Page 27

“Bye.” I wave as Haneul leaves without a backward glance.

Sun collapses into his vacated seat, long limbs sprawling. “This chair has excellent upholstery,” he comments.

“Was any of that true?” I ask.

“You know me better than to ask that.” He sits up straight only to reach over the table for my untouched wineglass, bringing it to his lips. He watches me over the rim. “It was all true.”

I roll my eyes. “You shouldn’t pawn off your dates on other people; more importantly, you should be clear and communicative in your intentions toward women.”

“This is why I like you, Sori. No one nags me quite like you do.”

“Just wait until you fall in love, then you’ll regret all the hurt you’ve caused others.”

He scowls. “Don’t say that or I’ll feel like you’ve put a curse on me.”

“Would you like to order anything?” We look up at the smiling waiter who appears unfazed at our bickering, and that I’ve apparently switched dates.

“Yes,” Sun says, picking up the menu and ordering a few appetizers. “Put it on his bill,” he adds, pointing at Baek Haneul.

As we wait for the food, I study Sun. Even though he’s only older by a year, he alwaysseemedolder, as the heir to a major conglomerate, and then as the leader of XOXO. He also never roughhoused with Jaewoo, Nathaniel, and Youngmin, keeping himself apart.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” His eyes narrow. “You look like you’re pitying me right now. It’s disturbing.”

“I thought your grandfather stopped setting you up on blind dates after you made that deal with him.”

His grandfather agreed to leave Sun alone as long as Sun married the woman of his grandfather’s choice, at a timeafterhe’d conducted his military service. Since the compulsory military service in Korea can be postponed until age thirty, Sun thought it was a good deal.

“He’s back to his old ways. He’s stubborn, my harabeoji.” Sunspeaks of his grandfather with affection. “He’s under the false impression that I have more time now that XOXO is on hiatus.”

Hiatus.

My stomach drops. “Is it because of the photograph?”

“No, of course not. We were always going to take a break after the tour. It was worked into our schedule for the year. We need to, otherwise we’d collapse from exhaustion, let alone the mental stress of constantly working. Rest and relaxation are good for creativity.”

“It was me in the photograph,” I blurt out.

He rolls his eyes. “Anyone who knows you would know that.”

“My mother didn’t know.”

He refrains from commenting, and I don’t blame him.

The servers bring out the food that Sun ordered and we enjoy a nice meal. Snarky as he is, Sun is a marked improvement from Baek Haneul.

“I never congratulated you on your drama,” I say, collecting fresh pieces of lettuce with my fork. Sun ordered me my favorite salad with strawberry vinaigrette. It’s a big deal for him to be the lead in his first role. Many critics have said he only got the role because of his popularity as an idol, but I know acting has been a passion of his for a long time now. “Congratulations.”

“Thank you,” he acknowledges, picking up the second glass of wine the server brought. “I heard about the girl group they’re putting together. ASAP, isn’t it? They announced the news internally. I was surprised your name wasn’t on the list of members.”

“Actually...”

He glances up, brow raised.

“I was offered a position as leader in the group, but I turned it down. After much thought, I realized I don’t, in fact, wish to be an idol.”

Sun frowns slightly, lowering his glass. “But don’t you have a contract with Joah? Your mother might be the CEO, but she answers to a board of shareholders. They’ve invested in the company. And in you, as a trainee.”

I raise a brow, amused. Unlike the other members, who’d hand-wave and accept things as they are, Sun is much more pragmatic.