Choi Seung Hyun inhaled sweet nicotine before blowing the smoke out of his nose like a bull in a Loney Toons cartoon. He sat in the passenger seat of Jiyong’s car and watched as his wife laughed it up with the no-name-flower-boy inside a boutique. He set his gaze on them with an unshakeable determination; he wanted to soak in exactly what his wife was doing with this looser.

While Choi Seung Hyun saw a looser, Jiyong saw a handsome Millionaire. Jiyong knew that boutique well because he shopped there. You don’t walk into that boutique without at least a couple thousand dollars you feel like blowing.  The flashy canary yellow sports car that Choi Seung Hyun made Jiyong chase around Seoul was more then enough evidence that this guy Leena was with was completely rich.

From the distance the handsome man had the same build and similar features as Choi Seung Hyun. This guy had a strong face with piercing eyes and a slender build. His clothes were slick. It was obvious by the way he moved he worked out, so he was probably hiding a very nice body underneath his garments.  Jiyong thought that he seemed like a Choi Seung Hyun 2.0. TOP wasn’t on top anymore, apperantly.

Jiyong didn’t dare say it out loud though. Instead he said, “ I can’t believe she’s dating someone.”

“ Well believe it.” Seung Hyun took another puff of his cig before tossing it in a pile outside the window and lighting up another one.  “She’s cheating on me with this… douche.”

“Let us not forget, Seung Hyun that you are cheating on her too.”

“It’s not the same.”

“It’s not the same?”

“You heard me.”

Jiyong shifted in his seat and gripped the steering wheel. “ I’ll bite, Hyung. How is this not the same?”

“A yacht, then a scenic drive near the Han, followed by a shopping trip. They are doing exactly like you said; they are dating.”

“And what exactly are you doing with your model?”

“I’m ing her. No feelings involved.”

“So you think emotional cheating is worse then physical cheating?”

“I know it is.”

Jiyong shook his head and sighed heavily before saying. “ I think cheating is cheating.”

“Really…Youngbae screwing your girl once during a meaningless night is the same as he completely stealing your woman’s heart.”

“Yes. Hyung, they are exactly the same.”

Choi Seung Hyun looked at Jiyong in disbelief .“How can you say that?”

“Cause the third person always gets hurt.”

“What about a situation like this when there are four people?”

When Jiyong didn’t answer he turned his attention back to his wife and this mystery man.  The two men watched as Leena gently ran her hands over her companion’s chest. She then let her hand trail down over his pecs till she reached his waist. Her fingers lingered there as the two of them spoke for a moment. Then, slowly, she ran her fingers along the inside of the waistband till her arms were wrapped firmly around him. She looked up at this flower boy, said something else, and then laughed. Then she ran her hands back around and ed his pants and helped him out of them. An assistant at the boutique drew heavy red curtains together as Leena knelt down, next to this mystery man's .

Choi Seung Hyun went to unbuckle his seatbelt; he had every intention on going in there. Jiyong started the car though and sped off.

“What are you doing?” Seung Hyun shouted.

“I’m saving you from yourself.”

“What! Turn around so I can –“

“Make a fool out of yourself? Is that what you want to do? If I had let you go in there that’s what you would have done. You’d have let her know that we were following her. And her, being a smart woman, would have turned the situation around on you.”

“The hell are you talking about?”

“Why were you following me? You don’t trust me? I don’t follow you when you come home late! You are cheating on me too!” Jiyong said in a high pitched girly voice.

“Ok…OK I get it. I want her to say she’s wrong, not cause a scene.”

“I was gonna say give her a reason to stop seeing this guy.  But I guess your way will work too.”

______________________________________________***______________________________________________

Choi Seung Hyun skipped his tryst with Mary that night, marking the first time in a year and a half he’s come home on time. The vision of his wife and some Flower Boy painted itself on the back of his eyeballs so that it was the only thing he saw the entire day. He couldn’t concentrate when he was working with Youngbae in the studio after his lunch with Jiyong. He couldn’t concentrate the entire ride home from the studio; he ran through so many red lights and stop signs it was a wonder he made it home in one piece at all.

He went through the ritual of parking his car and checking to see if the bumper matched up to the white line. He was off by a half a meter. Leena’s Jaguar however, oh that was parked perfectly. Her keys were even hanging on the proper hook. It took Choi Seung Hyun four tries to properly park his car, each time he couldn’t help comparing his work to how Leena parked her Jaguar.  It was as if she parked it perfectly just to mock him.

Choi Seung Hyun was so out of sorts that he didn’t take off his shoes or hang up is coat, per usual. Instead he followed the sounds of pots clanging and water running to the kitchen. Leena stood there in yet another white night gown. Her movements were long and sensual as she scrubbed down the last few dishes and put them in the drainer. She stopped only once to take a sip of her daily prescription of red wine, before continuing her work.

“I’m home.” Leena turned startled to see her husband. She took in his appearance. He was completely disheveled; his clothing looked crisp and pristine, but his face betrayed his inner turmoil. Leena tried to decide if she cared anymore or not.

“Aren’t you a bit early?”

“I thought I’d try to make it home for dinner.”

“You are a bit late. I’ve already eaten.”

“Oh.” It was lame, but it was all Choi Seung Hyun could come up with.

Leena turned back to doing the dishes. Somehow her silhouette looked nothing like how it did yesterday. Her fingers weren’t meaty and she wasn’t too wide. Instead she was pleasantly plump. Her exaggerated curves made her look less fat and more feminine. And was she…yes she was…she was glowing! Seung Hyun came up behind her and placed his hands on her hips. He forgot how completely right that felt; the curves of her body seemed absolutely perfect for his big hands.

Leena huffed and shrugged him off. She turned to look at him, her nose wrinkled and her eyes burning with disgust, before continuing her task.

“What did you today?” Choi Seung Hyun asked, the hurt he felt at being shrugged off was coated by his anger.

“What do you mean what did I today?”

“ It’s an easy sentence to comprehend Leena. What did you do today?”

“I cleaned your living room, and I did today’s chores of cleaning the bathrooms –“

Seung Hyun leaned against the counter and looked her in the eye before cutting her off, “ Is that all you did today?”

“Where is this coming from? I thought you’d be happy that I completed your chore list.” Leena finished her wine and added the glass in with the other dishes.

“You are lying to me.”

“Am I?”

“Yes. You are. So just be straight. What did you do today?”

 Leena calmly placed her wine glass in the sink. She looked her husband dead in the eye as if searching for something, anything really, to make her feel less animosity toward this man she stood in front of God and devoted her life too.

Choi Seung Hyun took it as a sign of defiance; a simple act that said she refused to yield to his will. In this moment he couldn't help but think of Mary. His Mary. She'd have yielded to him. She'd have answered the question without all this unnecessary run around. If he were being honest with himself, if he was married to Mary instead of Leena he'd this questioning wouldn't even really be needed. He was sure that Mary loved him. Leena clearly did not.

"Are you going to answer me, or are we going to stand here till one of us blinks first?" Choi Seung Hyun asked. He was quickly reaching the end of his patience with her. 

"I was out doing the same thing you were out doing tonight. I was out doing what you were doing yesterday night."

Thoughts of Mary’s soft young body tangled with the image of Leena getting on that yacht with that man. "I told you, Leena. I was working late on a few tracks." Choi Seung Hyun managed to say steadily.

"Sure you were...." Leena let the words hang in the air for a moment, and then she left the kitchen.