Out of the two brothers, it had always been Jae Won who was the most cautious when it came to Tae Hyun. Yoori had always presumed that this “distrust” for Tae Hyun would always continue because Jae Won was forced to merge gangs under coercion as opposed to voluntary choice. Yoori knew that Jae Won, despite his carefreeness at times, took his job seriously when it came to watching over her. Kang Min grew up working for Tae Hyun, so she could understand how he was the first one to rescind his statement that Tae Hyun couldn’t be trusted. But when it came to Jae Won, she couldn’t help but wonder what exactly made him change his mind.
“I think you should go inside now, boss,” he instead urged, merely glancing at the door with a small smile. “Boss Kwon isn’t the most patient guy in the world and he’s dying to see you. I think he misses you.”
Jae Won bestowed Yoori with a small bow and then descended to the elevator where his younger brother and his younger brother’s girlfriend awaited him.
“Have fun!” the three shouted, waving ecstatically at Yoori.
With the weight of the cake growing heavy in her grasp, she smiled and waved back. Seconds later, the elevator doors slid close, leaving her alone in the decadent hall.
She took a preparatory breath and faced the door. A million things ran through her mind as she eyed the doorknob. Her meeting with Jung Min, Tae Hyun’s meeting with Ju Won and Dong Min, Ji Hoon, An Soo Jin, Kang Min and Jae Won, Hae Jin and Chae Young…everything flashed through her mind. Then, it all stopped when she lowered her eyes to the cake box she held – the cake she made for the one person who mattered the most: the jerk who stole her heart.
The weight of the world lifted from her shoulders and all that consumed her was excitement. Finally. It should be a sin that any one man could possess such talent, a talent that could have her feeling safe and content even when the world was against her. It was a sin, but Tae Hyun possessed that talent, that power over her. Nothing else mattered. She was too excited to see him.
Shaking with exhilaration, Yoori slid the card key. The door buzzed open for her entrance. It was only after she walked in did she realize that Tae Hyun might have been planning a surprise for her today as well.
“And when that time comes. . .”
24: Paris Is Worth It
Throngs of cold air greeted Yoori when she stepped into the dark apartment. The cold startled her, nearly causing her to drop the cake box. Muttering a muted curse, she was ready to switch on the lights when it occurred to her that the electricity had been turned off. Or that was what she continued to believe until she saw that the dark apartment was filled with a myriad of candles that illuminated almost every corner of the room.
A gasp escaped from her when the door closed shut behind her.
Her stunned eyes roamed the room. Its gaze reflected the candles that laid on nearly every available surface of the apartment. The notion of the electricity dying out in the apartment was shot to hell when she saw white icicle lights dangle extravagantly from the ceiling, giving the room a more Parisian feel. A big smile kissed her lips. She suspected that Tae Hyun may have planned a nice little dinner tonight to celebrate Yoori being “fired” as his assistant, but she couldn’t have anticipated the guy to go all out for it.
Freaking Tae Hyun, she thought, holding the cake box against her chest with a mixture of bitterness and appreciation. He was always outdoing her surprises. How was she supposed to compete with breathtaking decorations? He knew she had a thing for lights and now, he was spoiling her with it. Determined to yell at him for stealing her “I-want-to-surprise-you” thunder, she continued through the apartment.
“Tae Hyun?”
She expected him to appear out from the hall, but there was no response.
As she steadily walked in, her black boots sounding off on the squeaky clean tiles, Yoori’s eyes moved to the torrent of wind that was flowing into the apartment. The sliding door to the balcony was left open, allowing the fresh cool air to filter through. The fireplace in the living room was left on – a first since Yoori moved into the apartment.
She looked at the sliding door. She didn’t need to think twice about where he was. She knew for sure that he was hanging outside the balcony. She shook her head. He was definitely not a mere mortal. How he was able to withstand the cold and hang out like it was a cool summer’s night was beyond Yoori. She just thanked the fates that her body was becoming more tolerant in regards to handling the cold.
Prepping her lungs for the attack of frostiness to come, Yoori sped toward the sliding door. Her breath stilled in her chest at the sight of everything outside. If she thought the décor of the living room was a beauty, then Yoori could only describe the decorated balcony outside as breathtaking.
Her heart raced, basking in the scene before her.
Every inch of the balcony was adorned with icicle lights that twinkled like stars in the calm night. White and blue rose petals covered the deck while various candles embellished the floor. Her surroundings were extraordinary, unreal. It was like she was floating in her own little heaven above the city sky, and she loved every bit of it.
If the secluded garden at the park was like a Winter Wonderland, then this…this was something else altogether. There was a different aura to the balcony than at the park. As much as she loved the park, it could never compare to the sense of security that always washed over her whenever she entered Tae Hyun’s apartment. She didn’t know how to fully explain it. She just loved how the apartment reminded her of Tae Hyun and how safe it made her feel.
“Took you long enough to come home,” Tae Hyun’s warm voice cascaded over her, pulling her out of her thoughts.
She cast her gaze over to him. Her heart skipped a couple of beats. It had been awhile since she had seen him and she had missed him.
He was sitting on a table. He had a black hoodie and his blue and black striped lounge pants on. His eyes were focused on the blinking city when he spoke to her. To her, he looked just like a fallen angel who was ready for bed.
“Should’ve used your spidey senses to find me,” Yoori retorted jokingly, already drawing over to Tae Hyun.
He turned his gaze over to her, the impetuous smile on his face clearly displaying his delight in finally seeing her.
Yoori placed the cake box on top of the table and pushed it forward. With Tae Hyun helping to pull her up, Yoori was soon sitting beside him. They smiled when they moved closer together, drowning in each other’s heat while the cold rippled around them. The wind was constant, but not overbearing. It brought forth air that was fresh and warned of descending snow. Yoori hoped it would snow soon. It would be a pretty sight to sit out on the balcony and enjoy the feel of snowflakes on her skin with Tae Hyun beside her.
“So I heard that the electricity went out,” she drawled, her eyes noting the icicle lights that reflected on the glass structure on the balcony.
Her eyes focused onto the string of icicle lights beside her boots and the icicle lights that were hanging over all four sides of the table like a bed cloth. She was unable to contain her knowing smile when she raised her eyes up to meet Tae Hyun’s.
He was smiling expectantly at her.
“How is it possible that you have such a lightshow going on when the electricity is down?”
“Magic,” Tae Hyun answered easily, playful humor in his brown eyes.
She laughed. “That’s your answer for everything, isn’t it?”
“It’s a good generic answer for the things I could pull off.” His eyes wandered over the scenery. “The lamp lights were insufficient for what I needed so I opted for candles, icicle lights, and city lights instead.” He elicited a careless shrug, trying to make it seem like this set up was more of a whim than an actual plan. “I figured I could kill two birds with one stone and give you the ‘romantic dinner’ I promised you while celebrating your last day as my assistant. Pretty smart, huh?”
“So there’s no other occasion you decorated today for?” Yoori asked, bringing her knee to he
r chest to block off the wave of chills that was pooling around her.
She counted on him saying that it was his birthday since it was obvious with the cake box that she knew. However, she doubted Tae Hyun would easily admit the existence to such a day – even when the proof of his cake was sitting right beside him.
He shook his head, his eyes clearly eyeing the cake box before they returned their gaze to her. Though he knew what was in it, Tae Hyun continued to purposely dance around the topic with the minutia of small talk.
“You haven’t seen me all day, Choi Yoori. Missed me?”
“Didn’t even know you were gone,” Yoori lied, smiling nonstop.
Tae Hyun laughed. He easily pulled her closer to him once he noticed that she was shaking from the cold. “Oh yeah, that pretty little smile of yours is a good telltale sign that you’re not happy to see me.”
No longer keen on keeping her exhilaration in, Yoori gave up on beating around the bushes. She wanted to show off her surprise for him.
“That’s because I have something for you, birthday boy,” she exclaimed. She pulled the cake box up. She placed it between her chest and her bent knees. She proceeded to place her hands over the cover.
“Oh God,” Tae Hyun moaned, bashfully running his fingers through his hair. “I was really praying that you just decided to buy a cake for the sake of getting a cake.”
Yoori’s eyes transformed into evil slits. “Oh and I appreciate you letting me know that you’re firing me on your birthday.” Her sour voice was killed off by her uncontrollable smile.
“I didn’t realize it was the same day until after I told you I was firing you yesterday,” he explained, tilting his head to get a better view of the cake. The cover skewed his vision. It was only Yoori who saw what was inside the box.
“You have to promise to eat it and finish it no matter what,” she pre-negotiated. She kept the cover slightly opened with her fingers. She refused to show him the cake unless he agreed to her terms.
Worry pooled in his eyes like thunderstorms. “What kind of stipulation is that?”
“Just hurry and promise me. After that, you can look at it and eat it.”
“Is this your get-out-of-jail-free-card? Make me agree to eat it regardless of what it does to me?”
“Yes,” she confirmed instantly. “And you have to smile when you eat it too.”
“You know…for most girls…when they give their boyfriends something to eat, they’re a bit more modest about it. They usually say, ‘I don’t know if it’s good or not so you don’t have to eat it.’ Then, I’ll feel guilty and eat it regardless of how it tastes.”
“What are you, my relationship coach?” Yoori asked impatiently. “I think it’s pretty clear that I’m not like most girls, so don’t compare me to the rest. Oh and you’re not my boyfriend, so don’t get confused on that either. BFF, remember?”
Despite her newly acknowledged feelings for Tae Hyun, Yoori was still uneasy about admitting it to him. She felt safer just being his BFF, no matter how ridiculous and annoying it sounded to her now. She was mature enough to get out of denial with herself. However, she wasn’t mature enough to let him know that.
Tae Hyun frowned at the term. She could tell that she was getting on his nerves with the BFF thing. She didn't blame him for being annoyed; she was annoyed with it herself.
“I know that BFF isn’t exactly a curse word, but why does it feel like you’re cussing at me every time you shove that term in my face?”
Mindlessly, he grabbed a handful of rose petals from the table and threw it into the air. The petals danced for a moment and flew away with the wind.
“BFF you, Tae Hyun,” Yoori instigated, knowing that it would piss him off. It was terrible of her, but she loved pushing his buttons.
The glare on his face told her it worked. “You know what, Choi Yoori?” he prompted gravely. His eyes were firm.
“What Kwon Tae Hyun?”
He held up three consecutive fingers and then said, “BFF you, Choi Yoori.”
“You’re supposed to say, ‘read between the lines,’” she said cleverly, thinking she outsmarted him.
“I’m sure you did already, Princess.”
“I…I…I…”
Damn it! She did! She did read between the lines herself! Damn!
She couldn’t even maintain any further energy to bug him to love her cake. She was too pissed off about allowing him to outplay her in her own “read between the lines” game.
“Here!” She shoved the box into his hands. She needed something to cheer her up before she spent the entire night being bitter. “Open your gift!”
Though he spoke of apprehensiveness against her gift, Tae Hyun’s eyes were only filled with excitement when he finally lifted the cake box up. Sitting modestly in the to-go box, the white frosted cake stared up shyly at Tae Hyun, who was staring at it quietly, his eyes running over the calligraphy-like writing that said “Happy Birthday,” and the messy red writing that said “Snob.”
“I don’t know if it’s good or not,” Yoori provided tentatively, not even caring to play around anymore. She made sure to use Tae Hyun’s coaching advice, not because he told her to, but because she actually meant it. “This is my first time baking and Chae Young and Kang Min were helping me. Hae Jin said that you really liked Red Velvet cake so Chae Young and I went online and got the recipe from some forum. The recipe got good reviews from that site, so I tried my best to follow the directions.”
She gazed at him gently. “If it doesn’t taste good, don’t force yourself to eat it. I won’t be mad.” She didn’t want Tae Hyun to think that he would have to guiltily digest the cake just because he didn’t want to hurt her feelings. “Does it at least look presentable?”
“You baked it?” he asked, not even calling her out on using his “coaching” advice. He took more interest in the fact that this was something she actually made herself.
Yoori beamed proudly. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime event so you better treasure it.” She smiled timidly, her expression not matching the severity in her words. She shrugged, pretending to be nonchalant. “It’s not much. I was actually thinking about buying a cake but I figured it’d mean more if I baked it. You know the whole ‘it’s the thought that counts’ thing. But like I said, you don’t have to – ”
“It looks perfect,” he spoke up, gazing at her like she had just brought him a cake from heaven. “Thank you.” His voice was so genuine that Yoori knew he was more grateful than he led on. This made her crazy happy. He went on, unaware that she was inwardly doing cartwheels. “I’ve been craving for Red Velvet cake for some time. I’m honored to be the guinea pig for Choi Yoori’s first baked good.”
Although there was teasing humor in his voice, he looked really excited. He couldn’t even take his focus off the cake. His eyes journeyed over the inscription on the cake again. His lips quirked in amusement. She knew he was focusing on “Snob.”
“And thank you for the harmonically beautiful pet name, Brat. I’m sure all the romantics out there are envying me right now.”
“Wouldn’t you be freaked out if I called you ‘Suga Bear’ instead?”
Tae Hyun shuddered. She didn’t know if it was from the cold or if it was because Tae Hyun was disgusted with that name. She had a hunch that he most definitely preferred “Snob”.
“I wish you would’ve told me that you wanted this place to be decorated for your birthday,” she commented while he admired his cake. She glanced around the balcony and craned her neck to look inside the decorated apartment. “I would’ve helped.”
“This isn’t for my birthday,” he said offhandedly.
“So this is just for the ‘romantic dinner’ and the ‘I’m so happy to be firing Choi Yoori’ day?”
He chuckled. “This is actually all for you.”
His answer didn’t make sense to her.
He didn’t give her a chance to ask a follow up question when he abruptly jumped off the table. His bare feet sla
mmed against the foundation with a thud. He bent down and picked up something.
Air left Yoori’s lungs. Her eyes blossomed as she watched Tae Hyun place a white, transparent covered cake box on the table. He lifted the lid and Yoori saw it: Oreo Cookies & Cream ice cream cake. Her absolute favorite cake.
A torrent of emotions flooded through her. She fought back the tears that were ready to glaze over her eyes.
How did he…how did he know?
She didn’t even remember.
How did Tae Hyun know?
Presenting her with a smile that would melt hearts, Yoori was left breathless when Tae Hyun finally uttered words she never had the opportunity to cherish.
“Happy birthday, Yoori.”
There was not much that Yoori could tell you about her past. If you asked Yoori how she was raised to become the person she had become, she wouldn’t be able to give you a straight answer. If you asked her about the lessons she learned as a child, then she wouldn’t be able to tell you either.
This was one of the precise reasons why she never cared to remember when her actual birthday was. To date, Yoori only had three birthdays. She spent the first one with her adoptive parents. The only thing she remembered from that night was them fighting about spending too much money on a cake that they couldn’t finish. It wasn’t a happy day for her because she was traumatized over not remembering anything about her life. The second birthday occurred shortly after her home in Taecin caught on fire. Needless to say, Yoori wasn’t in the mood to celebrate anything. She was alone in a new city and she was staying at a shady motel while trying to make ends meet with the little money she had. She also hadn’t found a job yet, adding to the stress and depression. The third birthday was spent with Chae Young who, despite Yoori’s protests, insisted on taking her out for sushi before they called it a night from work. They were close then, but not close enough where Yoori was able to feel at ease with herself. Overall, her birthdays never carried too much weight for Yoori.
The Fall of Gods (A Welcome to the Underworld Novel, Book 2) Page 41