Min Ho stared at the photos from Shin Hye’s party. He knew he shouldn’t have clicked the link for the article, but he couldn’t resist. His eyes immediately darted to the photo of her with two idols. One of them had his arm wrapped around her neck. His blood boiled at the sight. Who the hell is this guy? He saw the name: Yong Jun Hyung. He’s not in my blacklist…
He shut his laptop in frustration and grunted. He had the worst timing.
After he got back from China, the first thing he thought about was finding her. He still didn’t have her phone number, and his manager wasn’t going to help him get it. He couldn’t recklessly ask anyone close to Shin Hye either. And he knew that if Shin Hye went to the trouble of changing her number just to avoid him, she wouldn’t have given it to someone close to him.
There was only one recourse. He had found out that she was having a fan meeting as pre-birthday celebration with her fans. When he knew it was over, he quickly made his way to her building. He dressed inconspicuously and came up to her apartment, but soon realized that no one was home. He went back to his car and waited for her. He sat there for hours and he finally gave up when he came to the conclusion that she wasn’t coming home. He figured that maybe she decided to stay at her parents'.
He did the same thing the next night. He waited for her patiently outside her building. It was borderline stalking, but there were some things he wanted to know. Like why she came to his pad that night, why she took care of him and cooked for him only to leave without so much as a goodbye. He sat in his car accompanied only by his thoughts. It was past midnight when he decided to leave, infuriated at himself for being so helpless.
Just as he was leaving, he heard a car coming down the road. Just one more, he told himself, expectant. He had a feeling this was it. When what arrived was an unfamiliar green Lexus, he let out a sigh in resignation. This is hopeless. With a heavy heart, he drove off.
Now Min Ho knew why Shin Hye wasn’t home. She was having a birthday party with her friends and family. He still felt territorial about her, and his heart hurt at the thought of being excluded. It was still hard to accept that he no longer played a part in her life. He wasn’t even a friend to her anymore.
‘Min Ho-yah!’ His manager suddenly peered through his bedroom door, surprising him.
Min Ho frowned. ‘Hyung, what are you doing here? When did you arrive?’
‘Never mind that,’ the man said as he entered the room, panting. ‘We have a problem.’
‘Oh my God. Heol.’
Shin Hye was removing lip gloss when she turned to her wide-eyed stylist. It was getting late, but thankfully they’ve finished shooting the night scenes for her latest CF. Shin Hye was tired, and she couldn’t wait to get home and rest. ‘Are you okay, eonnie?’
‘Shin Hye,’ she spoke without taking her eyes off her phone’s screen, looking like she had just seen a ghost. ‘Have you seen these articles?’
She furrowed her brows. ‘What articles?’
Her stylist hurriedly walked to her and gave her the phone. Shin Hye took it, wondering what it was that made her eonnie look so alarmed. Her jaw dropped and her body tensed after reading the headline. She shook her head. ‘This can’t be true.’
‘The reporter says he has photos.’
Shin Hye quickly typed Min Ho’s name on the search engine and several articles about him gambling in a New Zealand casino came up. The incident was already number one on Daum and Naver. Shin Hye’s first instinct was to call him so she whipped out her phone, only to remember that she had erased his number.
‘Damn it,’ she muttered under her breath.
At that moment, her manager entered the room and Shin Hye quickly pulled him aside. ‘Oppa, do you have his number?’ She whispered, making sure that her stylist couldn’t hear them.
Joon looked at Shin Hye’s worried face, confused. ‘Whose num…’ he didn’t finish his question after realizing who she was talking about and shook his head. ‘No. Stay out of it, Shin Hye. I’m sure they’re handling things just fine.’
Shin Hye held his arm. ‘You knew? Oppa, please.’
He scratched his head, frowning. ‘I can’t. I don’t have his number anymore, or his manager’s. I erased them in a fit of rage when you told me he broke up with you. I can be a little touchy, too.’
Shin Hye released him and bit her lower lip.
‘I’m sure he’s okay,’ Joon said, putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder. ‘You know how articles exaggerate. It’s probably not even true.’
But Shin Hye couldn’t shake off the feeling that he wasn’t okay. He was already in a bad state the last time she saw him. If he has to deal with this scandal now, she could only imagine how messed up he probably feels. Ignoring what her manager said, she walked back to the table and grabbed her phone and dialled.
‘Yobuseyo?’ The guy at the other end answered after a few rings.
‘Il Woo oppa, it’s Shin Hye. I can’t contact Min Ho oppa. Do you know where he is?’
‘Meo? I was just with him an hour ago. He called me earlier saying he wanted to blow off some steam. I was on a break from filming so I went. I was worried about those articles. But the director called me so I’m back on set. Why can’t you contact him?’
‘You drank with him again?’ Her tone sounded like she was castigating him.
‘I’m sorry. But he sounded really upset. Besides, if I didn’t come, he would have found a way to still drink.’
Shin Hye massaged her temples with her hand. ‘Where? Bar Da? Is he still there?’
‘I don’t know. Let me call Hyun Woo hyung and check. I’ll call you back.’
Before she could hear Il Woo hang up, she grabbed her bag and walked to the door, leaving her manager and stylist with confused looks. ‘Oppa, eonnie, I have to go. I’ll see you tomorrow. Thanks.’
She sprinted to her car and drove off faster than she normally would. Her leg nervously shook, as negative thoughts flooded her mind. What if he makes a scene at the bar? What if he drives drunk? ‘I knew it, I just knew it,’ she muttered.
Her ringtone blasted inside and she immediately answered. ‘Oppa.’
‘Shin Hye, Hyun Woo hyung said Min Ho isn’t there anymore. He just left money at the bar and disappeared. I couldn’t contact him either.’
‘What?’ Shin Hye stopped the car and pulled over. ‘Where could he be?’
‘I’m not sure,’ Il Woo replied. Shin Hye could hear the edginess in his voice. ‘I called Bum, too, thinking that he’d probably call him if he wanted to drink some more, but he’s with Geun Young. Maybe he went home, Shin Hye. I’d check on him but I’m stuck filming.’
Shin Hye sighed. ‘Arasso. Thanks oppa. I’m sorry for bothering you at this hour.’
Within seconds, Shin Hye started her car again with a new destination in mind. She silently hoped that he was back home and not in another bar drinking his anger away. Or worse, getting into an accident. ‘I swear to God, if he drove drunk, I’m going to kill him, myself,’ she grumbled, growing more anxious by the minute.
She didn’t even bother to be cautious anymore. She raced to his door and pushed the buzzer several times. When there was no answer, she closed her eyes. Is he not home? Against her better judgment, she entered his passcode. When the door opened, she came inside right away.
As soon as the door closed behind her, she looked up and saw Min Ho in shorts and a tank top standing by his bedroom door. With his hair dishevelled and his eyes red and glassy, he looked like he just woke up. His mouth opened slightly and his eyes widened upon seeing her. Shin Hye creased her eyebrows. ‘You’re… okay?’
Min Ho couldn’t believe his eyes. He blinked a few times, just to check if she was real. He was sure he didn’t drink much. Two beers couldn’t possibly make him hallucinate. So was he dreaming again? He wasn’t sure.
‘You’re… okay?’ She asked. Her voice filled the room.
Shin Hye’s expression pierced through him. It was a mixture of concern, surprise, with a little bit of anger.
She’s real. Min Ho took a step forward. ‘What… what are you doing here?’
Shin Hye, realizing that she wasn’t supposed to be there, took one step back. When her back hit the wall, she looked down instead. ‘I’m sorry for barging in. I was just…’ She realized she was stammering. She looked back up at him. ‘I’ll go.’
Turning around, she clutched the doorknob, ready to leave.
‘Stop,’ Min Ho’s voice was so firm that Shin Hye’s hand didn’t move. She waited for him to say something else, but he didn’t. Her heart hammered against her chest, feeling the tension in the room. Shin Hye slowly turned around. She was startled to see that Min Ho was now just three feet away from her.
Min Ho looked at Shin Hye’s flushed face and clenched his jaw. His heart raced at the sight of her. He tried to control himself, but every part of him just wanted her close. ‘I asked you what you were doing here.’
Shin Hye looked away, trying to avoid his eyes. ‘I read the articles and I was…’ She paused, confused, herself.
‘Worried?’ Min Ho took another step.
Shin Hye squirmed. He was standing so dangerously close. She could feel the air thinning around them.
‘You stole my photos,’ Min Ho continued. ‘When you were here the other night.’
She swallowed, remembering putting the envelope in her bag. ‘You weren’t supposed to have them,’ she replied.
The silence between them was deafening. Shin Hye felt her senses heighten as she just stood there, certain that Min Ho’s eyes were scanning her. She needed to say something, fast.
‘D-did you drive? Il Woo oppa said you’ve been drinking again and…’
‘So you are worried,’ he spoke, his voice husky and low.
Shin Hye fought the urge to look into his eyes. ‘It’s just that the other night, you were so drunk and… you shouldn’t be drinking.’ She was stuttering, and she was afraid of what that might imply.
Min Ho swallowe
Min Ho stared at the photos from Shin Hye’s party. He knew he shouldn’t have clicked the link for the article, but he couldn’t resist. His eyes immediately darted to the photo of her with two idols. One of them had his arm wrapped around her neck. His blood boiled at the sight. Who the hell is this guy? He saw the name: Yong Jun Hyung. He’s not in my blacklist…
He shut his laptop in frustration and grunted. He had the worst timing.
After he got back from China, the first thing he thought about was finding her. He still didn’t have her phone number, and his manager wasn’t going to help him get it. He couldn’t recklessly ask anyone close to Shin Hye either. And he knew that if Shin Hye went to the trouble of changing her number just to avoid him, she wouldn’t have given it to someone close to him.
There was only one recourse. He had found out that she was having a fan meeting as pre-birthday celebration with her fans. When he knew it was over, he quickly made his way to her building. He dressed inconspicuously and came up to her apartment, but soon realized that no one was home. He went back to his car and waited for her. He sat there for hours and he finally gave up when he came to the conclusion that she wasn’t coming home. He figured that maybe she decided to stay at her parents'.
He did the same thing the next night. He waited for her patiently outside her building. It was borderline stalking, but there were some things he wanted to know. Like why she came to his pad that night, why she took care of him and cooked for him only to leave without so much as a goodbye. He sat in his car accompanied only by his thoughts. It was past midnight when he decided to leave, infuriated at himself for being so helpless.
Just as he was leaving, he heard a car coming down the road. Just one more, he told himself, expectant. He had a feeling this was it. When what arrived was an unfamiliar green Lexus, he let out a sigh in resignation. This is hopeless. With a heavy heart, he drove off.
Now Min Ho knew why Shin Hye wasn’t home. She was having a birthday party with her friends and family. He still felt territorial about her, and his heart hurt at the thought of being excluded. It was still hard to accept that he no longer played a part in her life. He wasn’t even a friend to her anymore.
‘Min Ho-yah!’ His manager suddenly peered through his bedroom door, surprising him.
Min Ho frowned. ‘Hyung, what are you doing here? When did you arrive?’
‘Never mind that,’ the man said as he entered the room, panting. ‘We have a problem.’
‘Oh my God. Heol.’
Shin Hye was removing lip gloss when she turned to her wide-eyed stylist. It was getting late, but thankfully they’ve finished shooting the night scenes for her latest CF. Shin Hye was tired, and she couldn’t wait to get home and rest. ‘Are you okay, eonnie?’
‘Shin Hye,’ she spoke without taking her eyes off her phone’s screen, looking like she had just seen a ghost. ‘Have you seen these articles?’
She furrowed her brows. ‘What articles?’
Her stylist hurriedly walked to her and gave her the phone. Shin Hye took it, wondering what it was that made her eonnie look so alarmed. Her jaw dropped and her body tensed after reading the headline. She shook her head. ‘This can’t be true.’
‘The reporter says he has photos.’
Shin Hye quickly typed Min Ho’s name on the search engine and several articles about him gambling in a New Zealand casino came up. The incident was already number one on Daum and Naver. Shin Hye’s first instinct was to call him so she whipped out her phone, only to remember that she had erased his number.
‘Damn it,’ she muttered under her breath.
At that moment, her manager entered the room and Shin Hye quickly pulled him aside. ‘Oppa, do you have his number?’ She whispered, making sure that her stylist couldn’t hear them.
Joon looked at Shin Hye’s worried face, confused. ‘Whose num…’ he didn’t finish his question after realizing who she was talking about and shook his head. ‘No. Stay out of it, Shin Hye. I’m sure they’re handling things just fine.’
Shin Hye held his arm. ‘You knew? Oppa, please.’
He scratched his head, frowning. ‘I can’t. I don’t have his number anymore, or his manager’s. I erased them in a fit of rage when you told me he broke up with you. I can be a little touchy, too.’
Shin Hye released him and bit her lower lip.
‘I’m sure he’s okay,’ Joon said, putting a reassuring hand on her shoulder. ‘You know how articles exaggerate. It’s probably not even true.’
But Shin Hye couldn’t shake off the feeling that he wasn’t okay. He was already in a bad state the last time she saw him. If he has to deal with this scandal now, she could only imagine how messed up he probably feels. Ignoring what her manager said, she walked back to the table and grabbed her phone and dialled.
‘Yobuseyo?’ The guy at the other end answered after a few rings.
‘Il Woo oppa, it’s Shin Hye. I can’t contact Min Ho oppa. Do you know where he is?’
‘Meo? I was just with him an hour ago. He called me earlier saying he wanted to blow off some steam. I was on a break from filming so I went. I was worried about those articles. But the director called me so I’m back on set. Why can’t you contact him?’
‘You drank with him again?’ Her tone sounded like she was castigating him.
‘I’m sorry. But he sounded really upset. Besides, if I didn’t come, he would have found a way to still drink.’
Shin Hye massaged her temples with her hand. ‘Where? Bar Da? Is he still there?’
‘I don’t know. Let me call Hyun Woo hyung and check. I’ll call you back.’
Before she could hear Il Woo hang up, she grabbed her bag and walked to the door, leaving her manager and stylist with confused looks. ‘Oppa, eonnie, I have to go. I’ll see you tomorrow. Thanks.’
She sprinted to her car and drove off faster than she normally would. Her leg nervously shook, as negative thoughts flooded her mind. What if he makes a scene at the bar? What if he drives drunk? ‘I knew it, I just knew it,’ she muttered.
Her ringtone blasted inside and she immediately answered. ‘Oppa.’
‘Shin Hye, Hyun Woo hyung said Min Ho isn’t there anymore. He just left money at the bar and disappeared. I couldn’t contact him either.’
‘What?’ Shin Hye stopped the car and pulled over. ‘Where could he be?’
‘I’m not sure,’ Il Woo replied. Shin Hye could hear the edginess in his voice. ‘I called Bum, too, thinking that he’d probably call him if he wanted to drink some more, but he’s with Geun Young. Maybe he went home, Shin Hye. I’d check on him but I’m stuck filming.’
Shin Hye sighed. ‘Arasso. Thanks oppa. I’m sorry for bothering you at this hour.’
Within seconds, Shin Hye started her car again with a new destination in mind. She silently hoped that he was back home and not in another bar drinking his anger away. Or worse, getting into an accident. ‘I swear to God, if he drove drunk, I’m going to kill him, myself,’ she grumbled, growing more anxious by the minute.
She didn’t even bother to be cautious anymore. She raced to his door and pushed the buzzer several times. When there was no answer, she closed her eyes. Is he not home? Against her better judgment, she entered his passcode. When the door opened, she came inside right away.
As soon as the door closed behind her, she looked up and saw Min Ho in shorts and a tank top standing by his bedroom door. With his hair dishevelled and his eyes red and glassy, he looked like he just woke up. His mouth opened slightly and his eyes widened upon seeing her. Shin Hye creased her eyebrows. ‘You’re… okay?’
Min Ho couldn’t believe his eyes. He blinked a few times, just to check if she was real. He was sure he didn’t drink much. Two beers couldn’t possibly make him hallucinate. So was he dreaming again? He wasn’t sure.
‘You’re… okay?’ She asked. Her voice filled the room.
Shin Hye’s expression pierced through him. It was a mixture of concern, surprise, with a little bit of anger.
She’s real. Min Ho took a step forward. ‘What… what are you doing here?’
Shin Hye, realizing that she wasn’t supposed to be there, took one step back. When her back hit the wall, she looked down instead. ‘I’m sorry for barging in. I was just…’ She realized she was stammering. She looked back up at him. ‘I’ll go.’
Turning around, she clutched the doorknob, ready to leave.
‘Stop,’ Min Ho’s voice was so firm that Shin Hye’s hand didn’t move. She waited for him to say something else, but he didn’t. Her heart hammered against her chest, feeling the tension in the room. Shin Hye slowly turned around. She was startled to see that Min Ho was now just three feet away from her.
Min Ho looked at Shin Hye’s flushed face and clenched his jaw. His heart raced at the sight of her. He tried to control himself, but every part of him just wanted her close. ‘I asked you what you were doing here.’
Shin Hye looked away, trying to avoid his eyes. ‘I read the articles and I was…’ She paused, confused, herself.
‘Worried?’ Min Ho took another step.
Shin Hye squirmed. He was standing so dangerously close. She could feel the air thinning around them.
‘You stole my photos,’ Min Ho continued. ‘When you were here the other night.’
She swallowed, remembering putting the envelope in her bag. ‘You weren’t supposed to have them,’ she replied.
The silence between them was deafening. Shin Hye felt her senses heighten as she just stood there, certain that Min Ho’s eyes were scanning her. She needed to say something, fast.
‘D-did you drive? Il Woo oppa said you’ve been drinking again and…’
‘So you are worried,’ he spoke, his voice husky and low.
Shin Hye fought the urge to look into his eyes. ‘It’s just that the other night, you were so drunk and… you shouldn’t be drinking.’ She was stuttering, and she was afraid of what that might imply.
Min Ho swallowe
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