31 Park Ji-ho is a menace

The days that followed were a blur of activities for Ji-ho as she re-recorded her single and became involved in several singing projects.

Before she'd realised how fast time had passed, Ji-ho received a reminder from Seung-ho about the program she was to attend as his plus one. On an unassuming morning, a large package from a very exclusive designer store arrived at her doorstep. Within the privacy of her room, Ji-ho admired the beautiful white box that sat on her bed, beckoning for her to open it.

She reverently untied the sleek gold ribbon, lifted the lid, and set aside the sheets of tissue paper that covered the prize she had been given.

And it didn't disappoint.

A beautiful pink semi-sheer dress in black floral motifs sat inside the box. Just from looking at the dress, she knew that it would fit her like a glove despite not being measured for it. Ji-ho lifted the dress and realised that underneath it was a pair of stylish black heels and stunning Tahitian black pearl earrings. Eyeballing the luxurious items, she dreaded to think of how much the entire set had cost him. A thought came unbidden to Ji-ho that when she finally wore them, aside from her lingerie, everything else on her body would be a gift from Seung-ho.

___

The big day arrived and Ji-ho was pleasantly surprised by the flowers that arrived in the morning, courtesy of Seung-ho. She placed the long-stemmed white chrysanthemums in a vase filled with water. As she gently touched the snow-white petal of a flower, it occurred to her that in some cultures, Chrysanthemums were a symbol of long life and prosperity, an interesting choice in flowers given that Sun Young-mi's expiry date was approaching fast.

Ji-ho was completely unaware of what would happen when she was done exacting revenge for Sun Young-mi. Was she expected to live on till death arrived unexpectedly, or was the reaper coming for her?

The intrusive sound of her phone ringing pulled Ji-ho back to the present. The caller ID showed Seung-ho's name. For some reason, a few butterflies attempted to take off in her tummy but Ji-ho squashed them because the last thing she needed was to fall for someone like Seung-ho, or anyone else for that matter. She wasn't here for romance and fun.

"No unnecessary thoughts," she declared as she slid her finger on the screen to receive his call.

"Good morning," she cheerfully greeted him. "I got your flowers."

"I didn't send any."

The line went silent as Ji-ho's brain scrambled to pull out the relevant files from her memory. A hard-working brain cell told her that his name had been on the card that came with the flowers.

"But your name was on the card."

His low chuckle sounded through the phone.

"Uh.. Seung-ho, what were you thinking sending me plastic flowers?" Ji-ho continued.

The line went silent again.

"Plastic?"

Ji-ho imitated his chuckle but in an exaggerated manner.

"Okay, you got me," he said after a beat. The actor sounded amused by Ji-ho's parlay.

"Of course I did. So what did you call me about?"

"I wanted to let you know that I'll be at your place in the evening. Depending on the traffic, I'll get there around five pm at the latest."

"Alright, I'll be ready by then," she replied. Reality was finally starting to hit her. Ji-ho was attending an event as 'the' Seung-ho's partner. She suddenly felt queasy and placed a hand on her stomach.

____

Ji-ho had a meeting with Lee Tae-Hyun about the projects that were lined up for her. The producer had even printed out a list of apartment addresses that he recommended Ji-ho choose from. The amount of work coming her way ensured that Sun Young-mi wasn't going to remain poor anymore, and thus she could move to a more secure place soon.

"You dont have to worry about the security deposit," he distractedly told her as he read an email on his tablet. Sunlight was pouring through the glass wall of his office, highlighting the chestnut undertones of his soft-looking hair.

"Boss, can I ask you something?"

Tae-Hyun raised his head, giving her his attention.

"Am I allowed to attend special events with known public figures?"

Ji-ho's contract said nothing about it but company policy dictated some rules that weren't in the contract. The realisation had come about a bit late.

"Yes," Tae-Hyun answered. "Is this about your date with Seung-ho?"

It was true that men gossiped among themselves!

"It's good publicity for you," he told her.

"It's not a date though," Ji-ho tried to correct his mistaken assumption. "I'm just his plus one."

The producer raised his brows and smiled fondly at the young lady in denial. His eyes were a honey brown colour that looked beautiful under his gold-rimmed glasses.

"Alright," he responded, appeasing her because it was useless to insist that Seung-ho didn't just randomly take a plus one to his events. Whether Sun Young-mi realised it or not, the actor's interest in her was a little more than casual friendliness.

"Boss," Ji-ho stated with a wary glint in her eyes. "You sound like my mother when she's telling me I still look pretty after I've just given myself a haircut only a monkey would appreciate."

Lee Tae-Hyun stared at her with pursed lips like he was suppressing a smile. He sometimes wondered just what went on inside Sun Young-mi's head. The previous day, he had received a picture of her dinner with a message that said her sliced tomato looked like the back of Jeong In-sung's head.

"Monkeys are cute too, Young-mi," he said with a tap on her forehead with his pen. "And I'm sure you were a very cute little girl regardless of your haircut."

"So you're confirming what my mother said about me looking like a monkey," Ji-ho replied as she doodled a bunch of hearts on his notepad. She was here to waste his time before going home to get ready for the big event. Why Lee Tae-Hyun tolerated her bullshit she would never know. The meeting had started in a professional tone and then devolved into this nonsense not even fifteen minutes in.

"Sun Young-mi," the producer sighed at the little menace who was determined to distract him from any productivity. "Go home."