Switching his black suit almost instantly for his usual simple white jumper and black cap, So Ji-sub is almost ready for his next mission after the movie premiere for his latest movie, Battleship Island. But even being in his most natural outfit does nothing to calm the fast pace of his throbbing heart. Instead, he feels as though he is a character in a spy movie, with a hidden agenda.

In a way, it is true. He does have a hidden agenda to catch a very slippery woman.

Looking around him in a nonchalant manner, So Ji-sub is almost the perfect image of cool spy man until someone discovers his twitching lips as his eyes wander around the room. His apparent impatience sends his knowing co-star Song Joong-ki and director Ryoo Seung-wan snickering uncontrollably among themselves while the rest of the crowd look on with confusion in their eyes. The inner-workings of the world of these so-called Hallyu top stars can be baffling to your average commoners. 

Shooting a threatening look at the two snickering partners over his shoulders, So Ji-sub tries to maintain the whatever remaining of his So Ganji image by adjusting his basketball cap with shaking hands. He is known to be a man who stays out of the limelight as much as he can, crawling beneath some unknown rock until he has to present himself to the world again on the stage. This is a man who hated his fame and scared out of wits by crowds and media, but when faced with the possibility of losing his personal Taeyang, he tries to man up and make his stand. Fighting his self-preservative urge not to fall back into old habits as his body is betraying his nervousness with fidgeting actions.

Swallowing hard at the thought of cutting through the large army of black ants-like fans gathering outside to achieve his mission, So Ji-sub can hardly breathe. Everything can go so wrong in one moment he is caught by the media and ends up as the next Korea Dispatch headline news. In short, he will be the second Joong-ki in the shortest span. With the thought of all the media chasing him and closing in on him barking at him demanding about his romance inputs, It is his worst nightmare in the making. 

And as if his anthropophobia is not scary enough, he is also faced with a great degree of uncertainty from his leading lady. She has never hinted anything, but everyone else seems to know something about them. If what Ryoo Seung-wan claimed is the truth, then it will be a dream come true for him. But on the flipside, if he has misunderstood her intentions towards him because of this ill-advised knowledge, the embarrassment awaits him will be unthinkable as well.

Song Joong-ki is one lucky man who found his woman, while he is still struggling to reach his.

Dark thoughts of failure are slowly sipping away his will and energy, as his treacherous mind made way for fear to take roots at the back of his mind, reminding him time and again that he is 4 years too late for her.

Clapping a hand over his left shoulder, Director Ryoo tries to calm his actor and gives him the push So Ji-sub needed, “she is with Uhm Ji-won-ssi now, go find her now.”

“Fighting, Seonbae!” Song Joong-ki grins and waves his fist in a punching motion, “the guests will start to leave the movie theatre as soon as all the fans have been sent away.”

Nodding his head mutely, So Ji-sub digs into his pocket to pull out a face mask. Putting on the last finishing touch for his disguise with the mask before making his way out to complete the mission given, So Ji-sub's out of ordinary action has raised a few brows in the backstage.  

“Where’s Seonbae going?” the last thing he overhears is his fellow Battleship Island actress Lee Jung-hyun asking the rest but got no answer from the smiling Joong-ki and Seung-wan.

'3, 2, 1, Action!' The experienced actor tries to pretend that he is merely acting out another a scene as he steps out to the crowd, it was the only way he could convince himself not to let his fear of crowd paralyzes him. Giving the safety doorknob one final firm twist and pull, it is time to step on the stage to reach for his Taeyang. Stepping ahead in a swift pace, his eyes are on the crowd ahead, scanning for that woman in leopard print dress.

‘Taeyang,’ his mind whispers repeatedly as he spots the familiar woman in the crowd ahead, surrounded by bodyguards and staff.

Taking a leaf from Joong-ki to throw caution to the wind for once as a Hallyu Top Star, So Ji-sub cuts his way through the crowd carelessly only aiming to shorten the distance between him and her. In his haste to reach her, the Top Star almost tripped over one of the camera tripods at the side, causing him to almost cry out in frustration.

“Taeyang, don’t go!” His heart yearns for her attention painfully, knowing that this is perhaps their last chance to make a contact.

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One moment she is walking and chatting happily with her best friend and Missing fellow co-star, Uhm Ji-won-ssi, the next moment a strange but familiar fluttering feeling begins to stir her heart.

Feeling an unknown heated gaze resting on her back, the fluttering feeling which she has not been experiencing for the past 4 years returned with a burning hot vengeance. Coupled with that undeniable superstar aura, the source of all these confusing feelings can only be traced back to one person.

The man she tries to convince herself is nothing more than a Seonbae to her and attempts to forget for the longest time. Yet like a fool, she has foolishly accepted his invitation to this movie premiere in a heartbeat, thinking that the 4 years of distance is enough to cool things down between them. 

Just when she is considering whether to turn around to look for the source of all the strange pricking feeling, she hears a name she has not acknowledge since Master’s Sun.

“Taeyang,” the soft but low voice in the wind cracked and raw with loneliness, is the one word needed to stop her in her tracks and turn her head.

Strangely enough, as she looks back, she realizes that she is the only one to do so.  Even Ji-won- unnie who is just beside her does not seem to register the call. It is as though the voice is only to be heard by her and nobody else.

There is no Joo Joong-won in her sight as she looks back but she finds another man instead.

A man in white jumper meets her eyes, offering her a nervous but grateful smile hidden behind his facemask, or at least it is how she feels by looking straight into his beautiful eyes, the eyes which once belong to Joo Joong-won-ssi.

He looks nothing like Joo Joong-won-ssi now in his hip-hop outfit, but his captivating gaze remains unchanged, freezing her in the moment whenever she meets his gaze, feeling very much like Bambi who is trapped by his soulful gaze.

Suddenly it all return to her, the reasons why she has avoided him like a devil chasing at her heels immediately after the ending of Master's Sun. For the first time in many years, she actually feels unsafe around a man, fearing that her heart may just run off with him if given the opportunity. An opportunity or rather the experience she rather not goes through all over again.

Turning away from the man with a nervous twitch of her lips, Gong Hyo-jin tries to put up the perfect innocence act by laughing with her friend, Uhm Ji-won in the middle of their conversation. She has no idea what Ji-won has said to her, but being who she is, she can easily smoothen it off with her trademark laughter. It is time for Gong Hyo-jin the actress to take the stage as she tries to work her way out of all these strangeness, once again.

It is impossible for them then and even so now, she should be in better control of her heart now than before. She has at least a few years of practices with other male co-stars as compared to back then, when she was a year out from a long relationship and trying to form her own identity. 

Many would say that was the perfect timing for them to meet since they are both single then. But she thinks otherwise.

Just like any 10 years old habit, the lingering effect as an entertainment couple is hard to break free from. There are times when people walk up to her claiming that they feel sorry for her loss causing her to be confused and starts to doubt her decision again. 

The times when she needed someone to discuss over things and only to turn around to realize that she is all alone. The silly mistake of making meals for two, only to realize suddenly, there is no one to share with. The sudden discovery that she is now alone with no one beside her to share anything in life, is like having an emotion black hole  all enjoyment in life at the strangest time. She could smile but not feel the happiness behind it, she would laugh but never the same belly-laugh she was used to.

Aside from the side-effects of missing having Seung-bum around, the worst was facing the public with their breakup four months later.  

Coming clean with the public on their breakup has caused her to feel more negative emotions than during the aftermath of their breakup. Unlike most breakups which are painful, hence heartbreaking to the couple. Seung-bum and her felt no pain as it was a mutual decision. But what haunted them most was the ghost-whispering of would-be happiness and could-be future from the public.  They hated that more than anything else in the world. How strangers who think that they have the right to judge them when these strangers do not even know them at all. How these people make a mess of a happily mutually agreement closure between Seung-bum and her and force her hand to do the damning press conference to protect those she cares for. 

The image of being Korean's Number one entertainment couple is one of the safety lines which guided her careers throughout the years, even in between previous breaks with Ryoo Seung-bum, he is only a phone call away anytime. They are more best friends than couple during the later stage of their relationship, the romance may have faded off, but they are still each other's best adviser in lives, career and fashion. But when they finally said it out in the public, friends and public opinions haunted them enough to drive them away from each other.

Many claimed that they have the strangest relationship in the whole Hallyu world by defying the breakup and never get along rule repeatedly and that no friendship after breakup rule but both Seung-bum and her treasure each other too much to let it burn and crush. They are afterall childhood classmates and friends before becoming everyone's favorite entertainment couple.

But stepping out of that shadow and doubts are not as easy as what others think. Seung-bum has to take time off to stay away from her as a breather and attempt to be independent. While she tries let work fills all her free time by jumping from one project to another, enjoying herself in all the projects and making new friends as usual.

Gong Hyo-jin is one who never cares for other people's opinions of her, so when the ridiculous rumor about her and Ha Jung-woo linking up behind Seung-bum surfaced simply because they worked together in Love Fiction and 577, she laughed at the silliness of it. But as it snowballed to hurt Ha Jung-woo and Seung-bum, she was furious when she heard from her friends.

Both Jung-woo and Seung-bum tries to keep it from her in their attempt to protect her, but it only serves to make her more upset to learn that she has caused them woes and unnecessary backlashes from both public and media. It was then which she realized she has taken things for granted with her naive outlook in life. She has never considered herself to be a Hallyu top star because she is not one who commands large crowd where ever she goes, unlike the other Hallyu Top Stars which she has met before. The deep-set belief that she is merely an actress with the added value of being named as one of the few Korean Fashion Stars, Gong Hyo-jin was rudely shaken by the force of that silly rumor about her. It could have destroyed any other actresses but as the nation's favorite Gong-vely, she got off fairly harmlessly with a sharp declaration to quit acting if the rumor is proven true.

With that lesson burnt and ingrained in her mind, Gong Hyo-jin is in no hurry to link her name to anyone else. But fate seems to think otherwise, by sending the Korean version of Adonis, So Ji-sub to her as her next co-star.

With playful as her middle name, Gong Hyo-jin has pranked many male co-stars during the course of work and always managed to get off scot-free due to her Gong-vely personality as many of them claim that it is difficult to get mad with the smiling actress for whatever mischief she has come up with. When best friend Shin Min-a told her about how quiet and ice-cool So Ji-sub-seonbae-nim was during their commercial filming, her playfulness caused her to make a deal with Min-a that she would soon change the famous Mr So-Ganji to another person.

Min-a said that she was flirting with danger then, but the prankster in her simply laughed it off. She has flirted and teased married men, Lee Sun-kyun and Cha Seung-won for the sake of seeing them squirming nervously around her before realizing it was a prank joke on them. Laughter has always her best weapon to worm into people's heart and warm them up to her, that is why she is widely-acknowledged as one of the best romantic comedy queens in the industry. 

Little did she realize that by trying to change So Ji-sub with Gong Hyo-jin brand of laughter spell, she ended up losing a part of her heart on the way.

The flirting and teasing routine between them is supposed to stay between Joo Joong-won and Tae Gong-Shil in reel world, not spilling over to So Ji-sub and Gong Hyo-jin in the real world. Just like her best girlfriend, Min-a once said, her playfulness will someday get her into deep trouble! And so it did when she meets So Ji-sub.

Unfortunately, when trouble comes knocking on her front door again, Gong Hyo-jin reacted as anyone else would, by running away and denying it all. She cannot comprehend the reason she became Gong-vely to the nation, nor can she understand how a man like So Ji-sub can be attracted to her even for a moment. 

Men like him, are usually destined for top beauties such as Jun Ji-hyun and Song Hye-kyo, not plain jane like her who relies on her acting skills to receive acceptance from the public. Her real life is nothing like romantic comedies she often finds herself being cast in.

'Oppa can't be looking for me, right?'

While her smiling face did not register her doubts on the outside to people, Gong Hyo-jin is truly surprised to see So Ji-sub again. The sudden invitation is unusual but she has tried not to read too much into it because she has also invited many co-stars to her movie premiere before. 

It is only an act of politeness to invite former co-stars to movie premieres, or so she believes.

The timid little Bambi in her is actually shaking with nervous energy, the thought of facing him again forces her to speed up her escape secretly. Is he supposed to be her Oppa despite their lack of communication during these years or will he be more comfortable with being her Seonbae once again?

Everyone did say that So Ji-sub is a distanced man with few words. But her impression of the man changed since working with him on Master's Sun. He behaves nothing like what Min-a or others claimed to be after their initial production meeting. He is charming, caring, serious and playful towards her and even managed to prank her at times, bringing more laughter to the set than she does. It is one of the rare occasions which Gong Hyo-jin do not feel the need to always be the one cracking jokes to lessen the stress on the set. She has truly enjoyed working with So Ji-sub. That is, until that rooftop scene which scares her.

It was their second kissing scene, something which should not have surprised or frightened her, having gotten past that awkwardness during their first kiss scene and joking over it. But it was the one scene packed with an unknown emotion as he pulls her in for that damned kiss that surprised her. And his after-thought suggestion to deepen it had her bitting lips because it has shown how comfortable and trusting So Ji-sub is with her to suggest it. 

To improvise a scene is almost second nature to her because she is one who can hardly remember her lines properly, but to do an impromptu deep kiss scene with an attractive single man, however, is another story. The level of comfort between two single leads has to be carefully managed on the set because it can easily be accelerated to a professional acting taboo between the two Korean top stars.

One moment it was all laughter and teases, the next moment her lips were numbed from that shocking sensation caused by their linked lips and his presence simply overwhelmed her senses as his body pressed against her in his arms. In that one moment, she panicked. She is suddenly very much aware that So Ji-sub is a man trying to mark his territory around her with his subtle flirtatious moves.

Her mind yells for a cool down to push him away immediately, but her traitorous body freeze at his touch, enjoying the moment of full-blown skinship with the man, her growing complacent when it comes to So Ji-sub is slowly messing up her usual tease them-drop them routine. 

As her mind reels in with the shocking realization, she is suddenly all too aware that perhaps she should have been more careful around this dangerous man. When the table is her, Gong Hyo-jin is utterly confused by her own game. 

She hates how everything is so uncertain with him, not knowing where she stands or how she should behave around him. There was never a man who can get under her skin so much before him, sending out mixed signals and causing her more confusions than ever. 

This is why So Ji-sub is considered to be a dangerous man for her mind and heart. This is fast becoming a game which she cannot win and most likely to lose herself in. She does not trust herself with that man anymore because he could easily manipulate her emotions like a true Scorpio and make her break her own rules of not falling in love with her co-stars in real life ever again.

The ignorance is bliss act can only be a temporary solution for her to get away from him, so she tries again to plot her escape. 

Spotting her hurriedness to get away, So Ji-sub continues burrowing his way towards her swiftly, trying to reach her in the blink of an eye, not giving her the option to run again.

Wordlessly and effortlessly, So Ji-sub subtly narrows in on her manager and tries to squeeze in between them to reclaim his favorite spot behind her once again. Breathing in her flowery perfume with delight, everything finally returns to colour and became right in his formerly greyish world.

He can see her manager smirking at him knowingly from the corner of his eyes.

He remembers how both their managers had an on-going bet about the two of them during their filming. So Ji-sub is not surprised when her manager slows down to put more distance away from them. 

It is clear now to him now, the ball is in his court just as everyone has been telling him, because even her manager has offered him a clear sign of approval.

‘Joong-ki is right, with the right girl, everything just falls into place without him saying anything to her,’ So Ji-sub muses silently to himself in amusement, ‘even if I am about to kidnap nation’s Gong-vely.’

Placing his palm lightly on her back, the actor smiles that the brought back memories of his naughty hands at the end of his mind, So Ji-sub then inched forward to whisper behind her ear, “Hyo-jin, follow my directions, we need to talk about us.”

Tensing up slightly at his touch and words, Hyo-jin tries to maintain her nonchalant manner by giving him a slight shake of her head and not drawing anyone’s attention to their secret exchange. But her all blushing cheeks made Ji-won took a second look at her and the unknown man who is closing in behind her.

Fearing for a moment that he may have been a crazed fan who got too close for comfort to her friend, Ji-won tries to glare at the man to scare him off. But the man merely nodded in acknowledgement towards her before directing his attention back to Hyo-jin.

The act of confidence and coolness of the unknown man surprised Ji-won because this is not an act of a fan.

There is something familiar about how the man would calmly put his hand around Hyo-jin protectively. The familiarity with Hyo-jin and the natural manner which he pulls her in within his touch rang a bell of deja vu for Ji-won. She has seen this man with Hyo-jin before and the closeness is nothing to be alarmed of. 

Considering this is the movie premiere of Battleship Island, there can only be one such person in this place who fits this description can do this to her best friend. But it is a bold move which Ji-won cannot imagine the shy actor doing in the open with fans and staff around them. Furthermore, there is no reason for him to do that anymore, Master's Sun has ended four years ago.

"So Ji-sub-ssi?" The doubtful actress questions softly, trying hard not to turn and face the man behind. If she is right about the identity of that man, this could be the next story to send the Hallyu world into another meltdown after the Song-Song couple.

Widening her eyes in surprise when the said man replied with a soft "ne" behind them, Ji-won feels the urge to break into a fit of giggles as she confirms the identity of the secretive man. 

It seems that the possibility of having the So-Gong couple is not that much of a far stretched myth of yesteryear as claimed by her best friend during their girls talk session.

It makes sense now why Hyo-jin would insist on inviting her to come along as her plus one for this movie premiere when it is clear that the invitation is only for one person. Uhn Ji-won is supposed to be her bodyguard from that man.

Smirking teasingly at her blushing co-star, Ji-won catches his eyes with a raising brow before mouthing a silent 'hwaiting!' to the man. 

Between Son Ye-jin and Uhm Ji-won, the two of them have often wondered why their playful Gong-vely would get unsettled whenever they mentioned So Gan-ji. She is never uncomfortable with guys, and always willing to spend time with her countless number of Oppas such as Gong Yoo, and even took good care of them.

But it seems that a line is crossed when it comes to Mr So Ji-sub for their Gong-vely. She could never explain how she feels about the man whenever they tried to question her.

But it seems that fate has decided that the tug of war game between them ends now, 4 years of denial is too much, even for their romantic comedy queen.

For someone who breathes and lives romantic comedies, it is almost absurd how Gong Hyo-jin cannot get a hint from the guys when everyone knows perfectly well how smart that girl is. But her brilliant acting in reel often transmits over into the real-life situations, confusing people with her apparent ignorance about their feelings. It is the famous Hyo-jin's pull them in to get comfortable enough to act naturally and push them away later after the drama routine which happens over and over again each time the said actress takes up a new project. 

Despite how she often claims about falling in love with her co-stars is her way of acting, Hyo-jin has been surprisingly cool-headed than any actresses they know. She may be brilliant at acting sillily and hopelessly in love in romantic comedies, Ji-won and friends know that she is not one who gives her heart away easily.

For one who is crowned as Queen of Romantic Comedies, Hyo-jin's love life is rather plain and simple compared to most girls, even more, rare as one of the top Korean actresses. Perhaps it is the reason why the media and fans love matching her up with her co-stars, simply because she is too well-adored by them.

Yet all the rumors aside, Ryoo Seung-bum is the only exception in her life which lasted for a decade and was at a point of time, everybody's favorite celebrity real-life couple. While Lee Jin Wook in comparison, can only be considered as an out of the blue fling, judging from the status of fewer than 3 months.

As brave as her characters are in chasing love in dramas, Hyo-jin has chosen to take a backseat when it comes to her own romance.

Which is why Ji-won must do what she must do, even to go against her young friend's intention.

Pulling Hyo-jin closer to her, Uhm Ji-won secretly heeds the directions pointed by the mastermind behind them, luring poor little Bambi into the underground carpark and towards a stylish black SUV van. The perfect trap to whisk her away from the public's eye.

Even if she has to be one of the partners-in-crime for this abduction of their Gong-vely, Uhm Ji-won knew that it that this is something the two Master's Sun leads needed to renew their relationship.

"Unnie," Bambi, or rather their victim cries out with her wide-eyed innocence look, shocked that her best friend would aid him instead, "what are you doing?"

"Talk, Hyo-jin," Uhm Ji-won commanded firmly as she pats Hyo-jin head affectionately, "you need to be honest with yourself. I can tell that Ji-sub-ssi has a lot to tell you."

"But seonbae-nim..." before she can even finish her sentence, So Ji-sub pinned her with a threatening glare, "SEONBAE-NIM?"

"Eh... oppa," Hyo-jin quickly amended under his glare, earning her another giggle from Ji-won. 

"Finally, there is someone who can tame this shedevil!" Uhm Ji-won shakes her head and laughs, "So Ji-sub-ssi, I am leaving you with the care of my best friend, please take good care of her because she is also a great escapee!"

Nodding seriously at Ji-won's hint, So Ji-sub took a side look at his Taeyang and proceed to snake his arm around her shoulders and pull her close to him firmly before promising, "this time I won't let her slip away again." 

"Don't I have a say in this?" Gong Hyo-jin tries to register her protest against them.

 "No, you do not have a say in this," So Ji-sub demanded in a Joo Joong-won arrogant manner, "get onboard before I repeat what I did to chase away walnut ghost to get you to obey!"

Reminding her of their first kiss scene in which Joo Joong-won snatched up the possessed Tae Gong Shil in one move before bowing his head to capture her lips and effectively chasing away the stubborn walnut lady ghost, Gong Hyo-jin widens her eyes in shock and scurries to board the van without any more protests from her.

Her romantic comedy worthy reaction sends So Ji-sub and Uhm Ji-won shaking with laughter, allowing So Ji-sub to repeat his praise for her again, "she is truly one of the best Korean romantic comedy actresses,"

"That's why you are the romantic comedy queen," Nodding in agreement, Uhm Ji-won quirks laughingly to her best friend who is hidden in the van, "even your real-life romance is a romantic comedy!"

Sending off the two top stars in the carpark, Ji-won can only hope that this is a new beginning to another entertainment couple.

"Hwaiting, my friend! Be brave!"

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AN: This was supposed to be a one-shot. But when I read about them meeting during the premiere, this is what happened~!

Hope you will enjoy it! Have fun and I would love to hear from my readers!

Cheers!