"Why aren't you talking, Rin?" Seunghyun asked, worried by my silence.

"There's nothing to talk about." I shrugged.

"Is there something upsetting you?"

I shook my head.

"Are you sick?"

I shook my head again.

"Is it that time of the month?"

I looked up at him, stunned. He gave me his innocent puppy eyes, clueless as to why my reaction was so huge.

"You don't just ask girls stuff like that, Seunghyun. You're a guy!" I snapped, annoyed.

"So it is that time of the month..." He muttered under his breath. I let out a breath of disbelief, absolutely offended by his claim. I punched him hard on the arm, leaving him behind as I brisk walked home alone.

-

"Haerin, thanks for accompanying me today. I'm so glad to have made a friend like you." Hwayoung chirped. I smiled, shaking my head.

"No, I'm glad to have made a friend like you, Hwayoung unnie. I think you're what I need in order to be stronger..." I trailed off.

She tilted her head in confusion.

"What do you mean?" She questioned. I opened my mouth to answer, but before any words could escape, the honking of a car grabbed our attention. There by the street was Seunghyun in his car, smiling and waving for us to get in.

"It's Top!" Hwayoung exclaimed, "Come on!"

She skipped ahead, dragging me with her. Instinctively, she grabbed the handle of the front door, hopping in delightfully. I could tell from how comfortable she was around him, that they've been together for quite some time now. And she must be the reason Seunghyun even got a car. Cars were, after all, a status symbol, a must-have if you wanted to impress a girl like Hwayoung.

"You didn't tell me you were gonna pick us up! How did you know we were done shopping?" she beamed. Seunghyun chuckled.

"It was just a guess."

He glanced back at me with a smile, in which I politely returned.

"Where are we going now?" Hwayoung asked, grinning sweetly at Seunghyun.

"Home." he dully replied.

"Am I going to your place for dinner?" she inquired excitedly, tilting her body slightly to face Seunghyun.

"No, I'm sending you home."

Immediately, Hwayoung's face fell. I felt like I was watching some drama series involving a couple's childish tiff.

"Why?" she whined, pouting. Her expressions were always cute in a way. The kind that would melt any guy's heart. But I guess Seunghyun was an exception.

"Haerin seems tired. Besides, it's too early for dinner." Seunghyun calmly explained, looking out for incoming vehicles before making a turn.

"That's why we should go somewhere fun!" she insisted.

"I'm sending you home, Hwayoung."

Then there was silence. I knew I shouldn't have gotten on. I should have taken the bus home myself, now that I know how to. Seating in the back made me feel like I wasn't really there. Which was great at that intimidating moment...except that I was indirectly the reason things turned out this way.

"I'm not that tired actually..." I squeaked, my eyes darting between the two awkwardly. And as expected, there was no response. Hwayoung's eyes were fixed on the window and Seunghyun was focusing on the road, occasionally stealing glances at me through the rear view mirror. I fidgeted with the strap of my bag, feigning ignorance to the seriousness of this little tiff and the tension it left.

The vehicle slowed down to a complete stop as we arrived outside Hwayoung's apartment building.

"See you tomorrow..." Seunghyun mumbled, looking into Hwayoung's eyes. I unknowingly frowned at that sight. The Seunghyun I knew wouldn't have dared look into the eyes of someone he just had a fight with. The Seunghyun I knew would have felt sorry. And yet I couldn't sense one bit of remorse coming from him as he so indifferently bid his wife-to-be goodbye. And in order to seem perfectly fine, Hwayoung gave a soft smile, returning the greeting.

As the car door slammed shut, my eyes drifted up to that graceful figure standing still on the outside. She flashed me a smile and a little wave, in which I returned with a little less enthusiasm than she had.

As soon as Seunghyun drove off, leaving Hwayoung out of sight, my frown returned. I had expected to feel relieved as soon as Hwayoung left, but I didn't. The silence was still awkward, and a little painful. I was able to distract myself from the acceleration of my heartbeat, until Seunghyun pulled up all of a sudden in the middle of the road. I looked up, surprised.

"Would you like to shift over to the front?" he asked, more like an order than a suggestion. Without a word, I got out of the car and opened the door to the front seat.

"Sorry for what happened a while ago." he spoke.

I looked over at him. He had his eyes fixed on the road, as if entirely focusing on driving. But I was starting to suspect that that was just his way of avoiding confrontation.

"You really shouldn't have done that." I stated, looking out the window.

"Done what?"

"Are you always like this to Hwayoung unnie?" I snapped, angered by his lack of concern.

"Since when did you two get so close? Unnie? The only person I've heard you address so intimately is Taeyang oppa." he spat, emphasizing the word 'oppa' with what I recognized as disgust.

"She's hurt by your attitude, Top." I pointed out, ignoring his childish accusations.

"What happened to 'Top oppa'? I thought we agreed on that." he ranted as soon as I ended my sentence. He obviously had no interest in what I was saying, even if it concerned the woman he was supposed to love. And that angered me.

"That's not the way to treat a woman you love, Top!"

"I said call me oppa!" He roared, sending shivers down my spine. I turned away, tired of his demands. From the corner of my eye, I saw his shoulders slump as he let out a quiet and thorough sigh, as if drained by the hurt that had been amplifying since I first stepped into the car. The argument ended...leaving us in pensive solitude.

As soon as we arrived home, I got out of the car and went straight into the house, not looking back once.

"Yo, Haerin! You're back!" Jiyong cheered as soon as I stepped in.

"Noona!" Daesung and Seungri called out, one after the other again and again as if one greeting wasn't enough.

"Where's Top?" Jiyong asked just a moment before Seunghyun walked through the door.

"Top hyung said he was going to fetch you. He was afraid you'd get lost." Taeyang chuckled.

My eyes widened. I turned to Seunghyun, whose gaze wandered dodgingly, like a child who had just gotten caught lying about his grades. I turned away in exasperation, skipping up the stairs and into my room with a loud slam of the door. I sat myself on the edge of my bed, elbows on my knees and my face buried in my hands.

I was frustrated. With Seunghyun, with myself, and with everything that was going on. This wasn't supposed to happen. Not after I just promised the guys and myself that I'd be stronger.

"Haerin..." Seunghyun's voice sounded from behind the door. I walked over and swung the door open without hesitation.

"Tell me you were there to fetch Hwayoung. You were there to fetch your girlfriend, your fiancee." I raved. Seunghyun didn't avoid my eyes this time. Instead, those dark orbs bore into mine, as if begging me to stop. I knew from the way he behaved, that he hated hearing me speak of Hwayoung. I was aware that he desperately wanted to put Hwayoung aside whenever we were alone. He wanted to be able to talk to me without having to face the guilt that lingered at the back of his mind. Yet I couldn't bring myself to allow that. I needed to remind him that my return wasn't going to change the fact that there was an angel loving him. The angel he promised the rest of his life to.

"I didn't." he muttered, stepping forward and closing the door behind him. I searched his eyes for some signs of guilt...something to calm my nerves with the knowledge that he felt bad too, knowing very well that he shouldn't have used his fiancee as an excuse to pick up another girl. But there was none.

"You don't feel sorry, do you?" I hissed.

Seunghyun daringly kept his eyes on mine the whole time, as if he had done nothing worth being sorry for.

"No, I don't."

"Well, I do." I hollered, "Why do you keep doing these things? Inviting your fiancee over for dinner, calling her while simultaneously texting me, using her as an excuse to make sure I'm fine...Stop making me feel like a back-stabbing ! Stop making me feel like we're having an affair, because we're not!"

"Then let's." he murmured, completely composed despite the situation.

I froze.

"What?"

He took a step closer, close enough for me to hear the sound of his breathing, looking into my eyes so tenderly.

"Let's have an affair."