"Have you finished packing?" he asked.

"Almost done," Sumin shouted. She has put her phone on speaker while she continued her packing that morning as she will check out from the hotel and leave for the office. She would make her way to the airport directly from the office after their farewell lunch.

Sehun petted Vivi that had crawled up to his lap. "Vivi, say hello to mummy. Com'on Vivi."

Sumin giggled when she heard Vivi barked. She went to her phone where she could see Vivi sitting on Sehun's lap. She waved and said hi to Vivi. Sehun took Vivi's paw and waved back.

From Hong Kong, Sehun had gone home first but later that day, he would be going to meet the rest of his group as they have to film a variety show. He had woken up early to chat with Sumin before she goes to work.

"Do you want me to come over tonight? It'll probably be late though," he asked.

She shook her head. Realising that Sehun could not see her as she had continued her packing, she told him no verbally. She'll be doing her laundry when she got back and likely to be exhausted as it would have been a very long day. 

Sehun was driving towards SM Building to join s when his phone rang. Fixing his earpiece, he answered the call.

"Yeah hyung."

"Are you on the way to the office?" Manager hyung asked.

"Yes, I'm about 10 minutes away. Am I late?" he glanced at the clock on his dashboard. He still had a lot of time.

His manager assured him that he wasn't late. However, CEO Lee wanted to see him when he arrived at the building. Although it was possibly for another fashion shoot or drama, Sehun was surprised as CEO Lee rarely meet up with any of the idols directly since there are many other directors that actually manage their different activities. 

He entered the CEO's room after his knock was answered. The moment he stepped in, he was surprised to find that his sunbaenims BOA and Yunho were also in the room. BOA smiled at him and patted the seat next to her on the sofa. Sehun smiled apprehensively and sat at the suggested spot. He acknowledged his sunbaenims and then sat quietly as all of them waited for CEO Lee to finish his call. His mind was working overtime trying to find the reason he was invited into a meeting with these particular sunbaenims who are also directors of the company.

After greeting CEO Lee who had joined them, Sehun waited in trepidation while he kept eye contact with the big man. He immediately turned to Yunho when he heard his sunbaenim cleared his throat.

"Sehun-ah," Yunho called him. "Were you in Hong Kong recently?"

Releasing his held breath, Sehun's heart started to race as the reason for his presence in that meeting dawned on him. It has finally happened.

He nodded, "Yes, earlier this week. I told manager hyung about my personal trip."

"Do you have a girlfriend?" CEO Lee asked, his voice was low but very firm.

The moment the purpose of the meeting occurred to him, Sehun was mentally prepared for the question. Since he had made known of his relationship with Sumin among the idols, he had anticipated that one day, the news would reach his management. It was just a surprise that it took this long for him to be queried. "Yes, I do. I've been dating her for two and a half years."

CEO Lee did not react to Sehun's words except for a slight twitch, but he could hear the gasp from BOA. 

"Is it the same girl that I heard rumours quite a long time ago, the one that you brought to the Idol party?" Yunho asked. 

Sehun nodded. "It should be. She is the only girl I've ever dated"

"How did you managed to keep it from being discovered?" BOA asked.

"We've been very careful. We don't go out. I usually go to her place to see her using a friend's car," Sehun explained.

CEO Lee took photos from an envelope and threw it on the table. "Careful? Then how do you explain this?"

Earlier in the day, Michelle had provided the photos and a write up about Sehun, on his past scandals and his supposed relationships with other Idols. However, her editor, though delighted with her findings, decided that the photos would be of greater impact if released in Korea instead of Hong Kong in view of Sehun's standing in Korean entertainment world. He had sold the photos for huge sums of money.

Sehun picked up the photos and saw that it was taken when he was having dinner with his friends in Hong Kong. Except the photos were only of him with Sumin. Sehun heaved a sigh of relief that Sumin's face was not shown as her back was to the photographer.  The photos itself was decent enough, of them clearly teasing each other but one of the photos showed him holding onto her shoulder. There was a sense of intimacy in that captured photo. 

Holding onto the photos with both of his hands, he raised his head to meet his CEO's stare. "It was my fault. I wanted to see her while she was in Hong Kong and persuaded her to have dinner with my friends. We were with my friends throughout that night. We weren't even seated together. Except when those photos were taken, my friends step out to pick up our food and I went to her," he explained. He closed his eyes momentarily as he acknowledged the repercussions of his moment of folly. 

"Do you think the reporter that took this picture has more incriminating pictures?" Yunho asked, interrupting his thoughts.

Sehun hung his head as he said simply, "I kissed her."

There was silence for several minutes. 

Then CEO Lee, BOA and Yunho gathered their heads together to discuss the possibility of getting away with denials even though there could potentially be a picture of them kissing. Sehun eyes shifted from one to the other, unhappily listening to their discussion. 

He cleared his throat to attract their attention. "I won't deny our relationship."

All three turned to him. BOA placed her hand on Sehun's lap, "Sehun-ah, you want to admit to your fans that you have a girlfriend for over 2 years?"

He nodded. His eyes pleaded for her understanding.

"We don't think it is a good idea," BOA said kindly.

"Why not?" Sehun asked immediately. "I know that there'll be fans that would initially be upset, but I'm sure most of my fans would eventually support me."

"We do not think the news of you dating is good for the group," Yunho explained.

Sehun snapped his head towards Yunho. He could feel his irritation is rising. He has always been a team player and loves his group members very much. Therefore, he has never questioned the management decisions, even for the dubious or biased decisions that the agency made against him. He never complained for their lack of attention and support towards his personal career growth. But this, this relationship with Sumin is really important to him. It matters to him. All this while, though they protected their relationship from the public, Sehun had harboured a hope that when it was discovered, it could be an opportunity for him to share with his fans the person that is important to him.

"Why? Why is it ok for Jongin? It happens to him twice and each time the company supported it. It didn't impact the group. Why can't the company support me?" he questioned indignantly. His eyes shifted angrily from his CEO, to Yunho and then to BOA. 

All three of them gazed back at Sehun in surprise. He has always been one of the easiest Idol to manage; no real scandals, always polite and obliging, and no complaints about his amount of lines or exposure he gets. They do not have to do much, his fans, his popularity and his own network often marketed him and get him good opportunities. Hence, they were quite taken aback at how riled up he gets on the matter.

Sehun run his fingers through his hair in frustration.  "I am not going to deny our relationship," he stated firmly.

BOA was about to explain the reasons further but CEO Lee raised his hand and stopped her.  He had observed Sehun's unexpected reaction and realised that still water runs deep. Despite still polite, he could hear the disgruntlement and unhappiness in Sehun's tone.

"We disagree with your decision. You have many fandoms. The negative backlash from the announcement would be huge," CEO Lee pointed out.

Sehun put his hands on his head as he hang his head down and stared at his feet. He understood what his CEO is telling him but he thought of Sumin and how she has stayed in the background for so many years. The unfairness of it all. Resolved in his mind, he chose to put faith in his fans.

Raising his head, he looked at his CEO calmly. "Would the backlash from a photo of me kissing a girl intimately, a girl of supposedly no significance, be any better? What kind of image would my fans have of me?"

"We do not know there exist such a photo," Yunho answered.

His lips curled into a sneer and he scoffed. "I was there. Ten seconds after this photo was taken," his index finger tapped harshly on a photo where he had his arms on Sumin," I kissed her. It wasn't just a peck."  It would be ridiculous for the owner of the photos to have taken all those pictures and not the one that was most incriminating. He leaned back against the sofa and silently observed the exchange of looks among the three.

"Alright. Since you insist, we will confirm your relationship. How much details do you want to share with the public?" CEO Lee asked quietly.

Sehun looked at his CEO in gratitude. "Just that she is a private individual. No other details about her," he whispered. 

BOA and Yunho looked worried but CEO Lee had recognised that Sehun was going to be hard headed about the matter.  They will let him discover the real impact of his action. They told Sehun to inform the girl what to expect because they don't know when the reporter going to publish the news.

Sehun stood at the corner of the CEO's room looking out at the city as he called Sumin. The other three were still seated at the sofa, having a hushed discussion.

"Hey sweetheart, are you on the way to the airport?" he asked softly. His heart thudded heavily as he prepared himself to break the news. He wished he could tell her in person but he didn't want her to be surprised since they have no control on when the news would be released.

Sumin leaned her head against the window facing out, seeking some privacy since she was in a taxi with the other intern from Korea. "Yeah. In a taxi right now. Don't you have a schedule?" she whispered.

He murmured