Myungsoo fished out another handful of chips from the bag that Sungyeol was holding; Sungyeol snatched the bag away from him, frowning. “Yah, stop it! I bought this bag of chips, and you’re the one finishing all of it!”

Myungsoo ignored him, his eyes fixed on the television set. Hoya glanced over to see what the Infinite visual was so focused on; it was as he thought, a broadcast of T-ara’s performance at some event. Hoya would have bet all the money he had in his bank that Myungsoo’s eyes were focused on one girl in particular, Park Jiyeon.

There was a sudden vibrating sound from the other end of the table, and T-ara’s Day by Day began to play; Hoya called over. “Yah, Myungsoo, your phone’s ringing!”

Myungsoo didn’t seem to hear him, his eyes still focused on the television set.

Sungyeol rolled his eyes and nudged Myungsoo with his toe. “Your phone is ringing!”

Myungsoo waved an impatient hand, his eyes not shifting from the television set. “Answer it for me, please!”

Hoya bit back a sigh as he rose from his seat. He grabbed for the phone, noting the caller ID. Hyomin-sshi?

“Hello? Hyomin-sshi? Yes, this is Hoya. Myungsoo’s…he’s slightly busy at the moment, is something wrong?” Hoya frowned at Hyomin’s frantic tone, her garbled words. “Wait, wait, slow down for a moment, Hyomin-sshi, I can’t hear you very clearly…”

But it was enough for him to make out two words.

The blood drained from Hoya’s face, as Hyomin repeated the words, again and again. Sungyeol noticed his expression and sat up straight – he rarely saw Hoya looking so serious. “What’s wrong?”

Hoya’s mouth was dry as he stared at the back of Myungsoo’s head. “Jiyeon-sshi…she…”

Hoya’s tone was enough to catch Myungsoo’s attention; at last he dragged his eyes away from the screen, whipping around with sharp eyes to stare at Hoya. “What’s wrong with Jiyeon?”

“Jiyeon fainted.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The door to the ward was thrown open and Myungsoo charged in, panting hard, his eyes wild. “Where’s Jiyeon?”

The nurse cast him a disapproving glance. “Please keep your volume down and not run in a hospital.” She checked the IV drip, then nodded. “Jiyeon-sshi will be fine after some rest – she’s just too stressed, and apparently she’s not eating well either. She’ll be all right after a night at the hospital.” She nodded to the other T-ara members, then left the room.

Eunjung stepped away from Jiyeon’s bedside to make space for Myungsoo; he trotted forward, staring down at the unconscious Jiyeon with a lost look on his face. “What happened to her?”

“Stress, apparently. We were at home when she suddenly collapsed. We rushed her here at once.” Soyeon explained.

Myungsoo grasped Jiyeon’s hand tightly, his gaze worried.

As if on cue, Jiyeon stirred. She blinked weakly, her eyes flickering about the room. “What…where am I?”

Myungsoo’s voice was gentle. “It’s all right, Jiyeon. You’re in the hospital.”

“The hospital? What happened?”

“You fainted, Jiyeon. The doctor said you were too stressed, and that you weren’t eating well. You can tell us about any problems you have, you know.” Hyomin stated matter-of-factly.

A shadow passed suddenly over Jiyeon’s face, but she said nothing.

All of a sudden, the door opened, and another, very much unwelcome person walked in. Im Jaebum gave the room’s occupants a smile as he was followed in by Kris. “Well well, look how crowded this room is. You must be very popular indeed, Jiyeon.”

Hyomin’s gaze was hard. “You’re not welcome here, Im Jaebum. Get out of our maknae’s room.”

An amused smile played on JB’s lips. “That’s no tone to take to someone who’s helping you. Considering I’m the one footing her hospital bill, I think I deserve a little more respect here.”

Myungsoo rose, frowning. “Footing Jiyeon’s hospital bill? Who are you?”

JB eyed him coolly, but ignored him, speaking instead to Jiyeon. “I want to speak to you privately.”

Immediately, Eunjung and Hyomin took a threatening step forward. “Not a chance.”

JB just raised an eyebrow, his gaze locked onto Jiyeon. His eyes met Jiyeon’s for the briefest of moments.

Jiyeon looked down, her voice soft, “Can you guys give us a moment?”

The T-ara girls exchanged mystified looks, but they had no choice but to leave the room. Myungsoo hesitated.

“You too, Myungsoo.” Jiyeon said apologetically.

JB smirked; Myungsoo shot him a dirty look as he stormed past.

As the door closed behind Myungsoo, JB nodded at Kris. “Leave us.”

Kris paused, his face questioning. JB rolled his eyes. “I think I can handle a little girl, Kris. Leave.”

Kris stepped backwards; he shot Jiyeon a piercing look, as if warning her against any foolishness, then stepped out of the room.

JB took the seat that Myungsoo had been occupying. “I would suppose that that man was your boyfriend?”

Jiyeon scowled at him. “Yes, his name is Kim Myungsoo and he’s a billion times better than you are!”

“I don’t doubt that, but that’s not the issue here, I’m afraid.” JB smiled casually as he took Jiyeon by the hand to help her sit up. Jiyeon tried to pull away, but she wasn’t strong enough to pull away from his grasp. “So, you have agreed to my proposition.”

Jiyeon’s tone was angry as she responded. “I’ve already given you my answer, I don’t need you to come here and flaunt it in front of me.”

“I’m not here to flaunt anything, actually. There are certain conditions and rules you must adhere to.” JB locked his fingers together. “First of all, you are to pretend to be my woman for a total of six months. You know what my purpose will be within those six months – and I assume your purpose will be to resist me, yes?”

Jiyeon scoffed. “Do you think this is some kind of game? Are you insane?”

The side of JB’s mouth turned up in a small smile. “A game. That’s an astute way of putting it. Yes, it is a game, and one I’m fond of.”

Jiyeon looked at him, her gaze infuriatingly pitying. “Do you really think love is just a game? Im Jaebum, you’re one pathetic creature.”

JB shrugged nonchalantly. “I’ve heard all sorts of insults over the years – it’s not that easy to upset me, you know. For the six months, what you have to do is simple: pretend to be my girlfriend in front of the public.”

Jiyeon stiffened. “I have a boyfriend. Already.”

JB looked unconcerned. “That’s your problem. You’ve already agreed to the game, and these are the terms. Besides, I don’t run in the same circles as Kim Myungsoo – it’s highly unlikely that he will find out. As I mentioned before, all you have to do is pretend to be my girlfriend in front of the public – anything more than that, and you are free to refuse me. Clear enough?”

Jiyeon gave a brusque nod.

JB smiled. “Excellent. I will pay for your hospital bills; when you are discharged tomorrow, I will send someone to your dorm to pick up your things – as a girlfriend of mine, you are expected to reside in the same house as I do. I assume you do not want your fellow members to know – you are free to tell them any excuse you want, or the truth, if that is as you desire. We shall talk again tomorrow, Jiyeon.” He turned to leave, and the door closed quietly behind him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Luhan sipped at his wine delicately before setting the glass down. He glanced over at Kai, who was staring at his food blankly, his expression a lot more listless than usual. “Difficult case?”

“Disgusting case was what I had in mind.” Kai responded. “A brutal double murder, and whoever did it was good. There were absolutely no clues left behind whatsoever. Not fingerprints, not footprints, nothing. Just a huge smiley face drawn on the wall in the victim’s blood-”

Luhan held up his hand. “Stop right there. I am having dinner now, you know.”

Kai glanced over at him. “You asked.” He stabbed his steak with his knife, then sighed, setting his cutlery down. “Minho and Baekhyun are late.”

The moment he said that, the door to the restaurant swung open and the two Byun brothers strode in. Minho stood tall, his shoulder-length black hair unkempt as usual. Baekhyun had his usual playful grin. They sat at the two remaining seats. Baekhyun glanced about. “JB’s not joining us today?”

“He’s dealing with your case. You know, the thing you asked him for help with.” Luhan replied.

Minho arched an eyebrow. “I thought he’d settled that already.”

“It seems things got more complicated – he has entered a…game, with one of the idols under the company, so it seems things will be delayed for you two.” Luhan explained.

Minho’s face reddened. “We’re seeking justice for our sister – and JB’s delaying it for his stupid game?”

“You know what JB is like. Besides, it’s not like he won’t continue with the plan – knowing JB, he’ll probably phrase the terms in such a way that even after the game ends, regardless of which side wins, that erted CEO will still have to pay the sum.” Luhan shrugged.

Kai didn’t look up from his food. “I don’t even know why you bother “seeking justice” for that little brat of yours.”

Baekhyun perked up indignantly. “My sister is not a brat! Just because you’re not fond of her-”

“Can you blame me?” Kai cut in?

“Yes! Everyone else is fond of her! Right, Luhan?” Baekhyun turned to the Chinese for support.

Luhan raised his hands. “I’m keeping out of this.”

Kai scoffed. “She’s a spoilt little princess. If you don’t let her grow up, she’ll never find out what the world’s really like. That’ll just be even worse for her when she goes out to work.”

“Then we’ll support her our whole lives so she won’t have to work.” Minho replied easily.

Kai rolled his eyes.

Luhan sighed. “Can we not argue over this? We rarely get to meet up in a group like this – must we spend our time arguing?”

There was a pause. Then Baekhyun looked brightly over at Luhan. “I know! How are things with you and your girlfriend?”

Luhan made a face. “Don’t even talk about it. I swear, I thought Im Yoona was the most dreadful woman on earth, but now I think I’ve found someone to rival her.”

Minho whistled. “Jessica Jung is that bad, huh?”

Luhan shook his head. “You have no idea. I don’t even know what I saw in her.”

“Well, she does have a great . And her are big too.” Baekhyun pointed out.

This time, it was Kai who made a face. “Seriously, Baekhyun? While we’re eating?”

The table erupted into laughter at Kai’s words. Just at that moment, Kai’s phone vibrated. Kai’s face rearranged into one of seriousness. “Yes? …I understand, I’ll be right there?”

Luhan leaned over. “What’s wrong?”

“Another two bodies were found.”

------------------------------------------------------------

A.N: I'm back! My gosh, I just realised how long a hiatus I took...I'm so sorry guys! I've been really busy the last few months, and I've also been focusing on my other stories, but I'll try and update more regularly from now on...

More Myungyeon this time round - they're a very cute couple, constantly caring and concerned for each other, but a wedge has been driven between them as Jiyeon starts keeping secrets from Myungsoo...what will become of them?

On the other hand, JJCouple is just as tense as before - like Luhan said, JB is a very shrewd person; indeed, he phrases his proposal so he makes no mention of the money, while Jiyeon automatically assumes that he will be forgetting about the debt, when, in fact, he's only giving KKS a slight extension when it comes to returning the money. Their relationship is a very tense and dangerous one - both are constantly challenging each other's beliefs of the world, and are affected by the other's perception. 

A little on Kai and Krystal too, this time - cool, unflappable Kai, who becomes unusually animated when discussing Krystal - I think that's the most adorable part of this whole chapter!

The murder mystery takes a step forward too, but more on that in the next chapter...

In any case, please remember to comment and subscribe! Till next time, guys!