The feeling of laying alone bothered him like no other. The bed felt cold and isolated, which felt unusual and strange in a way. He reached over to the empty side of the bed and sighed, facing the spot where she use to lay. The picture of them together on her old night stand saddened him more, causing him to face away. Never had he had a broken heart nor cared for someone so much. The pain that swelled in his chest was overcoming, blocking any other emotions out, only allowing him to feel sad and distressed. He groaned loudly as he picked up the cold pillow and slammed it against his face angrily. It had already been two weeks since he had seen Sapphire at the Venue. There was never any sign of her at work since she started working in a different area than him. Jumin frowned sadly as he began to feel sick to his stomach. Since he kicked her out, he hadn't gotten more than three hours of sleep a night, which interfered with his work a tremendous amount.

You don't need to think about her anymore. She's gone and no longer needs you. If she ever came back to you, it would only be for the money and fame, not because of love. Face it...she never loved you in the first place, that's why she was able to leave so easily. She's a clueless, average woman who doesn't deal with problems head on. He sighed. She just...runs from all of her problems…..

Riiiiiiiiiiing

Jumin sat up and lazily rubbed his eyes and grabbed his phone, seeing that it was only 3:45 a.m. He answered the phone without checking the caller ID and sighed.

"This is Jumin Han. Why are you calling me so early. I need sleep."

"Jumin."

Jumin's eyes widened at the voice and he looked at his phone. Sapphire Choii. He gulped and licked his lips. "Sapphire. Did you need something?"

"Y-Yes. I, um..I apologize for calling so late. I..needed to ask you something, but if you want, I'll call you later-"

"You can just tell me now. Hm...Well, you might as well tell me now. It'd be better instead of just wasting my time."

"Figured you say that." She inhaled deeply. "I was wondering if you were busy tomorrow. There's some things we need to talk about."

"I shouldn't be busy. I'll meet you at the nearby cafe at 11. See you then."

"Kay. Goodnight."

The line went dead and Jumin exhaled loudly, flopping back onto his bed. This would be the first time he'd see her in a while…..hopefully he could make things right….


The sun rose early and Jumin woke up. He showered, drank his coffee, ate breakfast and got ready for his day. Everything seemed well. Until she showed up. Jumin tucked in his white dress shirt and began to button it up.

"Jumin, my love," Sarah sang as she entered his bedroom, holding up two, snow white dresses. "Which one makes me look more wealthy?"

Staring into the mirror, Jumin said, "whatever one you think does."

"But, I like them both. One says 'I'm rich and happy' while the other says 'I'm rich and a MILF'."

Jumin raised a brow and turned towards her as he put the tie around his neck, under the collar of his shirt. "MILF goes better with you."

Sarah glared at Jumin. "Haha. Very funny. I'm serious."

"So am I." Jumin tightened the tie and put on his black vest, walking past Sarah. She grabbed his arm and held him in place. Her face darkened as she smiled evilly at Jumin.

"Where are you going?"

"I need to meet with Sapphire."

"Says who?"

"I say so." Jumin pulled his arm away and fixed his hair. "If you don't mind, Sarah, I'll be leaving now-"

"Don't leave me yet…."

"I'm leaving."

"If you leave, I'll tell your daddy you're having an affair with Sapphire again."

Jumin stopped in front of the doors. "Sarah, stop being ridiculous and grow up. A lot of people would appreciate it."

"I'm warning you, Jumin."

"Go ahead and make empty threats, Sarah. I don't have time for your games."

Sarah held onto his waist and hugged him tightly. She bit his shoulder and he swatted at her. "Get away, Sarah. Stop touching me this instant!" Jumin shoved Sarah away and frowned. Sarah jumped on Jumin and wrapped her legs around his waist.

"You'll stay here one way or another, Jumin."


You sat at the small wooden table that sat out front of the café. The umbrella above you kept the sun out of your eyes as you sighed and put your hair up in a messy bun, waiting for that man to get here. You checked your watch and frowned. 11:45. "Gosh….45 minutes late? Since when is Jumin late?"

You sighed sadly, looking into your tea. Maybe he really didn't want to talk to you anymore and just said he'd meet up with you to end the conversation faster. After the call last night, you couldn't fall asleep. Something similar to the feeling of excitement filled your being as you thought about seeing Jumin Han again. But...would it be a mistake?

You looked up as you saw a black car pull up. The door opened and Jumin stepped out, his black suit shining against the sun. He walked over to you and sat down in front of you, sighing, seeming slightly exhausted. Your smile quickly faded as the smell of another woman's perfume flooded your nostrils. He looked at you with a warm and welcoming stare.

"I apologize for being so late. I had a pest to deal with."

"No need for apologizing. I know living with someone can be quite the hassle," you replied. Saying this, you smile calmly. "Um. I was wondering if I could drop by your place sometime before work tomorrow to get my stuff."

A flash of panic seemed to flash through his face, but instead of getting upset, he slowly smiled sincerely. Your face felt hot and you quickly looked away, playing with your straw. He continued smiling at you, his eyes narrowed.

"Of course. Feel free to stop by anytime."

Your eyes drifted back to him as his smooth voice traveled through your ears. Your eyes made contact and neither of you moved a muscle. You held your breath as his eyes never left yours. For a moment, it felt as if the two of you were on a date, and it made your heart skip a beat, causing you to return his smile. Jumin looked away as the waitress approached to ask him what he wanted to drink. As they talked, you admired Jumin's features. The way his jaw line tensed up whenever he'd open his mouth and the way his eyes gleamed when something sparked his interest. His skin looked smooth and clean, almost tempting you to want to rub his face lightly or kiss his cheek.

"You're not listening I presume?"

You lightly shook your head and stared at Jumin, not realizing that the waitress had left and that he was talking. "N-No. Sorry, I spaced out."

Jumin's smile reappeared. "That's fine." He set his elbow on the table and his chin in the palm of his hand. "I'll restate what I was saying. There seems to be a lot of backed up work in my department since you left the assistant life. I was just wondering how your area of expertise has been?"

"O-oh. It's been busy, but there's a lot of guys that are real helpful." You sipped your beverage and licked your lips. Your gray, loose, yet fitting, shirt seemed to blow in the wind and the breeze made your fitted skinny jeans feel cold against your skin. Jumin couldn't help but take in your beauty at that moment. If only he could reach out and tuck that one loose strand behind her ear...if only he could grab her face and kiss her cheek. He needed to fix this now.

"Sapphire," Jumin said, his smile far gone. "I think something needs to be cleared. There's...been a misunderstanding."

"Hm?"

"When I kicked you out, it wasn't a break up."

"Oh, I know," Sapphire replied. "When you got engaged to Sarah, that was the break up."

Jumin's heart cracked. "N-Not what I meant. What I meant was that the whole thing between Sarah and I is a misunderstanding. I don't have any feelings towards that annoying pest. It's only for my father. She wants money and I want him to shut up about it. If you think I hurt you, I'm sorry for that-...wait...No. If I did hurt you, I'm so...sorry." He reached across the table and grabbed your hands. "I apologize, Sapphire. Please, move back in with me."

You sat there, dumbfounded by the things he said. You wanted nothing more than to be by his side and to be with him every night and day. "Jumin…..so...the wedding isn't real?"

Jumin scoffed. "Of course not. There's no proposal, no ring, no flowers, no wedding. Nothing-" just as he said this, another car pulled up and Sarah rushed out. She saw you two and went to Jumin, tugging on his arm. "Let's go! You have to help me with my wedding dress, love."

Love. Those words stung the back of your head as though they imprinted there. Love… You stood and left money on the table, then quickly left. You felt tears coming to your eyes. Jumin lied to me so easily. No wedding, huh? Then….why need dresses?


He stood still, ignoring Sarah's every complaint and word. She wandered around the store for shoes and a veil as he waited by the cashier and doors, hoping this would all end soon. The talk he had with Sapphire didn't go as planned, and now she was the only thing that occupied his mind. As he sat on the sofa in the waiting lounge, he folded his arms and closed his eyes, reliving memories of how he first came to terms with his feelings towards Sapphire..

(Memory)

Jumin had walked throughout the halls of C &R many times before, but never had he showed someone around. This new employee already seemed annoying as it was. Once the tour was done, he walked to his office. One day, on his way to his office, he happened to pass by the coffee maker. Sapphire poured herself some coffee, talking to Jaehee. Jumin walked over to the two.

"Isn't it just fantastic seeing your two assistants getting along?" he said with his usual monotone voice.

"Of course we'd get along," Sapphire chuckled. "We're friends."

"Yes. We're very close acquaintances."

Jumin nodded as he turned his gaze to Sapphire. "I hope work isn't too hard on you. I know it must be difficult getting back into work so soon after the RFA party."

"I like working," she said with a genuine smile. "It entertains me and teaches me a lot of new life lessons, haha."

That laugh. From the first moment he heard her laugh, his heart seemed to race uncontrollably. Not knowing how to feel about this feeling, he gave a slight nod. "That's great."

The fourth week of her working there, he passed her as she was dealing with a customer. She leaning against her desk, her hair in a messy bun and her glasses on as the male was sitting in the chair on the opposite side of her desk, yelling at her. She calmly dealt with the situation. Jumin stopped outside the glass room and peeked in, hearing her soft, comforting voice.

"I understand that, Mr. Kang, but you need to hear me out instead of assuming everything. Listen. The chart showed lower progress in your company and left over products, therefore we lowered our shipment supply so we wouldn't have any products go to waste. If your business is able to make higher rates this term, we will go back to the amount it was at previously."

Sapphire and the man began to laugh, then talked a little about outside life and how their days were.

Later, Jumin knocked on her door and entered her office. She was filing papers and putting them where they went, lightly humming to herself.

"Did you handle the customer?"

She looked up at him with pink cheeks. "Mr. Han? Sorry, I didn't hear you come in….Oh! Um, yeah. It was no problem, he was just stubborn, haha."

"Do stubborn people not bother you?"

"Not really. I don't mind. Everyone has their ups and downs." She smiled at him and stood up, then bowed. "Thanks for letting me work as your assistant."

"I should be thanking you. Since you joined my meetings, sales have gone up." Jumin placed his hands in his pockets. "What did you do before for work?"

"Hm? I didn't really work. I was still a student when I met the RFA. I was going to university, haha. I guess the only actual job I had at the time was working at the library or nearby shops."

"And...I'm assuming you left school?"

Sapphire frowned. "Once I was basically confined to Rika's house, I had no time for studies, actually...I was too worried, hah…" She looked away and blushed. "Then...when I stayed at your house for a couple of days, I really enjoyed myself..I started missing school, so I reapplied. But…" She laughed a forced laugh. "Then you offered me a job here that I couldn't refuse."

Seeing her blush from such simple things put a smile on his face, but he had to hide it. He knew he liked her too much and it wouldn't end well if he confessed. They're two completely different people in different worlds. No matter what, no matter how much feelings he felt, he wouldn't say a word...not a word.

(End)

"Jumin, get up. Let's go out to eat-"

"I'm leaving." Jumin stood up and walked out of the building with his hands shoved deep into his pockets. He walked down the street, Sapphire still on his mind. He entered a bar and sat down. He sighed and looked up at the bartender who was sliding drinks to people. There weren't many people here this night. Probably about 10. Quiet music played in the background as Jumin ordered an alcoholic beverage, studying his scenery lazily. Drinking the liquid in his glass, he closed his eyes, not being able to get Sapphire out of his head. Everytime he'd see a female, he'd see Sapphire's face. All smiles looked like hers, all laughs sounded like hers and all voices sounded like hers. Why does this have to be happening to me? Of all people….

Before he knew it, he had drank 5 glasses of Awamori and was currently on his 6th. Tipsy, too close to drunk, he finished his last glass, wiping his mouth as he exhaled deeply. His cheeks were red as he breathed deeply, mentally smirking. Sapphire had to stay at work late tonight. I could see her before she leaves. I need to get there quickly, though…. Jumin stood from his stool and clumsily walked out of the doors, trying his best to walk straight. He walked down the street, passing couples and young adults. Maybe things would've been different if they had met when they were younger? No...even if that were the case, she'd still be way too young. God….she's only 22 and I'm 27...of course We'll have our differences.

He came to the large building and entered, taking the elevator to Sapphire's department. The elevator seemed to take forever as it slowly went up. Finally, it stopped and the doors opened, letting Jumin walk out. He wandered the halls, not knowing where her current office was. Shit. He made it to one office that had the name tag Choii, S. on it. Jumin knocked on the door, waiting for a response.

"Hm? Come in."

His heart began to race again as he opened the door. His eyes automatically focused on Sapphire, who was wearing a somewhat tight white dress shirt with a small, skinny tie and a tight, dark gray pencil skirt. She was standing by her filing cabinet as she sorted through things. Her eyes turned to look at Jumin and a blush crept onto her cheeks.

"Mr. Han?"

Jumin breathed heavily and walked to Sapphire. Sapphire turned her whole body so that she was facing Jumin. He got close to her and she tried scooting back, her back hitting the filing cabinet.

"Mr. Han, what are-" Her eyes widened as Jumin embraced her tightly, shoving his face in her hair, which laid on top of her shoulder. He inhaled and gave her a squeeze. She gulped and the smell of alcohol surrounded him. Sapphire grinned and tried pulling away, causing Jumin to tighten his arms around her.

"Sapphire," he breathed. "Sapphire...stop moving."

She froze as his breath quickened. "Mr. Han, what's wrong?"

Stop calling me that...please stop. "Sapphire...call me Jumin.."

"Mr. Han, are you okay? What's wrong?"

Stop! I'm not Mr. Han to you, I'm Jumin! "Sapphire, please..stop being formal with me.."

"But-"

"Stop!"

Her eyes widened as her shoulder began to get wet. She froze, not knowing what to do. Jumin clenched his teeth as he took ragged breaths. "Don't leave me….don't get your stuff…...stay with me." He couldn't believe it. He couldn't believe he allowed himself to cry in front of Sapphire. It was a complete embarrassment. The thought of her taking her things, out of his penthouse, broke his heart. That was her house. It was their house. "C...Come back...I..I'm sorry, Sapphire….Come back to me...please.."

All Sapphire could do was stand there. It hurt seeing the one she loved so much, cry on her shoulder. His ragged breaths quickened, scared of what she was going to say. She stayed silent. This frightened Jumin. He didn't know if she would accept his apology. Was she done with him?

"Jumin…"

His eyes widened as she wrapped her arms around his waist and held him tightly, also crying. Her little sniffles filled his ears as she squeezed him. Tears ran down her face as the two of them sank to the floor, Jumin holding Sapphire tightly in his arms. "Say my..name again….please.."

"Jumin. Jumin Han."