Author's POV.

The travel from San Fransisco to San Jose took around 35 minutes by car. Arrived at the condominium complex, Rowoon turned his car to the parking lot on his condo building and parked the car.

He actually started to feel unwell and it must be because of the jet lag. He turned off the engine while massaging his temple slowly. Hyeyoon caught the gesture as the girl was looking at him, she couldn't help to feel concerned.

"Are you okay?" she asked. No wonder the guy was a bit quiet during their journey. He didn't get enough sleep on the plane and he had been enduring the jet lag since before, he must be feeling extremely uncomfortable now.

The latter didn't answer and just kept massaging his temple. Hyeyoon grabbed her backpack and urged him to get out of the car.

"Come on, you need to rest," Hyeyoon told him and Rowoon nodded. He got out of the car and grabbed their luggage. Both of them immediately walked to the elevator from the basement and Rowoon hit the 19th button.

His condo was located in Axis, Almaden Blvd, with stunning floor-to-ceiling windows in a 22-story high-rise tower. It said, the upscale urban living in Axis offered grand views of downtown San Jose and beyond.

The building was located adjacent to the DeAnza Hotel as the building was within walking distance to all of downtown San Jose's amenities, including restaurants at historic San Pedro Square, the Farmer's Market, and The SAP Center.

He chose a very strategic location and Hyeyoon stunned as the elevator climbed up to reach level 19. Hyeyoon tried to make sure once again that he indeed owned one unit in this building.

The girl couldn't hide her amazement and wondering at the same time. How could this man manage to own a loft in this prestigious location at a very young age? He wasn't an entrepreneur as far as she knew.

They finally reached level 19 and the elevator's door slid open. Rowoon led them to his unit and stopped in front of unit 1915. He took out the key and unlocked the door.

"Welcome home," he exclaimed and invited the girl inside.

The room was very clean in a dark hardwood floor and light color wall-paint. She was welcomed by a living room in the middle and a kitchen with a round dining table on the right. The loft has two bedrooms, they were on each side of the loft.

His condo wasn't so spacious yet felt just right with the room space. Hyeyoon walked inside slowly and she saw the large windows near the living room that has a small balcony outside.

It was beautiful, the view was directly showed them the city and the downtown's skyline. Hyeyoon couldn't wait to see how it looked like at night. She smiled brightly and suddenly felt excited upon visiting the new place. She immediately fell for this place and quietly put it in her 'place to visit' lists.

"Wow," she couldn't help but stun by the astonishing experience she witnessed right now. "You have a very great place," she told him and Rowoon just flashed a smile.

"Thanks. Glad to know you like it," he responded and followed the girl stepped inside the loft. He then watched the girl as she was checking the interior, "there are two bedrooms, you can choose whichever you prefer," he told her and the guy just slumped down his long body on the couch. Waiting for the girl to make her choice.

Hyeyoon was contemplating for a few seconds and pointed to the second bedroom. She knew how to place herself and since she was the guest, she preferred the guest bedroom.

Rowoon raised an eyebrow and offered the girl to take the master bedroom instead if she wanted to, he didn't mind at all, "are you sure? You can have the master bedroom if you want," he told the girl but Hyeyoon shook her head.

"No, this one is enough," she smiled at him and Rowoon nodded.

"Okay then," he got up from the couch and pull aside his suitcases. "There's the bathroom, the other one is the master bathroom, you can use both, it's fine," he smiled but his smile looked weak. He was exhausted.

Rowoon saw the concern at her face and he managed to say it first before she could nag at him "I get it. I'll get a nap," he walked to the other room and told Hyeyoon before entered the room, "you can rest, too, and please make yourself at home, you can use the kitchen and everything," Rowoon looked at Hyeyoon who nodded.

She let the guy get some sleep and she followed to enter her bedroom. The room was so pretty, tidy, and clean. Decorated in white and light gray with a queen-sized bed placed right next to the door, it was right across the windows.

Hyeyoon placed her suitcase near the cabinet and rolled up the curtain, exposing the same view from the large windows in the living room. The uninvited thought came to cross her mind, how it feels if she moved and lived in this place. Maybe, one day. She thought.

The girl looked around and there was an armchair with a round footrest placed at the corner of the room right next to the window. On the left corner, there was a desk with a computer. Hyeyoon walked and sat on the armchair while looking at the view outside the windows. It was breathtaking. While smiling, she felt a bit drowsy and fell asleep the next second.

* * *

Hyeyoon woke up abruptly as she heard her phone vibrated. She fell asleep while sitting and now the back of her neck felt stiff. While stretching her stiff muscle, Hyeyoon took her phone out and checked on the message. It was Kiyong. She completely forgot to tell him that she had already landed and safely arrived in San Jose.

She glanced at her watch and it was already 2 PM local time, which means it was 6 AM in Seoul. He got up pretty early today. Hyeyoon was stunned for a moment and there was an incoming call on her phone. She picked up the call.

"Hello,"

"Have you arrived, baby?" his voice was heard and she was quietly smiling upon hearing him calling her so softly like that. She was so busy with stuff during the trip and rarely had time to call him back when she saw a few missed calls from him.

She walked to the door and checked on Rowoon's room. There was no one in the living room, Rowoon must be still napping, she assumed. Hyeyoon closed the door and slowly laid down to her bed.

"Yes, already," she replied and there was a sound of a coffee maker across the line. "You got up early today?"

Kiyong sipped his coffee before answering, "Yes, I have to go to Jeju for a few days, baby. Maybe 3 or 4 days. I'll be going today, with Gunjoo as usual," he informed her and the two kept talking about their daily activities for these past days they had been apart.

Kiyong asked about her return time and Hyeyoon told him their schedule for the next few days. They were scheduled to leave the US in two days as tomorrow they would visit the San Jose branch and did the last sampling.

Hyeyoon asked Kiyong whether he would be able to get her at the airport. But turned out their schedule didn't match, as Kiyong's flight to Jeju was took place at Gimpo International Airport. Meanwhile, Hyeyoon would arrive at Incheon International Airport.

"I'll try babe, let me see if I'd make it to get you at Incheon," Kiyong said, a bit regretful due to the unmatched route and schedule.

Hyeyoon felt bad to him, "it's okay, I'll be fine. Don't worry about me. I can go home by subway or taxi," she reassured him but the latter seemed unconvinced.

"Okay, I'll let you know if I can make it to Incheon on time just before your arrival," he insisted and Hyeyoon nodded in silence. "I miss you," he said softly.

Hyeyoon smiled but there was a foreign feeling that wasn't supposed to be there. She failed to recognize the odd. Like something didn't feel right, but she wasn't sure what was that. She brushed it off and ignored the odd feeling. Hyeyoon forced a smile and replied, "me, too,"

Kiyong told Hyeyoon that he had to go and ended their call after that. Leaving Hyeyoon speechless on her bed. The girl stared blankly at the ceiling and wondered what she had just felt.

Was it because of the jet lag? She confusedly got up from the bed and slowly walked out of the room. She approached the huge glass windows in the living room and slid them open. There was a nice and small balcony. Hyeyoon was about to step out of the balcony but the wind was quite strong. No wonder, they were in level 19.

Hyeyoon then slowly closed the glass door and walked to the kitchen. She suddenly felt hungry. The girl opened the fridge and scanned the content and found nothing but a can of beers and a few snacks.

She sighed helplessly, then turned to the cabinet and tried to find something else. She found a pack of spaghetti but there was no sauce or even something that could be combined with the pasta into a dish.

She scratched her head and was thinking for a moment. "should I walk around? I think there's a restaurant nearby?" She browsed through her phone to find the nearest restaurant or a grocery store if she'd go shopping and get a few ingredients.

But then she remembered she didn't have any USD cash and she wasn't sure if she could use her card here. As Hyeyoon was so frugal with herself, she never thought of having a credit card, and she somewhat regretting that.

"What are you doing?"

A voice behind jumped her a little and Hyeyoon turned around to see Rowoon was standing tall behind her only wearing a sweatpants and plain t-shirt. He was drying his damp hair with a towel and Hyeyoon furrowed her brows.

"I thought you're napping?" she stuttered and quickly restored by clearing her throat.

"I was, but couldn't really get a good nap so I took a bath, the warm water feels perfect. Do you wanna take a bath, too? You can use the master bathroom," he offered. The house has 2 bathrooms and the one at the front was only for a shower.

Have a bath in warm water sounded really relaxing but she shook her head. "I think I'll just take a shower," she said.

Rowoon won't force the girl and just awkwardly nodded. The guy kept drying his hair and asked the girl the same question. "What are you doing?"

Hyeyoon was standing in front of the fridge and leaned her side on the cabinet. She immediately realized and fixed her posture. She finally told Rowoon that they had nothing to eat and she felt starving.

Rowoon checked the cabinet and indeed found nothing inside but the raw pasta. He sighed and checked on his phone. He was supposed to ask Kent to buy a few ingredients before they arrived but he totally forgot. They had no other choice to buy themselves or just order delivery.

"Shall we eat outside? Or do you want to order delivery? What would you like to eat?" he slid his phone back to his pocket and turned to the girl, asking her opinion.

Hyeyoon was actually craving spaghetti as she found the raw pasta before. She then told Rowoon, "how about we go grocery shopping? I think I want to cook," she smiled excitedly at him and Rowoon was stunned for a split second before nodded blankly.

"Okay, I'll take you there," Rowoon was daydreaming and Hyeyoon then walked back to her room.

"Great! I will take a shower, too. Give me 20 minutes to get ready!" the girl shouted from her room and walked out again already bringing her toiletries and went to the bathroom.

* * *

The two of them arrived at the nearest grocery store, just a few blocks from Rowoon's condominium complex. Hyeyoon entered the store and she immediately could smell the fresh market. Grabbing a basket, the girl went straight to the fresh market area and wandering the ingredients she needed.

She saw vegetables, beef, and meat section, she would get a few slices of beef and minced beef. She took a few pieces of the packaging and inserted them into her basket. Hyeyoon was excitedly picking the ingredients, meanwhile, Rowoon just following her around from behind.

"What would you make?" Rowoon couldn't help to ask when he saw Hyeyoon took a mozzarella.

"Spaghetti bolognese with beef and mozzarella?" she answered without looking at him.

After taking a few onions, herbs, and the bolognese sauce, Hyeyoon was actually done with the ingredients she needed. Hyeyoon then turned to see Rowoon was holding bananas. She frowned and stared at the guy weirdly.

Rowoon chuckled upon seeing her reaction. "What?" he asked and Hyeyoon still looking at him, judging.

"What will you do with those bananas?" she bluntly asked and Rowoon couldn't help a smile.

He put the fruit inside the basket and took the basket from her as it might getting heavier. "I want to eat them," he was about to grab another fruit and found the green grapes. He took the packaging and put it inside the basket.

Lastly, he grabbed a few apples and pears, a bottle of yogurt, mayonnaise, and a cheddar. Hyeyoon was now following him from behind and couldn't stop got surprised upon seeing him taking a few more fruits; strawberries, kiwis, and apple cider vinegar.

"What are you making? Fruit salad?" Hyeyoon guessed from the ingredients he chose and Rowoon stopped and turned to her.

"How did you know?" he asked her back.

Hyeyoon smiled wryly and pointed at the basket, "judging by the ingredients you stuffed in there," but then she saw the apple cider vinegar. "What's that? Apple vinegar?"

Rowoon stared at her and then at the bottle and he nodded, "yes, to clean all the fruits," he added. "You'll need to wash all of them clean since you'll eat them raw, right? Apple cider vinegar will do that work for me," he shrugged.

"How that will work?" Hyeyoon now couldn't hide her curiosity and kept asking him to explain further.

Rowoon took a bottle of olive oil then responded, "you'll see later," he winked and Hyeyoon was agape and stunned upon seeing him walked to the cashier.

A few minutes later, they already drove back to his condo and Hyeyoon was washing clean her ingredients, and started chopping the beef and onions. Meanwhile, Rowoon was peeling the fruits. Hyeyoon watched him as he washed the fruits one by one and he poured a half-filled bowl of water and put two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar into the water. He mixed the water and then put a drop of dish soap.

Rowoon saw as Hyeyoon now ditched her dish and walked closer to look at what he was doing closely. "Why did you put the dish soap?" she asked and Rowoon showed the girl that the liquid could rinse clean the vegetables and fruits from pesticide or preservative.

He put the grapes inside the water and let them soaked in it for a few minutes. Just when a minute or two had been passed. Rowoon stirred the water and wiped clean the grapes' skin gently. He found a few of them turned dark and showed it to Hyeyoon that those all were rotten and he won't use them.

Hyeyoon was stunned as she witnessed how he demonstrated the science in front of her. "Wow, how did you know it works that way? Did you learn somewhere?" she was still amazed.

Rowoon smiled and he rinsed all the grapes with fresh water. Hyeyoon could see the grapes indeed changed, it looked fresher and the skin was very bright. Rowoon took one and fed it to Hyeyoon. The girl ate it right from his hand.

"How is it?" he asked and Hyeyoon nodded.

"Tastes fresh," she praised him with his brilliance and Rowoon just flashed a smile. "I will definitely wash all my vegetables and fruits that way from now on," she said while cooking her dish.

Rowoon chuckled. "Good, we need to maintain a healthy lifestyle, for our own good," he agreed with the girl. "But I recommend to wash it that way only with the food you'll eat raw. The food that well-cooked should be fine, though. All the cooking process will evaporate the harmful substances,"

Hyeyoon paid attention to all he said and when her dish was done, he was also done with the fruit salad. He out it in the fridge to eat later as the dessert.

The two of them then served the pasta on the round table and Rowoon could smell the cheese from Hyeyoon's dish.

"Wow, smell really good," he exclaimed and earned a proud smile from the girl. Hyeyoon pulled the lid from the frying pan and showed Rowoon how she cooked the spaghetti looked like a pizza.

The girl laughed when she saw Rowoon was both confused and stunned at the same time. She cut the pasta and put it on his plate before grabbed one for herself.

Rowoon tasted it first and he couldn't hide his enjoyment. It did taste excellent, and Rowoon just took another bite. He smiled at her and showed her his thumb up. "Your dish never disappointed me, Hyeyoon. It tastes perfect," he praised the girl and Hyeyoon just smiled in return.

They both enjoyed the food with small talks only the two of them. Hyeyoon was curious about something and the girl asked him directly.

"Why did you decide to buy this unit? If you don't mind me asking," she started. Rowoon raised his sight to look at the girl, Hyeyoon was stirring her fork on the pasta, waiting for his response.

Rowoon seemed to think for the best explanation to answer her question, though Rowoon was confused about where to start. "For investment," he lightly answered. Hyeyoon raised an eyebrow and Rowoon explained further.

"Uh, you know, after my father deceased, I needed to settle a few things and my mom and I decided to sell a few family assets, including our home in Ilsan and my apartment in Seoul," he started. Hyeyoon listened to his story carefully this time, and Rowoon continued, "We decided to divide the inheritance and I saved up mine.

"As I just started to work at M.IT, I was transferred to Beijing immediately and lived there for a year before I took my master, my mom was staying with me in Beijing for a year. When I moved to the Netherlands, she came back to Seoul and bought an apartment unit near to my sister's place," Rowoon sipped his water. He looked at Hyeyoon who was still listening. He smiled and went on.

"In the Netherlands, I met Kent and we talked a lot about property investment. He thought as I might be interested in property investment, hence he informed me this condo-which was his brother's-was available for sale. His older brother was transferred to Italy and was planned to sell the unit. He offered me to buy with quite a low price at that time, and I took it," Rowoon stopped, and Hyeyoon seemed still in disbelief.

"I didn't know you're interested in property investment?" she stated and Rowoon nodded.

"Yes, I just had the thought when I met Kent, we kinda talked a lot about it, and I thought why not. I bought this unit and put it for rent. I got monthly payment from the rent which is a very good investment," he grinned.

Hyeyoon finished her meal, "and, why is it empty now?" she asked.

Rowoon finished all the pasta left on the frying pan clean and wiped his mouth before answered, "the tenant was moved out a month ago, and I hadn't put it on rent yet again. Luckily, we're assigned to San Jose at this time, I can finally stay at this unit,"

Hyeyoon took his plate and was about to go to the sink when Rowoon held her hand and prevented her to move. "I'll wash the dishes, wait here, we still have the dessert," he smirked and went to take the fruit salad he stored in the fridge out.

Cold fruit salad in the summer. Hyeyoon's eyes sparkled as she saw the salad was sprinkled with cheddar. Rowoon scoped twice for Hyeyoon and put the bowl in front of her.

"Here you go, have a taste," he took one for him and looked at Hyeyoon who was now taking a spoonful of the salad and tasted it. Rowoon anticipated her reaction and when he saw Hyeyoon was giddy from the chills of the salad, he chuckled.

"It's cold," both of them laughed.

He pulled out a tissue and gave it to the girl, wiping the stain on her lower lips.

"How was it?" he asked.

"It's so good," she took another spoonful and was now enjoying the sweet and fresh taste.

Rowoon sighed in relief. Glad that she liked the salad.

Hyeyoon chewed on the fruit and swallowed it before continued, "so, you're now investing in two properties? The one in Seoul and this one?" she asked.

This time Rowoon shook his head, "no, it's not mine. It's my mom's. She bought it for herself, but since my sister gave birth to the twins, my mom often stayed at her place, yet the unit was empty. As now I moved back to Seoul, I stayed there for now. I only owned this unit," he finished his story.

Hyeyoon nodded, "interesting," she stated.

Rowoon smiled at her, "are you now interested in investment, too?" he asked the girl but she shook her head weakly.

"I don't think I can do that," she said honestly. "I'm not very good with managing properties or reading opportunities in investment,"

Rowoon put down the spoon and looked at Hyeyoon, "I wasn't either, but apparently, I have inherited my father's talent in investment. Well, yes, I learned a few things from him before, but when he was gone, none of us had the capability to manage all his assets. As the only son in the family, I had no choice but to take over. I decided to sell a few of his assets-with the rest of my family consent, of course-and we started all over. I chose to invest to my interest and style, and buying this place was such an achievement, for me personally," he told the girl.

Hyeyoon was in awe and left speechless. Way different from him, Hyeyoon was born with artistic talent and her capability to manage her work tidily. But Hyeyoon never had the chance to try for investment. To hear it from Rowoon was a new thing for her and she couldn't help but amaze at how he set up his target to achieve his goal and had a clear vision of the future for himself.

He dared to take the risk and took the opportunity. Rowoon had grown up to a more mature man in three years, Hyeyoon smiled upon realizing it. He had changed, too, in a positive way.

"What?" Rowoon caught her was smiling and couldn't help to ask.

Hyeyoon shook her head and leaned to the backrest. She was now feeling a bit tired.

"Are you tired?" he also caught that and glanced at the clock. It was already 9.10 PM. They'd better get to sleep now, tomorrow would be hectic as usual. They would leave in the morning. "Shall we go to sleep now?" Rowoon asked the girl again and Hyeyoon yawned.

"Yeah," she stretched her body and Rowoon nodded.

"Alright. Leave it to me, I'll clean it all, you can go to sleep first," he said and he started to collect all the dishes.

"Are you sure? I can help you clean it," Hyeyoon couldn't let Rowoon did all the work and was about to help him. But Rowoon prevented her to touch the dishes.

"No, Hyeyoon, please. I can do it. You need to rest, I'll finish this fast and go to bed, too, after this," he promised. Upon seeing his persistence, Hyeyoon then gave up. She nodded and excuse herself to her room.

"Don't sleep late, Rowoon. We'll get ready at 7 AM," she told him just before she entered the room and Rowoon responded with an okay.

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A/N :

Wow, I didn't realize that this chapter would be this long. 4K+ words. It was usually written in two chapters. LOL.

But I had the draft and this is for Chapter 36. I'm not sure whether I can finish the next chapter soon or in a few days, but I'll try to update sooner.

It's still in my notebook, not yet type it on my laptop. Hehe...

Hope this one will still be enjoyable for everyone. :D

Please excuse the mistakes. I did try to finish it this late at night and publish it. You may find a mistake or more. I'll re-read it again and fix the mistake as soon as I spot it.

Thank you for all the votes and your input for the scenes. I can finally decide on how I develop the story to its final. ^^

Till we meet again in the next chapter.
Love you all ~