After hailing a taxi for Youngmi once the two of them were certain the wrangle between them had been effectively ironed out, Namjoon steered towards his home as well. Strolling about aimlessly was definitely not what he had planned for, but in that particular instance, getting to forsake his purpose without being tormented by the fear of having let down the people around him was proving to be salubrious for Namjoon.

A breath of respite was all that he craved, yet could never discover one until it came down to the point of losing something dear to him.

He had missed the chance, as well as the dream of waking up beside Youngmi for the rest of his life. He could not even afford to dote on her from distance, since that would not be any better than being obsessed with her. Continuing to be hung up about her would mean him allowing the female to still have a hold over him, of which process Namjoon had a coherent inkling that it was all but an analogue of the siren's song. He could not get involved in that. He was not so privileged to invest himself in a love that would, in return, end up preying on his own sanity.

Being the contributor in a lopsided balance of love may culminate in afflictions which may have no antidote to them, and Namjoon had no urge whatsoever to succumb to such an abject fate. It was reassuring, in fact, that the man was aware of when and where to draw boundaries. The past ten years of him fancying Youngmi was no exception either. He decided to carry on with it only because his emotions had not started to take a toll on him just yet. But now that they were threatening to, he would not reconsider discarding them outright.

After all, he had had enough.

Namjoon guffawed, probably amazed at the caprices Youngmi's confession from a few moments ago was causing him. While he remained engaged in feeling apprehensive about his state of mind, he did not realise when he almost walked past the very establishment from where his eventful night had seemingly begun. It was only after a saccharine scent of blossoms had manipulated his senses that he automatically shuffled his feet around, his profile facing A Bouquet Of Love as he stood planted on his spot.

Namjoon noticed a customer inside as he attempted to crane his neck rather subtly to peep into Ewan's store.

"From the looks of it, a lot of money must have been put together by him for the interior. Gives me fairycore vibes, not gonna lie. I'm impressed." Namjoon mumbled to himself while keeping on with the surreptitious behavior.

However, what transpired thereafter, stopped him dead in his tracks. A cold bead of sweat trickled down the side of his face as he witnessed what could accurately be termed as a fever dream. For reasons unknown to even his own self, although Namjoon's eyes were first-hand corresponding to his brain, he could not bring himself to believe that he was in fact awake. Eyes wide open, he proceeded to watch the deed from afar, and notwithstanding the fact that he was appalled to his core, if the need be so, he was prepared to pounce upon the offender as well. As a matter of fact, he had even commenced cracking his knuckles as he seethed in anger.

The customer whom Namjoon had initially seen being handed over a bunch of flowers and consequently sniffing into them, now laid flat on the ground as Ewan scanned his overalls. After a while of combing through the man's pockets, and once he had extracted a wallet from their depths, Ewan briskly retreated to behind the counter, stuffing the wallet's constituents in some apparently well-secured drawer attached in that desk. Deeming the job done when the transfer appeared complete to him, he rushed back to his customer, placing the man's belongings with a precision identical to when he had not yet pried into his possessions.

Namjoon abruptly hid himself behind a pillar when Ewan hastily headed out of his shop, whisking his vision left to right to detect any factor that might wind up working against him. Once he was confident that no unwanted presence— specifically humans and CCTV cameras— were in his periphery, Ewan ran back in, hauling his victim along with the latter's arm fastened around his shoulder. Dropping him off on one of the benches that lined the greenery sprawling at the centre of the martketplace— along with the bouquet that the man evidently had purchased for all the cash that was available in his wallet— Ewan skedaddled back into his safe haven, rendering Namjoon gaping at him in disbelief.

Retrieving his phone quickly, Namjoon began to type to Youngmi, in hope of her finally seeing things for as they were. Even as an abstract concept, he had never intended to burst Youngmi's bubble for his own sake. Sure, he had confronted her and given her a piece of his mind time and again, but the authority of meting out the ultimate word was never seized from her. However, this was where it all ceased to persist. Namjoon would no longer brook the man with questionable morals and never-ending lies, let alone permit him to come anywhere near Youngmi.

How was texting her a small warning going to achieve any of it, though? That too when he did not really have substantial proof against the compulsive pretender. His sway over Youngmi could not be denied either, it was conceivable by how hopelessly the woman was besotted with him. What were the odds that she would trust Namjoon at once, and not relay the covert information to Ewan? Namjoon required a better alternative than the one which left no scope for him but to pose as the scapegoat at last.

▪️

Just the day when Namjoon was desperate to leave early, came in a case of a severe dental anomaly that needed to be instantly operated upon. The procedure did not stall him for much longer, thankfully, but the inky blackness had still claimed much of the sky already before he could even reach Youngmi. Huffing as he leaned his head onto the glass door that led into her clinic, Namjoon recapitulated the entire incident so that he did not zone out under the female's incredulous gaze.

Puffing in anticipation, Namjoon pushed the doors, only to let the force have an impact on his own self. His eyes rounded in bewilderment as he staggered a few steps backwards, unable to wrap his head around what just happened.

"Is she not working right now?" He muttered under his breath, eyebrows weaving in confusion.

Without a second thought, Namjoon drew his phone from the side pocket of his pants and punched in Youngmi's number. The ring indicative of his call being connected, resonated in his ears, leading him to gulp in nervousness. Soon, it was Youngmi's voice that blared through the phone's speaker as she exchanged the usual pleasantries.

"Hello, Namjoon. What's up?"

"I came down to your clinic only to find it closed already. Are you done for the day?" He inquired.

"Yeah. I had to do some grocery shopping, that's why," Youngmi stated, picking up shortly after. "Why? What happened? Is everything alright?"

"Of course, why are you even worrying about that?" Namjoon feigned a chuckle. "I just wanted to meet you. Seems like I'll have to visit you at your home now, right?"

"Ah, that would be great! I'll cook us something delicious, then." Youngmi informed.

"Sure, I'll be there soon."

"Looking forward!" The female exclaimed, making Namjoon contort his face out of pity for her— and more at her cluelessness— as he hummed and cancelled the call.

Swaying his head in disappointment, Namjoon wondered if unintentionally, the both of them had somehow induced utter distress to someone. Because, if not for karma, the endless loop of heartache and perfidy that they had been forcefully made to participate in, just did not make sense. Especially Youngmi, she deserved the best out there, and absolutely not some twisted human whose first language was clearly that of deceit.

Namjoon wearily rotated on his heels, gearing himself up to descend the flight of stairs in front him. But just when he was about to lift his feet, through the corner of his eye, an unsteady streak of light managed to capture his attention. He swiveled his line of sight to get a conclusive look of it, brows furrowing in perplexity when he could— at the long last— locate the origin of that ray.

It traced back to the interior of Youngmi's cabin, not stabilizing once in the meantime Namjoon convinced himself that he was not being a paranoid.

▪️

a/n

when i said you can expect a full kdrama experience from this book, i was not joking not at all hehe. intense chapters are lining themselves up as we progress further into the story, so y'all better prepare yourselves for what you have in store through 'sweet tooth'. not at all kidding anymore, only being serious hMPH😤 pls vote and comment if the book is living upto your expectations. every single vote and comment of appreciation/suggestion means a lot to me, in case you think 1 of each is worthless.