Kibum had groaned as he woke up due to the loud knocking on his bedroom door. He got out of bed groggily and glanced at his alarm clock that read 5:20 AM. He still had minutes before having to wake up and shower. And since be was still being tutored at home, he didn't have to wake up until the tutor arrived at 9:37.

He exhaled deeply and rubbed his eyes before heading towards his bedroom door and opening it. He was surprised to see his stepmother there. She wasn't in her robe though. She looked like a businesswoman heading to work.

"Hyuna...Why are you waking me up so early?" Kibum asked bitterly. He didn't feel like arguing at her when he was still half-asleep.

Hyuna frowned and crossed her arms. "I want you to start coming with me to work."

Kibum raised an eyebrow in confusion. "Why?"

Hyuna straightened her back and chuckled lightly. "I want you to see how it is to work as a CEO and everything. The struggles are unbearable."

"Um...Why are you doing this?" Kibum asked curiously. He didn't understand why his stepmother was doing this.

For some odd reason this was somewhat a nice gesture, but not one he really wanted to take or could trust. Since Hyuna has taken over  Kim Corporations, Kibum didn't get involved and he didn't really find himself ever wanting to since she always hogged it.

This was indeed a strange thing his stepmother was doing.

"I...I really want us to cross this bridge, Kibum." Hyuna said, exhaustion laced within her words.

Kibum shrugged. "What bridge?"

"Kibum-ah, I really don't want to have things continue on like this. I really don't." Hyuna said.

Kibum started getting irritated. She wasn't completing her words and that annoyed him. "Explain, please."

"Can we sit down and talk this over, please?" Hyuna said, nearly begging.

Kibum stepped back and couldn't believe she was actually asking him of something. That was a whole new thing.

"Um..." He didn't know what to say.

Hyuna smiled sadly and chuckled. "I would really like to talk, if you don't mind. We can talk in the garden."

Kibum kept his guard up and found himself accepting this offer. "Uh...Sure, why not? I'll be down."

Hyuna nodded and smiled before walking away. Kibum instany shut the door and leaned on it as he went down to the floor. He didn't understand what was going on at all. It felt as if he had woken up in a whole different universe. His stepmother was being...decent.

He waited at least two minutes to pass before he went back into reality and realized be had agreed to talk to his stepmother in a civil manner. He exhaled and made his way to his closet and picked out nothing fancy.

Finding a grey shirt and black sweat pants, he felt fine. He got dressed and walked downstairs wearing his black slippers. He was greeted by a maid who was heading into the dining room to prepare breakfast soon since she was aware that Hyuna and Kibum were up.

Kibum made his way to the backyard where he was greeted by a white fountain that had a goddess from Greek mythology. He had heard that rich people paid thousands to have ridiculous statues. All over the humongous garden there were statue heads of Greek gods and goddesses.

Passing the fountain, he made his way into the large maze of flowers and flower beds. Knowing his way around, he knew where Hyuna was wanting to meet him. Not wanting to stand, she was probably waiting at the area of the apple trees where there was a black table and two chairs.

It had only taken him about three minutes since he had to pass the roses, lilies, irises, daises, and cherry blossoms. He found Hyuna standing next to the table and two chairs, staring at the apple trees she favored and treated with respect.

"I'm here." Kibum announced his prescence, a little annoyed that his stepmother had suggested the garden.

Hyuna turned to look at him and smiled. She gestured towards the table. Once he made his way to a seat, she made her way to the other one. Once they had both sat down, they just stayed quiet. In some way to Kibum, he thought it was a bit awkward.

But at the same way it seemed nice. The sound of the wind and its nice breeze. It felt nice and peaceful, but he didn't know if really liked that. He was in the presence of the woman he had always despised. The woman he had never treated nicely. The woman he had always thought of as a tyrant rather than a mother.

Hyuna was the only thing he had that was somewhat close to a relative.

She was his stepmother.

Even though he never had his mother and even though his father was married to her, Kibum had never accepted her into his life. He could easily recall all those moments when he was little where he was always afraid of her. When he talked back, she did retaliate.

He had never been nice to her, so perhaps her rudeness was mere karma?

"I need you to know that...That you're more to me than you think." Hyuna said, breaking the silence.

Am I some ticket to your wealth? Kibum thought bitterly.

There it was again. More bitter thoughts.

Hyuna exhaled deeply and crossed her arms. "You're a son to me, Kibum."

Kibum instantly looked at her with astonishment. She's always stated she cared and loved his father, but this seemed complete different. She never said she loved him or that she cared about him, but now he was actually thinking.

Maybe he never gave her the chance to?

She was always rude, but it's not like he hadn't done anything. He had said something and she had replied. It had always been like that. A war of words full of bitterness.

"I know that sounds absurd," Hyuna began and shook her head slowly and continued, "If only you were there when I first looked at you."

Kibum tilted his head as he recalled her words. This sounded too strange and bizarre. Certainly as absurd as Hyuna had said. Never once had she told him things about his birth and he never really remembered his father doing so either.

She was bringing up the past. If anything, it seemed like she had hated it. As if she wished none of it had happened.

"I...I watched your father cry and...God, it broke me, Kibum. That man had lost something he cherished. And I...Ha, well I...I always loved him, and he never noticed me." Hyuna explained.

"What?" Kibum asked softly.

Hyuna smiled softly as she continued on with her story of the past. "I comforted him and...I told him what mattered the most which was you. He...Unexpectedly afterwards, we got together and we married months after.

I wouldn't be the first one to say we had rushed into things, because we did. I loved him and I knew I could love him as much as she had. I thought he could too. As we were together he smiled and I thought...I thought it meant something, I really did. He always told me he loved me and I ate up those lies like a child eating candy.

I wanted to believe he loved me and every time he told me, I did. He knew how much I felt towards him and that made me happy. I thought he would never hurt me. I thought betrayal wasn't something that would ever appear in our relationship. I thought it was a true love you see in fairytales, it wasn't though."

"Hyuna...What are you talking about? Wh-Why are you saying all these things? Why are you telling me this?" Kibum asked, he could feel his eyes becoming watery.

Hyuna's story seemed so sad. It reminded him of some unrequited love story that made people cry like the tale of Romeo and Rosaline. It almost seemed like Hyuna had trapped herself in believing his father was madly in love with her.

Hyuna turned to him, looking away from the apple trees. Tears were falling from her cheeks. "Your father and you became a large part of my life, Kibum. My husband and the baby that wasn't mine meant the world to me."

Kibum's eyes couldn't widen anymore from such surprise. Hyuna had admitted that he was something that she loved. In some way she cared about him. In some way, he was her son even though he never accepted her as a mother.

All these years she had felt this way and had suffered pain and he had been rude to her. She loved a man who didn't love her and she cared for a baby who didn't want her as anything.

His father and him had wronged her. They had betrayed her in some way when she had been there from the beginning as a good person. She had loved his father and him, but never received the love she had wanted.

She had a married a man who could never look at her as a wife. She had adopted a child who never accepted her as a mother. She had gladly taken position as a wife and mother. She had gladly taken position as a caretaker for a wifeless man and motherless child, no love returned to her.

It made sense why she had been so bitter all this time.

Why she was never kind to Kibum. He never treated her the way he was supposed to.

"Hyuna...Hyuna you can't possibly mean that..." Kibum said, the words becoming hard to say. He wished it wasn't so hard.

It was all such a shock to him.

Hyuna nodded her head and sniffled. She clasped her hands and directly faced him. "I mean it all, Kibum. If I didn't love your father I wouldn't have ever married him. If I didn't love you, I wouldn't have accepted you into my life. Are you not in your own home, Kibum?"

She was correct about all of it.

If she didn't want him she could've placed him up for adoption. She could've always thrown him out when she never did. His father had died when he was fourteen, she could have abandoned him anywhere she liked.

Kibum sniffled and shook his head slowly,  placing his hands on the table. "I...I never saw things this way."

Hyuna nodded and took his hands in hers and squeezed them tightly. "Yes,  Kibum. It's hard for you, but you can't imagine how hard it's been for me. For so long I've loved you, when I knew you didn't love me."

Those words pierced Kibum's heart.

He felt cold all of a sudden.

All he wanted was to love and be loved. He was lucky to have people love him when no one loved Hyuna when she loved him. She had been suffering. Not only had she lost the man she loved, but a man who didn't love her. He would reunite with his wife, being happy he was with her instead of his second wife.

He had done as much pain as his father. He thought he had always been the victim suffering. But Hyuna had suffered as well. Perhaps even more?

"Hyuna..." Kibum began and gulped the large lump that had formed in his throat. He sniffled and continued, "I...I'm so, s-so sorry..."

Never in a million years would be find himself saying such things to his stepmother.

Hyuna placed a hand over in shock. She sobbed and shook her head. She let go of Kibum's hand and wiped away the tears and smiled sweetly.

"Forget about these tears,  Kibum. I would like to start off with a new page. What do you think?" Hyuna said sweetly.

Kibum nodded his head and started wiping his tears and face with his hands. "I a-agree."

Hyuna nodded her head and giggled lightly. "This is amazing, Kibum. It really is."

Kibum nodded. "It is."

Hyuna rose from her seat and looked down at Kibum, still smiling. "I'm canceling the tutoring sessions. What do you think of that?"

Kibum opened his mouth and then closed it. But then opened it again, "I don't mind really. I've spent years in a loud classroom."

Hyuna smiled with more brightness. "If you say so. I really-" She was cut off by her phone. She apologized and answered, "Hello, this is Hyuna...Yes, uh huh...What do you mean? Yes...It was last week...You must be kidding me! Are you absolutely sure? Fine. Bye." She sounded annoyed as she glared at the phone.

Kibum was concerned. "Is everything okay, Hyuna?"

Hyuna looked up at him and frowned as she crossed her arms. "One of my assistants called me. There's been an issue that's occurred."

Kibum was surprised. He hoped everything was okay. "Is everything alright? How bad is it? What happened?"

Hyuna shook her head and shurgged. "A secretary or someone in one of the departments accidentally lost a document."

"How important is the document?" Kibum asked.

"Somewhat important. It took hours to get it correctly. I had it signed and everything. It would take more, but I need to make sure it's not lost." Hyuna explained.

Kibum nodded his head. "I'm guessing you have to go?"

Hyuna nodded and had a sympathetic facial expression. "I'm sorry, but we'll have to reschedule. But...I would still like you to have a day off from your tutor."

Kibum shook his head and waved dismissively. "Don't worry about it. I think I'd like to get stuff done. Besides, I got more done I get more free time, correct?"

"If you say so." Hyuna said. She embraced him and smiled. "I hope you think about everything I said, Kibum. I meant everything."

Kibum pulled away and nodded his head in reply. "I will, I promise. I hope you can accept my apology, because I do accept yours."

"Thank you. I'll see you later." Hyuna said as she exited the garden, leaving her somewhat happy stepson.

~~~

"Yes, thank you. Bye." Hyuna ended the call. She was talking to Choi Siwon who had wanted them to meet sometime soon.

She was about to continue on with the paper work on her desk when Seohyun entered the office. She had been expecting the woman. She had needed to speak to her.

"Hello Mrs. Kim, you wanted to see me?" Seohyun asked.

Hyuna nodded her head. "Yes Seohyun, I did. Um, there was a man calling about the two of you meeting in a bar. He wanted to ask if you were single."

Seohyun frowned and looked like she was thinking of something. "I'm not wth anyone, but I can't recall meeting a man."

"Hm. Well, that's all. I do not like unnecessary calling in this place, Seohyun. Make sure no one who doesn't have relations calls. Understood?" Hyuna said.

Seohyun nodded her head rapidly. "I promise, Mrs. Kim!"

"Good. You're dismissed." Hyuna said as the young woman dashed out of the the office. Hyuna chuckled and took an apple from her bowl. "Well, you'll be needed soon Seohyun when I get that hood."

She rose from her seat and made her way towards the window and examined the apple, recalling the moments earlier while she was talking to Kibum.

She burst into a laughter that sounded mischievous. "And I got you where I want you, Kibum."

Of course, she had a plan up her sleeves.

Of course, she wasn't going down.

This was expected.

She was the Evil Queen, after all.