Excusing himself from the crowd, JongHyun quickly run out from TVXQ’s waiting room to the direction he saw Ri In take just now. Striding to the end of the corridor, he finally saw her figure exiting the emergency stair case, as he increased his speed towards her direction.

“Ri In.” Grabbing her by the arm, he pushed her against the wall, completely halting her movement.

“JongHyun-ah…”

                Any words wasn’t needed at that time for him when he drew her inside of his arm, he has been suffered all this days missing her.

                “I missed you…” He whispered in her hair.

                Ri In slowly tries to push him away, but it failed the moment he pressed his body harder against him, trapping her tightly between him and the wall. “And I thought you missed me too?”

“JongHyun-ah, don’t be like this… this is not right…”

Ri In could feel his body froze for a second before breaking the hug, forcing himself to look inside her eyes. “I am sorry… I just missed you so much…”

She quickly saw the sadness in his eyes, and she always hate herself each time she do it. “I am sorry too JongHyun-ah…”

He slowly held her hand in his before his thumb slowly moving in circle at the back of her hand. “How are you doing?” He slowly asked.

“Good.”

They looked inside each other’s eyes again, and Ri In could see his longing eyes, a loving gaze that she always hopes from her husband. But receiving it from a guy that used to be your best friend, it is just feels so wrong.

“Stay away from JongHyun, as far as you can do…”

And there is still one better person much more suitable for him.

“JongHyun-ah, you should stop doing this to me…”

 “Ri In, we’ve talked about this…” He stooped her.

She quickly shook her head; she already decided to put a stop to this wrongness, even if it means that she needs to hurt their heart a bit. “I am a married woman…” She started.

“I know, and we both know that marriage is unwanted.” He spoke bitterly as he fisted his free hand.

“That doesn’t matter…” She replied, making her voice as firm as she could.

“And being a married woman, I need to stay faithful to my husband…” JongHyun opened his mouth but she quickly stopped him, “either he loves me or not, it doesn’t matter…”

He opened his mouth, before closed it back and later Ri In could see his clenching jaw. “I don’t want to speak about this, Ri In…”

“We need to!”

Biting her inner lower lips, she could feel the blood taste thicker in compare to before.

“What do you feel if your wife kissing other guys out there?”

Ri In could feel her heart bleeding once she spoke the words. His expression turns sad, as it is can be seen clearly from his eyes, the way his eyelids go lower with his moisten eyes.

“Are you feeling regret having me around you?”

“So much.”

She fisted her shirt, hoping it could help her muster enough courage to not cry as his expression turned sadder each second passed.

“I am fixing my relationship with my husband; he already starts to accept me…” Ri In said in one breath, hoping he wouldn’t listen to her already trembling voice.

“It doesn’t mean anything… “His lips formed a bitter smile. “Love cannot be form in few days…”

“It shouldn’t be your concern…” She said, before slowly pushing him away, walking away as her back facing him. “And now I just want to focus on my husband…”

“This is not you, Ri In-ah… something must have happened before this… I don’t believe you…”

Ri In closed her eyes, his low trembling voice denying her words really pain her heart as the only thing she wanted to do now is hugging him and apologized for her harsh words.

“Find someone else that can accept your love…” She stopped when she feels his hand holding her arm. “And that someone will never be me…”

She softly yanked out her arm from his hold before quickly walked down the stairs, and the quick steps finally turn into a running mode the moment she feels tears start running down her cheek. “I am so sorry, JongHyun-ah… I am so sorry…”

*

Yunho was feeling restless, and JongHyun was completely lost.

It has been a week since the day of square love tragedy meeting happened, and everything seems so wrong for both guys.

Yunho was practicing a gag he learns from Junsu for a TV show when he saw JongHyun’s image from the practicing mirror, walking out from SHINee’s practice room. And the first thing he noticed is that boy looks lifeless compare to the usual days he saw him. Wiping out his sweat he followed the boy who seems left out from the practice session his group was having in their practice room at the moment.

“Hei…”

JongHyun slowly raised his head to the direction of the voice which is belongs to his respectable hyung. A small smile curved on his lips due to the respect he had, in other cases he won’t even lift his head.

“You seem troubled by something…”

JongHyun rubbed his face; he was trying to avoid the question all day long.

“Your mood will affect your performance on stage. You might able to hide it at the first performance, but when it comes to the second, third… plus with the tiredness and tension you collected the whole day; you might have a tight face even though you were singing ‘Replay’…”

JongHyun nodded to the advice, he knows his senior was speaking the truth.

“Are you having problems with songs?” JongHyun shook his head. “Or girl’s problem?” Yunho tried again.

“Some kind of…” JongHyun replies with a heavy sigh.

Yunho sit beside the troubled boy. “Break up?”

“I love her, but she doesn’t love me…” JongHyun said as he placed both his palm against the bench on each of his side before his head look up to the ceiling.

“And she finally finds herself someone that she loves?” Yunho guess when he realized the boy start to open up with him.

“She never loves me from the beginning, plus she is now a married woman…”

Yunho almost choked his spit, surprised to know a young man at this age could trap in a relationship with a married woman.

“You better be careful JongHyun-ah… the scandal might break to the media, and handling fans is the toughest thing…”

JongHyun nodded at his senior wise word. “I cannot lose her, hyung… not in million years I‘ll let her to suffer in a loveless marriage she don’t deserve…”

Yunho raised his eyebrows; somehow his mind suddenly went to his wife. He still remembered her hurtful eyes when her gaze roamed on his and Ji Hyun connected arm. He felt like chasing her the moment she strides out from the room, but he can’t do anything when Ji Hyun keeps attached on his arm and plus, he is the attention that evening.

 “She married someone who didn’t love her?”

“He even loves someone else…” Yunho cleared his throat, taken aback by the simple similarity between him and the man in JongHyun’s story.

“So why did they get married?”

“Family arrangement.”

Yunho stuck out his tongue, before slowly his lower lips. Isn’t the ending is already written? The girl later will feel abandon by his husband, and start to find shelter from other guys that willingly provide it, plus the burden coming from the family arrangement, who can stand the hardship?

“If you are that desperate, I mean you really in love with her, why don’t you profess your love for her, seriously until she melted… I mean, considering the way you describe her… ”

“She loves her husband hyung… for years, and she even thankful for the arrangement…”          

And Ri In’s image flashed again in his mind. With the beautiful face she had, her round hazel eyes with slightly plumped lips, she should have someone waiting for her like JongHyun waited for his girl, isnt? And if someone was professing to her just the way he advised JongHyun, will she run away?

An unknown sigh left his lips silently. After six months, it shouldn’t really matter right? The marriage is not even build of love –

“Ri In loves you, Yunho. Your wife loves you…”

 “Damn Jaejoong.”

“Hyung?”

He immediately looked up to his dongsaeng who was watching him. “Hyung, you seem more troubled than me…”

He chuckled; suddenly feel ashamed by his sudden daze. “Just for now, you need to focus on your performances… you just make your debut, you wouldn’t want something like this interrupt your focus, isn’t?”

JongHyun reluctantly nodded, Yunho knows he is not willingly to follow his advice. “Let’s take things this way. If you guys are meant to be, sooner or later, you will get together…”

A small smile creep on JongHyun’s lips, he appreciates the effort of his hyung trying to send his heart on ease.

Separated again at the practice room door, it was Yunho’s heart that still far from easiness.

*****

Ri In rubbed her runny nose, she still not yet recover from her sickness, especially when she stays up all night editing the pictures of DBSK comeback before sending it to Daily Music, and she rejected their offer to capture the pictures of other comeback performances of DBSK at other TV station, she can’t accept of more accident with JongHyun anymore, and she can’t saw YunHo with Ji Hyun either.

She groaned lazily the moment she realized she was running out her stock of tissue. Putting on her grey cardigan, she walked down to the mini market not far from her house to get her stock.

“Still having your flu?”

She nodded to the cheerful cashier who was smiling ear-to-ear. “You supposedly call for your boyfriend for company…”

Ri In smiled at the thought of boyfriend. She have husband instead. “I don’t have one…”

“OMO, you are such a beauty…” The cashier gasped. “Even beautiful person like you have difficulties in finding boyfriend…”

She took the item from the cashier’s hand, she suddenly feel guilty for the loss of smile on the cashier’s face. “Don’t be sad, you’ll get yourself a boyfriend sooner or later…”

Sighing. “Suddenly I envy her, pretty face, nice carrier, handsome boyfriend…”

“Who?” Ri In asked back, unclear with her rant.

The cashier just pointed to the papers shelf not far from them, and Ri In slowly takes a step towards it when the cashier mentions “Jeon Ji Hyun and U-know as the front page…”

“Rumors soon to be busted. Jung Yunho of DBSK and Jeon Ji Hyun portrait an image of happy couple at the backstage of DBSK’s comeback at Music Bank, contradicted with their endless deny of relationship.”

*

Her steps were shaky, she always have this effect each time Yunho’s name cross her day.

“Perfect couple.”

“The news is expected.”

“Waiting for the right time to tell the world.”

“Should I quickly end this relationship? Is six months is too long?”

The elevator later stops on her floor, and after a few steps, she saw a standing image of her sister.

“Unnie!”

Striding to her sister, she quickly pulled Jin Young into her tight embrace; even though she realized she never hug her back. “Why are you not calling first before coming? I can cook you something tasty…” She said smiling, contrast to her sister sour face.

Fumbling the keys inside the keyholes, she stopped when she feel firm nudge on her arm. “I don’t want to enter your house… I just come to have your signature on this document since you have turned into one lazy right after you get married…”

Ri In looked at her sister’s cold face, she always wonder why she never have the tenderness on her expression like a sibling should have each time she speak to her. Taking the document, “But I still need to read this first… And I don’t want you to catch a cold by staying outside at this cold weather…”

Jin Young snorted before stomped her feet before walked inside Ri In’s house.

“Don’t you think spending half million for the construction in Myongyangsan is very expensive? I mean, it is not even a three floors building?” Ri In asked to Jin Young who sits across the table.

“How would you know whether it is expensive or not? I am the one who working this project, checking all the tenders… are you telling me you are much better than me?”

“It is not like that unnie…” Ri In calmly said before putting the document flatly on the table. “But last time we spent lesser for quite a same structure in Incheon… Maybe you should check the tenderer background… I am sorry, but I cannot approve this…”

Jin Young clenched her teeth, not knowing why this girl in front of her always acting like she knows everything. “I am the one who study business…”

“This is a common sense unnie… but if I am wrong, shows me the tender so I can re-read it with you…”

“You are acting as if the company is fully yours now, isn’t? You start to show the real side of you especially when your signature become more precious now? Why don’t you take your position in the company, and see how wise your decision could be?”

She startled when Jin Young’s voice hit the highest tone for a normal conversation, within Young now is already hovering over her. Touching her own chest to ease her hard breath which always happens each time people shout at her, she gently replied, “Appa is the one who forbid me to work in the company.”

“Because he knows how useless you are!”

Jin Young grabbed the only file that didn’t sign by Ri In and shoved it into her chest. “Sign or not?”

Ri In gently shook her head and it is enough to earn her a slap on her left cheek. “I’ve been patient enough with you all these years… don’t test me anymore Jang Ri In…”

Jin Young walked out from the house, as Ri In slide down from her chair with her hand on her stinging cheek. “What have I done in the past to receive all this?” Her cry becomes louder, but it turned into a faint gasp when she suddenly felt a soft touch on her shoulder, and seconds later, she is already in Jung Yunho’s comforting arm.

*****

~Hello~

Some of you are not eager to know Ri In’s secret… ᄏᄏ… please be patient ne~~

Sorry if this chapter makes you bored, but this is kind of essential chapters tho..

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