“So, what brought you to Paris, Wooyoung?”

It was a question Wooyoung realised he had never discussed the answer to, not with Nichkhun at least. He looked over at the man in question, who sat next to him at the bar with a pen poised in his hand, hovering over the notebook he usually used to take orders from customers. This felt very surreal, to only now be telling Nichkhun this information after knowing him for so many weeks, and in a job interview of all things.

“I just moved from Korea, you know that.” Wooyoung replied. He wasn’t sure how to go into his history. It was long and painful, and Wooyoung didn’t exactly like talking about it. But Nichkhun looked at him in a way that suggested he was going to need more details than that, so Wooyoung sighed and began to recount the gist of it very carefully.

“To be perfectly honest, it’s because of my parents,” Wooyoung began. It wasn’t anything happy which had landed him in the city, alone and so far from the place where he had grown up, where his friends and family were.

Somehow, there was something so wonderfully compelling about Nichkhun, in his mannerisms and speech, in his eyes that seemed almost too kind. It made this much easier for Wooyoung, who found it difficult to talk about this. However,  he still looked harshly at the table as he spoke, because the shame that always arose in him made it very difficult to look at Nichkhun. “They forced me to marry a woman I didn’t love when I was at the top of my game. We didn’t get on, she ruined my career, took all of my money and then divorced me. I wanted to take a break, so I left for a while.”

More like everyone looked at me with pity, and I couldn’t stand their silent judgements about my fallen career, so I ran away. That was the unspoken truth, the bit which Wooyoung couldn’t say. He couldn’t even admit it to himself, it hurt so much.

Here, nobody could find him unless they wanted to. Only his sister knew where he was, just in case he got into trouble. She was his closest confidante, and the only person he trusted enough not to reveal where he had disappeared to. Coming to the most romantic city on Earth to get away from a marriage was probably the most ironic thing about the whole situation.

After a short silence, one which Wooyoung found awkward and felt like he needed to fill, he finally worked up the courage to look at Nichkhun, only to see his eyebrows raise as if he wasn’t expecting that kind of wild explanation. “Good for you,” He said, his voice raising into a surprising chuckle as he added, “You made a wise decision to come here. Paris is considered to be a city of freedom, after all, that’s what the revolution was for.” He looked even more attractive when he laughed.

There was a sort of relief which filled Wooyoung when he realised that Nichkhun wasn't going to judge him for his failed marriage and fallen career, like so many others had back home. So many times he had been faced with criticism and scorn from his peers, and quite honestly, that was the reason why Wooyoung hated talking about himself.

But when Nichkhun seemed to accept his story with little care for his change in status, or for his past marital history, he felt like he could breathe a little easier. From then, he relaxed more into his chair as Nichkhun moved the interview along.

They skipped over the common interview questions, about Wooyoung’s qualifications and previous experience, of which he didn’t have a lot in the restaurant industry, not that it seemed to bother Nichkhun anyway. They didn’t venture too far into his previous career, which Wooyoung was happy about because he didn’t really want to talk about it too much. He had fallen from grace, and it hardly looked good for him when he went into the details. Even though Nichkhun didn't seem to care about whatever bad things had happened in his past, Wooyoung still wasn't keen to overshare. He wanted to leave that past version of himself in Korea, along with all the terrible memories of his marriage.

“I told you that I trained in Korea, didn’t I?” Nichkhun asked. “I lived in Seoul for five years, when I was training as a chef. It had been so long since I spoke Korean to anyone, until you turned up.” Then, he leaned close to Wooyoung, and winked, which caused Wooyoung to become quite flustered. “But I’m actually Thai, so forgive me if I make language mistakes.”

“N-no, it’s okay. You speak w-well,” Wooyoung stuttered, only breathing out when Nichkhun had moved away again. Whenever Nichkhun came into his space, it made him feel quite breathless and he didn't really know what to do with himself. He had never met anyone who made him feel like that before.

“M-may I ask what I’ll be paid here?” He felt a bit sheepish asking, since Nichkhun was giving him such a good opportunity when he had no other option. He could hardly afford to be choosy right now, in his current situation. But Nichkhun just nodded and told him everything he needed to know regarding his wage. Payment was the first Friday of every month, and it would be suffice to cover his monthly rent, with some to spare to spend on whatever he wanted, Wooyoung was pleased to find.

After a little more time discussing the specifics of the role, Nichkhun suddenly put down his pen and outstretched his hand as he said, “Congratulations, Wooyoung. Welcome to your new workplace.” Wooyoung gasped and gratefully shook Nichkhun’s hand,  breaking out into a gigantic smile. He knew he had pretty much been accepted for the role the minute Nichkhun had made the offer, however, hearing him say it out loud was… Well, it was like music to Wooyoung's ears.

For weeks, he had been waiting to hear those words, and Nichkhun had just practically made his dream come true.

Nichkhun chuckled at his enthusiastic reciprocation of the handshake, and also because Wooyoung couldn’t help the excited little squeal which escaped him. Really, he should have been embarrassed in front of his new employer, but he was simply so excited that he couldn’t be. Nichkhun was also his friend, so it wasn’t as if their relationship was the most formal anyway.

Then, Nichkhun hopped off his barstool, and practically dragged Wooyoung from his own as he looped an arm around his shoulders enthusiastically and ushered him out to the back of the restaurant. “Come on, the rest of the staff are working this morning. I’ll introduce you. I’m sure you’ll love them.” He said as he took Wooyoung through into the kitchen, chattering the whole time about how wonderful his staff were.

The kitchen was half the size of the dining area, and cramped with steel countertops, fridges and ovens so it felt even smaller. There was a door to the side, leading into a pantry, and tiny windows at the back next to an extractor fan. The whole place was filled with a wonderful aroma, of soups simmering in large pots on the stovetops, and bread baking in ovens, and other delicious smells Wooyoung couldn't quite place. And inside, two people worked, a man and a woman, on opposite sides of the kitchen.

“Hey, guys!” Nichkhun called for their attention. The man turned towards them first. He was a slightly shorter person than Wooyoung, with brown hair and a smile that was almost as winning as Nichkhun’s. He was at a countertop near the stove, working some sort of dough with his hands. He brushed his flour-covered fingers against his apron as he looked over at Wooyoung and eyed him up. “This is Lee Junho, my pastry chef. Usually he works in the afternoons, but he came in early today because we're expecting lots of customers. Junho, this is Wooyoung, our new assistant.”

“Hey, nice to meet you,” The man, Junho, greeted as he came forward. He offered his hand, but thought better of it when he remembered that he was messy from working. “Oh perhaps I shouldn’t shake your hand,” He laughed, causing Wooyoung to laugh along with him because his happiness seemed to be infectious. “I hope you enjoy working with us. Khun is an excellent boss, he’s worthy of awards, you know.”

Nichkhun seemed to flush at his compliment, and grinned. “That’s enough up, Junho, behave,” He cooed. Junho snorted with laughter, rolling his eyes, and turned back to the countertop to carry on working. Nichkhun’s employees were obviously comfortable around him, because they acted more like friends than coworkers. Nichkhun gestured to the woman then, who smiled at Wooyoung and bowed politely. She seemed to be a lot younger than Nichkhun and Wooyoung. “This is Ji-eun, my niece. She works mainly as a waitress, but sometimes she helps myself and Junho in the kitchen too.”

Wooyoung released a gasp he couldn’t hold back when he realised that he recognised the young woman. She was in the bookshop the other day! What an idiot he was… Ji-eun wasn’t Nichkhun’s girlfriend, she was his niece. How could he have ever jumped to a conclusion like that without all the facts? When Nichkhun gave him a questioning look, he simply waved away his concern and greeted Ji-eun with a cheerful, “Hi there!”

Ji-eun bit her lip nervously. She was obviously quite shy in front of strangers, but Wooyoung hoped she would open up to him in time. “Hi, Wooyoung,” She said quietly, before looking apprehensively at Nichkhun, who smiled back at her reassuringly. He gave the same sort of wink towards her that he had previously given Wooyoung, a supportive one, and her lips curved upwards slightly. Perhaps there was more there than just shyness that made her reserved.

“I think you’ll fit in just fine,” Nichkhun turned towards Wooyoung and smiled.

***

Wooyoung let out a satisfied groan as he stretched his arms out above his head and felt his spine elongating into the proper position again after being hunched over boxes for the past hour. Nichkhun had sent him into the pantry to sort it all out. Since it was grocery day, they had to take stock of the fruits and vegetables they already had before Nichkhun went into town to buy fresh produce. Even though they could quite easily get their ingredients delivered, Wooyoung had come to learn that Nichkhun liked to select everything himself so that he could ensure quality of the ingredients going into his food.

Junho was supposed to have joined Wooyoung in sorting through the boxes of food in the pantry, but he had been held back in the kitchen because of a sudden arrival of a large group of customers.

That meant Wooyoung had spent the last hour completely alone, counting each individual fruit and vegetable single-handedly. Honestly, Wooyoung was sure that he never wanted to see an apple or a potato ever again. He had no idea how one restaurant even needed so many!

He had been working at La Cachette for nearly a month now, and he had settled in quite well. He mainly did all the errands and odd jobs that everybody else liked to put off, but Wooyoung never minded because it meant that he didn’t have to step out of his comfort zone in the kitchen or by serving customers in a language he was barely beginning to grasp the basics of. He quite liked running errands out in the city, and whiling away his time with odd jobs.

When he was halfway through counting crates of strawberries on the shelf, Wooyoung was disturbed by the sound of shuffling behind him, like someone was standing just outside the door to the pantry. Sure enough, Wooyoung turned to look behind himself, and saw Nichkhun peeking his head around the doorframe, his usual grin on his lips. Wooyoung swore he never stopped smiling.

“Hey, Woo.” He greeted him even though he had already seen Wooyoung a lot that day. “I’m heading into the market now. I was wondering if you wanted to come with me?”

“Of course!” Wooyoung didn’t hesitate to nod because he needed to find a way out of counting all of this stock - his mind was already saturated with numbers, swimming with pictures of fruit and vegetables that stuck with him even when he closed his eyes. He agreed perhaps a little too enthusiastically, and then looked down at himself. He was still wearing his apron.

“Uh, give me a moment to get rid of this,” He gestured to himself, indicating the apron. Nichkhun nodded, and then disappeared around the doorframe into the kitchen again.

Wooyoung was quite excited by the prospect of this outing, because he had never been to the produce market before - in a way, it was Nichkhun's sacred place. He liked to go alone.

Wooyoung discarded of his apron in the cloakroom, and a few minutes later found Nichkhun waiting for him outside the front of the restaurant. He was leaning nonchalantly on the window frame, scrolling through his phone to pass the time, his free hand stuffed into the pocket of his tan duffle coat - it was complete with toggles, over the top of his chef’s whites. His hair was ruffled, like he had become slightly dishevelled whilst working in the kitchen, giving him a look which made him seem incredibly handsome to Wooyoung. A fuzzy, warm feeling formed in Wooyoung's stomach. He usually found Nichkhun to be good looking anyway, but for some reason, today he just seemed even more so. Dishevelled suited him.

Nichkhun raised his eyebrows at him as he exited the shop, the bell above the door ringing as he opened the door. “Ready?” He asked expectantly. Wooyoung nodded, and they began their walk into the city, side by side. Nichkhun had once told him all about the market on Rue de Montorgueil. It was an extremely long street in the centre of Paris, which boasted a selection of restaurants, cheese shops, florists, bakeries, wineries, and anything else that was refined and selling things distinctly French.

It was Nichkhun’s favourite place, out of anywhere else in the whole city, because he swore hands down that it was the best place to buy fresh produce. Not only was it convenient because everything was in close proximity, it tended to sell things that one might not find in regular shops, and so Nichkhun could get his more tricky ingredients for certain menu items there. He visited the market on a weekly basis, and the morning he went was always his favourite morning of the week. Usually he went alone, so Wooyoung felt quite privileged to be able to go with him for once, to see something that was so dear to Nichkhun’s heart.

As they walked, Nichkhun explained the ins-and-outs of the market, all of the stalls and shops which he had been visiting for years and simply adored. Wooyoung couldn’t help but admire him as he talked, since his facial expressions mirrored those of a small, excitable child whenever he talked about his passions. The feeling Wooyoung got when he looked at him was the same as whenever Nichkhun would chatter away as he cooked about why the minced garlic he got from the grocery was best for croquettes de saumon, or why fresh vegetables were always better for soups. Wooyoung would just lean against the countertop and take in the way Nichkhun became so animated when he spoke about something he loved so much.

He was enthusiastic, and Wooyoung couldn’t help but be swept along by every smooth syllable rolling off his tongue.

Nichkhun was attractive, Wooyoung knew that very well by now, but he had a certain appeal - an allure - that pulled people towards him when his passion shone through. Or perhaps, it was simply because Wooyoung had developed a very large crush on him in just a matter of weeks. Wooyoung didn’t know how it was possible to obtain a crush on somebody that quickly, but, it had happened. And, God, Wooyoung knew that was anything but a wise thing to do, because when he fell for somebody, he always fell for them hard and fast.

On the way to the market, Nichkhun stopped by a coffee shop.

“I do this every week,” He explained, “This place is owned by an elderly lady who took pity on me the first week I was here, when I didn’t know what in the world I was doing. She has been sick for a while though, and her daughter seems to have taken over the business.” Nichkhun looked about the place with fondness. It was an ornate little building with a flower wreath on the door and a ‘welcome’ mat in the entrance way. Inside it was small, smaller than the restaurant anyway, and the elderly lady behind the counter was simply lovely.

She looked to be about eighty, and when Nichkhun walked into the shop with Wooyoung close behind, her face lit up and her eyes sparkled with delight. “Nichkhun, darling!” She called out, her words framed by a charming Bordeaux accent; Wooyoung watched with amusement as she maneuvered around to the front of the counter with speed that was certainly not appropriate for her age.

“I haven’t seen you for ages, how have you been?” She exclaimed.

Nichkhun laughed with glee and accepted her hearty hug as she threw her arms around his middle. She was a good few heads shorter than he was. “I’ve been great, Marie. It’s good to see you back on your feet. You’re feeling okay now, huh?” He asked, holding her at arm's length by her shoulders and giving her a once over with his eyes. Wooyoung stood a little further away, near the doorway, just watching. Quite honestly, he wasn’t at all surprised that Nichkhun had managed to become such good friends with the local old ladies. It seemed like something he would do, because he was friendly, caring and handsome - in other words, perfect grandson material.

“Never mind me, young man. I might be eighty-two but I’m spritely enough to beat a cold,” The lady, Marie, chided him playfully and then her eye caught Wooyoung standing behind Nichkhun. “But who is this? I haven’t seen him before, Khun,” She asked in a curious tone, before a more playful smile appeared on her lips and she moved closer to Nichkhun.

She beckoned him to lean down before she whispered into his ear. Even though she tried to be surreptitious, she was, classically, not quiet at all. “Is he your new boy? You deserve a more handsome one after that last .”

Marie may have been getting on in years, but she certainly didn’t act it. And Nichkhun, when he heard her comment which was practically announced in her larger-than-life accented words, went bright red with embarrassment. He turned sheepishly to Wooyoung and mouthed a, ‘Sorry’ at him before covering his face with his hands and mumbling through his fingers, “Marie. He’s standing right there.”

“So he’s not your new boyfriend, dear?” Marie asked him with a chuckle. “Shame, he suits you.” She added, taking in Wooyoung’s tall, lanky frame, clad in his dark work uniform and coat thrown on over the top. It was hardly the most fashionable ‘boyfriend’ look at all, so he didn’t see where she got the idea from. Still, deep inside, Wooyoung was ever so slightly giddy at the fact that someone thought he was good enough to date Nichkhun, of all people, who was probably the most good looking man he had ever met.

“What can I get you boys, anyway? It’s getting cold outside, how about some nice warm coffee to take to the market, hm?” She inquired as she rounded the counter again, so that now she was standing next to the coffee machine with her hands clasped together in front of her. She obviously knew Nichkhun’s routine, about coming here before going to the market. He had been doing the same thing for years, after all.

“That would be great, thanks,” Nichkhun said softly. “Did I ever tell you that you’re the best, Marie?” His compliment seemed to satisfy the elderly lady, who seemed to perk up even further as she set to work making whatever she usually did for Nichkhun, after tying an apron around her waist. But then, she turned back to Nichkhun briefly and winked at him.

“Careful now, your ‘boyfriend’ might get jealous if you treat me too well,” She teased, much to Nichkhun’s slight horror. Honestly, Wooyoung thought it was hilarious, and endearing too, how bashful Nichkhun seemed to get whenever Marie like that. It was a new side to Nichkhun, one which he liked seeing.

Wooyoung grinned, and moved to stand next to Nichkhun. When he noticed Nichkhun look down at the floor and bite his lip nervously because he was standing right next to him, he thought that it was maybe a tiny bit adorable. Wooyoung couldn't help but wonder how he could elicit such a reaction from Nichkhun more often.

Marie finally passed the cups over the counter and leaned over it to speak to Nichkhun quietly as he took them from her hands. “Call it an old lady’s intuition, dear. You’ll thank me later,” She chuckled. Nichkhun could only nod as he paid her, reserving himself so that he could make a quick escape from embarrassment. They said their warm and yet hasty farewells and Nichkhun promised to come back and visit the next week, before they made  their exit. But, once they stood outside in the cold again, with steaming cups of coffee in their hands, Wooyoung could only hope that Marie’s wise intuition was actually correct.

***

Though he had expected it to be huge, the market seemed to still be at least ten times bigger than Wooyoung had expected. Standing at the entrance to the street, he was in awe as he stared at the expanse of stalls and shops beyond them. It probably stretched at least a mile down the road, and he had no idea how Nichkhun had ever managed to see everything even in all the years he had spent in Paris. He must have spent a serious number of hours here in his free time, as well as when he shopped for the restaurant.

“Whoa,” Wooyoung gasped, mouth agape at the street beyond, not really knowing what else to say. He heard Nichkhun chuckling behind him, having recovered from Marie’s coy comments earlier, before the older man came to stand next to him. Nichkhun really wasn’t exaggerating in his descriptions when he had said that you could literally buy anything you wanted from there. “This place is huge!” Wooyoung gasped.

“I told you,” Nichkhun’s voice was filled with amusement as he placed his hand against Wooyoung’s back and guided him gently down the road, a smile on his lips. After a while of walking, past little cobbled side streets and shops filled with quaint French delicacies like cakes and bread, they found the part of the market that sold the fresh fruits and vegetables Nichkhun used to create his dishes. He stopped in front of a little stall that seemed to sell everything from locally produced apples to limes and papayas grown in far and exotic lands.

Nichkhun hummed softly. “Did we have enough potatoes?” He inquired thoughtfully. Wooyoung cocked his head to the side, his eyes closing briefly as he tried to recall the stock he had counted that morning - he really should have written it down. When he shook his head, because he only remembered seeing a few inside the crate, Nichkhun turned to the man behind the counter and held a short conversation in French with him. Wooyoung never failed to be astounded by how much of a language genius Nichkhun seemed to be. Perhaps one day he would work up the nerve to ask him for a few pointers.

He laughed a few times at something Wooyoung didn’t understand, and flashed a few smiles that even made Wooyoung swoon, not that he would admit that, and paid the man the cost of the potatoes. Once he had muttered a, “Merci Beaucoup,” - a thank you - and moved onto the next stall, he explained to Wooyoung quietly, “I gave him my business card and asked him to deliver a crate to the restaurant later on - I even got a discount on them because Ji-eun knows him!”

He seemed excited, which made Wooyoung smile. Time slipped away from them that morning, and Wooyoung realised how easy it was to forget how long they had spent walking about in that market, when Nichkhun made such good company. They ambled along the street, stopping at stalls here and there, trying free samples of chocolates and breads and cheeses, chatting and joking amongst themselves. Nichkhun would turn to Wooyoung and point out something about an ingredient, laughing jovially, and Wooyoung couldn’t help but be engrossed in Nichkhun’s knowledge. There was something so enticing about the way he knew something about everything.

***

Before long it was midday, and the two of them found themselves back at the restaurant, laden with shopping bags. Wooyoung hadn’t really expected to buy so much, considering that Nichkhun said he went grocery shopping every week, but he had fun at the market regardless. Nichkhun reached the entrance to the shop first. He shifted his bags to one hand to reach for the door handle, but just as he did so, a brash shout came from inside the entranceway to the restaurant - clear as day, even with the door shut.

“Why do you insist on making my life a misery, In-na? Wasn’t breaking my heart enough, you have to come here and rub it in my face all the time too?” Wooyoung recognised that voice instantly, he had heard it enough during the short time he had worked at the restaurant - it was Ji-eun. Nichkhun stilled, and sighed as if he had heard all this before.

“That woman doesn’t know when to give it a rest,” He mumbled, shaking his head. He was evidently unimpressed by the appearance of this mystery person, because his jaw clenched, and his eyes became darker. However, he didn’t make a move to enter the restaurant. He didn’t have time, because the door suddenly swung open, and a woman stalked out, teetering in her heels, her face flushed but her lips curled upwards into a cruel grin. She was Nichkhun’s age, or perhaps there about, and her clothing was much too expensive - a pencil skirt and floral blouse completing the look.

Ji-eun stood behind her, in the doorway, completely fuming. “Don’t you dare come back again!” She screeched, watching with bright, eagle-like eyes as the woman walked away, down the street to her car without even taking notice of Ji-eun’s warning. Ji-eun turned around and kicked the door frame in frustration as she growled lowly, “God, it’s like she doesn’t know how to take a hint!”

Nichkhun reacted then, pulling her into the restaurant, the door almost hitting Wooyoung in the face as it swung shut as he followed them. “Hey, don’t take it out on my property!” Nichkhun scolded. He huffed in frustration, which seemed to calm him down somewhat. “What did she do this time?”

A memory seemed to strike Ji-eun’s mind, because she froze, before sinking down into the window seat behind her. Her eyes filled with tears, and a whimper sounded from . Nichkhun was next to her in an instant, consoling his niece, but Wooyoung just stood still, unsure of what to do. This was clearly something that had been going on for a while; Wooyoung was sure this was a matter that was much too private to be discussing in front of him, since he was essentially still a stranger, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave.

“She’s getting married,” She whispered, “Uncle Khun, she came here to tell me that she was getting married. S-she said she w-wanted me to c-c- come, but I can’t…” Ji-eun leaned forward, her head in her hands as she began to sob, whilst Nichkhun’s arm came about her shoulders. Wooyoung watched all this with curious intent, wondering what he could possibly do to help. “How can I watch the woman who broke my heart get married?” Ji-eun sounded completely lost.

“That ,” Nichkhun mumbled under his breath. “You don’t have to, Eun. She was just being malicious by telling you, all she wanted to do was upset you.” Nichkhun patted her shoulder. It was as if Nichkhun consoling her like this was a very familiar act by now. “Just forget her, she isn’t worth your time anymore. Cheer up, hm? We’re opening soon, so we’ve got to get a move on.”

It took a while longer, but Ji-eun stopped crying, and Nichkhun managed to convince her that she didn’t have to go to this mystery person’s wedding, that it didn’t matter. Eventually, they opened up shop, and thankfully, business went smoothly as usual.

***

After her emotional morning, Nichkhun sent Ji-eun home early, telling her that Wooyoung and he could close up the restaurant on their own perfectly fine. Wooyoung had spent the day in the kitchen, watching Nichkhun’s every move as he tried to teach him some basic recipes, and French too, whilst they were working. Junho hadn’t turned up to work that morning because he had called in sick, something about a family emergency, so they were left to their own devices in the kitchen. However, that meant that Nichkhun had to cover the dessert menu too, which Junho usually managed on his own.

Usually Junho was a very reliable employee, and he rarely took days off work. Although kind of eccentric, he was a very kind and considerate person. Wooyoung liked working with him, so he hoped that whatever the problem was, it wasn’t too serious.

Now though, the restaurant had been closed up, cleaned and prepared again for the morning. Wooyoung thought he’d be going straight home after that, but Nichkhun had insisted that he stayed for drinks for a while. “Call it a thank you for being understanding about Ji-eun’s situation earlier,” Nichkhun had said as he poured them some drinks before sitting next to Wooyoung at the bar.

“Khun…” Wooyoung began. He knew it was really none of his business, but he was just too curious about earlier. “Who was that woman? The one who upset Ji-eun.” His tone was inquisitive, but also slightly tentative. He really didn’t want to pry if it would annoy Nichkhun.

Nichkhun turned to him with an exasperated expression, but then he forced a smile. Wooyoung just knew behind that smile he was hiding a stress which had been there for a long time. For some reason, Wooyoung was able to read into each of Nichkhun’s emotions as easily as one would read a book.

“Yoo In-na.” He replied. His voice was soft and yet the syllables of the name were still spoken with disgust - an emotion Wooyoung had never witnessed Nichkhun feel yet. Nichkhun sighed as he ran his finger over the rim of his glass. “I raised Eun from a baby because her mother - my sister - passed away not long after she was born. I was only eighteen when she came into my care. In all the years I’ve been responsible for her, I’ve never seen her so upset as when… I really regret bringing her to Paris with me.”

He hesitated, until Wooyoung got the nerve to ask, “What happened?” He still felt uneasy about prying into this issue, despite Nichkhun’s openness. He had no idea Nichkhun had been into such a role, having to take care of Ji-eun since she was a kid.

“You might have noticed that In-na is a great deal older than Ji-eun. When Eun was seventeen, she met In-na. She was instantly enamoured with her, despite their age difference. Ji-eun was so happy, so at first I was supportive of their relationship, but then…” Nichkhun’s voice grew deeper, darker, full of annoyance. Wooyoung noticed that his face changed, he frowned deeply as he spoke.

“In-na is a lot older. She was ready to settle down and become serious about life. But Ji-eun’s still just a kid, really. She’s not ready for that. Instead of breaking it off respectfully and deciding together that their relationship wasn’t for the best, In-na went behind Ji-eun’s back and had an affair. Ji-eun, when she found out, was so devastated that she broke down - for ages nobody could get through to her. She completely closed off to the world, and it took a long time for her to trust people again, even me.”

Wooyoung just sat there, a little overwhelmed by this overload of information. He had no idea that Ji-eun was even hiding such a sad story. Sure, she was quiet, but Wooyoung had just assumed that she was shy. He pursed his lips, thinking carefully before he spoke.

“In-na… She sounds like a .” He said finally, causing Nichkhun to chuckle wryly as he took a sip of his drink.

“Damn straight,” Nichkhun agreed, his eyebrows raising as he sighed. “She doesn’t seem to want to leave Ji-eun alone, either. Even after they broke up.” He gestured at Wooyoung’s drink then, clinking it against his own.

“But enough depressing talk, for now. Let’s forget about earlier and celebrate the fact that you’ve survived an entire month working with us crazy people.”