Thank you to all the reviews and for continuing to remain with this story. This is a slightly shorter chapter, more as a transitional chapter. Right now I am hoping that this will wrap up at the most of about 35 chapters. I had originally intended it to go to 30 chapters. I don't want to drag it out too long and have it get boring, but I don't know if I will be able to fully evolve Sung Ho's ultimate plan and how it all is associated even with Kang Hee Soo's original plan in only like 7 chapters. So in order to have everything happen and bring it to a full resolution, I am going to need at least those 5 more chapters.
The moment Yi Jeong saw Ga Eul after she spoke, he was both pained and saw red. While Ga Eul stood there, staring at the screen just beyond Yi Jeong, it was seeing that Ji Hu stood directly behind her as if they had arrived together. It did not matter to him that Woo Bin and Jun Pyo were also with her, as well as Jan Di and Sunny.
"I-," Yi Jeong started.
"What does it matter to you?" Ginger asked as she walked over, slipping her arm through Yi Jeong's, looking very comfortable at his side. "Did you honestly think he would be interested in you?"
Yi Jeong jerked his arm away from her. "I'm certainly not interested in you," he said.
"Last night speaks differently," Ginger said.
"There is no way in hell that I slept with you," Yi Jeong said. Ginger only glanced at the image emblazoned on the screen.
"Bro, we couldn't get a hold of you last night," Woo Bin said, his tone worried.
"What's going..." Sung Ho asked as he approached, seeing the crowd. His eyes fell on the screen and widened when he saw the image. He immediately turned to look at Ga Eul. It took all of his self-control to not smirk at the absolutely heartbroken look on her face.
"I did not sleep with Ginger!" Yi Jeong said.
"No, you didn't," Ginger said. Yi Jeong's head jerked to her. She gave him a seductive smile, reaching up to try and touch his cheek, but he jerked away. "We didn't actually do any sleeping. We were too busy with-."
"Not a chance in hell did that happen!" Yi Jeong snapped as he pulled away from her.
Ga Eul was barely listening, simply staring at the screen as tears filled her eyes. She had thought that Yi Jeong felt something for her based on how he had almost kissed her before and how he was often so attentive to her and gentle with her. She had denied a date with Sung Ho because of how she felt for Yi Jeong. She had denied a kiss with Ji Hu because she could not betray her feelings for Yi Jeong even if he did not know of them. Yet he had apparently slept with the very person who was doing everything she could to make Ga Eul's life a living hell at Shinhwa. Blindly, she reached out and grabbed at an arm, lifting her teary gaze to see that she had grabbed Sung Ho's arm, his own dark eyes finding hers.
"Get me out of here," was all she said. She ignored her brother and cousin protesting, even Ji Hu's gentle protest as Sung Ho whisked her away from the crowd and penetrating looks from everyone crowded around for the spectacle the morning had delivered.
"Where were you?" Jun Pyo questioned Yi Jeong after he and the other members of the F4 dragged him away from the rambling crowd, and from Ginger, in order to find out answers. Yi Jeong had wanted to take off after Sung Ho and Ga Eul, as did the others, but they had to figure this out first. Woo Bin already pulled out his phone to send a text to one of those he trusted to find and keep an eye on Ga Eul.
"I need to find Ga Eul," Yi Jeong said attempting to push past Woo Bin.
"No, you need to-," Ji Hu started to say, stopping Yi Jeong from moving. He was not expecting to feel Yi Jeong's fist connect with his jaw.
"What the hell, bro?!" Woo Bin demanded as he caught Ji Hu.
"This is all your fault!" Yi Jeong hissed at Ji Hu, trying to advance on him again. He probably would have been able to reach the other man if not for Jun Pyo catching his arms.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Ji Hu demanded. "Care to explain to me why you punched me for no damn reason?"
"No reason? Kissing Ga Eul is a damn good reason!" Yi Jeong snapped. "What? It wasn't enough for you to almost tear us apart by kissing Geum Jan Di in a fit of a regretted moment, you now do the same with Ga Eul? Was she another regret?"
Ji Hu broke free of Woo Bin and advanced on Yi Jeong, returning the punch to his jaw that he had received before grabbing the front of Yi Jeong's shirt. "Ga Eul would never be a regret," he said in a low, menacing tone. "And if I ever kissed her, it would be for keeps and I'd never let her go."
"Is that what last night was?" Yi Jeong snapped. He knocked Ji Hu's arms away and shoved him back, but was caught by Woo Bin as he tried rushing at Ji Hu. Jun Pyo shifted and caught Ji Hu.
"What the hell are you babbling about?" Ji Hu demanded.
"I saw you, Ji Hu!" Yi Jeong snapped. "I saw you kiss Ga Eul!"
"You kissed my yeodongsaeng?" Jun Pyo asked, glancing at Ji Hu.
"No, I didn't," Ji Hu said.
"You are a liar!" Yi Jeong bellowed. "I saw you last night in the art center!"
"Then what you saw was wrong!" Ji Hu bellowed in return. He shook Jun Pyo off and straightened his shirt and jacket before running his fingers through his hair with obvious frustration.
"I saw-," Yi Jeong started.
"If you saw what you think you did, then you saw us almost kiss," Ji Hu said. "I admit that. But we did not actually kiss because we realized we couldn't."
"You expect me to believe that?" Yi Jeong demanded.
"At this rate, the fact that you supposedly slept with Ginger and want us to believe otherwise, despite the images we saw, you don't have a leg to stand on when it comes to belief," Ji Hu said cruelly. "And frankly I don't give a damn if you believe me, because it means you won't believe Ga Eul either when she will deny it."
"All right, stop," Woo Bin said as he felt Yi Jeong try to escape from his hold. "This is getting us nowhere!"
"He's tearing us apart again!" Yi Jeong snarled.
"Shut up, Yi Jeong," Ji Hu said. "You have no claim on Ga Eul!"
Yi Jeong attempted to advance on Ji Hu with a snarl when Jun Pyo's words stopped him. "He's right," the taller man said.
"What?" Yi Jeong asked.
"If you had feelings for Ga Eul, you never told her or let any of us know," Jun Pyo said. "Getting pissed at Ji Hu if he and Ga Eul did kiss does nothing but tear us apart, but not because of Ji Hu but because of you. The situation with Geum Jan Di was different. My feelings for her were known."
"He knew how I felt about Ga Eul!" Yi Jeong said.
"Did he?" Jun Pyo asked. "Because I sure as hell didn't. If any of us knew, it was you and Woo Bin."
"I suspected," Woo Bin admitted. "But I believe, Yi Jeong, I also told you to put up or shut up." He simply shrugged when Yi Jeong shrugged his hands off of him and he glared at the other man. "You didn't tell her how you felt, for whatever reason. I warned you that if Ji Hu had feelings for her, that you had no leg to stand on if he wanted to pursue her because you didn't."
"My interest is moot," Ji Hu interjected. "Before Ga Eul and I kissed, we both agreed that we couldn't."
"What?" Jun Pyo asked. "Not that I am complaining because it's my yeodongsaeng, but why?"
"Because of Yi Jeong," Ji Hu admitted.
"What?" Yi Jeong asked, a frown marring his handsome features.
"You really are an idiot," Ji Hu said. "Ga Eul likes you, it's obvious. She couldn't kiss me because she likes you. I couldn't kiss her because she likes you and it's also obvious you like her."
"Yet you almost did!" Yi Jeong snapped.
"Keyword there. Almost," Ji Hu pointed out. "I regretted kissing Jan Di. I would not have regretted kissing Ga Eul if we hadn't stopped, but nothing would have come of it because of her feelings and yours."
"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Yi Jeong asked.
"Honestly, after what Ga Eul just saw and it appears you did, I really don't care if you feel better," Ji Hu admitted. "And right now I wish I had met her before you because I could easily fall in love with that woman and she would not be suffering right now."
"You," Yi Jeong tried to advance, but Woo Bin grabbed him.
"Let him go," Ji Hu said. "He wants to fight me that much for his own stupidity, let him. I'll fight him for hurting Ga Eul."
"I didn't sleep with Ginger!" Yi Jeong snapped.
"Really? Because those images say otherwise," Ji Hu said.
"We didn't believe the images when we saw Geum Jan Di laying in bed with another man and she denied it," Yi Jeong said.
"Didn't you?" Ji Hu asked with an arched brow. "You did at first, you flat out told me that. It took me to convince you two idiots, while I was in Paris, to think about the type of person Jan Di was and how she is the least likely person to just sleep around considering what she said to Jun Pyo before kicking him in the head. That is when you started investigating the situation and proved she was set up."
"Yet you can believe it about me?" Yi Jeong asked.
"Let me ask you something, Yi Jeong," Ji Hu said. "If it were any other girl but Ginger, could you deny the possibility?"
"Ji Hu," Woo Bin said.
"I'm serious," Ji Hu said. "At this moment, as pissed as I am that you are blaming me because you jumped to conclusions, I am actually not trying to be cruel."
"Then what are you trying to be?" Yi Jeong asked.
"Realistic," Ji Hu said. "Yi Jeong, you have a reputation for drinking and carousing with women. You have a nickname, you and Woo Bin both, for a reason. It sounds like you got overly drunk last night and took someone to bed. It would appear that someone was Ginger."
"But I..." Yi Jeong trailed off, dread filling him. "No, I wouldn't..."
"Bro, can you answer honestly that you remember what happened last night?" Woo Bin asked.
"I..." Yi Jeong ran his fingers through his hair. "I don't remember... after I left the art center after seeing Ji Hu and Ga Eul, I went drinking and the rest is a blur."
"So you could have slept with her," Jun Pyo said gently.
"I... maybe," Yi Jeong said quietly before he shook his head. "No, I couldn't have. Not even blackout drunk could I have touched her. I would have known somehow. I can't stand that bitch."
"Unfortunately, we can't rule it out," Woo Bin said. "Not yet anyway."
"Meaning?" Yi Jeong asked.
"Meaning, we investigate Ginger's claim, the same way you did when Jan Di was accused of sleeping with someone," Ji Hu said.
Yi Jeong slowly nodded, then frowned. "I'm so-," he started before Ji Hu waved his hand.
"I understand why you got pissed. But you are truly an idiot," he said with a smirk. He sobered. "In the meantime, we need to keep an eye on Sung Ho."
"My best man is watching them now," Woo Bin said. "We need to make sure he doesn't-."
"He lays a single finger on my yeodongsaeng, I'll rip his limbs out," Jun Pyo interjected.
"If she decides to get serious with him?" Woo Bin asked.
"She wouldn't!" Jun Pyo and Yi Jeong both said.
"Do we honestly know that?" Woo Bin asked. "If she's feeling especially hurt over what Yi Jeong may have done, he could get her on the rebound since Ji Hu isn't an option after they decided it wasn't right for them because of her feelings."
"I'll talk to her," Ji Hu said. "She feels comfortable talking to me enough that I can probably broach it the easiest." He lifted a finger to Yi Jeong when he saw him turning slightly red. "I am not attempting to move in, she genuinely likes you. Don't be an idiot. She'll open up to me as a friend, whereas she might see Woo Bin or Jun Pyo as interfering because they are family."
"He has a valid point," Woo Bin said. "She'll see Jun Pyo and me as trying to keep her from being happy because we don't like Sung Ho."
"And she won't feel that way with Ji Hu?" Jun Pyo asked.
"He's not her oppa or sachon," Woo Bin pointed out. "She'll be more likely to view his concern as just that, concern, not necessarily anything against Sung Ho. Even if it is."
"Then let's start with finding out if she's okay and start figuring out the mystery of last night for Yi Jeong," Jun Pyo said.
There were times when a plan came together beautifully, but in those times, Park Sung Ho had to remind himself that he could not yet celebrate his victory and move too quickly and ruin it all. As he watched Gu Ga Eul pacing back and forth, her cheeks wet from the silent tears slipping from her eyes, it was exactly one of those times. For his plan to truly work, he needed to pretend as he cared about her hurting. Though he honestly did care, despite the fact that he saw Ga Eul as a tool as much as anything. He found her attractive and would not mind possessing her, but ultimately she truly was the means to an end to sticking it to the F4. If he got more out of it than just that, he would not be against it.
"I can't believe he actually slept with her," Ga Eul finally said, her voice trembling as she spoke. "For all of So Yi Jeong's words, he actually slept with Choi Jin Hee."
"He is the one you like," Sung Ho stated. He tried to look a bit sullen when Ga Eul turned to him. He already knew she had feelings for the pottery prodigy, which is why Ginger hated her so much because it was obvious So Yi Jeong felt the same way. But he had a role to play. "That's why you said no when I-."
"Doesn't matter now, I guess," Ga Eul said, tears forming. "You know, I knew his reputation with women. I actually thought... I thought that..."
"You could change him?" Sung Ho asked. He pushed himself to his feet and walked over when Ga Eul ducked her head. "Men like that probably won't change. He gets it from his father."
"I've heard his father's history," Ga Eul said. "It doesn't justify how he acts, but heartbreak will-."
"Yi Jeong is just like his father," Sung Ho said. "My own appa ran in the social circles of the Gus, Sos, Juns, and Songs when he was their age. I am well aware of the history between So Hyun Sub, your abeoji, and eomeoni. I am also well aware of Yi Jeong's first love, who is now dating his hyung."
Ga Eul frowned. "What?" she asked.
"You didn't know that Cha Eun Jae was Yi Jeong's first love?" Sung Ho asked.
"He never..." Ga Eul frowned. "He never said."
Sung Ho lifted his shoulders. He knew that what had been between Eun Jae and Yi Jeong had been nothing more than two people with an initial crush, but Ga Eul did not have to know that. "His reputation all started because she broke his heart and got together with So Il Hyun, leaving Yi Jeong broken-hearted."
"Oh," Ga Eul said. She had met Eun Jae and had thought her a very sweet woman. She also adored her relationship with Il Hyun, but now she wondered if maybe Eun Jae was not as sweet as she originally thought if she could pit the brothers against each other. Yet in the pit of her belly, something also did not seem quite right with Sung Ho's assessment of the situation. If it was really how he stated it was, then why were Yi Jeong and Il Hyun so close? Especially after Ji Hu had told her Yi Jeong was over her.
"But that doesn't give him the right to hurt you how he did with Ginger," Sung Ho said as he walked over to her. "I'm sorry."
Ga Eul lowered her head, the pain in her heart hitting her anew. She shook her head and looked at Sung Ho as he stood before her. "I shouldn't be hurt," she said. "I never told him how I felt. I guess it's obvious he doesn't have any feelings for me, not if he is going to continue to sleep with whoever wants to sleep with him. I think I am more hurt because he knows how much of a living hell Ginger has been trying to make things for me. My feelings for him aside, I at least thought we were friends enough for him to not do that."
Sung Ho almost smirked at the glee he felt over her words. Instead, he cupped her shoulders, rubbing them gently. "I can understand that hurt," he admitted. "But one night doesn't make a relationship. Ginger may have gotten what she wanted once, it doesn't mean it will ever happen again. Especially since it seems he doesn't remember last night."
Ga Eul frowned. "What do you mean?" she asked.
"It sounds like Yi Jeong might have been overly drunk last night," Sung Ho said. "Ginger just happened to be the supposedly lucky woman he turned to."
Ga Eul scoffed, shaking her head. "Is that supposed to make me feel better?" she asked him with an arched brow.
Sung Ho at least had the forethought to wince at her question, giving her the impression he hit a raw spot and was sorry for it. A small part of him was, as he realized he did not really want to hurt her. Unfortunately, for his plan to work, he had to rub salt in the wound. "Sorry," he said. "I am not trying to hurt you more, but simply pointing out that the likelihood of him having any sort of permanent relationship with her is non-existent and therefore shouldn't affect your friendship with him."
Ga Eul scoffed again, crossing her arms over her chest defensively. "No, this is probably going to make her worse," she said. "Ginger will take every chance she can to rub in my face that she slept with Yi Jeong and if he still rejects her, it'll fuel her anger and I'll be on the receiving end of it. Or Sunny will."
"I know she and Sunny haven't been hanging out anymore, but did they have that bad of a falling out?" Sung Ho asked.
"She was taking great pleasure in using the supposed F4 red card as an excuse to torment Sunny for weeks now," Ga Eul said.
Sung Ho's brow arched. "What do you mean supposed?" he questioned. He knew that the red card he had fabricated was perfect, so why was there a question?
"They swear they never sent it," Ga Eul said. "That they stopped sending them after everything with Geum Jan Di. So now they wonder who sent it and why. They suspect, even, that it was meant as a means to make me angry with them, especially Jun Pyo and Woo Bin."
"Are you sure it's not just them making excuses so you don't hate them?" Sung Ho asked. He immediately lifted his hands in defense when Ga Eul spun, her dark eyes snapping in anger at him.
"What are you implying, Park Sung Ho?" she demanded.
"I am only asking because generally speaking, leopards do not change their spots," he said. "Look at Yi Jeong as an example with his drinking and philandering. Maybe they were distracted for a while not to send those cards, but they have never liked Sunny and suddenly you and she were getting close. It's obvious they wanted to send a message to her."
"They swear to me that they do not do that anymore," Ga Eul said. "And neither my oppa nor my sachon have given me reason to think they are not being honest."
"You didn't question it?" Sung Ho wondered, fighting to keep the annoyance out of his voice. He had planned so carefully and based on the display he had initially seen when she saw Sunny being attacked, he was sure that he would succeed in putting doubt in her mind. "Not even a little." Triumph filled him when he saw Ga Eul hesitate a moment, her eyes lowering before she answered.
"I admit, at first, that I had been wrong," she said. "Because even Geum Jan Di had a visceral reaction to the card when she saw it. However, I believe Jun Pyo, Woo Bin, and Ji Hu when they told me that they haven't even thought of those cards since the last one sent to Jan Di and do not send them anymore."
"But you don't believe So Yi Jeong?" Sung Ho had to answer. "You left him out." He was quick to point out the absence of the potter's name from her list when she arched a brow at him.
"He wasn't there when I spoke to the other three last night about the card," Ga Eul admitted. "They will find out who sent it and take care of it." She quickly pulled out her phone. "That reminds me, I need to tell them I want to assist in that when they find out who..."
Sung Ho reached over and covered her phone with his hand. "Wait," he said. He offered a small smile. "I think you are using that path of thinking to keep yourself distracted from why you are now with me."
"If I stop to think about So Yi Jeong and Choi Jin Hee right now, I don't know if I can stop thinking about it," Ga Eul admitted, fresh tears forming in her eyes. "I can't think about it. I can't..." The tears started to slip from her eyes again and her fingers started to tremble around her phone. Sung Ho took advantage and drew her phone from her suddenly slack fingers and set it on the table before he drew her into the opening of his arms.
"Shh," he whispered into her hair, drawing her head to his chest. She was stiff in his arms and he made no moves to do anything more than just hold her, his hand resting lightly at her back, the other cupping her head. "It's okay. Just let it out. I'm here for you."
A smirk tugged at the corner of Sung Ho's lips as he rested his chin on top of Ga Eul's head as her arms wrapped around his waist and her face buried into his chest before racking sobs overtook her frame. Phase one was now complete, it was now on to phase two.