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...
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“He is something else,” Izzy said as she set the containers on the table.
“ He’s just in love,” Hobi laughed, “ He has made me so damn jealous the past year. They all have.”
He stopped and kissed her.
“ But I get it now, I really do. And I plan to be just as obnoxious about you,” he said, kissing her again.
“ I love you Izabelle Walker and will spend my days making sure everyone knows it,” he paused and took her face in his hands, “ and my nights making sure you never doubt it.”
He kissed her hard and deep and when he drew back, he brushed the tears from her eyes.
“And first thing in the morning,” he said, nodding at her shaky laugh, “ and early afternoons, well anytime in the afternoon, and like, right after work….”
She playfully punched his arm.
“ I love you too Jung Hoseok! I can’t quite believe I am so lucky that you love me back, but I promise I am learning.”
“Believe it. It is my truth,” he said.
“I’ll have everything ready in just a moment,” he said, getting drinks and the rest of the things from the kitchen.
She used that opportunity to grab her charger and her phone. She tossed it on the table and forgot about it.
The food was even more wonderful than she remembered. She joked and told Hobi she must have been distracted that evening. He laughed and agreed.
They fell into an easy rhythm of sharing food And conversation. It was a perfectly ordinary Sunday night.
“ Hobi,” she said, a bit of hesitation alerting him she was nervous, “this is the perfect Sunday night.”
He nodded, knowing she had more to say.
“I used to hate them when we were in school. It meant the weekend was over and that you would head back to your apartment and ours would suddenly seem so empty without you. I dreaded it. I think this is the first Sunday night I have enjoyed since I was a kid.” She confessed.
“ Know why?” he asked, “It’s because we are both here with no plans to leave. We can just relax and be bums and not care that tomorrow is Monday.”
He saw the shadow cross her face and began to worry.
“ What’s wrong Iz?” he asked.
As she hesitated in her answer his heart began to slam. What if she was having regrets?
“ It’s just…..” she paused, trying to organize her thoughts.
“That’s just it Hobi. Tomorrow is Monday and you will go to work and I…. What will I do?” she asked, her uncertainty touching his heart.
Before he could answer the phone rang, startling them both and she frowned as she reached to turn it off.
“ It was Olivia…”She sighed, hiding her face in her hands, feeling the good feelings start to slip away.
He gently took her wrists and moved her hands away from her face.
“ Come, sit and talk to me,” he coaxed.
She nodded and stood, watching him gather wine glasses and retrieving a bottle of wine. It was the cheap brand they drank in college, the one they bought last time and didn’t drink.
Hobi really was perfect. He knew in that moment she needed her level headed best friend to listen to her and help her find her way.
He knew exactly what she needed.
Hobi watched Izzy as she settled on the couch. It was easy for him to slip back all those years ago to the girl he could trust with any secret. He gave thanks for those years of friendship that now formed a shield for the love they were growing.
He settled on the floor and she slipped down to join him. He placed the wine on the table and handed her a glass. One look at each other and they each killed their glass and burst out laughing. It was going to be one of those nights.
“ What happened after you left here?” he asked.
She nodded. She had known that question was coming.
“I avoided her until that Monday morning. I went in to confront her, but Rege was there instead. He said she had taken a “business trip” and had scheduled one for me too. He told me everything had been taken care of for Dandy and I did not have any further need to “worry” about the project.”
“I think Olivia knew you and I compared notes about your transfer and figured it out. She did not want a confrontation, so she ran and sent me to some remote village in France.”
“I truly think she thought I would be “ over it” by the time I got back,” she said, her disbelief still clear.
Hobi nodded his agreement.
“I left, but I already had a plan,” Izzy confided as she poured them another glass of wine.
Hobi smiled and clicked glasses with her.
Damn he loved drunk Izzy but they needed this story sober so they could discuss “next”.
“But….” Izzy looked at him and touched her finger to the end of his nose,” I already had a plan.”
He grabbed her finger and kissed it and she sighed.
“I worked on my calendar on the plane ride home, working every day to reach the day of the recital, the day I could get back to you.”
She paused and cleared her throat and he bent and kissed her cheek.
A deep breath and she continued.
“I took the details Rege gave me and added them. I also gathered everything I could find about our other projects. Olivia was right. It was all coming together.”
“Internet and contact were difficult, but I traveled to Paris to get what I needed. I finished there and they are getting ready for another great launch next month.”
There was no mistaking her pride when she said that.
Hobi felt guilt and a touch of fear wash over him at that. She had been on the brink of having everything she had worked for but now she was here in his simple home, thousands of miles away from that dream. Would she have regrets?
“I changed my flight and came back early so Olivia could not hide from me. I confronted her in her office and she tried to lie but I did not let her off the hook.”
“She told me she loved you in college,” she paused to see his reaction. He simply shrugged and that earned him a smile.
“She loved you but her family had other ideas. She admitted she used her feelings for you to get what she wanted from them.”
He shrugged at that too.
“She said her mom did all the manipulation to make the transfers happen. She said it was the best thing that ever happened to you and I finally slapped her.”
She said it so casually that Hobi took a minute to get it.
“Hold up! You slapped her?” he asked.
“Yes,” Izzy answered.
“In her office?” he continued, trying to picture sweet and mild Izabelle doing that, then fighting a smile thinking she had done it to defend him.
“Yes, not one of my more professional moments,” she admitted.
