Italy

“Can I work extra hours tonight? I don’t feel like packing my stuff just yet”, She asked Mariana as she placed the tray back on the restaurant’s kitchen counter.

“But isn’t your flight tomorrow lunch time? And isn’t the reason you’re going home a bit of an emergency?”, Mariana asked her back as a reply.

Seoyeon wanted to roll her eyes at her boss for mentioning it.

"I just feel like they're lying about it. Now that they know I'm here, they're tricking me into going home. Even my own bestfriend is in on this.", she replied in annoyance.

"Or it could be the truth. What if something bad really happened. So just go home and maybe you can come back here when everything's okay", Mariana replied, trying to console the girl.

"Yeah, sure I"ll come back, if they let me.", Seoyeon said.

"If not, then maybe I can come visit you there and you know... meet HIM.", Mariana told the girl and Seoyeon didn't miss the emphasis she made.

Seoyeon couldn't help but think of him and how he was after all these years but she remembered how her bestfriend sounded over the phone when she broke the news to her.

"Lee Mirae, I swear if you're lying, Yoo Kihyun will never see you again!!!", she thought to herself as she made her way to the customer calling.

"Hi! What can we get started for you?", Seoyeon asked the customers, trying her best to sound happy and unbothered in front of them.

 

 

Seoul

He stood up in shock upon hearing what his secretary had just said.

“Are you sure that’s what Auntie said? You could have misheard her.” He asked, the worry obvious in his tone.

“I’m afraid I didn’t mishear, Sir.” His secretary replied.

“Have the car prepared. I need to see him. Does she know? Is she home?” He asked as he grabbed his keys and phone.

His secretary ever so slightly raised his eyebrows in surprise at the mention of the young miss. “I’m not sure if the young miss knows or if she’s already home, Sir”, he replied.

He let out a sigh upon hearing his reply and rushed out of his office. His secretary followed him frantically as his boss spat out instructions on what to do.

His secretary could recall one and only one instance when his boss was just like this, but probably worse. It was when the young miss had left everything and everyone, including him. He had hoped that his boss’ temper would never see the light of day ever again but it seems highly unlikely.

“I want everything to be just as I told you.”, he told his secretary, he sounded as though he was yelling that it made his secretary jump.

“Yes, Sir! I will make sure of it.”, his secretary replied as they reached lobby of The Shilla Seoul.

His secretary bowed to him as he rushed out the doors and into his car.

 

"Oppa, she said that I'm lying about her father. Why would she say that?", Mirae asked her boyfriend.

Kihyun could see how offende she looked when she asked him that question.

"She's probably just as worried as everyone else. And she's been there for four years, it will be hard for her to come home knowing her father's condition", he said as he looked at the girl.

Mirae had kept her eyebrows knitted and Kihyun couldn't help but laugh.

"You're laughing. This isn't funny oppa. She basically called me a liar. It's not fair." She said as she crossed her arms, annoyed at her boyfriend for laughing at the situation she was in.

Kihyun opened his arms as he slowly walked to the visibly irritated girl. He enveloped the girl in a hug and she slowly relaxed her arms to hug him back.

“I’m sure she didn’t mean what she said, you know Seoyeon better than that. She needs you now more than ever so just be there for her.” Kihyun said as he was caressing the girl’s back.

Kihyun was right, Mirae can’t imagine how anxious Seoyeon must be after breaking the news to her. She was gone for four years and coming home to a sick father is the last thing she would’ve wanted for her bestfriend.

“If only things took a different turn back then, Seoyeon-ah.”, the girl thought to herself.

 

Seoyeon took a deep breath as she hugged her leather jacket closer to her. The chilly air in Seoul didn’t help with her anxiety and she barely even slept a wink on her flight.

She managed to put a small smile on her face as she saw a familiar black Escalade getting closer to where she was standing. She gave it a small wave as it pulled up right in front of her.

A man in a gray suit came rushing towards her before bowing to greet her. Seoyeon rolled her eyes at the gesture. She can’t remember the last time someone bowed to her to greet her.

“Four years, oppa. I was gone for four years. How are you still working for my family? What did they do to deserve you?” She said teasingly, the young secretary Lee Jaehyuk had worked for her family for as long as she could remember.

The secretary chuckled at what she had said and just picked up her suitcases to load onto the car.

“We need to be at the hospital soon, young miss, your mother is quite distressed. The last time I saw her like that was when ---”

“I know, I know, you don’t have to say it. Let’s just go”, Seoyeon cut him off and the secretary bowed in apology. She waved him off before getting inside the backseat of the car.

“Why is everyone so hellbent on having me home?! They managed four years without me, they can manage four more… or maybe more.” Seoyeon thought to herself as the car sped away from the airport and into her old life.

 

xxx