"What?!" Jongdae jumps over the divider and into the booth while the others hurry to hide,

"If I were single?" Jongdae imitates as Seungwan stares at him with hanging open,

"Stop hiding!" Hyeri rolls her eyes at the other men. 

"He was seriously hot, Dae." Seungwan defends,

"He really was." Yiming adds,

Seungwan drags her boyfriend out of the booth.

The booth clears out, leaving Sera with Jackson, Heeyoung, and Sehun.

"Oppa." Sera chirps, as Jackson cowers under Sehun's stern glare,

"Oh Sehun." The lawyer introduces, extending his palm towards his sister's boyfriend,

"Jackson Wang, it's nice to finally meet you." He greets, giving the lawyer a firm handshake, even if lawyer is using all his energy to crush Jackson's hand,

"Lawyer Oh," Sehun turns to Heeyoung, watching the handshake with a raised eyebrow. Recalling her twisting his fingers, Sehun loosens his hold.

"Please be kind to Jackson." She politely smiles at him, joining Chanyeol, Junmyeon and Jongin in the next booth.

"Sera and Jackson, who would have thought?" Chanyeol muses,

"I was shocked too. They knew each other for years before getting together. I didn't think they would last long, but..." Heeyoung shakes her head,

"Why aren't you guys dancing?" Yiming stumbles into the booth,

"Not drunk enough." Junmyeon says,

"Why not?" Heeyoung asks,

"I'm driving."

"We can get a taxi or a driver service." Heeyoung suggests, but the dentist shakes his head.

"It's fine, I don't like drinking much." Junmyeon assures her,

"Park, let's dance." Chanyeol pulls her up, noticing Jongin's dark expression.

"Huh? I'm talking to Junmyeon." She protests as the taller drags her away. "Myeon, join us." Heeyoung yells. Junmyeon chuckles at her antics, though the smile falls at the look on his cousin's face.

"What?" He asks, clueless.

"Aren't you going to dance?" Jongin snarls, scaring his cousin and Yiming away.

Jongin angrily sips on his drink, watching his wife. In his angry state, he remains oblivious to the women sneaking suggestive glances at him.

"I didn't think I would ever see Kim Jongin upset over a woman." Jihyun teases, walking into the booth with Baekhyun.

Jongin rolls his eyes, reaching for another glass.

"Slow down." Jihyun advices, eyeing the empty glasses on the table,

"Seeing your reaction, I guess I don't have to worry about my sister." Baekhyun approvingly nods.

"Worry about what?" Sehun joins them, splitting from his sister and her boyfriend,

"Worried he would use Heeyoung as a rebound for Jihyun." Baekhyun surprises them,

"You know?" Sehun gasps,

Baekhyun nods, "I knew. In fact, that's also why I broke up with Jihyun."

"If you knew about his feelings, why let him marry your sister?" Sehun asks,

"You're making it sound like I had a choice. Dad and Uncle Kim decided on the alliance. I was informed after everything was decided, I tried talking to Jong but he was busy with KJC. When I finally caught him, Heeyoung and him had already agreed."

"Were you trying to get Jong to back off?" Jihyun asks,

"I was. Heeyoung and I aren't close, but she's still my sister." Baekhyun warns, the hidden message heard clearly.

"Kim Jongin." Sera yells, joining them with Jackson. 

"You ever hurt our Hope, I assure you, Jongdae will be the only one eligible to extend your family line." Sera threatens,

"She means, Hope is our precious friend and though you two don't have a conventional marriage, treat her respectfully." Jackson politely translates.

"Misunderstandings happen only once, Kim. Don't forget." Sera gives him a scary smile, smiling widening at the sight of Jongin shivering,

"I.I understand." Jongin gulps, nodding his head and glaring at Sehun to do something with his sister, but the lawyer himself is terrified.

"Chill. I won't hurt you until I need to." Sera rolls her eyes at them.

"When did she get terrifying?" Sehun clutches his chest, staring after his sister.

Apology not accepted. ~ CEO Kim

Pardon? ~ Wifey

[image attached] ~ CEO Kim [Image is a sticky-note Heeyoung left Jongin apologizing for not having cooked breakfast or preparing his lunch.]

I'm not sure why you're apologizing. I'm grateful for the meals, however I hope you understand, you're not obligated to prepare food for me. ~ CEO Kim

Oh. Well. Make sure you grab something on your way to work and have your secretary set time aside for lunch. ~ Wifey

You too, Mrs.Kim, Don't skip your meals either. ~ CEO Kim

"What's with the sudden layoff? Is BE restructuring?" Sehun asks Baekhyun.

The men are gathered at the latter's office for lunch.

"Last weekend, we got an anonymous report about a fraud scheme going on at the company and after an internal investigation, several people from different branches have been found guilty. We're trying to get this taken care of carefully without much media interference." Baekhyun informs them, groaning at the looming stack of flies on his desk.

"Is that why Heeyoung has been busy this week?" Jongin voices out, though he meant to keep the question to himself,

"Many from the accounting department are being investigated. Heeyoung's supervisor, Kang, had a role in the scheme. We're trying to get this figured out as soon as we can, but who knows." Baekhyun sighs,

"Is Heeyoung involved-?" If looks could kill, Kyungsoo would be dead right now,

"Heeyoung will be the CEO, why would sh-"

"I meant, Do you think she's the one who submitted the report? She's in the accounting department, giving her access to important documents. She might have noticed the discrepancies." Kyungsoo explains, rolling his eyes.

"She was shocked when I told her." Baekhyun shakes his head, "But she's been placed in the investigation team."

"Do you know if she's in her office?" Chanyeol asks, since Heeyoung hasn't been answering her phone.

"She's not. They went to investigate the Daegu branch."

~

Later, when Heeyoung returns back to her office, she finds a lunch box sitting on her desk.

Don't forget to look after yourself. ~JongIn.

Jongin drags his feet, not looking forward to the emptiness of his apartment. Matters at BE escalated with evidence against department heads being found, the situation seems unending.

However, he's startled at the sight of his wife, fast asleep on the couch. Jongin sets his backpack beside the couch, carefully sliding his arms under his wife and carrying her up to their room. Entering his room, he frowns at the stack of pillows in the middle of bed, surprised seeing a toddler laying in the middle. Jongin glances at his sleepy wife and the baby, turning around and heading to the guest room.

~

Exiting the bathroom, he's startled by the toddler staring at him.

"You scared me little guy." Jongin grunts, reaching for the quiet toddler.

"Hello. I'm not sure who you are, but I'm Jongin and once my wife wakes up, I'll get your name too." Jongin tells the baby as they walk to the kitchen.

Jongin is feeding the baby mashed bananas when he hears a loud slam before loud footsteps head their way, startling the baby.

"Ssh, it's just Heeyoung." Jongin consoles the baby, looking at his frantic wife, loudly exhaling at the sight of the baby.

"He's fine." She pants, reaching for the baby, but he refuses, preferring to stay with Jongin.

"I see how it is." She tickles the toddler, looking at her husband,

"Meet Nam Minsu, our neighbor." She introduces,

"Nam Minsu? Nam Minhyuk?" Jongin muses,

"Yup, Minhyuk's son. Minhyuk and his wife are out of town and I volunteered for us to babysit." Heeyoung informs him,

".....Minhyuk is married?" Jongin asks, surprised,

Heeyoung gives him a weird look, "Is it that surprising?"

"Of course not. I'm just, I didn't know, that's all." Jongin smiles, confusing Heeyoung. She doesn't need to know Jongin might have been slightly jealous of their neighbor.

"How long will they be gone?" Jongin asks, scrunching his nose at the toddler,

"Jinsu needs to move for her job. And with the mess at BE, I recommended Minhyuk as a financial supervisor for that branch. They're trying to finalize everything, since they'll be moving in less than a month." She briefly explains.

Two days later, Jongin walks into the living room, determined to clarify things with his wife.

Heeyoung is looking over her files, with Minsu napping beside her.

"Heeyoung." Jongin calls, sitting across from her. She gives him a look asking him to continue,

"Please hear me out, first." Jongin requests, "My first reason to marry you is because my grandfather has a clause which prevents me from getting my shares until after my marriage. My second reason, I wanted a reaction from someone. When I first heard the proposal, I was in an unrequited love. I thought maybe, after hearing about this, she would react. But she didn't, so I went along as I had no reason to fight it." He nervously glances at her, but his wife is calmly looking at him.

"When I first saw you, I admit I was attracted to you, I felt I was betraying myself which is why I lashed out at you and tried to stay away from you. After getting to know you, I couldn't stop developing feelings. I'm sorry for dropping this on you suddenly, but I can't hide my feelings anymore and I understand that you don't feel the same, but please give me a chance. That's all I ask." Jongin ends, just as Minsu starts to stir awake. 

When Jongin returns to the living room, he finds his wife missing with a sticky note letting him know she's gone out.

Heeyoung heads over to PCY!11, not wanting to disturb Chanyeol, she lets herself into his apartment. She calls the first person on her mind, her best-friend, the one who understands better than anyone else, even herself.

"Why not give it a chance?" The male on the screen asks,

"We're married, Tae." Heeyoung frowns,

"Exactly and now that you know it's a misunderstanding, do you still plan on going through an annulment?" Tae asks,

"I." Heeyoung is saved from answering, hearing the door unlock, signaling Chanyeol's arrival.

"I feel like I should charge you every time you run here." Chanyeol teases,

"Please do, or she'll continue taking advantage of your kindness." Tae jokes,

"Taehyung, how are you?"

Heeyoung lets them talk, getting lost in her thoughts, until she's pulled into the conversation,

"So, why aren't you giving Jong a chance?" Chanyeol asks her,

Sighing, "I'm scared."

"Of what?" Taehyung asks, trying to walk his best friend through her thoughts,

"You know what, Tae." Heeyoung glares at him,

"Hope, your relationship isn't going to turn into your parents' relationship. I don't know CEO Kim, but if your brothers let you marry him, there must be some redeeming quality about him." Taehyung states,

"I agree, Jong doesn't abandon people. He loves with all his heart." Chanyeol tries to assure her,

"Why are you bringing love into this?" Heeyoung frowns,

"Jongin confessed to developing feelings for you, do you think they're going to remain shallow?" Tae rolls his eyes,

"I don't want him to. I can't be 100% honest with him and later when he finds out, he's going to look at me differently." She worries,

"You're attracted to him as well, so give it a chance and deal with the consequences later." Tae suggests, knowing she'll never agree.

She proves him correct when she shakes her head, "You know I won't do that."

"Then tell him some of your truth. He doesn't need to know everything, tell him what matters." Chanyeol suggests,

"He's in love with someone else."

"He was and it was completely one-sided. That person is happy with someone else and has been for years." Chanyeol clarifies,

"You know."

"I do, but trust me when I say, Jongin has moved past his feelings. Even before the wedding, he was looking at you." Chanyeol defends his friend, seeing the unsure looks on Heeyoung's face, he adds, "You said, his eyes give away his feelings, so why can't you see it?" He pulls out a magazine from the coffee table.

"Marrying Heeyoung is the easiest decision I've made." The quote stands out. Heeyoung looks over the article, her face kept hidden as per her wishes. The article presents their story in a positive light, going as far as mentioning how the couple unhesitatingly canceled their honeymoon after learning about the CEO's father's hospitalization.

"He's been looking at you differently for a while now." Chanyeol points at a picture of Jongin softly smiling watching her get her make-up retouched.

"We were acting." Heeyoung tries to refute, but the two men chuckle,

"If that's acting, he deserves an award." Taehyung snorts,

"Jongin likes you, but don't just take my word on it. Let him prove it to you and try to open your heart to him. I care for you both and don't want to see either of you hurt." Chanyeol softly pats her head.

After an emergency call from downstairs, Chanyeol leaves.

Once her call ends, Heeyoung heads downstairs to the cafe. 

"Park!" Chanyeol calls, noticing her walking in, "Can you get napkins from the storage?" He asks, walking into the kitchen,

Heeyoung heads to the storage, but seeing the napkins on the topmost shelf, she searches around for a stepstool or ladder. She's reaching for the step stool when she hears the door open and shut quickly and a yell sounds through the door, "The two of you need to talk."

Heeyoung turns to see Jongin staring at her, "Oppa!"

Jongin pushes against the door, but it's locked from outside. Left with no choice, they resignedly sit on the floor.

Realizing something, Heeyoung whips her head towards Jongin, "Where's Minsu? CEO Kim, please tell me you didn't leave a baby alone? What am I going to tell his parents?" Heeyoung starts to hyperventilate, recognizing the symptoms, Jongin holds her hands and works on calming her.

"Minsu is with his parents." He informs her as she pulls her hands away.

"Why did you leave?" Jongin timidly asks.

Heeyoung freezes momentarily, opening before closing it.

"CEO Kim, haven't you wondered why I married you?" She asks, instead.

"To gain your shares, right." Jongin answers,

"Honestly, I never planned on marrying you." She confesses, surprising the male, "Byun Enterprises was nothing, until my mother took over. She built the company, and Mr.Byun enjoyed the benefits. For this reason, Grandpa Byun favored my mother and refused to give Namjin any significant portion of shares from either Byun Enterprises or Byun Industries. After mom's accident, Mr.Byun temporarily gained custody of me and obtained control over my shares. I refused to marry anyone chosen by that man, I tried looking for any possible solution. Had Baekhee not threatened me, I was willing to cooperate with her." She chuckles, surprising Jongin with the new information.

"You look beautiful when you smile." Jongin comments,

"Jong, hear her out first, flirt later." Chanyeol yells from outside, startling the two.

"At our first meeting, I realized that both of us have our own goals with this wedding, so I pretended to go along. If Mr.Byun had handed over my shares, I was thinking of stealing the marriage license and disappearing myself."

"What?!" "Heeyoung Park!!!"

"I didn't say it was a smart plan." She defends, "I'm an over-thinker, I try to have several back-up plans."

"Still, to run away after the ceremony. Shame on you!" Chanyeol scolds her,

"Try marrying someone who hates you, I want to see what you'll do." Hope retorts,

"I never hated you." Jongin interrupts,

"I thought you did, after that first night." She shrugs,

"I thought you were gorgeous and that annoyed me, in turn I took my anger out on you." Jongin frowns,

"Woah, Kim Jongin." Chanyeol comments,

"Oppa, don't you have a cafe to run?" Heeyoung rolls her eyes,

"Fine. I'll leave you two alone." Chanyeol teases, and his footsteps fade away.

"When did the two of you get close?" Jongin wonders,

"The engagement night we got to know each other a little and the night we argued about the prenup, I ended up here." She explains,

"Oh."

"Like I said, because of my parents' marriage, I've become wary of marriage and always assumed If I did marry, it would be someone I trust with my everything. And you're not it." She says,

"As long as you tell me about things that matter. I won't push you to tell me things that make you uncomfortable, I promise."

"What if you were to break it one day?" She asks,

"I won't. I don't make promises lightly." Jongin states,

"What happens when you learn something unfavorable about me? Will you be able to keep your promise?"

"I.I don't know." Jongin stumbles, unsure on how to answer,

"Okay." Heeyoung says, causing Jongin to look at her,

"I'll hold you to your promise for now, but in the future, you can take it back." She tells him.

"Heeyoung, as long as it's not something life-destroying, I will continue staying with you. I like you, Heeyoung. I like the Heeyoung, who's kind when she doesn't have to be. The one who tries her best and gives it her all for her goals. The one who doesn't need others to protect her. The one who swoons over my cousin, because it lets me see a genuine smile on your face, even if I dislike seeing you swoon over someone else. If what you tell me changes my view on you, then I will learn to accept that you as well." Jongin confesses,

"CEO Kim, I need time." Heeyoung says,

"I don't plan on rushing you." Jongin tells her,

"Tha-"

The storage door opens, interrupting them as an employee walks in, "What are you two doing here?"

"Dahyun, don't open the door." Chanyeol pants, running into the room,

"Sorry, boss." The girl shrugs, looking around for what she came in for,

"Park Chanyeol, you're dead." Heeyoung grits, scaring the taller into sprinting out of the room.

"Oppa." Heeyoung runs after him,

"I was only trying to help." Chanyeol pleads, as she chases him around his thankfully somewhat empty cafe.

"Yeah." Heeyoung nods, as they run around a table,

"Park, have mercy on me." Chanyeol begs, pulling Heeyoung to his chest and holding her arms behind her back.

"Let go." The taller shakes his head, "Oppa, let go while I'm asking nicely." She sweetly smiles, frightening the taller, but he keeps a strong hold on her wrists.

In their chase, the two failed to see a group walking into the cafe, not until,

"What the hell are you two doing?"

The stern tone has them pulling apart to see a fuming Sehun, while Jackson, Sera and Yiming stand behind him,

"Don't you have a girlfriend?" Sehun growls at Chanyeol, choosing the weaker target,

However, the question confuses them, "Why are you suddenly bringing up my girlfriend?"

"Because you're cheating on her with your friend's wife." Sehun waves his arms between the two,

"Lawyer Oh." Heeyoung calls, Sehun swears he's starting to dislike that title, "Haven't we established CEO Kim and I are merely business partners."

Chanyeol stifles his laughter, glancing over at Jongin leaning against the counter beside Sera and the others as they watch on amused,

"Business partners? Wow. Fine, even if Jongin is nothing, don't you have respect for his girlfriend?" Sehun fumes,

"Sunmi and I aren't official, yet." Chanyeol states, wrapping an arm around Heeyoung,

"I can't even, I thought you were different, I didn't realize you were such a wonderful actress. To think, Jongin might be developing feelings for you. I have to stop him." Sehun mumbles, reaching for his phone.

"I'm telling Jongin." Sehun announces,

"Tell me what, Sehun?" Jongin speaks up,

"Heeyoung is not goo-, Jongin." Sehun pauses, surprised to see his best friend. "What are you doing here?"

"Heeyoung likes the food here." Jongin shrugs.

Shocked, Sehun keeps glancing between the duo and Jongin,

"Were you guys messing with me?" Sehun asks, more relieved than upset.

Chanyeol winks at him, walking behind the counter to prepare drinks for them.

"Oppa," Sera calls, "No matter what happens, Heeyoung will never have romantic feelings for Chanyeol, and vice versa. Trust me."

Jongin and Sehun give her an unsure look, "She's right. Hope and Chanyeol are impossible." Jackson backs his girlfriend.

The lady at the desk is reading through the reports, when a knock sounds on the door, getting her attention.

"CEO Kim." Heeyoung gasps as he walks in with a lunchbox.

"Baekhyun said you were going to be working late again, so I bought you dinner." Jongin smiles, setting up the food on her coffee table.

Heeyoung dubiously glances at her documents,

"You can get back as soon as you're done eating." He reassures her,

"You shouldn't have done this." She tells him, taking his offered chopsticks,

"I wanted to."

"Thank you." She gives him a small smile,

"I told you I'll give you all the time you need, but don't forget I am courting you." He beams at her, causing her to choke on the food.

"CEO Kim." She coughs, looking at him.

"Let's eat." He chirps, focusing on his food.

"Why is he here?" Heeyoung looks at the toddler in the CEO's arms,

"I'm babysitting. Don't worry, I've got permission to bring him here." Jongin assures her, setting out the food out, "I've texted Nam Minhyuk, he'll be joining us."

"Thank you." Heeyoung is grateful to the CEO for making sure she's eating her meals on time.

"I told you, already, I'm wooing you." Jongin cutely winks at her.

"How cute!" Minhyuk coos at the couple, before his attention is pulled away by his son crying for him.

"My baby." Minhyuk reaches for his son.

Thankfully, Minhyuk doesn't need to stay for too long and leaves with Minsu, while Jongin chooses to wait for Heeyoung. While waiting, he falls asleep on the couch. Heeyoung glances to see him uncomfortably sleeping and hurries through her files.

"CEO Kim." She calls, trying to wake him.

"CEO Kim." She gently shakes him,

"It's Jongin." He mumbles, sleepily blinking his eyes open.

"Done." He asks,

Heeyoung finds herself flustered at the cuteness, "Let's go."

"You're sure it's okay for us to arrive with Minsu?" Heeyoung asks for the nth time, as they're pulling into the driveway,

"I've cleared it with Jo Jinsu and informed Mom." Jongin assures her.

Jongin's parents are hosting a 'small' get together. The couple had forgotten about it and Jongin had already agreed to babysit Minsu that night.

"It'll be fine." Jongin assures her, interlocking their fingers and carrying Minsu on his hip.

They spend that evening clarifying they're babysitting for their neighbors, and Minsu is neither of their 'secret' child, nor is he adopted. Heeyoung is one question from exploding, when her mother-in-law helps her sneak away. 

"Aren't you cute?" Mrs.Kim coos over Minsu as they hide away in her study. "I can't wait for my grandkids." The elder suddenly says, startling Heeyoung.

She's saved from further embarrassment as her husband sneaks inside. 

"Why are there so many people?" Jongin whines, throwing his arms around his mother and slumping against her.

"Stop being a baby and mak-"

"Mom! Why did you suddenly throw a party?" Jongin cuts her off,

"Your father and I are finally going on a cruise and decided to inform everyone together." She tells them, as the door opens and the rest of the family walks in.

"Is that safe? I mean, Dad's just recovered." Jongdae asks, concerned.

"There's a certified doctor on the cruise for emergencies." Mr.Kim tells them,

"But-"

"Your mother and I need time for ourselves. And now that you're both settled, we can travel assuredly." Mr.Kim says.

~

When Heeyoung enters Jongin's childhood bedroom, Jongin is resting against the headboard with Minsu dozing off in his arms.

"They drove me insane." She whispers, carefully shutting the door behind her,

"I figured." Jongin lowly chuckles, patting the spot beside him,

Heeyoung climbs onto the bed, "I can hold him." She reaches for the toddler, but Jongin shakes his head,

"It might wake him up."

The tiredness from their hectic schedule catches up and soon the couple is off to dreamland.

A while later, a group peeks their heads inside, Unbeknownst to the sleeping couple, they take several pictures before leaving.

Heeyoung blinks at the unfamiliar surroundings when Jongin walks in, having changed into comfortable clothes. Minsu chooses that moment to wake up crying. Jongin reaches for Minsu, but the toddler crawls to Heeyoung.

"Unbelievable." Jongin shakes his head,

"Seems like he likes me more." Heeyoung sticks her tongue at him, Minsu cutely imitates her.

"Traitor." Jongin attacks the toddler and Heeyoung with tickles.

"Uh-hum." Mrs.Kim stands at the door with a huge smile on her face. If Minsu hadn't been there, anyone would have mistaken them with Jongin hugging his wife and her face hidden in his chest.

"I've brought Heeyoung a change of clothes." Mrs.Kim sets the clothes on the dresser shutting the door behind her.

"Is Jinsu fine with Minsu staying with us?" Heeyoung asks, untangling herself,

"Yeah."

Heeyoung hurries to the bathroom, leaving behind an amused Jongin.