Jiyong checked his phone again and carried on texting his girlfriend when it was held off earlier because of Gray. 

Dara asked again but with a groggy voice, "What happened? I think I missed a century here." 

Jiyong looked at her and noticed that she's not yet completely sober. He talked to her while typing something on his phone, "You really don't remember anything?" 

"Why?" 

"You were never the type to get hammered at a party. What am I seeing now?" ,he scolded. 

"I'm not that drunk." 

He put down his phone and jeered at what she said. He replied with sarcasm, "You just might have a terrible memory eh? Not remembering things like that." 

"Ya!" 

"Alright. It's useless to say anything to you now because you might forget this again." 

"I... We're spinning." 

"Yup. You should go home."

She wanted to ask more questions about where CL really is, how did she get to the couch, why did Gray leave like that or why is Jiyong at the party but her body was feeling completely sluggish and her mind was still in the state of slumber so she passed out one more time. 

Her manager came after a few minutes and she was sent home safely that night. 
She was sleeping so peacefully in her bed without knowing what occured in the party. 

But what really happened before she out? 

It was when she caught herself moving weirdly at the party and she stopped. When she saw Gray walking towards her, she walked away quickly to the aisle that leads to the toilet room.  
Gray wasn't clueless to identify that she was clearly drunk so he chased her in case something bad happened to her. 
He was in a hurry because she could pass out anytime and he's afraid she might hit her head somewhere. So after running, he grabbed her and she was very unstable, wobbly in fact. 
He smiled because he found her cute even when she's drunk. Her eyes were open but it looked lifeless as if she wasn't aware of her surroundings now, like a sleepwalker who wanders everywhere.  
Her cheeks were flushed red and her shirt was wet with spilled beer from .  
Even though she looked terrible tonight and her actions were a total let down, it didn't change anything as to how Gray looked at her.  
To him, she became more human. Vulnerable and imperfect. 

He then tried to talk to her whether or not she was still responsive. 

"Are you going to the toilet?"  

Without words, her body collapsed. Gray was attentive enough so he caught her and protected her head from hitting the floor.  

He said, "Oh my! Are you okay?"  

She didn't answer again. That's when he thought it was pointless to talk because she's passed out.  
They weren't in a very pleasant situation as celebrities so he looked around to see if someone saw what happened. Luckily, they were in an aisle around the corner which is kind of secluded from the people unless someone needs to use the toilet. 
He sighed in relief after knowing that no one saw them. Truthfully, he didn't care about his image or when someone caught him in the given situation. All he cares about now is Dara's reputation. That, he wanted to protect, so cautiously, he let her sit on the floor and lean her back on the wall, providing her at least a decent posture and not to appear like a passed out alcoholic. 

He handled her like something fragile, like a single wrong move could break her into pieces. He wanted her whole. He wanted her safe so he gently positioned her to sit straight. 

After she was finally in place, he fixed her hair, slightly paved them to the sides of her cheeks. It gave him a clear view as he now saw her face. He stared at it for so long that his heart started to ache again just by looking at it. 
He liked her so bad. He wanted her for himself. 

(Background Music: Can I Be Him - James Arthur || https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mcXv4w-cm3U&list=RDmcXv4w-cm3U&start_radio=1)

They were all alone in the area and he could've taken advantage of her drunk state but no matter how tempted he was, he couldn't bring himself to do it. But staring at her lips was the hardest test that shook his self-control so while he was sitting down, he moved his face closer to hers, aiming for a kiss. 
His heart beat faster and faster because he knows that it's her. Even if fate brings him to somebody else, he was sure it was her. 

The intensity of what he feels about her is too much that he was beginning to feel scared. Although his heart wanted to go for it, his mind ordered for a halt. 
He closed his eyes hardly as he remembered that she already belonged to another man. 
He didn't want to cross the line so he just stopped and bumped his forehead to hers. 

In the silence, he thought, "Did I come too late? If you met me first, would you have chosen me instead?" 

He imagined that the face in front of him was once kissed by another man and he had probably done it a lot of times. He had probably seen it every day or at the end of the day after they finished work and probably held it with his hands when they were together while he couldn't even touch it. 
He could only look at it and hope he could kiss it someday. It was all he's thinking about. 

He wondered what it feels like in her world or how it feels like to hear her voice frequently. He was curious as to how her touch feels like, how she talks about her day when she was happy or sad. He wanted to know every detail about her. He wanted to share her burdens whenever she tells her problems. 
He wanted to carry the hurt because he knew how hard it must be for her after the dating scandal of her boyfriend with another woman. He saw it from her face the other day, of how much she tried to hide herself. 
While their foreheads were touching, the pain kept growing in his heart knowing that he was so close to her now in presence but he knew her heart was somewhere else. His forehead touches hers but she still feels so far. 

Reality slapped him hard that night especially when she told him that they were still together. 
He envied him so much. 

He muttered, "Can I be him?" while remaining in his position. 
He gulped and fought the urge to kiss her so he moved his face away.

To his astonishment, she talked out of the blue, "I'm sorry." and tapped his cheek with her eyes closed. 

He was so shocked he wasn't able to respond. He froze in embarrassment that maybe she was awake the whole time. Not until she talked again... 

"I chose correctly. It's just too much. It's too much. I'm sorry." 

"Eh?" 

He had no idea what she's talking about. She must have thought he was Donghae, therefore she apologized for what she said last night. Obviously, Gray was ignorant about it. 
He was in the middle of trying to decipher what she meant because he thought it was for him when Jiyong came inside the party. 

He got a message from Taeyang, informing him that Dara was drunk as hell. He didn't know anyone who could help her out but him. Having to witness their intimate friendship, he thought Jiyong was the best choice and he would never trust Dara who's currently with anyone unless it's his best friend. 

So when Jiyong got the call, irritated he may be, but he instantly went back to the party. He went inside and looked for her from every person he knew but they didn't see her. He was greeted by a lot of people because he surprisingly came but he ignored them all and kept on looking for her. 
He searched for her in every corner while thinking "That noona is really troublesome. Aish!" 

So upon his search, he found himself in the aisle leading to the toilet room and saw the scene between Gray and Dara. 

He was shocked at first to see her with the company of someone but relieved to know that she's not alone. He knew Gray but he didn't know he had that kind of connection to her. He wasn't blind to see how he looked at her. His eyes seemed to yell out his emotions.  
He could've talked at this point but he couldn't speak. Was he afraid of ruining their moment?  
He heaved a breath and remembered that there was another guy that she didn't speak of and by seeing them, he could confidently conclude that it was Gray. Gray was the other guy. 

He stood there, motionless and voiceless. He didn't want to meddle anymore in her love life so he took a backseat for that subject. Besides, he still felt a little guilty for the words he told her tonight which steered him to the inability of getting into her business again. 
He thought it was time to stop. She's had enough. 
And now seeing her situation, he felt sorry for her. She must be having a hard time already and he punished her more with his sharp tongue. He never thought that his actions would make her spiral like this tonight.  

So in the middle of gaping at her passed out self, he murmured, "Wow. And I’m the miserable one?" 

Gray, who had bad vision but good hearing, heard him so he stood up right away and said, "Ah, Jiyong-ah." 

Because he was already caught in the act, he acted casually and responded, "What happened to her?" 

"I think she drank too much."  

Jiyong walked closer and stopped in front of Dara like he was saying he could take care of it already. Gray moved away from them a little bit to give way to Jiyong. 
Jiyong sat down and pulled Dara's arm to make her stand up but Gray thought he was doing a rough approach so he appealed, "She might get hurt." 

Jiyong looked at him and didn't say anything. Gray knew he was older but he couldn't deny that he got intimidated by his stare.  
Jiyong saw the look from Gray's face and read his expression so he loosened up a bit to give off a lighter vibe.  

He chuckled and said, "Ayy~ Hyung, if you don't want her to get hurt, lay her down on the couch. Not here." 

Gray chuckled too and just whisked the back of his neck. 

Jiyong said, "If I carried her on my back or cradled her, it would cause too much of a scene there. Do you think so?" 

"Yes, that's why I let her sit first." 

Jiyong nodded and shook Dara in the attempt to wake her up. He said, "Noona! Wake up!" and kept on doing it but she's not responding so he forced her to stand up and walk. 
  
Due to her sudden change in position, her senses were awakened. He had his arm around her so she looked at him who was handling her at the moment and said, "You!" 

Jiyong thought she acts funny when she's drunk. He then laughed and replied, "What?"

"You still like me, do you?"  

He was shocked so he covered and said, "What are you saying? You're really drunk." 
He looked at Gray and saw him watching them. Unsettled from the set of circumstances, he shyly bowed to him and ushered Dara away from the aisle. 

While they were