As I munch on lunch, I turn on the TV. I flip through the channels and stop when I see a familiar face. It’s my favorite artist, Suga.

“Thank you,” he says as he waves to his fans. I smile at his cute face. It’s been such a while since he came out on TV and his recent comeback is what makes my week. Staying home all day and watching TV isn’t bad sometimes. When Suga is on it.

I finish eating and start to clean up when my phone starts to ring. I look at the caller’s name. It’s Jimin.

“Hello? Jimin?”

“Hey, how are you?” he asks.

“I’m good, what about you?”

“Oh he’s fine,” I hear Grace’s voice and I realize they're together. I laugh.

“Hey Grace,” I say.

“(y/n), are you sure you’re fine? I heard from Jimin that Jin took you home last night!” she yells.

“Stop yelling,” Jimin scolds.

“Yeah, it’s weird. He’s been acting weirdly today. He cooked and ate breakfast with me,” I say with a slight laugh.

“What?!” Grace continues to yell.

“Maybe he heard you,” Jimin says over Grace. I stop. Heard what? Did I say something? I had a feeling I did but…

“I’m not sure though, (y/n). You were shouting about how he doesn’t even eat meals with you yesterday after you got drunk. I tried to tell you to get ready to go home, but then Jin came right after,” is Jimin’s response.

“Wait...I said that? And...you think he heard?” I ask with a small tremble. (y/n), you are never to drink alcohol ever again. I slap my mouth repeatedly and groan. So that’s why he’s been wanting to “eat” with me. He felt bad for me.

“Yeah, but I’m not sure so don’t worry about it, okay?” Jimin’s voice reaches my ear and I try to nod silently.

“But isn’t this better? At least he’s trying to change for you!” Grace says brightly.

“True,” I agree. But I still don’t want him to force himself to do anything. Especially for me. I’d hate to be a burden.

“Well I’m glad you’re okay. And don’t worry about it, okay? I’m sorry but I have to run to a class now, and Grace does too,” Jimin says.

“Alright, thanks guys. You two are literally the best. Have fun,” I say as I prepare to hang up.

“See you soon,” Grace says cheerfully and Jimin ends the call with a “Talk to you later!”

I turn to the TV and see some other artists performing. I turn it off since Suga isn’t on it anymore (I’m so biased) and continue cleaning up. I’ll have to tell Jin tonight at dinner that he doesn’t need to do this for me. He really doesn’t.

I decide to take a nap after successfully washing the dishes. I set the alarm for 5 so that I have time to wash up and dress up.

***

Ring. Ring. Ring. I wake with a start. I grab my phone and turn off the alarm. I check the time and sure enough, it’s 5. Already. I groan as I get out of bed and go to the bathroom.

       After a quick shower, I quickly blow dry my hair and curl the ends after slipping into a simple, white dress. I grab my makeup and start to apply it on my face. I then look for a bag to bring and decide to bring the same one I brought to my outing with Grace and Jimin. But then I think about how Jin must have carried it as he brought my drunken state home and slowly grab another bag. I’ll bring this one instead.

It’s only 6:10 pm. I walk out and hope it’s okay to arrive earlier than the time Jin told me. I choose to take the bus as I haven’t been on it in a long time. I get on and notice all sorts of people: grandmothers talking, high schoolers on their phones, men calling loudly, and others looking out the window. I smile at the sight. It’s good to be with people like this once in awhile, getting soaked up in everyday life. Before I know it, my stop arrives. I thank the driver and hop off.

I enter the lobby of Jin’s company and a woman in business attire walks towards me.

“May I help you?” she asks. Then she studies my face and her eyes get big.

“Oh my dearest apologies, ma'am. Your husband’s office is this way,” she says bowing. I thank her and realize she knows I’m Jin’s wife. I mean, everyone who works here were probably at our wedding. She leads me to the elevator and informs me that his office is on the far left on the 7th floor. I thank her again and press seven when the elevator arrives. I look at the time. 6:40. I’m so early.

Ding. The elevator doors open and I start walking to the “far left” the lady told me about. Sure enough, I see a huge pair of doors that has the name ‘CEO: Jin Kim’ on it. The secretary sees me as I open the door and her eyes get just as large as the other lady (is it that surprising to see me?). I notice that there’s another pair of doors behind her and learn that that’s where Jin’s office is. This right here is his secretary’s office. Huh. How grand.

“Shall I inform him you wish to see him?” she asks politely. I shake my head and tell her, “Maybe after ten minutes. May I sit here?” I point to a chair across from her desk. She nods rapidly and asks if I want tea or coffee. I decline and she continues to work.

I look around the room and notice how much it resembles Jin: neat, organized, and oddly comforting. I take out my phone to check the time and realize it’s still 6:47. I sigh and start to surf the web. I also check Suga’s activities and watch the performance I missed today after plugging in my earphones. I’m enjoying his perfect staging when I hear the door open. An unfamiliar man walks in.

“Hey Stacy,” he greets the secretary and his eyes then meet mine. “And who is this beautiful lady?” he says. I pull out my earphones. Did I hear him right? Is he talking about me? Sure enough, he starts walking towards me and flips his blonde hair before putting out his right hand.

“Hello, I’m Jung Hoseok, the newly scouted chief marketing officer of BH. And you are?” he grins.

“I’m (y/n).” I get up to take his hand and shake it, but he doesn’t let go.

“Are you a new employee? I haven’t seen you before,” he says. I realize that if he’s “newly scouted” it’s likely he hasn’t seen me before. But before I can respond, I hear a familiar voice.

“She’s my wife.” I turn to see Jin standing beside us. I smile nervously at him and he starts to smile but grimaces after seeing Mr. Jung’s hand with mine. He grabs my wrist and breaks Mr. Jung’s grip from it. He then pulls me closer to him and turns to Mr. Jung.

“What brings you here?” he asks in a stern voice.

“Oh my apologies. I didn’t know she was your wife. You’re quite a lucky man,” Mr. Jung says rather playfully.

“Why are you here?” Jin asks again coldly.

“I just wanted to double check the stats for this month with you,” Mr. Jung shrugs. “But if you’re busy,” he glances at me before continuing, “I can come back another time.”

“Yes, please do for I am very busy right now,” Jin says as he takes my hand. He starts to walk out the door before telling Stacy (his secretary) to clean up and to go home early. She nods and I wave goodbye to her. I take a glimpse at Mr. Jung, who waves at me with a smile. I slightly nod at him as Jin pulls me out into the hallway.

“When did you come?” he asks me as we wait for the elevator.

“Not long ago,” I say. I didn’t want to say that I was here nearly fifteen minutes ago in case he feels sorry.

“You should have come into my office right away.” He turns to me. Then he glances down at my clothes. He coughs before saying, “You don’t have to look this nice when you come see me, so next time, wear pants or something longer. I don’t want guys like Jung Hoseok looking at you.”

Huh? Did I make a mistake? I quietly tell him, “Okay. Sorry,” and the elevator arrives. He enters first, letting go of my hand and I follow him. I look up at him to see if he’s upset at my attire for real and notice his ears are red. Is he sick?

Jin doesn’t say a word to me after that but he doesn’t seem mad. We never really talked that much anyway. I remain silent as he drives, parks, and leads me into a fancy restaurant. A team of waiters greet us and I jump at their loud voices. They guide us to a private room in the far back and after being seated, Jin says, “We’ll have course C tonight.”

“Yes sir,” a waiter responds and hurries out. Wow. This place looks incredibly extravagant with all the marbled interior and I find Jin’s nonchalant order extremely attractive for some reason. I don’t know what “course C” meant but I feel like Jin knows what’s yummy here so I decide to wait for the food and not question it. I never go to restaurants like this. Even though my family is also quite wealthy, I’m used to fast food places. I can imagine the bill here is going to be a year’s worth of McDonald’s.

I look at Jin, who is fidgeting with his napkin. He looks lost in deep thought. Or maybe he really is mad at me for wearing a dress. Whatever the case is, it’s getting super awkward. I decide to start a conversation but don’t know what to say. After thirty seconds of thinking, the stupid being I am blurts out, “Do you know what Beethoven’s favorite fruit is?”

“...?” Jin looks at me dumbfoundedly. Well, at least I got his attention.

“Any guesses?” I ask with a raised eyebrow.

“Um...no?” Jin responds.

“Ba-na-na-na,” I say, in the tune of Beethoven’s Symphony No.5.

“...” Jin looks at me shocked and I seriously regret being such a dad. What kind of a lame joke was that, (y/n)? Just as I’m about to apologize, I hear Jin let out a laugh. He then laughs for quite awhile and all I can do is sit and laugh with him.

“My goodness (y/n),” Jin says after he’s calmed down. “You really are something.”

“Uh, thanks?” I say back and he grins at me. Just then, two waiters come in with plates full of food. They set it down in front of us and I notice a creamy soup and perfectly cooked steak waiting to be eaten. I lean in close to smell it and my, it smells lovely. Jin laughs at me and I smile at him.

“You’ve been so silent that I had to say something. Is something wrong?” I ask him after the waiters leave.

“Nothing’s wrong, it’s just…” his eyes meet mine. “I just had a meeting with the chairman of SM today, and it didn’t go as well as I would have liked. That’s what’s on my mind and I’m sorry I showed it. Let’s eat.” He picks up a spoon.

“No, I like it when you’re honest with me, at least to an extent. And I’m sorry to hear that,” I tell him as I lift my spoon up. “I’m sure it’s not as bad as you think.”

There’s a short pause before I add, “And I hope my banana made your day a little better?”

“Yes, actually,” Jin laughs a little. “You know, I’ve never really laughed at those types of jokes. But that was pretty great.” He smiles.

I’m glad I made his day a little better and we start eating. After the soup and steak, the waiters bring in salads, pastas, pastries, and even a bottle of champagne. Jin and I continue talking about our day and try to finish the food that’s brought in. I’m stuffed by the end of it but I still feel like eating ice cream for dessert (I’m such a pig but it’s a weird habit of mine to finish large meals with ice cream). I glance at Jin who looks at me questioningly.

“Hey you want to go out and walk around a bit? I think I ate too much,” I tell him. I don’t want to bring up the ice cream part right away or else he’ll be convinced he’s married to a hog. I tell myself I’ll casually bring it up as we walk.

“Okay, let me pay first,” Jin calls the waiter and starts to get out his wallet. As he places his card down, he says, “And I have to call a driver because I think the champagne had some alcohol in it.”

“Oh okay,” I nod, as I can’t help but admire him. He’s such an honest person; he’s not even drunk but doesn’t want to drink and drive anyway. I take a moment to fangirl over his honest side and then tell myself to stop being creepy and look away.  

We get up and walk out of the restaurant. It’s a chilly out but I tell myself I’ll get used to it as we walk. We reach a large road full of people and shops. I try to keep up with Jin’s long strides and wonder if I should hold his hand or not. I don’t want to get lost in such a crowd. But after a few seconds, the road clears up a bit and I decide to look at the window displays of different shops.

Then I stop.

“...and that’s what inspired me for this album,” Suga is saying on a TV screen behind the window of an electronics store. Oh my goodness he looks so good with blonde hair too. I don’t even realize how stupidly I’m smiling when I hear Jin say, “Is this another guy I should be worried about?”

I turn my head and see Jin bent over squinting at the TV screen right next to me. His face is directly by mine. I jump back at how close he is and he straightens his body and shrugs. “I think I’m better. What do you think?” he asks me. Um… you can’t ask that. Jin narrows his eyes at my silence and I manage to say, “Yeah, I think so too.”

“You must really like this guy, seeing how much you hesitated to answer,” Jin says with a smile. He continues, “Is he a singer? Suga right?” I nod, surprised he knows.

“How’d you know?” I ask.

“Well we were going to hire him as our mall’s model,” Jin says. My eyes get large and I look at him expectantly. He glances at me and then glares at Suga’s face in the screen.

“Oh but we’re definitely not going to hire him,” he says as he takes my hand and continues walking. I pout at him but decide not to make a fuss.

“Are you into blonde guys?” Jin asks after a moment and I face him. What kind of a random question was that? Jin coughs a bit when I don’t respond right away.

“Well, even Jung Hoseok has blonde hair and that Suga guy too. Is it a trend?” he questions, avoiding my eyes.

“Maybe,” I tell him with a slight laugh, “But I like black haired men better.” Jin smiles at my answer and nods.

“Suga looks way better with black hair,” I grin and Jin’s smile disappears. Uh oh. I just wanted to a bit, but I guess I went too far. I mean, Jin’s hair is ashy now but it looked so much better when it was black. Maybe I’m too honest. He still looks super handsome, but...I don’t know what I’m saying. I need to change the subject. I look around and spot an ice cream shop. Perfect.

“Jin, I want ice cream,” I blurt. Jin looks at me confused.

“Now?” he asks. I nod and point to the shop. Jin shakes his head with a chuckle. He then pulls me towards the store and asks what kind I want. I look at the menu but I know I what I want anyway.

“Strawberry,” I say with a grin. He nods and orders a cone for me.

“You’re not getting one?” I ask him as I bite into my ice cream. Chills run down my spine and I shudder. Jin takes off his jacket and places it on my shoulders. I start to tell him it’s alright, but he speaks up first.

“No I’m good. I think I ate too much,” he says with smirk. Oh. He’s quoting what I said when I asked him if he wanted to walk a bit. Dang it. I really am a pig. Jin laughs and places a hand on my head. “And look at you. You’re cold and you’re eating that icy treat. I’m only letting you eat it because it’s our first date. After this, I’m not going to allow for anything that might get you sick.”

“...” I stare at him dumbly as he walks off. First date? I feel my heart beating faster. After a moment, Jin turns around and sighs. He puts out his right hand and I find myself running towards him to grab it.

As I finish my cone, I remember what I wanted to tell Jin about him not having to eat with me. I decide to tell him.

“Jin?”

He stops.

“..?”

“Thanks for everything you’ve done,” I begin. He raises an eyebrow. “Breakfast was so good and tonight’s meal was fantastic. I really appreciate you trying to change for me and all, but you don’t have to.”

“...” Jin says nothing so I continue.

“I know you’re only eating with me because I complained about it last night. But you don’t have to! I’m fine. I hate having to bother you or be a burden to you more than anything so--”

“Who says you’re a burden?” Jin cuts me off. I pause, startled. Before I can respond, Jin’s hand tightens around mine. “You’re not a burden. I’m eating with you because I want to. So don’t you ever say anything like that again.”

His tone is ice cold but his eyes are warm and I feel myself nodding. He slightly smiles and leads me back to the restaurant.

“Let’s go home now,” he says.

***