Chapter 9

Son Yejin appearance at the Exhibition attracted the crowd, especially with her simple black dress up to her knees that made her look younger. They put their smile when Yejin was around. They stayed calm and mesmerizing HB Signature while smiling at Yejin. She kept bowing to the crowd who knew her sudden appearance in HB Signature's Exhibition. Another appearance of a celebrity suddenly attracted her to see in another direction.

"OH ... Sunbae-nim ..." Yejin approached him hurriedly.

"Yah ... be careful, This place full of potteries," he said while grabbing her arms from being too close with the potteries.

"Sunbae, you said that you would come on the 2nd day of the Exhibition," she whispered.

"Ah ...the wrap-up party was ended sooner. So, I came earlier," he put a slight smile knowing her sudden appearance in the exhibition.

"Sunbae, you know the crowd is all calm even there are us. It's amazing, right? Sunbae," she said excitedly after knowing she could go in the crowd without being the main attention even the crowd know their identities as artists.

"That's why I often came to this exhibition. It is like a healing for me, seeing amazing artworks with a calm ambient,"

"It's amazing, how can Oppa make the ambient like this?" she mumbled unconsciously while mesmerizing Hyunbin's artwork in front of her.

"Oppa?" Woosung furrowed his brows after hearing the word Oppa.

"Ah... I mean the owner," she smiled sheepishly and diverting her eyes elsewhere.

"Hhmmm... Yejin-ah, I know you. So, is your husband HB Signature's owner?" he whispered to Yejin ear in a low voice while she was clearing .

"No ...." she said hiding her face elsewhere.

"Had you broken his artworks already?" he whispered again teasing her.

"I had ..." she sighed but then she realized what she had said. "I mean ...Aishhh...."

"Waw, I can't believe you're married to HBSignature's owner," he said as turning their bodies to the artwork hiding their faces and walking to see other artworks while having small talk.

"Don't tell anyone, Sunbae!" she said while putting her index finger to her lips, closer to him.

"I know. By the way, I have sent you HB Signature, did you keep it? I thought it would be a piece of cake with other artworks," he asked.

"I keep it well. I saved it in my bedroom so that he couldn't see it. He wants to sell it right away after he sees it. Geez ..."

"You are not sleeping in the same room? How can he don't know his artwork is still in his house when you're putting it into your bedroom?"

"Aishhh..." Yejin sighed in disbelief and knocked her head with her palm knowing her stupidity. Woosung frowned realizing something strange had happened. He grabbed her hand fast and bring her to an empty place under the stairs which hide their presence in the exhibition.

"You, don't you say that you are getting married to him to cover our scandal?" he whispered feeling wrong about the marriage right after seeing her gestures when they were talking.

"I don't..." she said roaming her sight while biting her lips.

"Yejin-ah... please, be honest to me!" he sighed in disbelief.

"I did, Sunbae. But it is not only the reason I am getting married to Oppa..."

"Do you love him?" he asked her with his keen eyes looked at her eyes fully.

"I...." Yejin stuttered.

'Prang'

The lamp in the empty room fell right over her. Fortunately, Woosung who had seen the lamp protects her by dragging her away in his embrace and covering her head. They fell not far from the shattered lamp.

"Are you fine?"

"Sunbae ..." she whispered under his embrace. Suddenly muscular hands pulled her away from his embrace. Yejin almost slipped from the harsh embrace, but she grabbed the hand that grabbed her obediently.

"Don't you two know that you are artists?" Hyunbin said in sarcasm. Hyunbin also looked at the one on his hug in disbelief.

"Oppa...It is an accident..." she replied trying to cover Jung Woosung who was her senior and the one that helped her. Woosung woke up from the floor while fixing his suit.

"Don't you two know that your slight intimate gestures would become a scandal?"

"It isn't like what is seen..." Woosung added.

"I don't care about that, the one I know is every hidden activity of yours could be a trending topic by tomorrow," Hyunbin said with his deep voice and dragged Yejin out from the scene and leaving the exhibition early ignoring the fact that it still has a long way to go

*****((()))*****

The one who was seeing the scene from the darkness after the lamp accident left the stairs with curses. The plan was ruined. The culprit walked faster leaving the scene and suddenly crashed into someone.

"Are you fine?" Hwang Yijeong Reporter grabbed the hands when the culprit crashed him.

The culprit passed him fast ignoring his presence fast. Hwang Yijeong turned and tilted his head back in confusion and went straight to the restroom whistling.

*****((()))*****

Yejin couldn't see him in the same way. His anger worsened their situation. She didn't have a braveness to again. She just took a glance at Hyunbin who was focused on driving and calling the team in Exhibition and telling them that he was gone back to the villa first.

It was her first time seeing him being so mad and it was caused by her. She was fastening her seatbelt after feeling the car was being over accelerated. The speed made them touched the villa at the fastest. Hyunbin opened the car door harshly after parking the car and Yejin followed him right after him.

"Oppa!!" she shouted at him who ignored her presence since the incident in the exhibition. Hyunbin stopped his way and sighed deeply while his hands were on his waist covering his forehead in pain.

"Why are you angry?" she asked while he smirked knowing how innocent she was.

"I am tired ..." he walked again.

"Oppa! Stop!" she shouted again and tried to approach him. He obediently stopped without turning his back waiting for what she was trying to say.

"Oppa, I don't know what makes you be like this? But, I am sorry. I feel weird with this situation," she said while trying to catch him with the heels against the grass that made it difficult to reach him fast. Hyunbin just sighed in disbelief and left her again.

"OPPA!"

'BRUG'

Hyunbin turned his back and saw Yejin laid helplessly massaging her sprained leg after falling. One of her heels broke and she flinched her face in pain on the ground. Hyunbin came to her sighing. He looked at her sprained leg and put her hand to his shoulder and lifted her in bridal style. He didn't look at her face at all but still, he was caring for her.

"Oppa, don't be angry, please!" she said seeing the anger on him.

*****((()))*****

Woosik and Hari who came to the exhibition were confused when they couldn't find the main person behind HB Signature. They roamed each artwork which was shown in the exhibition.

"Where are they, Oppa?" Hari mumbled.

"I don't know..." he replied when suddenly they caught the appearance of Jung Woosung and Choi Junyoung from afar in the exhibition. "Oh My, I feel something bad happened," he sighed.

"OMO ... I think it is, Oppa!" she replied.

"Wait..." Woosik d his pocket and called Hyunbin. He called his number for times and also Yejin. However, neither Hyunbin nor Yejin picked the phone. "I feel something bad had happened, he doesn't pick the call."

"Do you know where he lives in here, Oppa?"

"I don't know," he thought hard for a while massaging his forehead with his index finger, "Don't say that he lives there?!" he mumbled.

"Where is it, Oppa?" Hari said being puzzled.

"Somewhere, I don't know it is true or not but, I ever asked him why did he choose a villa in Daegu? And he didn't reply any of it." his jaw suddenly opened in awe. "I see ...Yejin's father's house," he snapped his fingers.

"Omo ... he loves Yejin that much."

"Told you so!"

*****((()))*****

Yejin was sitting on the bed flinched, feeling the cold touch her sprained leg. Hyunbin had already taken off his suit. With his sleeves being folded, he carefully put the ice pack on her swollen leg. He also flinched when he heard her silent scream.

"Oppa ... I am sorry..." she mumbled.

"What are you going to say? You don't do anything wrong."

"You have been angry since we touched Daegu. I don't know what makes you turn out like that. I am feeling weird with that kind of situation," she bitted her lips when saying it and flinched feeling the cold on her leg.

"I am just tired. Don't think too much!" he sighed.

"Oppa ..." she asked again.

"It is done ... I am going to my bedroom, call me when you need me," he readily left her ignoring her explanation.

"Oppa, can I ask you something?" he stopped. "Can you just sleep here? What if I need your help, but you already in a deep sleep and I can't even walk?" she asked with her innocent look. Hyunbin closed his eyes redeeming his messy feeling that messed him that day.

-----

"Oppa... Oppa..." she shook his body lightly. Hyunbin hardly opened his eyes and looked at the shining thing on the bedside table beside him. He woke up in sudden and looked at Yejin who already put on a smile on her face.

"I am sorry, I should do it yesterday, but because of my eagerness on meeting my father, I forget what should I do on your birthday. So, I changed the plan to make a surprise before the day end."

Hyunbin turned his face looking at the clock and it was still fifteen minutes left before the day change. He turned his gaze to her swollen ankle once again to make sure that she didn't walk to get the choco pies with the candles outside.

"Told you don't go anywhere yet!" he furrowed his eyebrows feeling bad. The fact she walked with her swollen ankle to get something for him aroused his anger.

"Oppa just make a wish first and blow the candle before the day end," she said as taking the plates. She took the plate with much effort with her sprained ankle. Seeing her put many efforts, he took the plate before her. His heart thumped hard with every inch of her actions that day. Just in one day, he wanted to choke , shout at her, and hug her. She put him on the rollercoaster in a day and exactly on his birthday. He fluttered because of her surprise, but he also felt wrong with her condition in difficulties. "Oppa, Close your eyes and make a wish!" she whispered clasping her hands and prayed behind the candles. His eyes stuck at her who sincerely make a wish.

The one he wanted was that she would never leave him in this marriage. Tears were ready to fall on his face when she opened her eyes.

"Happy Birthday to you, Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday Hyunbin Oppa, Happy birthday to you!" she sang clapping her hands in a low voice with the eye smile she had. His eyes couldn't divert from hers.

"Blow up the candles, Oppa!" Hyunbin blew the candles and put the plate back on the bedside table.

"Oppa, what do you want for your birthday?" Hyunbin pulled her into his hug by dragging her nape closer to him. He put his lips on her and it hard. The woman in front of him with all of her innocence and unexpected action already dragged him down to her world.

His hand moves to grab her hair and her lips to let him in. Yejin froze and didn't do anything. Her hands which tried to push him away at first also stopped. Her heart thumped faster when he was trying hard to open her lips. Yejin felt something scrunched inside her tummy and she didn't know when was it happened and she just realized after knowing his tongue already placed inside .

He was different, he didn't act like usual. She couldn't describe what it was but, she also didn't know what to do. Rather than being confused about her feeling, she felt a lot warmer and she just closed her eyes following his soft pace. Her hands traveled to his hair carefully and grabbed his hair soft still being scared of what will happen to them by tomorrow. It was unexpected and she couldn't imagine how they start the day after the kiss.

The clock clinked loud for twelve times while his hand caressed her cheek and he lessened the pace. His eyes started to open seeing the one in front of him closing her eyes still deeply drawn into the kiss. He pulled out his lips slowly and cupped her lips times. At the same times, he felt her hands dropped from his hair to his shoulder. She opened her eyes being shocked by what had happened. Her eyes and cheeks reddened while she bitted her lips being uneasy.

He gulped his throat. He could hear his heartbeat than usual and he dragged her palm to his chest to feel the beat.

"Ah, I know you need practice for the theory ..." she mumbled diverting her eyes, didn't want to take the kiss seriously since it was going too deep already. Her eyes were already collecting it tears, but it didn't fall.

"No ..." he sighed still looked at her, straight into her eyes. He gulped his throat and closed his eyes calming his heart that beat uncontrollably first before talking. He bit his lips but in the end, he captured her lips to redeem his heart that wanted to explode didn't know what words he wanted to blurt. He caressed her cheeks to deepen their kiss. The kiss was harsher than before and Yejin suddenly pushed him away at that time and she gasped her hard breath.

"Oppa, I don't know ... tomorrow ... Oppa How I .." she stuttered didn't know what she wanted to explain how awkward tomorrow and days ahead after the kiss.

"Yejin-ah ..." he caught his hard breath while his hands still caressed her cheeks. "My wish is ... can you see me as a man? That is what I want for my birthday!"

"Oppa ...I ..."

"I don't know you would take me as your lover but, I will try! I want to try to be the one who you loved all the time. Give me a chance to try to be yours fully." he ended his words with a deep sigh putting his forehead on hers.

"Oppa ... I ..." he pecked her lips didn't want her to blurt a word that might break his feeling that midnight.

"Please, don't say it today, I am still on my birthday. Please, don't break my heart at my birthday! Like I said give me a chance to prove that I am serious with all I've said," he looked at her teary eyes seriously and he wiped the tears that escaped from her eyes. "I am not forcing you, I want to spend times more as a man who loves you rather than neighborhood Oppa, I want to prove it and make you comfortable with the fact that I love you."

"Oppa, the man I....." she mumbled but he came to her closer and give her a peck.

"Yejin-ah ... please, don't utter another man name in front of me after this, I can't handle that..."

"DING DONG"

-----

Hyunbin opened the door harshly. The one who rang the bell took a steep back being shocked after seeing Hyunbin with his messy hair and a wrinkled shirt.

"Yah...Did I disturb you?" Woosik blinked his eyes innocently, while his wife grabbing his shoulders behind, hiding herself being shy seeing the man with those conditions she knew what had happened to him.

"What do you want?"

"Uhm...I..." Woosik straightened his posture and cleared his throat. "I can't find hotels that open this time. So, can I live here too?" he scratched his nape.

"I know what you want," Hyunbin knew his intention coming to his villa.

"Ehm if you know, then I should come in .." he giggled proudly and dragged items of luggage inside.

"Where is Yejin?" Woosik asked him.

"She can't walk right now," he replied casually and the two pairs of eyes looked at him in shock. Not only them but also Hyunbin was being shocked at them.

"Already??? Youuu .... Yahh... I can't believe ... I just give you a protector but then you did ... harsh..." Woosik shook his head in disbelief while Hari gulped and put her hand on her chest feeling the heartbeat started arising.

"Is she okay? You didn't do it too hard, right?" Hari asked him carefully.

Hyunbin just sighed in disbelief at the weird couple after they said that.

"She sprained her leg because her heel broke. These erts!" Hyunbin left them in a reassurance. "That's my bedroom, I will move my luggage tomorrow!" he pointed to a bedroom and he left the couple in the livingroom bewildered.

"Ahh ... she sprained her leg. That is why she can't walk." Woosik said as they nodded their heads slowly.

"Yah ... Oppa! But, he naturally went to Yejin's room!" Hari clapped her hands on him and they jumped in joy.

"Yah ...Don't forget to turn off the lamp!" Hyunbin shouted behind the door to the weird couple who jumped like a kid.

"ALRIGHT SIR! Have a good sleep there!" Woosik shouted teasing him.

"If you don't make a sound like you did after my wedding!" Hyunbin closed the door harshly and the weird couple still in their joy, celebrating that he started getting closer with the one he loves.

*****((()))*****

-Epilogue-

"Yah ... why do you still play this puzzle?" Young Hyunbin asked her who was searching for a piece of the puzzle to finish it. He also looked for under the chair and desk in front of Woosik's house.

"If you don't want to help, you can go home, Oppa!" she said after finding the last piece of the puzzle and lifted it. She smiled in happiness and she put the strain off her hair that ruined when she was searching the puzzle. They sat on the chair while Hyunbin was sitting right in front of her. Yejin put the last piece and clapped her hands. "FINISH!" she sprawled her hands after finishing the small pieces kind of puzzle.

"Who is this?" he asked her after the puzzle was completed.

"Oppa, Don't you know Jung Woosung?" she widened her eyes in disbelief.

"Who is he?" he asked innocently.

"He is the most handsome actor this year ...." she looked so smitten after telling the story. She smiled and clasped her hands imagining how handsome the man was. Hyunbin just cleared his throat feeling something wrong and drank the juice that was prepared by her mother.

"Do you like him that much?" he diverted his gaze to the view in front of her house.

"I love him, Oppa! How can a man be that perfect?" she was still in her imaginary world.

"If you love him, why did you buy puzzles? Just buy his pictures!" he replied lazily.

"Yah, Oppa. If you want to get what you want, you must try hard. I put my efforts to finish the puzzle and finally it is done. You can imagine how satisfied I am after watching the full picture of him after passing the obstacles."

" But, looks! It is an imperfect picture!" he pointed mocking at the puzzle.

"It doesn't matter, At least I am trying!" she replied being irritated.

"Hmm ...whatever!" he gulped the juice once again.

"Oppa... Jung Woosung is ..." Yejin started telling him about Jung Woosung as she lived in his life. She knew every single thing about him 'Is it called a fan? Or maybe love?' he thought. 'How happy he is if someone also knew him as Yejin did to that Woosung man!' he thought. If he calculated accurately from her story, he was years older than Yejin and it might make Yejin looked like a child beside him.

He rolled his eyes listening to her never-ending story while he kept gulping the juice to wet his throat that was started being dried since she started the story. He didn't know which part made him almost finished the juice until he interrupted her story.

"Where is Woosik, by the way?" he asked her.

"Uhh...he went for football since you came," yejin replied innocently.

"WHAT THE? He told me that he will go with me."

"No, He left before you came. He left you when you forget to take your cap and he left right after you reached your house to take it."

"Why don't you tell me?"

"Oh ...I am sorry, Oppa. I am focusing on my puzzle..." she smiled sheepishly.

 

– to be continued –

 

Author’s note:

Hi my beloved reader ^^

I couldn’t make an update on Friday but I am trying to update on Saturday ^^

Thank you so much for reading and supporting my story through votes, comments, and also direct messages ^^

It lightened my days ^^

And for the last, kindly check my other stories The Binding Angel, Through Their Lenses, and The Luckiest ^^

Sincerely, Byeol-nim