Mia's POV:

When the sky finally cleared up, Mia’s mood didn’t really improve. Earlier, she had foolishly barreled Dae Ho text after text, and it was just now that she felt embarrassed about it.

'He must be training.' She could already imagine him snickering at how easily her emotions rose up and demanded his attention. 'Dumbass.'

Despite her self-derision, the constant drip of negativity kept her down. Her skin began to itch uncomfortably like she'd caught the flu.

Still, her eyes were lasered on her smartphone, a frown etched on her face.

‘Dae Ho… that guy, did he already go home?’

If he did, why wasn't he answering? She took a sip of the bubble tea in her hand, teeth chomping and grinding on the straw, nearly tearing it apart. 

Next to her, the chattering of her friends hardly proved a good distraction. If anything, her expression got uglier by the minute.

'I hope he's not having fun with another girl...'

Ah, sweet old paranoia. Mia had never been so awfully stressed over someone’s attention like this before. The butterflies in her stomach were staging a riot; she felt like she was about to hurl.

'Whatever, Dae Ho isn’t the type that would hook up with others.' 

She reassured herself.

‘But what about that Yu Hee girl? Or that editor?’

Where was so much female attention coming from? Why him?

"Hey, Mia."

Mia was so startled she nearly spilled her tea.

"Aaaah, eh…"

Joo-ri Kang spoke right next to her ear. That bitch.

With a flustered blush on her face, Mia hastily explained. "I was just looking at my cellphone for a moment, nothing more…" 

The excuse sounded pathetic, even to her. 

Wait, what was even there to explain?

Joo-ri Kang sweat-dropped. "Are you serious…?" She huffed a breath, blue eyes trained on Mia. The intensity of her scrutiny was enough to make her squirm. "It’s been so long since we last met, and you…" 

And then she trailed off.

Mia feared the worst.

"Uh, don’t tell me!" Joo-ri Kang held a hand over her mouth. "Did you meet someone in the meantime?"

‘Oh, fuck me.’

"Ah… what are you talking about?" Mia feigned casualness, looking at the bottom of her bubble tea. A futile attempt at diversion — if the searing warmth on her face was anything to go by, she must have been a blushing storm. "I’ve been at home since the start of holidays, how could I have met a man?"

Ironic, how she actually did meet a man, in her own home of all places. 

She popped the pink straw in her mouth, hoping the sweet flavor would calm her nerves.

"..."

Her friend stared at her with an increasing air of suspicion.

When the plan was thoroughly debunked, she decided to retreat to the toilet. 

"Anyway, I’m going to the toilet, I’ll be back soon…!!"

Joo-ri stared at Mia ambling towards the public toilet with haste. "Hmm." She perched her chin on a hand as she pondered this new enigma. 

What is she hiding?’

Because she was definitely hiding something. 

Subtlety was never Mia's strong suit. Haughty? Absolutely. Subtle? Not so much. She wore her emotions like a neon sign, and right now, that sign was flashing in bold, bright letters: ‘Secrets Ahead.’ 

If the usual Mia was like a sunny prairie, then the current one was more like a storm. 

There was something amiss, that was obvious. Joo-ri couldn’t resist curiosity. She stood up and ran after her friend.

…

Mia locked eyes with her mirror twin, wondering if she'd just set a new record for blushing. Seriously, her face was giving traffic lights a run for their money.

There was nothing wrong in her relationship with Dae Ho. A step-brother as a lover — a mother as his concubine. Her love life had more twists than a pretzel.

But Mia wasn't about to let the nosy squad grab their detective hats and magnifying glasses. She’d guard that facet of her life like a dragon would on its treasure. 

‘I’m taking this one to the grave.’ 

If word got out, it wouldn’t be only Mia facing the music. It was in times like this that she wondered whether a relationship like that would truly work.

Not for a lack of love. Perhaps too much of it, in fact. However, she lamented that her only shot at an actual genuine relationship was with someone a tad too closely related to her, who was also dating her mother.

The love triangle wasn't just a cliche, it was her reality check on whether unconventional relationships could stand the test of, well, everything.

‘Damn you, Dae Ho.’

And in all of this, that idiot had yet to message her back.

Her hands were firmly on the lavatory sink, seemingly to hoist herself up against the weight of her inner turmoil. 

‘Why did I have to make such a scene?’

As Mia confronted her own reflection, she couldn't help but shake her head at the mess she'd made of things.

The bathroom door swung open, and in barged Joo-ri Kang, interrupting Mia's self-reflection like an uninvited guest crashing a pity party.

"Mia, what's going on? You look like you've seen a ghost or discovered the secret to eternal youth in that toilet paper aisle."

Mia's eyes widened at the sudden intrusion. "Joo-ri, can't a girl have a moment to herself in the bathroom?" She shot back, attempting to play it cool.

Joo-ri raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. "Sure, if that girl isn't my drama-prone bestie who's been acting more mysterious than a K-drama plot twist. Spill the tea."

Mia rolled her eyes, a feeble attempt at nonchalance. "There's no drama. I'm just taking a breather…" 

"Sure there isn't any. By the way, the hero of a tragedy would've acted that exact same way." Joo-ri muttered dryly. Then, she sighed, knowing it was no use. "Here I thought we were finally going to have some fun, after all, it's been ages since we last hung out."

Mia heaved a breath. She wasn’t wrong. "...Sorry, Joo-ri."

Joo-ri bit her lips. There had been a time when they talked about boys all the time.

She remembered having a crush on Dae Ho too, once upon a time.

So it seemed rather unfair how a guy was giving Mia so many headaches while bringing no green flag to the table. 

"..."

"Look, if you don’t feel like sharing, no need for me to play detective." Joo-ri said, throwing in a sympathetic smile. "But hey, we're due for another hangout, and I vote for your place. Fair deal, right? Plus, it's been ages since I laid eyes on that adorable brother of yours."

For some reason, Mia couldn’t suppress the wave of possessiveness that enveloped her at those words.

"Cut it out, Dae Ho's already a grown-up man."

Joo-ri cocked her head, arms crossed. "Well, that's just a solid reason to check out his current vibe, don't you think? I bet he'll greet me with more enthusiasm than you did."

"..."

And her being Joo-ri Kang meant no male being ever ignored her efforts or her charm. It was a fact universally acknowledged. 

While it was true that Dae Ho seemed to have developed a robust defense against feminine guiles, that didn’t mean she would simply let Joo-ri get too close to him.

Still…

Joo-ri was Mia’s friend. And she felt a sprout of guilt at not being more… ‘there’, for her friend. 

Mia forced a stiff smile, like a tightrope dancer. "Okay, alright, no need to be so hasty, Joo-ri. You know that mom is always excited to see you."

“Only your mom, huh?”

Joo-ri wore an interesting expression, hard to describe. She was a clever girl, though her gregarious nature did prevent her from displaying it, most of the time. 

“...”

"Of course, where else is better to hang out in Seoul? Unless you'd like to visit my place, that is..."

"There you go again, pretending you're the queen bee in Seoul," Mia said, rolling her eyes. Then she muttered quietly under her breath. "Stupid Joo-ri, stupid..."

"What did you say?" Joo-ri tilted her head.

Mia scoffed. "Nothing."

"It’s a plan, then. We could do a sleepover!" Joo-ri said, excitedly.

She reluctantly agreed. "I guess it is… I’ll let you know the date. But no sleepovers!"

That elicited an arched eyebrow from her friend. "And why’s that? You’ve got plenty of space, we can bunk together in your room. No one’s going to be bothered."

Joo-ri put on such an expectant face, and she could hardly retort.

"Aaaagh... whatever, you brat!" Mia jabbed her index finger against the smoothness of Joo-ri's forehead. ‘Stupid, big-breasted woman.’

"Aieee. What was that for?" She groaned, rubbing on the tiny red dot with a slight pout.

"Oh, shush." Mia smiled. "You deserved it."

‘Nothing should happen. I’ll be there anyway.’

Her mother was going to be there also. Double protection in case Joo-ri exhibited a more than platonic interest in that foolish step-brother of hers.

"Okay, okay," Joo-ri teased, linking arms with Mia as they exited the bathroom. "But seriously, spill the details on your prince charming. Maybe he can join our 'not-a-sleepover' party."

Mia laughed nervously. "We'll see about that… and it really isn't a sleepover!"

As soon as they were out of the bathroom, many eyes were upon them. They might as well have walked out of a drama with how beautiful they were. The spotlight was always on them.

The moment they rejoined their friends at the table, Mia’s phone buzzed.

She immediately snapped her attention to the screen.

Dae Ho: Hey, sorry just got back home. 

Dae Ho: As soon as you get back, we have to talk

Dae Ho: :winking_emoji:

Mia huffed indignantly, though a smile still flitted across her face. A begrudging smile — because that idiot didn’t deserve the upturn of her lips. Making her worry like that.

She quickly typed a response.

You: You still have to make it up to me. 

You: :upside_down_smile:

You: I’m waiting…

Dae Ho: Oh, I plan to make it up to you and then some.

Dae Ho: Frontdoor or backdoor? 

Mia’s cheeks erupted in a deep shade of red. 

Dae Ho: Maybe both haha

‘Bastard.’

Her fingers blurred across the keyboard. She felt a surge of vindictive glee when she pressed ‘send’.

You: Oh, we’ll see. With how bad you’ve been, maybe I’ll keep both ‘doors’ closed.

You: :smiling_face_with_sunglasses:

Dae Ho: Is that so?

Dae Ho: That makes me sad…

Dae Ho: So sad that I might ask Auntie to comfort me…

Dae Ho: :weary_face:

Mia had this dull, sharp twitch behind her forehead. If she was any stronger, she would have cracked the screen of her phone with how tight her grip had become.

"Tch."

She rolled her eyes at Dae Ho's cheeky messages, a mixture of annoyance and amusement dancing in her eyes. She wasn't about to let him have the upper hand in this banter.

You: Nice try, but Auntie is off-limits.

You: Besides, you've got some explaining to do first.

You: And no, it's not the time for your 'sad puppy' routine.

Dae Ho: You're a tough negotiator. I like that.

Dae Ho: How about we meet somewhere private to discuss things?

Dae Ho: A place where no Aunties or prying eyes can interfere.

Mia silently contemplated the offer, before seemingly nodding in satisfaction.

You: Fine!

You: We’re meeting in your room later tonight

You: If you make it up to me good, I’ll give you something nice

You: I’ll blow your little mind

Dae Ho: Oh that sounds juicy

Dae Ho: What is it?

Mia didn’t reply, instead, she closed the chat and pocketed her phone. She had never done that before — but for Dae Ho she’d gladly bear the discomfort. Besides, it was an investment of sorts.

A message, even. ‘There is no other woman like me.’

Oh, she’d show him. 

"Eiiii, Mia! What are you smiling at?"

"It's nothing, nothing..."