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AUTHOR’S POV

Jiyong looked around the fancy restaurant and sighed to himself. He doesn’t know what has gotten into his mind as to what he was doing taking Kiko out to dinner. All he knows to himself is that he was doing what his mother wants and he thinks that asking Kiko out on a dinner is the best way to move on.

“Penny for your thoughts,” Kiko said, then giggled which made him to snap out of his reverie.

“Oh, they’re not worth any penny at all,” he replied smoothly then guided their way towards the table he reserved earlier that day.

Jiyong, being the gentleman that he is, pulled the chair and helped his date to sit. Kiko muttered a silent ‘thank you’ then smiled up at him. He smiled back before continuing on his seat in front of her. The waiter went to them shortly and asked for their orders.

“So, what’s up?” Kiko started as she placed the menu down and looked at him.

“Nothing much, just working like I always do,” Jiyong replied with a shrug, his mind can’t help but to wonder to somewhere else. He kept on telling himself to focus and keep his thoughts intact but his inner self seems to have other plans.

“Mhhhhm….” Kiko nodded her then smiled again. “You know, I never once thought you’d be a man behind a desk and trapped in a four-cornered office. I’ve always imagined you travelling the world and romancing every female population,” she added then giggled softly making him smile.

Jiyong breathed deep and shrugged his shoulders before saying, “Well, things change. People change.”

“I see that now. Wow, you’ve changed so much since college. You look so responsible now, so respectable compared to your image in college. Playboy, heartbreaker, reckless,” Kiko added. Jiyong was about to comment on that when the waiter arrived with their food.

They stopped chatting for a while and enjoyed the food served for them. And when they finished eating, Jiyong asked Kiko if she wanted some drink and he offered that it’s his treat. So without any further ado, both Kiko and Jiyong headed towards the bar and sat side by side on the high stool.

“So, tell me something more personal,” Jiyong started as he rolled the glass of brandy on his hand. “Is there someone special in your life right now?”

Kiko smiled some more, her eyes shifting to her brandy glass and to the man she was talking to. “Well, yes you could say that there is someone special,” she said softly.

“What are you doing here, then?” Jiyong asked jokingly as he let out an amused chuckle, more than relieved knowing that he won’t be forcing himself to ask her out some more because his mother asked him to.

“It’s kinda complicated. My father doesn’t like him for me. He says I deserve better, for example you,” Kiko said with a sigh then bowed her head.

“No way. You deserve to be with someone you truly loves, not someone who your father told you were better off with,” Jiyong replied then realized that he was saying that to himself instead of Kiko.

“I know. But I can’t stand against my father. Do you know that our parents are planning to get us married? I heard them one time,”

Jiyong gaped at the woman in front of him, shocked to hear that his mother and father would do that to him. He always believed that his father would never repeat what his grandfather had done. But he was wrong. So very wrong, and for the first time in his life, he felt disappointment towards his father.

“If you really love him, you have to fight for him,” he said softly.

“I know. And I’m planning on doing that. And if my father won’t agree still, I guess I just have to run away from my father and be with him,” Kiko said then smiled up at Jiyong, grateful to have him listen to her burdens.

“Yeah, you do that. Chase your happiness and don’t let anyone dictate your life,” Jiyong replied and in one second, realization dawned on him.

What is doing here in this fancy restaurant? He should be out there, chasing his own happiness. He should be out there, looking for her, chasing Dara. He should be out there, telling Dara he was a jerk, a bastard. Telling her how he was sorry for the things he did in the past. Tell her how much he loves her and how much he is willing to change for her.

But most importantly, he should be where Dara is. Because he knows he’ll never be happy if he’s not beside the woman he loves.

“Hey, Jiyong. Are you okay? You kinda paled for a second there,” Kiko snapped him out of his thoughts.

“Huh? Yeah, I’m okay.. Just had some moment of clarity there,” he said then scratched the back of his head with his right hand.

“Well, based from your advices, you sound like you have someone special too.”

Jiyong just nodded his head and smiled sheepishly.

“I’ve always been curious as to who will capture the heart of the most eligible bachelor of South Korea.. So could you name her?”

“Sandara Park or Dara. Does that ring a bell?” Jiyong said, liking the way how he feels when he says her name.

“The Sandara Park? Way back in college? That girl you and your friends betted with?” Kiko asked, her eyes wide with surprise and amusement. And Jiyong could only just nod and bow his head in shame for the things he did in the past.

“You know, to be frank. When I saw you two together back then. You had chemistry. I just can’t believe it how you manage to break her heart in front of the school population. I remember the way she looked then, it was like the world had crumbled right in front of her very eyes,” Kiko commented then patted his back for comfort.

“Yeah.. And I regret every single thing I did back then,” Jiyong said, his voice low.

“So, are you two together now? Can I expect a wedding invitation soon?” Kiko said, trying to lift up the mood and teased Jiyong. Jiyong’s reply was a sad smile as he shook his head.

“What? You’re not going to get married any time soon? What’re you waiting for?”

“We’re not back together. In fact, as clearly as I remember it, she told me to never show my face to her again.”

Kiko’s smile faltered and her gaze dropped to his clenched fist. “Oh, I’m so sorry.”

“Nah, it’s all good,” he shrugged his shoulders and emptied the contents of his glass.

“Okay, enough with the drama. How’s Seunghyun?”

BOM'S POV

I stopped on my tracks as I glanced at the glass doors of Dara’s office. She was looking lifelessly at her computer screen, like she was reading something that was written on it but not really absorbing the words on there. I smiled sadly as I reached for the door knob and pushed it open.

“Heya sister, who died?” I said in the most cheerful voice I could manage. Dara snapped her eyes away from the computer screen and looked at me, with the same lifeless look on it.

“Huh?” She asked as she tilted her head a little to the side, her expression matching that  of a lost kid. She blinked her eyes then focused her gaze on mine.

“You were looking at your computer screen like you were mourning about it. What's there, huh?” I said then confidently padded my way towards her, intending to take a peek at what she was doing at her computer and what was it that made her loose her focus on her work.

“It's nothing,” Dara said a little too quickly, making her sound defensive. Making me more curious because based on her reaction, what she was looking at the computer is something that'll make me disagree or be upset with her.

“Let me see,” I demanded as I stood beside her and slightly pushed her swivel chair away from her desk, then I hovered on her desk and was about to start reading the article on the screen when my phone started ringing.

I mumbled incoherent words as I started pulling my phone out of my pocket, and I smiled a little seeing appa’s name on the caller I.D. I tapped the answer button and greeted appa cheerfully like I always do.

“Appa! What made you call?”

“Just reminding you and Dara about Jaejoong and Donghae’s arrival there today,” appa said but I didn’t really get to understand what he just said because my blood started boiling on what I was seeing on Dara’s computer screen.

And due to my immediate rage, I suddenly forgot that I was talking to appa on my phone and I started yammering Dara about what she was looking over the internet. I placed my phone down on the table and I started walking towards Dara with my eyes throwing daggers at her.

“Haven’t you had enough, Sandara Park?” I started as I shook my head in disbelief. How can my sister be the biggest fool on earth?

“I was--,” Dara tried to reason out but I am too mad to hear her excuses.

I know I shouldn’t be shouting at her. But her foolishness is beyond what I can manage. How can she cry over that good-for-nothing bastard but then checks him over the internet? How can she allow herself to be hurt by that guy again and again?! She doesn’t need to pretend that she wasn’t hurt with the article she just read, which stated that that bastard Kwon Jiyong might be engaged to some rich girl. All I have to do is look into her eyes and see that she was hurting!

“Why can’t you stop loving him? He had hurt you, for goodness sakes!” I flung my arms in frustration, my eyes boring holes into her thick skull.

Dara just stayed quiet and bowed her head, probably fighting the tears that she wanted to spill.

“Isn’t it enough that he toyed you back then, huh? Isn’t it enough that he humiliated you in front of everyone when you were still in college? Isn’t it enough that Kwon Jiyong had destroyed you that I thought you wouldn’t be repaired anymore? Isn’t it enough that he caused you heartache that could last you a lifetime? Isn’t it enough, Dara, huh? Tell me!”

I walked over to her and crouched down, trying to get her look at me straight in the eyes. It’s been almost two years. And yet Dara is still drowned in the past. She seems okay now because that’s what she wanted us to see. But I know, deep down her, she’s still there, trapped in the miserable past Kwon Jiyong had put her in.

I reached to cup her face and wiped the tears that fell. She had shed enough tears for that guy. It’s time that I put a stop to my sister’s pains. She doesn’t deserve this.

“You have to stop letting yourself be hurt with the same man over and over again, Dara,” I softly said, with tears falling from my eyes because my sister’s pain is my pain too. “You have to move on. You have to stop loving him.”

“I…I really want to stop l-loving him, Bom.. I really want to,” Dara sobbed as she buried her face on my shoulders. “But how to stop? God knows I really tried but I just can’t seem to stop,” she said that made my tears fall heedlessly.

“Let me help you, Dara. Let me help you move on..” I enveloped my sister in a tight hug, knowing she needs me more than anything right now. “If he can’t realize your worth then he’s really not the one for you.” I said, my voice laced with desperation, desperate for her to let me help her and move on from her past.

Dara stayed silent, her sobs rang clearly inside my ears. Her shoulders shook as I tightened my hug around her. I swear this will be the last time Dara would even cry. This will be the last time Dara would shed tears for that bastard of a man, Kwon Jiyong.

“H-….” Dara mumbled something but I cannot understand her because her face were buried in my shoulders. I unwrapped my arms around her and pushed her slightly away from me, only to look at her straight in the eyes.

“Help me m-move on, Bom,” Dara said before breaking down again. And I hugged her even tighter.

AUTHOR’S POV

Park Jin Young was shocked to his very core. He can’t even move a muscle. He just stood there, his eyes wide with disbelief as his phone is still pressed into his ear. All he could hear on the other line now was soft sobs coming from his daughters and that broke his fatherly heart.

Everything is clear to him now. He now know who caused Dara’s misery back then. He can’t believe that Dara had to suffer more because she endured seeing Kwon Jiyong again, the reason behind why she went to him begging for him to take her away.

The hand that is holding his phone tightened around the little thing used for communication. Tears pooled at the brim of his eyes but he refused to let them fall down. Tears of pain for his daughter, Dara, who suffered and endured so much pain under the hands of Kwon Jiyong. Tears of anger. Anger for one man and one man only.

When he saw Dara’s pained eyes when she went to him back then, he swore to himself and to Dara’s late mother that he would make whoever hurt Dara to pay.

Park Jin Young is known to be a nice man, a wise and honest business man. And he is not the type of a man to seek revenge. No, he will not seek revenge. And he will not end the deal between the Kwons, Lees and Kims. He is a professional businessman and he will not drag personal matters in the deal. But he will surely won’t let Dara handle the business anymore.

And he will make sure that Kwon Jiyong won’t ever have the power to hurt his daughter ever again. He will take Dara away from that man and he will make sure that Dara will never see his face ever again.

With that in mind, Park Jin Young pushed his phone away from his ear and ended the call with Bom.