Almost everyone's gaze was drawn to Sana as she entered the building. Even though these people were only whispering small talk to one another, the combined sound was quite loud. Sana could say with absolute certainty that everyone knows who she is. Even though it had been months since the splashing wine incident, people had not forgotten about it.

"Hello, Sana!" A voice from a distance on Sana's left side prompted the young woman to turn around. She wrinkled her brows and inclined her head as if attempting to recognize that individual whose identity her brain couldn't recollect. "My name is Yoo Jeongyeon, and you've probably never heard of me, but I know you... a lot — about you, actually," she stammered.

Sana whispered to herself, not wanting to ask bluntly and appear impolite to anyone else. Sana needs to be extra cautious because her image has already been tarnished by the encounter with Nayeon at the wedding.

"Ah, you must be looking for—" started Jeongyeon, but she had to cut herself off when another person approached Sana. "Well, I guess I'll have to sign some paperwork as well," she said to herself before grasping her nape and turning away.

"Ms. Minatozaki!" A woman's voice nearly knocked Sana off her feet. She immediately turned around to see who it was. "I saw you again," the lady continued.

Sana's expression indicated that it was someone she recognized. And it's clear from her expression as well that she despises running into this woman again.

"Coleen," Sana muttered under her breath, her face expressionless.

"What is that look?" Coleen smirked as she placed a hand on Sana's shoulder. "Don't make it absolutely clear that you hate me. You're breaking my heart," she added, quietly chuckling. "Besides, didn't you miss me? Or are you trying so hard to forget me after what happened to your relationship with Nayeon as a result of me?"

"Can we not keep bringing the past back?" Sana asked, brushing the woman's hand off her shoulder.

"Then why are you here if you hate catching glimpses of your past?" Coleen questioned, crossing her arms above her chest. "If it isn't reconstructing the burnt bridges?" she asked, clicking her tongue, and shaking her head. "I would make fun of you if I wasn't here for the same reason," Coleen remarked, shrugging her shoulders.

"What?" Sana pinched her brows, becoming increasingly irritated with this woman. She is now concerned that she will explode and do something outrageous again.

"Me and Nayeon," Coleen responded, staring Sana in the eyes as if to intimidate. "I'm restoring our relationship," she explained.

Sana burst out laughing, which irritated Coleen, as evidenced by the look on her face. "I'm sorry," Sana replied as she shook her head. "I'm sorry, but I don't care," she stated passionately. "I'm not here for such nonsense, so do as you like. Take Nayeon... wherever... I'm not sure. I mean if she actually wants you."

Sana breathed deeply after that laugh. "I guess I'll go ahead and do business while you worry about that thing," she replied, patting the other woman on the shoulder this time.

As Sana walked past Coleen, the lady thought to herself, "Looking down on me, Minatozaki, huh?" She clenched her fist and cast one more glare behind Sana's back before continuing on her way out.

 

 

 

Momo had just walked out of Nayeon's office without learning anything more about her friend's connection to her boss. She couldn't help but be disappointed. She and Sana are almost like sisters, but after discovering that there is more to that woman than she realizes, their relationship is put into question. But she couldn't really be upset at her friend for hiding secrets. She lost touch with Sana after having to return to Japan for college and to look after her ill grandfather. That means she didn't hear much about how the girl was doing throughout those days. This is one of the reasons she feels Nayeon was present during the time she was apart from Sana.

Her thoughts were vacant as she neared the elevator, but when the doors opened, she had a rapid shift of mood. It revealed her friend, Sana, who also appeared shocked to see her.

"Sana?" she asked, her eyes wide with surprise. "Why are you here?" she tried to question, but all she received in response was a sheepish grin.

"Hello, Mo," Sana remarked as she exited the elevator. "It's wonderful... great to see you here; it's been a while since we've seen each other," she continued, nervously chuckling at the conclusion of her remark.

Momo narrowed her eyes and hummed, "Hmm, what's going on this time?"

"Nothing?" replied Sana.

Momo folded her arms across her chest, seemingly not believing Sana's response. "Everything about you has been strange ever since the thing that happened at my wedding," Momo murmured, furrowing her brows in concern for her friend. "And my boss has been acting strangely as well," she continued.

"Huh?" Sana feigned to be clueless. She took a step back, intending to avoid her friend's questions, but Momo already knew she would try to flee. "Momo..." Sana sighed, accepting defeat, and letting Momo grasp her wrist. "There will be another chance to talk about this," she could only whisper.

"Well, yeah," Momo agreed, "if you stop avoiding us, your friends, and tell us what's going on."

"I'm not sure if I can do that," Sana said, shrugging.

"Do what?"

"Tell you about it," Sana said.

"You sound exactly like her," Momo murmured, scratching the back of her head. "That's what Nayeon advised me as well, that if I want to know what's going on, I should ask you."

"She said that?" Sana said, surprised that Nayeon would respect her decision if she chose to keep it hidden. Sana would never lie about her appreciation for it, though it was just a small gesture from Nayeon.

"Yeah, and that gives the impression that you two are in a forbidden relationship that no one should know about, so you protect one another by claiming to hate each other."

"That story stinks," Sana said. "If there's one thing that you're not good at, it's writing fiction."

"Well," Momo groaned, "if I can't even grasp anything about this matter, I might just make up a scenario about you two in my head."

"Look," Sana murmured, diverting her gaze to Nayeon's office door before returning her attention to Momo's face again. "How about we talk about it later?" she said, which immediately made Momo smile. "But!" she blurted out.

"What?" Momo inquired.

"There's a condition."

"And what could that possibly be?"

"Mina shouldn't know what we're going to talk about."

Momo arched her brows. Not because she couldn't lie to her wife about something, but because she was unsure about Mina's involvement in this whole setup. "Why not?" she questioned instead.

"I can't explain it until you swear not to tell her."

 

Nayeon stood in front of her office's huge window, both hands inside her pockets. She does this frequently when she is extremely anxious about something. And she has various reasons for being here this morning. One of them was, apparently, meeting Coleen. It was something she would try to avoid as much as possible because she was troubled by the woman. It wasn't exactly Coleen's presence that caused her to be uncomfortable. Nayeon is aware of what this woman is willing to go through in order to obtain what she seeks. With Sana back in her life, Nayeon can only expect even more trouble.

Speaking of Sana, the woman had just entered Nayeon's office without the latter noticing it. Well, Momo left the door open slightly, and Nayeon did not really notice that. And so, she was not able to hear the doorknob turning, indicating that someone had come in.

Sana couldn't help but smile upon realizing that Nayeon was unaware of her presence inside the room. There was another feeling that she couldn't help as she continued staring at the other woman's back. It was some sort of heartbreak that she wouldn't admit directly.

She loved Nayeon with her whole heart.

Even though Sana wishes that she had not known Nayeon very well, it wouldn't have happened. They could pretend to be strangers all they want, but their memories, their past, will always be with them. It will always be them.

"I hate Coleen," Sana remarked abruptly, prompting Nayeon to jolt lightly in her position before turning around. "I still do," Sana said, smiling slightly as she sat on the sofa. "But don't worry, nothing controversial will happen between us since I'll be avoiding her just as much as I'm avoiding you," she said.

"You're failing miserably, trying to avoid me," Nayeon stated as she took both hands out of her pockets and approached Sana. "See, you're here," she said quietly, but just enough for Sana to hear. "And we're all by ourselves here," she added.

"Trying doesn't always imply you'll succeed," Sana shrugged. "See, I tried to avoid Coleen as well, but she walked up to me."

"She did?" Nayeon's brow wrinkled.

"Yeah," Sana said, bobbing her head. "She even said those hilarious things," she laughed as she shook her shoulders.

"Like what, exactly?"

"Getting you back."

When Nayeon heard that, she shook her head and laughed. She couldn't believe Coleen hadn't changed in all these years. She's still full of herself, and Nayeon isn't a fan of that arrogance.

Unfortunately, Sana misinterpreted her reaction. "Must have made you excited," she replied, referring to Nayeon's merely chuckling response.

Nayeon knew exactly how to handle a slightly bitter Sana. And that, of course, was to annoy the woman off even more. "Must have made you jealous," she added, smiling meaningfully.

"Jealous because of her?" laughed Sana, clearly appalled by the concept. "And over you?" "Not going to happen, Lim Nayeon," she stated emphatically.

Nayeon didn't want to hear any more of the unnecessary talk because wasting time isn't something she does very often. "What brought you here, missy?" she inquired, entirely altering the subject, which favored Sana as well. "As much as I'd want to believe you're here for the contract I've offered, you're a difficult lady to read," she explained.

"I'm here to sign the contract," Sana stated flatly. She just wanted it to be over because if she thought about it any further, she'd eventually quit. It's only that she is constantly reminding herself that all of this is for her father and Shirou, whose life is currently at risk. "But first, I need to clear out a few things, Ms. Lim," Sana stated respectfully.

"I'm all ears for you," Nayeon said.