A/N: This is a new chapter! I deleted my old chapter 19 so the new chapter 19 was the old chapter 20. I'm not making any sense, I know. Sorry. proceed to reading. Hope you enjoy the ride.

The plane shook slightly as it hit rough weather not long after its ascend. Ji Hyo sat with her back rigid in her seat, both hands clutching her armrests tightly until her knuckles turned white. Her eyes were fixed on the vast blue sky outside the windowpane while her mind wandered away.

She was startled when someone called her name, jumped a little in her seat when the voice was followed by a single tap on her forearm. Tearing her gaze from the view -or lack thereof- outside, she was met with a pair of concerned eyes watching her.

"Are you alright?" Lee Seo Jin, one of her drama co-stars who happened to be sitting next to her, asked worriedly. He had been watching the younger woman rigid posture for a while and he was afraid that she was having motion sickness from the turbulence. "Are you dizzy? Do you need anything - water, candies, chocolate?"

Ji Hyo blinked at the warm tone, after all the coldness from some of her co-workers these past few days she was beginning to think that nobody wanted to associate with her and she found it quite surprising to hear a warm concern directed at her. Quickly shaking the initial surprise, she tried to smile reassuringly at the senior actor. "I am fine, Sunbaenim."

The man raised his eyebrows. "That," he began, motioned at Ji Hyo's hands with a finger, "doesn't look like 'fine' to me. I’ve acted for years, young lady, I know nervous when I see one." He winked playfully at Ji Hyo.

Glancing down at her own hands, Ji Hyo found that she was still clutching the armrests very tightly like they were her lifeline. She coloured in embarrassment and loosened the death grip, retracting her hands to put them on her laps. She heard a snort and when she lifted her head back, she saw Seo Jin was laughing at her action - his eyes twinkled in amusement. The laughter was infectious, so it seemed, for Ji Hyo found herself laughing along with the older man - tension left her shoulders and she relaxed back to her seat.

"Something bothering you?" he asked lightly; there was no malice in his voice and Ji Hyo knew he was sincere.

Ji Hyo shrugged. "I was thinking," she replied vaguely, not feeling comfortable talking about her problem. She and Seo Jin weren't that close of friends to begin with even though, come to think of it, he was actually one of the few friends on set she had left now.

Ever since the scandal of her affair with Jong Kook surfaced, some of her co-stars had started to treat her differently although they were still quite friendly with her. The avoidance escalated from bad to worse after Jong Kook went to the airport to 'seal' the gossip. While they weren't hostile physically nor did they attack her verbally, they were giving her the cold shoulder and persisted to not talk to her unless absolutely necessary. In a way Ji Hyo understood their resentment; this unwanted publication might reflect badly on their drama and they were worried about it, but it didn't mean that she was immune to the emotional pain they caused.

"Don't think about them too much, Ji Hyo," Seo Jin advised calmly. He cocked his head to get a better look at the younger woman. "I meant the gossip and the people," he made himself clear, "I know that you feel like everything is closing in on you now but this won’t last. I take it it’s not the first time you got into a scandal, is it? You know that it never lasts. And no – no need to look so offended. I mean no harm.”

She opened to speak but nothing came out. Ji Hyo simply stared at her seatmate with agape.

“I know how you are feeling in your shoes now – been there, done that. Remember when the media found out about me and Jeung Eun? Of course people were so accepting back then, weren’t they?”

The last sentence was spoken with so much sarcasm that Ji Hyo chuckled at it. She did remember it, though. The netizens had gone quite ballistic when they heard about Seo Jin dating his co-star from the same drama series, Kim Jeung Eun. Ji Hyo didn’t pay attention to the gossips much, but she heard that the hostility they had received from their antis was borderline criminal.

“Even that went away,” he said. “New scandals always top the old ones sooner or later. You can’t let them bother you.” He looked at her with so much compassion in his eyes and Ji Hyo distantly remembered that his breakup with Kim Jeung Eun was a bit of a real live drama itself. The older man grinned at Ji Hyo’s expression and nudged her arm with his elbow. “Now, don’t you look at me like that, Miss Song.”

Ji Hyo blushed. “Sorry,” she mumbled in embarrassment.

“So,” the man was set on keeping the conversation going. He was still afraid that Ji Hyo’s gloominess was caused by some fear of flying and he wanted to get her mind off of it. “You and Kim Jong Kook, eh?”

The tension was back in Ji Hyo’s form and her jaw clenched. “What about it?” she said stiffly.

Seo Jin was startled at the aggression in the voice and he suddenly lifted his hands placidly in front of his chest. “Hey, I’m just asking. Don’t get all too defensive on me, Ji Hyo. I am not the big bad wolf here,” he stated flatly.

This time Ji Hyo coloured for a very different reason. “Sorry, Sunbaenim,” she apologised meekly,” I’m just–.. sorry. That was really uncalled for.”

He waved his hands in dismissal. “It’s alright. Everything is so stressful for you of late, isn’t it?”

Ji Hyo chuckled at the statement. “You have no idea,” she replied, shaking her head.

“The two of you look compatible with each other,” Seo Jin began. He waited for a response but all he got was a glint of sadness in Ji Hyo’s eyes so he backtracked a little. “Ji Hyo – you and him are together, aren’t you – as in he is your boyfriend? Or –...”

“I–... we...,” Ji Hyo faltered, exhaling heavily. “It’s complicated,” she finally settled on the answer, which was somewhat true.

“When isn’t it?” he quipped in understanding. The man nodded, perfectly getting the hint that Ji Hyo didn’t want to talk about it. It wasn’t really his place to press anyway; he and this woman who was a decade younger than him were not that close of friends. They were on friendly terms but that was it. He was going to talk more but then his manager walked past them and decided to have a little chat with him.

Ji Hyo smiled at the older men and turned her head back to the window, leaning back to her seat and tried to relax. Shadow cast her eyes as she thought about Jong Kook and her smile froze on her lips in an instant.

Jong Kook was really driving her crazy. During the first days of her trip in Jeju the man had been calling her every so often like clockwork that Ji Hyo wouldn’t be surprised if his phone bill hit the roof. But then she felt him change – his calls began to lessen and the text messages only contained basic things like if she had eaten or her plane schedule instead of the usual random banter they exchanged. Ji Hyo could feel that he was building a wall to distance himself with her and she was so confused. She had questions in her head – ones that she was too afraid to actually ask out loud for fear of not being able to handle the answer. What happened? Did she do anything wrong? What did she do wrong? Her head ached only because of thinking about this.

She had thought about it and if she was correct then this change started when she called him yesterday morning, first thing on Sunday, asking about the call she apparently had made to him when she was drunk on Saturday night. She remembered that Jong Kook had sounded a little off on the phone but it wasn’t until she told him that she remembered nothing had he started to sound different – distant. She suspected that she must have said something wrong, but Jong Kook didn’t specify anything, telling her only that she babbled randomly for the course of nearly two hours.

 Her musing was cut short when a flight attendant asked her to fasten her seatbelt as they were landing soon. There was a flicker of hope that Jong Kook would surprise her by picking her up at the airport – he did ask her about her flight schedule – and a smile began to form on Ji Hyo’s lips.

Gimpo airport was as busy as it could get on Monday afternoon. Ji Hyo had to struggle to make her way around the throngs of busy people walking to various directions; she was thankful that she travelled light this time as most of her clothes were props or she would go crazy in this crowd.

She couldn’t resist looking around once she passed the security, searching for a familiar figure. Her heart skipped a beat when she thought she saw someone that looked like Jong Kook from afar only to be disappointed when the man turned out to be a random stranger. The hope that at first fluttered in her stomach waned after a couple more of false alarm and the glimmer in her eyes dulled into a shadow of disappointment.

The actress was silent on the drive to Seoul, letting Sun Mi cite her schedule for the next couple of days without really listening to the manager. She was having a mixed feeling – torn between confusion and anger for being treated this way. Anger won out this time as Ji Hyo came to the conclusion that, once again, she had been the fool – that she had been tricked into a silly little game Jong Kook must have been playing at.

She remembered what Seo Jin said about new scandals topping the old one and she became angrier. Of course – her scandal with Jong Kook had buried the one she had because of her breakup with Chang Joo. She didn’t know what happened when she was away but she deduced that some things got out of hand and now Jong Kook wanted out; he was no longer willing to continue this. Ji Hyo fumed at the thought. If she got into more scandal it would end her career right away, she knew that. No, she thought, I’m not going to let that happen. The actress clenched her teeth and balled her fists tightly that later she could find nail marks on her palm but she felt no pain.

Damn you, Kim Jong Kook, she cursed in her head while at the same time shutting out the part of her that was relieved about this because if Jong Kook really decided to end everything, it meant that Chang Joo would have no more reasons to hurt him – that Jong Kook would finally be really safe.

***

It was around four in the afternoon, approximately twenty-one hours forty minutes - and still counting - since the last time Jong Kook talked to Ji Hyo. He was getting antsy as time passed by as he knew that Ji Hyo must have had landing back in Seoul, conflicted between wanting to see the woman and fearing the meeting at the same time.

He was sitting away from the others - or rather, they were sitting away from him after seeing his brooding face - which suited just fine for him. Jong Kook didn't feel like joining the trivial conversation about who the guest would be today; it was the least of his concern when a certain woman filled his every waking thought.

If Jong Kook wanted to be completely honest, he actually dreaded the meeting with Ji Hyo today; the fact that he had been quite an arse to his supposed-to-be girlfriend was one of the few reasons why. The muscular man couldn't deny that he had been feeling a little bit awkward towards Ji Hyo after the drunken call, one that she claimed she remembered nothing of. He had been pulling away emotionally from the woman, distancing himself. Somehow the not-so-innocent but honest words that Ji Hyo said to him made him think about this fake relationship they were acting on.

Jong Kook was beginning to lose his footing on this little game he had crafted; something was starting to shift between them and it was a little bit too late to change it. Were people to ask, Jong Kook would still stay that he still thought of Ji Hyo as his dongsaeng, not because he was a hypocrite but simply because he never gave himself a chance to think of her as anything else. Alas, it was undeniable that in the short course of three weeks - oh heavens, had it only been three weeks? It felt like a lifetime for Jong Kook - the woman had been an important part of him. It was as if Ji Hyo had managed to somehow sneaked into his heart and placed her roots there, building a nest inside without his permission, making herself comfortable, and refusing to go away. He had been constantly worried about her, most of his time now was filled with the thoughts on how to make her smile, how to get rid of Chang Joo so that she could return to her happy old self. Jong Kook had to admit that he was turning into an addict. And Ji Hyo was his drugs.

"Jong Kook-ah! When is Ji Hyo coming in?" Jae Suk called out from where he sit, interrupting Jong Kook from his musing.

Jong Kook visibly flinched, feeling guilty for not knowing the answer to the question. "I don't know, Hyung," he replied sheepishly. It was embarrassing not to know your own girlfriend's schedule.

"You don't know?" Jae Suk asked in a raised tone; he didn't even try to hide his surprise. "Yah, Kim Jong Kook, what kind of boyfriend are you?" the MC said in jest.

Still, it was like a slap on the face. Indeed, what kind of boyfriend he was? Jong Kook didn't answer; he couldn't - so he only let out a mirthless laugh to hide his discomfort. It was fortunate that the sunbae didn't seem to notice anything was wrong for he turned away from Jong Kook and returned to his conversation with Suk Jin and Jo PD.

Being left alone once again, Jong Kook began to regret not calling Ji Hyo despite knowing what time her plane would land. No matter how confused and weary he was, it was his own feelings and he had no excuse of treating Ji Hyo differently - she was at no fault in this. The man closed his eyes, feeling so conflicted. Not wanting to have any more time to change his mind, he quickly fished  out his phone from his pocket and dialled Ji Hyo's numbers.

He waited for a few seconds as Ji Hyo's personal dial tone - some sappy song - blared in his ear, hoping that she would pick up. When the call was left unanswered and Jong Kook tried again, and again, he started to become really worried. Where are you? Where are you? Pick up the phone! He thought, quite panicked. It was on his fifth or sixth try when he heard Suk Jin's voice calling after a name - the name of the person he had been dying to see.

Jong Kook's head whipped upwards, immediately his eyes scanned the room before fixing themselves into Ji Hyo's figure. He couldn't help looking at the woman from top to bottom as if wanting to memorise every detail of her. When his eyes were back up to Ji Hyo's face, he noticed that she was training her eyes on him. For a second, their eyes locked and Jong Kook was unable to think.

The woman's eyes bore uncertainty, questions and insecurity swam inside the dark orbs and Jong Kook felt ashamed of himself for putting those doubts in them. His breath hitched when the next second Ji Hyo offered him her brightest smile that literally lightened up her whole expression and stalked at him.

"Oppa," she greeted merrily, making Jong Kook shivered by the sugar-coated voice which warmth didn't quite reach her eyes. Ji Hyo's eyes remained dull and impassive. "What's with the frown, Jong Kook Oppa? Aren't you happy to see me?"

Jong Kook gulped uncomfortably, realisation dawned on him. This was not Ji Hyo his best friend, the woman that he wanted to protect. No; this stranger was Song Ji Hyo the actress, brilliantly playing her part as a love-struck girlfriend. For the first time Jong Kook was experiencing firsthand the flawless acting skill of the woman before him and he realised that he didn't like it. No, no, don't speak to me so sweetly when your eyes speak a different tune, he screamed inside his head.

Ji Hyo smiled, gently easing herself onto Jong Kook's rigid form as she circled his waist and pulled him into a hug. She could feel his heart beating erratically through his cotton shirt for her front was flushed against his - soft against hard.

The effect of the hug was instantaneous. Jong Kook felt a guttural sound escaped his throat before he could control himself. Ji Hyo's breath caress the crook of his neck and Jong Kook involuntarily lifted his arms to return the hug. When Ji Hyo pulled away the next second, he growled in protest, wanting to hold her a second longer.

"Ji Hyo-yah," he whispered helplessly. He had millions of questions.

"Smile. Act happy," Ji Hyo whispered back coldly even though her face remained full of smile. Her expression remained the same when colour drained from Jong Kook’s face. From afar, they would look like a couple exchanging pleasantries after a long time not meeting with each other.

"Ji Hyo-..”

"No, don't say anything," she stopped him short. "I'm not going to let you give people a reason to gossip more about me. I'm not going to let you ruin my life, Kim Jong Kook - so smile and play along."

Jong Kook went agape. What the hell is she talking about? He mused, totally confused. But Jong Kook had known Ji Hyo long enough – well enough – to hear the slight catch in the younger woman voice, to feel the trembling of the ice-cold hand on top of his. No; Ji Hyo wasn’t cross at him for emotionally stepping back from her over the weekend. This was worse. Ji Hyo was hurt and her pain was so flagrant. Jong Kook felt as if someone punched him on the gut and he totally felt like a complete arse, knowing that it was him who caused the pain. Oh, how hypocritical of him to want to hurt Chang Joo for hurting Ji Hyo when he himself did the same thing to the woman before him – if not worse. At least, as far as he knew, Chang Joo never made a promise not to make Ji Hyo cry – unlike himself. And look what he did now.

Before he could react, Ji Hyo had already walked away from him to mingle with Jae Suk and the others. She turned her head and glared at him, silently telling him to come. Sighing in defeat, Jong Kook went to where the others were chatting; each footstep was heavier than the last. Somehow he had a feeling that today was going to be a very long day in the worst sense of the word.

A/N: So yeah, I decided to change the course of my story again. No more Han Kyeong Eun - that would be for my own entertainment only. From now on we will see very little of Chang Joo intereference and I will focus solely on Spartace - but it doesn't mean that there won't be any outside sh*t bothering them. 

I didn't mention what drama Ji Hyo was filming but seeing that I brought in Mr. Lee Seo Jin, I believe you can guess.

Thanks for reading.