A/N: Thank you to all those who are still reading this story. We really appreciate the support. Special thanks to glorialopezgl534.03 and Sunny for your reviews. Your reviews make our day and give us the motivation to continue writing.

glorialopezgl534.03: The parrot is Jan Di's new nemesis ;)

Sunny: Happy to hear that last chapter was your favorite. Some scenes, particularly the Jae Kyung Woo Bin conversation, gave me a lot of trouble. So I'm glad to know you still liked it.

I hope you all like this chapter. Enjoy!

Ga Eul turned off the first alarm, then the three subsequent ones, scheduled three minutes apart.

She ran a comb through her hair, dusted some powder on her face, and dialed Yi Jeong's number. It would be 10:30 in the night in Sweden. He would be home by now.

"Ga Eul," he said with a smile. "You've yoga class again?"

Yoga? Right. That was the excuse she came up with. "Yeah. Trying to stick to it. Great health benefits."

The door behind Yi Jeong opened, and a twenty-something man stepped through.

"Yo, Yi Jeong," he said. "Enough work for tonight. The boys and I are going out, and you're coming. No excuses."

"Can't Andy. I'm in the middle—"

Andy peaked at the screen. "Oh. I see. That's what you've been busy with all those times."

"What. No—"

He put his hands up. "Sorry. Didn't mean to interrupt your date. Carry on."

"Andy, it's not—Andy!" Yi Jeong adjusted his shirt collar. "He's just—he was only—"

"Yi Jeong—"

"You know Sweden has great food."

"Yi Jeong—"

"Yeah. The Bread. The bread here is great. Do you know they knead it with their feet? It's crazy."

It was over ten minutes until Ga Eul managed to get a word in edgewise. "Yi Jeong," she said. "Thank you. For making time for me. Despite how crazy things might be for you."

He smiled down at the ground. "It's no problem. I always have time for... my friends."

After finishing the call, Ga Eul went to the living room to do her stretches. Since she was up this early, she might as well get some exercise.

Halfway through her routine, her parents interrupted her.

Her mother pulled out a chair. "Take a seat, honey."

"We want you to know that we—both your mother and I—we think you're beautiful."

"You're absolutely perfect. You don't need to make any changes."

Ga Eul stared back at her parents. "Okay…"

"I know your generation is into this whole diet culture. But it's absolutely unnecessary," said her mother.

"Look at you. You're so beautiful. Does Woo Shin not tell you that? Should I speak to him?" he asked.

"No. He hasn't been telling me that. I'm pretty sure Jan Di would kill him if he ever did."

"This was his idea? I knew it," her father said.

"Wait. No. It was no one's idea. I'm not on a diet. Why would you—"

"Isn't that why you've been up since 5 a.m.? Jan Di said it was some fad diet," her mother said.

_oOo_

Yi Jeong stepped out of the conference hall. His next meeting wasn't until an hour. Not enough time to get back to the hotel, but enough for a quick phone call.

He sent Woo Bin a video call request.

"Not a good time, bro," said Woo Bin, his voice hoarse.

"Here, Sparky, Sparky, Sparky," said Jun Pyo in the background. "Come here, boy."

From what Yi Jeong could make out, Woo Bin and Jun Pyo were out on an empty street chasing something.

"How the hell is it this hard to track down an elephant at 7 in the morning? They're huge," said Woo Bin.

"I'm sorry?" asked Yi Jeong.

"I've got this," said Jun Pyo. He took a fistful of peanuts. "Sparky, if you come out now, we'll give you peanuts."

"For god's sake, Jun Pyo. It's not a dog."

"You guys lost the elephant? The circus has only been there for a week. How is that even possible?"

"We don't have time for your negativity, Yi Jeong," said Woo Bin.

"Yeah. Sparky is out there somewhere. All lost and alone."

Yi Jeong rolled his eyes and hung up.

_oOo_

"That's the problem with your generation. You're all delicate snowflakes. You expect a pat on the back for the bare minimum." Professor Chung slammed the table.

Jae Kyung winced.

She took a deep breath. She needed to tune out the screaming. Just tune it out.

"You need everything spoon-fed." He picked up the quiz she had prepared. "Do you call this a test? A middle schooler could answer these questions."

They were words. Just words. Spoken at a loud volume. But still, only words. There was no need to get worked up.

"Do I need to provide you detailed instructions on the kinds of questions that are expected in a college level course? Is that what we've come to?" He got into her face. "Can you not do anything right?"

She took a step back.

Can you not do anything right? Ju Won Cho's daughter is all grace and elegance. While my daughter—

"This is complete garbage. How—"

I thought it was age. That you'll eventually grow into your responsibility.

"I have just about had it with you, Missy—"

You've said enough, young lady. Trust you? The audacity. Now you listen to me, Su Jin is a fine young man. He is making great strides in his father's business. You can learn—

Jae Kyung snapped her eyes shut. Reaching into her pocket for her keychain, she clutched it in her fist.

Happy thoughts. Happy thoughts.

Woo Bin texted her that video of a lion cub and chimpanzee who were best friends. She attempted to picture it in her head: Shera and Marcel doing their secret handshake. Adorable.

"I'm sorry, professor." She bowed. "I haven't studied physics since high school. So, I'm a little rusty."

His glare could freeze the sun.

"But that is no excuse. I'll have the revised question paper by the end of the week."

"I have half a mind to fire you."

She smiled. "I appreciate the second chance."

"There'll be no third chances."

Before he could change his mind, she dashed out of there.

And here she thought he was warming up to her, that he had actually smiled at her. Woo Bin was right: blood-sucking demons don't smile; they grimace. At least she kept her job. Small mercies.

She checked the clock in the hall.

1.30

Half an hour of lunch break left. Taking out her phone, she dialed Woo Bin's number.

"Hey. What's up?" he said.

Jae Kyung heard a feminine voice in the background. "Hi. My boyfriend and I are ready to order."

Right. He was eating with his girlfriend. Again.

"Nothing much. Go back to your lunch date."

"Jae. You okay?"

"Yeah. I'm fine. We'll talk later."

Jae Kyung leaned against the wall, staring at her phone.

She suggested he try for real with his girlfriend. And it looked like he took her words to heart. Of course, at that time, she didn't know that Ji Ah wanted all his lunch breaks.

But it was fine. He liked her. A lot. And Jae Kyung wanted this to work out for him.

Besides, Ji Ah was right. It made more sense for him to eat at Shinwa, instead of driving all the way out here.

Someone tapped her shoulder, interrupting her musings. She shot her head up to find Hana in front of her.

"There you are. We were getting worried. Come on," said Hana while dragging her to the cafeteria. "Let's have lunch,"

"You're eating with us again? Trouble in para—Aww. Hana. That's my foot," said Yu Ri.

Hana smiled sweetly.

"You did that on purpose."

"Yu Ri, could I—" said Na Bi.

Hana picked up a shrimp. "Don't know what you're talking about."

Yu Ri gave her an icy glare, then turned to Jae Kyung. "What I was trying to say—before I was rudely interrupted—Aww. Hana. Stop that."

"Yu Ri, could I borrow—" said Na Bi.

Hana shrugged. "Stop what?"

"Are you both done?" asked Na Bi. She turned to Yu Ri. "Can I borrow the pink frock you've been redesigning?"

"The pink frock?" Hana chuckled. "Min Ho finally made a move?"

Na Bi blushed.

"Min Ho?" asked Jae Kyung. "Isn't that the guy whose classroom we 'accidentally' passed by three times?"

"It wasn't three times."

"So, when is the date?" asked Ji Na.

Yu Ri leaned in. "Where's lover-boy taking you?"

"Bistrot Richelieu. This weekend."

"Fancy," said Jae Kyung.

Na Bi picked at her food. "I don't want to ruin this. You'll all help me get dressed, right?"

Jae Kyung flashed her a smile. "He won't know what hit him."

_oOo_

Yi Jeong pinched the bridge of his nose. "I can't believe you did this."

"Okay," said Woo Bin. "Maybe the new sofa-cum-bed is a little over budget. But I thought that since it's for your girlfriend, you wouldn't be such a pain in the ass about it."

"This isn't about the F4 decor budget, and you know it. You promised me you wouldn't do anything stupid."

Woo Bin took a minute to answer. What else had gotten Yi Jeong so off his rockers? Then it hit him: he must have found out about 'the spying on a potential murder incident'.

"Look. I was perfectly safe. I had an entire entourage of bodyguards. And the suspect never spotted us. Jae and I made sure of it. And as soon as we were done collecting evidence, we went straight to the police."

"You did what?"

"Although, they weren't nearly as thankful as we thought they would be."

Yi Jeong gave him a bewildered look.

"I was surprised too. Apparently, a loud thud, digging at odd hours, and a bottle of bleach aren't considered conclusive evidence for murder."

Yi Jeong got up from the bed and paced the room. "Murder? You stalked a murderer? Woo Bin. What the hell is wrong with you?"

"Prospective murderer. Not even prospective, if the police are to be believed."

He rubbed his temple. "What's done is done. No point getting sidetracked." He put both his hands together. "Woo Bin. You dumbass. After taking Jae Kyung, on what can only be described as a date, why did you ask out another girl?"

Woo Bin went silent for a minute. "The hot-air balloon thing wasn't a date. It was something sweet I did to cheer a friend up."

"Bullshit."

"And ask for Ji Ah? I'm a normal, single, twenty-year-old guy. Most normal single twenty-year-olds date. Especially when the woman doing the asking is this hot."

He sent Yi Jeong a picture.

Yi Jeong glanced at his phone. "Fine. She's pretty."

Leaning back on his gaming chair, Woo Bin flashed him a cheeky grin. "The word you're looking for is 'Drop Dead Gorgeous.'"

"You know who else was 'Drop Dead Gorgeous'? Da Eun."

He studied the carpet. Dating Da Eun was the dumbest thing he'd ever done. And that was saying something (at least that's what Yi Jeong's would say).

"Remember what you said about her?"

He did remember: 'A woman that hot is never crazy. Only Intense. Or at most eccentric.'

"Not my finest moment."

"Understatement of the century." Yi Jeong folded his arms. "Refresh my memory. How did that work out for you?"

"She pushed us into the pool."

"And?"

"Camped outside my house for a week."

"And?"

"Tried to stab me in the eye with a chopstick."

"And?"

"And tried to break all the windows in the F4 lounge." He combed through his hair. "It's not like she succeeded."

"Jun Pyo couldn't sleep for a month. He was that terrified."

"That was his own fault. Who told that idiot to 'lend her a listening ear'? I warned him she was nuts."

"Says the guy who dated her for a month."

"That was my bad, okay. But this isn't like that. Ji Ah is elegant and sophisticated and not at all crazy."

"This is exactly like that. You were being a moron then, and you are being a moron now," said Yi Jeong.

"That's rich coming from you."

"I have a legitimate reason to—don't try to change the subject." He took three calming breaths. "Look me in the eye and tell me you're not attracted to Jae Kyung. In any way, what-so-ever. "

"I said I'm her friend. I didn't say I'm blind." He got up from the chair. "Objectively speaking, she's... aesthetically pleasing. But that doesn't mean I've feelings for her. Objectively speaking, Ga Eul's aesthetically pleasing too."

Yi Jeong schooled his features. "I know you don't want to hear this. But you're making a huge mistake. And it will blow up in your face. Just like that card from Da Eun did."

He shuddered. The exploding Valentine's Day card from Da Eun would haunt his dreams forever. There was soot everywhere.

It served him right for opening an unsigned card.

Expelling the image from his mind, he turned back to Yi Jeong. "Like I said, Ji Ah isn't Da Eun."

"Woo Bin—"

"I like her. A lot. So, drop it."

"Okay. I'll drop it." He leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. "As soon as you say Jae Kyung's name without smiling."

"Jae." He tried again. "Jae." Then again. "Jae. Damn it. Her name ends with an 'aeee' sound. It automatically tugs the lips upward. Not my fault."

Yi Jeong looked him dead in the eyes. "Jae Kyung," he said. "Did I smile like an idiot?"

_oOo_

Ga Eul rushed into her house. Today's chef class had been eventful, to say the least. Despite all the late-night practice, nothing she cooked raised her rank above seven. She couldn't wait to take a long shower and forget about everything.

"Honey," said her mother. "Sit down. We've something to discuss."

Ga Eul frowned. A long-winded discussion was the last thing she needed. "Can it wait? I've had a long day."

"It'll only take a minute," said her father. He took out his phone and showed her a picture of a car.

"You're replacing the family car?"

Her mother smiled. "No, honey. It's for you."

"If you're okay with the model. Or else we can go together this weekend to pick something else out."

"Can we afford this?" Money wasn't exactly tight. They lived a comfortable life. And the car wasn't too fancy, but it was still an additional, unplanned expense. "You're not dipping into your second honeymoon fund, are you?"

Her mother stroked her hair. "Honey. This isn't something you've to worry about."

"You focus on being the best chef in Seoul. And we'll focus on getting you everything you need to succeed."

"I don't need a car."

"Nonsense," said her father. "With the hours you're working, you definitely need a car."

She looked up at her parents' smiling faces and tried to swallow the guilt.

_oOo_

"I know it's mean. But now that Yu Ri has mentioned it, I can't stop thinking about it. Prof. Chung does look a little like Mr. Potato Head."

Woo Bin didn't respond. Again. Since picking her up, he'd been oddly silent. Initially, she attributed it to plain tiredness, but now she wasn't so sure.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah."

Well.

That was expected.

Woo Bin wasn't the most forthcoming person, especially when he was in one of those moods. She racked her brain for possible reasons. She spoke to Gran this morning, so it wasn't anything at home.

"How's Ji Ah?" she asked.

"Fine."

"Woo Bin. Please tell me what's wrong."

"Nothing." He stopped the car. "We're here." He opened the car door for her.

She stared at him with a dumbfounded expression.

"See you later."

Unsure how else to respond, she stepped out of the car. Without another glance in her direction, Woo Bin drove off. At jet speed.

What was the matter with him?

A/N: Hi Guys! Did you enjoy the chapter? What was your favorite part? Tell us in the reviews.