A/N: Please take note of the time passing :)

Nine months later…

Jongdae was feeding the ducks their breakfast of ground corn and rice absently. She was back in Mokpo and her tear ducts had dried already. She took an indefinite leave from work and stayed at home doing nothing but to feed their pets and contemplating on taking over the canning business. She's resigned to the fact that she won't be able to return to being a tour guide. Everything in Mokpo, including the sea, will be painful reminders of Suho. Or Joonmyeon. Whoever he was.

Up until now, she was still racking her brains as to what she did wrong. She was confused, broken hearted and helpless. She didn't think he could be so cruel. How could he possibly think she was after his money? She didn't even know him! And did he know about the wine bottle that she found? Was it planted? But why would he do that in the first place? She's a nobody to begin with. Too many questions.

But no available answers.

“Jongdae! Jongdae-yah!” She was pulled out from her thoughts when she heard Eunji hollering for her from the front of the house.

“Where’s the fire?” She rolled her eyes playfully, not wanting to give her a clue of what she was thinking just now. Her best friend went the extra mile of visiting her as much as she can after that incident in Seoul. She won’t stop bawling her eyes out that Kyuhyun called Eunji for help. She felt bad that she had to put her elderly father and aunt through seeing her like that but she can’t help it.

“Kyahhhhhhh! Guess what?! Guess what?!” She was jumping up and down like a banshee.

“What?” She gave her the piece of paper she was holding instead of answering her, clearly not able to form coherent words from too much excitement. She scanned the paper and her eyes widened when she realized what it was. “Oh my god!”

“I know, right?” Six months ago, Eunji stole random films from her dark room. She was firm in not joining the photography contest for IPI and since her best friend wasn’t someone to back down, she developed the photos herself and sent them to New York under Jongdae’s name. She was mad when she found out what she did. More so when she found out what photos she sent for the competition. But she can’t stay mad that long. She knew Eunji meant well.

“W-We both got spots? Chincha?”

***************************************

"This meeting's adjourned. Thank you for coming." Yifan closed his laptop shut and left the large conference room. He went directly to his office in their New York headquarters. He was in the topmost floor of their fifty-storey skyscraper in the heart of Manhattan. He removed his coat and placed it on the backrest of his swivel chair and folded the undershirt's sleeves up to his elbow. He massaged his temples slightly as he closed his eyes. Thank goodness the meeting's over. It was a very tiring day. He pushed a button on the interphone and soon enough he heard her assistant on the other line.

"Can I help you, Mr. Choi?" She asked politely.

"What do I have this evening?" He asked. Whatever it was, he wanted to cancel. He won't be able to function correctly at this time.

"Nothing, Sir. But you have a breakfast meeting with your sister tomorrow, 8am at Gato." She said. So Sehun's in New York. When was the last time that he talked to that brat? He can't even remember. And Gato? Are they even open for breakfast? His sister sure is something.

"Alright. Did my sister tell you where she's staying?" They have a mansion in Bedford, a farmhouse in Lake George, a townhouse in Madison Avenue, he himself had a unit at the Time Warner Center and just recently, Sehun bought an apartment in the famous Flatiron Building in downtown Manhattan. "Is she in 17th street?" Referring to where her condominium was. He didn't hear anything but a second later he heard a warning knock and his assistant entered.

"I believe Ms. Choi's still in London." She said, glancing at her wrist watch. "Her jet will be here around midnight." She's reading through her tablet.

Yifan sighed in disappointment. He even thought he'll have a decent dinner tonight and not a lonely, bland one. "Alright. I'll just call her then. I'll go ahead. If there are problems, just leave a message on my cell phone." He didn't want to stay at home tonight and sulk. On the way to Time Warner, he tried calling his friends but nobody seemed to be available. Barney's caught his eyes and decided to buy something for Hankyung and Sehun.

He was eyeing the Versace scarves when he saw a familiar figure with arms all over the woman beside him. They looked like they’re whispering sweet nothings to each other and before he could think straight, he already approached the two and gave the man an uppercut.

****************************************************************************

"Whatda--!" Before he knew it, Christian's already on the floor, blood was oozing from the corner of his mouth. "Hey! What's that for?" His wife Helaena was screaming when she came to his rescue. They got the attention of the other shoppers and they already heard patrol car sirens from outside.

"You bastard!" Helaena slapped the person who punched him before he could stop her. The eyeglasses that the man was wearing dropped and she gasped for air when she recognized who it was. "Oh my god! She immediately regretted laying a finger on him.

"You?!" It was Yixing's ex-husband!

They could hear the police approaching.

"What's the problem in here?" An officer demanded.

"Nothing officer, it's just a misunderstanding." Christian replied readily.

"You are disturbing the peace here. There must be a problem. A witness said that this man," He pointed to Yifan. "Assaulted you. Would you want to file a complaint?" He asked.

"No, Sir. Just let us go." He said. And after mandatory gathering of necessary information from both of them at the nearest precinct, the police released them.

"I am sorry." Yifan said humbly. He just learned that Helaena, the woman who slapped him was his Christian de Luca’s wife. He married the woman shortly after Yixing broke up with him. "But you see, I don't understand this at all." He was sure Yixing was happily married. She even stopped her activities as a model and he thought it was because she was starting a family with this man.

“Yixing and I didn’t really have a good ending. She must hate me a lot because of the things I said. I don’t even know what happened to you two but I am sure she won’t marry me even if didn’t do the things I did.” He gave him a gentle tap on his shoulder. “Yixing’s the purest person I’ve met besides my wife. Please find her and make her happy.”

*****************************************************************************

The maitre'd guided him to a corner table as soon as he arrived at the famous restaurant. The place was unusually empty. Well, it was five minutes before 8am. He didn't wait long for he heard Sehun's voice after a few minutes.

"Where's Bobby?" He heard her ask.

"Here I am." He heard another voice and his forehead creased. "How are you, Babe?"

"Wonderful! Thank you for lending us the place." He heard his sister chuckle. Lending the place? She's not talking to the Bobby Flay, was she? The place is owned by no less than the celebrity chef. He wanted to give her a round of applause for having such connections. No wonder the place was empty.

"Anything for you. I'll cook the food myself. I think you should join him. Kyle?"

"Yes, Sir." He heard another voice—must be wait staff—and soon after, she appeared.

"Oppa!" She hollered and half-ran to hug him. "I missed you!" She kissed both of his cheeks.

"How are you?" He asked fondly after pulling a chair for her. "I haven't seen you for ages." He forced a smile. Looking at her, she changed a lot since the last time he saw her.

"Great and you?" She asked after thanking the waiter that brought them nice-smelling coffee.

"I'm okay." He replied simply. He can't even look at her straight in the eyes.

"No, you're not." She said without preamble. "What's the problem?"

He sighed in defeat. She knew him too well. "Do you still maintain your contact with the people you used to work with?" He asked in a hushed voice. He saw her straighten her back.

"Yes, why?" She asked in a concerned tone.

"I need your help."

******************************************************************************

"Sehun!" Someone called her attention from across the room and she instinctively looked around to know who it was. She found a stunning young woman in a red cocktail dress walking towards her.

"Georgina." She smiled widely. Georgina Bloomberg's one of the most active members of the Global Cool Foundation and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's youngest daughter. They became real close when Georgina was once an almost-member of their family because of Luhan. She was the other half of his brother’s most publicized relationship. They renewed their closeness when they became neighbors in New York City's Flat Iron district. "It's good to see you again! You look ravishing." She said sincerely.

"Thank you! You humble me much while you got all the eyes of the men in this room." She hugged Sehun after giving her a peck on the cheek. "It's been a while. I bet you don't even have the time to talk to yourself." She chuckled charmingly.

Sehun laughed. They used to ride together in their Texas ranch during summers and spring breaks. Georgina's one top equestrienne and a good Polo player too—one of the things that attracted Luhan. They went steady for almost two years and they were not just lovers but best of friends as well so it was such a disappointment that they didn't end up together. "Tell me about it." She rolled her eyes. "How's Uncle Mike?" Her father's a member of Global Cool's board of trustees.

"Come to think of it, I haven't seen him for quite sometime too!" She joked. "Seriously, you should slow down." Georgina's been reading a lot about Sehun lately. She's busy with her comeback stage play, Under Your Nose, been jetsetting for UN and Global Cool, the charity foundation that she and close friend Princess Amber Huang built, promoting her latest book, modeling and gracing social events like this one. Sehun’s like a younger sister and she's genuinely worried about her.

"You know I get irked if I'm not doing anything." She smiled reassuringly and sighed inwardly. She's tired and wanted to head home and doze off. But she can't. She'll be starting a new project for Global Cool and she needed sponsors for it. It will benefit the victims of the killer Ebola virus. They are buying time while her mother and Jongin worked extensively to generate a vaccine for the abominable disease.

Georgina shook her head but didn't comment. As far as she knew, Sehun had always been a filial daughter and had been self-reliant since she was young. While at twenty-five, she still asks money from her father, Sehun was already paying for her own tuition and dorm fees since she was ten. Well, the Choi siblings were all self-governing since they were kids. That was one thing that made her fall for Luhan once upon a time. "Where's Amber?" She asked and looked around to catch a glimpse of a familiar figure.

"We can't be in the same place tonight so we decided to split up." She beamed. Amber had to be in another party in Paris initiated by the Arnaults of the Hennessy-Vuitton Empire. They were both endorsers of the legendary luxury brand in exchange for the company's Global Cool sponsorship. Since they'd let themselves known to public, endorsement offers had been knocking on their doors like crazy and Amber, an adventurer that she was, saw it as an opportunity to generate more money for the foundation--where all of their personal income goes.

"Oh. And how are they?" Georgina didn't have to mention names for Sehun to know she meant her family. And Luhan.

"They've been wonderful, thank you for asking. Mama would love to hear from you." Hankyung's one hell of a Georgina fan and didn't talk to Luhan for a week after their break up. "Won't you ask for my brother?" She laughed.

"You beat me to it!" She shrieked. "How's that punk doing, anyway? He'd been avoiding the circuit since he took over HanTel. Is he serious?"

"Are you kidding me? It's not as if you don't know him. He's just what, a little cutthroat these days, I guess." She's understating it. Luhan had always been and never ceased to be competitive. They all were. It runs in the blood.

Before Georgina can react, her ever faithful bodyguard and now executive assistant, Eva, approached her and whispered in her ear. "I have to take this call. See you around." She kissed her and walked towards the nearby verandah before putting the cell phone in her ear. "Hello, Yongguk."

Buddy! You have to head home. ASAP. And what he told her made her heart skip a beat. The phone slipped from her hands and a tear escaped from her eyes.

**********************************************

Sehun can't believe how much her life changed in just a year. She sighed heavily and stared outside. The clouds were like feathers scattered in the sky, an indication of a very nice weather. A perfect contradiction to the storm that was building up inside her.

Even in her private jet's cabin, they won't allow her to be alone. There were two people in uniformed suits strapped stiffly on their seats across hers. She shook her head and saw one already alert. "Cool it. I am not going anywhere." Sarcasm laced her voice and she saw him relax in his seat. How she missed her old life.

After the immersion that she and Amber had in Africa, they realized how lucky they were that they can do something to uplift the situation of the people, especially the children. They chose to stay in Africa but helping in medical and educational missions wasn't enough. They pooled their resources, exhausting their savings but no matter how enormous the amount, it wasn't enough to help all of them. They both agreed on something they thought their families would have their heads for: expose themselves. She resigned from her job from the CIA and resumed her foreboding life as the Choi heiress as Amber returned to being Princess Zian.

They built the Global Cool Foundation and attracted millions of followers. Ordinary people, celebrities, businessmen, musicians, doctors, engineers, name it. Thus, creating billions of dollars as funds for projects that each of the sub-divisions the foundation had. From educational assistance, environmental brigades, medical missions, famine fight and so on. Since she was hailed as the chairperson and Amber as the executive director, they started trotting the globe for their mission of saving lives through their own little way.

Aside from their tough jobs at the foundation, Amber assumed the position as the head of Japan's diplomatic corps and she was just appointed as the United Nation's newest Ambassador of Goodwill. Just recently, they both appeared in two famous Forbes Magazine list. She, in Forbes 20 Most Intriguing Billionaire Heiresses and Amber in 10 Hottest Young Royals list. So it was not a surprise that people come up to them in streets to ask for their autographs or permission to take pictures, much to their security teams' consternation. It was a whole new situation they're not totally ready for.

Eva entered the cabin and sat beside her. She saw the dreaded black folder that she was carrying and an exasperated groan escaped her lips. "Can't it wait?" Eva shook her head and she can't do anything but to sit up straight. "Alright."

"The annual board meeting for Global Cool would be next Tuesday so you have to be back in New York Monday." She nodded and she continued. "The budget proposal for the children's hospital needs your approval. I sent it in your personal file. Amber already reviewed it and signed it."

"Do you have a hard copy? I'll sign it now." She trusts Amber. After signing the necessary papers, Eva handed her a relatively thick stack of paper. "What's this?"

"Libertine." She replied simply. "Master thought you'll be interested."

"She whacked her forehead.” I totally forgot about it! God. I'll talk to him about it." She said.

"Give your father a break, Choi Sehun." Eva seldom uses her full name. Unless she's pretty mad.

"Hey. What did I do?" She asked, totally clueless.

"He can't even reach you on your cell phone. And he told me he left you messages." She said. Sehun groaned. She turned her phone off to avoid an ardent suitor who called every two hours!

*****************************************

"I need your help, Oppa." Sehun sat in front of his mahogany table. He looked at her, puzzled. If she wanted to talk to him then she could have talked to him at home, couldn't she? She arrived last night without telling them. They seldom see her. She's either in London or in New York.

"Do you have an appointment?" He asked in mock seriousness. "I don't entertain unexpected visitors." He sniggered at his own joke while she remained passive. "Hey, what's up?" He guided her to one of the wicker chairs.

"I found Martin." She said simply and tears started to well up in her eyes. He stiffened after hearing the name of Scott's son. For more than four years, it had been his sister's crusade to find her former bodyguard's orphans. She felt that it was her duty to take care of them because Scott saved her life. When both kids got involved with a mafia in Brazil, Sehun would’ve given her life just to save them.

"And Olivia?" He whispered. She shook her head and more tears fell.

"The last thing that we heard about Olivia was that she was able to flee from an asylum in Moscow." She sniffed.

"How can I help you?" He asked.

"Martin's under Yixing-unnie's care. She adopted him from a small orphanage in Florence. I want to talk to you about this in private that's why I am here." They can't let Hankyung know. Yixing had been a sensitive issue for their mother. His eyes widened in disbelief. True to his promise, he followed her wishes. He stopped keeping tabs of Yixing or how else could his people miss that important detail?

"After she adopted him, he didn't move in with her right away. They only got together when they moved to Busan." She informed.

"Busan!" Yixing's only a few hours away?! "I don't believe this! This is ridiculous." He paced in front of her.

"It's really hard to believe. I know exactly where she is. We will need Chanyeol-oppa’s help too." She said in haste.

"What has Chanyeol got to do with this?" He asked.

******************************************

"How are my girls doing?" Chanyeol asked jovially. He saw Baekhyun sat Minkyung on her lap while he adjusted the camera to see his face better on screen. Minkyung squealed in delight upon seeing him. His heart tugged with tenderness for the two females whose faces dominated his thoughts the whole morning.

Baekhyun smiled awkwardly. It's their webcam day. Every Wednesday, Minkyung will go straight to her office from school to talk to her Uncle Chanyeol. Or Chanyeol will just show up in Busan unannounced. Until now, she still can't believe how Chanyeol's role in her life changed drastically in the past year. He and Sehun erased all the prejudices she had for the Choi family. Though it's still hard for her to like Luhan, she already came to terms with the truth that revenge wasn't good, that he wronged her sister and not her. If Minseok accepted it then why couldn't she? "How's work?" She knew he'd been real busy with Han Cars' new project. They launched conversion of all Han vehicles, old and new, from diesel or gasoline to bio and fossil fuels for a healthier environment—for free. And he's currently working on mass production of solar-powered cars.

"Tiring. I miss you." He said it with so much passion that she had to look away.

"I missed you too!" Minkyung said in perfect English. She's just two and a half years old but her mental ability's already that of a five. She's already in preschool with kids older than her and it didn't surprise her that she's topping the class. "When are we going to the carnival?" She heard her ask.

"Soon, baby. I really thought I can visit you today but I can't." He sighed in frustration. "I'll be flying to Sydney right after we speak."

"Au-Australia?" Minkyung asked again. Baekhyun's forehead creased.

"How did you know it's Australia?" She asked.

"National Geograaaphic." She answered readily, prolonging the a sound. Baekhyun's mouth formed a silent “Oh.” and Chanyeol laughed.

"Yes baby, it's Australia. You've been studying a lot, I see." He smiled. They talked about trivial things and Minkyung had a hard time deciding what she would like him to bring form his trip. They bid their goodbyes without Baekhyun saying much.

"Omma!" Minkyung ran to Minseok when she saw her standing on the doorway. She'd been watching the two for the past few minutes, observing both of them, especially her sister.

"Kyung-ah, nanny's waiting for you outside. You have to go home. Imo and I will be home after the meeting so you can't wait for us, araso?" Minseok hugged her daughter.

"Yes, Omma." She nodded like an adult and ran back to Baekhyun to kiss her goodbye. " Bye, bye, Imo! Bye bye, Omma!" And bolted out of the door where her bodyguards and nanny were waiting.

"He waited long enough. What's keeping you?" She asked out of nowhere. They've been staring at the door for a long moment after Minkyung left. Chanyeol had been openly courting her sister for over a year now. He even talked to Yesung about it. She genuinely liked the guy. Even if he's Luhan's brother.

"You." Baekhyun said in a small voice. She's tired of pretending like she didn't know anything. Minseok looked at her in disbelief. "Unnie, Minkyung's Sehun's spitting image and like Chanyeol and the rest of their family, she's exceptionally intelligent. How can you keep it from me?" Her voice stung.

"I am sorry. . ." Minseok sniffed.

"I already know even before we left for London. But I didn't know who Sehun was. I really had no idea until she and Amber came confessing." She didn't have the heart to end the friendship she had when she was in London. And now, more than ever, that she's sure she'd made the right decision. "Do you have any plans of introducing Minkyung to Lu—her father?" She asked. She saw her face went blank.

"Let us not talk about him, Baekhyun. I'll see you at the meeting." She dismissed and went out of her office.

Baekhyun sighed in defeat. She can't tell Minseok that aside from her, she's also afraid of falling. Falling real hard. Chanyeol's no less than a womanizer before she met him. And like what happened to her sister, she's afraid of getting hurt.

*****************************************************************************

"Are you coming with us?" Luhan asked Key as she offered both of her cheeks for him to kiss.

“Yeah. You know Onew will throw a fit if I don't." She said and slumped onto one of the bean bags scattered around the loft of Luhan's office. She was exhausted from the taping of her weekly talk show for BBC Korea.

"I know he would." Luhan laughed. Onew loved to be with his wife. All the time. After their wedding more than two years ago, HanTel could not send him out of the country anymore. Unless Key can go with him. And when they had their firstborn, Jaebum, HanTel could only wish. He shook his head.

"Why do I have this feeling that you're talking about me?" Onew was standing on the entry way of the loft, a box of freshly-baked cream puffs from a new bakeshop in Seoul Trade Tower. The loop around the building was converted to a cafe strip that housed the most visited coffee shops and restaurants in the metro.

"You wish!" Luhan snorted. He opened a chilled champagne bottle and poured for the three of them.

Onew kissed Key and gave her the box of pastries. "Honey, my secretary told me those are the best cream puffs that she ever tasted. I brought you some.'

"How about me?" Luhan asked.

"Since when were you interested with pastries?" Onew shot back and shuddered at the thought of eating sweets. He won't really grasp how women down a heaping serving of tiramisu then fret about their weight after.

"Are you trying to turn me into an elephant, Lee Jinki?!" Key yelled. Luhan cleared his throat and tactically got the champagne flute from near Key's hands or she might throw it to her husband.

"No, honey! Of course not!" And then he smiled sheepishly. He should know that not a few men still wanted his wife. Despite her having a husband and a kid. It was torture to let her out of his sight.

"Alright, let me see." Key opened the box and picked up the nearby interphone. After a few moments, Harold appeared on the entry way.

"You rang, Sir?" He eyed Luhan.

"I did. Could you give your Childes some of the cream puffs, Harold?" She handed him the box. "Split it in three, please." She smiled mockingly at her husband and cousin. Harold came back with three plateful of pastries and placed it on the table. Each had three large servings of stuffed cream puffs. With fruits, nuts, and a generous dallop of whipped cream. She clapped like a kid and got the two plates from Luhan's secretary. "That one's for you, Harold." She chirped and he swallowed. He wanted to puke just by looking at the desserts. "And that's it for now." She beamed.

"Now," She placed the plates in front of the two men when Harold disappeared. "These are for you."

"Ah, Noona!"

"Kibum!"

The two whined in chorus.

She snorted. "Didn't I tell you jealousy won't do you any good?" She caught Onew by the ear and he yelped in pain. "Now, if I tell you that I am jealous of all the women that look your way and I don't want you to maintain those muscles, what would you do, huh?"

"Honey. . .Aw!" Onew was trying to pry Key's fingers from his ear. "I'll eat okay. . .okay!"

"Why do I have to eat it, too!" Luhan stomped his foot on the floor like kid. "It's too sweet!”

"Because you spoil this one too much!" She poked Onew's forehead by her finger. "Now, I am off to the mall. I'll be back in two hours." She was already on the short flight of stairs to Luhan's main office when she looked like she remembered something and head back. "By the way, don't you dare throw those or else. . ." She threatened. She had a Cheshire smile on her face before she went to the building’s in-house mall.

"She'll definitely use up our combined income for the last six months." Onew sniffed while trying to swallow a spoonful of cream.

"This is your entire fault!" Luhan glared at Onew. He would rather stomach the abominable dessert than oppose Key. After finishing his Engineering degree from MIT, he headed to Harvard and joined the business school. It was all good before she joined Radcliffe, too. She's his older sister, governess, and play-girlfriend rolled into one. Since they both can't ward off a number of unwanted admirers, they will often pretend that they were together. It was easy since they grew up together. The men will not dare go against him and the women thought that they're no match to the Campus Queen. Aside from being beautiful and wealthy, Key won three Journalism awards for the article that she wrote for the Boston Daily during her internship. A fact that BBC cannot look over and invited her to join their team. While her classmates were busy planning for the Harvard graduation rites, she was already in London chasing stories about the European heat wave.

But she would not think twice in straightening him out too. And nobody would win a verbal battle with her.

"I think I am gonna throw up." Onew said.

"Not in my office!" Luhan yelled.

"In the plane." The three of them were on their way to Shanghai for the wedding of the largest HanTel distributor in the world. Luo Guang Yu, chairperson of Gome Electronics in China will tie the knot with the richest woman in the mainland, Tan Hui Yan, an only daughter of a real estate magnate. They were all compelled to attend the wedding ceremony two days hence as a form of recognition to Gome's good business with HanTel.

"Don't you dare!"

***********************************************************************

"Welcome back, Ms. Zhang." The boss's secretary gave her a warm smile as she emerged through the glass doors. She just reported to the headquarters today after a month and her assistant told her that the President's waiting for her.

"Thank you." She returned the smile. "Is she in?" She just got back from Kuala Lumpur to oversee the furnishing of Margrethe Hotel Malaysia. She was just appointed head designer for Kim Corporation and she takes care of the interiors of all the resorts and hotels that they build.

"Yes, Miss. She's expecting you."

"Thank you. And I'll have my assistant bring you the stuff I brought from Malaysia."

"Wow! Thank you, Ms. Zhang!" She squealed in delight and Yixing proceeded to the President's office chuckling at her antics. She made a warning knock before opening the door. It led her into a sparsely decorated room with ultra modern interiors that promoted stylish comfort and tons of breathing room. Kim Tower was built and decorated long before she joined the company. But whoever that designed it should be given due credit.

"Yixing! Come in, come in." Kim Minseok, President and CEO of Kim Corporation hugged her. "Welcome back!"

"Thank you so much, President Kim." She returned the warm hug. She felt really blessed for having such a perfect job and a wonderful boss. After ditching modeling, she wanted to use her degree in Interior Design. But since her reputation as a super model superseded her skills, she found it hard to land a suitable job in Europe. International job posting led her to Kim Corporation in Shanghai but she recently got promoted as head of design team and was required to move to Busan.

"I thought I already told you to call me Minseok whenever were alone?" Minseok feigned anger.