Love. A word that can mean many things. A deep sexual or romantic attachment, a deep an intense feeling of deep affection, a great interest and pleasure in something, to like very much, strong attraction and personal attachment, etc. There are also many forms of love, like Philia (friend), Eros (Erotic bond), Storge (Empathy bond), and Agape (unconditional love). Could it be...what she felt? Love? She loved many things, like going to Zen's musicals, and drinking coffee, but she had never felt love for a person before. Jaehee Kang never truly had felt anything towards a person before, so feeling one of the most powerful emotions would be dangerous.
But whom did she feel this way towards? She was neutral about Yoosung, Jumin, and V, and didn't particularly care for Luciel. She deeply admired Zen, but she only really admired him as a fan. That left one person...MC. But why? She had only know her barely 2 weeks, it was too early to be in love! They haven't even met face to face before. But MC has been one of her main supporters. She always encouraged her, no matter what the consequences were. Her kind words always warmed her heart. She even mention that she thought Jaehee was attractive. She was the reason...she was the reason why she was still here.
"Assistant Kang!" A voice snapped her out of her thoughts. She looked back up at her boss and saw he had an irritated look on his face. The two were in his office discussing new projects to start and projects to end.
"Yes, Mr. Han?" Jaehee replied.
"Did you hear a word I said?"
"N-no," Jaehee looked down at the floor in shame.
"Why?"
"I-I zoned out. I apologize."
"Just...don't do it again. We were discussing the projects I want to start and the projects to end. We're starting two new projects. Speaking of which, do you have the coffee project?"
"Yes, Mr. Han." She went through her shoulder bag and grabbed the papers from a black folder. She handed over the papers to her boss. She started radiating nervousness as he read them with an unreadable face and just looked down at the floor. She jumped a little when the sound of ripping paper filled the air. She gasped when he set her ripped papers in front of her on the desk. She looked up at him and saw irritation flash through his eyes.
"This is garbage." He got straight to the point. "This is not how I wanted the project. I told you to slack off and do it incorrectly, yet you did it perfectly anyway."
"But tha-"
"Just forget about the project and focus on these two projects." Jaehee felt her heart drop. She spent a solid three days on that project. She hadn't gotten any sleep since she started it. She had put her heart and soul into that project. And he just ripped it up in front of her like it was nothing. She felt the tears burning in the back of her eyes, but she wouldn't dare let him see it.
He had gone on to tell her about the two projects. One was a cat hotel and one was wine that cats can drink. They were both due by the end of the week, which gave her 5 days to complete the two. When Jumin dismissed her from his presence, she headed home to begin the projects. It seemed like a longer drive home than usual. Maybe it was because she felt empty and was ready to cry. And when she got home, that's exactly what she did.
She had gotten into a t-shirt and dark colored yoga pants, she was just about to make herself some coffee before she dropped to the ground and cried. At first, it was a silent cry where she just let the tears roll down her face, but then it turned into sobbing. She didn't try to stop it, she just let it happen. This went on for a good five minutes before she heard a knock on her door. She stopped almost instantly and just stared at the door, debating whether or not to open it. Whoever was at the door, would see how bad she looked at the moment and she didn't want them to see her. But she opened it anyway.
So she had gotten up from her spot on the floor and went over to the door. Before she opened the door she furiously wiped her tears away. She slowly opened the door and gasped at who was there. A woman slightly shorter than Jaehee and similar colored hair, but went down to her lower back. She had bangs that swept into her amber colored eyes. She wore a beige sweater and black yoga pants with white knee high boots.
"Hello, Jaehee," the woman said with a smile.
"MC...?" Jaehee asked the woman. When the woman nodded her head yes, Jaehee jumped slightly. Well stop gawking at her and let her inside stupid. "P-Please, come in." Jaehee led her guest inside and to where the couch chairs were located and sat down. She could help but to take in MC's appearance. She was much prettier than what Luciel had said. Well don't just stare at her! Make conversation with her. "May I ask why you visited my place?"
"You had invited me over yesterday to celebrate you."
"To celebrate me? Is it my birthday?"
"No silly," MC giggled. "Celebrate your success with the coffee project!"
"O-Oh," Jaehee said, trying not to let her voice crack. She looked down at the floor. "There was a c-change in plans. M-Mr. Han said I didn't do it how h-he wanted to and...and decided to just forget the project completely t-to focus on the new cat ones." Jaehee felt the tears again but she was determined not to let them fall, especially in front of her.
"Jaehee..." MC said with a very concerned tone. "I know you spent a lot of time on that project...Not sleeping, barely getting a proper meal, staring at a computer screen for hours on end...Are you okay?"
"I'm f-fine..." She wasn't... "It'll...It's..." She felt something wet slide down her cheek. "It's..." Her voice cracked. She felt more of the wetness. She stood up and took off her glasses and started breathing heavily. Good going genius. Now you're crying in front of her. Idiot! She let the tears flow freely down her face, not bothering to wipe the endless stream. She could only stand there helplessly. She felt two arms wrap around her in a tight embrace. Jaehee returned the motion but held on to her tighter and cried on her shoulder.
"It's alright, Jaehee," MC said rubbing her hand up and down Jaehee's back as an attempt to soothe her. MC truly felt bad for her. If she were in Jaehee's shoes, she would have quit a long time ago. She really admired Jaehee. She was a strong woman who tackled anything that was put in front of her. But seeing her break down like this broke her heart and almost made her want to cry...But she didn't. She just stood there soothing Jaehee until she was stable again. 10 minutes had passed and Jaehee had finally stopped crying. She let go of MC and became embarrassed.
"I-I apologize." Jaehee said shakily. "I...I don't know what came over me. I-I ruined your sweater, I-"
"Jaehee," MC said. "It's alright. I know you needed a good cry, you've been through so much. You had to let out the emotions that you had left to build up."
"Oh," Jaehee said with a slight blush forming on her cheeks. What the hell are you doing?! Stop! You'll give it all away! Then her front door suddenly flew open, making the two jump. They heard the footsteps approach them, and to be honest, MC was terrified of who it was. Jaehee wasn't scared at all, in fact she knew who it was and why.
"Assistant Kang!" The person yelled.
"In the living room, Mr. Han," Jaehee sighed. Her boss appeared in front of them and gave a quizzical look at the woman standing next to his assistant. As if reading his mind, Jaehee said, "Mr. Han, this is MC, the new RFA member."
"Hello, MC," Jumin said to her and stuck out his hand. MC took it and shook it. "It is nice to finally meet you."
"It is nice to meet you too," MC responded with a small smile.
"Assistant Kang," Jumin redirected his attention to her. "What time is my flight scheduled to take off?"
"In half an hour," Jaehee responded promptly. "Why? Shouldn't you be there already?
"I needed to drop off Elizabeth the 3rd. And a time check."
"Where is she?" Jaehee asked in a monotonous tone.
"She's with a guard outside, I'll go retrieve her." And with that, he walked away. MC could sense Jaehee's stress and anxiety, it was radiating off of her. Neither of them spoke until he came back with Elizabeth 3rd in his arm. In his other hand was her food bowl and food. Jaehee hesitantly took the food and food bowl and set it down in a corner while Jumin set Elizabeth down. "I'll be back by the end of the week."
"But that's when the projects are due." Jaehee complained.
"Did I ask?" Jumin replied. "Oh, and I need about three pictures of Elizabeth every hour. Goodbye, Assistant Kang." And with that he left the house and closed the door behind him. MC looked back at Jaehee, who looked like she was about to scream. But she only sighed and walked into the kitchen to start on her pot of coffee. MC thought that now would be the time to leave, but if Jaehee had another breakdown, who would be there to comfort her. So MC thought and thought and finally came up with an idea.
"Jaehee," MC started. "I know you've been having a hard time. And now it has worsened now that you have Elizabeth. So to help you out a little bit, how about I take care of Elizabeth?"
"As much as I would love for you to take care of her for me, I don't think Mr. Han would agree to that. He only really trusts me with her."
"I don't have to take her back to the apartment, I can take care of her here," MC said with a small smile. "I-If that's okay with you, of course."
"I think that's a good idea," Jaehee said, with a blush creeping up on her face. "Th-thank you for being so considerate of me."
"Of course " MC beamed. "It's the least I could do for someone like you. But I'll have to return to the apartment to gather some things first. So I'll come back later."
"Yes, have a safe trip."
And for the next five days, everything went smoothly. MC would wake up early to feed Elizabeth and make her and Jaehee breakfast. While Jaehee was at work, MC would play with Elizabeth, take the pictures that Jumin wanted, and clean up the cat hair. When Jaehee returned, there was always a pot of coffee ready for her to pour and a hot bubble bath drawn for her. It had even seemed as if Jaehee's feelings for MC had deepened. She had gotten all of that work done within the time frame.
Tomorrow was the party and MC and Jaehee were excited. They had gone to the mall for about an hour to pick out dresses for tomorrow. Jaehee had gone back to the mall in secret to pick up something for MC. But when she had gotten back home, she was in a deep sleep on the couch, her phone in her hand. She had been talking on the messenger. Jaehee smiled at her and put her gift away in a place MC would never find. She returned to the couch and sat down next to her. It would be the perfect time to tell her how she felt. Although MC wouldn't know it, Jaehee would have gotten off of her chest.
"MC...I-I really like you a lot," she started. She realized she might be able to hear her and quickly added, "I-It's not a romantic feeling...but we are aware of each other and respect each other. It's a polite way of liking you, but I really like you." At that moment, Jaehee found confidence wash over her and she kissed MC on the cheek. She stirred a little, but didn't wake up.
...
MC woke up later than usual to find Jaehee gone. She opened her phone to text her, but received a message from Jaehee. It read: Good morning, MC! I had to leave early to prepare for the party. So I'll see you then :) MC smiled and turned her phone off. She got up and stretched before going to feed Elizabeth the 3rd. Then she grabbed leftover pancake batter from yesterday morning and made herself some pancakes.
After breakfast she went into the bathroom to put on her outfit and makeup and to do her hair. She had put on her dress first. It was a white lace form fitting dress from the waist up and silky baby blue from her waist to her knees. There was a blue ribbon tied into a bow to separate the top and bottom of the dress. She had curled her hair so that it fell in waves down her back, and had only applied lipstick and eyeliner. She finished early and started cleaning up and cat hair that she saw.
And then there was a knock at the door.
MC was hesitant about opening the door to someone while in someone else's house...But thought it could be Jaehee at the door. So she went over to it and opened it. She didn't recognize who it was by the suit, but saw the scruffy red hair and black and yellow glasses, she knew exactly who it was.
"Seven...?" MC asked the man.
"Hey MC," Seven said with a grin. "You look gorgeous!"
"O-oh," MC blushed a deep shade of red to match his hair. "Thank you. M-May I ask why you're here?"
"I'm here to take you to the party."
"Oh," MC said. She was dumb to think she'd be able to get to the party without knowing the location. "Thank you. Shall we get going?"
"We shall indeed," Seven bowed playfully and held out his arm, which MC took. And from there they left for the party.
She had looked into the bathroom mirror one last time and fixed her hair one more time. It was already short, but she made it look shorter by putting some of her hair into a braid around her head and curled the rest. She wore a simple formfitting dress that was sleeveless and came just above her knees. She took a deep breath and walked over to the stage. In the name of the father, the son, and the holy ghost...
"One- Two- Mic test," Jaehee tested the microphone. She looked around the room and found her. Perfect. Now's my chance. "Pardon me everyone. I was looking for someone." She stepped off the stage and walked over to her. She gave her a small smile. "Look at all the people here. It's all because of you...You did so well. I don't know what to say. I'm very happy right now. We've only known each other for about a week and a half but...I feel like we're old friends. I was really excited to meet you when you visited me. Feeling excited at seeing a girl...how strange." Jaehee blushed.
"I was excited to meet you too," MC blushed slightly too, but too lightly for anyone to notice.
"I'd...I'd like to become better friends with you. This is a bit awkward, but I look forward to being friends with you. I have a proposal to make...I-I want to make a fresh start. And...And if you'd like, I'd like to create it with you...So it isn't my place...but our space. MC...Won't you create a space of our own w-with me." Jaehee took MC's hand and place a bronze key on it. "Will you live with me?"
"Of course I will, Jaehee," MC started. "I know how hard it is f-"
"MC!" A voice from far away called to her. MC turned around and saw Seven walking towards her. He stopped right in front of them. "Hey, I need to talk to you real quick."
"Oh okay," MC said dumbly. She turned back to Jaehee. "I'll be back in a moment." And with that she left. Jaehee walked outside to her car and grabbed MC's present and the projects Jumin told her to bring. It had gone so well, this was the last part. All I have to do is give her these and say exactly what you said last night. Minus the 'not a romantic feeling' part. In the name of the father, the son, and the holy ghost...She took on last deep breath and walked back into the building. She walked over to where Luciel had took MC.
All of the documents slid from her fingers. She felt her heart go a million miles a minute before she finally felt it shatter. Her breaths became shallow, yet she still breathed heavily. Her reason for living, the person who supported and encouraged her when no one else would, the person she loved most...She would never be hers now.
"This can't be happening!" Jaehee shakily said. "I...this-" She ran. She didn't even care about the documents she dropped, she just had to get out of there. She could feel her tears pouring down her face as soon as she got into her car. She gripped the steering wheel tightly and drove off. She didn't know where, but she couldn't go back to the apartment. So she drove. It was the only thing that didn't remind her of...her.
She kept zoning out, thinking of how she could have prevented it. If she had just gone with her, none of it would have happened. But you shouldn't zone out while you're driving...The last thing she heard was a honk and metal on metal impact.
End of Part 1. Parts left: Part 2 and Part 2 alternate ending
