Ki Kwang’s eyes lit up even though he was completely angry with the CEO. However, the condition the CEO had in mind had them two nervous. No one would know what he was thinking about.

“I want Y.S to reveal his identity.” The CEO said.

Yo Seob was extremely confused. He frowned and argued, “But you said…”

“Let me finish,” The CEO interrupted and pointed at Ki Kwang, “I want Ki Kwang to be Y.S.”

Ki Kwang noticed the attention was on him now and he became flustered, “Come on, how can I be Y.S? He’s standing right in front of you.”

“That’s the plan.” The CEO folded his arms and sat on his chair, knowing there was more explanation to do, “The fans of Y.S are demanding Y.S to reveal his true identity. The situation is chaotic. As a CEO of the company, I cannot stand here and watch this goes on.

If the fans want Y.S to reveal himself, it shall be granted.” The CEO nodded and pointed at Ki Kwang again, “Instead of Yo Seob, I want Ki Kwang to pose as Y.S.”

“That’s impossible!” Ki Kwang retorted. He sighed and continued, “Yes, it has been my lifelong dream to debut but not in this manner. How can I take away my friend’s years of effort and hard work just like that? It’s not fair to him.” And it’s not fair to me either, Ki Kwang thought to himself.

The CEO stood up and patted Ki Kwang’s face lightly. Ki Kwag flinched but the CEO was not offended, “Ki Kwang, I’m also giving you a condition. Either you pose as Y.S for Yo Seob or leave the entertainment industry.”

“Ki Kwang, you know your current progression. Yes, you can dance but you can’t sing. That’s the reason for delaying your debut over and over again. Since you don’t have the voice, I shall grant you a voice of an angel,” Mr Lee pointed at Yo Seob.

Ki Kwang turned to Yo Seob who was quiet in the whole situation. He was slightly pissed that Yo Seob was not defending himself, “Yo Seob, say something!” He walked towards Yo Seob and grabbed his shoulders, “Tell this person you are willing to reveal your identity and no longer promote as a face-less singer!”

Yo Seob stood there with mixed feelings of it.

The CEO came over and said, “Look. The fans have high expectations of how Y.S would look like.” He scanned the faces of the two and smiled, “With Ki Kwang’s looks, I bet the popularity of Y.S will increase tremendously. It’s helping the both of you. With Yo Seob’s voice and Ki Kwang’s looks, Y.S will be a success in the KPOP industry that nobody ever imagines.”

Both of them stayed speechless.

“I’m giving the both of you time to think it over,” He went back to his seat and continued his work, “But remember: time doesn’t wait for everyone.”

-

“Yo Seob,” Ki Kwang spouted his name after a very long silence during their dinner time together. It was empty in the cafeteria and the silence made it worse for them.

“Yes?” Yo Seob was playing with his food, thinking about the condition the CEO was referring to.

“Remember that I will never ever try to take your spot. Y.S is created by you. You are Y.S. Y.S is you.” Ki Kwang pointed at the table as he spoke, “Okay?”

“Thank you, Ki Kwang,” Yo Seob smiled and it faded in three seconds, “But if we are persistent about this, both of us will have to leave CUBE. That’s not very helpful either.”

Ki Kwang pursed his lips and became determined, “If we have to leave, we will leave. After he had treated us like this, will you even want to stay? I don’t. After what he has done to me in all these years… Frankly speaking, I hate this place.”

“But this is where you belong.”

“No,” Ki Kwang disagreed, “This is where I used to belong.”

Yo Seob nodded and refused to say another word. He knew speaking about the past was a pain to Ki Kwang and he would never want Ki Kwang to be sad anymore. However, Yo Seob felt indignant because the company was supposed to be handed to Ki Kwang, not the current CEO.

Yo Seob handed his hand out to Ki Kwang, “Promise me if you are ready to leave CUBE, don’t forget to include me in the plan. Understand?”

Ki Kwang smiled for real for the first time today, “I promise.”

“Who’s leaving CUBE?” A voice that expressed shock and surprise was heard behind them.

They turned around and removed their handshake immediately, “Yu Jin?”

“Who’s leaving CUBE?” She repeated.

-

“It’s not really of a use keeping it a secret from Yu Jin, isn’t it?” Ki Kwang folded his arms. The three of them were currently in Ki Kwang’s room. Ki Kwang was sitting in a chair comfortably as Yu Jin stood at a corner awkwardly with Yo Seob standing opposite her.

Things were still stiff between Yo Seob and Yu Jin, after it was revealed that Yo Seob was Y.S. However, it did not matter anymore because perhaps after this very day, Y.S would cease to exist forever. The thought of it had Yo Seob shudder in horror.

“What other secrets are you guys keeping from me?” Yu Jin peeked at Yo Seob once when she said the phrase ‘other secrets’, deliberately reminding him of the incident before.

Ki Kwang sighed and gulped. He was not willing to repeat the story but he knew it was useless to keep things from Yu Jin when she had already known about some stuffs. “Do you know who the CEO of CUBE before that man is?” Ki Kwang was still uncomfortable with addressing his name.

“Well, I think it’s Lee Hyun Joon,” Yu Jin remembered him clearly because his portrait was placed on the wall of the lobby. She tilted her head and continued, “I heard from my colleagues he founded CUBE when he was just thirty.”

She pulled a chair over and sat down, “What has he got to do with everything?”

Ki Kwang ransacked his cabinet and took out a photo frame which seemed to be at least ten years old. He touched the frame a little and handed it to Yu Jin. Yu Jin took it and looked at it. It was just a man with a young child.

“Lee Hyun Joon is my father,” Ki Kwang answered.

“What?” Yu Jin exclaimed and remained her cool while trying to be careful with her words, “But I heard he died in a fire accident at the office.”

“Correction.” Ki Kwang interrupted firmly and clenched his fists, “He was brutally murdered.”

Yo Seob covered his face with both of his hands, knowing things would go out of hand.

“He was murdered,” Ki Kwang emphasised, “By that stinking man who is currently running my father’s company.”

Yu Jin froze.

The current CEO.

-

Author's Note:

Hello, everyone. I have a poster for this story now! Go check it out at the foreword. :)