Sehun wasn’t supposed to be at the cafe alone that afternoon. He’d expected Jongin to be suffering the same uncomfortableness as him. Sadly a job had cropped up for Jongin. Sehun was alone. His weekend was off to a bright start. It wasn't as busy as he'd anticipated. Not many people were sitting in the cafe on a sunny, summer's day to witness his discomfort. Occasionally the barista sent a look his way. Sehun understood that the guy sympathised.

Speed dating.

That’s what it felt like sitting in a cafe, meeting girls one after the other. His phone call to his mother had resulted in this. Sehun was questioning how much piety was needed to be filial. He knew one thing though and that was that he’d go back to blocking his mother’s calls again.

If his mother wasn’t sitting at another table in this very cafe he would have left already.

Sehun was sure Mrs. Oh’s ears were on him. She had brought no friends and was looking at a magazine. She hadn’t shuffled a page. Definitely she was listening in on his conversation. He knew she meant well. He wished she’d stop though.

All the girls he’d met so far were all the same. In fact they were so similar that if he’d sat one beside the other he wouldn’t have been able to tell them apart. Was it the makeup or the clothes? They were all trendy, boring and the same. That’s how his coffee was starting to taste too boring and stale like a soup made from beans and milk.

Sehun wasn’t looking for marriage. Perhaps now was a good time to point this out. Maybe this was why he was looking down on all the girls he’d met. They might be ready to get hitched but he wasn’t.

Marriage was scary, filled with responsibilities and the time for oneself shrunk to nothing. He didn’t want to put family first. He was rather selfish that way. Mrs. Oh didn’t understand that. That’s why everyone was suffering in the cafe.

When a new girl came to sit opposite him, all Sehun could think of was that Jongin had ditched him. They were meant to suffer together, that’s what friendship was about.

The girl opposite him noticed his lack of attention. She didn’t speak a word until he looked at her. She was pretty, so was every other girl he’d met so far. Beauty didn’t phase him in his mid twenties as it had done when he was in his teens. Like most girls she had coloured her hair a dark brown, her complexion was a little darker than the bone white foundation she was wearing on her face, she peered at him from under her curled lashes. She was wearing an expression of disdain.

This was new.

“If you’re done staring, I’d just like to add that I was sent here without consent because my mom thinks I should get married. I’m not interested in marriage. My profile,” she indicated to the file on the table sitting beside Sehun’s resting elbows. “My profile’s a complete lie. I’m older than it says. I didn’t graduate from college, I dropped out. I’m also in debt so unless you want to be poor with me, I hope you’re not taking this meeting seriously.”

Now Sehun was interested. He leaned forward, casting the thick folder on the table aside. A plan was starting to come together in his head.

“You’re going to have to sit here and pretend to enjoy yourself. My mum’s sitting nearby and if you walk off right now, she’ll think I offended you. Why don’t you order something, it’s on me.”

The corner of her lip tugged upward contemptuously.

“No, thanks. I don’t take freebies.”

She was watching him like he was a hyena ready to take advantage of her situation instead of being offended at her earlier tirade, which he suspected, she revealed in order to scare him off. If she expected to give him that lecture and walk off she was wrong.

“What’s your name?” Sehun asked.

“So you really didn’t read that profile?” She arched a brow in a way that told him he’d fallen lower in her eyes.

“I didn’t read anyone’s profile. Everything was too long, and like you, I don’t want to be here either. I don’t care for marriage. I’m here because my mother wants me to pick a bride. She’s determined I find her today.”

“ to be you, a guy who’s mom handpicked girls who meet her standard and you just gloss over them like they’re all nothing. You don’t care about girls you’ve met. I bet they’re all the same to you. Just because you fail at communicating with your mum doesn’t give you the right to look down on others.”

It wasn’t what she said but the expression she wore and the way she dropped her acidic words that made his nostrils flare. Sehun was caught off guard. No one outrightly disliked him the way she did. His jaw tightened.

Reluctantly he reached for the file that contained short marriage profiles of the ladies he was meant to meet today. There were so many of them. He skipped through the nice girls and looked for one that bared fangs.

“Kim Minkyung?”

She inclined her head.

“I’m Oh Sehun.”

“I know,” she answered curtly.

Sehun opted to skip the formalities. He had to jump right to the point before Minkyung's attitude made him dismiss it. She was the only girl so far who could fit the plan he’d concocted.

“You don’t want to get married? Neither do I. You’re here because you were forced. I’m the same. You and I both know that today is not the end. Our mothers can’t see us flying solo. What if I were to offer you a deal that would help you out of your situation?” He asked.

“Unless it involves money, I don’t see how I can really save face. What are you proposing here? It’s definitely not marriage.”

“It’s not but it is. I’m thinking if you and I can fake dating we can get our mothers off our backs.”

Minkyung looked at him as if he was crazy. “Fake it? How? Let’s say we both go home today saying we met our soulmate. They’ll want us to get married. What then?”

Sehun shook his head. “You’re jumping too far ahead. Look, I don’t know about you but my mom is desperate that I stop being single. If I settle for dating, she’ll be thrilled.”

Minkyung smirked. “It’s back to being about you again, isn’t it? My mom’s not like yours. She knows our situation isn’t great. If I go home today saying the blind date failed she won’t ask questions.”

“I just need someone to act as my girlfriend. I’ll pay you.”

“You’re serious, aren’t you?”

“Neither of us are interested in a relationship but our mothers are. Faking it works out. We can just show up at family gatherings together, change our SNS info to ‘in a relationship,’ take pictures to fool people and viola. No one needs to know the rest.”

Minkyung wasn’t sure about this. It wasn’t everyday that a guy asked her to fake being his girlfriend. The terms were so vague. She mightn’t have bothered but he mentioned money. She bit her lip. Should she sell her Facebook relationship status for some coins? What about her self respect? She was desperate though.

“How much will you pay me?”

“Shall we write up a contract? It'll make the terms clearer.”

“Right now?” She glanced around trying to spot a middle aged lady that might have been his mother.

“No time like the present,” Sehun replied cheerfully.

A contract was drawn up on Sehun's phone, sent to Minkyung's number without arising Mrs. Oh's suspicion.

The Dating Contract

Rule 1: Do not tell anyone this is a fake relationship.

Rule 2: Learn common facts about each other including but not limited to background, hobbies, future goals.

Rule 3: Pretend to be a loving couple around family and friends.

Rule 4: Inappropriate touching is not allowed.

Rule 5: Respect each other’s private life.

Rule 6: No dating.

Rule 7: Trust each other.

Rule 8: Talk things out when there is a disagreement.

Rule 9: No one else is allowed to view this contract.

Rule 10: Breaking rules will invalidate the contract.

Rule 11: New terms may be added to the contract if both parties agree to it.

Rule 12: Sehun agrees to pay Minkyung a weekly salary of ___.

Please Subscribe to read the full chapter