Credits go to hungry- (from  affamé graphic shop), for this amazing poster.

[ Forty. The Girlfriend ]

“What do you mean by that?” Dara asked slowly, thinking that Jiyong is trying to say he loves her. If he did, then why can’t he just say it? The flicker of hope and unpredictability was killing her, the suspense squeezing her heart tightly.

Jiyong took a deep breath, meeting Dara’s eyes. “I mean that I had resented you so much for leaving to the point that I loathed you. But that was before. Right now, I am-“ The ringing of Jiyong’s phone interrupted him, and he cursed lowly before picking up. Who the hell was calling him in the middle of this? Burning with curiosity at what Jiyong was going to say, Dara could only wait as he took the call. “Yeah?”

Dara could hear a male voice on the other end shouting, “GD! Where are you, man?”

“I’m…” Irritated that the caller had interrupted an important conversation between Dara and him, Jiyong suddenly got an idea. He looked directly at Dara, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. “I’m with my girlfriend. What’s up?”

Dumbfounded, Dara was lost for words. He was telling whoever was calling him that he was with his girlfriend. He is with her. He is saying that I’m his girlfriend. Her heart fluttering, Dara could felt blood rushing to her cheeks as she blushed, giving her a rosy glow. A satisfactory reaction. It earned a deep chuckle from Jiyong.

“Girlfriend?” The person on the other end was as shocked as Dara, but showing it in an entirely different way by screeching dramatically into the phone. “Guys, guys! Shut up! GD says he’s with his girl!” The cacophony in the background disappeared, and it became so quiet on the other line that the guy’s uneven breathing can be heard. “I didn’t hear you wrong, man? Girlfriend? Is this a bad time to ask you to come join us at the izakaya then?”

“I don’t know. I’ll have to ask my girlfriend for permission.” Jiyong bit his lower lip to keep from laughing out loud. “Sweetheart, is it okay for me to go?”

“Sure,” Dara stammered, unable to come up with another response.

“She says it’s good,” Jiyong notified the person on the other line although he was sure that the quick exchange could be heard. “See you soon, Dae.”

“Wait!” The person named Dae yelped before Jiyong could end the call. “Why not bring your girlfriend with you? We all want to meet her. Don’t hog her all to yourself!” The previous noise returned in the background as the other people present shown their enthusiasm for the man’s suggestion by babbling all at once.

“Well, babe? Do you want to go?” Jiyong smirked.

“Okay.” Still in shock, Dara was only able to utter one-word answers. Her mind has officially stopped functioning, and her heart was unable to stop accelerating. She might just die of a heart attack any minute now.

“Then it’ll be the two of us. Bye.” Jiyong hung up, steering the car so that they were heading to their new destination. Jiyong had a hard time keeping his eyes on the road when all he wants to do is stare into the eyes of his girlfriend. Or jump around the streets of Seoul to jabber to every stranger that Dara was his girlfriend again. He was pretty sure that there was a whole city setting up New Years fireworks inside his body, because he felt a year’s worth of happiness exploding inside of him. Not even his comeback can get him as giddy as confirming his relationship with Dara. “There’s no turning back for you, Dara. You had your chance to refuse me, but it’s too late now. You’re mine.”

Tilting his head to the side, Jiyong added, “Does this answer your question about what you are to me, sweetheart?”

Shaking her head in resignation and disbelief that Jiyong had sneakily gotten her to agree to be his girlfriend in such a bizarre way, Dara’s lips turned upward in a sweet smile. Jiyong took one of her hands in his, keeping his other hand firm on the steering wheel. She asked teasingly while fondling with his hand, “Is this your power move, G-Dragon? Announcing it randomly to whoever calls you?”

Jiyong chuckled. “I guess you can say that.”

“Have you used it many times?” Dara questioned casually, but fixed her eyes firmly on Jiyong’s face. Despite the lovey-dovey feeling flowing through her, she wants to know if she is the only one that had received this treatment before. She can fight it off, but cannot be completely unaffected by possessiveness and jealousy.

Jiyong’s smirk widened. “The rate of success is quite high. I’ve never gotten a no for an answer before.”

His answer immediately brought a frown on Dara’s face. It sounds like he has used it more than once. She was crestfallen, but trying not to let it show that the fact bothers her. “Really?”

“Because I’ve only used it once, and once is all I need. Congratulations on being the only recipient of G-Dragon’s power move, Miss Sandara Park.” Jiyong patted Dara’s hand reassuringly. Dara let out an audible sigh of relief, but pinched Jiyong hard for teasing her.

“Who is Dae?” Dara wondered out of the blue.

“Dae? Oh, his full name is Kang Daesung, stage name is D-Lite. He’s a ballad singer under YG, but nowadays he focuses on hosting and going on variety shows.” Jiyong drove slowly as he looked for a parking space. Dara could see the izakaya, a late-night Japanese bar that served food and alcohol. It was tucked carefully in the quiet streets of a nice district. “I’m guessing that some of our crew is there too.”

“And it is okay that you told them you’ll be bringing your girlfriend?” Dara asked worriedly, her scandal reminding her once again how cautious she has to be. Right now, the most talked about topic may be Seunghyun and Bom’s relationship being officially out in the open, but one more picture of Jiyong and her will surely change things. “Should we enter separately or something? What if it leaks out to the media?”

Jiyong ran to Dara’s side of the car, opening the door for her. She stepped down from the car, and she thought Jiyong was going to slam the door close for her when his arms engulfed her, pressing her tightly to his chest. She hugged him back, looking at him expectantly. In a husky voice, Jiyong told her, “Honestly speaking, I don’t care about who knows. All I know is that I’m happy with you.”

Hand in hand, they walked towards the bar. It feels so surreal to Dara that, here she was, walking on the ordinary streets of Seoul with the biggest K-pop sensation holding her hands. “But I don’t want to be a burden to you. If your comeback gets affected because of me-“

“We’ll be careful, but we won’t hide or deny anything. Besides, these guys are family. They won’t spread the word to people that are not supposed to know,” Jiyong assured her. Personally he wanted to copy Seunghyun’s approach of announcing it publicly. He was in love and he sees no reason for him to hide it from anyone. However, he knows that once the news gets out, Dara would be the one suffering from the attention and hate garnered from their relationship. To protect her, he cannot act rashly and announce it because he wants to. He had lost her once, and he is not going to let it happen again.

Dara nodded, but not entirely convinced when they walked inside the bar. She was going to let go of his hand, but he held hers firmly. When a waitress came over, she quickly hid behind Jiyong by reflex.

“Mr. Kwon?” Jiyong nodded coolly. “Mr. Kang has reserved a private room in the back. Please follow me.” The waitress spotted Dara, who was trying to remain inconspicuous, and bowed respectfully to address her. “Mrs. Kwon.”

Dara could feel the blush creeping onto her face as Jiyong grinned from ear to ear. When the waitress turned to lead them to the private room, Dara punched Jiyong’s arm, but was unable to wipe the goofy grin from his face. “Mrs. Kwon. I like the sound of that.”

“Don’t even start,” Dara warned.

“What?” Jiyong asked innocently, but held up their intertwined hands. The ring of diamonds given by Jiyong was resting on Dara’s middle finger. “Hmm, wonder who gave you that ring, Mrs. Kwon. Must be a rich guy that can afford buying five houses in a heartbeat for the girl he loves.”

Reaching the private room that was situated in the far end of the bar, the waitress bowed to them once more before leaving. Dara heard the laughter and clinking of glasses coming from the other side of the sliding door that consisted of paper over a wooden frame. The dim light inside cast shadows onto the paper door. Seeing Jiyong taking his shoes off before entering, she did the same. After the two of them put their shoes neatly beside the ten or so pairs of shoes lying outside, Jiyong pushed the door open. “We’re here.”

Instantly, the conversations and noise died out. Dara, taking a deep breath, followed Jiyong’s footsteps to walk onto the tatami floor. She inwardly groaned at how she had chosen to wear a dress today, of all days. It would be uncomfortable to sit on the floor wearing a dress. But her focus returned to the room, where everyone was staring at her. There were around ten people sitting around the long table, most of them guys around her age and one blonde girl. They were dressed casually, but Dara knew that they must be famous figures, what with the confidence oozing from each of them. Her eyes met with Teddy and Seungri, the only two people she knew, and the two unexpectedly jumped up to hug each other before throwing their fists triumphantly in the air.

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