Wakana gasps when she sees the Okuyama family's house. It's late at night. The high and proud mansion is surrounded by brilliant lights. The swimming pool is bigger than her high school. It's hard to believe that someone died here a month ago.
"Miss Nakashima, do you--" Choi Min Ho glances at her. The following words halt on the tip of his tongue. He's enthralled by her smile. He blinks his eyes and looks away with a smile. "Liking the view?"
"It's beautiful." She grins at him. "Mr Choi, it looks like it's from a fairytale."
Fairy tales are pretty only in books written by humans. Min Ho wonders if she's thinking about Minami Sei. "Let's go inside."
They walk toward the gate together. Wakana is always a few steps behind him, keeping her gaze on his back. Even though he doesn't want to hear her thoughts, she is too loud. He is already attuned to her. She is still wondering if she should ask him whether he's the same person whom she met around seven years ago. She also knows that he would lie if she asks him.
It's impossible to hold her hand in this lifetime. He has to control his emotions. If she finds out why she's the way she is, she will hate him for sure.
At the gate, the guards stop them. One of the guards asks him. "Sir, may I have your name?"
"We are here for investigation." Min Ho shows him his ID. "Is Mrs Okuyama willing to talk?"
The guard looks at him uneasily, but he does not chase them away. He picks up the phone and dials the main house. He walks to the corner and whispers the words. Min Ho could hear him clearly. He looks back and sees Wakana starting at something. He follows her gaze.
The young man is in the early twenties. He has hollow cheeks, sunken and dark eyes, patchy yellowish skin, oily hair. He is dressed in a dirty red t-shirt and black trousers, wearing no shoes. He is starting at Wakana with a harrowing emptiness. Min Ho grasps her wrist and pulls her behind him. "Don't look."
"That person is…" Wakana feels goosebumps on her spine. She looks at the warm hand holding her wrist. She has felt this touch before. At the same time, Min Ho lets go of her hand and makes some distance between them.
"Young Master!" Two guards run toward the young. "What are you doing here?"
The man shrugs and walks toward the house as if he didn't hear or see anything. The two guards follow the young man while asking him how he came out of the house. Wakana notices that he's not wearing any shoes.
"You can go inside," The other guard tells Min Ho. "Mrs Okuyama is waiting for you."
Choi Min Ho walks ahead of her. Wakana frowns at his back. Why does she feel that he is walking faster because he doesn't want to be close to her? She looks at the red fingerprints on her wrist. "Was he planning to break my hand?"
He sighs. Should he tell her that he could hear her easily? But then, it won't be fun. If he hadn't been here tonight, she would have attracted that thing. A card appears on his hand. He frowns when he sees the image.
Why is it the awakening card again?
The card is gone within a second.
Wakana jogs to reach his side. "Mr Choi, slow down."
"Oh!" Min Ho stops walking and apologizes to her. "I have a habit of walking fast. Are you okay?"
Liar! Wakana sneers at him. He was walking fast because he wants to avoid her. "Please change your habit. I am also beside you."
Change habit because she's beside him? He raises his brow and stares at her. She looks at him with a deep frown. He lets out a laugh. "Miss Nakashima, you are quite tempting. If you keep saying these heartwarming words to me," He leans closer and looks into her amber eyes. "I might steal you away from your boyfriend. Believe me. I have no morals."
His face is so close that she could feel his warm breaths on her face. Her heart skips a beat. Flustered, Wakana steps away and yells at him with a trembling voice, "Mr Choi, don't joke."
"You are quick to assume that I am joking." Choi Min Ho winks at her. "Let's go inside. Mrs Okuyama is waiting for us."
Without waiting for her reply, he climbs up the stairs. Wakana opens her mouth and lets out a deep breath. What the hell! Why is her heart beating so fast? She already has a boyfriend. If Sei finds out, what would he think of her? Choi Min Ho is so dangerous.
"Nakashima Wakana, you can't waver." Wakana slaps her cheeks and tells herself in a low voice, "Minami Sei is the man you love. You fell in love with him even before you even knew what love meant. He's finally your boyfriend. Don't let your heart get affected. This is morally wrong. The temptation is the road to hell. Choi Min Ho is attractive, but you love only Minami Sei. You can't have both men."
Min Ho shakes his head and presses the doorbell. He doesn't need to hear her mind. He could already hear her slapping her own cheeks. He lets out a low laugh. He has no intention of making her confused; however, he can't help but feel happy that she is finding him attractive.