[Dara]

        Kwon Jiyong. The person who made up that terrible nickname. The only person on this planet who dare uses it in front of my face. The only person who pronounces my name SSAN-dara cheaply and manages to get away with it. The person who haunted my nightmares every night when I was a child.

        Yeah, I grew up with this monster.

       I didn’t forget him. How could I forget?! We had numerous playdates when we were little. I hated him, I really did. We spent so much time together before I moved to the States when I was in grade five. I haven’t seen him ever since…until now. In my nightmares, he was still the obnoxious, skinny Jiyong who made fun of me, took advantage of me, and made me truly understand the meaning of “annoyance”. I had never, ever imagined that he’d become one of the most smoking hot guys on the planet.

[Dara Flashback]

        “Dara, Jiyong’s here. Go play with him, go on!” My mom encouraged me enthusiastically. I pouted, but obeyed her and dragged Tam-tam over to the backyard, where Jiyong was waiting for me in an expensive Armani suit especially designed for him.

        I was only six years old, but I knew I HAD to be nice to Jiyong. Not only were our families long-time friends and business partners, but because I was the heiress to our company and I had to be nice to everyone. It was one of those dumb adult rules that I hated but still followed.

        “Santokki!” Uh-oh, the devil was calling my name. I pointedly ignored him and sat down on the grass with Tam-tam. It was never a good thing when Jiyong takes the initiative. It usually means that he has planned something horrible and is waiting for me to jump into the trap. At the beginning, I had tried to be friends with him, sharing all my toys with him and even giving him the honor of holding Tam-tam, but it all ended up in vain as all he does is annoy me to death. For example, he had once stole Tam-tam and stuffed him in the pickle jar (and I hate pickles, mind you!). Then, there was the time when he replaced my homework sheets with tissue paper. Well, you get the picture. We didn’t get along, and I gave up all attempts to be nice to the devil.

       “Tam-tam, what should we do today?” I find talking to Tam-tam is way more fun than talking to Jiyong. “We had just played with Wooyoung oppa yesterday-“

        “Oppa?! You call him OPPA?!” Jiyong screeched incredulously. I nodded meekly.

        “You never call me oppa.” He crossed his arms and glared at me.

        I crossed my arms and glared back. “Why should I?”

        “I’m older than Wooyoung. So you HAVE to call me oppa too.”

        “I call Wooyoung oppa because he’s nice to me. But you’re not nice, you’re mean!” The words burst out from my mouth suddenly. We both widened our eyes in shock at my bold statement.

        “Take that back, Santokki!” Jiyong yelled, his face red with anger.

        “NO I WON’T!” I yelled back with equal force. How dare he tell me what to do! I’m a heiress too! How dare he call me Santokki! I hate it, I hate it, I hate it!

        “YOU HAVE TO LISTEN TO WHAT I SAY BECAUSE YOU’RE GOING TO MARRY ME WHEN WE GROW UP, MOTHER SAID SO!” He screamed in my face. I gasped, and he looked at me with a hateful smug look at his face that said, “Haha, I got you there.” No way! I don’t want to marry-whatever that is, but it sure sounds horrible-the devil Jiyong!
 

        “NO I WON’T, I WANT TO MARRY WOOYOUNG OPPA-“ Before I could finish my declaration of independence, Jiyong pushed me harshly on the grass. I sat in shock (and pain) before bursting into tears.

        “Face it, Santokki, you’re my pet only. You belong to me!”

[End of Dara Flashback]

[Jiyong Flashback]

        The first time I saw Sandara Park was when I was four years old. Her parents had came over to our mansion for tea, and brought little Dara with them.