“Dara, are you feeling all right?” Dara was surprised to see Jiyong standing on the door when she got out of the ladies rest room where she hid from him for a moment.

She was not enjoying the gathering and honestly, Dara wanted to go home so bad. And she regrets agreeing to Jiyong having to accompany her tonight.

Why didn’t she think of the chances that Jiyong knows some people there? And what’s annoying was that those women are not just mere acquaintances of his before. It hurts her ears hearing those snide comments they threw at her and Jiyong’s engagement. Saying that she and Jiyong were too unlikely too fall in love with each other. To Dara, that felt like an insult.

“Why are you here?” she asked.

“You were gone for too long, I thought something happened to you. I noticed that you’re not looking well. Has your fever come back?” Jiyong was about to damp his palm on her forehead but Dara avoided it.

“I’m okay, I don’t have a fever.” She answered, looking away from him.

“Are you sure? You don’t look fine to me. You look pale, Dara.” He lifted his hand to feel her forehead again but Dara slapped it away.

“I said I’m okay!” It came out more forcefully than she intended.

‘Damn it!’ Dara doesn’t need babysitting especially concern from him. It was hurting her so much to see Jiyong genuinely concerned about her. It was… confusing her.

“Just leave me alone,” she tried to sound calm but her voice is slowly betraying her.

“Do you really… hate me that much, huh?” Jiyong’s expression suddenly went cold and rigid. His tone became dark and clipped.

Dara heaved a sigh and chose not to answer him back. It will only lead to greater war if she did. Instead, she her heel, walking out on Jiyong towards the adjacent terrace of the hotel.

Dara closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She doesn’t want him showing so much concern for her… she doesn’t want him to treat her so nice. She doesn’t want to feel his gentle acts and sweetness.

It was only making her… making her… making her what?

‘…those are the women I spent a night or two with. My relationship with them is purely physical and I never pretended it to be otherwise.’

‘It was just the hormones kicking in, Dara. You’re a woman, I’m a man, dark place. It’s perfectly natural. It meant nothing…’

Jiyong’s words from earlier echoes inside her head. Purely physical. He probably treats other girls in that manner too. For Jiyong, what happened has no meaning, so she too should act the same.

Dara turned around and glanced around the function hall. There is Jiyong, dancing with a girl who almost look like snaking his whole body around her fiancé.

She felt a sharp stab of pain. She bit her lips in frustration.

“No way,” she muttered to herself. It can’t be… no, this can’t be. This… her feelings can’t be real. Not with Jiyong.

There was nothing lovable about him. He was a womanizer, a dictator, a hardcore capitalist! Jiyong is the embodiment of everything she hated.

And yet…

That man would never feel the same way for her or for anyone. She only end up with inevitable and endless pain.

With her ability to feel conscious, tears started to stream down her cheeks. Why? Why does this have to happen to her?

‘And now, here comes these foolish tears, Dara’

“Dara?”

A voice called out from the back. It was Seunghyun who just entered the terrace and is now approaching her. His sister was her classmate and as a good brother, he accompanied her to be a date.

“Dara, are you all right?” he asked, a little worried seeing her in that state.

“Seunghyun, I…” All these time she thought she was really serious about him. But what’s happening now? Damn! She should be in love with this man. “Seunghyun, I’m… I…”

“What wrong?” he asked, gently holding on her shoulder. Dara just closed her eyes in response. “It’s okay if you don’t want to tell me. Do you want me to leave? Or should I call Jiyong—“

“No!” she half-yelled, surprising the man in front of her. Dara took a deep breath, calming herself. She didn’t expect Seunghyun to see her in this kind of state. Helpless and vulnerable. “I’m sorry, it’s just… I just…”

Seunghyun then touched his cheeks, giving it a reassuring caress. His hands were comforting, he was so nice and he was so much like her… why does her heart need to be stubborn and not choose him instead?

“It’s okay, you can tell me anything. Were friends, rig—“

He was cut off mid-sentence when a hand forcefully grabbed his shoulder from behind.  Dara eyes widened, surprised to see Jiyong standing in front of them with an unreadable expression on his face.

“Listen up, bastard, and listen well. I don’t like repeating myself,” Jiyong said in a calm tone but his voice was menacing. “Stay the hell away from my fiancée or you’ll find yourself in deep social and financial .”

Then he threw a glance at Dara before grabbing her arm, pulling her out of the terrace and function hall. Curious eyes were following on them as they exit. Jiyong pulled her, not even bothering to look at her as they came into an empty hallway. He let go of Dara’s arm as he paced back in forth in silence.

“What are you doi—“

The rest of her sentence was cut when Jiyong suddenly sealed her lips with a hot kiss. She tried to free herself from his grasp but the more she want to escape, the hold of Jiyong on her nape and waist becomes tighter. Because she was in the middle of her sentence, Jiyong had full access to .

He ravaged her with pure animal lust, it made Dara whimpered despite herself. He was demanding and she could not resist, Dara found herself mimicking the movements of his lips and tongue.

She heard him groan in when she touched her tongue to his. She knew it meant he felt good, it made her feel superior and powerful. Dara wrapped her arms around his neck as she pushed herself closer to him. That earned her another deep guttural groan from Jiyong. She felt them moving, her back pressed on the cold wall of the empty hallway as his kisses turned more aggressive and demanding.

“Dara…” he hissed her name as he kissed and bit her neck. “I’m your fiancé, you can’t do this with anyone else,” he grunted between bites and kisses in her jaw.

Dara abruptly stopped and pushed Jiyong off her. Her eyes widened as she stared at him in disbelief.

“What did you say?” there was revulsion on Dara’s expression.

“I said I’m your fiancé. No matter how unwilling we are, we are engaged. So no matter what happens, you can’t do this kind of things with any other man than me.” He said with a sharp look on his face.

“Get off,” he said calmly but the look in her eyes was raging.

“I’m serious, Dara.”

“And so am I. Now, get the off!” she yelled and pushed him off her hard.

“, what is your problem?” Jiyong asked in an annoyed tone. His eyes are now red with anger.

“Stop playing with me, Jiyong.” Dara said heatedly and walked away from him and out of the hallway.

--

Dara stared mindlessly at the magazine opened in front of her. There on one page is a picture of her and Jiyong kissing hotly in an empty hallway. Opposite of that page is a write up with a title of ‘Miss Prim and Proper Meets The Playboy’.

“I think we need to hold a formal engagement for you and Jiyong, dear.” She gawked at his father who smiles happily despite her current state of frustration.

It was early Sunday morning and she’s currently having breakfast with her father when he handed her this cursed magazine.

“Jiyong’s father and I talked about this already. Everything’s already prepared for the final announcement. We can hold that as early as two weeks from now. We’re really happy to see that things work out well between you and Jiyong.”

Dara continued to eat her breakfast in silence. She stared in a distance with a blank face. What is she going to do now? From bad to worse, things are not going to what she planned.

Then, as if ice was poured on her body, she stood from her seat and ran inside her room to change clothes. She needs to talk to Jiyong. They need to talk now.

--

“What shall we do now?” Dara asked for the nth time, pacing back and forth on the living room of Jiyong’s pad.

“Calm down, will you?” he answered in irritation.

“How can I possibly calm down!” she yelled hysterically. “They will announce our engagement real soon, Jiyong. Things will get more complicated if we our engagement becomes formal. If we don’t make our move, they’ll have their way, and boom! The next thing we’ll know, we’re married! How could I possibly calm down!”

“I know that, you don’t have to enumerate, okay.” He muttered sharply with a clear look of annoyance in his face. She stopped from pacing back and forth and looked at him. Dara let out a defeated sigh and slumped down beside Jiyong on the couch.

“I’m sorry. I know you also feel agitated about our situation. I know too that you’d probably die than get married to me, I really understand that. I’m sorry for acting like a kid here.” She said, then pulled up her legs like a kid. “I’m just on panic mode right now.”

Jiyong wanted to laugh at her so loud. Damn!

‘I know too that you’d probably die than get married to me, I really understand that.’

I understand, huh? She’s saying that she feels like that also? That she would rather die than marry him? Is it so revolting to get married to him? She speaks as if their marriage would mean like the end of the world.

Damn, that really stung and irritated him more than he would ever care or dare to admite.

“I know, Jiyong!” she yelled suddenly, Jiyong then looked at her with an annoyed expression on his face. “I have an idea. I can talk to Seunghyun and have him pretend to we have a rela—“

“No way!” those two words automatically came out of his mouth upon hearing what she was about to say.

“Why?” Dara looked disappointed.

“It wouldn’t work. If you two would announce that you have a relationship, then what about this picture?” he pointed at the magazine where the photo of them kissing is printed.

“We can say that it’s just a physical thing. Just like what you’ve said, it meant nothing.”

“You think our parents would believe that?”

“But that’s the truth!” she blurted out.

Jiyong froze. Yeah, that was the truth. That kiss meant nothing. It was just a stupid kiss. Just lust and hormones. No fuzzy and warm emotions.

‘Goddammit!’ he scolded himself inwardly.

“Still, if you and Seunghyun is really a couple, why’d you announce it only now? That story is too flawed, Dara.” He said flatly. Jiyong hid his burning annoyance inside him with his nonchalant tone.

“Well, we can say that I’m just looking for the right timing to announce our relationship, right?”

“So this means that it is okay for your side will break the engagement? That your father will carry the burden of not fulfilling our mothers’ dying wish? Does this mean you’re alright with the possibility of uncle having heart attack because of that?” he lectured. “You should’ve said that earlier and did not came up with these plans and wasted our efforts.”

“You know I don’t want that,” she answered in a clipped voice. “But if you haven’t noticed, I’m desperate here and it’s not helping that you don’t seem very eager to come up with solutions. All you do is criticize.” Dara grabbed her bag, annoyed and stood up from his couch. “I’ll be back tomorrow, hopefull, you’ll be fit for a normal conversation by then.” She walked out of his pad, leaving the frustrated Kwon Jiyong alone.

“,” he cursed so loudly. What was his problem?

Why does he feel angry and annoyed knowing that Dara doesn’t like the idea of them getting married for real? What does he really want to happen between them?

--

“What a selfish, arrogant, self-centered .” Dara whispered inside the elevator, going down the lobby from Jiyong’s unit. Damn, it’s really impossible for the both of them to get along with each other. It gives her a bad head ache just by the thought it.

‘Annoying bastard!’ she yelled angrily inside her mind. The door of the elevator opened, she was about to step out when a smiling face greeted her.

“Oh! Uncle?”

“Your father said you might be here.” He said as Dara get out of the elevator.

“Are you going to see Jiyong?” she asked but the older man shook his head no.

“I’m actually here to see you. Can we talk for a while, Dara?” the older Kwon asked her. Although a little hesitant, Dara smiled and nodded.

--

They were seated at a cafeteria just across Jiyong’s building. She tapped her fingers unconsciously and nervously on the table while waiting for their order.

“Dara, thank you,” the older Kwon started. “I know this engagement is a very selfish act of your father and me. At first, I thought it would be impossible.” He paused as if he wanted to collect his thoughts, then continued. “Did you know, when Jiyong was little he wanted to be a toy designer?”

Dara looked at him and nodded. Jiyong had mentioned it to her before.

“Jiyong thought I didn’t know. But I do and yet despite that, I didn’t give it a thought. I can only be too happy and relieved that he’s a kid that knows how not to force what he wants. He never had resistance and he studied business course to be the successor of our family business.” The old man looked at her with a sad and regretful expression on his face that Dara’s heart can’t help but to break into little pieces. “I’m really a despicable father, don’t you think so, Dara?”

But Dara remained silent, not really knowing what are the right words to reply to him. Seeing her silent, the older Kwon continued.

“So now, I was really guilt-ridden because yet again, I’m imposing on him my will without considering his feelings. But when I saw that article and the picture of you and Jiyong on the magazine, you don’t know how happy I was.” The smile on his face reflected the relief and happiness he was feeling about her. “I’m happy to know that this is also what he wants. So Dara, thank you for giving your relationship with my son a chance to develop. I am sincerely grateful, dear.”

Dara managed a smile, but truthfully she felt like hell inside.

Uncle Kwon is wrong, Jiyong doesn’t want that. Now does she only realize everything while listening to Jiyong’s father. She should’ve known, the evidences were all in front of her even from the start.

The reason why Jiyong learned to massage at such an early age, why he gave up his dream of being a toy designer… and the same reason why he was unwilling to breaking their engagement.

It is all because of his strong love for his father. Unlike her, Jiyong was willing to give up his own happiness if it meant peace of mind for his beloved father.

Dara can’t help but smile painfully to herself.

--

[A/N]: Hello! How's everyone doing? Hope all of you are doing fine :) Thank you for those who have read my other fics especially , I have been receiving good feedbacks from you. Thank you also for giving this fic a read and good comments. Really really appreciate it! =)) But sadly, this fic is coming to an end but don't worry, I'll be back with a new one... soon. Kekekeke! 'Till next update!

xoxo,  

Authornim :)