Chapter 52

Kris jumped in surprise when he walked past the kitchen and saw someone at the counter from his peripheral view. He sighed in relief when he realized it was just Yeojin.

"I thought you're already asleep." He trudged toward her tossing his suit on the sofa he passed by. "You need to rest. We have a short press conference tomorrow."

Yeojin perked up at his voice and gave a weak smile. "Couldn't sleep."

Kris chuckled and pointed at the mug she was holding. "Coffee wouldn't help you sleep."

Yeojin scowled and sipped her coffee anyway. "Oh! And-" Tucking strands of her hair behind her ear, she suddenly blushed much to his amusement and confusion. "I went through your luggage and borrowed this sweater. It's big enough to be a sleep dress for me. You don't mind, do you?"

Untying his bowtie, Kris snorted. "Of course not. My stuff is yours too." He walked to the cabinet behind her to get a glass after feeling satisfied seeing her baffled look. "You could've called Mr. Ahn to send your clothes and Beavie, you know?" He smirked when he turned around and saw her even more flustered. 

"R-right!" Yeojin scratched her neck and looked away. "Didn't thought of that. Should I call him now?"

He checked his watch as he turned for the dispenser. "It's late now," he replied while filling up his glass with water. "And I'm okay with you wearing my sweater." A smile curled on his lips when he faced her again before downing his water. "What about Beavie though? Can you sleep without it? It hasn't been raining in a while but... yeah." He shrugged.

Yeojin just blinked at him; her gaze dropped down afteewards. "Will you sleep with me?" She asked when he sat across her at the counter; her eyes on him.

Kris almost choked on his water when he heard her question. They had not been sleeping in one bed for a pretty long time ever since her mom's accident. He missed her presence beside him, but he had not been pushing it because he knew she needed her own space.

He cleared his throat. "S-sure."

"Thanks." She gave him a small smile. "I just don't feel like being alone right now," she admitted in a hushed voice, lowering her gaze.

The burden her voice was carrying felt almost tangible. Kris felt responsible for whatever she was feeling right now. He hated seeing her like this. He wanted to see the cheerful Yeojin back.

"I'm sorry," he broke the growing silence.

Yeojin lifted her gaze surprised and stared at him with rounded eyes. Then, a corner of her lips curled up as she lightly shook her head. He watched her straightened up in her seat as she took a long deep breath. Just that simple action made her look like a flower slowly blooming. Her visage turned brighter with the smile that gradually became wider.

She gave him a lopsided smile. "Stop apologizing, Kris. You told me to stop doing it, but you keep on doing it yourself. And by the way, this room is huge!" She gestured with stretched arms. "I mean, look at it! It's bigger than our house, don't you think? The living room is almost twice the size of ours!"

Ours. A smile crept on his face as he rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I guess so." He shrugged. "You want to stay here instead?" He quirked a brow.

Yeojin scrunched her nose and shook her head. "I like our house better." She hugged the mug with her hands.

"Good." He grinned at her before drinking his water again.

"So," her cheerful tone dropped, "do you think Park Changsun was behind this?"

Kris paused and slowly placed down his glass. "What made you say that?"

"Chanyeol oppa was here a while ago before you came," she revealed.

"What?" He frowned. "What was he doing here? Wait, and you opened the door for him while you're only in my jumper?"

"What? No!" Yeojin quickly retorted and Kris let out a sigh of relief. "I opened the door, but I didn't let him in. I only peeked my head out. Anyway-" She bit down her lips then it. "He told me he had an inkling his father had something to do with the setup."

Kris snorted in disbelief as he crossed his arms. 

"He told me this because he knew you wouldn't trust him. And you've been avoiding him. Suho oppa was always busy too. Chanyeol had been wanting to warn you."

"Well maybe he never wanted to warn me in the first place, Jin. What if he was just acting like he's on my side?"

Yeojin narrowed her eyes at him. "You're not trusting him just because he stole your past girlfriends, Kris. Don't you think that it's childish for you to hold a grudge over such matter? He was your best buddy before. And for the record, he's not asking you to do anything for him other than to trust him do his thing. But with or without your trust, he will still help. He was just trying to tell you that he's on your side. He's not gaining anything from your trusting him," she pointed out and Kris let her words sink in his mind. "He's meaning to either stop his own father or take him down, need I remind you."

Kris heaved a defeated sigh as he closed his eyes. "Alright." He stared at her again. "I'm going to trust him. But only because you persuaded me." He suddenly scoffed and smiled to himself. "I guess now I understand why husbands are scared of their wives most of the time."

Yet, Yeojin wasn't really paying attention to his joke. "If this was really Park Changsun's doing," she started again lowering her gaze and clutching on her mug of coffee, "then there's something you need to know."

Kris raised a brow and silently waited for her to continue. Pursing her lips, she dragged her gaze up to meet his.

"It's about why I agree to marry you. It wasn't just a simple wish of your dad, Kris. There was more."

In an instant, Kris felt anxious. "Alright. Shoot." He nodded for her to continue.



Different emotions were surging inside him as he watched her sleep beside him. Relief, guilt, and anger were few of them.

The truth was finally out. Now, he knew that their marriage wasn't just her meekly following his dad's wish. Their marriage was her sacrifice. It was the evidence of her love for his family that she cared most beside her own.

He reached out his hand and gently her head. His hand then slid down to cup her cheek. The look of tranquility on her face eased his heart a little. His own mind, on the other hand, refused to let him be at peace. The thought of her going to eventually leave him filled his mind. With her heart for someone else, it didn't seem farfetched. And it scared him. He couldn't imagine himself waking up to someone else who isn't Yeojin.

Carefully, he propped himself up a little and leaned over to kiss his sleeping wife just like he occasionally did whenever Yeojin slept beside him. Even though she was sleeping and couldn't return his kiss, it was always able to give him assurance that she was still his. He pulled away then was instantly frozen when he saw her eyes fluttered open.

Yeojin silently stared at him with hooded eyes for some time before her lids dropped to a close again. When he was sure she was asleep again, Kris let out a breath he had been holding, lying back down.

"I always thought it was just a dream," her sleepy voice startled him.

She still had her eyes closed and Kris wondered if she was just sleep-talking. Suddenly she snuggled closer hugging his waist with an arm. The sudden close proximity flustered him and made his heart beat faster. After hesitating for some time, he returned her hug and rested his chin on top of her head. Hearing her steady breathing, he was sure she had fallen asleep.

But he realized he was wrong when she spoke again with her sleepy whisper, "Can I... confess something?"

Her voice was soft but it reached his ears. He hummed in return while his hand her head and played with her hair. There was silence after that and Kris wondered if she was still awake.

"... I-" She sounded hardly awake but she continued, "I like Sehun- no, actually-" she let out a heavy breath of trying to stay awake "- I think I've come to love him by now."

Then, there was a pause again which made the pain in his heart unable to be ignored. If pain had a sound, it would rang loudly in his heart amidst this silence.

"But," she breathily continued, "I never told you that I love you too."

His eyes rounded. 

Another pause. Another silence. But this time, Kris was too stumped to even feel the earlier pain. It almost felt like the pain was not even there any longer.

"I love you, Kris," she repeated before tilting her head up causing him to look down at her. Her eyes fluttered open again and she stared at him with drowsy eyes. "I love you so much-" she lowered her head to rest it on his chest "- Yifan oppa." 

The name escaping her lips felt like a final nail to her confession. It was as if she was trying to tell him that she meant it. Did she really meant it though? It was all too sudden for him to believe. She hugged him tighter  while he tried to make himself believe that this was indeed real. A heavy breath escaped her lips again when her eyes came to a close. 

"I wish I have two hearts," she whispered.

Kris stayed silent for a long while. He gulped down the lump in his throat. He wasn't sure what to feel right now. Whether to be hurt or be happy of her hardly-conscious confession. Resting his cheek on the top of her head, he listened to her steady breathing. This time, she had really dozed off again. He just wished that when the morning came, she would remember her confession of loving him.

"China?!" Her eyes widened while Kris on the driver's seat nodded in reply. "Tonight?!"

"Grandpa wants us all there before the new year's eve." Spinning the steering wheel to have the car turn at a corner, Kris added, "your mom and Jinho are coming with us too."

Yeojin sighed and leaned back on her seat. "But new year's eve is still two days away." She looked at him from the corner of her eyes. "Does this have to do with the news?"

Kris briefly glanced at her before looking back ahead. "Kind of." He sighed. "The media would be all over us after earlier presscon. It would be better if we could stay away from them. Otherwise, it will stressed you out. And I don't want that." He smiled to her. "It's your winter break! You shouldn't be stressed out."

"Tell me about it." She rolled her eyes but then grinned. "I guess there's nothing wrong with a holiday, right?"

Kris smiled again. Even without looking at her, he could hear the grin in her voice. "Yeah. And like I said, Grandpa really wants us all to be there."

"Cool. Ah!" She suddenly clicked her tongue. "But we haven't packed up."

Kris laughed. "Yeah. That's why we'll be going to our house first now. Then we'll go back to the mansion for your mom and Jinho."

"How long are we going to stay in Guangzhou?"

"A week."

Yeojin groaned. "Then, speed up! We need to pack up in just hours time for a week-long trip!"

Kris laughed again then glanced at her. "You're being a bossy wife now."

"Shut up and drive!" She pushed his cheek with a finger to turn his head back ahead while he laughed louder.

After some time of comfortable silence, they were finally around their neighborhood. Kris briefly glanced at her who was busy with her phone. Her confession suddenly crossed his mind again. This morning, she woke up as if nothing happened. He wondered if she really didn't remember what she said in her half-awake state the other night.

He cleared his throat. "About what you said last night..."

"About why I married you?" She asked back with raised brows. "Can we not talk about that now?"

"No, not that." Kris rolled his eyes. "I meant your confession."

"My confession?" Yeojin furrowed her brows. "What confession? Oh! By the way, I searched for tourist attractions in Guangzhou, and found this safari park." She excitedly showed him the article in her phone. "They have pandas there! Can we go there later? I'm sure Jinho will like it!" She grinned at him and he sighed.

Glancing at her who stared at him with wide hopeful eyes, he snorted. "Alright. We'll go there." He grinned and she cheered before turning her attention back to her phone.

Once his eyes focused back on the road, his smile slowly disappeared. Maybe she really didn't remember, he thought. Or maybe he was just dreaming it himself. Maybe her loving him would stay a fantasy.

So, she finally confessed! Or did she?

If you're itching to know the true reason Yeojin agreed to marry Kris, no worries. There'll be a flashback of it later. I was too lazy to include everything here lol.