After the news of Jong Kook and Ji Hyo’s relationship was reported, the fans went into frenzy. Some of them were very supportive and gave encouraging remarks, while others did not take the news that well. Some fans commented that Ji Hyo was not good enough for Jong Kook and vice versa. Some diehard fans of Jong Kook-Eun Hye love-line were upset enough to rant online that Ji Hyo could never be compared to Eun Hye. And as expected, the Monday Couple fans were disappointed and some of them were very upset with Ji Hyo and Jong Kook. Some of them felt that Ji Hyo had played Gary and them out. Some of their comments were outright nasty and harsh.

Gary read in dismay at the comments posted by the last category of fans on the online forums, Twitter and other social media. While he appreciated the support from his fans, he would rather they be kinder to Ji Hyo. He wished he could do something to stop these comments and helped Ji Hyo. Gary was about to send a Twitter message via his mobile phone when Gil snatched his phone from him.

“What are you doing? Give me back my phone.” Gary said angrily at Gil.

“No. I won’t give you back your phone. I won’t let you repeat the same mistake.” Gary knew that Gil was referring to the incident which he had impulsively announced via his Twitter account that he would withdraw his involvement from all variety shows.

“Give it back to me now!” Gary said even more angrily.

Gil dropped his phone into the cup of coffee which he was drinking with a smirk.

Gary balled up his right fist but he could not bring himself to hit his best friend so he punched his hand against the wall instead. “DAMN IT!” Gary bellowed and stormed out of his studio in frustration. Gil did not bother to chase after him as he could easily guess where Gary would be heading and he would find him there after he met up with Jae Suk and Haha.

Jae Suk, Haha and Gil arrived at the boxing gym. They saw Gary splaying on the floor of the boxing ring. Every part of him was thoroughly exhausted. His body was sore from his rounds in the ring. His heart was battered from being around in their ring. He was so tired; tired of pretending that he was okay when he not, tired of hiding his feelings. Previously, even though she had probably took it as a joke or a show, he could at least express his feelings for her by being cheesy and cheeky on screen in the Running Man. Now, he could not tell her his feelings anymore. She was his good friend’s girlfriend. She was someone who would continue to be in his life but whose role had changed and demanded him to change too. He stared blankly at the ceiling, his vision was bleary, and his tears had mixed with his perspiration. He didn’t even have the strength to move or respond when his friends approached him.

“Gary,” Jae Suk called out to him. There was no response from Gary.

“Gary,” Jae Suk called out to him again. There was still no response from Gary.

Haha and Gil moved to each side of Gary and they pulled him into a sitting position.

“Hyung,” Haha called out to him but still there was no response from him.

Jae Suk removed Gary’s helmet carefully from his head. He used a nearby towel to wipe Gary’s wet and expressionless face. He said kindly to his dongsaeng, “Gary, you can’t keep hurting yourself this way.” Gil had told Jae Suk about the message which Gary was about to send. Gary wanted to tell the whole world that the Monday Couple was nothing but a show and he was only playacting with Ji Hyo. Jae Suk understood that if Gary were to admit that he was playacting with Ji Hyo, Gary would have problems reconciling with himself. How could you love someone with your heart for three years then tell everyone that that love wasn’t true? Wouldn’t you question what you had been doing for the past three years? Wouldn’t you think you were the greatest liar or the greatest fool?

Fresh tears from his eyes wetted the face which had been dried by Jae Suk. He wanted to tell Jae Suk that his heart had been bleeding. Each time he thought his old wound would be healed, a new wound would appear and his heart would bleed again. It took him six years and a marriage to end his on-and-off relationship with his ex-girlfriend. It took him another two years to come to terms that that girl was someone else’s bride but his. When his heart finally found its peace, he met another girl who took his heart like storm. However, unlike his previous girlfriend who drifted in and out of his life several times, the new girl was a new constant in his life. She was a constant even when she had been and was now someone else’s girl.

His friends sat with him in silence.

Gary took the towel slowly from Jae Suk’s hand and wiped his own face. His tears had stopped flowing. He took and drank from the bottle of water which Haha had offered to him. He welcomed the hug that Gil gave him. He was heartened to know that even when all else was gone, at least he still had his friends.

---

Several hours ago, Suk Jin and Kwang Soo had visited Ji Hyo at her apartment. Jong Kook was the one who opened the door for them. The first thing that struck Suk Jin was how neat and tidy her place had become.  

Jong Kook finally appreciated Ji Hyo’s concerns about their fans. He had emerged relatively unscathed by the news, but he could see the toils of the fans’ reactions on Ji Hyo. She did not cry but she was quiet, much too quiet than usual. She was spacing out most of the time.

While Ji Hyo had avoided reading the comments, she was still aware of some of the comments that were circulating. She was relieved that Jong Kook’s fans had generally taken the news well. But the comments from Eun Hye’s fans had caused her previous insecurities to resurface. She was grateful that Jong Kook had been reassuring her that these comments were not what he felt and thought. He had been by her side all these while being her strength and pillar.    

It was the remarks of her own fans that hurt her most. She had never led Gary on. This was a repeat of what had happened when the news of her relationship with her CEO broke out. Why couldn’t people just wish her well? Couldn’t they just respect her choice? She had never meant to hurt Gary. When they first started out in the Running Man, she was smitten by Gary’s romantic and sensitive gestures. However, she was never certain whether he was playing his part for the show or he was serious about her. To protect herself from being hurt, she had been insisting that they be good friends and nothing more. Soon, she began to believe what she had been telling him – he was a good friend to her. But she finally realised how her relationship with Jong Kook could have hurt him. She felt bad and guilty.

She tried hiding her sadness and greeted Suk Jin and Kwang Soo cheerfully but both of them saw through her facade. Kwang Soo gave her a box of chocolates because someone had told him that chocolate was a happy food. Also, life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re going to get. (This is a quote from the movie Forrest Gump.)

Suk Jin sent Jong Kook and Kwang Soo away to buy their lunch while he stayed on to speak with Ji Hyo. When the two men left the house, he sat her down next to him. “Ji Hyo, now that Jong Kook is not around, you can just speak your mind,” Suk Jin started.

She looked at the elder man in amazement and gratefulness. He had given her an opening to share her feelings and thoughts. “I feel so sorry towards Gary oppa,” she said miserably. “I didn’t mean to hurt him.”

Suk Jin asked, “Have you ever led him on?”

“No,” she replied softly.

“Do you always tell him that you treat him as a friend?”

“Yes, I do.”

“Did Gary stop loving you when you were with your CEO?”

“No.”

“Were you worried that he was hurt then?”

“Yes.”

“Did you feel sorry towards him then?”

“Yes.”

“So, what is so different this time?”

“Suk Jin oppa was right. What makes it so different this round?” She searched herself for the answer and found it. She uttered, “Jong Kook oppa.”

“So, you are more concerned this round because you are afraid to hurt Jong Kook?” Suk Jin deliberately asked the wrong question.

“No, it is not like that!” she exclaimed. “We would hurt Gary oppa when he sees us together.”

Suk Jin reached out to Ji Hyo’s head as if she was a child. “Ji Hyo, I care for Gary just as much as I do for Jong Kook. All three of you are adults. All three of you know what you are doing. At least one person is bound to be hurt in a love triangle; there will never be a perfect solution. Gary will walk away when it’s too much for him to bear but until then don’t reject his friendship and goodwill,” Suk Jin explained. “He has lost you as a girlfriend. Don’t make him lose both of you as his friends.”

---

A few days later, a former Running Man producer, who was currently working with Jae Suk on another variety show, clarified during an interview that both Ji Hyo and Gary had requested on several separate occasions during the entire Running Man period to end the Monday Couple love-line but they were always persuaded to continue with the love-line by the production team and the other cast members. He appealed to the disappointed fans not to blame Ji Hyo and Gary. He also expressed his delight that the Running Man show had “produced” the strongest and most compatible couple. He asked the fans to continue showing their love and give their blessings to Ji Hyo and Jong Kook.

After the movie, Haha had invited the cast to have supper at his restaurant. Kwang Soo could not make it as he had to join the movie production crew for their celebratory dinner. Jae Suk and Suk Jin had also declined his offer as they wished to go home early. So, it was just four of them sitting at the dining table. 

Haha tried to make small talk among them but the other three persons were not very enthusiastic. He got frustrated and stopped talking.

Out of the blue, Gary said to Jong Kook, “Have you made up your mind on the lead single for your new album?”

“I’m still thinking about it. The one chosen by you last week is quite good but I’m hoping to choose a non-ballad as the lead single for my new album. I want to try something different.”

“All right, I will try to find you something non-ballad for a change. So, do you want to film a music video for the song that I have chosen?”

“But who should we cast in this music video?”

“Have you asked her?” Gary turned his head and directed his glance at Ji Hyo while Jong Kook smiled slyly. Ji Hyo ignored them and continued eating her food.

Haha turned his head from one hyung to the other, trying to take in their conversation. “Both of you have been working on Jong Kook hyung’s new album?” he remarked in realisation. “Both of you didn’t involve me?” he erupted in annoyance.

Ji Hyo put down her utensils and turned to Haha, “Do you prefer them to work together without you or stop talking to each other?”

Haha fumed at Ji Hyo’s question. He looked at his two hyungs who simply shrugged their shoulders.

Before she tucked into her food again, she gave one more look at Haha and said in glee, “Gotcha.” Both Gary and Jong Kook broke into laughter.

Jong Kook quickly clarified, “I have been meeting up with Gary on the new album but we still have tons of work to do. We would never miss you out on this project.” He reached over the table and placed his hand on Haha’s shoulder. Gary put one hand on Haha’s other shoulder and extended his other hand to Jong Kook who readily clasped it with his. Ji Hyo smiled into her food.   

“Just take it. It took me more than one month to find someone who could fix it,” Gil said irritably. He had actually approached numerous shops before one of them was willing to repair it. The cost of repairing it was more than the cost of the new phone which he had bought for Gary on the day of “phone dunking” incident itself. He had mentally berated himself that he should smash a phone into pieces in future because it might be cheaper to get someone to reassemble a dismantled phone.

“You better not have anything damning in that phone because the repairman may just help to broadcast them,” Gil said mockingly.

Gary gave him an aloof look which couldn’t have irritated Gil more.

“I thought you might want the contents in the old phone back!” Gil snapped. He had thought that the phone may contain videos, photos or messages of Ji Hyo which Gary would want to keep.

Gary replied in his cool and peaceful disposition, “Didn’t you know that I perform backup for my phone’s contents on a regular basis?” He put his old phone into the left pocket of his denim jacket which he was wearing and gave it a light pat.

 

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dear readers, thanks again for your kind comments. i hope you still enjoy this chapter despite the lack of spartace and mondaycouple moments. (27.08.2013)