KNOT THIS GUY (Romance/Fantasy) ✔

KNOT 8 - CANDLE FROM THE UNDERWORLD

Dara tapped her chest to calm herself and looked up at the night sky, noticing the full moon that glows beautifully. It reminds her of that night when Joo Won broke up with her. That same night when she first saw Jiyong and was tied to him. If she can only go back to that time and redo everything, she would. This would not have happened if she didn't go to that hotel, or if she didn't ride that elevator, or perhaps if she just arrived on time for her dinner date with Joo Won. Her frustrations kept piling up as thoughts of 'what-ifs' filled her mind.



A weary sigh escaped Jiyong's lips as he observed Dara's expression. He has already expected that this kind of outburst will occur. She has been bottling it up inside for too long. He then focused his gaze forward and roamed his eyes around, hoping to see the deity woman that showed up a while ago. He knew the only way to end this madness lies on those two deities. His eyebrows furrowed when he saw a man stepping out of the shadows wearing old tattered clothes. The man approached the destined couple and darted his eyes between the two.



"Do you need anything, ahjussi?", Dara asked.



He did not respond and just lowered his gaze, seemingly staring over something. Jiyong followed his gaze and frowned when he realized that his eyes is directed on the red cord.



"Ahjussi, can you see this?", Jiyong hurriedly asked and raised his right arm where the string is tied but the man just blankly looked at him before walking away. Dara and Jiyong exchanged bewildered gazes before looking back at the man. But he is already nowhere in sight.



_____________________________________________________________



SEUNGHYUN's POV



"S-Seunghyun...", Bom gripped my arm firmly while we both stared at the man who is now walking towards us after approaching the destined couple.



"Stay behind me", I whispered at her. Bom immediately complied and stepped back.



The man stopped in a near distance and gave us a penetrating gaze. I cautiously hid my hand behind me and formed an ethereal orb on my palm, preparing myself to defend if this unknown deity suddenly attacks us. He cocked his eyebrows and slowly raised his open palm. I stiffened when the ethereal orb that I formed suddenly transferred to his hand while staring directly at me. He then closed his palm and the orb disintegrated to nothingness.



Bom gasped and grabbed my upper arm, urging me to retreat but I remained rooted on my spot. I need to know who this man is.



"A trickster deity", he said in a monotone and tilted his head to look at Bom. "And a string-keeper deity", he added.



"Who are you?", I asked.



"So...that cord binding them is indeed the red string of fate", he said, ignoring my question. "How did this happen? How did the lunar matchmaker god make such a mistake?", he asked.



"A mistake? What are you talking about?", Bom stepped forward and faced him. I immediately grabbed her wrist and yanked her towards me, making sure that she is safely hidden behind me.



"Exactly what you heard, Hadana. Tell your ascendant that I wish to speak with him at the River Styx"



River Styx? The river of unbreakable oath? Why is he mentioning one of the rivers in the Underworld?



"Who are you?", I repeated.



"Jang Hyuk", he simply replied and vanished in a black smoke. Bom and I froze upon hearing the name.



Jang Hyuk. The ruler of the Underworld.





_____________________________________________________________



The class has already been dismissed but Dara remained on her seat, blankly staring at nothing in particular. Flashes of the tough experiences she had because of the red string entered her mind. How exactly are they going to be untied? Being bounded with the red cord limits their actions and it's already suffocating her. They have no privacy and they can't do anything without dragging each other.



Jiyong, who was seated behind her, kept quiet while observing Dara. He just followed her every movement with his gaze, pondering over something. Honestly, this is too troublesome for him as well. Being tied to a university student who has amassed a metric ton of strawberry-printed things and who has too much energy to bounce around merrily can drive anyone nuts. But things already turned out this way, and they have no choice but to endure each other until the day that this mess is fixed.



He sighed exasperatedly and momentarily looked up the classroom's ceiling before standing up and sitting beside her.



"Hey", he lazily called out and nudged her elbow but she didn't respond and hid her face with her hair. When Jiyong looked down, he saw the tears dropping on her lap as she silently cries. Without saying a word, he pulled the sleeve of his hoodie to cover his hand and lifted Dara's chin. He gently wiped her tears with the hem of his sleeve and tucked her hair behind her ears.



"Stop crying", he said.



"This is just too much for me to bear. We've been tied to each other for too long", she sobbed.



Unable to come up with anything to say to comfort her, Jiyong just focused his eyes forward and sat quietly beside Dara, his face devoid of emotion. Minutes passed by when he felt Dara's head leaning on his shoulder.



"Jiyong, Jiyong", she mumbled, almost in a whisper.



"Mmmmhhhhmmm?"



"Look. I'm crying again", she said and pointed at her face. Without even glancing at her, Jiyong pulled his sleeve and raised his hand, wiggling the hem of his sleeve in front of her. A tiny smile finally formed on her lips before grabbing his sleeve and using it to wipe her tears.



"Better now?", he asked.



"Hmmm...A bit. Let me just rest for a while"



Jiyong shifted closer to let Dara comfortably rest her head on his shoulder as they sat in silence in the empty classroom. No words were exchanged and only their breathing can be heard, both of them lost in their own thoughts. The class bell rang indicating the end of the last class for the day but they didn't move. The noisy chatter of the students outside entered their ears but they remained on their spot even until the noise died down and the hallways cleared. Dara fixed her eyes on the windows and was mesmerized by the reddish faint rays of the sun, signaling that night time is about to arrive.



"I don't know how to face another day again. This is depressing", she muttered.



"Meep?"



Dara furrowed her eyebrows and lifted her head to look at Jiyong, unsure if the weird sound came from him.



"Did you say anything?"



"Meep. Meep meep meep", Jiyong replied in a flat tone while avoiding her gaze, clearly embarrassed by his crazy random words to cheer her up.



Dara covered her mouth to hide the big smile that is threatening to rip her face.



"Miu miu miu?", she testingly asked.



"Meep"



"OH MY GOSH! HAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHA!!! That is so cute!", Dara giggled maniacally while holding her tummy, unable to contain the laughter anymore after hearing Jiyong's random words.



"Silly woman", he shook his head and poked the tip of her nose as Dara continues to giggle. "Super Aegyo Wink", he suddenly blurted out in a monotone and winked at her.



*GASP!*



Her heart just stopped. She's dead. Jiyong just killed her with cuteness overload. Who knew that this cyborg's little aegyo display can be lethal?



"HUBBY!!!!!! You're so cute!", she squealed and clung to his arm like a koala.



"Alright, let's stop this nonsense. It's getting late"



The ruckus that they were causing was interrupted by Dara's ringing phone. Upon seeing who the caller is, Dara's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.



"Mr. Lee Soo Man's secretary is calling me", she informed Jiyong before answering. Her eyes widened even more when she learned that Mr. Lee has granted the interview appointment that she requested.



Dara worriedly looked at Jiyong and inhaled deeply. Jiyong will surely flip out if she pursues the interview and she doesn't want to ruin his mood anymore. He has done a lot for her, even making a fool of himself just to make her smile. Even though this is a big opportunity and a great learning experience for her, she has to let it go.



"I'm really sorry, I'll retract my request to interview Mr. Lee S-"



"No. Do the interview", Jiyong cut her off.



"Huh?", Dara asked in surprise.



"I beg your pardon, Miss Park? Did you say you want to retract your interview request?", the secretary asked on the other line.



"Uhmmm...No. I'll proceed with the interview. When can it be scheduled?", Dara replied while looking questioningly at Jiyong.



_____________________________________________________________



SANDARA's POV



This is strange.



As soon as we stepped inside the building where Mr. Lee's main office is located, people have been giving us weird looks and have been bowing at us. I suspiciously glanced at Jiyong but he's as cyborg as before, maintaining his stoic expression and not even paying attention to anyone. There's nothing peculiar about us so why are these people behaving this way?



I nervously checked my business casual attire and tucked my hair to make myself presentable. I then looked at Jiyong's outfit and sighed at the sight of his white shirt, denim jeans and rubber shoes. Perhaps this is the reason why the employees are staring at us. Everyone is wearing suits and executive clothes and here he is with his offending casual clothes and a strawberry-printed backpack draped on his shoulders.



I scowled at him but he just stared boredly at me. *Sigh* This cyborg.



Before coming here, I tried to convince him to wear a suit but he won't hear any of it. When I was trying to explain that he will pose as my assistant in the interview so he will be allowed to enter Mr. Lee's office as well, he just waved his hand dismissively at me. This guy is really something. I don't even want to understand the quantum physics going on inside his thick skull.



I stiffened as I saw one of the security staff hurriedly saying something on his radio while staring at us with wide eyes. Omo!



"I told you to wear a suit", I hissed as we walked towards the reception desk.



"I don't want to", he shot back. What a delightful creature. If his as$ is tossed outside by the security staff together with my as$, I will break his neck, I swear.



The receptionist was busy organizing some documents but when she looked up and saw us, shock registered on her face and she immediately straightened up and bowed her head. I was going to ask her what floor Mr. Lee Soo Man's office is but Jiyong dragged me towards the direction of the elevators.



"Hey, wait!", I tried to pull the red string but Jiyong grabbed my wrist and glared sharply at me. "Just follow me. I know where his office is", he said.



Before we can even arrive at the elevators, a huge number of staff gathered in front of us and lined up with their heads bowed down. O-kay. What's going on? The weirdness level in this place is skyrocketing. It's scaring me a bit, to be quite honest. I felt like they're going to snatch us away and make us the subject of their clinical experiment in a basement somewhere. I was looking left and right with a mortified look on my face as I followed Jiyong.



"Why are they doing this?", I whispered.



"Don't know", he replied with disinterest.



While waiting for the elevator doors to open, I was fumbling the top button of my blouse, deciding whether to open it or not.



"Should I open it or not? What do you think?", I asked but Jiyong didn't reply.



"Hubby!", I called out. There was a collective gasp from behind and when I glanced back, I was surprised that the staff are all gathered around us. I furrowed my eyebrows and tilted my head in curiosity. What in the world is happening here?



Ignoring the uneasy feeling creeping inside me, I smoothened my hair with my hand and tried to act calm.



"What the hell did you use in your hair? You look like a comedian", Jiyong suddenly said and sniffed my temple, earning another round of murmurs from behind us.



"It's just hair gel! Will you stop sniffing me? I'm already sweating from nervousness and you're not helping", I muttered grudgingly.



He roamed his eyes on my face and pulled out his handkerchief. He then lifted my chin and began wiping the sweat on my forehead, nose and above my upper lip. I can already feel the heavy stares of the people around me and it's driving me nuts already. Something is terribly wrong in this picture.



The bell of the elevator chimed indicating its arrival and we stepped inside. Oddly though, the employees didn't come with us and instead, remained outside with their heads bowed down.



"Whoah! Are they really this polite and accommodating?", I blurted out as soon as the elevator closed and started moving up. Again, no reply from the cyborg. I'm beginning to wonder if he has already reached his quota in the number of words he can utter per day. Me? Once I become comfortable with someone, I can never stop talking. I guess that's the reason why my mouth continuously moves whenever I'm with him.



"Are you not going to tell me the reason why you finally allowed me to do the interview?", I asked. Of course, I didn't get any answer from him. *Sigh*. He has drifted yet again to his own demented world.



Once we arrived at the floor of Mr. Lee Soo Man's office, my jaw dropped to the ground. Beautiful, smart-looking ladies (which the society secretly hates because they are oh so perfect) are lined up and welcomed us in a heartbreaking high-pitch voice. I cannot begin to fathom why they are even bothering to welcome a mere mortal like me.



Lee Soo Man - the business tycoon who owns a variety of businesses including hotels, travel companies, real estates, etc. I can't believe he agreed to do an interview with me when he is known for declining any appointment requests from the media. And I cannot comprehend why his staff is doing all this welcoming extravaganza to a simple university student.



One of the ladies stepped forward and approached us.



"Mr. Kw-"



"She's going to interview him", Jiyong cut her off and tilted his head on my direction. There was a bewildered look on her face as she searched for something at the journal that she was holding, which I could only guess is Mr. Lee's schedule, before finally looking at me.



"Oh. Annyeonghaseyo, Miss Sandara Park. I'm Mr. Lee's secretary"



"H-Hello. Ha ha ha", I waved stupidly at her, cursing myself afterwards upon realizing how idiotic I might have looked. Great. My entire self-esteem is being demolished within a few minutes of entering this place. How can I interview Mr. Lee if I'm like this? I'll probably crumble or melt on his toes in a puddle of shame.



"Miss Park, can you please wait at our receiving area for a while?"



I was about to reply but Jiyong beat me to it. "She's with me", he said authoritatively. Kwon Jiyong! ARGH! Seriously, what in the living crap is he trying to do? He better quit acting like he owns the place before they throw us out of the building.



"O-Oh, I see", the secretary replied while eyeing me curiously.



"Is he in?", he asked.



"Yes, sir. I'll accompany you to his office"



"No need", Jiyong then started striding towards the big door without even glancing back. I immediately followed him after apologizing to the secretary.



OMG! I am losing my FRIGGING MIND! I need to murder him! Doesn't he know how ridiculous he looks acting so big and mighty with a strawberry-printed bag on his back?! Did he agree to do the interview with me to sabotage it? Why is he acting like he's one of the bosses here?



"Jiyong!", I muttered under my breath as I hit his shoulder. I was about to reprimand him for his behavior when he suddenly opened the door to Mr. Lee's office and barged in. GAAAAAAAHHH!!!! GAAAAAAAHHH!!!!



Omo omo omo omo!!! I was rapidly tugging the cord to drag him out while breathing in short gasps through my mouth. Is he trying to kill me?! Why is he doing this?! If he's just here to humiliate me, I swear I will throw every available piece of furniture at his face!



"Hurry up", he firmly instructed and yanked the cord forcefully. I almost stumbled and fell flat on my face but Jiyong was quick enough to wrap his arm on my waist.



"You clumsy woman", he said in a reprimanding tone.



When I saw the formidable figure of Mr. Lee Soo Man standing behind his desk, I felt like my breath has been knocked out of my chest because of nervousness. His aura is just so intimidating that I felt like I'm unworthy of being in the same room as him.



"A-Annyeonghaseyo. I'm Sandara Park. It's nice to finally meet you", I gave him a bow and waited for Jiyong to introduce himself, but he just stood there with his hands shoved inside his pockets, seemingly uninterested with everything. I inconspicuously kicked his foot but he just glanced at me momentarily with a bored expression on his face. OH MY GOSH!! Can I just kill him now?



"So...Miss Park. How are you related to my son?", Mr. Lee suddenly asked, catching me off-guard.



S-Son?



"To your son, sir?", I asked, totally flabbergasted.



"Kwon Jiyong. He's my son", he replied while looking at the cyborg standing beside me. I felt like half of my brain cells snapped. I can almost swear I heard some explosions at the back of my head.



Did he say Kwon Jiyong?! What Kwon Jiyong? This Kwon Jiyong?!



*Mental Breakdown*



I think I need to faint somewhere.



_____________________________________________________________



Yang Goon massaged his forehead after listening to Jae Sang. His worries were proven to be correct, one of the destined couple's candle in the Underworld is already small.



"I heard Jang Hyuk wanted to speak with you?", Jae Sang asked.



"Yes. Now that he is aware of the current situation of Dara and Jiyong's red string, he will surely insist that I enforce the second option"



Yang Goon stared outside the Sky Palace, his eyebrows mashed together while firmly holding his tattered brown bag full of sparkling strings. The small candle from the underworld explains why the red string is emitting a black light...because one of the destined couple is supposed to die but the red string is hindering that death to occur.




Writer's Note:

I hope you're enjoying the story!

huntress ^_^