Hello everyone!
Another week, another chapter! I hope you guys enjoy it.

Thank you so so much for taking the time to read! and thanks to Sandy for all the help! ;)

To Melimelo: Well, so has his priorities well stablished and they are Seol and So, and that's going to dictate all his actions. I hope you enjoy this chapter

Chapter FIVE

Present Day

Wang Jung was, by far, the most laid back out of Wang Geon's sons. As the baby of the family, he had been given freedoms his older brothers had never even dreamed of. Like being able to pick what to study and how to spend his time and whether or not he wanted to be a cog in the Taejo Group Machine.

Which, for the record, he didn't. He saw how it had consumed his brothers and wanted no part of it. It was the only point of discord he had with his mother which is why he tried to come and go as discreetly as possible.

Knowing that by 10 A.M. no one would be home—even his mother left around 9:30 to do whatever his mother did—Jung returned home at 10:15, after a 7-mile run and two hours at the gym (sure, he could work out at home but what was the fun in that?). He was surprised when he found So still at home.

In fact, his brother was industriously throwing clothes and other personal items into two suitcases. It was done rather haphazardly for a man that usually packed each item of clothing into its own little plastic bag because he didn't like things mixing inside his suitcase.

"What're you doing?" Jung asked.

So turned to see a sweaty and disheveled Jung eating cereal out of what looked like a serving dish. "Packing."

"Going on a trip?"

"I'm moving out."

Jung choked and sputtered, spraying bits of cereal and milk all over the floor. Normally, So would have berated him for it, but now he just looked at the floor and went back to packing. It wasn't his problem anymore. "Moving out? Since when?"

"Uh, about 4 PM yesterday. I bought a house."

"You what ?"

"Jung, try to keep up," So said curtly.

"Does this have anything to do with that girlfriend of yours that moved back to Seoul?"

"How do you know about Hae Soo?"

"Eun freaked out yesterday after you called him, and conference called me and Baek Ah about how you were acting weird. Baek Ah told us you had run into an old girlfriend." Jung explained then frowned. "Hae Soo, you said?"

"Yes, why?"

"It sounds familiar, is all."

"Did she call?"

Jung crunched his cereal thoughtfully, irritating So, but he put up with it. "No. I don't think so. She did write to you, though."

"WHAT?" So fairly roared and Jung took a step back.

"Y-yes. When you and Yo moved back here after father had the heart attack? Remember you used to send me to your old apartment to pick up your mail, before you sold it?"

"I remember."

"The first time I went there there were a bunch of letters from her. There were always some, actually. I always left them in father's room for you since you always checked there first whenever you arrived home."

"Father knew Hae Soo was writing to me?"

"I think so?"

That's all it took for So to storm out and go straight for his father's study, Jung close at his heels.

"Hyung, what are you doing?" Jung asked in raising panic.

To both their surprises, their father was still there, and he did not appreciate the way So had thrown the door open. "Where are they?" So asked, his voice suspiciously calm and at odds with the explosive energy coming out of him.

"Wang So, I don't know what you're talking about. And shouldn't you be at a meeting right now?"

"I don't give a fuck about meetings or your company. I want to know where Hae Soo's letters are. The ones you've kept from me for five goddam years."

"Is that what this is about? That little gold digger you were going to throw your life away over?" Wang Geon scoffed. It was not a smart move.

"Where are they?" He asked again. Something in his voice must have finally cut through his father's disdain because Wang Geon's gaze flickered to the side, to one of the drawers in his desk.

So went around the desk and began tearing out the drawers until he found a locked one. He didn't even bother asking for the key—he knew he wouldn't get it. Instead, he grabbed the nearest thing he could find (an antique sword that had been in the family since the late Goryeo period) and began to hack at the desk until he got what he wanted.

"There must be at least fifty letters here." So said once he found what he was looking for. He picked up the two stacks of letters tied together with rubber bands. Soo's neat handwriting was on every envelope. "Did it not occur to you these might be important?"

Wang Geon was sputtering, livid over the way So had destroyed his antique desk and the family's sword. "You needed to focus on the company! Those letters were irrelevant!"

"You mean you decided your company was more important than how miserable I was."

"They're just some letters. She stopped writing after a few months."

"Nine. Nine months. When she figured I didn't want anything to do with our daughter because I never answered her back."

"Daughter?" This came from Jung, who had been staring in awe the entire time.

"Daughter?" echoed Wang Geon.

"Yes, I have a daughter, and thanks to you I missed the first years of her life."

"Are you sure she's yours?"

So picked up the nearest thing he could grab (a cut-glass paperweight) and threw it against the wall before he could answer. "Because you're my father, I'll pretend you didn't just say that."

"If that child is really a Wang," his father went on, clearly clueless, "you must bring her here. God knows what manners her mother has taught her, but I'm sure we can—"

So laughed. And it was not pleasant. It was the laugh that made his underlings scurry in fear and get out of his way. "Do you think I would take Seol from the only parent she has ever known? Or that I would bring her here if I did?"

"Wang So, we are in the middle of selecting the next president of the company. The family must present a united front."

"I don't care about your damn company. I will protect my daughter how I see fit; and if I can help it neither you nor Mother will ever see her."

-0-0-0-

Five years ago

Wang So was convinced his life was perfect, all by virtue of being loved by Hae Soo. He and Soo had been together for about nine months already, and they had so many plans: things they wanted to do together, places they wanted to see together. So had questions he wanted to ask her…

Soo had been having troubles with her roommate's boyfriend (which translated to problems with her roommate) for a while now, and these days she spent more time at his apartment than her own. They practically lived together.

That's the first question he wanted to ask her: If she would move in with him already!

He was even looking at bigger places. The apartment was nice, but he wanted them to have more space. His favorite so far was a house with a big garden where she could grow her own plants for the herbal remedies and cosmetics she was always messing with. The house also had lots of room for when they decided to start a family.

But for that, he needed to ask her the second question: If she wanted to go to Paris with him for Baek Ah's graduation. He had already booked the plane tickets, even though he knew she didn't like it when he threw his money around like that.

In all honesty, Baek Ah's graduation was just the excuse—though he did want them to meet, as they were the two people he loved the most in this world—his real intention was to find the perfect moment to ask her the third question: If she wanted to be his wife.

Soo was making him breakfast dressed only in one of his t-shirts and chattering about a movie she wanted to see later (somehow it was alwaysher turn to pick the movie, So thought suspiciously) when his phone rang.

Distractedly, So picked it up and was surprised to see his brother Jung's number. His eighteen year old brother never called him unless he had gotten into a fight at school and it was So's turn to go bail him out.

"Jungie?" He said into the phone, knowing how much his youngest brother hated that moniker.

"Hyung?" Jung's voice sounded uncharacteristically young.

Five seconds later, So understood why. His youngest brother was scared. Apparently, Wang Geon has collapsed while out playing golf with investors and was now being rushed to the hospital.

"Do you want me to go with you?" Soo offered as she helped him get dressed and to cover his scar. He rarely bothered when it was just her, but still did it in front of his family.

So really wanted to say yes but knowing his mother would be there and how erratic her behavior could be where he was concerned, he thought it was best if Soo stayed behind. "No but thank you for offering." He said instead, pressing a quick kiss to her lips. "I'll call you as soon as I know something."

Soo nodded, but couldn't help clinging to him a little when he gave her a proper kiss before walking out the door.

Over the next few days, their only contact would be the phone calls and text messages he snuck to her while waiting at the hospital, but they didn't know that yet.

Just as they didn't know, that was the last time they would see each other for a long, long time.

-00-

Present day

Soo had been thinking about So all day. Was it really possible he hadn't gotten her letters? Objectively speaking, he had never lied to her before, and Soo wanted to think she had known him pretty well. But if he hadn't lied, what did that mean?

As if she had conjured him, So was waiting outside her apartment door when she and Seol arrived that afternoon.

"I don't want to fight," So said before she could speak. "But we need to talk."

"Okay."

Since Seol said she was hungry, So offered to take them out to eat and Soo agreed, thinking that at least in a public place they had a better chance at not yelling at each other too much.

Seol asked So all type of questions as they walked to a café that bordered the neighborhood's park. From one of the outdoor tables they could keep an eye on Seol as she played while their food arrived.

"How did you find me anyway?"

"My cousin works at the National Dance Company, and has access to personnel files."

"Your cousin?" She asked perplexed. Then it hit her: the man she had been standing next to when she had seen Seol with him.

"Baek Ah," So confirmed.

"Oh."

They lapsed into a comfortable silence, watching Seol make fast friends with a group of kids. Finally, So sighed. "I found the letters."

"I see."

"My father hid them all this time."

Soo took a deep breath. "Well, he always did think I was a gold digger. I'm not surprised. That's what Secretary Choi said when he fired me."

"Ji Mong was involved?"

Soo nodded.

"That's probably why I never found out exactly what happened. He's crafty. Could you tell me what happened?

Soo sighed. "You know I was having trouble with my roommate, right? One day I went home and there were all these people there, saying I owed them money – they didn't actually know what I looked like so I managed to sneak off and stay with Myung Hee for the night. She said we would look into it; but when I got to work the next day, one of those people was already there and she made this huge scene. It was mortifying. Secretary Choi got security to escort the woman out but then he fired me. Said I reflected badly on the company."

"I'm sorry."

Soo shrugged. "Myung Hee's husband found out my roommate and her boyfriend had borrowed money in my name. And she thought it was best if I laid low while things were sorted out and through some acquaintances, she found me the job with Madame Oh. I went to the hospital to let you know but Mr. Choi was there and wouldn't let me go through. So I went to your apartment and slid a note in your mailbox, but I guess you never got it.

"I never did go back to the apartment after my father had the heart attack. He asked Yo and me to move into the estate to help him out and keep an eye on Jung. He had been getting into fights at school since before my father's heart attack.

"Yo hired someone to pack up both our places and I used to send Jung to pick up my mail before I sold the apartment; he remembered your name. He told me he always left your letters with the rest of the mail in my father's room because I always checked on him when I arrived home from work."

"We both got screwed, it seems." Soo said, tired more than angry. "Is it safe to say you'll want to be in her life now?"

"Yes."

"So, how soon can I expect a call from your lawyer?"

"I thought maybe we can keep the lawyers out of it. I've looked into it, and I think arbitrage might be our best option."

"What's that?"

"Instead of hiring two lawyers to battle it out and say nasty things about each other, we just hire one lawyer to mediate between you and me and figure out what's best for Seol. I think I know someone who could do that."

"I'm not sure—"

"Arbitrage is not like a sentence from a judge; it's not legally binding unless we both agree to it. If you don't like what the mediator comes up with, we can still go to court afterward. Though I rather we don't."

"Keep your love-child on the down-low?" Soo half joked but it didn't land.

"More like we're going to be in each other's lives forever now so we might as well try to be amicable."

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

"It's not the worst I've heard today, believe me." So sighed tiredly. "What do you say?"

"We can give it a try. I guess. You look into it, and I'll look into the best way to tell her about you."

The waiter arrived with their food and Soo called out for Seol to come back to the table

"She looks just like you," He said in wonder as Seol began to run toward them.

She smiled. People always told her that, but Soo knew Seol's cheekbones were a little sharper, her chin a little pointier and, "I always thought she had your ears."

From Next Chapter:

"It w-was… awful, hyung." Jung said.

"We all know what So is like when he's angry, no need to exaggerate, Jung." Mu said calmly.

"I'm not. You should see what he did to father's desk. I have never seen him like that." Jung said, pointing in the general direction of their father's office, which Wang Geon hadn't left all day. "On the other hand, I can't really blame him for it."

"Just tells us what happened." Yo urged. "Without taking detours."

Jung seemed to think for a moment. "So-hyung has a daughter, and because of father's meddling, he just found out now."

"Oh, fuck."