CHAPTER 08
JUNG HOSEOK

"Play along, Song Noeul."

I smirked as soon as our gazes met and I turned my attention to my family. The surprised look on their faces was priceless. They were stunned at the same time but yet the happiest that I had seen them so far. My mother welcomed Noeul with arms wide opened and my father looked gave her a sincere, thankful smile.

Oh, the burden, Song Noeul has to carry, I chuckled in my thoughts.

I had thought that she would stumble, and be the clumsy, hesitant that she could be, but  I was wrong. Thinking that I could play a game with her, instead, she proved to me that I've picked the wrong person to play with.

I asked her to play along - and she did. Very well.

Her etiquette, manners talking to my family was just the things that I preferred ideally. Seeing my family responded to her easily, my heartstrings tugged and warmth spread through my chest. Noeul was invited to my home as it was the only place that my mother felt comfortable other than her home. We talked about random things and when I opened up how we met, my sister looked at me in disbelief.

"That is fate!" she said. "I mean, you worked at Flinders and happened to meet..." Obviously, from the beginning, it wasn't anything like that. It was bet after all.

"Yeah," Noeul replied, startling me with her reply. I came down to my senses when our gazes met and Noeul was smiling at me. I thought I was dreaming until she said, "Well, I believe in fate and destiny. If it's meant to be then it will, don't you think, my dear Hoseok?"

She was mocking me with what I had said to her when I first met her at the cafe. "Uh, well-" Her so-called-play-along-act had caught me off guard. "That's right."

"What do you think of him? Isn't he lazy?" My sister laughed.

"Noona.." I protested thinking that my sister had to ask way too much question to Noeul.

"Well,  he isn't exactly lazy or anything," I stared at her when she turned her gaze to me. "I haven't got to know him yet to that level but Hoseok, he's a nice person. He  knows how to be there for someone." My heartbeat skipped and my lips parted. I could feel heat crept up my cheeks. I tried to keep myself compose knowing that she was only pretending. But those words when she said, it felt like it had meant something.

My family decided to leave early as they had to head back to Gwangju. They bid me goodbye, exchanged hugs with me and Noeul. As soon as the doors closed, I turned to Noeul who had a deadpanned look on her face. "I did not ask for this."

"And I never thought that you'd be able to play along so well. I'm fooled." Noeul took the bag with her. "I'll send you home," I offered.

"You don't have to."

"The bets already on, you know?" I said as earning a glare from her.

"You planned all this, didn't you?" My breathing stopped for a moment. "You didn't wait for my answer instead of you just 'made' me accepting it in front of your family," She glared. Ah. She meant that. My palms grew sweaty for a moment there. "And to think you're Jiwoo's brother," She mumbled, rubbing her temple.

"I believe in fate and destiny..?" I smirked.

But the next few moments made me awestruck and frozen still in my stand. Noeul's expression matched my smirk as she straightened her back. She approached me and her hand reached out to my shirt. My heart raced. I watched as her fingers delicately adjusted the collar of my shirt and rested her hand on my chest. "Well, since you said the bets on, and you want me to fall for you? I'll make sure you won't achieve that. I'm okay on my own from here. Good night Hoseok," she whispered to my ear and her lips accidentally lightly brushed against my lobes. Smirking, she pulled back and headed towards the door.

Something in me just triggered. She twisted the doorknob and opened the door when I stopped and slammed it close. Noeul turned to me, our faces inches away. 

"H..Hoseok,"   her voice trembled and I smirked.

That's the Song Noeul, I met before. Noeul's confidence was only when she had something against it. But she would falter easily when I topped her. "The bet's on, No goodnight kiss?"

"Stop playing around," She turned away but I stopped her one more time. "Hoseok, please."

I closed my eyes and my senses caught a whiff of her subtle fresh scent. I didn't exactly know what was happening but the bet that I had made with the guys had continued lingered at the back of my head. And like a slap on my face, reality hit me hard. I realised I couldn't do anything bad with Noeul, not even to the extent of breaking her heart. Despite knowing her for a few days, Noeul had been nothing but kind. I was the one who kept on pestering her knowing that wasn't what she wanted.

"Sorry," I pulled back, giving back the space she needed. I turned away, "I got carried away. Good night."

Just like that, I heard the door close.

I slumped against the sofa and buried my face into my palms. I picked my phone, I checked the message group in Kakao and recorded my message. "I've declared that I'm dating her in front of my parents."

That wasn't what I had wanted to say.

I had wanted to call off the bet.