28

"Hey there beautiful," Reno peeks in your office, "dinner?"

"Huh? What time is it?" You look up from your laptop and check the clock. It's almost nine in the evening. "Shit, I didn't notice." 

"You've been working overtime everyday for months now. Come on. It's Friday. Let's go out," he pulls you to your feet and puts his arm around your waist. 

You push him gently and smile at his pouting face. "I still have a lot of work to finish. You've been taking in a lot of projects, Reno." 

You try to go back to your seat but he pulls you by the hand and gets your bag that was on the table. 

"No," he says firmly. "You and I are going out for dinner and that's final." He pushes you out the door and locks it behind you. 

"Ok, ok..." you tell him, giggling at how childish he looks. 

He takes you to a very fancy restaurant with a beautiful view of the Han River. The waiter, who seems to be expecting you, beams and leads you to a private room. 

A table is set elegantly in the middle of the room. A bouquet of flowers is on one of the chairs. 

You look around questioningly and at Reno. "What's this?"

"Just to celebrate," he pulls the chair with the bouquet on it, takes the flowers and hand them to you. 

You furrow your brows, "Thank you. But why?"

"It's my birthday." He smiles shyly and scratches the back of his head. 

"Oh my God. Why didn't you tell me? I should've bought something for you." You should've known. You've been working for him for months now. Not to mention, going out with him for a week - officially. "Happy Birthday, BOSS," you step closer to him and peck him on the cheek. 

After the hurtful incident two months ago, he didn't leave you, saying 'you're too precious to let go'. In those two months, with his help, you were able to get rid of Mark in your system. You've changed your number, moved to a new apartment near the studio and stopped watching TV.

"I hate it when you call me that," he frowns. Then his arm goes around your waist and pulls you in for a kiss. 

A waiter comes in with the food, making both of you blush. You thank the waiter after he sets the food on the table. 

"Happy Birthday," you say again as you make a toast. "So, how old are you now?" Yes...you still don't know. 

"Twenty-eight. But, I feel like a freakin' old man." Frowning yet again. 

"You look like one, too," you joke, making him bite his lip, pretending to be hurt. 

This is better - safer. Reno knows your perception and respects it. "This is much better," your brain tells you, but your heart still feels empty. 

The food is great. After you've finished the whole bottle of wine, Reno takes you to an expensive looking bar just beside the restaurant. 

"Thanks for coming with me," he says, downing his fifth shot of whiskey. You're still on your third but you already feel the alcohol hitting you. You're sitting at the bar and you feel his hand rest on your lap. He leans forward and your lips touch. The kiss deepens and the bartender clears his throat, making both of you chuckle. "How about we take this to your place?" he whispers. 

"I'd like that," you say, giving him a quick kiss before standing. You haven't had sex in months and the tequila you've had is making you horny. 

You're still unlocking the door to your apartment and his hands are already all over you. His lips on your nape makes you giggle. "Let me open the door first," you say between laughs. 

"I can't wait, princess." He bangs the door open after hearing it unlock. He turns you to face him and kisses you deeper, making you step backwards into the apartment. His foot kicks the door closed. With your lips still locked, he takes off his jacket and throws it on the couch beside you. 

Your head throbs when you open your eyes. Wine, tequila and whiskey is not a good combination, you realize. The sun is already shining in through the window of your bedroom. You stretch your arms up and to your sides. 

Shit! You remember. But, he's already gone. 

Fuck! 

You lay back and tears fall down your eyes as memories from last night flood your thoughts.

While Reno was on top of you, you saw Mark's face. When he was inside of you, you felt Mark's touch. The sounds that came out of his mouth echoed Mark's voice.

But it wasn't Mark.

Your phone goes off, it's Reno.

"Princess," he says in the other line. "How was your sleep, sweetie?"

"Uhm.." you don't want him to hear you crying.

"Sorry I left you. I need to catch a flight. See you tomorrow?"

"Ok."

You throw your phone on your side when you hear him hang up.

It definitely wasn't Mark. Mark wouldn't leave you in the middle of the night. He would be cooking breakfast by now if it were him. He'd be kissing you good morning. And he would surely not come before you do.

Shit. Mark. Mark. Mark.

Why would he still be on your mind? You thought you've completely forgotten about him, but he's still there. Just hiding in the shadows, waiting to spring up and surprise you....at the most unexpected time. 

He's like a ghost from the past that haunts you - you can't see it but you feel it's presence. It's there lurking in the darkness. 

"Bel! Get your shit together!" You scold yourself. 

Here you go again, going crazy...talking to yourself. 

You spend the whole day doing house chores - cleaning, doing the laundry and cleaning again - just to keep you busy. 

Your phone rings just when you're about to take a bath. 

"Hello?" 

"Bel! I'm finally in Seoul!" Min shouts from the other line. 

"Oh My God! Min. Damn girl! Where are you?"

"Still in the station. I was wondering if you could take me in for the night?"

"Of course, silly." You give her your address.

The doorbell rings as soon as you get out of the bathroom. Excited, you run to the door to find your quirky friend smiling from ear to ear. She drops her bag on the floor and you hug in what seems like forever. 

Finally, she releases you and looks around the apartment. It isn't that huge, but your new apartment is bigger than your old one. Actually, you like this better than the last one. It only has one bedroom but the living room and kitchen are spacious. The window gives you a view of the beautiful city below and she gapes at it. You just smile as she walks around the house, without saying a single word, her eyes widening at everything she sees. Luckily, you've cleaned, so the house is spotless.

"WOAH!" Her voice finally comes out. 

"So, how long are you gonna stay?" You ask as she sits on the sofa beside you. 

"I wish I could stay longer. But, I was only permitted to stay for a night." She sighs. 

"What do you want to do then?" 

"I want to experience the night life here." You laugh at her excitement. She rarely experiences night life in your hometown, you wonder if she could handle Seoul. 

"Ok. Let's grab something to eat first, maybe do a little sight seeing. Then, head to the clubs."

Both of you quickly go and change. You lend her a dress from your closet because the one she has is quite boring. Since she's a bit shorter, your beige mini dress falls to her knees, but she still looks good on it. 

First, you take her to one of your favorite Italian restaurants in the center of the city. Then, you get a taxi to Namsan Tower where you take pictures of her and the view of the city. Then, you have coffee in the restaurant in the tower where she talks nonstop. She tells you about how Ha-nuel and Michael broke up a week after they announced their engagement because she caught him with another girl.

What's new? You care less. You're long over that guy. 

"So, how are you and Mark?" They still think you're with him.

"Hey, look at the time," it's already ten and clubs would already be full by the time you get there. Besides, you don't want to answer her question. "We should be going or else we won't have any table left."

Thankfully, that worked. You head to the finest club in Itaewon. As you expected, the club is already crowded with both foreigners and locals. 

Min quickly took to the dance floor while you squeeze your way to the bar. After only ten minutes, she's already beside you. 

"Damn, this place is crazy," she says, panting. 

"The party's just starting," you order a tequila for her, which she downs as soon as the bartender hands it to her. She signals the bartender for another one and she drinks it almost immediately.  

"Hey, slow down. The night is long." You giggle.

She goes back to the dance floor and you watch her flirt dance with a cute guy. 

"Come on," she motions you to join her but you're not in the mood for some dancing yet. 

You order another shot and a beer. 

"Hey, bitch," a female voice says from beside you. It sounds familiar so you turn to look. 

Her hand comes flying to your face and you almost fall down your chair. 

"What the fuck!" You look up at her and realize, it's Jane. "What was that for?" You push her but not that strong. 

Min comes running beside you. She yanks at Jane's hair and she falls to her side. Seeing the girl helpless on the floor, you pull Min's hand as she was about to slap Jane. 

"No, let's just leave," you tell Min, pulling her away. 

"You whore," you hear Jane shouting, "you come back here."

"Who was that? She kinda looked familiar," Min asks when you're outside. 

"I don't know. Maybe just some random drunk girl." You lie. "Forget her. Let's go to a different club." 

The other club is as crowded as the first one. As usual, Min goes to the dance floor and flirts with every cute guy she sees. 

It was already four in the morning when you return to your apartment. Both of you are dead drunk, but happy. 

You haven't had this much fun in a very long time. It was nice having a friend with you. You smile as you lay your head on the bed beside your friend. 

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The song is for the middle part of the chapter.