"Love is a gamble, not a game. You are supposed to take some risks, not play."

— Anonymous

Byun Baekhyun was not one to gamble without evaluating the risks—more so, without ensuring the odds were in his favor. That victory was in his court.

That was, until he met his match.

Without much effort, she shattered his long-standing formulas, saw through his proven game-plays, and made him question his sharpened skills. More impressively, she continued to do so until he was forced to take a shot and make a declaration.

The once calculative risk-taker dove in blind, and did so without even weighing his return of investment. He embarked on a long journey to navigate through the uncharted waters that was Seo Ara—knowing, for the first time, that the destination was nowhere near in sight. And that the outcome was most definitely uncertain.  

"Mine and only mine?" Ara repeated with a smirk of disbelief. Though his proposition sounded favorable to her—because it would eliminate future drama like the one they were in now—she wasn't confident this benefit would outweigh the possible risks. More importantly, she wasn't sure of the burdens it could bring.

"Won't that be too difficult?" she continued indifferently, gauging his determination while trying to persuade him to abandon his proposal, "I can't and won't provide your needs."

Baekhyun chuckled lightly at her statement. Though Ara was well aware of his philandering ways, she clearly failed to—or rather, refused to—recognize that that wasn't all there was to him. "Don't worry. I'll manage just fine," he countered with overflowing confidence.

|| Thirteen Days Later ||

He and Ara had separated at the Ngurah Rai International Airport the following morning after their interesting dinner the night before.

While his wife returned to work, Baekhyun headed the opposite direction towards England. And for the entire length of his near two-weeklong business trip, he remained in the dark about the events that happened during his absence.

The following day after Ara returned from her "far from a vacation" vacation, Director Nam shipped her off to Jeju to take part in BYN Group's opening team for their newest resort.

Her immediate superior had rotated another 180 degrees, returning to his old self and directing all of his limitless pent-up hatred towards her. He had found out through a well-connected colleague, aka Ara's witch of a mother, that the rumored relationship Director Seo had with Secretary Oh was just that: a rumor.

Ara, who he believed to be his golden key to advancement, turned out to be just a flimsy, worthless pin incapable of creating even the slightest crack—a useless pawn that needed to be punished for deceiving him.

|| …………… ||

"Welcome back, General Manager Byun!" Secretary Kim greeted cheerfully as her boss walked past the reception's desk, "Should I bring in a cup of coffee to start your day?'

Flashing a half-smile, Baekhyun responded with short nod, but halted on the spot soon after. "Actually," he started as he looked back at his assistant with a raised index finger. "Instead of coffee, send for Seo Ara from the catering department," he instructed before resuming his steps.

He had been gone for almost two weeks and though he found it quite easy to avoid temptation—since none of the women he crossed paths with peaked his interest in the slightest—he needed to double check if his wife was really worth keeping his words. If he had made a worthwhile gamble.

But at the mention of Ara's name, Secretary Kim's ear-to-ear smile faded. "Uh…" she replied with audible disquiet, one that paused his strides.

"Uh?" Baekhyun repeated as he turned back around.

Fidgeting with her fingers in secret, the young woman allowed her eyes to land on everything else but her superior's questioning yet intimidating lenses. "U—um…Director—Director Seo…isn't here…" she answered nervously.

Baekhyun's brows furrowed at her response. It was 10:16 A.M. on a Thursday with lots of events lined up for the coming weekend. Based on what he knew about Ara's work ethic, it was highly unlikely that she would take the day off. So, realizing there was a different reason for her absence, he caught Secretary Kim's wandering gaze and pressured her to continue with a single look.

"She's…she's been transferred to the opening team in Jeju," the junior assistant explained hesitantly as she shrunk by the second.

Baekhyun's expression softened in surprise, but contorted in anger just as quickly. "What do you mean she's been transferred? Who signed off on the—" he asked, but another voice confirmed his initial hunch.

"I did," Secretary Ji answered as she emerged from their office's personal kitchen, her voice oozing with arrogance. 

Their superior's face straightened, and with a loud sigh, he reached for his phone, his piercing gaze still glued to his senior assistant. But as he lowered his eyes to the screen and tapped the contacts icon, Baekhyun paused. It was only now—after more than two months of marriage—he realized he didn't have his wife's number.

With another frustrated breath, he turned his gaze to the quiet Secretary Kim. "Get me Director Seo's contact information,