Joon Gi pulled off his sunglasses and tucked it into the collar of his shirt, comfortably sinking back into his seat with a happy sigh as his manager started the car. After spending the majority of his morning talking to Jieun on the phone, he felt like nothing could bring him down.

He closed his eyes, unable to wipe the smile off his face, as he recalled the way she sounded when she was still half asleep. The husk of her voice, the slow drawl of her words, and the soft chuckles of her laughter. It was now hard to imagine a time when she wasn't precious to him, even though it hadn't been all that long ago that things had changed between them.

Although his trip to Hong Kong wasn't a long one, he was already missing her dearly and as much as he wanted to see her face again, Joon Gi would have to wait a few more days. In a couple of hours, he would be on a plane to Los Angeles for his Resident Evil premiere with Milla, Paul, and the rest of the cast.

It would be his Hollywood debut appearance for his Hollywood movie debut, an incredibly rare and important opportunity to advance his career. Joon Gi had tried to convince Jieun to go with him, but she had said it was too much, too soon for the public.

She had a point. After all, the public still had no idea she had been a single woman since July. Or that she was a taken woman again as of December. He couldn't wait until the news could be released, but, like with all things for a celebrity, timing was essential.

The car ride to the airport was quiet as Joon Gi thought of Jieun and Sang Hyun hyung concentrated on the road, but that all changed the moment they pulled into the parking lot as his manager's phone rang. He couldn't hear what Sang Hyun hyung was saying, but he caught the tone.

Startled. Serious.

It didn't take a genius to figure out that something was wrong.

Joon Gi waited until he hung up and their eyes met through the rearview mirror.

"Joon Gi-yah…" Sang Hyun inhaled deeply. "You should call Jieun-ssi."

He immediately straightened in his seat, alarm flashing across his face. "Why? What happened? Is Jieunie okay?"

Joon Gi watched as Sang Hyun scrubbed a hand down his face. "Her break up has just gone public…"

His mouth dropped open in shock as the color drain from his face. "What?! That's not possible…"

Quickly pulling his phone out of his pocket, Joon Gi accessed Naver's website with hasty fingers and felt his heart drop to his stomach. Splashed across Naver were the unavoidable words, spreading faster than a virus. Trending at number one. A wildfire spiraling out of control.

"Kiha."

"IU."

"Break up."

"Four years."

He scoffed at the last one. Whoever wrote that article clearly hadn't done their research. Still, that wasn't his priority right now. Did Jieun know and if so, why didn't she tell him? Was she okay?

But the shocker was at the end of the article and Joon Gi's hand curled in anger.

"The break up took place one week ago…"

That was a blatant lie. He thought back to last week, to their Taiwan concert and fan meeting. To how they had guested at each other's events. To how they had courageously tested the waters with their respective fans to try and gain approval for their relationship.

Then, he thought about how that would look now in light of the false information provided to the media.

Without a second thought, he called her.

The phone rang once. Twice. Three times.

"Oppa…," Jieun greeted softly, cautiously, when she answered.

"Are you okay? What happened?"

"I… Kiha-ssi… he… he leaked the break up to the media."

Her voice was small and meek, unlike Jieun's usual self and Joon Gi mentally cursed. He hated when she sounded like that, an indication that she was hurt, but attempting to hide it.

Over the course of getting to know her back when they had still been filming for Scarlet Heart: Ryeo, he had often heard Jieun like that when talking on the phone. At first, he hadn't known who was on the other line, but slowly, he had realized and his heart had ached for her.

And now, so many months later, the man who did that to Jieun still had the power to strike at her one last time.

"We weren't supposed to reveal it for a few more weeks," Joon Gi pointed out. "Why did he do it?"

"I don't know," Jieun replied. "He only told me he was sorry."

Joon Gi exhaled sharply. "I'm coming home. Wait for me."

"No!" Jieun practically shouted, startling him. "You need to go to LA. You need to be at the premiere. Just go. I'm okay."

"I should be there with you," he argued. "How can I leave you to fend off the public by yourself while I'm soaking in the limelight in Hollywood?"

"It's important, oppa. You can't just cancel, especially when Milla and Paul are expecting you. You just managed to step foot into Hollywood, so naturally, you should take the next step. Don't give that up for me." Jieun sighed, the sound sending static to his end of the phone. "I will still be here after the premiere, waiting for you, but the premiere doesn't wait for anyone."

"Jieunie…"

"Please, oppa," she pleaded. "Don't make me feel guilty for this. I will be okay. I promise."

Joon Gi flattened his lips and didn't respond. There wasn't a single doubt in his mind about what to do, but he was angry. Angry at the situation. Angry that someone had decided to feed Jieun to the sharks. Angry that she was hurting again.

"Arasso, Jieunie," he finally said. "I know what to do."

He could hear her sigh of relief over the phone at his intentionally misleading statement. "Don't worry about me in LA, oppa, and make sure to rest well. I'll see you soon."

"I'm hanging up now," Joon Gi replied, pushing the end button only after Jieun had said goodbye.

Slipping his phone back into his pocket, he looked at Sang Hyun with fiery determination. "I'm going home. As soon as possible. The next flight out."

She would be seeing him sooner than she thought.

Author's Note: The hopeless romantic in me demanded this be written, however delulu it may or may not be.