Daniel was lost for words the second he had stepped inside Jihyun’s workplace to pick her up for an arranged dinner with his parents. He had dismissed Daehwi’s offer for a cup of tea or coffee and had immediately sauntered in Jihyun’s direction as she was putting the finishing touches to a flower centerpiece delivered by their contracted florist earlier in the afternoon. The girl was sitting next to the window, deeply engrossed in examining the quality of the florist’s work and taking some notes to notice Daniel’s presence in the room. He appreciated her obliviousness because it gave him the opportunity to admire her appearance a little while longer. Jihyun looked so radiant under the sunlight, her skin seemed to glow a little each time she beamed in satisfaction at the work of art in front of her. At this moment in time, he was deeply assured and grateful that he had made the right choice in asking her to become his fiancée.

“Oh, you’re here,” Jihyun finally acknowledge his presence in the room once she untied her ponytail and turned to the left, intending to call her assistant. She glanced at the watch on her wrist and let out a soft sigh that did not go unnoticed by Daniel, “Is it that time already?” she pursed her lips, silently hoping that their dinner with his parents had been canceled and he was simply here to drive her home as per usual.

Daniel nodded a few times as he ambled towards her, “My mother sounded eager over the phone. She called to remind me five times today,” he had a broad, unrestrained smile that seemed to be permanently glued to his face.

Jihyun let out another sigh as she rose from her seat and smoothed the creases from her dress, “So, is this good enough to meet your parents for the first time?” she twirled hesitantly, showing off the dress she had picked out for the important first meeting with his parents. Clad in a peach dress with floral embroidery around the neckline and sleeves reaching just below her knees and a pair of brown wedge heels, she had kept her appearance modest and presentable today, keeping in mind that she would be meeting his parents for the first time. She had never even met Sehun’s parents before during their three-year relationship and she felt intimidated at the thought of coming face to face with Daniel’s parents with no experience, especially after only knowing him for a few months and never being in a romantic relationship with him before.

Daniel quickly scanned her from head to toe before slowly rubbing his chin, deep in thought. He remained tight-lipped for a good thirty seconds, slowly driving the girl impatient, “I knew it. Fine, I’ll change,” Jihyun pouted at his reaction and rushed past him, ready to drown herself in another hour of fishing through some of the clothes available in her workplace closet as she recalled placing a formal long-sleeved navy dress in there a few months ago.

“You look nice,” Daniel said softly, wrapping a gentle hand around her wrist to stop her in her tracks. The girl definitely did not look anything less than breathtaking, because she had already captured his full attention the moment he had set foot in the room. He was particularly captivated by that the sweet scent of rose she was exuding and the light shade of orange-pink painting her lips, drawing him closer and closer towards her. He also loved the way her black hair fell perfectly in loose waves when she had unraveled her ponytail. However, Daniel found it hard to just simply admit that she indeed looked beautiful. He couldn’t afford more emotional leakage because deep down inside, the couple knew that this betrothal was only a pretense. A false display of feelings and actions only meant to deceive his parents with no intention of going further in the relationship.

“Great. I’ll go get my purse then,” Jihyun mumbled quickly and shrugged her wrist from his grip before hurrying off to gather her belongings. Daniel silently chuckled as he watched her leave the room, feeling somewhat proud with her reaction to his flattery. Daniel’s remark, accompanied by his honeyed voice and gentle gaze had her heart racing as she cupped both sides of her face in her palms feeling the warmth slowly spreading to her cheeks and the rest of her body. Jihyun was still unable to decipher her feelings after the fateful night when Daniel had proposed the idea of becoming his fiancée. She couldn’t deny having a small crush on him just from his attractiveness alone, but she was not sure of her feelings for him. The ones enough to make her agree to Daniel’s crazy engagement proposal. Who in their right mind would agree to the idea? He wasn’t even offering a simple romantic relationship as his girlfriend; he was requesting her to enter a fake agreement to marry with no aim of actually tying the knot.

Fifteen minutes later, the pair was on their way to the restaurant specially selected by Daniel’s mother. Jihyun was calm when she had plopped herself in the passenger’s seat but was slowly growing nervous each time the navigation system in Daniel’s car announced the decreasing estimated time of their arrival to the venue. Furthermore, the unnecessary silence throughout the journey was making her edgy, “What are your parents like?” she threw the question, hoping that some information would alleviate her worries.

“My father is a coolheaded person. He warms up to people quite easily too,” Daniel replied, taking a glance at Jihyun’s face exactly at the moment when she heaved a sigh of relief. He found her reaction to meet his parents unnecessarily adorable, despite the reality of their make-believe plan, everything else felt almost real, “But, my mother can be quite tough, she was the one who arranged our meet up today as soon as I confirmed the news,” he continued, taking a second glance when she reacted by fidgeting with her fingers.

Daniel reached his right arm to the backseat when the traffic lights turned red, remembering that he had bought something for her after getting off work. Jihyun had to suppress the urge to offer her assistance because he had suddenly unbuckled his seatbelt and leaned dangerously close to her to reach for the item that had rolled under the backseat. She heard the rustling of papers and plastic before he dropped a pink item on her lap, “I almost forgot, here,” he said, buckling himself quickly as the light had turned green.

Jihyun first noticed the faint floral scent emanating from the item and as she lifted it from her lap, she saw the beautifully arranged bouquet of seasonal flowers. She unconsciously smiled at the unexpected present, admiring the handiwork of the florist and reminding herself to ask him where he had bought them, “Daniel you didn’t have too,” she bashfully thanked him, getting another whiff of the pleasant smell. She hadn’t expected him to be extra nice, considering how she was only his fake fiancée.

“It’s for my mother. I figured that you’d make a good first impression by bringing her favourite flower,” Daniel replied, clearing her misunderstanding with a single sentence. She knew it was too good to be true.

***************

“Remind me again what am I doing here?” Jihyun tugged on his sleeves as Daniel handed his car keys to the valet who opened the door for him. If she was uneasy before, now she wished that the floor would open up and swallow her whole because she had become a complete nervous wreck in a matter of minutes. Her hands had started to sweat and her face had become hotter in the past few seconds she felt like her makeup was starting to melt, giving her an insane thought of just canceling her attendance for the excuse of developing a fever.

Daniel took a few steps back, bowing apologetically at the manager of the restaurant who had been waiting to the couple to their designated dining room after Daniel had informed him of his mother’s reservation, “You’re acting as my fiancée?” he replied, raising a skeptical eyebrow at her change of behaviour.

Jihyun let go of his sl