Jiyong took another swig from his bottle of brandy, his blood-shot eyes boring holes at the tightly shut door. It's already four in the morning yet sleep eluded him like a deer running away from its hunter, his mind swimming with a thousand questions. He didn't understand what went wrong. Was it the ring? Did she prefer it in gold? He could change it. He can have it re-designed to her liking. Or was it the way I proposed? Too boring? Too short? Too simple? All she needed to do was tell him. He would rent a whole ing island just for her. He completely emptied the bottle's contents, not caring whether his throat shreds and burns—he just wanted to numb the pain. Overhead, the light bulb flickered repeatedly. "You're giving up on me too, huh?" he drawled, a derisive snort escaping his mouth. Feeling defeated, he placed his cheek on the marble slab as he stared at the silver band lying on top of the coaster. Its counterpart was still around Dara's finger. She hadn't taken it off when she ran out the door. 

"She didn't take it off," he mumbled incomprehensibly. 

Jiyong struggled to get his bearings as he jumped off the stool. Slapping his cheeks so he could regain some sense of sobriety, he rubbed his eyes and snatched his jacket from the floor before grabbing his car keys from the bowl. He's going to change Dara's mind if it's the last thing he does.

~~~+++~~~

Chairman Park parted his curtains so he could look out the window. Someone was shouting from the gates. He could make out a car's headlights, but couldn't see the person's face that's making all the ruckus so early in the morning. Tightening his robe around his waist, he opened his door and ambled his way down the stairs. Butler Kim appeared to have been awoken by the noise too, judging from his lack of uniform and the headful of unkempt white hair. He was currently speaking to the intercom.

"What do you mean he's not leaving?"

'He insists he won't leave until he sees her.'

"Mr. Kim."

He turned around. "Ah, good morning sir. You're awake."

"Kind of hard to sleep with that ongoing racket," he deadpanned. "Who is it this time?"

"I'm afraid it's Mr. Kwon, sir," he informed him with troubled eyes. "He wants to speak to agassi."

Chairman Park frowned. He knew for sure that Dara's awake. She had always been a light-sleeper. The smallest of sounds and she bolts from her bed. If she didn't come out of her room then that could only mean one thing. "Tell the guards to stand back. I'll go and personally talk to our visitor." 

"As you wish." He conveyed the message as the chairman slipped on his coat. "Oh and one more thing, sir."

"Yes?" 

"It would appear that the young fellow is a bit under the influence of spirits. If I may suggest not to approach him in a hostile way? For the safety of both parties of course," he added with a kind smile.

"I'd be sure to remember that. Thank you." When he arrived at the gates, he found Jiyong standing in front of his car, a profound scowl on his face as he glared at one of the guards who had a taser gun pointed to his chest. "Let's all be civil here, shall we? Drop your gun, Yojin-ssi." He did, but didn't put it back on its holster. "Aigoo, gwenchana. You recognize this man, yes?"

"Neh, heojangnim."

"Then you very well know that if any harm comes to him, all of Korea will demand our heads. He's quite popular with the general public. Even Eukwang here plays his songs when he picks me up from work," he motioned toward the youngest of the guards who looked equally surprised and embarrassed by the sudden shift of attention on him. "Come now. Go back to your posts. I'll be done here, shortly."

"Algetseumnida." They all bowed and retreated toward the main entrance. 

"What are you doing here at such an ungodly hour, Mr. Kwon?"

"Where's Dara?"

"It's four in the morning. You should be getting more sleep—"

"I need to talk to her!"

"With how loud you're being, I'm certain my daughter can hear you all the way to her room." He gave Jiyong a swift once-over. "You look worse for wear. What did you do? Drink yourself to oblivion?"

"Was this part of your plan? Forcing her to come with you to whatever goddamn country overseas so I'd never be able to see her again?"

"It's New York and I think you're aware of the fact that Dara has a mind of her own and doesn't like to take orders especially from her own father." He crossed his arms and studied him. "Look, if she wanted to talk to you, she would have done that already."

"Then I'll wait here until she does."

The chairman raised his eyes to the sky. Stubborn kid, this one. There was a flash of lightning followed by a clap of thunder. "It's going to pour real soon. You need to go home."

He shook his head. "I'm going to wait," he insisted, eyes trained on the fountain a few feet away. Chairman Park pursed his lips and sighed. Seeing as he couldn't convince him to do anything otherwise, he turned around and headed back to the house. 

"Do you want us to call the police?" the head of his security asked him. 

"No need." He glanced at Jiyong over his shoulder. "Just let him be for now."

~~~+++~~~

Dara fought the urge to look out her window again. She didn't have to check. She knew Jiyong was still there. She hugged her knees to her chest and stared at the ring on her nightstand. She let the tears fall. He should've just accepted it when she told him she was leaving. He shouldn't have asked her to marry him. She buried her face in her hands. 

Outside, the sky rumbled. Rain started pelting the roof as it bounced off the ground in heavy torrents, drowning the rest of her words along with her hope. 

~~~+++~~~

"Should I give him a raincoat?"

"Micheosso?" The chief of security clicked his tongue and chided him. "Yah, Lee Eunkwang. Didn't you hear the chairman's orders? He said to let him be." The latter glanced at the monitor again. 

"He's going to get sick at this rate," he mumbled under his breath.

"Yah, are you his girlfriend? Why are you acting so worried?"

"Aiish, gwajangniiim!" he clung to his arm and whined in protest. "That man out there is G-dragon! He basically made me what I am today!"

"A loser?" quipped one of the senior guards, the rest of them sniggering in the background. 

"Ha-ha. Very funny," retorted Eukwang. "I used to be a foster kid, you know. With no family and no home, entering a university seemed like an impossible dream to me. But that all changed when GD-sunbaenim chose to sponsor my education. He left an anonymous donation so I didn't even know it was him at first. When I graduated from the academy, I tried to find out who I owed my life to so I could thank him properly. It came as a shock when I learned that my benefactor was also one of the most celebrated idols in the country." He turned to look at them with a determined expression. "So forgive me if I want to do a small act of kindness toward a stranger who did far more than hand me an umbrella when no one else did."

Silence immediately washed over his colleagues as they hang their heads in shame. The chief cleared his throat and slowly approached the maknae in the group. "Paliwa," he grunted, extending his own umbrella toward him. "Ga." 

"Gwajangnim..."

"Aiiisht. Just go, you idiot!"

"Neh! Kamsahamnida!" He took the umbrella and gave him a salute before scurrying out the door.

~~~+++~~~

"J-Jeogiyo..." 

Jiyong seemed lost in his thoughts and didn't even bother raising his head, his clothes dripping wet from the rain. Eukwang stepped closer and tried again. "S-sunbaenim," he spoke through the deluge. "Please use this." He handed the umbrella to him. "Studies show acid rain can cause harmful effects to the respiratory system and—" 

"Where..." he cut him off, his voice a hoarse whisper. "Where's Dara?" 

"I, uh...I don't have that kind of clearance yet. I mean, I'm only ever allowed at the kitchens, really." Jiyong seemed to deflate even more at his answer. "Sir, you really should get back inside your car. If Miss Dara sees you like this—"

"Dara!!" He screamed and started rattling the gates. "Come out! I'm not going to leave until you do! Please! Let's just talk!!"

"O-ottokae?!!" Eukwang panicked and dropped the umbrellas as he held onto Jiyong's shoulders in an effort to pry him off of the metal bars. "Stop, juseyo! Heojangnim might call the police if you don't!"

"I don't care! I just want to see her!!"

“Sir, please—"

"Geumanhae, Jiyong.”

The sudden addition of intruders made them pause. Jiyong whirled around and found Youngbae and TOP standing beside his car, both dressed in matching gray parkas. Taehee hopped out of the Lambo parked at the corner of the road and jogged his way toward them with an umbrella on his hand while Seungri and Daesung peeked through the window. 

"Jiyongie...jib-e, gaja," urged YB, his hand cautiously extended toward his best friend. Jiyong shook his head and quickly stepped back when Taehee offered to shelter him from the rain. Moving forward, TOP narrowed his eyes at him. "You really think Dara would talk to you at the state your in? Look at yourself, Jiyong. You're a in' mess."

"Hyung—"

"No. He needs to snap out of it," he told YB. "How many times do we have to remind you? You're not invincible! If you have problems, call or text us! We're not just your members, we're a family and families stick together!” He grabbed him by the neck. “Listen you idiot. Stop causing problems. For once, don't let your emotions get the best of you. I get it—we all get it. You're hurt and you're angry, but this—" he gestured to the guards surrounding them "—this isn't the answer.” He wasn't sure if it's tears running down Jiyong's cheeks or if it had been the rain, nonetheless, he wiped it away with his thumb. “You're not alone, you hear me? We're here.” Jiyong slumped forward in defeat, letting TOP envelop him in a hug. "We got you,” he muttered as he ruffled his hair.

It took a while before they managed to calm him down. When the rain finally showed signs of stopping, YB helped TOP assist a catatonic Jiyong into the car. Nobody uttered a word throughout the whole ride—even Seungri who never runs out of things to say remained mum. Every so often, they would send furtive glances at their leader who kept staring blankly into space. Once they arrived at his apartment, TOP made the first move in volunteering to look after Jiyong which instantly paved way to an argument. 

"I'll do it," announced Daesung as soon as they got off the lift. "I've got nothing scheduled for this morning."

"Ah aniya. I can stay," YB offered. "Hyorin canceled our plans. Their filming got extended so she has to stay until tomorrow."

Seungri clicked his tongue as he placed himself between the two. "Come on, guys. I'm the youngest here so please, let me do my work."

"Are you kidding me? You're only going to irritate him."

"Aiiisht, arasso! We'll settle this with rock, paper, scissors—"

Behind them, Taehee cleared his throat. "There's no need for that. Jiyong's already inside."

"And?"

"And he changed the password."

"Mworago??" YB charged forward and entered the code. Nothing. He tried it again. It was still locked. ". He really did."

"What do we do now?"

"What do you think? He obviously wants to be alone for now," muttered TOP. "Jiyong's not a little kid anymore. He's going to be fine."

Seungri’s brows met at the center as a sudden thought popped in his mind. "Geundae...how did you know he was at Dara noona's house, hyung?" 

"She called me."

"I don't understand. If she's worried, why didn't she just come out herself?”

"They're obviously fighting.”

"Ah, mata!" exclaimed the maknae as he clapped his hands. "Noona's probably mad at him because of that new scandal!”

TOP shook his head. "I don't think that's it. She would've mentioned something to me."

Taehee suddenly gasped. "Solma...”

“What? What is it?”

"This is just a hunch, okay? I’m not sure if this is actually related or—”

“Aigoo, just say it already!”

"Aiish geurae! It’s about Hae-In," he mumbled. "Jung Hae-in."

TOP leaned on the wall. "What about him?"

"You know how Jiyong hates the guy's guts, right?" They all nodded. "Well, Jung Hae-in filed his resignation a few days ago. I overheard him telling Jieun noona he's flying to New York with his fiancee."

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"Well...you don't think he meant Dara, right? I mean, we all know they dated in the past, plus the chairman basically wants them together—" upon seeing their furious expressions, he automatically backpedaled, "—or I could be wrong. Haha. Forget it. It's not like Dara's leaving Jiyong...right?"

TOP and YB exchanged a look, one that Daesung didn't miss. "What's going on, hyung? Do you guys, know anything?" After a few moments, YB nodded and gestured for TOP to tell the others.

"When Dara called me earlier, she was crying. She kept saying sorry."

"Why would she do that?"

"I don't know. She said that she was too scared to tell Jiyong the truth because she didn't want to hurt him. That she's sorry and it was all her fault.” TOP crossed his arms, his forehead creasing as he tried to put the pieces together. Dara wasn't the type of person who would blindly conform to the rules set by someone else. She had strong moral values and would never even have the courage to hurt a fly. Most of all, he knew how much she loved their leader. Which is why it didn't make any sense to him. Something's missing in the equation. "In any case, it's best if we just keep it to ourselves for now. We don't want it to cause more dispute between them especially since we don't even know if it's true."

"I agree with hyung," piped Daesung beside him. "It's not our place."

Behind the closed door, Jiyong popped an unlit cigarette in his mouth. He initially quit because Dara told him it was bad for his health. It was hard, but eventually, he was able to do it. Because of her. Because she was by his side. And now she's not.

He grabbed the lighter.