Rule #26: When you doubt yourself, you will become your own greatest enemy and weakness

Saera groaned and rubbed her temples, "Stop pacing, Youngjae. You're making me dizzy."

Right after Jackson and him found both Saera and Mark on top of each other with their lips locked, the pair had dragged both of them into separate rooms to talk.

"What were you thinking?!" Youngjae exclaimed while throwing his arms up in the air. "How could you kiss him!?"

Saera rubbed his face, but didn't speak. She really didn't need to hear another person tell her how her and Mark were just one big mistake. She was already well aware of how wrong everything was between her and Mark.

"You know you can't do anything more with him, right? You two can't, you know, date or anything. Feelings can't get involved." Youngjae said firmly.

Saera's eyes faltered as she stared at the ground, "Why not?" She asked timidly.

"Are you serious? Saera, you've been lying to him non-stop since you met him. Everything that he knows about you is a lie, there's no way you and him can have any sort of relationship. I was okay with you lying to him because it was business, but if you're going to get your feelings involved you better stop while you're ahead because there is no way this will end well. Not unless you come clean about everything. And that includes about your 'abilities.'" He said incredulously with a scoff.

Saera bit down on her lip, forcing herself not to cry. She didn't need Youngjae worrying that she wasn't happy if he saw her crying. It would just burden him even more and that was the last thing she ever wanted.

And she didn't want him to offer to trade places with her.

She wanted to stay with Mark.

But he was right.

She couldn't deny that.

She lied to him ever since the first day she had met him. She could count the truthful things she's said on one hand.

At the beginning of their deal she could justify her lies because they all had helped the case, but this was different. This was her leading him on under the false pretences that she had perpetuated.

She twiddled her thumbs, "I c-can't do that. It's too risky."

"So promise me that nothing is going to happen with you two. Promise me that it'll all end after that kiss." Youngjae demanded firmly with his arms crossed.

Saera couldn't meet his eyes, "Don't you think you're being a bit dramatic?"

"No. No I don't. I was never happy that you have to lie to make a living, but I never complained because that's what kept the bakery running and that's what kept food on the table, but it's different now. You're lying to someone we both care about and I'm not letting that effect the one male figure I actually have to look up to in my life." He barked angrily.

"Youn--"

"For once in my life I want a role model to stay in my life and not leave." He muttered.

He ignored the pang in his chest when he saw the words hit Saera in the face and looked away when Mark's words from a long time ago, echoed in his head.

'Your sister is someone who you should be looking up to. She's the role model you need, not me.'

Saera's eyes widened at the realization.

How could she be so selfish?

Mark was the only man that had been a constant, positive factor in Youngjae's life in a really long time. And because of Mark, he met even more guys who had an influence over him that even Saera couldn't match.

And she was risking losing it all for him because she was in a web of lies so tangled that she didn't even know what was the truth anymore.

Things were already messy enough as it was, she couldn't get her feelings involved because she wouldn't be the only on  to suffer.

Everyone around her would suffer too.

Youngjae sighed, "I just don't want either of you getting hurt, if he finds out that you're lying then he's not going to want anything to do with you, so promise me."

Saera quickly laced her fingers together to avoid them from trembling. Her and Mark never had anything going on between them and aside from a few accidental kisses, there was nothing implied about their feelings being more than platonic.

She didn't have expectations about the two of them. The thought had never once crossed her mind.

So she couldn't understand why it felt like her heart was breaking.

"I promise." She breathed out while hunching her shoulders forward.

Youngjae closed his eyes and let out a relieved breath, "Okay, now that we've cleared that up, let's go and eat, the others are probably waiting for us."

Saera chewed on the inside of her lip before crawling up the bed, "I think I'm going to skip dinner. I don't feel so good, I'll just sleep."

Youngjae's face fell and his features filled with guilt, "I'm sorry, Sae. I'm just trying to look out for you."

"It's okay Youngjae, it doesn't matter. I never had feelings for him in the first place, so I don't really care. I get it, you're right about everything so don't worry about me. I can look out for myself." She said while muffling her shaking voice with her blanket.

Youngjae stared at her figure hidden under the blankets before hanging his head in shame and walking out the door.

-----

"So….are we going to talk about what just happened or are you keep going to pretend that the box of pizza is the most interesting thing in the world?" Jackson asked just as Youngjae and Saera excused themselves to Mark's bedroom.

Mark cleared his throat and pried open the box of food,  "I'd rather just stare at the pizza, if you don't mind."

"Well actually, I do mind." Jackson said as he closed the box.

Mark sighed and looked at his friend, "What do you want?"

"Um…oh, I don't know, just curious why me and Youngjae walked in on you making out with the psychic?!"  He hissed quietly.

Mark rolled his eyes, "It's not a big deal. Now can we move on?"

"It's not a big dea--Oh my god. Mark, do you hear yourself right now? A few weeks ago you were basically laughing at the idea of you and her ever being a thing and now this?" Jackson said incredulously.

"It was just one kiss. It doesn't constitute us as a 'thing'." He muttered, while leaving out the fact that it was actually 3 kisses.

3 long, mind numbing, kisses.

Jackson closed his eyes, trying to compose himself before he smacked the out of his frustrating friend, "Oookkkaaayyy, so why exactly did you two share this 'one kiss'?"

Mark stared at the table in front of him before a frown etched on his face. He picked up a fork and poked the box, "I told her."

"Told her what? That you like her?" Jackson asked in confusion.

Mark shook his head, "No, I told her about…mom…and Yuan."

Jackson's eyes widened and suddenly his demeanour changed into a softer one as he took a seat, "Why did you tell her? I thought you never wanted anyone to know."

"I swear, I don't know." Mark said while sitting down next to his friend. "We ran into them at the store and for some reason, the psychic sounded jealous."

Jackson looked lost, "Jealous?"

Mark felt his lips curve up in a smile, "I think she thought Yuan was my kid or something, but she just looked jealous so when she asked about my relationship with Yuan and Mrs. Xiong, I just blurted it out."

"And?" Jackson prodded gently.

Mark let out a laugh and covered his face with his hand, "She was ing amazing. She sat through everything and listened to everything I said. I don't think she missed a single word, snd when I was finish, do you know what she said to me?"

"That it's not your fault?" Jackson guessed.

Mark shook his head, "She told me to stop feeling so ing sorry for myself and that my dad wouldn't have wanted me to be estranged. She was so pissed and it was probably the thing I needed to hear the most."

"And that's when you kissed her?" Jackson asked with a smile.

Mark zoned out and nodded, "That's when I kissed her."

"Do you…do you like her, like her?"

Mark frowned, "I don't think I like her like that. I think I kissed her because she was the first person I told that story to in years and I just got caught up in the moment, but I don't know. The whole thing is confusion and backwards. My head hurts from just trying to make sense of it all."

Jackson raised his brows, "Fair enough. But can I ask you something?"

"I'm sure you'll ask either way." He snorted dryly.

"If you don't like her then how come you two sleep in the same bed together?"

Mark's eyes widened, "How did you know that?"

"I didn't." Jackson said with a smirk, "But thanks for clearing that up for me."

------

"Where is she?" Mark asked when Youngjae was the only one to exit the bedroom.

Youngjae shifted uncomfortably, "She's asleep. She said that she doesn't want dinner and for us to eat without her."

"But she hasn't eaten all day. She can't skip another meal." Mark said in concern as he stared at the door Saera was behind.

Jackson bit down his smile, oblivious to the tension, "Are you worried about her?"  

Youngjae walked over to Jackson and took a seat next to him before he looked up at Mark's face, scanning his features. It was obvious how worried he was for her and that made him feel horrible for both Mark and Saera.

"She's barely been eating since Mireu's incident. I'm just making sure she doesn't pass out or faint." Mark said distractedly.

"She just said that she wanted to sleep." Youngjae said quietly.

Jackson eyes darted from Mark to Youngjae in confusion, before he just gave up on trying to decipher the situation and just opened th