Today there won't be JinJiDo ☹, she wrote on CH+ this morning. At first, she wrote it for fun—the 'Jin' in JinJiDo would be absent on today's episode and she would be lying if it didn't make her sad. However, nothing else, let alone something bad, came across her mind because just a few days ago, he assured her that he'd come back once he finished his business.

And so, she wasn't worried, she wasn't that sad.

Until Doyoung spoiled the news.

She realized that Jinyoung wasn't being completely honest. Yes, he'd be away for three months but he didn't mention anything about contract termination. By the time she met Doyoung at the MC waiting room, they spared no time for a friendly greeting and discussed the matter right away, with Doyoung finally expressing his disappointment for knowing nothing at all. Not even about his hyung's three months absence.

Both Jisoo and Doyoung then gathered the courage to ask the PD about this, only to receive vague answers. Apparently, the problem was more serious than they thought, the PD's face turned sour the moment they brought up the topic and the atmosphere of the filming became a bit tense—even though the guest MC, WINNER's Mino, performed well and improvised a lot. Neither Jisoo nor Doyoung could hide the disappointment in their faces.

Today there won't be JinJiDo, but what if there won't ever be JinJiDo?

Also, the broadcast ended earlier than usual, it ended without the usual playful and friendly banter between the MC and the staffs. Doyoung left right away for another schedule, whilst Jisoo stayed for a while to talk with Ji Eun-unnie. From her, she knew the reason why the PDs were considering to replace Jinyoung.

"You should know that this isn't a light matter. MC is not a job that anyone can take. It is hard to find a person with a proper attitude and skill of an MC. With Jinyoung's absence for three months, it means we, the staffs, have to find someone to replace Jinyoung every week and that won't be easy. Every week, we need to prepare this guest MC, an extra task that should not exist, to begin with, if only Jinyoung comes and does his job. And we can't just choose a random idol or celebrity to do this," Ji Eun-unnie explained.

"On top of that, before the contract was signed, the representative of JYPE didn't tell us about this. If we knew beforehand, we wouldn't have approved Jinyoung," she continued. The entire time Jisoo could only nod.

Though her heart broke.

It made her think. If she and Jinyoung are really together, won't the togetherness ends after he's kicked out, or at least—she hoped—after their contracts expire? After Inkigayo ended, it'd be difficult for them to meet each other. Both of them would be busy with their respective schedules, they wouldn't have time to even make a phone call.

If that's the case, why do they even try, then?

First is GAON, now it's this. What's next?

"Judging from your extreme bad mood, you'd found out about it," Lee Sang-won spoke up.

Jisoo didn't move a muscle. She was too upset to reply.

"Everything's uncertain, alright? Be a little bit optimistic, you three are the perfect JinJiDo that the viewers love. The staff confirmed Jinyoung would also be there at Wednesday's meeting. The meeting might be to discuss it."

"I don't know anymore." Jisoo shrugged, turning to her manager as she spoke. "Everything that happens...it is as if the universe's trying to tell me that it's not going to work out."

When Lee Sang-won didn't respond, Jisoo turned back to her right, staring out the window.

"It's as if the universe doesn't want to see me happy."

"If universe means YG Entertainment then yeah, I have to agree. I've tried asking the company to skip today's V-Live but they insist, even after I told them that you were feeling unwell. I'm sorry, you'd still have to go online."

Jisoo sighed. "I'm not surprised. But at least talking to Blinks cheers me up."

They arrived at YG building and walked straight to an empty studio where Jisoo was prepped to go on V-Live.

She tried to be fun and full of life but she failed terribly. Thank God, her manager brought a colouring book, papers and colour pencils so that she had something to do. It was really bad that in the middle of it, one of her manager-oppa had to stop the broadcast and told her to be more energetic.

How can she be energetic when everything suddenly turns drastic? When she thought that both her and Jinyoung had finally confronted their feelings for each other, had finally decided to be brave, things just had to take a sudden turn. Things just had to be complicated.

And why did he even do 'that'? When he knew that he might not be around, how could he do that to me?

Honestly, she thought. It wasn't the media, the fans, nor their respective sajangnim that discouraged her. Not anymore.

Time.

Time is the biggest problem of them all. Time can heal, time can solve problems. But what if time is the problem. They are brave enough to face everything else—they no longer cared if their bosses knew, they no longer cared if the media caught them, they no longer cared about the fake fans who left after any dating news. Over time, she started to realize that those are temporary matters—they all can be solved.

Time is different. People change through time. The world changes. What if one of them give up? What if time breaks them apart? What if time reveals that they aren't meant to be? Just like what is happening right now?

She spent a few minutes colouring and talking, though her mind was off somewhere else. After that, however, she felt bored and stopped.

"It's hard. I don't want to do this. Let me just talk to you, guys," she said before reading the comments left by fans. One caught her attention.

'Good that you give up,' she read out loud a comment by a fan slash hater. She pursed her lips reading it but it didn't even take half a second for her to agree.

"I know. If you think something won't work but keep on doing it, it's foolish." Exactly what I've been doing with Jinyoung...but I guess, I really am a fool.

After she ended her broadcast, she had to push back her thought of going home early, not until her other manager finished scolding her for being uncooperative. She eyed Sang-won now and then, asking for help, but the manager shook her head. Well, as if she cared about all these, though.

All she cared about was to flop on her bed and slept the bad thoughts away.

Once she came back to the dorm, she spared no time to wash up and went straight to her bedroom, throwing herself onto the bed. It took only a minute or five before her breathing slowed down and she slept peacefully.

Dreaming about a universe where she and Jinyoung could be together. Happily.

~

Manager LSW (06:44 PM):
I'll tell you something. She's really mad.

P. Jinyoung (07:44 PM):
She found out? Who told her?

Manager LSW (06:45 PM):
You forgot that Doyoung existed.

P. Jinyoung (07:45 PM):
That's right. But anyway, noona, I'll stick to the original plan.

Manager LSW (06:45 PM):
Even though she's mad? At least give my poor girl an explanation.

Anyway, I'm still mad at you two. Next time, please think carefully before you act. You have to ask for my permission first. That way, I can help to take care of the other things and to protect you two from any possible scandals.

Really, I want Jisoo to be happy.

P. Jinyoung (07:45 PM):
Neomu kamsahamnida, noona.

He turned off his phone before going out to meet his fans.

~

Sang Sang Puppy Cafe looks small from the outside and the cafe's exterior isn't that attractive. Apart from their plain white walls, the cafe is also hidden behind a tall wooden fence, making it hard to find. Inside, you could see that the cafe's interior is not much different with just a little touch of soft pink colour on some walls and white furniture. But as mentioned in its name, the main attraction is not the cafe itself, it is obviously—the dogs!

"OMG!!!!!"

"Kyeoptaa!!!"

"Kai, let's meet your friends, shall we?"

Right from the entrance, Blackpink members had been squealing non-stop. It was so rare for them to go out in a day, taking a break from their practices. Although it took a long damn time to secure the place and warn other guests not to take pictures, they finally could spend the day like normal young girls.

But Jennie took it a little bit too far and disguised herself with a fake bang. It didn't help much, though.

They were as if turned back into their high school selves. Rose ordered a cake and a drink as soon as she sat down. Lisa was already taking a bunch of photos with her phone and camera, while Jennie was busy introducing Kai to the other dogs before they got to play freely. For a moment, they forgot that they were famous idols who couldn't possibly roam freely.

"Oppa, when is Jisoo-unnie coming?" Rose asked, taking a piece of her cake. Beside her, Lisa was ready with her fork to steal a piece of Rose's cake.

"Sang-won said that the meeting takes longer than she thought. She'd take Jisoo out to eat somewhere near there."

"Aw, too bad...Jisoo-unnie has been talking about coming here for so long," Rose added, slapping Lisa's hand before she could take her cake.

"Oi, Chaeyoung-ah, don't be greedy. I'll buy you more cakes later!" Lisa snapped.

Once their managers went away, Lisa immediately took the chance to talk about Jisoo. At the same time, Jennie came and joined the conversation.

"Have you noticed how different Jisoo-unnie lately?" Lisa whispered. Rose and Jennie nodded.

"She's been in a bad mood for three days," Jennie added. Lisa and Rose nodded their heads like crazy.

"Don't you think it's because of Jinyoung-oppa? Unnie has always been calm and collected but ever since Inkigayo, she turned a bit..unpredictable," Rose said.

"Maja! This must be Jinyoung-oppa's fault," Lisa said. "Do you think they are in a fight or something?"

"Fight? Are they even official?" Rose asked.

Lisa scoffed. "Of course, you dummy. Why would Jinyoung ask Bambam to ask me what flower Jisoo-unnie likes, then?"

"WHAT?" Rose and Jennie exclaimed but shushed right away by Lisa.

"Calm down! Don't let manager-oppa hear this!"

"Tell us everything! I can't believe you're hiding this from us," Jennie said.

"It only happened last night! Bambam suddenly asked me what flower Jisoo-unnie likes and I asked him, why would he want to know? Then he said, Jinyoung-oppa asked, or forced, him to ask me."

"Why did he want to know that?"

"This is my verdict," Lisa said, acting like a detective. "They are in a fight and Jinyoung-oppa wants to make up with unnie. Today."

Jennie gaped but Rose, on the other hand, became overly-excited. "Oh, I can see how it goes, like in a typical romance novel. They are in a fight so Jinyoung-oppa, who is planning to apologize, prepares a bouquet of flower and asks manager-unnie to help arrange the date. And then, manager-unnie will kidnap Jisoo-unnie and they will have a nice, secret date. Is that how it is?"

"Exactly!"

"I got it now. No wonder Inkigayo's meeting takes a little bit longer than she 'thought'. I totally got it," Jennie said, rolling her eyes although she had a wide smile plastered on her face.

"I can't believe these two," Lisa said. "Being romantic and all, but for what?"

"To remind us that we three are single," Jennie added. "But anyway, what did you tell Bambam? Do you even know what Jisoo's favourite flower is?"

"Of course. I remember because it's not common. It's hyacinth, right?"

"WHAT???" Both Jennie and Rose screamed.

"I don't know what colour, so I googled it and picked the purple hyacinth. It's pretty, Jisoo-unnie also likes the colour purple, right?" she continued being all innocent, ignoring their reactions.

"Lisa!!!" Rose half-screamed, half-whispered. "Oh-My-God! And purple hyacinth symbolizes deep regret!!!!!"

"What? Really?"

"Lisa, you messed up big time! I can't believe this!" Jennie said, completely in panic. She was speechless, she didn't know what to do about it.

"Oh, come on, the colour might have different meaning but the flower is still beautiful!"

"Oh, no...Jinyoung-oppa, we are so sorry!" Rose muttered under her breath, covering her face. "Why didn't you ask manager-unnie for a more reliable answer, oppa..."

"For real, you guys are being so weird. What exactly are you guys panicking about?" Lisa asked, completely oblivious.

Jennie had to take a deep breath, ready to snap with full blast.

"BECAUSE IT'S MY FAVOURITE FLOWER!!! NOT JISOO'S!!!"

~

Lee Sang-won couldn't hide the amused look she had on her face because of the unusual behaviour of the girl sitting beside her.

The girl, Kim Jisoo, was scowling all morning—her face looked as if she was ready to kill someone with her intense glare. Contrary to her face, however, she was wearing a rather cute outfit—a soft pink, flowy, mini dress, matching perfectly with her natural makeup and soft-curled hair.

This girl must have taken her time to dress up. But for what?

"You've been having a bad mood for three days straight. That's a record," Sang-won teased Jisoo.

"I'm hungry," she replied, completely off topic. Sang-won made her first chuckle of the day—it had been a long day and the day hadn't even finished, yet.

"Wait a little bit more and we'll be there," Sang-won said, eyes focused on the road ahead. "Are you really that upset that you didn't get to meet Jinyoung at the meeting?"

"I'm not upset because he is not there. He didn't even notify me about this. I don't care anymore," the idol's scowl got even deeper, she was practically frowning and pouting like an angry child ready to throw a tantrum.

Sang-won stole a glance to her side and burst into laughter. This was the first time Jisoo wasn't being herself and the sight was amusing.

"He didn't notify you because you didn't reply to his messages, nor answered his calls."

"He should have realized that I'm mad."

"You're too dressed up to be mad," Sang-won . She had a smug smile written on her face.

Jisoo turned to her manager in an instant. "I should've dressed up to come to an important meeting, shouldn't I? It's not for Jinyoung. Period." And that made Sang-won laugh. Especially at the fact that she was the only one overdressed at the meeting, though she knew Jisoo wouldn't want to admit that.

Sang-won expected the morning meeting to be hell, but instead, she was greeted with a rather light and fun meeting. Like Doyoung's manager, they were kind of expecting the directors to discuss Jinyoung's departure and the future of the other two MCs but that topic was completely off the list.

They only talked about the plans for the upcoming SBS Super Concert in Daejeon. The MCs would be collaborating for a special stage or performance, and the managers were called to arrange the practice time. The staffs also asked for some ideas or suggestions regarding the theme and the event as a whole.

It was a lot of work, but nevertheless, it was an okay meeting. At least, it was not stressful.

"But it was weird for him to leave early, wasn't it? I hate it so much because I'm so worried. Did they really terminate his contract, which is why he didn't come to our meeting?" Jisoo said, more like muttering to herself.

She was mad but the moment she mentioned contract termination, her heart instantly felt heavy.

"Talk to him so you'd know. Lower your pride, I bet he was sorry," Sang-won advised her as if she could read Jisoo's mind. "Otherwise, you'd only dwell in your negative thought."

Too late, Jisoo was already too caught up in her overthinking and assumption that she didn't notice where they were going. The black van turned to a less-crowded road, surrounded by beautiful houses and luxury brands outlets. They passed through all kinds of fancy cafes and restaurants, and only after a while that Jisoo started to realize something was off.

"Where are you taking me?" Jisoo turned to her manager and asked, she was frowning deep and glancing at Sang-won suspiciously.

"Late lunch," her manager simply replied.

Jisoo knew for sure that her manager knew why she asked that, but she decided not to press further. Eventually, the car stopped in front of a small grey building that looked rather plain and simple, compared to the other fancy-looking restos in the area.

"Alright, we are here. You've been feeling sad and all, so I guess this might cheer you up. Anyway, I'll have to find a parking lot so you go inside first, we're already behind our reservation time. Reserved for Ms. Kim," Sang-won said.

"Unnie, you don't have to...," Jisoo said, touched by her manager's effort.

"Thank me later. Come on, we're already late and we can't be late. This is a fancy, Michelin-approved restaurant!" Jisoo nodded and quickly open the car door.

Her manager left as soon as she got off. Before she went in, she took her time to observe the building. From the outside, nobody would know that the restaurant is Michelin-starred. The food must be fantastic, though, she thought to herself. When she entered the restaurant, she could feel the atmosphere changed right away.

Unlike other fancy restaurants, the interior isn't downright luxurious or artistic. The place is rather simple but it gives off a clean feeling. There aren't any flower arrangements or candles, though there are some artworks displayed on the walls. The plates are plain, no Versace cutlery or anything. However, there is something about this place that is just...unexplainable. It is so simple that it feels expensive, right from the start, people know that this is definitely a boutique restaurant.

There are only several tables and chairs in the main dining room, but the place is divided into sectional rooms. There are private rooms for people to gather in private, enjoying an authentic French cuisine.

"Good afternoon, welcome to L'Amitié. By any chance, are you Ms. Kim Jisoo?" an usher approached Jisoo so suddenly that it made her jolt in surprise. She cursed herself for being so clumsy in such an expensive restaurant. Is it even okay to dine in this restaurant, unnie...

"Yes, I'm Kim Jisoo," Jisoo said politely. The usher's smile widened.

"Please follow me, Ms. Your table is ready."

The usher took no time to wait for Jisoo as she turned around and guided Jisoo to her table. They walked past the public dining area so Jisoo assumed they were going to dine in a private room. It wasn't a surprise, honestly, Blackpink dined in a private room all the time. It wasn't like that when they debuted but as their popularity rose, they needed to be more cautious.

The place wasn't so big so it didn't take long until they stopped in front of a door leading to a small room.

"This is your private dining room, Ms. Kim, reserved for you. Hope you have an enjoyable lunch," the usher said before she left. Jisoo frowned, the usher had been smiling mysteriously as if she was hiding something, she didn't even help her open the door. It made her uneasy but she chose to brush it off.

So she took a step forward and opened the door herself. What she saw inside, however, almost made her scream.

Voilà.

He was there. Standing up with a bouquet of flowers in his hand.

She took a step back as if she had just seen a ghost, unable to comprehend what was happening. She had her hands covering her gaping mouth and her eyes widened in full shock.

Park Jinyoung was in front of her. Yes, the Park Jinyoung.

"Hey," he greeted calmly with his signature honey voice. Jisoo hadn't stopped gawking.

Her expression must be quite funny because he chuckled when he saw her face. But then he moved forward, still with a bouquet of flowers in his hand.

It was a beautiful bouquet of white roses and white lilies of the valley. But mostly, lilies of the valley.

"Jinyoung-ah, what's all this?" she asked. Her lips quivered, still hadn't recovered from the shock.

"An apology," he said as he handed the bouquet. Jisoo stared at it for a while—admiring the beautiful flowers that had always been her favourite. Her eyes travelled from the beautiful flowers to the beautiful man in front of her. She saw him gazing at her gently, his eyes reflected a hint of sadness and guilt. Jisoo couldn't put a finger on it but there was something off about Jinyoung. Like he was nervous about something.

Slowly, she took the bouquet from him, receiving a smile from his end.

"Thank you, how do you know I like this particular flower?" she asked without meeting his gaze.

"You like this flower? I thought you liked hyacinth," he said, sounding genuinely surprised. Jisoo mirrored his reaction.

"Hyacinth? No, I like lily of the valley, which is exactly this flower you give me. Why did you think I like hyacinth?" Jisoo asked, eyeing him suspiciously. It irked her a little bit because she knew hyacinth was Jennie's favourite flower, not hers.

"Oh, shoot. I can't believe how lucky I am right now," he said, rubbing the back of his head as if he was embarrassed by something. Jisoo looked at him in confusion, demanding an explanation.

"Ah, it's just... last night I asked Bambam to ask Lisa about your favourite flower and she said it was hyacinth. And then right before I came here, I went to a florist and was about to order a bouquet of purple hyacinth but one of the employees suddenly said that the flower symbolized something a bit negative so I quickly changed it. That was when I saw this flower. I didn't know the name but it looked really beautiful so I chose it," he explained, covering his red ears out of embarrassment. 

Jisoo finally smiled. "Wow, there must be more beautiful flowers there. Roses, tulips, why did you choose this? Usually, people will go with roses."

Her question caught him off guard. He glanced at the flowers that were now in her hands. He agreed, most people would have chosen roses for a safe bet, which was why not many people would give this flower a chance. However, once it catches your attention, you won't be able to take your eyes off its unique, bell-shaped petal as it slowly bewitched you. It smells nice, too—in fact, this small-sized flower smelled stronger than the roses in that florist so that was probably why it caught his attention as well. It is beautiful, it is unique, it is strong, it...

"It reminds me of you," he finally said it. And his bold answer must have caught her off-guard because he witnessed her face redden in an adorable way.

God, I miss her, he silently muttered under his breath. But the unusual distance between them spoke volume, he noticed. She was so...cold, distant and he completely understood why, which was why he arranged this surprise lunch date. He needed to explain everything to her before it was too late.

"Jisoo, I need to talk to you," he said. Immediately, her expression changed—her smile faded and her eyes stared at him with immense intensity.

"I'm sor—"

Knock, knock, knock. "Excuse me, the Chef is here to take your order."

Before Jinyoung could say anything, the waiter knocked and opened the door. Both Jinyoung and Jisoo quickly stepped away from each other, facing the door to welcome the Chef.

He stole a quick glance, looking at her apologetically but she shook her head and said with a small smile, "it's fine. Let's eat first, shall we?"

Chef Jang Myoung-sik came in. His face brightened up when he saw that his guest of the day turned out to be his good friend.

"Park Jinyoung!" he exclaimed, immediately went for a hug. The younger man bowed politely before he welcomed the friendly gesture.

"How have you been? How's Jackson been doing?" he asked, patting Jinyoung's back several times, albeit too rough. Jinyoung had to endure it and kept smiling.

"He's been well. We all are," he said and then moved a little closer to Jisoo to rest his hand on the small of her back, pushing her gently. "Chef Jang, this is Kim Jisoo."

"Nice to meet you, Chef Jang," Jisoo bowed politely, earning her a wide smile from the chef.

"Really nice to meet you. I've seen you on television several times. Blackpink Kim Jisoo, am I right? I'm a fan," he said, trying to ease Jisoo's nervousness. The middle-aged man was satisfied when Jisoo giggled shyly.

"It must be a special occasion for Park Jinyoung to bring someone else here. Usually, he'd come alone and spend time talking with me. Sometimes GOT7 come as a team. I miss you, guys, really," he continued. "So, by any chance, are you together?"

Jisoo felt her cheeks hot in a matter of seconds and she didn't know what to answer but Park Jinyoung beat her to it.

"Yes, Chef Jang. We are together," he said, before glancing at her, smiling kindly. Chef Jang laughed heartily.

"Good. Because I have prepared a couple's special. Any special menu that you want to order, Jinyoung?"

"Ah, I always believe in your cooking," he replied, turning to Jisoo, still with his hand lying on her back. "Jisoo, do you have any specific allergy? Or any specific dish you're craving? Chef Jang can make everything," he said softly, before turning to Chef Jang, who was smiling proudly.

"You're always the same, Park Jinyoung. Promoting me everywhere."

Jisoo gave it a moment to think but then she shook her head. "I don't think I'm allergic to anything. And...I won't ask too much. I'm already excited to try your food, Chef Jang."

That made the older man chuckled. "Alright, please have a seat. The appetizer will come right away. I hope you enjoy your lunch, Mr. and Mrs. Park," he teased them, ending it with a wink. He laughed harder when he saw their embarrassed faces.

After the Chef went out and they were left alone, Jinyoung led Jisoo to their table and pulled out her chair to let her sit. When he saw that she was already comfortable, he walked to his own chair, right across the table.

"I'm really sorry. Chef Jang really likes to joke around. That's why he and Jackson are match-made in heaven," Jinyoung started a conversation. It felt so weird, they had never been this awkward before. Whenever they met, they would always be talking about anything that came up in their heads; non-sense jokes, books, movies, their members, their childhood, their hobbies, politics—it's neverending.

"He seems like a fun person," Jisoo said, a small smile grew on her face though it still hadn't reassured him.

"So,"

"Hm.."

They talked at the same time. And now they got quiet at the same time, letting the other talk first.

Silence. It was silent until Jinyoung cleared his throat to start a conversation.

"How have you been?"

Jisoo looked at him in disbelief. "Me? I'm alright. I should be the one asking you that. How have you been?"

He shuddered a little bit from her cold response. "Australia was fun. It was always fun travelling to new places. Bambam loves it so much, he said he wanted to visit it again next year," Jinyoung answered. This was so unlike their usual conversation—there wouldn't be a pause. This time, Jinyoung had to think before he said, he didn't want to make things worse.

Just when he was about to ask another question, a waiter knocked on the door and came in with a bunch of appetizers. Like..a lot of them.

"These are all appetizers? I'll be full by the time I finish all these!" Jisoo exclaimed excitedly. Jinyoung felt a surge of relief went through his body—at least Jisoo enjoyed the food.

Both took a bite of the appetizers and hummed in approval. "This is phenomenal," Jisoo commented, taking another bite. "And I'm so, so, super hungry," she said cutely in English. Now, this was more like Jisoo, the easygoing and happy Kim Jisoo, he thought.

"Chef Jang is indeed phenomenal. Jackson, as usual, brought us here once and ever since then I've come here with my family, my high school friends, my co-workers, or alone. I come here often."

Jisoo nodded, munching her food. "No wonder he likes you. You've been promoting his restaurant to everybody." She smiled in the end. Jinyoung felt more confident now, food does make girls happy. He thanked the waiter for coming at the right time to save their awkwardness.

"I should come here along with my members. They'll love it," she said, though her attention was fully on the food she was chopping. Jinyoung had stopped eating to gaze at her lovingly. Did he successfully make her happy?

"So you like the food?" he asked. She nodded excitedly.

"Everyone seems to approve Jackson's recommendation. Now I know who to ask whenever we're looking for a place to meet," he said, carefully eating the escargot. He didn't notice that Jisoo was stunned by his words. A place to meet, her cheeks reddened just from the thought of it.

"Like a date?" she boldly asked, albeit she was too shy to look at him.

This time it was Jinyoung who paused.

"Yeah, a date," he answered, looking up only to meet her gaze. She was blushing and she was smiling softly. He wondered if she was still mad at him.

"Will we ever get the chance to do that?"

"We will. I will make time for you, the best that I could do."

~

By the time the main courses were served, they were completely back to their natural, playful banter. They completely underestimated themselves, because they could eat everything that had been served on their table. The continuous talk and laughter filled the room, with them failing to notice how much they had eaten because they were having so much fun. When all the main course dishes were served, Chef Jang came and talked with them for a little while, sharing some life stories and explaining the specialities of the food they ate.

"Oh, God. I haven't eaten this full for ages. I might get scolded for eating this much, what if I get fat?" she said after Chef Jang left the room, carefully putting the cutlery on the table. They practically devoured everything, only empty plates were left.

"That's ridiculous. You are too skinny, Jisoo," he said, in a boyfriend-tone (if that's even a word).

She giggled. "True. Sometimes I wish I could get fat in certain parts. Like my cheeks. I want to have chubby cheeks. I'm so jealous of Jendeukie," she said, puffing her cheeks. He chuckled.

Since it was time for dessert, the waiters took all the empty plates on the table. They had to wait a little bit for the dessert, and the waiter told them to rest after eating so much.

"This is the first time a waiter told me to rest," Jisoo giggled.

"Because we definitely need it," Jinyoung said, patting his protruding belly. He then looked up to see Jisoo checking up her makeup and carefully touching up her lipsticks. Not that he minded, but at first he thought Jisoo would come unprepared—because she didn't know about this surprise lunch date—wearing her most favourite comfortable t-shirt, jeans, and shoes. He, himself, was only wearing a simple, white, mock neck T-shirt tucked neatly under his dark-coloured, fitted pants—not too formal, not too casual, it was just right.

He was surprised to see her coming fully dressed up. She had her hair curled, too, and her makeup was really beautiful. She was stunning, and perfectly fit for the fancy lunch date, but he wondered why would she dress up just for a meeting. Earlier of the day, she wouldn't have known that they were going to have a lunch date, no?

He held his gaze on her, not bothering to talk at all. He just wanted to admire her, wondering why someone who could be with anyone she wanted, chose to stay by his side.

And I betrayed her, he thought. He hadn't distinguished the thought to apologize, he knew Jisoo was such a forgiving person that she'd rather forget than to make things worse. But he knew he needed to address it. He had reasons why he behaved like that, he didn't want her to misunderstand.

Unconsciously, his hands move forward to take her hands in his, startling the woman who just finished putting her stuff back in her bag.

She observed how his large hands cupped her small ones like a perfect fit puzzle. His thumb gently caressed her fingers, and she let it, as the gentle gesture slowly cast a magic spell on her, pulling her deeper into love.

God, is this what it is? Love? When it is even greater than any other emotions I feel, she prayed.

"Jisoo," he called her, so softly as if calling her would break her.

She returned his gaze. Her smile faded as if she knew what he was going to talk about.

"I don't have any excuses for everything that I've done wrong. But will you please listen to my explanation?" he asked. His tone was firm but his eyes were begging her to give him a chance.

"Okay," she replied calmly.

"Inkigayo PD gave me an ultimatum. I have to attend today's meeting or I'll be gone for good."

He stopped. His eyes were fixated on their intertwined hands as he thought of the best way to explain his actions. Little did he know, Jisoo saw through his tough exterior.

It was clear that he was tired. He had loads of invisible burden on his shoulder and yet she saw them all. She could see through his extremely dark under-eye that she just noticed and his slightly blood-shot eyes, he was clearly exhausted.

And what did she do? Added extra burden on his shoulder. Way to go, Jisoo.

"It was 100% my fault for not telling you last week. I'm really sorry, Jisoo. It was impossible, at first, because my flight from Australia wouldn't make me arrive in time to come to the meeting. That's why I was frustrated, that is why I needed to see you last week, it might really be my last time. But after meeting you, after seeing how hard you've worked, I know I need to fight harder. I told the members the next day and they all agreed to persuade the company to re-schedule the flight."

"Jinyoung-ah..." Honestly, that was all she could say.

"All the direct flights were booked, so in the end, we had to transit to Sydney before we could make it to Incheon," he explained. But then a smile grew on his face—a proud smile.

"And I made it. I went to see the PD earlier than you and had a long discussion about my situation. PD said he had to keep his promise, and he even said that he was proud of my hard work. I'm staying, Jisoo, I get to keep my job, you don't need to worry, alright?" he told her, still smiling.

She couldn't smile at all. Instead, she let her tears express how she felt right now. She was relieved, she was happy, she was sad, she was angry, she felt all kinds of emotion.

"Hey, don't cry," he said, his thumb brushing the tears off her cheek.

"I—I didn't know," she said, starting to sob.

"It's alright. It was indeed my fault, alright? I'll still be here. We'll be able to meet every Sunday."

"I'm so sorry, Jinyoung-ah."

"Please, don't cry. I hate to see you cry, Jisoo."

She wiped her tears and tried to calm her breathing. Nevertheless, she still had to address the real problem here.

"Jinyoung-ah," she began.

"You told me long, long ago that whenever I had problems, I had to tell you. And I really did, Jinyoung-ah, I trust you. I told you everything."

Jinyoung listened to everything and reached out to take her hands once more. Feeling the warmth on her hands, she looked up and met his gaze. Truthfully, they could understand what the other was thinking just by looking at their eyes. They matched. They were that good.

"I was mad, not only at you but also at myself. For not convincing you enough that I could handle it, Jinyoung-ah, trust me, I can," she told him.

"Jisoo, it's not about you. I just don't want to make you sad, not when I can prevent it," Jinyoung said, trying to compromise. 

"But the thought of you going through it alone makes me sad. It makes me worried. If you'd told me, I might be able to help you. So, please. We're together now," she quoted him, "share everything to me. Don't lie about it. Don't suffer alone." 

This time it was Jisoo who reached out to hold Jinyoung's hand. She intertwined their fingers together, and she squeezed hard, telling him that she was serious. Her determined eyes bore into Jinyoung's eyes, showing off another side of Jisoo that not many people know. 

It took him a few seconds to answer. "Okay. No more lies."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"Don't break your promise," she said, pouting. That made him chuckle before he nodded.

She finally smiled, her most genuine one of the day. "And thank you. For all your effort, I just...I can't believe you'd gone through that trouble just to stay as an MC. I wish your fans could see this. You went all the way just to save this job, that would make your fans proud."

"I learnt from the best." I learnt from you.

They shared one last look before laughing in relief. Finally, the misunderstanding had been cleared and the wall that kept them apart had shattered. They could feel the awkwardness had gone away.

"I thought you have to perform at Show Champion today, it's Wednesday," she said before turning to the waiter who came in to serve the crème brûlée.

"Ah, I finished it before I came here," he replied. "And tonight, we'll host our mini fan-meeting."

"Oh no, Jinyoung. You should've arranged this date any other day! You must be tired."

"Your manager told me that today is your only day-off. I have to make the most of it," he answered, slicing his crème brûlée. "And I want to share the good news right away. I feel like this is the right way to do it."

"That, and I miss you too much, I need to see you," he added. Jisoo smiled shyly but mouthed a silent I miss you, too back at him.

"I won't deny it, I'm really upset that I didn't get to meet you at the meeting. I was mad at you, but I still missed you, do you even know that?" she narrowed her eyes, pouting her lips. 

"Is that why you come to the meeting looking this beautiful? Ah, I finally understand the text Sang-won-noona sent me earlier saying that you might not be that mad," he gave her a smug smile. Jisoo threw her napkin at him.

"I can't believe this, so you've been plotting things with unnie behind my back. Which brings me to the next thing I'm curious about. Why bother asking Lisa when you can ask my manager? About the flower I like, I mean."

"I did. She said I had to ask the members because she forgot."

"She forgot? Literally, no one cares about me. You know what I have to go back and give Lisa the lesson she deserves. I can't believe she forgot the name of my favourite flower!"

~

"Achoo!" Lisa sneezed. "I feel like someone's talking about me."

"Why would someone talk about you? Maybe it's just the dog's fur," Rose said.

Suddenly their phones lit up at the same time—it was their KakaoTalk group chat.

There was a picture that made them convulse so hard because they had to endure their screams.

"Omo, omo, eomma-ya, I can't believe what I see," Jennie said fake crying.

"Are you trying to make us feel even more single, unnie?" Rose read out loud what she typed.

Lisa, totally sure that her initial feeling was right, could only wait for the demise that awaited her.

Jisoo (04:40 PM):
Lisa-ya, wait until I come home!

----------

Chapter 17 is up! I hope you like it! 

I dedicated a whole chapter to Jisoo's iconic quote: If you think something won't work but keep on doing it, it's foolish. 

I might be over delusional about this but the timing around this iconic quote was perfect for a fanfic material:

1. It was on April 23rd, Jinyoung's first-time absence on Inkigayo. And if you watch it, both Jisoo's and Doyoung's mood is somewhat sour. Maybe because it was awkward to host with a guest MC but Mino was really good, though! So I thought, something must have been wrong.

2. You can tell that Jisoo V-Live on that day was a bit...different. She didn't smile as much, she looked tired. And her iconic quote was like....it was too deep (plus, her expression is too sad?) to be just a response of a hate comment (is it even a hate comment?). I don't know, it's my opinion hahaha.

3. She typed "Today there won't be JinJiDo" on CH+ but she didn't write anything on Doyoung's absence on the second episode of JinJiDo. Ah, but it's too delusional.

4. Jinyoung transitting to Sydney and arriving early in the morning at Incheon was real! It was probably to attend Show Champion but I made up stories surrounding it hahaha.

From here...you know what's coming...a real two and a half months without Jinyoung on Inkigayo. What happened next I wonder? :D

Anyway, I've been quite busy preparing for my first ever job, hooray!!! I'm nervous but I'm super excited at the same time. Effort really never betrays result! How about you? How have you been, guys?

So I told you about my plan for writing HIP JinJi version and I'm working on it. I just forgot that since it is supposed to be a thriller/mystery genre, it means more researches need to be done in order to have a well-written plot. It'd be an entirely different plot than the original HIP. I just wish by the time everything is planned, I haven't lost the momentum...

Spoiler! The title would be: Touch

Just to give some inspo, the dress that Jisoo wears in this chapter is this:

See you in the next chapter!