Chapter 231 - Her Feelings

Mirae stretched her limbs and let out a wide yawn. She had just returned home after a long day at work. She had already showered and slumped on the couch to turn on the TV when something soft brushed up against her foot. It was Jade. 

"Finally, you're alone," he commented. "I was bursting to talk to you!" 

Mirae winced a little. It was still hard for her to believe that the cat could talk. 

"Umm yeah," she said. "I'm assuming KJ told you everything about his mother and Ziko's death?" 

"I've heard the important parts," Jade replied. "Have you guys tracked down his sister?" 

"We're looking but there's a very high possibility that she may have died that night," Mirae said grimly. "She followed her parents' killers. I doubt she could have escaped from their clutches." 

Jade nodded. If the little girl was on the spot where her parents were killed, then there are very high chances that she was killed. The Cartel would not leave a witness behind. 

"You still didn't tell me of your connection with KJ," Mirae stated. 

"I told you," Jade stressed. "I was sent to KJ during a dark time-" 

"Cut the crap Jade!" Mirae snapped. "I need to know the truth. Why are you able to talk? And what exactly happened in KJ's life that you were sent to him?" 

She was gazing at him in a strict manner. If he told the truth, she would not be able to believe it. And if by any chance, she did believe him, she may break off with KJ in anger. So he decided to go with the half truth. 

"I was sent to change KJ's fate," he finally said. "There's a powerful shaman who sent me to him. KJ was about to do something stupid and that shaman had to stop him. So the shaman sent me to KJ and I managed to stop him. Ever since then, I've been with him." 

"Shaman?" Mirae questioned. "There's now a shaman in the mix?" 

"Sort of," Jade said. "All I was instructed to do was to make KJ attend his auditions the day his grandfather died. No matter what." 

"Is that why he didn't visit his grandfather?" she asked in astonishment.

"Yes," Jade replied. "It was necessary for him to attend the audition. The shaman had seen his fate. If he had not attended it that day, then he would have lost more than his grandfather that day…" 

This new revelation made Mirae fearful. What sort of fate did he avert? 

Jade read her thoughts. "Mirae," he said. "When KJ is ready to tell you the full truth, then just remember one thing. If he had not taken that choice, then a lot of lives would have been ruined."

He paused before adding. "Including yours." 

She was about to ask him what he meant when KJ's voice came out of the TV. 

"The first time I met her," KJ was saying. "Was when I was nine." 

Mirae and Jade stared at the screen, frozen in surprise. 

"What's this?" Mirae asked. 

"Looks like an interview," Jade replied. 

"My half sister and her friends pushed me into the mud," KJ continued. "They used to bully me everyday, but my pride kept me from complaining to my grandfather. I didn't want him to worry at all. So when he asked me what happened, I lied and told him that I fell."

"But that's when a little girl with green eyes barged into my house. She was at the park that time and had seen everything. She came to my defense and told the truth. But I was afraid. Afraid of what my sisters would do to me. So I said that she was lying."

"Her green eyes teared up when I branded her as a liar," KJ whispered. His voice was hoarse. "She was just a pure, innocent person who stood up for me. But I… I was a coward. I lied. So when that girl with the green eyes entered my life again, I knew I had to be a better person for her." 

"When she came into my life again, I was determined not to let her go," he went on. "At first, I didn't know what those feelings were. But I began to notice her little actions. The way she ties her hair when she is focusing hard. Her nose scrunches a little when she picks out the broccoli from her food. The way she smacks her lips when she eats her favorite dishes. Or when her eyes glitter everytime she has a crazy idea in her head. I wanted to see more sides to her… "

"Is he…who is he talking about?" Mirae whispered. His words were making her heart flutter. Even though she knew that he was talking about her but she still wanted confirmation. 

"You. Duh!" Jade said. "Now shush! I wanna see this!" 

"Why are you so interested?" 

"You don't get to see this side of his everyday," Jade said smugly. "I can tease him with this!" 

The cat looked as if Christmas had arrived early. If he knew how shameless KJ was with her, the cat would throw a party. 

"When I was shot…all I could do is look into her eyes," KJ said. "All I could think of were her tears as she held onto my hand. At that moment, I would not have regretted it if I had died. Because I was glad. Glad that we met again. Glad that I fell in love with her. I had no regrets."

"But that day…" his voice was quivering with fear. "That day when I saw her hurt… I was beside myself. I went insane with grief and anger. If I had lost her… I would have destroyed this world." 

Mirae could not believe it. Her heart was now  beating madly and a red blush crept up on to her cheeks. His words were sincere and honest. He lay his heart out to her. 

"I don't need to shower her with an extravagant honeymoon," KJ said earnestly. "We don't need to prove our relationship to the world by acting happy and display our affections publicly. That's not what love is. We will support each other's goals and make each other a better person. So what if we didn't have a wedding ceremony? So what if we don't get time to act as newlyweds? All we know is that time can never separate us. It couldn't then. It couldn't now."

He ended his interview. The show moved on to commercial break. Mirae quickly turned off the TV. 

"H-he was probably just saying all that for his public image," she told herself. 

"Oh please, he confessed his feelings for you on national TV," Jade said lazily. "I never thought I'd see this day." 

"How long has he been…" 

She wanted to know the depth of his feelings. Were they sudden? Or was he feeling like this because he felt obligated as her husband? 

"For a long time," Jade admitted. 

Mirae's face had turned as red as a beetroot at his words. KJ was really in love with her. His feelings were not due to obligations. His words were genuine. 

Jade got off the couch and walked away. Before he left, he gave one final piece of advice to her. "Stop running, Mirae," he said. "Open your eyes and give your relationship a chance. Face your feelings." 

His words struck her. What did she feel? Why were his words affecting her so much? 

Her thoughts were a mess and her heart was out of control. It was a confusing web. And yet…yet she did not hate it. For once, she wanted to let her heart run free.