Double update!  Read Chapter 36 first if you haven’t!

KAI’S POV

I stare at my son, dumbstruck, struggling to wrap my head around his newest revelation.  He said he… what?

“You… you what?”

“Yesterday Jongguk saw you and noona.”  He repeats, mumbling the words while fumbling with an invisible loose thread on his jeans.  “Jongguk woke up for a while last night.”

Oh .  So you mean he’s telling me he might’ve seen me going down on Iseul?  My head between her thighs?  Did he hear what I was saying to her too?!  , fickety ety , someone just shoot me, please.  Blow my brains out and replace my tombstone with the Worst Parent Of The Century award.  Now, please, now!!

But in reality no one is going to do that so I have to suffer through the consequences of the bad choices I made and lack of self-control I displayed last night.    it.  No matter what he says, I’m gonna have to brainwash my son. 

"But Jongguk only saw a little, appa, don't worry!"  My son quickly adds, probably a flustered attempt to calm me down after seeing how my facial expressions contort and betray my own thoughts.  "Really!"

"Which part did you see, Guk?"  My voice sounds distant, and I badly want to fold my own ears close so that I don't have to hear his answer.  If he says something like 'the part when appa's head is between noona's legs' or something, I'm going to choke myself, just watch. 

"Um, Jongguk..." his ears are turning red now, and I feel my stomach twisting even more.  He saw it.  He must've seen it.  I'm doomed. 

"Jongguk just saw when appa kissed noona after saying something."  Jongguk finally admits, blood rushing in large volumes to his ears now.  "Then appa kissed noona again and again so Jongguk closed Jongguk's eyes because noona always makes me do that when people kiss in K-dramas--"

To say that I am relieved would be an understatement.

"—and then because appa and noona kept kissing, Jongguk kept closing my eyes... which made Jongguk fell asleep again."  Jongguk smiles sheepishly.  "Hehe."

Now I should be embarrassed about that but… just the kissing?  Whoo!

"Oh."  I breathe, trying not to appear too happy to seem suspicious or anything.  "Oh, you closed your eyes.  Good boy!"

I ruffle his hair fondly but a little aggressively—partially due to the high the flooding relief in my system brought—and he tries to duck away.

"But Jongguk still saw appa kiss noona!!  Jongguk saw!!  HA!"  He cries out, pointing a stubby little finger at me.  His loud proclamation garners the attention of several others.

"Really now, Guk?"  Baekhyun asks, grinning like a sly cat.  "When did you see that?"

"Last night."  Jongguk answers.  "Jongguk woke up because they were shouting."

"We weren't shouting!"  I refute defensively to no one in particular.  Chen gives me a 'geez, we get it, you ed,' look and I scowl.

"Kai hyung kissed Iseul noona?!"  Yi Han shrieks, shaking his dad's arm violently.  "Where?!"

"On the bed!" Jongguk answers with a gummy smile, making the guys snicker and exchange indiscreet looks between them.  I'm going to poke Sehun's eye with a fork if he keeps doing that stupid winky thing at me.

But Yi Han furrows his eyebrows.  "No, I mean, where??  The lips?  The cheek?  The forehead?"

"Oh, oh!!"  Jongguk nods in understanding.  "On the lips!"

Baekhyun barks in laughter.  "Yah Guk, if you saw them kiss on the lips on the bed then I can assure you that's not the only thing you— HEY!"  He twists around to retaliate as I jab his side with my elbow sharply.

“What?”

“Nothing!”  I splutter.  “That’s the only thing you saw, right Guk?”

“Yup!”  Jongguk nods.  D.O. shoots me a questioning look but I shrug with a blank look on my face. 

“Really, Guk?”  D.O. asks, leaning in a little.

“Really!”

“How come?”  Sehun asks, and I shoot him a look.  What does he mean how come?!  What is he insinuating?!

Thankfully, Jongguk, being the clueless little angel he is, doesn’t catch it.  He nods his head and says, “Because Jongguk closed Jongguk’s eyes and fell asleep again.” 

All the guys burst out laughing—drunken-hyena-banging-a-pelican noises on Baekhyun’s part—and Jongguk furrows his eyebrows.  “Iseul noona tells me to close my eyes whenever the people in K-dramas kiss!” 

“Yeah, yeah, that’s great, but what’s funny is the fact that—“ Chen guffaws, “that you fell asleep again after that.  Jongguk, are you okay man?”

“Because—because it was long!”  Jongguk flushes. 

A girlish shriek escapes Baekhyun, who immediately tries to cover it up by coughing like he needs to go to the ER.  “Oh, I see.  Yeah, I could predict that already.”   After calming himself down, he pats Jongguk’s head.  “Don’t worry.  You probably did the right thing.”

“YAH!”  I yell, knowing fully well what he means by that.  One of this days, I’m going to hand Baekhyun a baby and make him feel how hard parenting is when you live with eleven other grown men with dirty jackass minds.  From where will I get the baby?  I don’t know.  I’ll figure that out later. 

“What?”  Baekhyun snickers, hiding behind Chanyeol a little.  “It’s probably true!”

I open my mouth to retort but close it again because I can’t—he’s right.  It is true that Jongguk did the right thing by closing his eyes and falling back asleep again.  If not…. Man.  I don’t even want to think about it.

“Aish, Guk, you should’ve told appa you woke up.”  I mutter as we head out of the building. “Why did you stay silent and continue to watch huh?  Appa is embarrassed now.”

“Why?  Jongguk was shocked.”  He answers, swinging my hand. 

“Which part of appa’s conversation with noona woke you up, hmm?”  I question again, instead of answering his.

“Um… don’t know.  Jongguk forgot already.  But you guys were shouting!”  He looks into the distance and thinks for a while but ultimately comes up with nothing.  “Did appa and noona fight?”

“Um… yeah.  Kinda.”  I admit reluctantly.  He opens his mouth again but I skillfully avoid his next questions by adding, “But you don’t need to know what it’s about Guk.  It’s… adult people problems.”

I want to kick myself.  What the hell was that?!

“Sheesh!  Okay.”  He mutters.  “You know appa, it’s because when you wake up in the middle of the night and then go to sleep again, the time when you woke up feels like a dream.  But it wasn’t a dream right?”

I inwardly cringe a little at what I’m about to say.  “No, Guk, it’s not.”  

“See~” he sings, grinning at me knowingly.  “So is appa dating noona now?” 

“Sort of?”  I laugh awkwardly scratching my head. 

Thankfully the other guys are walking ahead of us, allowing me to have a peaceful 1-on-1 conversation with my son. 

“Okay!  Jongguk approves!  Jongguk likes noona.”  Jongguk claps, look really satisfied.  I smile, pleased with his statement and relieved by how he’s taking this. 

“That’s… great.  Um, thanks, Guk.”  I mumble, trying to wince as I force the words out.  Ew.  This so cheesy cheesy touchy feely and I cannot do this. 

“So is appa going to go dating with noona tonight?”

At the relationship term I can’t help but cringe because I just… no.  That’s not really my thing.  But I keep it to myself and shoot Jongguk a creeped out look.  “Go what?  Dating?”

“Yeah!”

“What do you know about dating Guk?” I ask, almost not wanting to hear the answer.

“That you go out just the two of you with someone you like like!  Noona explained it to me.”

Iseul, I swear…

“When?”

“When we’re watching K-dramas!  People always go dating in dramas!”  Jongguk bubbly replies.  Oh .  Is he even using the verb properly?  And why is he forcing me into a relationship status again?

“So is appa going to go?”  He quips, interested.

I ponder the question for a while.  Should I?  Take Iseul out somewhere… just the two of us?  I mean, it is our last night here and I have been a jerk to her…

“Maybe.”  I say at last, having not fully decided yet.  It’s just that—where will Jongguk go?  Where should I take her?  Aish, there’s still so much to plan.  WHO WILL JONGGUK STAY WITH?! 

“Appa should really take noona somewhere.”  Jongguk, apparently acting my good conscience now, tactfully advises.  “Appa and noona fought right yesterday?”

“Yeah but… if we go, who will you go with, Guk?  You know those hyungs aren’t trustworthy.”  I gesture at the people in question.  “Who are you going to stay with?”

“Yi Han?”

Arrghhh!!  What makes he think that a fellow 7-year-old will be a better option?!

“No!  Not Yi Han!”  I groan.  “Okay, fine.  Maybe we can work something out later.  You know, if appa decides to go with noona.  But no promises okay?  Why do you want me to go on a date with noona so much anyway?”

Jongguk shrugs.  “I don’t know.  Just… because.”

“Just because?”

“Yup!”  He bobs his head, not a care in the world.  “But appa…”

“What?”

“Appa still loves Jongguk the most, right?”  He looks at me expectantly. 

He looks at me with so much blazing, bright hope that I would undoubtedly kill anyone who dares to put that fire out.  I don’t even need to think about that.  The answer has always been at the back of my head, loud and clear, and at the tip of my tongue, ready for me to say whenever he wants to hear. 

Yes, I feel a lot for Iseul. 

A whole ing lot. 

But it’s different with Jongguk.  Blood will always be thicker than water, and Jongguk will always be the one I have always cared about since day one.

So with one arm around his body that barely reaches my hip, I hug him close. 

“Of course, Guk.  Appa will always love you the most.”

ISEUL’S POV

After what seems like an eternity later, Victoria and I are still sitting across each other, guiltlessly gobbling up our 3rd order of cake.  Vic has a Tarte Aux Fruits this time— to help balance out the fat, she says, while I have a Gateau Aux Marron in front of me, topped with artery clogging whip cream and all.  Our conversation now rotates around Jongguk and Mark, two of the mutuals between us, and me filling her in on the gaps about Jongguk's life. 

"So Mark helps him through Skype whenever he has any Chinese or English homework?"  Vic is asking. 

"Yeah."  I some whip cream off the back of my fork.  "Because he claims he's better than me at this and Mark is the only one whose intonation he can understand.  I mean, I understand now though, his mom is part Chinese."

Vic smiles.  "That's a big claim for someone who has been raised in Korea in Korean his whole life though."

"Yeah, he is annoying at times."  I say frankly.  "I'm also 90% positive he and Mark talk about me in Chinese just because I can't understand."

"I'm pretty sure Mark was the one who initiated it too."  Victoria agrees, to which I nod.

We talk a little more, and I tell her a few more stories about Mark, Jongguk, and Kai—not necessarily together—until I realize I've been blabbering non-stop the whole time and pause for a while to check my phone for the time. 

"Wow, it's 3 already!"  I exclaim.  It's surprising how time flies today.  I'd never expected to have this much fun with Vic, the person who I was wary of and—admittedly—so keen on hating before meeting her. 

"Really?"  Vic asks, glancing at her silver wristwatch.  "Whoa, we've been here for 4 hours but it didn't feel like it at all.  Do you have anything else planned for the day?"

I shrug and shake my head.  "I don't think so.  You?"

She consults what I assume must be a planner installed on her phone and purses her lips as she slowly shakes her head as well.  "Not really.  Just some normal stuff like going to the shop and making sure everything's running smoothly." 

"Oh."

"If you don't mind me asking," she says tentatively, "where did Jongin and Jongguk go today?"

"Oh, them?"  I sip the last few drops of ice tea, already diluted with water from the melting ice cubes.  "They went out to do guy stuff with the other guys."

As if on cue, my phone suddenly rings, Kai's name lighting up on the screen. Shocked, I blurt out a quick, "Sorry!"

"Hello?"  I pick up, instinctively turning away a little.

"Hello."  Kai says as if confirming his presence.  His deep, velvety voice flows into my ear like music and I find myself smiling.  As always.

"What?"  I ask, wondering why he isn't saying more.

"Where are you?"  He asks.

"Still here."  I glance out the window, half-expecting to see him outside.  Because you know how he is right?  Him and his tracking abilities.

"Still with Vic?" 

"Yep."  I dart my eyes at Vic momentarily.  "Um, are you gonna come here?"

"Are you guys nearly done or not?"

"Um..." I look questioningly at Vic, who in turn raises her eyebrows.

"What, do you have to go?"  She asks.

"Do I have to go?"  I jokingly relay the question to Kai, making Vic chuckle.

"It's up to you."  He answers, and I can almost picture him shrugging.  "But can you make it back by 6?  Or are you planning to switch alliances and stay with Vic forever?"

"Yah, what are you talking about?  What's happening at 6?"

"Dinner with the guys.  Reservation at 7."

"Reservation?  Somewhere nice then."  I muse, mostly to myself.  "Yah, stop taking me to nice places!  I don't have anything to wear!"

"Yah, who cares about what you wear?  It's not like I'm not going to dress up either!"  He argues, still defensive as ever.

"It's different!"  I sigh exasperatedly.  "You're a guy!"

"So?"

"And you probably have something to nice wear!" 

"I'm just gonna wear anything!"

"Like a blazer?"

"Yeah, like an everyday blazer."  He says, emphasizing 'everyday'.  "So chill!"

"I cannot!  I have to wear at least a dress and I don't have one!"

"We're not going to have tea with the Queen of England, if that's what you were expecting."

I make a face at that.  "Yeah, maybe not, but—"

"Hey."  Vic waves her hand in front of me.  She mouths, "Leave it to me."

I shake my head, indicating no, I can't trouble her with my wardrobe problems, but she glares at me and raps her fist on the table, mouthing "Leave.  It.  To.  Me," with a staccato at each word. 

I gulp.  "Uh, Kai?  Where are we eating?"  I ask, making sure if it is going to be someplace nice or not.  Before he can reject answering, I add, "Tell me."

He sighs.  "Man Wah."

"What?  Manhwa?"

"Yah, Man Wah!  Man... Wah!"  Kai barks into my ear.  "We're eating at Man Wah babe."

Okay, I'm not going to say this out loud but Man Wah really sounds like a street food stall somewhere in Mongkok.  But whatever. 

I mouth the exact same words to Victoria, who upon reading my lips immediately thumps the table an extra two times.  Then she makes a gesture to follow her.

"Okay, okay."  I say to both Kai and Vic at once.  "See you at 6.  I'll go back myself."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, don't worry!"

As soon as I hang up, Vic immediately shoots her hand up to ask for the bill.  ", I cannot believe he's taking you to Man Wah without telling you before you guys left.  Aish, we have to hurry!"

"What?  What?  What is that manhwa place?"

"Manhwa?"  Vic wrinkles her nose, exhibiting what probably is a more feminine reaction of Kai's when he heard me say manhwa.  "Yah, it's Man Wah!  One meal at Man Wah can buy you like an entire manhwa-turned-drama franchise!"

I pale.  "Can buy me a what?"

"Okay, so maybe it's not that expensive.  But it costs.  A lot."  Victoria flips her hair impatiently.  "And you can't be caught dead wearing something from Yesstyle so you, girl, are going to come with me and we are going to find you something that'll make Kai's jaw drop all the way back to the first floor."

"Wait, wait, what?  Um, what floor is the Man Wah at exactly?"

.  The higher the floor level, the higher the price. 

At least in some cases, but I'm sure that here, it damn well applies.

"The 25th floor of the Mandarin Oriental, Iseul.  The one overlooking Victoria Harbor."  Upon receiving the bill in the leather black flip case thing, she pulls out a banknote before I can even blink.  "The one where reservations can go up to three months in advance."

I'm not really listening now because first of all, I don't want to hear it, and second, I need to see how much my food costs.  "Hey, don't just—"

"My treat!"  Vic yelps fiercely, startling me a little.  "I was the one who asked to meet you today."

"But—"

"Quick, go, go!"  She s the leather case back to the waitress and ushers her off with what presumably is a $500 note. I look at her run off and frown.

"Vic, I really can't accept—"

"We really don't have the time to argue, Seul."  She stands up and brushes off some invisible crumbs from her crisp jumpsuit.  "Consider this me trying to right my wrongs and be a better person.  Now let's go!"

Around 2 hours of trial-and-error fitting at The Song and a couple thousand dollars spent later, it seems like my one-day excursion spent with Victoria is finally coming to an end.  She gives several orders to the head of store in a jetstream of unintelligible Cantonese words before exiting the store with me, my second The Song paper bag in my hand.

“Seriously, Vic, I can’t believe the discount you gave me.”  I say, still staring at the bill.  “Like, okay, not gonna lie—a 20% cut would’ve really been appreciated.  But a 60%?  That’s basically clearance price and I don’t know how to accept it!”

“You should!”  She replies, as if that will explain everything.  “That’s the only way I can make myself feel a little less guilty for forcing you to shop at The Song.  And besides, that dress was made for you—I would’ve given it to you if you had let me.”

“I would never!”  I gasp, slapping her arm lightly.  “You paid for Lady M’s and really helped me shop, there is no way I’m not paying for this dress.  Aish, you’re really making me uncomfortable with how nice you’re being, you know?” 

“Oh, I am?”  Vic holds a hand to her heart, looking thoroughly perplexed.  “Sorry!  I was just trying to—“

“I was kidding, I was kidding!”  I quickly add, shaking my hands frantically.  “Okay, so maybe I’m not entirely kidding but it’s okay.  You’re nice and that’s nice.  Don’t apologize!” 

At that, she smiles warmly.  “You’re really nice too.  I can see why Kai likes you.”

I raise my eyebrows.  “Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

But she doesn’t elaborate and I don’t know if I should ask.  So I settle with finding out the reasons by myself, for myself.  

“You’re a great person too.”  I say at last.  “I still can’t believe you’re the same person who did… that to Kai and Jongguk many years ago.”

“Like I said,” she sighs, as if not really understanding herself either.  “I was scared, shocked, and stupid back then.  I don’t even know how to explain myself.”

“I think that explains just about it.”

“Yeah.”

We don’t say anything for a while. 

“So um…” I finally break the silence, “is this where we part?”

“I guess so.”  She says, her eyes mirroring an unreadable expression.  Why do I… why do I get the feeling that she’s feeling kind of… sad again?

“Do you want me to keep you updated about Jongguk?”  I blurt out before I can stop myself to reconsider.  Seriously, Iseul, was that even a smart move?  Yeah, she may be sad because parting with me is also indirectly—somehow—parting with Jongguk again, especially because we’re going home tomorrow, but is that what she even wanted to hear?  Mentally smacking myself, I try to cover it up by adding, “Or Mark?”

“No thanks.”  She replies directly, shaking her head.  “Mark and I still talk to each other.  And for Jongguk—I don’t think Kai would like that.”

I feel a bit indignant about how she’s basing her reason on Kai, but it has nothing to do with jealousy.  It’s more like…

“Why are you… why are you considering Kai?  I mean, Jongguk is your son too so no matter what if you wanted an update on him you should still be allowed to get it.”

“Yeah, but me, the woman who caused both him and his son so much pain, wanting to be constantly updated about our son who he has painstakingly raised alone all those years after I left?”  Victoria shakes her head.  “I can’t be that selfish again.  And besides, it was my choice to leave.  Why would I second guess myself and ask for updates when I have no intention of staying?”

I’m at a loss for words.  Why indeed.  She puts her hand on my shoulder and smiles at me, something like a smile of closure. 

“I’ve seen myself out of their lives, Iseul.  Yesterday was a chance encounter—and it was a great one.  We tied up all the loose ends that we never got to before.  But that was yesterday.  Today, we get on with life.  Their own lives… and mine.” 

Looking into her eyes while she spoke is like looking down into a deep well.  It’s unexplainable, but in some way, it’s deep and dark and sad.  To me, her eyes will always be somewhat sad.  But not just sad.  Not the regret kind of sad either.  Just some kind of… sad. 

“Thanks for today, Seo Iseul.”

“No, thank you, Victoria Tuan.” 

Maybe I will never understand Victoria Tuan.  Maybe I will never hear from her or meet her ever again.  Maybe I’ll never get to decide what kind of sadness it was that I saw shining from her eyes today, but as I watch her walk away from me and disappear amongst millions of faces I don’t recognize, one thing is for sure— Victoria Tuan has a good heart. 

And because of that, I like her a lot. 

“I cannot believe you told me to just wear whatever!  To a place this fancy!  Do I need to catapult you to that chandelier up there to knock in some common sense?!”  I rant, seething.  Kai gives me a funny look and that’s when I realize how loud I am being as we walk through the hotel’s glamorous lobby.

Okay, okay, I have to calm down.  I have to breathe.  It’s not that bad, Iseul, you know how guys don’t get the deal over fashion like girls do.  Totally acceptable and understandable.  But still!  I just can’t get over the fact that he nearly allowed me to walk into a Michelin-starred restaurant in my everyday clothes!  So they might not be totally hobo, since I packed nicer clothes for Hong Kong, but still— in a place like this they’d look supremely bad!  

 “They are going to arrest you and charge you for property damage if you do that, you know.”  Kai replies, as nonchalant as ever, as we walk to the lift.  Jongguk runs ahead of us to press the button.

“Kai.”  I pout.  “But still.”

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry.”  He finally relents, flashing a card to one of the lobby staffs who are eyeing us curiously.  Where did he get that from?  What’s it for?  “It’s just that— we are dining in a private room tonight with just those guys as usual, so I thought it wouldn’t really matter.  Plus, you… you never look bad, okay?  I didn’t think it would be that big of a deal.” 

“Trust me, for girls, it is.”  I give him a look, but how utterly perfect he looks tonight isn’t helping.  It’s always game over for me when Kai sweeps up his hair and puts on a suit like that.  And yeah—it’s not just an everyday blazer.  It’s basically a suit, minus the tie.  He absolutely has no sense when it comes to fashion.

But then I guess… it does have something to do with him being a… mobster and all.  Insensitivity to details that are minor for him— like clothes.  Like this.   

“I know that now.”  He eyes me up and down for about a two seconds, and I half-expect a compliment but instead he awkwardly clears his throat and says, “I kind of wanted to surprise you too.  That’s why I didn’t tell you.”

“You might end up surprising yourself if I get dragged out of the restaurant for looking like a hobo because you surprised me like this.”  I say sarcastically with a saccharine smile. 

Now it’s Kai’s turn to shoot me a look.  “They won’t.  I’ll sue them.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Mmhmm.  I’ll sue them under the HOC, which will make things harder for them to beat.”

“Oh reeaaally.”

“Yeah.  These guys don’t stand a chance against the HOC.”  He haughtily declares, throwing his arm upwards dramatically as we reach the elevator.  As if on cue, the elevator dings and opens before us, to which Jongguk gives a self-satisfied clap. 

“Open sesame!”  He sings, before bouncing inside.  I’m going to have a word with Kai about what he fed that kid today.  I’m scared that his glucose index is already rocketing off the medical charts. 

“Okay, whatever you say.”  I say as we step in.  I watch Kai swipe the card before pressing the number 25.  Oh, that’s what it’s for! 

“You don’t believe me?”

“Mmm…”  I pretend to think before making a face.  “Maybe a little?”

“It’s true, you know.”  He says seriously.  Then he smirks, looking almost sly.  “You know how the HOC has connections everywhere.” 

Oh, right.  Right—I keep forgetting.  They are all freaking mobsters.

“Well… what are you even going to sue them for though?”  I press on, not wanting to admit defeat.  “Pressing charges for damage of their own property?”

“Nope.”

“What’s sue?”  Jongguk asks, butting in like he always does whenever Kai and I go too long without talking to him. 

“It’s to… it’s like, to take action against people who did something bad to you, Guk.”  I try to explain.  “It’s more complicated than that, but basically it’s… that.” 

“Did somebody do something wrong to appa?”

“No, not really, but he’s talking about if… hypothetically someone did.” 

“What’s appa going to sue that person for?”

At that, I decide that I’ve had enough of answering these questions and that it is now time to hand them over to Kai.  “Yeah, Kai, what are you going to sue them for?”

“For what?”  Kai grins, and I know that I’m either going to hate the answer, or—

“What else?  For you, of course.”  He says with a flirty wink, and I feel like banging my head on the wall and kissing him on the lips—just to shut him up, of course—at the same time. 

“What?”  Jongguk scrunches his nose, looking from me to Kai, then back to me and to Kai again.

“Just ignore him.  He’s not making any sense.”  I say to Jongguk, patting his head. 

Beside me, Kai doubles up in laughter.  “But you like this kind of nonsense.  Right?”

“Omo, what?”  I whirl around to look at him, incredulous.  Has his brain officially left his body or is he drunk already? 

“Nothing.”  He stops laughing just as the elevator dings and the doors slide open.  Jongguk, looking smart in a formal shirt and jeans, hops out excitedly. 

I purposely step aside to examine myself on one of the reflective panels on the walls of the elevator one last time.  Okay, I’m just gonna fluff out my hair a little like this… and check if my make-up has smeared or anything… no, all good… now for my dress—front check, side check, rear—

“Babe, if the door closes, you’re going to have to go back down to the lobby and ask the concierge for a visitor’s card to go back up to the 25th floor, you know?”  Kai suddenly says, stepping back in to hold the doors open button.  “And because you need a reservation to eat here, you’re going to have to show them your reservation, which is not possible because—“

“I got it, I got it!”  I huff, feeling a little snappy as we walk out the elevator and down a dimly lit hallway.  “I’m just checking if I look okay, that’s all.”

Kai presses his lips together.  “I thought I told you already.”

“What?”

“You never look bad.”

I smile mushily and lean in towards him.  “Can you translate that to something simpler for me to understand, please?”  I ask, batting my eyelashes at him. 

“What, you don’t understand basic Korean?” 

I sulk and move away again.  “No, I…”

I just want him to not suppress the compliment!  Gah!!

“Okay, okay.”  He says, giving in.  Leaning towards my ear, he whispers, “You look really, really good tonight, baby.  As always, actually.”

Simple words, but the voice that he said that in was just—oooh.  Now all I can think about is… . 

.  Someone get Hoe-Seul before she gets us thrown out of the building.

“At long last there’s something Victoria did right.”  He says, still in that deep, velvety voice as he looks at me from head to toe appraisingly.  “It’s showing you that dress.” 

“O-oh.”  I stammer, pinned under his smoldering look.  “She’s… she’s great, actually.” 

“Huh.”  Kai scoffs, and just when I thought I was going to melt from his gaze he sweeps his tongue over his plump lower lip and—, —bites it. 

“Can I take it off you tonight?”  He asks, leaning in again to nip gently at my jawline.  Oh God, no—

“Kai.”  I say shakily, squeezing his arm.  “Not here.” 

“Of course not here.”  He answers smoothly, chuckling.  “In our room, baby.  Don’t get the wrong idea.” 

I fight the urge to just… jump on him.  You know, to punish him, but then to let him have his way with me.  Oh God, shut the up Hoe-Seul. 

“Aish— no— I mean—“

“Don’t worry, I know exactly what you mean.”  He finally pulls away, grinning.  I’m too distracted by his glistening lower lip to question the truth in those words.  “It’s just that—you don’t understand how ravishing you look in red.” 

Red.  Victoria had said that red is my color too.  This shade of wine red is practically made to be put against my skin, she gushed.  And Kai saying basically the same thing too means that I can rest assured that this dress indeed looks good on me.

“Stop it.”  I blush, not at all wanting him to stop.  He seems to get the gist.

“You’re going to have to remind me throughout dinner.”  He smirks, before making a left and leading us right into the restaurant. 

Man Wah.

More like, Man Woah.   This place is… this place is majestic.

It’s like stepping into an antique Chinese jewelry box, I realize.  It’s not exactly big—it’s actually rather small, just like one.  All the furniture inside is all made from some ornate kind of wood, and all the tables are covered in crisp, dusty pink tablecloths.  Vibrant, rose-colored carpet stretches out across the floor, complementing the walls that exude a bronze glow.  It’s when I look closer that I realize how most are actually black with intricate gold carvings on them, making them seem bronze under the light.  And oh, the lights— looking up above our heads, I gasp. 

The whole place is lit by a series of bronze lanterns hanging from the ceiling.  I thought they were bird cages at first but okay, lanterns make more sense.  They have to be lanterns.  Suddenly, I feel like I’m Rapunzel from Tangled, surrounded by all these floating lights.  All these lights…

“Most people gasp at the view from this place.”  Kai whispers, making me jump a little.  I look to where he subtly jutted his chin towards.

And I barely keep myself from gasping again.  There, on the far end of the room, is a huge glass window boasting a panoramic view of Hong Kong’s Central skyline, framed in that expensive looking type of wood again— making it look just like a postcard.  Whoa.  Now that is beautiful.

“This place has the best view of Victoria Harbor.”  He tells me, while placing a hand on Jongguk’s shoulder to keep the boy from running off.  I can only dumbly nod, because there’s really nothing to disagree with. 

“Welcome to Man Wah.”  The hostess, dressed in a mauve qipao that matches the restaurant’s overall palette, greets us.  I’m forced to tear my eyes away from the view.

“Thank you.”  Kai says, dipping his head slightly. 

“Please follow me.”  Strangely enough, the hostess doesn’t even ask for his reservation.  She seems to have recognized him already and soon, she’s leading us past the main dining room packed with important looking guests—

That are mostly men dressed in immaculate black suits.  

I look at Kai inquisitively, but he only looks blankly back at me.

The more tables we pass, the more I see how these guests in black are scattered around the place, seated several tables apart from each other.  One of the men at the edge of the main dining room seems to slightly nod at Kai.

Okay, I don’t want to ask.

The hostess leads us all past those guys and down a hallway illuminated by more lanterns.  At the end of the hallway the hostess pushes open one of the wall panels to reveal a private dining room with a background of Victoria Harbor.

And 5 other people I know.

“Ah, the Kims!”  Baekhyun exclaims, immediately ing an enthusiastic arm into the air.  “Hello!”

I frown at that.  “Hey!”

“Thanks.”  Kai thanks the hostess who has stepped aside to let us enter.  After bowing slightly, she turns around and shuts the door behind her, leaving us to ourselves.  Once gone, Kai turns to Baekhyun with a scowl.  “Don’t.”

“Hey Seul.”  Suho greets with a wink as we sit down around the circle table— Kai on my left and Jongguk on my right.  Suho is seated two seats to Kai’s left, just after D.O. 

“Woah!”  Jongguk breathes, barely sitting down before running right towards the 100% glass wall across the room.  Unframed, it offers an even more breathtaking view of Hong Kong’s most popular landscape—the harbor.  He presses his face against the glass.  “This