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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Livi and Hobi tried hard to make sure Izzy never felt like a third wheel, but she did.
Izzy was careful to never do anything that would make Olivia jealous, but she was.
Hobi tried to make sure two women had space and time to nurture their relationship and they tried.
Hobi soon got his own apartment off campus and the girls followed suit. Liv never asked Izzy for privacy so Hobi could stay over, but she often slipped out and stayed with a friend the nights it was late and they were obvious about it.
Izzy tried to ignore the nights Olivia did not come home. But the truth was she raged some nights and cried others. Sometimes it was ok.
She picked guys of her own to bring home. She never noticed that Hobi was uncomfortable with men staying over and took any warnings about her dates as friendly advice.
She still puzzled over the first time he met her date and frowned when he realized they had a marketing class together.
“ What about Blaine… or…. Blake, the guy from home?” He asked.
Before she could figure out what he was talking about Olivia had pulled him away telling him to give the new couple some privacy.
She dated a couple of good guys and she made some real mistakes. In her heart she knew she was comparing all of them to Hobi and they all fell painfully short.
In the fall of their final year they were assigned their senior project. The one that was required for their degree and the one that was the key to the applications they were sending for internships in New York.
In the early morning hours of their first planning session they hit on the brand name Izzy and Fitz.
It was an immediate “yes". They pulled an all nighter fighting over target market and men's clothing versus women's or both. At the end they staggered out for breakfast with the concept, the company name and, thanks to Hobi, the bones of a marketing plan.
Izzy had even doodled a logo while Hobi and Olivia had a screaming match over demographics.
By fall break they had the basics approved and they settled on work distribution and a meeting schedule. Hoseok had an almost genius ability to access data and distill it so it was easily understandable.
As winter break approached they finished the internship applications, agreeing to apply to the top choices together, hoping the meticulously detailed project could land them in the same firm.
Over drinks one night Olivia broke the news to them that she would be leaving a few days early and returning to school a week after their last semester started.
“ My family is taking an extended vacation in Europe. We are staying at the chalet of a family friend. We will probably be in Paris for Christmas,” she told them, the excitement bubbling and her eyes shining at the thought of it.
Izzy caught Hobi's face as the news sunk in. Olivia had not warned him about this. It did not seem to occur to her to ask him along.
Izzy felt her heart drop, empathy for him causing her to reach for his hand under the table. He returned her gentle squeeze and took a deep breath.
Izzy had already steeled her heart against the thought that Hobi would ask Olivia to move in with him at Christmas. It seemed like the type of romantic gesture he would plan and she knew he was thinking hard about the future. He was a planner and he had probably been thinking about this holiday for months.
“ You will be gone the entire break with your family?” he asked.
If Olivia had been paying attention she would have heard the hurt and a touch of anger in his voice. Izzy sure did. His face had set in that serious expression most people found terribly intimidating.
Livi blithely ignored it all, or did not care.
“Yes, my family and at least one other! I am so excited! What are you doing? Are you flying home to see your family?” she asked, smiling brightly at him.
Izzy watched his shoulders drop and his mouth tighten. She ached for him.
“ I honestly don’t know,” he said, “ I had plans, but they fell through. It’s too late to book flights now. I'll think of something,” he finished, raising his hand to get the waiter’s attention.
“ Seems Oliva has something to celebrate,” he said, his voice dark and strange to her ear. “Bring us a bottle of champagne – the cheap kind,” he said, a dangerous glint to his eye. “Better make that two!”
As the waiter walked away he muttered to no one in particular, “ I plan to get very drunk tonight.”
And he was true to his word. Izzy was the only marginally sober one of them as they stumbled back to their apartment. Of course Olivia went straight to her room and collapsed, leaving Izzy alone to deal with Hobi.
She slipped his jacket off and got him as far as the couch. He sat down hard and just stared at the floor. She eased him down on the couch and had him turn to his side. She fussed with a pillow and blankets and made him as comfortable as she could. She soothed the hair out of his eyes. Thinking he had already passed out, she headed to her room.
“ Izzy,” he called and as she turned he broke her heart as she watched a single tear roll down his face. Then his eyes closed and he was out. But not before she saw the pain and heartache there. It was a long time before she fell asleep that night.
The next morning she was up first and out quickly. Hobi had left the couch in the night and she could hear low voices from Olivia’s room. She hurried out, thinking they needed the privacy to work things out.
