AN: It's been quite a while since I updated. I've been hitting a writer's block lately, and really had no idea where this fanfic was going. Sorry if anything in here was too generic, has obvious fallacies, or portray characters wayyy OOC. I was debating keeping hold of this for another week or so, but if I had I was afraid I would just end up scrapping everything again…

Previously…

Ga Eul stared into Ji Hoo's earnest eyes with confusion. "Tell me what?"

"Tell you I don't like Jan Di anymore. And to tell you I…" he took a deep breath here, before uttering the five words that stopped Ga Eul's heart and changed everything.

"I love you, Ga Eul."

Chapter 12

Standing atop a lone bridge overlooking the nightlife, the Man was in a strangely good mood.

This didn't happen very often. In fact, he couldn't remember the last time he was this happy.

Maybe it was because he knew the time was close. Maybe he knew he was finally going to get back what was rightfully his.

That bitch was going to be dead by the end of this week, and he was going to enjoy watching her last moments.

Ah, there he came; one of the main players in this deadly game and part of the elusive F4 gang.

The Man gave a nod as the other male passed, but only received a cool glance in return. The brush-off left a sour taste in his mouth, which quickly boiled into anger.

He walked to the edge of the bridge and gripped the sides, willing his furious emotions to subside. The most important part of this game was to stay calm and focus on the prize. That F4 member was right to pretend to be disassociated with him right now. After all, wasn't that what they had agreed upon?

Soon, however, there would be no need for such masks. Soon everything would be out in the open and he would finally be able to regain his happiness. Soon, soon, soon.

As soon as that bitch was dead.

~! #$%^&*()_(&~! #$%^&*()(*&^%$# !~~! #$%^&*())(*&^%$# !~! #$%^&

Yi Jeong could not stop pacing. Where was she?

After his realization, he had tried to reach out to her. He had tried every possible way of communicating with Ga Eul in an effort to meet up somewhere and work things out. It had been unbelievably hard trying to get ahold of the woman, something he had never had trouble with before. He guessed it really shows him how much she had placed him as a priority before by keeping herself accessible at all times. He just wished he had realized how valuable she was sooner.

He had yet to catch a glimpse of her the last few weeks. She had been incredibly busy with Ji Hoo, it seemed. Speaking of Ji Hoo, the other man barely spoke to Yi Jeong anymore. Their relationship had never been as close as the others, but now, had it not been for regular F4 hang-outs, their very acknowledgement of each other would have become obsolete. As it was, any conversation between the two was extremely strained.

He had finally gotten to Ga Eul through Woo Bin. But where was she now? Woo Bin had told him she had agreed to meet up at the coffee shop at 5PM. So where was she?

His phone buzzed and Yi Jeong sped to check his text messages. It was from Ga Eul. The text stood solitary on the screen.

Sorry, I've changed my mind. I think it's better if we don't see each other.

-Ga Eul

For a few seconds, Yi Jeong didn't blink, didn't move. He just stared blankly at the text. A nearby waiter hesitated before tapping him on the shoulder. "Did you need help with anything?"

Crack! By the time the cellphone hit the ground Yi Jeong was already gone.

~! #$%^&*()_++_)(*&^%$# !~~! #$%^&*()_++_)(*&^%$# !~! #$%^&*()_++

"What sort of surprise is it?" Ga Eul couldn't resist asking. "Not another ridiculously expensive one I hope."

"You'll see," was the only response she got.

"But I can't see," she pouted. "You're covering my eyes."
"Patience, my darling," Ji Hoo's voice admonished her, "patience."

"I'm trying, I really am. But we've been turning and walking for ages. How far exactly did we—"

"And voilà." The pressure on her eyes was removed, the dim light from the moon restored her vision, and Ga Eul looked in awe. The whole night sky laid spread like a blanket in front of them. "It's beautiful," she breathed.

"Well, I know you didn't like expensive gifts, so I thought this something free would suit your taste better," Ji Hoo murmured, coming up behind her. "I actually used to come up here a lot with some of the F4, when we didn't feel like talking much and just wanted a show."

"Wow," Ga Eul smiled. She had never really thought of the F4 as the sentimental type. Maybe Yi Jeong and Woo Bin acted like it around girls, but she really hadn't been able to imagine any of them displaying too many genuine feelings with, even each other.

"Do you think they'd mind you showing me this?" she realized amid the wonderment.

Ji Hoo laughed. "The guys aren't ones to care much about these kinds of things. Jun Pyo's showed Jan Di, and I'll bet Woo Bin's brought his fair share of lady meat up here as well." Ga Eul didn't miss the lack of a certain F4 member in the list, but her thoughts were distracted by a clattering sound from below.

"Are people still working at this hour?" She was surprised. Even when Jan Di had been working as a night janitor she hadn't been forced to stay on duty this late.

"There's work happening here at every hour of the day, but especially at this hour," Ji Hoo informed her. "We're at the top of an astronomical tower." Knowing Ga Eul's reaction before she made it, he hushed her. "Don't worry, we do have permission to be up here. My father has connections with the owner of this research centre, and we've been granted unlimited access to the building and all the equipment. What we've mostly been interested in is the roof.

Ga Eul smiled. "So what made you think I would like to have a rooftop view instead of getting to try a telescope or something of the like?"

He embraced her a little tighter. "When I was a kid, I always found it strange that people would be willing to give so much just to be able to make a little difference in their perspective. 'Is a boss' chair really that much more comfortable than that of a worker?' I wondered. The question intrigued me, and I thought that there must've been a reason but I never found it. When I met Jan Di, I thought I had finally found the answer to the question that had plagued me for so long. Her stubbornness and determination shone as a light to my dark path. I felt as if for the first time in my life I had finally gained the motivation to chase something. I believed I had finally found my goal in life.

"But it was exhausting, and I didn't like it. Soon, I began to wonder why I was doing any of it. When I realized my feelings were reciprocated, I was done. Any motivation I had previously had was gone, null, void. I felt myself slipping back to my old nature, and I hated myself for it.

"You made me accept myself, Ga Eul. With you, I finally regained that childhood wisdom which had been lost to me by the maturing years gone by. How good your life is doesn't depend on how hard you work towards what you think is success. It rests on how you enjoy what's right in front of your eyes."

Ga Eul's own eyes began to fill with tears. She had never heard anything from so deep within Ji Hoo's soul, and uttered in so sincere a tone.

"Thank you for sharing that with me," she uttered softly. "I appreciate it a lot.

He smiled at her, a soft sad smile. "You're welcome." There was another clatter from downstairs and he brightened. "I almost forgot; I've got another surprise for you. Wait here!"

Ga Eul contentedly let Ji Hoo slip away from her and looked up at the stars. She had been unbelievably stressed the last couple of days; a lot of things in her life were changing and sometimes it just felt like too much of a hassle to keep up with it. But now, as she stood staring a the stars with Ji Hoo's words still ringing in her ears, she felt perfectly at peace.

I wonder what he went to get, she mused lazily. Right as she thought that, she became aware of another presence. Turning around, she suddenly saw the giant telescope.

It was a magnificent presence, and she felt slightly foolish at not realizing it was there earlier.

"How many people's hopes and dreams must've been used to build this piece of equipment?" she wondered a loud. Beside its stately enormity, she felt almost insignificant.

Ga Eul would have probably continued pondering upon these philosophical lines, except that her thought process was rudely interrupted.

The feeling of the damp cloth clamped firm against her nose and mouth was startling, but quickly fading. "How many people's hopes and dreams? Too many if it was just for scum like you to see it," a voice cooed into her ear, its owners darting tongue lightly brushing against her robe.

Everything faded into darkness.

AN: Thanks for reading everyone! I have been waiting for a while to take a dark turn with this fic, but I wasn't sure when to do it. Hopefully this chapter pleased everyone. Please review with what you think should happen next! I have a hazy idea of where this might go, but all input will be taken into consideration!