This is the fourth story in the Undone series.
This is Jung Hoseok's time to shine.
He is taking control of a new project at Stellar Design, and he has decided it's time to take control of his love life as well. He is weary of being alone, and he...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Precisely on schedule, Dae stepped up and thanked the group.
“ Thank you for your excellent work in preparing for today. That was a lot of information to process, and I am sure our guests are tired after their flights. Our schedule is to break for the evening and allow you to get settled in your accommodations. We will resume with workshops at 10 am, have a working lunch, and then a facilities tour. We hope to finish by early afternoon. We would like to invite you to informal dinner and drinks at the Loft later in the week. Our curator, Sky, has planned an excellent menu, and there is a new art installation this month. Thank you again for your work today,” she said.
With that said, she stepped down and headed for Izabelle. Hobi watched as the two women talked. They would like each other as they got to know each other. They had many things in common, especially their keen business sense. Over the years, Dae had earned a reputation as a ruthless negotiator.
That thought made him frown. He realized he really did not know much about Izzy now. He could talk for hours about the sweet girl he followed around like a puppy, but the woman across the room from him was a mystery, one he was more than curious to solve.
He moved toward the two, eager to hear the thoughts the Dandy team had formed after the presentations. He was also honest enough to admit, at least to himself, that he hoped to talk with Izzy.
As if she read his mind, she turned his direction, eyes locked on his.
For the briefest, most perfect moment, her eyes lit with recognition, and she smiled at him.
He noticed the blush steal up her face as he returned the smile with his own. It was his natural one, the one that started from deep inside him, the one that reminded her of how much she trusted him, how much she missed him.
Before he could reach her, Rege stepped in his path. His attitude was as dark and cautious as Hobi's was bright.
He calculated how to side step him, but the man was persistent.
“ We are preparing to leave,” he told Hobi, “ the cars are downstairs waiting. If you have any materials for review, I will take them. If you have any comments or questions, you have my email, please send them there.”
Across the room, one of her staff had whispered to Izabelle, and she was nodding, preparing to leave, saying her goodbyes. Hobi's heart lifted when she caught his eye and headed his way.
Again, Rege tried to intercept Izzy, but she shook her head at him and quietly spoke to him. Whatever she said angered the man, as he stepped to the door to wait, jaw clenched, and hands fisted at his side.
Her path cleared, Izzy stopped in front of Hoseok, suddenly unsure of what to say or why she had insisted on this moment.
They stood and stared at each other for several uncomfortable moments while the room around them buzzed with activity.
He was puzzled over the way she was acting, wondering why she was so ill at ease.
No matter what issues she had working with him, they had to find common ground. If she needed to view him as a stranger now, so be it. He had always had a knack for making friends.
“Ms. Walker,” he said, noting her embarrassment at the formality,” I am so very glad we have the opportunity to work on this project together. I want you to be at ease. I won’t do anything to embarrass you or take advantage of our….past acquaintance. We can start brand new if you like.”
He watched her face and saw mixed emotions there. He had the impression that she did not know how to react to him, to the entire situation.
He lowered his voice for her ears only and took a step closer. He bent his head to her and took a deep breath.
“ But Izzy…. If you need me, I am right here. I want us to do well on this project,” he whispered,” I want to catch up with you. I have missed you.”
She stepped away from him then, her eyes searching his face. He had no idea if she found what she sought, but he caught the sheen of tears in her eyes as she turned away.
Izzy blinked back the tears that threatened as she followed Rege to the car. He would notice, and he would comment on them.
She puffed out an angry sigh. She was in no mood for his antics tonight. She wanted time to think. She needed time to absorb the details of today. There was a lot of technical stuff to review, but all she could think about was the fact that Hobi was here, and he said he missed her.
They arrived back at the hotel, and she escaped to her room as quickly as she could. She threw off the restrictive clothing of the day and dug in her suitcase until she found her favorite sweats.
She held the hoodie at arms length, noting the faded college logo and the fray at the cuff. She frowned at the irony of bringing this sweatshirt halfway around the world and then spending the entire day ignoring its original owner.
She slipped it over her head and pulled on the matching pants. She sighed as the warmth of the oversized shirt as it engulfed her. Tonight, it was more about the memories than the bulk of the shirt.
She thought of the night Hobi first “loaned" it to her.
They had been walking across the campus, the last night of summer giving way to the creeping chill of autumn.
They had been friends for a year now. He had insisted on waiting to walk her home from the library that night. He waited for her most nights.
To anyone watching them, it would be a fair assumption that they were lovers. He walked slightly behind her, protecting her from the approach of any unwanted attention. She tipped her face to him as she talked, her soft voice drifting across the manicured grounds. He bent his head close to listen and their laughter rang out time and again as they simply enjoyed one another.
Izzy remembered this particular night because of the cat.
They were halfway to her apartment when Hobi felt her shiver next to him. Without much thought, he yanked his sweatshirt over his head and held it out for her to slip on. For a moment, she could clearly see the ripple of muscles in his biceps and the tug of his white tee shirt against his chest and stomach.
Unless he was dancing, Hoseok was very modest. He was always layered up and buttoned down. But sometimes, like tonight, she caught a glimpse of the long corded muscles earned from hours of dance. On those occasions, she tried not to stare, but she always did.
She snuggled into the shirt and wrapped herself in his warmth. She inhaled deeply his crisp clean smell. He pretended not to notice her deep sigh as she hugged herself closely. He did not know she was pretending those were his arms holding her tightly.
He was desperately trying to hide how moved he was to watch her as she wrapped herself in him, imagining how she would look in the morning, rising from his bed and stealing his clothes discarded in hast the night before.
They both jumped at the sound of crying, crashing back into the cold reality of the dark pathway.
Soon Izzy recognized the sound and went in search of it's source.
