Chapter 20 – A New Day

            The alarm clock rang once again, but this time, there was no one barging into my doors to pull off the covers and wake me up.  He would never do that again.  I slammed my hand on the clock, not needing it of course since I’d been up for hours now.  As much as I would have liked to say that I got a good night sleep, in reality, I only had one hour.  I pushed the covers away and made my way to the bathroom to get ready.

            The shower didn’t take long and I quickly put on a random suit, not really caring today.  I stalked my way to the kitchen, where my breakfast was laid out and my briefcase ready.  He still made it.  I spotted a note next to the food.

Sorry for leaving early, but I have a meeting.

I’ll see you when I get home!

P.S. Don’t forget to talk to Sungmin

            I smiled bitterly at the note before taking a bite of food.  I needed to eat or else he would get worried again, but the one bite was already enough.  I didn’t have much of an appetite.  I grabbed my briefcase and keys before heading off to work.

            The car ride didn’t take long.  I messed with my hair in the elevator and, when I got off, I was greeted by a tired looking Hangeng.  “Ah, hyung,” I said, bowing.

            He waved his hands and beckoned me.  “Let’s talk in your office,” he said.  “I’m exhausted since Heechul wouldn’t stop yelling at me last night to come and visit you.”

            My hand unconsciously reached for the back of my neck as we walked into the office.  “I’m sorry,” I muttered, turning on my lights before heading for my chair.

            “It’s not your fault,” he said, flashing me a smile.  He took a seat and laid his head back, visibly tired.  “But if you’re really feeling sorry, then just say yes.”

            I slipped on my glasses and leaned back against my chair.  “Say yes to what?”

            He sighed.  “Yesterday’s proposal,” he said, running his fingers through his hair.  “But I guess I knew it wasn’t going to be so easy, knowing the hi—“

            “I’ll do it,” I said, trying to keep my tone casual.

            Hangeng frowned and tilted his head.  “Wait, what,” he asked.  “This shouldn’t be that easy.  What’s the catch?”

            “There’s no catch hyung, I’ll do it.”

            “But you’re…you’re you.  What?”

            “I already said I’d do it hyung,” I said, chuckling.  “I think you might want to go and tell Heechul before I changed my mind.”

            He continued to frown before a smile slowly crept onto his face.  “Aww, my little maknae is starting to change,” he said.  “That’s so cute.”

            I rolled my eyes.  “Oh shut it hyung,” I muttered.  “Now go and get a cup of coffee.  I think you need it.”

            “Why don’t you come and get some with me,” he asked, standing up from his chair.  “We haven’t talked in a while and I think you need it too.”

            I glanced at my watch.  I don’t have anything until noon.  “Sure, why not,” I said, standing up as well.

            The smile didn’t leave his face as we made our way to the café across the street.

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            “Hannie,” Heechul greeted as we made our way into the café.  He tackled the poor guy into a guy.

            “Didn’t you see him this morning,” I teased, raising my eyebrows.

            “It’s still too long,” Heechul said, giving his husband a kiss on the cheek.  “Now come on, I already have breakfast ordered.”

            I looked over to where he was gesturing and spotted a familiar blonde.  I stopped in my tracks and pulled on the back of Heechul’s coat, earning a squeal.  “You planned this,” I stated, turning him around to glare at him.  “Do you not understand the concept of waiting until I’m ready?”

            He placed his hands on his hips and looked at me.  “Then leave,” he said simply, gesturing towards the doors.  “No one is stopping you.”

            I looked towards the door and was about to leave when Sungmin noticed our presence, causing him to stand up and bow.  “Good morning Hangeng,” he said before turning towards me and doing the same thing.  “Good morning Mr. Cho.”

            The difference in greeting didn’t go past me and I frowned.  Even if he was acting normal, it was obvious that there was still some anger there.  “Good morning Mr. Lee,” I greeted. The three of us made our way to him and took a seat.

            The air slowly got tense.  However, that didn’t stay long since we had Heechul.  “So, I assume we have some good news,” Heechul said, clapping his hands together.  He looked at Hangeng, who was sitting right across from him, expectantly. 

            “Of course,” his husband said with a wink.  “Though Kyuhyun made it really easy.”

            I didn’t dare look up for two reasons.  First, Sungmin was sitting right across from me.  And two, even though it didn’t seem like I was looking up at him, the brief flash of shock made my heart skip a beat.  “I didn’t make it that easy,” I muttered, trying to look at anything else but him. 

            Heechul and Hangeng could only laugh at my response while Sungmin stared into his cup of coffee.  Luckily, the waiter had interrupted us, setting down four plates of omelets and we ate heartily.

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            “So, can I assume that the two of you can make your own schedules,” Heechul asked as Hangeng helped him with his jacket.

            “Of course hyung,” I said, before turning to Sungmin.  “Would I be able to get your phone number?”

            Sungmin flashed me a small smile and bowed in apology.  “I’m very sorry Mr. Cho, but if you wouldn’t mind, I can only give you my e-mail right now,” he said.  He took out a card and handed it to me.

            I took it from him.  “Thank you,” I said, trying to read his face.  “You know where to call if there’s any emergencies, right?”

            “Yes, of course,” he said.  “Please reserve a room for me this time in your company.  I would rather have a larger room in which to work.”  In short, he didn’t want to be in the same room as me.

            “I’ll arrange it then,” I said, smiling back.

            “God you guys are too professional,” Heechul said, slapping my back and interrupting our exchange. 

            “Well, after all hyung, it’s only business,” Sungmin said.  He took out his phone.  “Oh, I better go.  I shall have my assistant e-mail you my schedule later sir.”

            He bowed and headed off to his car.  Heechul looked at me disapprovingly.  “That could have gone better,” he muttered.

            “Sungmin’s gotten really far, hasn’t he,” I said, ignoring his comment.  “I’m really proud of him.”

            The diva rolled his eyes.  “He’s worked really hard to get here and I can’t help but feel like it’s to get back at you,” he said.

            “He can take me down any day,” I muttered.  “Anyways, I only rose up for him.”

            “God you’re such a dramatic,” he said with a sigh.  “Go back to your office and do some work!”

            I stuck my tongue out at him before heading back for my meeting.  However, throughout the day, I couldn’t help but think about Sungmin and how I would go about with him. After all, even though he seems easy, he’s the most complicated man to me.

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A/N:  Hey!  So, you all thought I wouldn’t update because we didn’t reach 100…but we did reach 99 and that’s pretty close!  Because of that, I decided to update on the second instead…kekeke

I’m sorry it’s terribly short, but college apps man…I swear I’m almost done…tomorrow’s the deadline so I should be able to get back on track with this fic pretty soon.

Please continue to comment!  You have no idea how much all your comments made me so happy!  Let’s keep it up!