A/N: The italics are a memory. This chapter/scene will be broken into at least two parts because I haven't had time to finish the rest of it, but I wanted to post something to let you know I'm still alive. The holidays are going to be a bit hectic, so bear with me with the late updates. (This week is Thanksgiving holiday in the U. S.) Otherwise, enjoy, and thanks so much to everyone who left reviews! Made my heart smile :)

Part II

"You aren't wealthy until you have something money can't buy."—Garth Brooks

Two Years Later

"Is it really better than sex?"

Ga Eul dropped her mascara brush into the sink at the sound of Yi Jeong's voice.

"Yi Jeong-ah, quit sneaking up on me like that." Ga Eul glanced at his reflection in the mirror where he hovered in the bathroom doorway.

"Well, is it?"

"How should I know? And quit looking at me like that." She picked the brush up. "Jae Kyung Unnie gave me makeup from the U.S. for my birthday. It would be rude to let it go to waste."

"You can say that about a lot of things." He sighed. "Want me to apply your lipstick?"

Ga Eul narrowed her eyes at him.

"Aniyo. You're going to smear it again."

"I smeared it once. And that was your fault. You're supposed to keep your mouth still." He walked over and stood next to her, adjusting the tie she had picked out for him-a light gray one with tiny purple diamonds.

"I think you should learn to concentrate harder on what you're doing." She applied a light dusting of blush to her cheeks.

"And I think you shouldn't use unnecessary makeup."

"Huh?"

"I think we should investigate the claims of this mascara," Yi Jeong continued in a serious, business-like tone. "You know, there's nothing like first-hand experience."

She turned her body to face him.

"What's wrong with my—"

He winked at her, and realization slowly sunk into her features.

"Sunbae!" she protested as he started backing her into the corner of his rather large bathroom. "We have to leave in an hour!"

"That's enough time."

"S-Sunbae."

"You know what's interesting?"

"Aniyo." Ga Eul felt her back hit the wall.

"You're not saying 'no' because you don't want to but because you don't think we'll have enough time. Am I right?"

"Aniyo."

"How much time do you think we'll need? Just tell me what you'd like to do, and I'll give you an estimate."

Ga Eul stared at him, her mouth half-open.

Yi Jeong laughed.

"See? You don't need that." He gestured to the brush she still held in her hand.

Ga Eul backhanded his chest.

"That's the makeup, not me! Pabo."

"If you say so."

"I do say so. I say you're the biggest idiot I've ever met."

"Bigger than Jun Pyo?"

"Bigger than Jun Pyo."

"Ah, but Ga Eul-yang…" He held up a tube of lipstick she didn't even know he had. "At least I'm a prepared idiot. Now hold still."

To say Ga Eul was nervous was an understatement. Tonight, she would be stepping out in public as Yi Jeong's girlfriend for the first time. They had avoided the press up to this point, but tonight she would be going to Yi Jeong's senior exhibition for his course of study at the university. Although it was not nearly as large as some of his past exhibitions, it was his first one since he had gotten injured, and she knew he was fairly nervous about it. She knew because he kept pacing and fiddling with his cuff links while she finished touching up her makeup in his bedroom as they waited for Woo Bin, Jan Di, and Ji Hoo to show up. He hadn't offered to apply her makeup tonight and hadn't even said anything when she started applying it in his bedroom instead of the bathroom. That was odd because if there was one thing she had learned about Yi Jeong in the past two years, it was that he liked everything to be clean and organized, especially his bedroom. His Swedish maid—her name was Maja—cleaned the house every day, cooked, and washed clothes, of course, but Yi Jeong usually cleaned up after himself, a habit she suspected he'd developed while trying to find some measure of control in his chaotic home life.

Ga Eul looked around at the various articles of hers spread around the room-a coat, a sweater, a shopping bag, two pairs of shoes, the glasses she wore at night instead of her contact lenses, her book bag, a stack of paperwork she was working on for school, the contents of her makeup bag spread across the top of his dresser.

It was strange, really, how comfortable they had become around each other, even with only seeing each other every few months like they had. They had given up sleeping separately since her visit for Yi Jeong's birthday two years before, and he insisted on her making herself at home there. Over time, she had learned to relax around him and had even become a bit more confident in herself. For all his teasing about her childish antics and infatuations, he made her feel like a woman. It had always just been the two of them, though, aside from the occasional get-together with Jan Di and the other F4 members. They never saw each other in Seoul but either in Sweden or some luxurious vacation destination the F4 had procured at a moment's notice. On those trips, she could never get over how Yi Jeong spent money like water, how each time she mentioned something she liked or might want, it would appear out of nowhere. She had finally learned to keep her mouth shut, but Yi Jeong sensed things anyway. He wasn't trying to get anything from her, she'd finally realized. He just genuinely liked spoiling her.

The days in Sweden were the best though. It was easy to pretend on those days that they were the only two people in their world, but Ga Eul always had a secret fear that Yi Jeong preferred it that way, that maybe when he came back to Korea their relationship would be as detached from the real world as it was during their time in Sweden.

He had asked her to be his date for this exhibition, though, knowing there would probably be some members of the Korean press present, and that made her feel more and less secure all at the same time.

"Yi Jeong-ah." Ga Eul glanced at his reflection in the mirror. "Calm down. You're making me nervous."

Yi Jeong scoffed and sat down on the edge of the bed.

"Who's nervous? I like the dress we picked out for you."

The dress he had picked out for her was a champagne-colored halter dress with a pearl-studded bodice and a flowing sheer satin skirt that stopped mid-thigh. To be honest, it was a bit too revealing by her normal standards of dress, but Yi Jeong had a way of looking at her in it that made her forget that.

"We?" She put her compact blush back in her makeup bag and walked over to stand directly in front of him. "I seem to remember you taking it off the rack, forcing me to trying it on, and telling the salesperson we'd take it."

"I think 'forcing' is too strong of a word."

"Oh?" She sat down on his lap."Who was it that kept saying, 'Try this one on, try that one, try that one'? I could barely look at anything myself! Next time I'm going to take you shopping and pick out all of your suits for you."

"You already pick out my ties, Ga Eul-yang. Don't push your luck."

"If I pick out your ties, the most logical thing is for me to pick what you wear with them, don't you think?"

"I think…" Yi Jeong pressed a kiss to her shoulder blade. "I think you should just admit that I have excellent taste." He traced his finger up her spine from the lowest exposed point on her back. "Admit it. You like it too." Dropping his hand to her lap, he crept his other hand up her thigh just under the edge of her skirt.

"Yah!" She slapped his hand away. "Cut it out." She shifted in his lap so she could face him, their noses almost touching. "Bad Sunbae."

"But you like bad boys."

"Aniyo."

She smirked and took his formerly injured hand, the one that had just traveled up a bit too far for comfort, and kissed it as she often did.

"I just like you," she said.

Closing the gap between them, she kissed the corner of his mouth.

"You missed," He said and kissed the corner of her mouth.

"Mmm. You're getting as bad as me. I don't think the women of Korea will take you back."

"As long as one woman there takes me, I think I'll be fine." He winked at her and kissed her again, this time full on the mouth, his lips warm and tender against hers.

"You know what's crazy?" Yi Jeong said when they broke apart.

"What?" Ga Eul whispered.

'I've been working on these pieces for months, and now all I want to do it stay on this bed with you for the rest of the night."

"Well…you've already messed up my lipstick, so I guess we can't go." Ga Eul wrapped her arms around his neck and grinned.

"I like the way you think."

"That's a first."

"No, it isn't."

She leaned in for another kiss.

Suddenly, the door to Yi Jeong's room swung wide open, accompanied by a "Yo, Bro" from Woo Bin that died on his lips as Ga Eul jumped up and stared up at him in fright.

Thankfully, he seemed just as embarrassed to be there as she was to see him, although embarrassment was honestly the last emotion she'd ever thought she'd see from Woo Bin.

She stood up and gave him a quick bow.

"Woo Bin Sunbae," she croaked out.

"Oh, excuse me! I thought…well, I saw the light in the guest room and I thought…well, never mind, we'll just be waiting outside."

When Woo Bin had disappeared into the hallway, shutting the door firmly behind him, Ga Eul smacked Yi Jeong's arm.

"What was that for?!"

"Yah! Why don't you learn to keep your hands to yourself?"

"My hands? Wait, wait, who was it that sat down on my lap? I didn't ask you to do that."

"Didn't you know Woo Bin was coming?!"

"He said he'd call when they were outside."

Ga Eul huffed and walked back over to the mirror.

"Hey, want me to reapply your lipstick for you?"

"Aniyo." She shooed his arms away. "I don't want you to touch me for the rest of the evening."

She tried to ignore him as he moved to stand behind her, to focus on filling in the curves of her lips as he blocked her in against the vanity, to try not to smear the lipstick as he whispered in her ear, "Then you should have picked out a different dress."