CHAPTER 8: DENY

October, half of the month. The businesswoman was seen sitting at one of the benches at the pavilion, it was a cool morning when the older had decided to go out to see some things going on inside the vastness of the hacienda. The workers had been greeting her here and there but her thoughts were floating up in the sky to not even notice their working presence.

There's nothing much special had happened to her life for the past few weeks, as usual, she always had to do a lot workloads forgetting the reason why she had decided to go to Spain to have a vacation, she just felt like she's back home feeling to the usually state of stress she had on her life.

Stress.

Her sister had shared a news about the family of Kang Seulgi had finally decided to make a move against to those media outlets who spread the rumours that included her name which made her glad to hear about it but the fact that her father was doing something again to jump up on her private life had made her feel like she doesn't have the chance to live free, like she needed to live enthralled by her father's power as the man who gave her the life that everyone had wanted.

If only she can choose whether to stay in their family or not, she would chose to leave rather than staying on the family who would just choke her from the things she did not want to do but she couldn't do that, as long as her sister had chosen to live with her parents, she can't let go of her part as a member of the family because she had already knew that if she leave without her sister on her side, the burden she brought will we all thrown to youngest which she was trying to avoid.

As long as she can take care of her little sister, she'll do it without even a single piece of hesitance.

"Excuse me?" Someone spoke from her back making the older to turn around just to see a familiar woman smiling brightly towards her. "Hehe, sorry." Seulgi said as she casually walked inside the pavilion with the brown paper bag she was holding in her hand.

"I thought you'd never be coming back in here." Irene said as she let the younger sat next to her, it has been a quite long time since the last time she had seen the psychologist, the last time she had remembered upon seeing the younger was when they both cried like a fool in the middle of the night with the clear spirit of the liquor running to their veins and that was a few weeks ago if the businesswoman would tried to remember from then on, they would just communicate to each other by text and calls, just casually talking about the things happening back in Korea.

And it was a surprise for her to see the psychologist to come here in such broad daylight.

"There were just some things I needed to do in Madrid and yeah, I just decided to come over to give you this." The psychologist said as she handed the paper bag towards the older. "I mean, I know I at making things but I tried to bake a cupcake for you, since that was the only thing I'm good at doing. That's a Magdalena cupcake, I baked that earlier this morning so it's still fresh." The businesswoman smiled as she took the pastry box from the paper bag, the indulging smell of the cupcakes penetrated her nose making her stomach growl in hunger.

Seulgi chuckled, making the two of them fall into laughter. "Don't tell me you haven't eaten yet?" The psychologist asked.

"I've already eaten but I'm craving for this since last night and I just can't go out since Wendy told me not to."

"Speaking of that woman." Seulgi said making the older to remember something that their friend had said to her.

"Yeah, she told me she can't go here as of the moment." Irene said, making the younger to nod her head. "I was actually rooting for her to tour me around the town since she had promised me that before I could even leave the land of rumours." The older rolled her eyes which made the psychologist chuckle. Korea is really a country of media who spread that kind of s.

"So that was the reason why Emilia had told me to at least visit you here more often since you are getting older and older than before, look your wrinkles are even coming out." The younger said jokingly making the older to smack her head.

"You can choose between kick or punch gal you know that." The older one said. "You're too glad that you brought something that I really want." She said as she took one of the cupcakes inside the box. "Get some."

"Does that mean it's not delicious?" Seulgi asked while looking at the older who was busy munching pastry she had eaten.

"Of course," She took another piece from the box and motioned her to open , the younger was confused but she did it anyway making the older to shove the huge cupcake on . "not, why don't you try it ha? Does that taste awful for you?"

Seulgi took the cupcake off of which made the older to laugh at the psychologist's reaction, Irene continued to eat her cupcake while looking at the younger who was already eating hers. "So?" The older said while raising both of her brows. "How are you?" She asked, Irene crossed her legs up to the bench.

The psychologist nodded her head and faced the older. "I'm doing fine, I'm actually working with my uncle right now, the psych facility that had been operating since early nineteen hundreds, I was actually doing more fun right now and," She took something from the hidden pocket she had inside her coat. "well, I was thinking of inviting you here this Friday, it's the premiere night of the movie shot here years ago, it was released later than the scheduled year because of some issues between the production team and to the previous owner." Seulgi gave the ticket to the older woman which she gladly accepted. "Well, the rumours include the issue from before."

The people's unwanted, and broken relationship of the noblewoman to the picker.

"That would be fun though." Irene put the ticket on the paper bag and looked at the younger. "How about..." Irene's brows rose up as she was stopping herself from saying the psychologist's ex-wife's name. That would be ridiculous if she said that woman's name and Seulgi would be bawling again as she remembered her in such broad daylight.

"Maybe she's doing fine? I guessed, there were a lot of things she needed to do in and out of the country she was in right now and I heard that her company was about to launch a new product in the market, so, yeah, maybe she's doing good now." Seulgi said as she continued to eat her cupcake which made the older to be surprised on what she was doing, she expected her to be sad about her question or much worse, she might ruin the mood they have right now. Seulgi suddenly spoke, making the business woman proud of the younger. "We'll it is a matter of accepting it and moving on as what you have said, I should have loved myself first." The psychologist turned around to face the older with her bright smile drawn on her lips.

"Let me ask you a question." The older said as she stood up from her seat.

"Sure, go ahead."

"Are you Seulgi?"

The psychologist laughed. "Of course I am, I am Kang Seulgi, a psychologist. What do you expect Ms. Bae?"

"Well, someone who was afraid of moving on."

--

"Oh come on." The hazel brown hair woman said under her breath as she followed someone who was walking ahead of her. "I know I'm too small Lalisa so at least please respect my feet." Wendy said as she stopped to catch her breath while looking at the Thai who was already walking a few meters away from where she stopped.

"Yah! Lalisa!" She shouted and jogged towards the younger, it was four in the afternoon when the big baby of Thailand said that she wanted to treat the older a drink and now here they are, catching each other in the middle of Hanggang Park, the river's breeze and some people passing by were looking at them maybe thinking that the two of them were having a fight.

Which is obviously not and is just about to get there.

Especially to the small bean who had been chasing the tall baby since earlier.

Wendy was working a lot of things inside their family's company as her proclamation as the next president of their chains was about to come and that would only mean that her life as a free person would also be a go go.

"La-lisa..." Wendy automatically stopped from running as she saw a tall familiar figure of a woman. "S-Sooyoung..." She said as making the two to look at her. Wendy felt everything moved slowly as she met the eyes of the woman, of course, who wouldn't be, right? If a successful actress, model, CEO and the ultimate girl crush of everyone would suddenly pop up in your usual day. That would obviously be shocking.

"Unnie, annyeong!" Joy said as she walked towards the older who was standing frozen with her face obviously flushed from what she was seeing right now, the younger bowed down making the small woman to greet her back. "I really like those flowers you have sent to me, I really do appreciate those kinds of things."

At one moment, everything around her stopped from moving when she felt a pair of arms hugging her tight, her eyes widened as she looked at the person from afar who was eyeing and motioning her to hug her back. "Uhm... hehe." The Thai facepalm and raised her middle finger.

"Oh, I'm really sorry about that." The woman said as she tapped both of the businesswoman's shoulder. "I'm really glad to meet you, finally, I wasn't really able to look for some time to go to your office since there were a lot of things I needed to do too, your letters had made me smile thr-"

Choked with her own tongue, Wendy coughed as she remembered every time she had to write something to send to her she cringed like she absolutely needed to shake all the cliché things she could jot down inside her head.

And one of them was saying that she liked her.

"Damn, please, can someone open the gates of hell? I really need to hide now." Her voice inside her head whispered as Wendy mentally facepalmed herself to the embarrassment she was facing right now.

"Ahh yeah, she... she hurt earlier so it felt kinda itchy." The Thai suddenly jumped into the side of the actress. "Do you want to drink something to ease the itchiness, Seungwan-ah." From the tone of her voice, Wendy could really sense that the psychologist was a bit annoyed when suddenly Lisa excused the two of them and dragged her not too far away from the actress. "Come on, do something, I've already been doing the move that was supposedly be done by yourself, so now, grab the chance and get her, you assho-"

"Jennie! Jisoo!"

Both of their eyes turned wide as they heard those familiar names, at the same time they faced Sooyoung who was already talking with the two popular IT girls of Asia when they suddenly realized.

"Damn, we're both doomed.

--

Tonight, I saw you once again, with your dashing fit and your eyes that spiked me like an arrow, you confessed, I didn't mean any harm lady, I just found you attractive, despite the social differences of our status, I'm willing to commit.

To commit a sin.

The day happened to run so fast, the light coming from the sinking sunlight were adding a beautiful scenic scenery on the vineyard, meanwhile, the sulking gorgeous beauty of the businesswoman who was taking her daily favourite time of the day walking in the wide range yard while greeting some of the leaving workers who seemed to be so shy by just saying a polite goodbye to their boss, when suddenly Irene found herself walking up to someone who seemed to be working so hard even though the sky got to go deeper and darker, it was the psychologist, Seulgi.

"What are you doing?" She asked looking at the almost full basket of tempranillo. "It's getting dark, you should g-" The woman stopped, remembering that the woman had gone straight from Madrid to here just to see her. "Yeah I forgot about it." She shook her head and tried to snatch the basket from the younger.

"I'm not yet done, look, there were a lot more in my line." Seulgi said, pointing at the hanging ripe grapes. "I should finish this fir-"

"Are you going to listen to me or I will call someone to tie your feet to one of my horses and run you around the town, would you like that?" Irene said, making the psychologist give the basket abruptly to the older. "Lol." Irene laughed making the younger to pout.

Earlier, when they were looking around the hacienda, Seulgi had decided to try something new out of her comfort zone and it was trying to pick up some grapes with the other works of the hacienda which made her feel like a normal living person just doing their job to live a life of a descent and middle-wage worker and she felt it was kind of fun as the workers just treated her like what they did to their regular co-workers which made her happy, realizing the fact that even though working in such a tough and tiring work, it wouldn't make you less of a human, like, there is no title for everything as long as you wanted and you were capable to do it and that's for sure you can do it and there would be such a good outcome.

"You're enjoying such a life of a free person ha?" Irene said as she motioned and asked one of the stay-in workers to bring the basket to the storage room. "There were a lot more things to come in here, the picking season was just about to get over." She looked at the younger who really looked so ragged and dirty, her white long-sleeved polo had turned into brown who also had some sweat stains at the back, chest and lower abdomen which made the businesswoman shake her head. "You looked like someone had abandoned you for years. Aish, come on, come with me." Without any hesitance, Irene held her dirty hand and dragged her back to the mansion.

"Señorita." The butlers bowed down as they entered the house, which Irene gladly replied with a timid smile. For a month and half of staying there, the businesswoman had learned how read someone whether they would do something good to her or not which made her glad to herself that she was able to adjust in such a strange environment for her, especially that she was staying to a place where everyone in the rest of the world had thought that it was all about living in a beautiful and dashing life of huge hacienda.

Without knowing the little bit of spice in its history.

"Emilia?" She called the old woman to look at her. "Can you prepare her food?" She asked, referring to the psychologist who was standing next to her.

"Of course señorita, that wouldn't be a problem."

Irene nodded her head and started to glide up to the staircase. "Aren't you going to follow me?" She asked as she looked at the psychologist who was still standing at the end of the stairs making her look like a lost stray cat. "Come on. Unless you wanted to take a bath here." Seulgi turned to look at the businesswoman and back to the butlers who had their brows frowned, obviously refraining themselves to laugh from what they heard from their boss.

Awkward.

Irene bit her lip. "I-I mean, you! You needed to change your clothes!"

"Just don't talk, please." The psychologist mouthed as she jogged up to the stairs and grabbed the businesswoman's wrist to follow her. Inside their head, Seulgi and Irene just wished to get eaten by the ground alive on what the embarrassment the older had made in front of those men downstairs.

"You really are crazy!"

"Oh come on, I just couldn't bear looking at you like you are a stray lost house cat." Irene answered, making the two of them laugh as they remembered the faces of the butlers from earlier. "I swear I really need to improve my words."

"You really needed to." Seulgi replied as she followed the older in one of the rooms at the far end of the house, from the amazing designs of the interior outside, the psychologist never failed to get amazed from those designs from before who were kept preserved and cleaned as the years passed by, everything in and out of the hacienda were called a perfect masterpiece and no one can erased that fact. "You really live an extravagant life here old woman." The psychologist said as she watched the older who took some of the clothes she had inside her closet room. "I really wasn't able to enjoy the time I spent going in here when I was younger.

"Younger?" Irene asked as she walked towards the psychologist and handed her the robe and clothes she got. "Did you mean, you've already gone here?"

The psychologist sat on the chair and started to undo her oxfords. "Yeah, before my grandfather passed away, my parents used to bring us here every summer to spend some time with my sick abuelo which I don't commonly remember since I spent most of my time throwing tantrums to force them to bring me back to our house in La Moraleja."

The businesswoman was confused as she looked at the younger. "Your fam..."

"Yes, my family was connected to Miguelito Lopez de Garcia, he's my bisabuelo, my grandfather's father. My grandfather married a Korean woman, that's why the blood of an Asian was more prominent to my appearance." Seulgi explained as she took off her socks from her feet when she remembered something. "Well, the mysterious identity of Señorita Alessa's secret love affair with her picker had remained to be unknown to everyone up to this day but to my family we were well aware of who she was." The psychologist added as she ed her sleeve.

Irene motioned the younger to stop. "That's interesting Ms. Kang but I am not planning to see you here so I'm going to leave first. Let's talk later." The psychologist laughed and nodded.

"Sure, but before that," Seulgi said as she took the bathrobe from the mahogany table. "Wouldn't you mind if I asked you to come with me at St. Justus tonight?" She hopefully asked as the businesswoman stood in front of the door. Irene turned around and faced here, thinking if it would really be okay to hang with a divorced lesbian woman?

"I mean there's nothing really wrong about being a friend with her, but hanging out?" Irene said inside her thoughts, though she was in Spain, she was still feeling slightly uncomfortable every time she remembered what the Korean media did to her figure back in Seoul, she didn't mean that she hated to be around with the psychologist but she was just taking care of their figure.

"There's nothing wrong with it, unless..."

"Of course, I'll see you downstairs."

--

The sunrays were peeking at the overlooking windows of someone's penthouse making the woman lying on the bed to cover her eyes with a pillow and started to doze back to her dreamland when suddenly, a strong force had pulled the duvet off of her body making her to slightly shiver from the coldness of the room. "What the..." Her groggy deep morning voice had made the person standing at the end of the bed to look at her.

"What the your Manoban, get up you ." The Thai's eyes widened making her jolt out of the bed but before she could even look at the owner of the voice, her clothes came flying straight to her face. "I don't want to see you here get out!" Jennie's voice rose up inside her penthouse as Lisa struggled to wear her clothes faster.

"Please, let's talk just once." Lisa and started to walk towards her when suddenly the feline eyed woman picked up a vase from her coffee table at the same time, the Thai's phone rang. "Jennie, please, let's talk."

"Get out." She said her voice was filled with warning. "Get the ," She threw the vase towards the Thai making the woman to run out of her sight while attempting to answer her call from her dearest friend, Seungwan

"! Get me out of here!"

--

"So what happened?" Irene asked as she helped the cooks from preparing their dinner for tonight, it was just six but she decided to prepare earlier than she wanted since she might be just hanging out with the psychologist outside of her fortress. After the awkward conversation she had with Seulgi earlier, Irene explained her side to the butlers who heard them and gladly they said that there were no malicious comments they could think of since they knew that the psychologist was just her close friend. She's glad that her worker's minds don't function just like how the Korean people do.

"Of course I have to clean her wound, like she literally stepped into the broken glass while running like a mess straight to your house. I was just preparing to go to the office when she suddenly barged in then boom." Wendy said as she watched the older do her job in cooking. After the unexpected meeting of the two to the famous businesswomen slash luxury brand ambassadors of Asia, they had decided to have their night spent wasted on a high-end club in Itaewon as expected, the exes went drunk and had some mini hot time.

"So you're telling me that Lisa had a thing with Jennie before?"

"Yes, and that woman was still into her, I mean, I couldn't blame Jennie, she's one of a hell to die for and Lisa's lucky to have her once."

"Emilia asked me to come here since I was just sitting at the... veranda." Seulgi suddenly entered the kitchen making some of the workers there with Irene to greet her, the psychologist bowed down her head and went her way to the businesswoman. Her plain white t-shirt tucked into the mom jeans she's wearing and her wet hair made her looked like some type of an antagonist that portrays a character of female greaser from the year of 1960's which made her a bit attractive to anyone, of course who wouldn't be going to get attracted to someone named Kang Seulgi.

"Ey, what's up?" Seulgi said as she saw her friend on the other side of the phone. The businesswoman continued to do her job making the psychologist to proceed on talking with Wendy who had her face already drawn in mischievousness, Seulgi rolled her eyes to her and asked the businesswoman if she can borrow her phone.

"Unnie! That shirt's familiar!" Wendy said, making the older to laugh.

"Of course , I wore that before , you gave that to me."

"So you're giving it now to Seulgi?" She asked, slightly laughing. "Irene-ah! You're getting suspicious ha!" Irene didn't reply and asked the psychologist to bring her phone out of the kitchen. Wendy continued to friend as she started to walk out.

A question suddenly crossed inside Wendy's head. "So why are you there? I mean, why are you wearing Irene unnie's shirt and you obviously look like you just came out from the bath, bruh don't tell me you guy-"

"Of course not, we just happened to see each other here in this small town and then we became friends, that's all, this is just my second time around to get to go inside here though, why? Because I embarrassed myself in front of her the first time we met here and the only time I could catch up with her and say sorry is today so yeah, that's the reason why I'm here, don't be so malicious, do you want me to buy you a gallon of holy water? Since I think you really need to drink a lot of it 'cause your mind's been corrupted for a long time." Seulgi rolled her eyes walked towards the living room while smiling to some house staff working at this hour, the lighting of the house and the hundred year old chandelier hanging at the ceiling made the whole mansion feeling welcome and cosy, the place itself is one of a kind how much more to its own interior.

That wouldn't be a question though, the history of the place itself was also rich in its own history and that's not kind of surprising especially to the psychologist.

"So there's no spark?" Wendy asked, making the woman repeat the question inside her head. Seulgi meant nothing to the older, the only thing that they kept intact together is the unexpected friendship they built during the hard times they both faced in their own lives. "I mean you both are single you're free so as Irene unnie, and I know she's open to those kinds of 'relationship' thingy." The woman shrugged her shoulder.

"Of course she is, but I'm not yet ready, I mean, I'm open to say that I will be able to date someone who was willing to accept me from who I am but not now Wendy. Irene is such a beautiful lady, from her inside and out and I can't just use her to be my greatest escapade to the easy way of happiness."

--

SEULGI'S POV

The wonderful wind of mid-October made everything to simply romantic to everyone, for sure everyone would be happy to see the youthful nights of Spain were everyone could have thought this were be the good place to write a beautiful novel of your love story to someone, a documentary of love that everyone would do the person they always wanted.

Of course, I myself would know who I am thinking about but in some circumstances I had to go ahead and move on alone.

"Come on," A sweet voice invaded the autumn air as she held her lover's hand, the breeze of the night made everything move like a cinematic story as she dragged her in front of a lone lamp post. "Smile. Seulgi, you had the most gorgeous smile I've ever seen so don't hide it with your frown."

I felt someone slightly grab the hem of my shirt making me look at the person sitting next to me. Seven-thirty in the evening and here we are sitting inside church of St. Justus, a lot of people had said, it was the great time to compose yourself inside said church as it gave you more privacy in your own well-being and you can connect more to your inner self which I learnt from before...

"Don't be disappointed if you fail." Her hand reached mine, making me feel the warmth of her welcoming solace. "He will always understand you from who you really are, I promised."

"Follow me." Irene said as she did kneel in the kneelers in front of us as she smiled warmly towards me, I followed what she did and waited for her to say something.

She both held my cheeks and forced my lips to draw a smile. "You always looked better with that."

"I know there were always be a hard time in life Seul," Irene said while looking at my hand who were trembling for a reason that I myself should be the only one to know about but before I could hide it from her, she both hold my hand with her hands making me felt the security and warmth she managed to introduce to me.

Irene is not Jisoo but this ain't familiar,

"but you don't have to pretend to smile even if you're already dying inside."

And I know, I will never be able to deny.