Chapter 19:

TOP’s P.O.V

Okay, so what is happening right now? I’m on a date, not the second date or even the third not even the fourth. Weeks have already passed that even I can’t count on how many date I have with Dahee, and she’s not yet my girlfriend. I’m not hurrying our budding relationship anyway and I’m enjoying her company and so is she, I guess.

Anyway, this date is not like others because both she and I and all of her friends are getting worried to the other budding relationship besides ours. What makes us worried is that it’s not as uncomplicated like mine with Dahee because I don’t have a bipolar ex-girlfriend who likes to cling to me and do whatever it takes to garner attention.

“So, why am I the only guy to be invited in this so called meeting after my date with my jagiya (honey/darling)?” I inquire looking at them prying for answers in their eyes.

Dahee elbows me lightly in the stomach while the other girls giggle and murmur, “my jagiya,” and look at Dahee teasingly. No wonder, she elbowed me and she is turning scarlet from embarrassment. There is nothing to be embarrassed about anyway.

“Back to the matter at hand, it’s because you’re the only guy who is super-duper close to our super-duper secretive best friend in the world and you’re the only person who can understand her wicked mind like us.” Chaewon gushes out without a pause to breathe.

We all gawk at her like she’s a lunatic who gushes out nonsense then Eunjae points at her and mutters, “just like she said, Jihye will be in big trouble if they develop feelings more than friendship.” I look at her but she really is serious when she says all that.

“We all know that they are just rekindling past feelings that are buried in the lost time,” I utter sadly but as a matter of fact, I’m correct. Jihye met Jiyong when she is acting or being Anna, and Anna is Jiyong’s first love.

They sigh in admittance that I’m correct.

“What’s getting dangerous is not even their budding relationship but the lunatic ex-girlfriend of Jiyong who is trying her best to show Jiyong that she is not the woman he ought her to be, which is a fraud again.” Chaewon proclaims without batting an eyelash when she accuses Kiko of the said issue, which I’m not arguing about but not agreeing to it too.

“Let’s not listen to that lunatic and her side comments which are very long and some details are not needed in the discussion,” Eunjae mutters harshly while rolling her eyes at Chaewon.

“But, she has a point. We all saw what Kiko did to Jihye when she just charge at the office like a freaking bull ready to attack with its horns and her nose flaring with imaginary smoke,” Sumi talks animatedly.

Okay! Now, I know that Sumi is the youngest in thinking. She doesn’t know what’s happening in bed when two opposite are on intense heat, well, I bet she knows but she can’t comprehend what is really happening inside that room because all she thinks are animated scenes like playing pillow fights, cards and the childlike acts. But she’s a refreshing wind when you know her because of her innocence.

But I see Eunjae blinking once, twice and more while looking at her flabbergasted, trying to follow the thing that Sumi said. “You have a point there but you don’t need to add the animated type of things like Chaewon.” She responds to Sumi. Sumi nodded in response to and acts to zipper .

“Well, it’s Jihye’s fault at the same time. She taunted Kiko until she’s freaking really irritated and loss her mind for the whole minute of scratching nothing but thin air.” Dahee justifies still sweetly.

Flashback:

The last string of Kiko’s human perception just snaps, when Jihye says that she knows how to satisfy a man who has a y girlfriend, and she charges like a lunatic to her wailing her hands like a cat asking for a fight.

I won’t say I’m rooting for my little sister here but I do, silently inside my mind. I am her number one supporter after all and she’s my number one supporter too after her friends.

“What did you just say?” Kiko snarls at her. She is trying to catch up to the agile Jihye who is smilingly evading Kiko’s attacks.

“Is your ego that big that it needed to hear it once again that I can satisfy your boyfriend when you’re not around?” Jihye taunts again.

Aisht! What is wrong with this girl that she needs to rile her up more when she’s already being irrational? And the whole room is being a mess with people going after Kiko while trying to protect freaking amused Jihye. I see Sajangnim rubbing his temples with the chaos in front of him and inside his office and I’m waiting for him to snap too, to stop this freaking girl causing havoc in our meeting.

And Lord, I want this to end. It is freaking causing me headache with this stupid lover’s quarrel of Kiko with Jihye. Damn! I kick Jiyong’s and nods my head telling him to stop this whole damn chaos which he is the big subject.

When you need the courageous Jiyong, he’s being weak, and when you don’t need it, he’s being courageous. And this is the time when he needed to be brave to tell Kiko to stop causing such a mess for stupid little things, which are not little.

“And why are you girls not moving an inch at all to help your friend?” I inquire with my prying stare at them.

They look at me at the same time and mutter at the same time too. “She didn’t need any help. Have you heard her shout help?” I shake my head immediately knowing I didn’t hear a plea of help from her, none at all. She is just giggling while running around like a kid playing tag with her friend. “See,” they say in unison again.

“She can handle herself well,” Dahee assures me placing her palm on my shoulder but my smile is taken back when Eunjae pulls back her hand and rests it in her side and she gives me an annoying smirk.

Aisht! She is such a mood breaker. I am about to smile but she make me pull it back. Darn it!

“Get out!” I hear the booming shout of YG-sajangnim and he is standing from his seat. I can see the scary and strict sajangnim when he shouts like that.

“Who?” I bit my lip to stop myself from laughing when I stare at Jihye flabbergasted on how naughty and playful she really is that even our own boss can’t handle. She is the only one who is smiling at the situation and asks innocently, but she isn’t, who.

“Jiyong, will you Kiko out of the building, please? If you must in a hurry,” Sajangnim says between teeth. Uh-oh! He is definitely seething in anger now. “And all of you get out except for you, Jihye; I need to talk to you privately.”

She looks at him and nods in agreement. The boys pat her shoulders encouraging her that it will be okay because they are positive that she will be reprimanded by him. The girls, on the other hand, smile at her not even worried to what will happen. What is wrong with them?

------------------------------------------------

“Don’t worry about it Jiyong. She will be fine.” They assure us that the one hour talk already is nothing to be worried about. It is freaking an hour talk, what’s not to be worried about? It is time to be worried about, isn’t it?

She walks out of the room her face not wallow not smiling also. It is normal, like when you are walking alone in a corridor your facial expression is blank as in nothing at all. “Is she alright?” I ask Dahee.

“Yeah, she is perfectly fine.” She replies smiling at me.

And as Dahee says, everything is fine. Jihye is not normal again. She is back to her cunning and smiling stupid expression. She teases us again like nothing happened an hour or two ago. She then starts laughing hysterically.

Omo! Did she really get a beating with sajangnim?

“Oh my gosh! GD,” she laughs again, “look at yourself,” she points at his face trying to catch her breath. “I’m fine.” She says smiling widely.

“I’m sorry about Kiko,” Jiyong says ashamed.

“I’m sorry for taunting your girlfriend.”

My head turns her way and she looks at me. I can read that she wants me to shut up and act like I don’t know she is not happy saying sorry but she is in the wrong. I nod lightly in response for her to know I get her message.

“It’s fine. She became a little too harsh because of her jealousy.” Jiyong replies.

“Arasso,” Jihye didn’t even bat an eyelash for acting like she’s really sorry and not saying it again. She really is someone who is straightforward and will do whatever she pleases but she knows when she is being too much.

End of flashback

So, why is the development of those two are freaking fast more than me and Dahee? It is giving me a headache. That stupid Jiyong, he is falling in love with the same woman. This looks like it’s not complicated but it sure is. Jiyong is one stubborn man and Jihye is an understanding woman, two kinds of people who are typically unbalanced because both of them have strong personalities.

I cover my face with both of my hands and sigh in frustration. Dahee rubs my back trying to comfort me. See! That’s why I so like her.

She smiles sweetly. “You don’t need to be frustrated and overthink about the situation. Jihye is old and smart enough to handle Jiyong’s kind of man, especially his kind,” she says caringly.

“I do know that but do we really have to talk behind her back?” I ask.

“Who’s talking behind my back?” My eyes go wide when I heard that familiar teasing voice. I look back in slow motion and a smile plaster on my face. Her eyebrow raised and her eyes narrowed looking at me, but a second after, she stifles a laugh and smile genuinely at me.

“You really are not good at lying, oppa. Besides, what are you talking about, that is so interesting and you left me out?” She pries looking straight into our eyes catching if we are guilty of something. She really is one scary woman that can smile intimidatingly if she likes to interrogate you.

Her shoulders drop and gave out a sigh then shake her head smiling. “It’s about him and me, isn’t it,” she asks.

We all nod guiltily. Argh! My reputation is getting ruined by being meek when she’s the one asking. Ah! Stupid Big Seunghyun getting handed his to someone younger than him and a girl on the matter. My bad boy vibes is being crush into smithereens by this woman, which I also call best friend and dongsaeng (little sister).

“Everything will be fine and there’s no need to be worried sick of something not going to happen,” she implies assuring without an inch of doubt in her voice.

“Arasso,” the girls respond in unison with relief in their voice.

-------------------------------------------------

We are now alone talking in a different coffee shop but still one of her favorites in the metro and it is still unpopulated as I look at it. The people drinking in here are high class people because everywhere I glance, all I can see where branded clothes, shoes, bags and accessories. And one more thing is that even if I remove my sunglasses and mask, they didn’t even gawk for a long time and goes back immediately to their conversation.

“Are you really sure there is nothing?” I ask her after I took a sip of my juice that is recommended by her because of the great refreshing taste it gives and she is definitely right on the description. The juice is like a good refreshing drink when you are tired from everything.

She leans forward and propped her hand, resting her chin on top of it, closing her eyes thinking so deeply before giving me an answer.

Just as I thought, Jihye isn’t as confident as how she sounded earlier. She may have fooled her friends with that carefree attitude but not my keen intuition of the tinge of doubt in her eyes. Eyes are the best reflection of what we are really feeling. That is one thing I learned from her.

 “Dahee will be here any minute for your date,” she answers not even giving me the response that I wanted to hear. “Oh! Here she is. I do hope you enjoy your date. This building has a great restaurant on the second floor, it’s called le chateau.” She winks at me and kisses me on the cheeks then greets Dahee and kisses her too both on her cheeks.

What am I going to do with you, Jihye? You are going to enter a complicated situation that you could lose him on either scenario of you being you or him knowing you are Anna on the flesh.

“Jagiya,” Dahee calls warmly smiling at me.

I stand up and greet her with a warm hug that she really appreciates me doing every single time we meet. “Shall we eat?” I offers and she nods in response.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thank you for reading!

I hope you love or like it!

Please, leave a comment!

~authornim