“Oppa. It’s been a while, huh?”

Taeyeon shrugged, nodding, turning to face his ex-girlfriend. “Yeah. You’ve grown, Soojung.”

Krystal smiled, “Yeah. And you’re popular now.”

“Yeah.” Taeyeon smiled sadly, “Well, what do you want to talk about?”

“Uhm…”

“Yes? What is it?”

“We left each other, right?”

“Yeah, thinking about it now, it was kind of funny. Who left the other first?”

“Well, technically, you did. I was shipped to a foreign school but you left the country earlier than I did. So, yeah. It’s your fault. You left me although it was me who’s supposed to leave you back then.”

“I’m sorry, I broke my promise to you, Soojung. Really.”

“And I’m sorry that I broke mine.”

“We’re even then.” Taeyeon chuckled bitterly.

“But why did you have to become like this, oppa? Was it really that serious?”

“I needed to distract myself with something. Unlike you, I felt guilty. I can’t stop thinking about you ever since we stopped seeing each other. You – You’re really someone important to me. I can’t just let you go like that although it did pain me to leave you. I wasn’t able to send you off, give you a proper farewell. Plus, you broke my heart when we last saw each other.”

“You’re just like my sister. I’ll be honest with you, oppa. I was confused back then. I didn’t know what I felt for you. I was too naïve to even muster a proper reaction for your surprises back then. And now, I am sorry for hurting you in the past. I really am, oppa. But you cannot be with my sister. I can’t let you follow through with this engagement.”

Taeyeon frowned at his ex-girlfriend. Krystal held his gaze, unfazed. “What? You must be joking, Soojung. Why are you even telling me this?”

“Because I’m against the engagement. I cannot allow you and my sister to happen. My unnie deserves someone better. She’s not meant to go through another heartbreak on my watch.”

“You can’t do anything about it. Even your sister could not go against it. And I couldn’t get around it.”

“When the great Kim Taeyeon and the amazing Jung Jessica fails, Jung Krystal will solve the problem.”

Taeyeon couldn’t help but stare in awe at Krystal’s confidence.

“Really?” He gave a hint of his skepticism in his tone.

“I have my resources. And I want to keep my sister from suffering another tremendous heartbreak. Once was enough.”

“Your sister complex is over the top, Krystal.”

Krystal gave him a haughty smile before giving him a serious look. “I just hate to see her hurt and suffering. She’s gone through enough.”

“And you think I’d allow her to get hurt?” Taeyeon was quite offended by his ex-girlfriend’s perception. He knew of his reputation as a player, but that didn’t keep him from taking care of his fiancée. People might not witness it but Taeyeon does care for Jessica. He even tended to her wounds, which she had kept hidden until they healed. He took a cursory glance at the Jung heiress who was conversing with Sunny and Tiffany. Jessica was clever. She chose a smart outfit to hide the healing scars from her latest mission.

“Why? Do you love her?” Krystal’s voice broke his thoughts, making him shift his gaze to Krystal’s questioning stare. “Are you willing to give in to the engagement for her? I can sense that you haven’t gotten over me yet, oppa. I can still see hesitance in your eyes and you know very well that I am a good observer of people. You still live in the past, that past where you were still a teen and secretly dating me.”

Taeyeon was taken by surprise. Krystal had just challenged him when he was still mulling over his feelings for his fiancée. 

“Tell me, oppa. Do you love her?” Krystal repeated.

“I… don’t know if I love her.”

“See? That uncertainty is what made you weak. It’s what made you break your promise to me. Oh, don’t worry, oppa. It didn’t affect me as much as it did to you. I had my sister’s love for me and it cushioned the failed relationship.”

“I’m sorry, Krys. Really. But I’m trying to set things right now. Just – Just give me time to sort things out.”

“It’s in the past, oppa. What worries me is the present.”

“Your sister.”

“Yes. I’m not going to watch the sides, this time. I’m intervening for her sake and I warn you. One wrong move and you’re done for.”

“You mean business.”

“When it comes to unnie, I do.”

“You love her that much?”

“I do.”

“Then, I’ll prove to you that I have the capacity to encompass that. I’ll prove you wrong about me being weak. I will show you that I have moved on from that heartbreak you’ve caused years ago, the one that caused me to leave the country.”

Krystal blinked. She was surprised at the sudden words. Taeyeon was fuming from within. He had enough of the chaos. Krystal’s confrontation had forced him to decide on things and this would cause some heartbreaks.

Taeyeon realized that he will have to hurt Sunny and his other girlfriends. He didn’t care of the other girls, but Sunny was quite special to him. It would be awkward for him to face her at work, but he realized that things had to be done for him to prove his worth to Krystal. And that is to win Jessica over. He knew that he has the advantage. What happened back at the vacation house had sealed the deal although something had occurred while they were there. It was quite embarrassing to recall.   

“What?” Krystal, again, broke through his thoughts.

“I’m going to love her, Krystal. I’m going to love her if she wants me to. I’m changing for her sake. And I am slowly opening my heart to her, hoping that she opens up to me as well.”

“Then, you’re risking a lot there.”

“I want to correct my mistakes from the past by doing it right this time.” Taeyeon said with determination as he left Krystal speechless.

Deep in his mind, he said, ‘And because we did something that could seal our fates together, forever.’

Images of the incident at the vacation house flooded his mind. A look of worry appeared on his face after seeing his fiancée’s back turned to him at a good distance. Tiffany’s figure obscured his view of Jessica.

He frowned.  

***

Jessica flinched when she felt strong arms wrap around her waist. They were familiar yet unfamiliar at the same time. She was just composing herself, facing the backdrop that obscured her view of the crowd, Taeyeon’s fans, from the backstage where they were at. She had been gathering herself together when she felt a body press against her back. She was more that surprised to realize that it was her fiancé, her hidden fiancé who was supposed to keep distance from her whenever they were outside the Jung Castle’s premises.

Her eyes searched for her cousin and she found Tiffany just as dumbfounded as her. The Hwang was an arm’s reach beside them and Jessica could clearly make out the surprised expression that appeared on Tiffany’s face.

Breaking her trance. Jessica turned to face Taeyeon who met her eyes with tenderness. Jessica felt heat sear her cheeks upon landing a gaze into those dark brown orbs. She quickly averted her eyes from him, noticing the curious stares that the staff and the other personnel were giving them. She somewhat saw Sunny’s flabbergasted look as well as Krystal’s eyes widened like saucers. Taeyeon’s tall manager and the Kim’s sister were watching with amusement.

Her heart pounded loud enough for her to hear, threatening to burst out of her ribcage at any moment as she took slow breaths to calm herself although Taeyeon’s hands around her waist seemed to deprive her of the needed oxygen intake.

He pulled her closer to him, tightening his hold on her, taking her breath away. She looked up to meet his eyes, a question conveyed to him through the stare.

‘What’s wrong with you?!’

He simply smiled at her, placing a hand on her face, caressing it lovingly. Jessica felt her face flush at the skinship. They were backstage with people around them.

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