Chapter 5 - Maybe I'm in Love With You...

Chapter 5 - Maybe I'm in Love With You...

Onew walked into his office with his head bent low. From afar, he could see her sitting at her table as she busied herself with some paper works. He headed quickly towards his table, ignoring all the morning greetings he was receiving from his fellow colleagues.

Onew sat himself down and turned on his computer, still pretending that she did not exist. It was hard. But he tried to act cool about everything. He turned his head to see her still concentrated on whatever she was doing. He smirked as he saw what she was wearing that day - a black fitted sleeveless dress with black heels.

'Is she going to a prom night or something?' Onew thought, laughing quietly.

Hara knew he had arrived, but she pretended to be oblivious about it. Now that she knew they were neighbours made it even harder to work with him. She glanced at him from the corners of her eyes. There he was looking straight into the computer. Hara felt relieved. It was a good thing that he too chose to not bring up about their encounter this morning.

The morning went on slowly for both Onew and Hara. They felt as if time was dragging by, tormenting them with the awkwardness of each other's presence. Lunch time was a breeze, it ended way too soon to their likings.

"Onew, Hara!" Mr Park called out as he strolled towards Onew and Hara's tables.

"Ne Mr Park!" Hara greeted her team leader enthusiastically. Onew on the other hand just gave a slight nod at the older man.

"I have an assignment for the two of you." Mr Park said with a smile on his lips. "There'll be students from England coming to Seoul later. They are from a soccer team from a recognized sports school there. They are going to have a friendly match with our Korean students tomorrow."

"Jeongmal? They are boys aren't they?" Hara asked, her eyes wide with excitement.

"Of course they are!" Mr Park said as he clapped his hands happily. "And I'm sure you'll get an interview with them just by capturing them with your charm!"

"Of course Mr Park! I can't wait to show you how brilliant my English skills are!" Hara grinned.

"Yeah, as long as you don't embarass us, then I'll be fine with it." Onew said coldly as he raised an eyebrow towards Hara.

"Yah! I'm professional enough, of course I won't embarass us!" Hara retorted.

"Onew-ah, just leave the interviewing of the players to our sweet Hara here." Mr Park warned him. "And as for you, your job is just to interview their coach. I'm sure you can handle that right?"

"Of course Mr Park." Onew answered reluctantly.

"Here are the reports which I've received from a very good source of mine. Their arrival time, the hotels they would be checking in. You may take a look at it." Mr Park handed a file towards Onew who flipped through the files without looking up.

"I hope you'll do good later! Fighting!" Mr Park said before leaving.

Hara looked over at Onew who was still busy reading the reports he received. She tried to peek over what he was reading but he glared at her from behind the file. Hara gritted her teeth in anger.

"Yah! We should discuss about it together!" Hara exclaimed.

"I don't discuss my work with anyone." Onew said as he allowed his eyes to feast on Hara's body.

Hara jumped back as she covered her chest with her hands. "W-What are you looking at?"

"Nothing. I just wanted to say, I don't discuss my work with anyone especially females like you who looked like a cabaret singer." Onew chuckled out before settling down in his seat once again.

"BO?!" Hara stomped her foot. "You're too much!"

"Am I? I don't care actually." Onew said grinning. Then his face turned serious. "Yah! Get ready to leave for the airport in thirty minutes."

Hara glared at the back of Onew's head with full of hatred. She vowed to get her revenge very soon. Hara took out her handphone and dialled the number she knew so well. She smirked when she heard her call being answered.

"Lee Joon-ah! I need your help with something!"

******

Jieun sighed as she sat slumped on the bench in the cafeteria. She placed her head on the table as she continued to stare into space. She had her mind filled with a certain someone. Someone by the name of Jang Wooyoung.

Jieun had chased after him this morning, with the thought of riding the same bus with him again. But the moment she reached the bus stop, he was nowhere in sight, which crushed her heart a little. She felt disappointed.

"Jieun-ah!" Soonkyu called out as she sat herself beside Jieun. "Have you had lunch yet?"

"Ani. I have no appetite." Jieun replied. "What about you?"

"My stomach is full of butterflies! I don't think I can eat anything just yet!" Soonkyu giggled happily causing Jieun to lift her head up. She looked at her best friend curiously.

"What happen to you? You look happy." Jieun said with her eyebrows raised.

"I met him again!" Soonkyu exclaimed.

"Him? Who?"

"That science lab oppa! He smiled at me!" Soonkyu giggled excitedly.

Jieun grinned knowingly. Soonkyu had been telling her of the science lab oppa for a while now. But the funny thing was, she had never seen him yet even though she was a science student herself.

"And you're happy that he smiled?" Jieun rolled her eyes.

"Of course! It's not everyday I get to see that smile from that handsome face..." Soonkyu said as she leaned her head against Jieun's shoulder.

"Yah!" Jieun shrugged Soonkyu's head off. "I'm going to the library now. You coming?"

"Ani. You go ahead first." Soonkyu said as she got herself into dreamy mode once again.

Jieun shook her head as she looked at her friend who was definitely stung by the love disease. Then she grabbed her bag before heading off towards the library, the only place which would give her the sense of peacefulness.

Jieun chose to walk through a deserted corridor away from the mass of students who were on lunch breaks right now. She hated crowds and would always avoid them at every chances she had. Just like now, the corridor which she chose to walk on was quiet without any students around. As Jieun turned a corner, she almost hit someone who was very familiar to her. It was none other than Jang Wooyoung. Jieun was startled. She had suddenly lost her ability to speak.

"Excuse me, Lee Jieun-ssi, are you alright?" Wooyoung asked as he looked at the petite girl in front of him.

"Ah? Ne, ne. Kwenchana." Jieun said quickly before looking down.

Wooyoung smiled. "Um, are you on your way somewhere?"

"Um, ne. I was heading towards the library."

"I see." Wooyoung nodded his head in understanding. Of course he knew where the library was.

"Wait a minute." Jieun looked up frowning, unconciously staring straight into Wooyoung's eyes. "Why are you here?"

"Ah! I-I was sending food orders to the professors here!" Wooyoung said quickly.

"Oh! Jeongmal?"

"Of course!"

"Ah! I see." Jieun nodded in understanding.

"Uh, I have some extra orders left with me." Wooyoung held out a plastic bag in front of Jieun's face. "Have you had lunch yet?"

"A-ani. I don't have time to eat."

"Aish! That's the unhealthy thing about being a student. Always skipping meals." Wooyoung shook his head. "Here, have some."

"Won't that be stealing the company's food?" Jieun asked worriedly.

"Don't worry. It's on me. I've paid for it." Wooyoung told her. He then took out a neatly packed sandwich and handed it towards Jieun who accepted it gratefully.

"The professors ordered sandwiches?" Jieun asked in astonishment.

"Well, yeah! I guess sandwiches are easier to eat." Wooyoung shrugged.

Jieun felt something odd about the man in front of her. He was mysterious in a certain way, but she was not able to tell it just yet.

"Um, how long have you been working at the restaurant again?" Jieun asked.

"Hm, almost six months." Wooyoung answered.

"I see."

"Okay, got to go now." Wooyoung said with a grin. "Be careful okay. And, please don't go back home too late today. I might not be around to walk you home you know."

"I won't." Jieun grinned back. "I'll get an earful again from my unnies if I were to pull that stunt again."

"I'm sure they will." Wooyoung smiled before heading the opposite direction, leaving Jieun alone once again.

******

Seohyun could not remember when was the last time she had hurried home like this. She had practically ran all the way home from the bus stop. The moment she reached the house, she had kicked her shoes off before running to her room to change into her jogging attire. She was indeed looking forward to her 'date' that evening with her new-found neighbour, Jung Yonghwa.

Before leaving, Seohyun checked herself out in the mirror to make sure that she looked presentable enough. Once she gathered her house keys and shoved them in her pockets, she ran out of her house and started her slow jog towards the park. As she passed Yonghwa's house, she noticed that his car was not in sight which worried her suddenly. But she continued to move on and decided to place her worries aside.

Just like the day before, the park was not crowded with people, unlike the weekends. Seohyun made a slow jog around the park feeling the wind making a pass through her. She enjoyed the outdoors very much. It made her feel free, alive, cheerful and relaxed. To her, this was one of the best remedy to release the stress and tension during work.

Seohyun stopped by her favourite spot which she now knew she had to share with a certain someone. She sat down by the familiar oak tree and stared straight at the calm lake ahead. She was unable to describe her feelings at the moment. Her meeting with Yonghwa was totally unexpected. The most important thing was, she got along with him easily. There was no resistant at all on her part. He made her comfortable. And she enjoyed his company very much.

As the minutes crept by, Seohyun soon noticed that it was getting dark. She sighed as she glanced at her watch. She had been waiting for almost two hours but Yonghwa was nowhere to be seen.

"I guess I've been stood up." Seohyun chuckled softly before standing up. She looked around the park for a moment before deciding to head back home with the feelings of disappointment tugging at her heartstrings.

***

Yonghwa ran as fast as he could, leaving his car by the road beside the park. He knew he was late. If only he had her number, he would have called her straight away to inform her of his delay.

"Please be there, please be there!" Yonghwa chanted as he continued to run as fast as he could towards their promised meet-up spot, just below the oak tree.

Yonghwa stopped just a distance away from the the oak tree to find it empty. She was nowhere to be seen. And it was all his fault.

"Aish! She must have thought I've stood her up!" Yonghwa groaned as he buried his face into his hands. It was getting late and Yonghwa would understand if she were to leave.

With a heavy sigh, Yonghwa dragged his feet out of the park once again, heading towards his car.

***

Walking was the only thing she was able to do at that moment. She had spend all her energy on the jog she did earlier. Walking up the narrow road towards her house was such an unpleasant journey suddenly, especially with the feeling of disappointment lingering within her.

Seohyun realised that she had just passed the ahjumma's shop. As she stole a glance at the entrance, she saw a hooded man standing there, just looking around. Seohyun smiled. She had seen him a few times before. 'He must be one of our neighbours too.' Seohyun thought.

As she was idly walking, suddenly the sound of a car horn made her jump. She turned to a see a familiar car stopping beside her. As the window of the car rolled down, Seohyun was able to see the identity of the driver clearly. She grinned as happiness crept back into her heart. "You're late." She said to Yonghwa who grinned back.

******

Tony waited. He had a feeling she would pass by the ahjumma's shop on her way home that day. He continued to wait patiently for her.

Since he saw her in the car this morning, Tony knew he needed to meet her again that same evening. And so, the moment he reached home from work, he straight away changed his clothes. He wore a simple faded jeans, a white shirt together with a black hoodie on top. And when he finally reached the ahjumma's shop, he placed the hood on his head and started with his waiting.

He had seen a few familiar faces walking up the road, as they passed by the ahjumma's shop. He even saw his brother's car zooming past him, and he was sure Yonghwa did not notice him there.

Finally, a few minutes later, he saw her walking. She had her head bent low, her eyes staring at the road ahead. She seemed to be deep in thought as she just walked pass by him without any concern at all. Tony smiled. It was a great chance for him to confront her.

"Joori?" Tony called out, softly at first.

Joori stopped walking when she heard his voice calling her name. His voice was achingly familiar. Without turning to face the intruder to her thoughts, she knew whom that voice belonged to.

"Joori?" Tony called out a little louder, in case she did not hear him the first time.

"I can hear you very well Tony." Joori answered quickly as she swiftly turned around to face him.

"Ah! So you heard me." Tony grinned.

"So what is it that you want?" Joori asked folding her arms across her chest. She braved herself to stare into his eyes.

"I don't want anything." Tony said. "Just, let me walk you home."

Joori sneered. "No thank you. I can walk home by myself." With that, Joori started walking again, not without hoping that Tony would eventually be tired with being ignored.

But of course Tony did not mind being ignored by her. He very well knew he deserved it. And so, he quickly took big steps until he was walking alongside her. He gave a timid grin when she threw him a deathly glare.

"Can you please quit following me?" Joori asked through gritted teeth. "You're becoming more like a stalker now!"

"I'll only be your stalker Joori." Tony answered without much hesitation.

"You're crazy!" Joori said, shaking her head.

"Give me another chance Joori." Tony voiced out.

"Bo? What chance?"

"Another chance to be with you."

"I don't believe this." Joori groaned, as she stopped walking. She turned to look at the man beside her. She was not sure what to think of him now.

"Believe it. I want to start over with you." Tony said confidently.

"W-what? Start over?"

"Ne. Please Joori. Give me a chance!"

"I-I can't." Joori shook her head as she continued to walk away.

Tony was not going to give up any time soon. So he did what he felt he needed to do. He quickly held onto Joori's arm and pulled her back towards him. Joori stiffened the moment her back hit his body and she could certainly felt his breath warming her ear. Joori bit her lips. This was not what she expected him to do.

"That day, when I left you years ago, I was actually already falling hard for you. What I did back then, was due to my own foolishness. And I am really sorry for what I had done. I did went back to your apartment a few days later to apologize but I was told that you moved out. I was so miserable that I finally made my decision to come back to Korea. And I swore to you, all these while, you are the only woman is my heart. No one could replace you. So when I saw u again yesterday, you couldn't imagine how happy I was. I felt alive suddenly, alive with your presence." Tony whispered, ever so tenderly, leaning his head into her hair. "So, please give me another chance. Let me show you my changed self. Please..."

Joori did not know what had gotten into her when she suddenly nodded her head. It was a stiff nod, but still, it was a nod, and it made Tony smile wide. He turned her body until she was facing him. "You're going to see a different side of me, I promise!" Tony said again, pulling her into a hug.

Joori gasped. "T-Tony, I think we should talk about this."

"Come, let's walk you home first, it's getting late." Tony smiled, as he took hold of Joori's hand.

Joori was not sure how to define the situation. She was obviously still easily smittened with his charms and she was totally aware that there was a possibility of her being hurt again. But she was not going to deny the fact that maybe, just maybe, she was still in love with him, just like before.