3 days earlier;

“Are you sure this is what you want?”

Soft jazz music played in the background, accompanying the two men as they downed their seventh (or eight – neither was keeping track) glass of liquor that night. Except for the bartender, and a couple of other staffs, there wasn’t anyone other soul left in the dimly lilted bar.

Woohyun tipped his almost empty glass subconsciously to his friend. “No,” was his firm answer, despite his drunken voice (with a small hiccup following soon after) “Are you crazy?” he hissed, shaking his head vigorously with a dramatic wave of his hand. “I am never going to – “

“But why did you agree to it then?” Sunggyu wondered. When Woohyun was about to fall off his chair, he hurriedly stretched out both arms to grab hold of his best friend. The man was clearly wasted – but Sunggyu also knows it won’t do any good trying to stop him.

“I – “ hiccup “will m-marry...” another hiccup “- Ch-chorong.”

Sunggyu sighed inwardly. “Woohyun – “

“I will marry her!” The glass in his grasp was slammed down hard on the counter to make his point, before he slowly averted his hazy gaze to meet Sunggyu’s concerned eyes. “I don’t care what it takes or – or what I have to lose – Chorong and I will be together.”

Present;

“This already feels like a honeymoon, doesn’t it?”

Chorong blushed a deep shade of red hearing Woohyun’s nonchalant statement, and at the same time trying hard to suppress back a grin. She could feel him tightening his grip on her as the two of them took a casual stroll down the beach, hand in hand.

She felt happy – freer than she had been in days; and most importantly (Chorong glanced up at the man next to her) she felt at home.

“You’re fond of doing that, aren’t you?” Woohyun said suddenly, interrupting her train of thoughts.

She blinked a couple of times in confusion. “Do what?”

“Stealing glances at your boyfriend.”

Again, he made her blush.

“No,” Chorong said coyly, throwing her gaze far  across the ocean – deliberately not looking at him. “I wasn’t doing that.”

All of a sudden, he grabbed her by both shoulders and spun her in one swift moment; intentionally causing her to lock eyes with him.

Chorong let out a small gasp of surprise and tried to wriggle her way out, but of course she couldn’t compete with Woohyun’s strength. The latter smiled in victory.

“If you want to look at me – just look. Like this, okay? You don’t have to steal glances like a thief. Although – “ he shrugged. “You are a thief, considering how you’ve stolen my – “

Chorong managed to clasp one hand over his mouth before he could finish his nauseating line.

“-oomph” Woohyun widened his eyes at her.

“Promise you won’t say it first.”

He nodded.

Not even a second after she let go of him, Woohyun had already shouted ‘heart!’ before sneaking a kiss on her chaste lips and running away childishly.

Chorong was left dumbfounded.

Doo Joon had already seen them coming from about twenty feet away. He took a small sip of the sparkling water he had ordered as he recalled back the conversation he had with Jihyun earlier.

Initially, he hadn’t wanted to believe it. Especially, not after everything he (they) have done for her brother; for Chorong.

But when Jihyun sounded dead serious over the phone, even after he tried to laugh off the matter with an excuse of a joke, Doo Joon knew things had really worsened instead of improving.

As the pair of them neared him (laughing in delight as they continued whispering into each others’ ears) Doo Joon set his glass on the table, pushed back his chair with a slight screech and stood up.

Woohyun smiled up at him and gave him a small wave, but behind his shades – Doo Joon simply looked past him and instead focused on the girl beside him.

Ever since the day he found her at the bus stop, Doo Joon had never seen her smile like this before; a smile so bright, so happy – a smile full of love.

And Doo Joon also knew, without looking, the second he grabbed her hand and took her away from the boy she loves, the beautiful smile faltered and was instead replaced with a frown.

“Doo Joon – “

“We have to go,” he cut her off curtly, without even casting a glance at his younger cousin, who was just as bewildered by his sudden action. “It’s getting late.”

He could feel, beneath his grasp, that Chorong was trying to yank herself free.

Doo Joon has no intention of hurting her – but he was convinced, right at that moment, physical hurt was better than everything else that was about to happen.

“Hyung – “ this time it was Woohyun’s voice attempting to stop him, and within a second, he was already standing in front of Doo Joon, trying to block their way. “What are you doing?”

The older clenched his jaw, hard. “Protecting her – clearly something you are not doing very well. Move.”

Despite her struggles, Doo Joon shoved Woohyun out of the way; who was left confused by the former’s parting words. He could only watch helplessly as he watched Chorong being dragged away without any other explanation.

Not that he didn’t want to try harder, but he understood the meaning behind Doo Joon’s harsh words.

And he only has himself to blame.