haru, the girl that went hand in hand with her social phobia and that had put her through hell during elementary school, middle school and high school. She had been smarter than the rest, weaker than the rest, bad at sports.

But she had gone to school. She had worked very hard to win a scholarship and put herself through college. She had become a nanotechnologist. She had a position at Zeus Company in center of Seoul, one many of her colleagues would have chopped off a limb for. She had a place on her own, and she wasn’t in debt, contrary to the case of several of her former classmates that were still paying for their student loans.

But it was all a lie. A big fabricated, but a beautiful lie. Maybe that’s why she finds it so hard to forgive him. Because he’s given her a taste of her dreams before taking it all back. Now she’s just a young girl, barely twenty-two who thought she could live big and fell hard instead.

It was just days before when she was so happy thinking about her life. Everything is getting back into place, and she couldn’t be happier, she thought.

Sehun will always spend his weekends with her, but she really, really didn't want to face him. She didn't want to talk about it; she didn't want to hear his apologies.

She just wanted a day away.

So here she is now, walking around the streets looking for a place to stay. She holds a folded newspaper on her left hand, and a pen on the other, patiently walking down, accessing the area.

She came across one, it was shabby looking, more similar to her first stay but this one looked older. She took a deep breath before going in to meet the owner. Mrs. Kang was a nice lady; she had a garden full of daisies. She smiled fondly at Haru. Haru reminded of her granddaughter, she says.

The room wasn’t perfect, but it was all she could afford now. It was way smaller than her previous one, and she wondered how all the furniture managed to fit in into the small room.

Mrs. Kang was genuinely happy when Haru agreed on taking the room. “You’re welcomed to move in anytime,” she beamed.

//

Walking briskly, Haru was outside and striding towards a cake shop. She entered in without a second thought. It was nearly empty, and she was thankful for it. She chose to sit at the table at the right most, the one closest to the window.

Haru stared at the window, after the waitress left with her order.

The blue sky, the beautiful flowers along the pavement. It all looked beautiful.

But somehow her heart is still living in the concrete glasses, and the high rise building. She realized things that reached her so easily, thanks to Sehun, are actually harder to gain from her own efforts.

It will probably will take her weeks, maybe months, to find her a decent job, and years to reside in a place that she used to live.

She sighed deeply thinking about her future, that she didn’t even realize the man standing right in front of her.

“Well, well. What a surprise,”

Haru looked up to see the man she doesn’t even want to be with, even if he’s the last person on earth.

Baekhyun.

Her forehead creases into a deeper frown, this is not going anywhere better, she thought. He sat on the seat across her, his cold eyes never leaving her.

“Troubles in paradise?” he asked her, teasingly. He folds his arms across his chest, a mocking smile spread on his face.

“What do you want?” she asked him. Her face clearly shows that she doesn’t want his company there.

He took a moment before answering her, his smile slowly fading, “I still don’t understand what he sees in you,” he said, his every word cut like a razor, “But for some reason, he seems to care about you which are incredibly annoying.”

He leaned forward, placing his arms on the table, “You must be flattered to know who Sehun really is, considering now that he fancies you. Of course, anyone would. The heir of Zeus, irrevocably in love with you.”

“I remember what I am and I know what I’m not.” Haru strikes back at him. At that moment she wanted to hurt him, to make him feel had like how he’d make her feel. But she also wanted to know the truth. She was tried of this game, trying to read Baekhyun’s mind.

“Why do you hate me so much?” She asked unbeknownst to her voice came out. It was wonderful to ask him that.

“You’ve grown rather confident, Haru,” he smiled. “I don’t hate you. I’m just perplexed.” He said, but his eyes looked darker, and malicious. “You know, Sehun blames me for being unsupportive of this, whatever thing he has for you. But we both know, what happens after you came into his life. You created a strain between him and Lay,” he said bitterly. “Lay left, because of you.” He accused her coldly, standing up from his seat. “You destroyed their friendship.”

Haru looked horrified, hearing his accusations. Her face went rigid, and flustered. “I didn’t-“

“You don't seem to mind anything when you get something from Sehun, like a decent job or house and even the scholarship. He gives and you take. You didn’t even bother to do some research,” He interrupts her, “But when you're looking for someone to blame for your unhappiness, Sehun seem to be the enemy. Do you know the agony it causes him? Perhaps you like it, knowing you still have the power to break his heart.” He continued every word of his filled with an unspeakable amount of hate and anger for her.

Haru throat went dry as he piled up the accusations on her. He then leaned forward, giving a sadistic little smile at her, “You are not worthy of him.” He said, before leaving her.

//

It’s been 4 days since she saw him. He called and texted her, but she switched off her phone, and went into a hiding in Minzy’s place for the time being.

It will be only days before he’ll figure out where she is, given the power and authority he holds, so Haru decided to enjoy her solitude while it last. She was thankful that Minzy didn’t ask her anything about Sehun.

Her encounter with Baekhyun left her broken. She knew how close Sehun is with Lay, and to think that she created a breach between them pained her.

But what pained her the most is that she misses him. She misses Sehun.

She was supposed to hate him, for what he did to her, but ironically she wants to see him. His face flashed in Haru’s head as she stood staring at the door, hands into her pocket, fidgeting nervously. She took a deep breath and reached out for her phone. After a long moment, she let out an exasperated sigh and sent a message to him.

**

She walked down the streets, thinking for over twenty times to turn back, but her legs kept moving forward. She finally arrived at the café she promised to meet him, her fingers fisted into a ball, and went dry.

She walked inside the place, and it was only him she saw. She remembered something else, just a flash: looking up at Sehun’s face in the place and feeling such—such excitement, such affinity with him. As if he understood the flame that burned inside her as nobody else ever could. As if together they could do anything they liked, conquer the world or destroy it; as if they were better than anyone else who had ever lived.

I was out of my mind, irrational, she told herself, but that little thought wouldn’t go away.

Sehun's face is back to its usual relaxed state, all soft, warm edges around his eyes and mouth. He beams; and her stomach flutters up to . She carefully situates herself, trying to remind herself of her purpose.  

“Hi,” he greeted, and his smile was all over his face.

She ignored how bright he looked, and her hand reaches her pocket, and she pulled out a 50 000 won bill and places it on the table. His face quickly changes, his lips thinned into a straight line. “What are you doing?” he asked her, his eyebrows shooting up.

She said nothing before standing up, trying to walk past him before he grabbed her wrist, “Don’t walk past me as if we’re strangers,” he growled.

“I’m here to pay you back.” She said, struggling to free her hand from his. His expression became serious, and his hand slipped off hers. He scoffed, and glared at the drink in front of him, before chunking it all down.

“Do you think I’m here for the money?” he asked, jerking his head up in frustration, as his jaw clenched. “Don’t tell me that you thought I was mad excited since evening just to receive this bill.”

She gritted her teeth a bit as the silence stretched again, becoming awkward. "I don’t know what you had in mind, but I’m only here for this," she finally said, cocking her head a bit.

Sehun shot her a guarded look, “Don’t pretend like you don’t know,” he snapped.

“I really don’t, how would I know?” she retorted hotly.

"I'm not here to flatter you," he grit out, his eyes flashing.

She pressed, "Then why are you here?"

"Because I wanted to see you!" he exploded, his voice rising considerably. Haru froze, glancing around the coffee shop before sitting down quickly. She bit her lips as all eyes turned to them. Sehun realized it a second later and turned a ferocious glare on the whole lot of them. "Mind your business!"

Slowly, eyes fell away from them, although Haru could see everyone glancing up from the corners of their eyes to watch the show.

Her face flushed but he simply glared at her, ruthlessly unapologetic about his behavior, “I should have made it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you.” He mumbled.

It’s funny - if they’re sitting or standing, he’ll always look directly at Haru when he’s talking, and when they’re walking, he’ll try and look at her more often than he’ll look where he’s walking. It’s a strange habit, and Haru’s not entirely sure why she’s noticed it.

He closed her eyes, willing himself to stay calm. “Look, I’m sorry that I lied to you,” he started, “But you don’t have to do this.”

Her heart pounded and he moved closer to her, his scent empowering her. He touched her hair, and tucked a strand behind her hair, “I’ve missed you,”

After a minute of being speechless and surrounded by his touch, she hastily got up from her seat and ran towards the exit, fearing that she might change her mind, and fell into his embrace if she stayed for a minute longer there.