Chapter 242 - Comeback (2): Her Throne

Mirae hurriedly walked through the office entrance, checking her watch. She had an early morning conference call with overseas investors so she arrived at her workplace around 7 am. Her video conference would be held at 7:45, so she had some time to grab a quick breakfast from the cafeteria. 

KJ was asleep when she headed out. She did not want to wake him up since he returned quite late at night and needed a lot of rest. Instead, she left him a note and, after a lot of debate, a light kiss on the cheek. He was so tired that he was still sleeping soundly. 

Mirae headed for the cafe. It was open even during the early hours of the morning because many artists had night shifts. Sometimes, they stopped by at the cafe to grab a quick bite. 

She scanned the foods on display. 

"One club sandwich and an americano please," she ordered at the counter. 

"Make that two," a voice came from behind her. Mirae spun around to see Dami standing there. 

"Hi," Dami smiled at her. 

"Hi," she replied. "You're here early. Weren't you staying at the hotel in Incheon?" 

"I had to come here for an early morning schedule," Dami said. She picked up the sandwiches and handed one to Mirae. "Looks like you and I like the same things."

Mirae gave her a puzzled look to which Dami snickered and replied, "Sandwiches."

"Oh," Mirae nodded. But she had an inkling that there was a double meaning behind her words. 

"Wanna join me for a cup of coffee?" Dami asked. 

Mirae studied Dami carefully. There was something off about her aura that morning. She seemed to be mocking Mirae for some reason. 

"Sure," she said. They sat at a table beside the counter. 

"How come you're here early?" Dami questioned. 

"I have a video conference with an investor," Mirae stated. "How was the shooting yesterday?" 

"Great," Dami said. "We finished the music video. It was way past midnight. Afterwards, KJ and I went back to my apartment for a cup of coffee." 

Mirae, who was about to take a sip off her coffee, froze. 

"KJ was at your place that late at night?" she asked, raising her eyebrow. 

"Oh, oppa and I hung at my place a lot of times," Dami shrugged. "We are very close after all." 

Mirae did not miss the double meaning hidden in her words. Dami was sneering at her, masking her feelings with a smile. 

"You know a lot of people used to ship us together," she laughed. "Weird, right? Of course it was before you came along." 

"Yeah," Mirae agreed, with a smile. "He's with me now." 

But her words held a decisive authority. She was daring Dami to react. For a long time, she turned a blind eye to Dami's closeness with KJ. But she was not completely blind to Dami's attempt to get extremely intimate with him. 

"He was with me last night though," Dami gritted. Her facade of niceness was crumbling. In its place was a look of pure envy. 

"Uh huh," Mirae mocked. "I'll take you word for it."

Dami wanted to grab her by the hair and slam her against the table. But she kept her calm. Within a few hours, Mirae would break off things with KJ anyway. 

"Now if you'll excuse me," Mirae said. "I have an important call to attend." 

She did not bother to say goodbye and left Dami to her bitter thoughts. As long as Dami was not crossing a line, Mirae did not want to bother with her. As she was walking away, her phone beeped to notify an incoming message. She opened it to read the message, casually typing away as she headed for her office.

Dami stared at her, snarling as Mirae walked away. The woman was high and proud. Dami could not even figure out what KJ ever saw in her. 

But all that will change at noon. She will throw Mirae off her throne. 

…. 

KJ walked into the studio very late that morning. It was almost 11 am. He did not find Mirae beside him when he woke up but there was a note on which it was written that she was leaving early. He was a little worried. 

Last night, he did not get the chance to tell her what happened at Dami's apartment because she was already asleep by the time he reached home. He wanted to talk to her in the morning but she was gone. 

Psycho was sitting at his desk in front of Mirae's cabin, typing an article for his fandom blog. 

"Psycho, is Mirae inside?" KJ asked. 

"She is," Psycho informed, still typing. "But you can't enter. She is in an important video conference."

"I have to talk to her," KJ insisted. "It's important!" 

"Can't do anything about it, oppa," Psycho replied. "She specifically told me not to allow anyone in. Not even you." 

KJ slammed his hands on the desk. "Damn it!" he cursed. 

"Anger won't help, oppa," Psycho tutted. "I'll inform you when she is free." 

KJ sighed and left. He really wanted to come clean to Mirae. What if Dami filled her ears with lies? He did not want to repeat the mistakes of his past and hide things from her. But for now, he'll have to wait until she was done.

He walked through the corridor. As he passed by, he noticed that people were staring at him. A group of artists were whispering among themselves but broke off when they saw him approaching. 

KJ frowned. Was there something on his face? 

"KJ!" 

He saw Dasom running towards him. His face was full of worry. 

"KJ, what happened?" he demanded. "What is all this?" 

"What do you mean?" KJ asked. "What the hell are you talking about?" 

"You don't know?" Dasom asked, surprised. 

"Know what?" 

In response to his question, Dasom handed KJ a printout of an online news article. KJ's face was splashed on it, carrying Dami in his arms. On it was a title. 

"KJ and Dami's secret love affair: The Nation's Couple is a sham?" 

KJ was mortified. Who could have taken these pictures? 

"Does Mirae know about this?" he whispered. 

Dasom bit his lip, unsure of what to say. 

"She was the one who sent me the article," he revealed.