WOOOOOOOOO!' Everyone on their tabl

WOOOOOOOOO!' Everyone on their table yelled, and a few other guests turned to them.

'I can't take this anymore! It's too much!' Ha Neul screamed. 'Too much... tension... too much...' he scrunched his hands.

Ara stood up. 'We're all hot! Cheers!' The rest of them stood up and clinked their glasses.

Min Ho caught Shin Hye's gaze and she furrowed her brows at him. He shrugged and laughed.

 

They were all outside the bar now, waiting for their cars. ‘Does anybody need a lift? My driver is here,’ Bum asked.

‘I’m good; I’m going with So Eun,’ Ara replied.

‘My driver is on his way,’ Ha Neul said. ‘Shin Hye?’

‘I'm okay. My driver is here,’ she replied. She turned to Min Ho and whispered, ‘you can’t drive.’

Min Ho smiled. ‘Someone’s coming for me, don’t worry.’ He told her. He also motioned for Shin Hye to check her phone.

Shin Hye creased her forehead and checked her messages.

Min Ho: Can I come by your place for a bit?

Shin Hye narrowed her eyes at him and typed.

Shin Hye: Why?

Min Ho: Because I’ve been stopping myself from sitting next to you and cuddling with you all night.

She laughed. Just then, Bum’s car pulled over in front of them.

‘Alright, I’ll go ahead. I had fun, thanks guys!’ Bum waved to everyone before entering his car.

One by one they were picked up and they said their goodbyes.

 

Shin Hye was riding in the backseat of her car when she received another message from Min Ho.

Min Ho: Ya, you never replied. Can I come over?

Shin Hye: It’s too dangerous.

Min Ho: I’ll be careful… I won’t get caught, promise.

Shin Hye sighed. That’s not the danger I’m worried about.

Shin Hye: Fine, you can come. But just for a bit!

 

When Shin Hye opened the door, she immediately pulled Min Ho in.

‘No one saw you?’ She asked as she closed the door.

Min Ho shook his head and hugged her. ‘I missed you,’ he muttered.

‘Ya, we just saw each other thirty minutes ago,’ she replied.

‘That was torture. Being around you but pretending we’re not together,’ he let go and put his hand on her cheek. ‘Good job by the way.’

Shin Hye smiled weakly and walked to the kitchen. ‘Do you need anything? Water? Coffee? Are you hungry? I can make you something quick.’

Min Ho walked over and leaned on the table. ‘I’m okay with coffee,’ he replied. He sat down as Shin Hye prepared it for him. She was still mad about him not contacting her; even madder about him joining them without saying anything. She put the cup on the table and sat across him without saying anything.

Min Ho smiled sheepishly. ‘You’re mad at me.’

Shin Hye nodded her head.

‘I’m sorry…’

‘You don’t even know what you did wrong,’ she replied.

‘I do. Sorry for barging in on you and your friends like that. I actually made a list of why you shouldn’t be mad, but right now, all I remember is that I wanted to see you badly,’ he explained. ‘Please don’t be mad at me,’ he begged.

She buckled at his expression. ‘Why didn’t you contact me at all after you called? You even messaged Bum, but not me. It was weird.’

‘Huh? Ah. Yeah, about that…’

‘I thought you were angry with me about something. I couldn’t focus the whole night,’ she looked down.

Min Ho reached over for her hands and held them. ‘No, no, not at all,’ he assured her. ‘But I have to tell you something. My manager… well, he found out about us.’

Shin Hye looked up at him in shock. ‘WHAT? HOW? What are we going to do now?’ She was panicking at this point. She had heard stories of how strict Min Ho's agency can be.

‘Listen first. He found out that I’m dating, but I never told him that it was you,’ he said. ‘He told me crazy things and I’ve been out of it the whole day. I couldn’t contact you because I was afraid I’d be tempted to tell you about it and just make you worried.’

‘What crazy things?’ She bit her lip; she knew what those things could be. They’re probably the same things that her manager would tell her if he found out. Still, she wanted to hear Min Ho say them.

‘You know, we’re actors, and this is risky. Both of us, we’re at our prime – and who knows what could happen if this gets out of hand… those sort of things,’ Min Ho narrated. ‘But I realized I don’t care, or frankly, I care more about you and about us than all of that’ he looked up at her. She knew that Min Ho meant every word, but she’s also aware that he’s genuinely scared of being found out.

‘Those aren’t crazy things… your manager is right,’ she told him sympathetically.

Min Ho pulled her hand. ‘But we both knew that already when we decided to date. At the back of our heads, these thoughts have been nagging us. It doesn’t change anything. If anything, I feel more strongly about us now. I feel the need to protect us more now.’

The room was quiet as Shin Hye tried to find the words. She agreed. She couldn't imagine losing him now. She looked up and met his eyes. ‘Oppa, I want to be with you, too. I want to protect you, too. I think we have no choice but to be brave.’

 

They were on the couch, and Min Ho was fiddling with her fingers. ‘You didn’t wear your ring tonight. I noticed,’ he told her grimly.

Shin Hye looked at her hand and pouted. ‘Ara was going to be there. Trust me, she’ll notice.’

‘I don’t think you needed to show her the ring for her to notice. We were being quite obvious a while ago,’ he chuckled.

She hissed. ‘This is all your fault. You shouldn’t have come,’ she replied. ‘And what was with your line of questioning during the game? You couldn’t just keep quiet?’

Min Ho quickly sat up straight and looked at her in the eye. ‘Ya, I couldn’t help myself. You were talking about having feelings for a different guy!’

‘I had feelings for a different guy. And that was a long time ago,’ she snapped back.

‘Still. Why did you have to bring it up in front of your friends and me?’ Min Ho frowned. 'Whoever it is, I want to punch him.'

Shin Hye sighed. ‘Let’s not talk about it.’

‘It was Jang Geun Suk, wasn’t it?’ Min Ho asked, his voice gruff.

Shin Hye scowled. ‘Why do you always think it’s Geun Suk oppa? I had more rumors with Yong Hwa, you know.’

‘Call it boyfriend’s intuition. Yong Hwa seems harmless. That Jang Geun Suk is different. He looks dangerous,’ he narrowed his eyes.

Shin Hye nodded her head, ‘he can be dangerous…’

‘See! You didn’t even deny it!’

‘Aish. You didn’t let me finish. He can be dangerous but you’re way more dangerous than him. You even got me to fall for you. Who knows how many women you’ve met who fell for you and who you dated…’ she trailed off. ‘I’m not even being jealous about all that, but you keep being jealous of my friends. Pfft.’

Min Ho pulled her closer and wrapped his arms around her. ‘You’re right, let’s not talk about the past. What’s important is our present and future.’

‘Aish,’ she wiggled her way free from his arms. ‘I think you should go home now, oppa.’

‘Ya, believe me. I don’t care about my exes anymore. You’re all I care about now,’ he grabbed her hand.

Shin Hye smiled. ‘I’m not mad about that. It’s getting really late. You probably should go home – I said you can only stay for a bit.’

He pouted. ‘Can’t I stay longer? I haven’t sobered up and I asked my driver to leave…are you going to let me drive in this state?’ 

Shin Hye knew he did that on purpose. This namja. ‘OPPA! You’re really pushing your luck, huh?’

Min Ho grinned. ‘I’m a man, I can’t help it.’

‘Fine. But you stay out here while I sleep in my room,’ Shin Hye told him, as she stood up.

‘Wait, you’re going to sleep now? Aren’t we going to... uh…hang out?’

‘We’ve hung out enough at the bar. It’s already midnight, it’s time to sleep,’ she turned towards her room.

‘But… I’m wide awake. You even made me drink coffee. You have to take responsibility,’ he muttered helplessly.

Shin Hye glared at him, but his eyes were pleading. She caved. ‘Fine! Wait a minute, I’ll bring my laptop – I’ll show you a really funny fan café.