a/n : yeah, Yong Hwa thought this is a casual dress. He bought the silver one too. 
 

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

She woke up around 7 AM, sitting bleary-eyed on the bed as he made omelets and rice.

How come it’s not scaring me, the fact that I’m here, sleeping on a stranger’s bed, watching him moving around in this small place?

Why? Is it because I’m too sad, or is it because he’s a good guy, or I’m just desperate?

“Are you just going to stare or are you going to have some?”

She jumped with the sudden question, not realizing that he was already standing close.

She followed and sat in front of him, the coffee table separating them.

She spooned the rice, cut the omelet, and started swallowing.

“Are you naturally obedient or still half asleep?”

“…….I’m hungry”

That made him laughed, before they ate in companionable silence. He had kimchi from his mother, he said. And it tasted so good.

She gave him her empty bowl, asking for more rice.

He gave her a full bowl, and she continued eating.

“For a broken hearted someone, you sure have a great appetite” he commented.

That made her stopped midway of what she was doing.

He realized he said the wrong thing when her expression changed.

“I’m sorry” he said quickly. “That was cruel of me.”

She shook her head. “You make great omelets. That’s what I should blame.”

“Go on. Don’t make me stop you.”

She resumed then, battling the last piece of egg from him and won in the end.

“Tsk. So much energy for someone so slim!” he blurted.

She ignored it and ate everything to the last bits.

They sat looking at each other for a while. She felt so full while he was analyzing her face.

“You need to tell your parents where you are.”

“……….I know.”

“When will you do that?”

“As soon as possible” she assured him emptily.

“How about today?”

She smiled bitterly.

“It won’t be easy. But you can’t continue hiding like this. At least tell your parents that you’re alright. They must be worried sick about you.”

She nodded. She knew she had to. But it’s not easy. She should’ve gone to Phuket today, having her honeymoon. But instead, the wedding failed and everything was destroyed.

Well, it felt like that.

“First, can I borrow your phone?”

He immediately gave it to her.

She typed an e-mail and sent it to her friend.

The reply came in less than a minute.

“I need to go to Tiffany.”

“The jewel shop?” he asked, surprised.

Joo Hyeon laughed out loud. So hard until he frowned at her.

“Oh my God! Mianheyo! You are a funny guy, really. Oh wow! It feels good to laugh like that!” she said, catching her breath, drinking some water.

“No, I’m not going to Tiffany’s. I’m going to see Tiffany, my other best friend. Apparently the only one left, since the other is dead to me. Tiffany is keeping my bag. With my phone in it”

“Oh. Okay.”

“I’ll call my parents after that.”

“Good idea.”

She smiled a little.

“Need a lift?” he suddenly asked.

“De?”

Call it being clingy. Call it greedy. But he didn’t want to let her go just yet.

“To your friend’s house?”

“Ah. Em……sure. If it doesn’t trouble you.”

“Not at all.”

“It’s settled then.”

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

Tiffany was a pretty girl with hysterical habits who stared cluelessly at Yong Hwa before grabbing Joo Hyeon’s wrist to interrogate her.

“Where have you been? Why did you just run away like that? Don’t you know how worried we all are? Don’t you know I almost died worrying about you? Why didn’t you tell me where you are? How could you leave Dong Hae like that? Where are you staying? Have you talked with Dong Hae? Will you freaking say something?”

The questions were bombarded non-stop and Yong Hwa could see Joo Hyeon got paler and paler with every second.

She’d cry in ten seconds. Not wanting to watch that, he stood farther away from them.

“Dong Hae has been sleeping with Chae Rin. That’s why I ran away” Joo Hyeon answered to her friend. 

Tiffany was paralyzed for a good five seconds before exploding with a “WHAT? DONG HAE’S BEEN SLEEPING WITH CHAE RIN? Are you sure? Are you seriously, positively sure?”

“I saw them doing it, if that’s what you say positively sure……”

“Oh my God” she said in a perfect American accent before reaching Joo Hyeon in quick strides and hugging her tight.

Joo Hyeon cried again, while her friend cursed and cursed that two abominations to oblivion, patting her back and promising everything was going to be okay.

“I’m sorry” she said sincerely.

Joo Hyeon just shrugged.

“So which hotel are you staying? You can just move here in my place, if you want.”

“I’m staying with him”

Tiffany’s eyes went as large as Coca Cola's corks.

“But—how—who—why are you—who the hell is that guy?”

Joo Hyeon turned to him and he introduced himself, “Hello. I’m Jung Yong Hwa.”

Tiffany grimaced and accepted his hand, before pulling Hyeon to the side.

“You’re staying with him? As in, sleeping in his place?”

“Ne.”

“Are you mad? Who the hell is he?”

“He's just someone. He sings in cafes.”

“What? But how come you’re with him? How come I don’t know him?”

“I just met him yesterday. He’s very nice.”

Tiffany’s mouth formed an O.

“You just met him yesterday and stayed at his place? What is this? A redemption?”

“It’s a long story. But he’s kind, and he helped me a lot”

“Yah! Why are you like this? This is unlike you! Bring your things and stay here at my place! He does look hot, but how come you’re sure he’s a good guy or not? Just stay with me. It’s much safer and I’ll keep you company”

It’s hard to explain. But she didn’t want to leave him just yet. Maybe a few hours more.

“I have to go. I’ll call you later” she said, turning away from her friend, bringing her handbag.

“Done?” Yong Hwa asked, having wondered to the the living room.

“Ne”

They walked together to the door.

“Wait!” Tiffany screamed, barring the door. “What’s your name again?”

“Me? I’m Jung Yong Hwa.”

She gave him a notepad.

“Write your address and phone number”

Yong Hwa stared at her.

“Wae? Why don’t you want to?”

“I have no problem with that” he answered, jotting down what she asked.

He gave it to her afterwards, looking mildly entertained.

“Just so you know, I’ve seen your face. We got CCTV on the lobby. And if you dare hurt my Hyeonnie or I don’t hear from her in a few hours, I’m going to report you to the police.”

“Do that. That’s the right thing to do. But I’m decent and I have no plans to hurt her.”

“Fany-ah! You’re being rude!”

“Well, what else can I do? You ran away from your wedding and now staying at a stranger’s place”

“Don’t think negatively. You know me, I don’t go out of the lines.”

“Jjinjja?”

“Of course.”

“Okay. You be careful, okay?”

Joo Hyeon nodded.

“I’ll call you soon, okay?”

“Promise?”

“I promise.”

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

They came back to his place, where she charged her phone that ran out of battery.

When she was able to turn it on, it was vibrating non-stop with sms, e-mails, and missed calls.

The first thing she did was calling her parents.

“Omma……”

“Joo Hyeon-ah? Where are you? What’s happening to you?”

“I’m fine, Omma. I just need to tell you that.”

“Why did you run away from the wedding, Child? Why didn’t you tell your parents if you’re having problems?”

“Dong Hae Oppa cheated on me, Omma……with Chae Rin.”

Her mother made a loud gasp.

“Is that true?”

“It is…….I’ve seen it with my own eyes. The day before the wedding. I’m sorry for running away like that. Sorry for—destroying the party that you’ve planned for so long. I know it took a lot of effort and money, but—“

“I’m glad you found that out before you marry him.”

“I just can’t—what?”

“You heard me. If he’s not loyal to you, it’s good that you found that out before you marry him. You did the right thing for running away.”

Joo Hyeon couldn’t help but laugh. “Aigoo. Omma. Am I hearing right? You’re not mad at me?”

“You could be wiser and told us the night before, right after you saw that, rather than running away. But I know you, Child. It takes a lot for you to do something like that”

“Omma……you don’t know how grateful I feel that you can understand this.”

“Of course. You are my daughter. Nothing beats your well-being.”

“……..Thank you…….”

“You’re not going to tell Omma where you are? I went to your apartment and you’re not there.”

“I……need time to stay away for a while. I’ll call you everyday, okay? I’ll go to our house as soon as I’m ready.”

“Ahrasseo. Take care of yourself well, ne, my child? Omma is here whenever you need me……”

Her tears fell to the coffee table.

“Please—help me—tell Appa…….”

“I’ll tell him. I might need to stop him from murdering Dong Hae and feeding him to the dogs, but I'll do it anyway.”

They chuckled together. Bitter, but not defeated.

“Bye, Omma. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

“Ne.”

Yong Hwa was watching her phone call from the side, watching the TV with low volume.

She dabbed her eyes afterwards, scrolling her inbox to read more messages.

“Wanna come with me to the café this evening?”

She looked up at him. Her nose was red and her eyes looked sad.

“Can I come?”

“Sure. But I stop at midnight, so it might be exhausting for you. But if you want, let’s go. It might be better than sitting here all alone”

“Thank you. I’d love to.”

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

She wore the gold and silver dresses in turn. Washing one when wearing the other. They stopped at the mall for her to buy a pair of shoes, for she wore only sandals he bought for her in a convenient store since the morning.

“Do you want to take a look around?” he offered, knowing girls loved malls and they were currently in one.

She shook her head, uninterested. “No. Not now. I don’t feel like shopping”.

They went straight to the café and she took off his jacket from her shoulders.

The café was not crowded at that time, and he immediately prepared to sit on the small stage.

She ordered English tea and some buns and waited, admitting to herself that yes, she was curious.

When he started to sing, it took her breath away.

He had a beautiful, deep voice. Created to entertain and tell stories in melodies. His voice seeped into her pores and amazed her.

He was singing a song about never saying goodbye, mixing up her emotions and somehow, drawing her into him. They were sitting far apart. Him on  thestage and her at the back of the café. But his voice filled the whole place anyway.

Like that, he continued singing songs after songs. Changing from Jason Mraz to Bruno Mars and Bon Jovi, between Korean songs that she had never heard before.

And then she realized he might be writing those himself. She saw music sheets in the box near his TV.

So he’s so kind, handsome, played guitar, and wrote his own songs. Good voice too. What was he? A guy straight out from a romance novel?

Girls loved him, she could tell that. In every break where he walked to the corner of the stage to drink water, girls came to him. Giggling, shy, and mesmerized.

But it was to her he came to at his dinner break.

“Did you write those songs yourself?”

“Hm? Yes. I like doing that” he said, eating his fusilli and cream.

“You’re good.”

He looked up and tilted his head.

“I’m good in what way?”

“You look good. Behave well. And sing well………..”

She didn’t realize she sounded like a high school girl having a crush, but he smiled widely and bent closer to her.

“Jjinjja? Thank you. You can look closer.”

He was close, so close. Their noses were almost touching and his breath was fanning her face. Her eyes ran to his lips, and back to his eyes.

Yong Hwa was only teasing, but it’s so easy to be lost in her gaze.

“Are you becoming my fangirl?”

“I don’t know……..should I?”

His eyes went to her lips and for one second, she thought he would kiss her.

But he chuckled and pulled back.

“If you are, you’ll be my prettiest fangirl” he winked. “I am full of charms, am I not?”

She couldn’t answer him, but he didn’t push, and just finished his dinner.

It’s surprising when she realized, she wanted that kiss.

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

“How long can I stay at your place?” she asked softly after she finished showering, sitting on his bed, hair wet from washing and wrapped in a towel.

“As long as you need to.”

“………have you always been this nice to people?”

He turned and smiled slyly at her.

“Wae? You’re getting suspicious?”

“You have no girlfriend?”

It was a personal question and she usually wouldn’t ask something like that, but she was dying to know.

“Nope. No one. I’m single and sad”

“How come? It must be easy for you to get any girl”

He walked to his bed and sat there, leaning on the wall and crossing his legs.

“Aigoo. Do I look that gorgeous?”

She blushed and hit his knee.

“I was only saying—“

“I don’t go for any girl, Seo Joo Hyeon. I have no one for almost a year now, and I haven’t found anyone interesting since then.”

“Jjinjja? What happened?”

“We don’t get along anymore.”

She nodded thoughtfully.

“You can stay here longer, if you need to” he offered.

He was hoping she’d say yes, so bad.

“It’s hard to get back to my place. It’s full of……him.”

He was listening but didn’t add anything.

“Is it too much if I stay here for a week?”

“No.”

“Why?”

“You’re nice to talk to. And nicer to look at than the TV”

She grinned, feeling flattered.

“Want me to come with you to your place? Take some clothes and what you need from there?”

“You’ll go with me?”

“Why not? You don’t want me to?”

She shook her head. "I'll be grateful if you can keep me company."

“We had a deal, then. I suggest you to sleep now” he said, getting up from the bed.

He wanted to pat her shoulder. He wanted to kiss her goodnight.

But maybe he better not.

“Good night” she said.

He sat on the couch and watched her without being obvious.

She took the towel off her hair and combed it, looking out the window. Afterwards, she lied on his bed, covered herself with the blanket, and prepared to sleep.

He wanted to touch her so bad. Felt that long hair on his fingers. Tasted that white skin. Hugged that slim figure.

But he wouldn’t. He took no advantages from girls. Not when they were helpless and lost like her.

To guard that resolve, he turned off the lamp and lied on the couch.

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

Author's Note :

I'm optimistic I could finish this on Sunday. 

Thank you so much for the comments. Sorry, I'm still replying on ON13 part 8 comments. Can you believe that? My replies might be long overdue, but it's better than not. 

That being said, I still want you to comment on this update. 

I tend to turn my stories angsty. I almost typed angst but then decided against it. If I do, this will be too long. 

This story bothered me so much at work yesterday I want to run home and type. I didn't run away from my students, thankfully. 

I hope you like this. I like updating this. It's so easy and short compared to ON, haha. 

See you around. 

PS : Isn't Paparazzi MV awesome?