This perception that men usually gain weight after living together with their partner is totally bullshit.
I'm telling you, it's the women who gain weight first.
I can vouch for that.
Don't tell me you're thinking about trying a new fad diet.
Is it fad diet because everyone is doing it or
Is it fad diet because it doesn't actually work?
What if it actually works and everyone is doing it. Is it still categorized as fad?
You're making my head hurt.
Anyway how many times do I have to tell you.
You don't need to do any diet! You are PERFECT!
See, that's what makes women gain weight, I think.
It's complacency.
You try asking your husband whether you look fat and see if he answers with 'yes, actually, I can see your roll of fat from here where I'm standing 25 meters away from you, and it looks like a pack of marshmallow swimming in a sea of milk and whipped cream.
You think? Huh?
Of course they would say: no, darling, you look perfect.
.time.
Are you telling me you're gaining weight only after a few weeks living with Yi Jeong?
My advice will be to get a pregnancy test.
No! Stop being so gross!
And I'm not living with him!
So? And you kind of.
I need to reassert my stance on this living arrangement. I am so totally going back to my apartment once this shenanigan is over.
You get distracted easily, don't you?
Not as bad as Jae Kyung, thank you very much.
Anyway….. Are you telling me you're fat?
No I'm not. I'm just saying he shouldn't say I look perfect all the time because then when I really need to look perfect my standard would have stooped down so low I don't know how to recover.
Oh My God, unbelievable. HUMBLE BRAG!
I know, right?
NOT CUTE!

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For someone who supposedly was living a high life and had been a constant fodder of gossip magazine, Yi Jeong surprisingly had spent a lot of time at home. Each morning he would drop her off at her office before he headed to the museum, or his other office, the head quarter for the So family business, that included a string of hotels and resorts that operated both in Korea and abroad, across Asia. According to Yi Jeong, they were in the process of expanding the brand to break into American and European soil as well.
He would then call her just before he finish for the day to tell her to get ready to be picked up.

Dinner was usually spent at home, with wine and tea to finish the day.

She expressed her disbelief to him over the drive home.

'Are you telling me this is your daily routine? A nine to five schedule, then come back home straight away without checking out the latest club opening or whatever,' she said as he made a particularly fast turn at the corner and spilled her take away cappuccino a little. 'Heeeyyy, be careful please,' a few drops of the brown liquid had sadly landed on her precious white shirt dress.
'Sorry,' he turned his head a little. 'No, I guess not. Not really my routine.'

She took a sip of her coffee and continued her line of questioning.
'What is your daily routine then? Partying until 4am every day?'
'Maybe 3am.' He winked at her, who rolled her eyes at his gesture. 'Kidding.'
She shrugged her shoulders daintily. 'I'm not jealous or anything if that's what you're thinking right now. I'm merely curious.'

He snorted a little at that, which in theory should have made her a little annoyed but she graciously let it go.
'Hmmm, I don't know, I guess I usually go to this particular bar once or twice a week with Woo Bin, they have nice selection of liquor. What else, hum, lots of business dinners, meeting potential business partners, boring stuff, to be honest. But aside from that, I really don't go out that much nowadays, though. Especially since Woo Bin got engaged and Jae Kyung seems to lock him in a cage or something.'

'Huh. Interesting.'
She sipped her take away coffee rather absent mindedly.
'Why? Do you think I still live the way I used to ten years ago? It's kids stuff, you know.'
'Not really, no,' she hesitated. 'It's just that I don't like to be a nuisance, you know. You don't really have to baby sit me every night. I'll be fine by myself.'

He pretended to pout and reached for her hand.
'I like babysitting though.'
'Yeah, that's not what you said to Woo Bin….'
'What? Damn that stupid arse. Did he tell her everything though?'
'Oh, just the important ones,' she grinned at his scowling.
'Well then he must have forgotten to tell Jae Kyung that I said, I was not content to just do the babysitting. See the difference?'
'Ugh, you're such a player.' She pulled back her hand from his grasp.
Yi Jeong laughed at her pinched face and continued his drive home.

No sooner than their arrival home that he turned to her, eyes sparkling with mischief and suppressed excitement.
'Hey, how about we go out clubbing tonight.'
'Really?' she eyed him speculatively. 'Why?'
'Just because.' He paused and grinned at her. 'I haven't gone clubbing for a long time and I heard there's this nice club called Blue Velvet…'

Ga Eul laughed at him. 'You know, that actually sounds pretty interesting,' she said. 'Although, I need to find some appropriate clothes to wear.'
'What's wrong with this one? You look perfect.'
'Really?' Ga Eul rolled her eyes to heaven. 'You were the one dressing me up on that one pretend date ten years ago. Have your standard slipped so low now?' she scratched the coffee stain on her shirt dress absentmindedly and walked to her room.
'Oh I don't know,' he drawled behind her. 'I am quite happy taking them all off nowadays,' he caught her fist before it hit him hard on the chest. 'Shall we go in an hour?' he said smoothly, deftly turned her back to her room. 'There's this nice place to go for dinner, then we'll go to the club.' He then walked calmly to his own room, whistling as he did so.

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Ga Eul did not have the faintest idea of what Blue Velvet looked like. She was surprised to see it located in the quite affluent part of town. Her imagination had been running wild ever since Yi Jeong told her about that piece of information from Woo bin. In her mind, the club must have situated in a rather dingy area where lowlifes and gangster lookalike roamed free. However, the entrance at the front of the building looked decidedly posh. A dark glass door that opened automatically as they approached the building revealed a rather small lobby which led to the alleyway that took them to the main section inside.

Inside, as expected from the name, blue was the main color of choice. Neon blue, dark blue, light blue, indigo, you name it, they were bright and solid, and yet not overpowering. The clever use of lighting from the wall and ceiling helped making the room feel warm instead of dark and somber.

The club was separated into three main areas. The first one was the bar area where people mingled, queuing and ordering their drinks. Several bartenders were busy taking and making orders behind the bar, mixing various liquid from the bottles and served them in tall glasses for the customers.

The second part was the DJ booth and the dance floor, which already packed with people shaking and swaying their bodies to the music. They walked past a group of female patrons who looked like they had had their share of alcohol, judging from the way they started shrieking upon landing their eyes on Yi Jeong. For real, Ga Eul thought darkly.

The last part was the VIP lounge. To get here they had to climb a staircase and walked through a thick glass bridge draped in purple lighting. Yi Jeong had asked the concierge at the front desk to take them to this area. Being So Yi Jeong must have opened a lot of doors, Ga Eul mused as she followed him to the relatively quiet room compared to the one below.

There were several plush couches in the area, designed like a minimalist smoking room, With experienced eyes, Yi Jeong stirred Ga Eul toward the best seat where they could have uninterrupted view to the dance floor below and yet quite secluded to have an intimate conversation.

'Are you sure you haven't been here before?' she teased him after he ordered drinks to the waiter without even glancing at the menu.
'It's the same everywhere anyway,' he shrugged and leaned back against the couch. 'Come here,' he patted the seat next to him and she obediently followed. This version of Yi Jeong was the one etched so deeply in her mind, it took her back ten years before. She looked at him in wonder.

'What are you thinking?' he said to her.
'Oh nothing,' she paused. 'This is like a déjà vu, right?'
'Please don't remind me,' his eyebrows furrowed as he laced his fingers with hers. 'I loathed my younger self.'

She smiled at that, because hopeless as she had been, she had loved his younger self.
'You were pretty horrible,' she said, 'but not without merit.' Here she winked at him playfully as he rolled his eyes.

Stretching out a little, Yo Jeong looked around the room. The area where they were sitting now was quite dark, but they have excellence advantage at noticing other patrons in the vicinity. Not many people sitting in the room, most were busy engaging themselves downstairs.

Ga Eul was busy watching the dance floor, amazed at the ability of some people to move their body in tune and in sync with the music, when she felt Yi Jeong softly tugged her elbow.
'Hmm?' she turned around to see his face, a small smile played on the corner of his lips.
'Let's have a look at the glass display over there,' he tilted his head slightly at the corner of the room.
'What?' she followed his gaze, her curiosity getting the better of her.

In the opposite wall, bath in a soft glow of light, was a mid size wooden cabinet, more like a slim high table top with a couple of drawers fitted in. True to form, it was following the same minimalist design with no carving or pattern embellished into the surface. The main function though, as a base for a simple glass display like one in a museum. However, it's not the furniture which has peaked Yi Jeong's interest. It was what was encased inside.

They left their seat together and huddled together in front of the display, clearly the focal point of the room.

'The style is definitely from mid fifteenth century,' he said to Ga Eul who peered curiously at the display.

Inside the glass case was a medium sized ceramic bowl in light grey shade, almost white. The decoration depicted a bird risen from ash in blue paint in one side. Chinese characters scattered around the bowl to make a perfect circle, starting and ending with the risen blue bird.

'Damn it, it's beautiful,' sighed Yi Jeong, a trace of disappointment in his voice. 'It really should belong in the museum.'
'Yeah,' she agreed.
'Look at the quality of craftsmanship,' Yi Jeong continued, his eyes hardly left the bowl. 'Even from here, without touching it you can see how smooth the surface is, and look at how beautiful the painting is.'

She nodded and ran her hand on his arm.

They stood there for a while before went back to sit at the couch. The crowd on the dance floor was getting rowdier with each song, they cheered as the well known beat started on the speaker.

'Hey,' Ga Eul said, nudging at Yi Jeong who seemed a bit lost in thought.
'Hmm?'
'Wanna dance?'
He smiled at her, took a sip of his drink and started to stand up. Before they managed to leave, however, an older gentleman came over and waved a greeting at them.

'You must be So Yi Jeong,' he reached out to offer a handshake.
'That's right,' Yi Jeong nodded and shook his hand. 'And you are..?'
The older man introduced himself as the owner of the club. 'I saw you there earlier,' he pointed at the antique bowl. 'It's beautiful, isn't it?'

Yi Jeong was polite as he answered, yes, it is very beautiful, and if he doesn't mind sharing, how did he get hold on such fine pottery?

The owner mulled over his thought before starting his answer. 'I only started my collection, see. A few weeks ago, an agent offered me this lovely piece, which as you can see, is in a very good condition. I thought, well, why not. So I bought it, but the curious thing is, a message arrived with the pottery.' He paused and rubbed his chin thoughtfully. 'It said, So Yi Jeong the renowned potter and head of the So museum will one day come and see this display.' He looked at Yi Jeong carefully. 'That's why I put it here in the club, you know, purely out of curiosity. The message also says something like he won a point over you.'

A glance was all it took for Ga Eul to see that Yi Jeong was exercising a very good game in strength and restraint. He kept his expression neutrally blank as the owner kept on telling the story. 'I would, of course, move it back to my house,' the older man said. 'It's too much of a risk keeping it here.'

'That is very interesting,' Y Jeong offered after a few seconds passed. 'Do you, by any chance, know the name of the previous owner who sold it to you?'

The club owner sadly shook his head. 'No, everything was processed and done through the agent. I did, actually, ask about the seller. But he said it was done by correspondence and phone call.'
Yi Jeong rubbed his chin thoughtfully. 'Oh well,' he said. 'That's a bit disappointing, isn't it? I would love to know why he needs to win one over me. I suppose, I can't always win, right?' he smiled his charming smile and shook hands before excusing himself and took Ga Eul's hand firmly in his and led her to the dance floor.

'You still wanna dance?' she whispered, half surprised, to him.
'Not really.' He murmured to her hair.
'We can go home now.'
'No, stay here,' he pulled her closer, their bodies melding perfectly together, her soft curves to his hard surface. They moved like it's a slow dance even though the DJ played a fast EDM music on the sound system. 'Just, stay.'
She sighed and tried to relax her tense shoulder. As the new music played she closed her eyes and rested her head on his chest.
Around them the crowd half chanting the chorus to the song, their head moving up and down as the beat got faster and the music louder.

At the precise moment as the beat dropped, she felt her heart constricted, her stomach plummeted, and for the first time she felt terribly afraid, not for herself, but for the man whose strong hands splayed comfortably on her back and waist, holding her close.

'What are we doing, Yi Jeong Sunbae,' she said softly against his chest as they swayed despite the music.
'What do you mean?'
'This thing here now….' She trailed, trying to find the right words.
'Don't worry about it.'
'No, it's not that.'
'What is it then?'
'This thing between us…..'
Yi Jeong looked down at her rather pale face; her eyes looked especially wide as she looked back at him. They stayed there not moving before he took her hand and led her outside.

The night was cool and rather windy, summer was almost over. They stood side by side outside the club, their backs to the wall, savoring the sudden chill and relative quiet as compared to the scene inside.

'What is bugging you, Ga Eul?'

Yi Jeong kept his hands in the pocket of his pants. He was not a regular smoker like Woo Bin, who had to have cigarette breaks a few times a day, but at that moment he was itching to have a puff of smoke. With a long sigh he leaned his head against the wall.

'Our relationship.'
His eyebrows rose with her unexpected answer.
'What about our relationship?'
She bit her lip before answering.
'Are you…. Are you serious about it?' she stole a quick glance at him. 'Or is it because we are trapped together in this situation? Once we quit playing detectives…..what will happen then?

He shifted from his position next to her, one shoulder still leaned on the wall but his body was facing her.

'Ga Eul,' he grabbed her forearm and gently forced her to change position as well. 'What do you think we are doing now? How do you think I feel about us?'
'I…' she paused, 'I really don't know.' A sigh escaped her lips. 'It's just, it's just that… we were dancing there, inside, and..,,umm...and all of the sudden I felt so scared if ever something happened to you. The thing is, if this thing between us is not real, I'd rather we stop now. If I feel so afraid for you now, what will happen when….'

She didn't get to finish her sentence since Yi Jeong covered her lips with his. His mouth tender and strong, their breath hot and mingled, sweet and scented with alcohol.
'I love you,' he said as they parted, one hand still firm on her elbow while the other found solace on the back of her head, tangled with her hair.

'What?'

He laughed softly at her reply.

'I love you,' he said again, his voice warm and full of smile. 'You baffle me, infuriate me, render me speechless and loose good night sleeps. But now that I have you, I can't imagine living without you,' he paused for a long seconds, 'that says a lot about my years of idiocy, doesn't it?'
He let out a laugh as she snorted at his sentence.

Slowly he dipped his head again to recapture her mouth. He felt her smile against his lips.
'I love you too,' her mouth moving soundlessly against his.
Or perhaps that was his imagination.

But from the way she snaked her hands up his shoulder, rounded tightly against his neck, he was pretty sure about it.

It was love.

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