Sehun was right: my dress was blue, dark blue in fact. It was a rather simple dress and, if I do say so myself, rather pretty. When I looked at it, I thought that you could probably put a pumpkin in it and it would pass as a fake tan enthusiast out for a good time. My hair was a little hopeless though. I usually had a make-up and hair stylist to do things like this for me, so at first I was at a bit of a loss at what to do. Thankfully, the internet exists, and several how-to videos later I had a semi-decent hairstyle going on.

True to my word, I turned up at Sehun’s on time. It was Baekhyun who answered the door in a rather dapper suit. When he saw my dress he pointed to it and exclaimed that he was going to guess blue next.

“Where’s Sehun?” I asked as he let me in.

“Grooming himself. He’s been grinning like a Cheshire cat this whole time. You’ve really done strange things to that boy’s mind.”

A scooted in closer to Baekhyun, glancing down the corridor to make sure Sehun wasn’t coming.

“Did you get a chance to talk to him?”

Baekhyun turned grim suddenly. “Sort of. He’s not really in a very serious mindset right now. I’ll try again tomorrow.”

“Did he get angry?” I asked, cringing a little at the thought.

To my relief, Baekhyun shook his head. “No, he’s stuck in love-struck land. I doubt anything would make him angry right now.”

A call came from the direction of Sehun’s room. “Why isn’t she here yet? She’s going to be late, isn’t she?” It suddenly became apparent that Sehun hadn’t heard me arriving.

I held my finger up to Baekhyun’s mouth to keep him quiet and with a smirk he seemed to understand what I was planning.

As childish as it was, I crept along the corridor until I reached Sehun’s partially closed over bedroom door with the intention of giving him a fright. Through the gap I could see what appeared to be a mountain of clothes scattered onto the floor. And to think, he actually lectures me about keeping my room tidy.

The door suddenly swung open, revealing what can only be described as a devastatingly handsome man. His hair had been – as Baekhyun had said – groomed to within an inch of its life and sat perfectly upon his head. And he was wearing a black tuxedo with a white shirt underneath. He looked utterly classic.

Although surprised to see me lurking in the corridor, his eyes soon became rounder when they looked down me.

“Told you I wouldn’t be late,” I muttered to break what I felt was an awkward silence.

Looking pleasantly amused, Sehun closed over his bedroom door and walked to my side.

“You look-”

“I’m going to stop you right there,” I quickly interrupted, holding up a hand dramatically. “I really can’t handle mushy comments at all because I'm never sure whether to say thank you or deny them.”

Looking perplexed for a moment, Sehun’s face softened into a smile. “Fine. For an angry little gnome, you sure do scrub up well.”

I grinned a little. “I like that one.”

“By the way,” Sehun said casually as we headed for Baekhyun. “I like mushy comments.”

Patting his uninjured cheek almost condescendingly, I replied, “I know. But I’m worried about the size of your ego.” Sehun gaped at me for a moment before I added, “You look good, happy now?”

“Very.”

As I had already known beforehand, the venue for the dance was an Oh Hotel. Although Sehun didn’t seem overly pleased about this, he had explained to me that it was held here every year due to his father’s lack of involvement with the parent's council the rest of the year. No one actually knew it was Sehun’s inheritance though.

When I was getting out of the car, I saw Baekhyun staring intently at his phone.

"I'll be back in a second, ok?” he mumbled to the two of us before hurrying off somewhere.

Sehun and I were left frowning after him. “What was that about?” Sehun asked, surprise evident in his voice.

I shrugged. “No idea. But I bet it’s a girl.”

Sehun chuckled, placing a hand to the small of my back to direct me inside. “You’re probably right. The only time I’ve ever seen him scamper off that quickly is when a female is involved.”

The hotel had been described to me as budget, but as I stepped through the threshold, it was clear that it was the fanciest budget hotel in existence. We were among the last to congregate in the large dancing hall that had been kitted out for the event. People seemed to stare at us, me particularly, and I got the feeling it wasn’t because of my self-styled hair.

“People are staring at you,” Sehun murmured quietly as if reading my mind.

I nodded, noticing how all their stares were very hard. “I’m going to go to the loo,” I excused myself in an attempt to get away from the stares that were making me feel horribly self-conscious.

“I’ll come, you don’t know the way.”

“It’s ok, I’ll be fine,” I assured him. “It can’t be that hard to find.”

Although hesitant, Sehun agreed. “It’s just down the corridor on the right.”

I shot him a thumbs up and began making my way through the crowd.

“Mira!” Sehun called out suddenly, causing me to turn. He jogged over to where I was. “I’m going to the buffet table. What do you want?”

I smiled at the way his mind was working: food first, socialising later! “Anything except walnuts. I’m allergic."

"Really?" He seemed genuinely shocked by this news.

“It won’t kill me if I eat them, but I might faint and will most probably be sick. And I doubt you want that on your shoes.”

He screwed up his face at the news, looking rather aghast at the prospect. “Any other allergies I should maybe know about?”

“Amoxicillin. But that’s not really something that’s liable to cause a problem unless I get a sudden ear infection.”

Sehun reached out and pinched my ear, cooing, “Well make sure you keep them clean then.”

I scowled at him. “Yes, Grandpa.”

He smiled at me softly, releasing my ear. “Don’t take long.”

I saluted, turning to go. “I won’t.”

As I made my way through the crowd alone, it seemed like more and more people were pointing and whispering. Their gazes were firmly fixed onto me and I suddenly felt very small under them so I hurried out and down the corridor as I had been instructed by Sehun.

Once in the corridor I was met with the sight of two men dressed in immaculate suits standing there with their backs to one another. Although confused, I did my best to saunter past without staring too much. After all, they had a right to be in the hotel too.

“Miss Lee Mira,” the taller of the two called out, tilting his gaze towards me.

Blinking up at him, I narrowed my eyes a little. “Why?”

“Your father has asked that we you to the meeting.”

"My father?" I blinked rather confusedly, glancing between the two men. "Meeting? What meeting?”

“The meeting he is currently in. Please follow us to the main suite.”

I scoffed at the pair of them lightly. “My father’s not here. And if he were to send someone to me for whatever reason, then he would have told me beforehand. Now, please excuse me."

The shorter man drew out a sheet of paper and took in a breath before beginning, “Lee Hyeonjun, CEO of United Entertainment, father to one Lee Mira, husband to one deceased Lee Helen-”

“You could have just been to an archives somewhere,” I countered, not really believing these two men would have been sent by my father without him contacting me about it first.

The shorter man shot me a rather irritated look before recommencing his reading, “Lee Hyeonjun is currently in a meeting with the intention of signing a contract with one Oh Jaehyuk, CEO of Oh Hotels Limited, father to one Oh Sehun, father to one Oh Kyungsoo, husband to one deceased Oh Minji, husband to one Oh Phillis.”

I felt my eye twitch involuntarily. “What are you . . . talking about?”

The taller man took over again. “The short of the long, Miss Lee, is that your father requires your assistance in the main suite in order to secure the contract with Mr Oh, as was planned. He wishes us to you there quickly.”

“Bu - no. No, he said he wasn’t doing that anymore. He changed his mind. He wouldn’t lie to me about it.” The more I tried to disagree, the more desperate I was sounding.

The two men exchanged a glance like they weren’t sure where to laugh at me or feel pity. “Be that as it may,” the taller went on, clearing his throat a little. “He is getting the contract signed now.”

I glanced over my shoulder to where the quiet buzz of the party could be faintly heard.

“I don’t understand,” I mumbled put pathetically. “He said he wasn’t doing it anymore. I’d even prepared the documents for the proposal with Jenkins Hotels. This isn’t supposed to be happening,” I shook my head, alarm bells ringing.

The shorter man let out a tired sigh, “We were supposed to be there a minute ago. Please follow along.”

I stayed rooted where I was, one thing plastered to the forefront of my mind: Sehun. I had to speak to Sehun before anything else happened. “I need to speak to someone first, please just give me a moment,” I said, panicking slightly as I made to go back to the main dance hall.

Glancing to his sheet again, the shorter man called out, “Would that be one Oh Sehun, by any chance?"

My movements paused and I hesitantly nodded. I didn’t like that piece of paper they were using even one bit.

“He’s already there,” the man informed me, stepping to the side and motioning for me to lead off.

“Sehun’s . . . there?” No. Impossible. There was no way he could be there. “No. H-he can’t be.”

“Miss Lee, one of our partners escorted him there a moment ago. Now please hurry along.”

I stared incredulously at the two men. What if Sehun is there? What if right now he’s finding out about my dirty little lies? I had to be there; I had to explain it to him.

“Which way did you say it was?”

Following the two men along the corridor, I was led through a mini labyrinth of corridors that seemed to never end. When we turned down a narrow aisle, I saw a door with a plaque stating it to be the main suite.

“That’s it?”

“Yes, Miss. That’s it.”

I broke into a jog to get there just that little bit quicker. Maybe it wouldn’t be too late. Maybe I could still explain it to Sehun and maybe everything could stay as it was. The men seemed to speed up their pace to match my own. When I reached the wood, I didn’t even bother knocking, instead just barged in.

In the vast room meant for over one hundred people sat only a dozen. My eyes scanned through the faces, searching for the one I had come to know so well. He wasn’t here. I checked again, this time searching for his signature dyed hair but once again saw nothing. He wasn't here. My eyes slowed down, this time looking at the other faces in the room. My father was indeed sitting in here as the men had said, and was staring at me with a hard expression. Beside him was a face that caused my hackles to lift, the damaged face of his son coming straight to the forefront of my mind. The horror of seeing them in the same room together lasted only a moment before I realised that Sehun really wasn’t here at all. I didn’t know whether he was coming, or whether he wasn’t, but my body seized up a little in panic as I tried to think about what to do.

My father smiled towards the detestable man to his right. “Daughters can be so disorderly. Mr Oh, this is my only child, Mira.”

The man beside my father, a lot slimmer in build, looked me up and down before a look of knowing crossed his face. “Lee Mira.”

Shooting me an annoyed glance, my father motioned for me to sit. It was only then that I noticed my escorts hadn’t entered the room with me and I suddenly felt very alone despite my initial dislike for them. I tepidly pulled out a chair on the other side of the room, perching myself awkwardly on the edge of it as my mind tried to piece together what was actually happening here. I imagined my position looked a bit like a gazelle ready to run from any sudden predator appearances.

“Yes,” my father continued, smiling to the man. “I believe you’ve met her before.”

Mr Oh looked visibly uncomfortable at the memory. The only thing that passed through my mind was Good.

“Yes . . . she came to our house for Christmas.” Mr Oh glanced up at me, then looked away again. He was probably remembering all the names he had called me and the treatment he had issued to me with. “I hadn’t realised she was your daughter,” he admitted, glancing abashedly at my father.

“Yes, well, Mira hasn’t ever been one to flaunt her status. But don’t worry, she has assured me that she had a splendid time with your family. Thank you for making her feel so welcomed.”

I watched my father closely as he said this, curious as to why he was playing it so innocently. There was a part of me that wanted nothing more than to interrupt and correct his horribly inaccurate statement, but I was more interested in seeing where this conversation was going. I chewed on my lip nervously.

Mr Oh glanced at me nervously for a moment as if to also see if I was going to correct my father’s statement. It was strange to see Mr Oh who was so domineering in his own household be so submissive next to my father.

“That’s good. I’m glad she enjoyed her time there,” Mr Oh finally said, body seemingly relaxing upon realising that I would say nothing.

“And I hear,” my father continued, glancing my way again. “That my daughter is quite taken with your son.”

My chewing stopped and I looked at him, my brow furrowing slightly. What is he doing?

Mr Oh looked blank for a moment, then the realisation that I wasn’t just some street rat chasing after Sehun dawned on him. I’m sure he could just hear cash register noises in his head as he thought about what the potential marriage between Sehun and I would mean for him in turns of assets. I suddenly felt like a pawn in a cheater’s game of chess.

“Oh yes, my son is very taken with your daughter as well - kept raving about love the other night,” Mr Oh agreed, puffing himself up a little. “Perhaps . . . some sort of arrangement should be made for the future.” I could practically hear the greed in his voice and I’m sure my father could as well.

Holding up a hand as if to stop Mr Oh’s thoughts, my father pushed a pile of paper – a contract – towards Mr Oh. “Let’s see how this arrangement goes first, shall we?”

“Wait!” I blurted, twelve sets of eyes landing on me instantly. My father looked more than a little irritated, whilst Mr Oh merely looked confused. I cleared my throat a little, looking straight at my father. “I thought you were going to use another hotel chain,” I hinted, eyes wide in