Author's Note: I usually do this at the bottom but today's an exception. I know that I promised you guys that I'd update last weekend but it was my birthday on Sunday and I guess I was too caught up celebrating that I forgot about updating. XD Sorry! Haha. So here's a new chapter for everyone! I hope you'll enjoy it! Next chapter will be published this weekend so stay tuned! I guess, a new chapter will be out every weekend starting from now o since it's the only time I can really sit down and write. Hehe I hope you don't mind! Anyway, enough of my blabbering, enjoy! Subscribe, upvote and comment! ^^ Love ya~

Much love, A.

Chapter 32 - Man To Man

From: Minseok

To: Yongguk

She’s much better now. Noona said that she has started eating again. Don’t worry, okay? I promise that I’ll keep an eye on her for you.

It has been a little over a week since Yongguk last saw Minzy. After that day the girl bumped into him and Jihye, she completely refused to see or talk to him. His only liable source is his friend, Minseok. Unlike Eunmi, who also refuses to talk about anything Minzy-related, that guy keeps him updated on his girlfriend’s well being from time to time. And he is very grateful to him for that.

Now, it is not like Yongguk has not done anything to fix their relationship at all. In fact, he had tried many things to reach his girlfriend but it was always to no avail, much to his frustration. He had waited outside her door for days, only to find out that she has been staying at her father’s house all this while later on. His calls were either ignored or rejected, and all his texts were left unreplied. That did not stop him from seeing her, though.

Everyday, for the past couple of days, Yongguk would observe the Gong’s residence from afar. He would park his car at a safe distance and stay there for hours just to catch a glimpse of his girl. However, luck has not been on his side. So far, he has only been able to spot Minzy – or at least, someone who resembled her – once or twice. Although it was only for a few seconds, he was still quite satisfied nonetheless.

Today would be his fourth day of stalking. Everything is going pretty normal, just like the previous days, until suddenly, there is a knock on the window on the passenger’s side, startling the daylight out of him. His eyes immediately widen upon seeing the familiar face.

The man is shivering as he hugs his coat around himself tightly. His face pale and the tip of his nose red from the gnawing cold. Yongguk blinks his eyes rapidly when the man knocks on the window again, gesturing him to unlock the door for him, in which he does almost immediately. “Oh, thank god! I thought you’d never let me in. It’s freezing out there!” the uninvited guest mumbles as he quickly hops in, slamming the door shut.

The owner of the car remains silent, frozen in his seat. He is still quite shocked, to be honest. And slightly panicking inside, too. He did not just get caught stalking red-handed but worse, he was caught by none other than Kang Daesung, himself. His girlfriend’s brother. B-R-O-T-H-E-R! Oh, just where is he going to hide now? The older male now probably thinks that he is some kind of a ert or something – which he is obviously not!

Ugh!

“So, when are you planning to come inside?” Daesung asks casually, breaking the silence as he turns up the heater to stay warm.

Yongguk’s eyes widen for the second time that day as he stutters, “W- What do you mean?”

Daesung cannot help but laugh at the younger male’s dumbfounded expression. In all honesty, he has known about the latter’s activity since the very beginning. He just happened to look at his direction on his way home from work one day. Of course, Yongguk was too immersed in spying on his sister to even notice him at all.

He was actually a little bit creeped out at first. But the more he thought about it, the young man probably just wanted to see his sister but was too afraid to do so. Somehow, he knows that Yongguk feels rather guilty about certain things that had happened over the short period of time but deep down, how he wished that the young man would just man up.

Minzy is also not that much different. As much as she insists that she does not want to see her boyfriend, Daesung knows that she has actually meant otherwise. He knows that she misses her boyfriend. Very much. He has caught her mumbling his name in her sleep a few times before.

“She missed you too, you know?” Daesung chuckles, shaking his head at how naïve and oblivious the young couple is.

“S- she does?” Yongguk questions, not quite believing what he just heard.

The older male simply nodded, turning his attention to the blue sky above before he continues, “I don’t exactly know what happened between the two of you but let me just tell you this – from one man to another. Couples argue, all the time. It doesn’t really matter who’s at fault or who started the fight. What matters the most is whether or not we notice and acknowledge our own mistakes and what we do to fix them. Now, can I ask you something, Yongguk-ssi?”

“Um, sure.”

“Let’s say, the woman you love – you really, really, really love – accidentally broke your most priceless possession. Y’know, like an old family emblem or something, what would you do then? Would you be upset? Would you hate her?”

Truth be told, Yongguk is quite taken aback by the sudden question. Mostly because he did not expect such a question to come out of Daesung’s mouth in the first place. But he would not deny that it is actually a very good question. One that makes him think really hard. He then tries to imagine being in a similar situation.

What if Minzy broke something he dearly treasures? What if Minzy accidentally bleached his stuffed Tigger, or spilled a carton of rotten milk in his beloved car? Would he be mad at her?

Well, it does not take him really long to find the answer, because the answer is simple, and that is… no. No, he would absolutely not be mad at her, let alone hate her for something so small like that. How could he? Sure, the stuffed toy has a sentimental value to it, but is it more important than the love and happiness she has given him? Definitely not. And as much as he fusses over keeping his car tidy all the time, it is merely because he is a perfectionist. Nothing more, nothing less.

Besides, those two things are only trivial things. He could always buy another one anytime, anywhere he wants to. But Minzy, she is special. Damn special. She is so caring and selfless, hardworking and determined. She is one independent lady who is not afraid of challenges. It is not a shocker how she is loved and well respected by people around her, be it her family and friends or colleagues and acquaintances.

The girl stayed by him and helped him get through his darkest moments. She gave him hope and taught him how to live and love once again. She helped open his eyes to a world he has never ever seen before. And most importantly, she has shown and given him love like no other has ever had. Gong Minji is priceless and could never be replaced by anything or anyone in this whole wide world. Not even a million dollars, or a pot of gold.

Because Gong Minji, is one of a kind.

Daesung does not need to hear a single word from Yongguk to know what his answer is. The smile on the latter’s face says it all. And it makes him happy and relieved somehow, as if a weight has been lifted off of his chest. “I knew that you wouldn’t,” he cannot help but smile too, placing a gentle hand on the young male’s left shoulder.

“H- how did you know?” it seems like Yongguk keeps on stuttering in front of this man; that is actually a first, Bang Yongguk never stutters.

“I’m psychic,” Daesung simply replies with a rather greasy wink.

Now, now, where has he heard that statement before? Yongguk cannot help but wonder in his mind. Oh right, Minzy. She has said the same sentence to him plenty of times before. Definitely like brother, like sister. For a brief second, he is afraid that the siblings really do possess some psychic powers. Now, that would be kind of creepy. Awesome, but still very creepy.

“Go and talk to her, young man. I’m pretty sure she’d be ecstatic to see you.”

“I will, I definitely will,” Yongguk replies almost immediately but somehow, a sign of hesitance is quite evident in his voice, as if he were not confident enough to do so.

“But?”

“But I need to sort some things out, first. Don’t worry, it’s not about your sister at all. It’s just… me.”

I knew it. Once again, Daesung can only smile. As a man, himself, he understands where the young man is coming from. Well, it is not like he could force him to do anything, anyway. That would have put a lot more pressure on him and he does not want to scare him away like that. At least, he has spoken his mind and that is more than enough for him.

Besides, Daesung is sure that he has knocked some sense into him as well. Yongguk will eventually man up and do the right thing, which he is definitely sure of. Before he leaves, Daesung makes sure to share a few final words of encouragement, “No need to promise me anything. I know it’s hard so take your time. No pressure, okay? You’re a good man, I can see that. And I know that you wouldn’t disappoint your future brother-in-law, would you?”

Yup, definitely no pressure at all.

“I wouldn’t, sir!”

“Ey, I’m only a few years older, just call me hyung.”

“Oh, alright, hyung.”

“That’s better,” the older male chuckles before opening the door, ready to leave, “It was nice talking to you. I’ll see you around, alright?”

“Yes, hyung. And thank you for the advice, I really appreciate it.”

“Only because you’re my future brother-in-law,” he winks one last time before finally getting off to head back into the house.

Still rather bewildered by the whole incident, Yongguk can only stare at the older male’s retreating back until he finally disappears into the gates that surrounded the Gong’s residence. He lets out a deep breath he did not even realise he was holding, feeling rather relieved.

Why, every time he bumped into Daesung, did it have to be so intense, so nerve-wrecking?

First, he poured an ice-cold soda onto the man’s face and now, this. Yongguk makes a mental note to be on Daesung’s good side the next time he meets him as he reignites the car’s engine. He really cannot afford losing the guy’s trust if he wished to marry his sister one day – which he really, really wants to once they are settled down in the future.

Meanwhile, a sleepy-looking man leans back against the leather seat of his car, overlooking the peaceful Han River. He has made an appointment with a certain someone but it seems like that person is going to be late. There is only around five minutes left until their set time and he is slowly growing impatient by each passing second. Yixing is not one who tolerates tardiness.

Fortunately for him, his wait is not that long. His ‘date’ arrives just in time, much to his relief. Any second longer, he would have been annoyed for sure. Yixing immediately gets out of his car and leans against the door as soon as he shuts it close. The other man soon joins him and greets him with a friendly handshake. “Did you wait long?” Yongguk asks, looking rather apologetic.

“Nah, you’re just on time,” he replies with a smile.

As absurd as it sounds, given the circumstances in which they have met in the first place, the two men have grown closer over the weeks. It seems like they have a lot in common and it is almost scary how they understand each other very well. And it is rather weird how the two often exchange relationship advices every now and then. Perhaps, it has got something to do with the two women in their lives right now.

“So, have you finally gathered your courage and talk to Minzy?” the Chinese man asks with a hint of sarcasm in his voice; he knows of Yongguk’s new hobby, which he never fails to make fun of whenever they meet up like this.

Yongguk merely grunts in response, a sign of annoyance slightly evident on his face. And that alone is a good enough indication that he has not talked to the girl just yet. “Is Gong Minji really that scary?” Yixing asks again; partly teasing, partly curious.

“Shut up!” Yongguk protests with a pout – with a pout!

A pouting Yongguk is a really hilarious sight that Yixing cannot help but burst into laughter. Unfortunately, his action has earned himself a loud smack on the back of the head. He winces in pain for a moment but starts chuckling again not long after. “Alright, alright. I’m sorry,” he finally surrenders when Yongguk is about to hit him again.

“You better!”

“In all seriousness though, when are you going to talk to her? Do you even plan on talking to her?”

Here it goes again. This is the second time today that Yongguk has been asked the same question. When are you going to talk to Minzy? A part of him is rather annoyed, to be honest, but there is surely no denying that he really should talk to his girlfriend, in which he would do so really soon. Just… not today. He needs time to prepare himself, mentally and emotionally to be more precise, just in case it does not go well.

The two new friends then find a bench under a bald cherry blossom tree and sit there. A group of teenagers can be seen playing basketball just a few meters away. Yixing finds it quite amazing how those youngsters are able to play in such a cold weather. Young bloods. He cannot help but scoff in his head. He was once one of them. Not that he is really that old, though. But he has to admit that his stamina is not as great as it was when he was still in high school.

“Don’t be like me, Yongguk,” Yixing sighs after a long moment of comfortable silence.

Confused, Yongguk turns his head to look at the man beside him, hoping to find an answer, or at least a little clue from his expression but to no avail. The latter simply stares ahead at the teenagers, who are now sprawled all over the concrete ground as they try to catch their breaths. “Don’t repeat the same mistake that I did,” Yixing continues, “Please, promise me that you won’t.”

Still quite baffled, Yongguk can only nod in response. He could not quite explain it but there was just something in the other man’s voice that made him do that. Maybe, it was the hint of regret and desperation that came with his words. Or maybe it was the forlorn expression on his face. He may only see his side profile at the moment but that is good enough for him to read his whole behaviour.

The same goes for Yixing. Although Yongguk has not muttered a single word, that mere response of a nod of his head is enough to relieve the burden he has carried around for years. For some odd reason, he could feel that Yongguk is not like him. He will not hurt Minzy like he had done before. Or so he hopes.

Turning around to finally face the guy, Yixing then smiles, “Thank you, that means a lot to me.”

Another comfortable silence envelopes them as the two men lose themselves in their own thoughts. It is not until ten minutes later or so that one of them finally speaks up again. “What happened back then? You didn’t just leave her for no reason, did you?” Yongguk’s sudden question really caught Yixing off guard that his heartbeat increases slightly.

A sigh escapes the latter’s lips as he turns his focus back at the basketball court. The group of teenagers seems to have resumed their match. Thinking back really brings a lot of pain to him. However, there was not a single thing that he would have changed even if he were granted a power to turn back time. As much as it hurt him, he did not regret leaving Minzy back then.

Because if he had not left in the first place, the girl’s relationship with her father would not have been restored, it would have only got worst. The Gong family would not have reunited and Minzy would have probably continued living with a lot of pain and regrets for the rest of her life. And above all, she would not have definitely met Yongguk.

Normal people would have thought of him as weird or any other negative things, but that would never change what he thinks of the man. As surprising as it may sound, he never harbours any ill feelings against the man. Not even a tiny hint of jealousy. Why? Because he has learnt to accept his fate a long time ago. Instead, he feels rather relieved that a man so kind and gentle as Yongguk is in Minzy’s life right now. She deserves him, just as much as he deserves her.

“Damn, you really do understand me that well, huh? Are you sure that we’re not soulmates?” Yixing chuckles, lightening the mood.

“Ay, who knows? Maybe in our next lives, we are,” Yongguk winks at him, causing them both to laugh out loud.

“Anyways,” the Chinese man snorts as their laughter finally dies down, “You were right. You were absolutely right.”

Suddenly being so serious, Yongguk straightens his posture and asks, “Why, Xing? Why did you really leave?”

“Because… my father had threatened to sabotage their contract if I hadn’t decided to break up with the Gong’s supposedly illegitimate child.”

TO BE CONTINUED.

Story by: afagyel | Poster and background by: Tomoe Graphic Shop