30 Couple or Not?

In a huge house near the suburbs of Seoul, a beautiful petite woman with long raven hair and porcelain skin caressed the keys of her mobile phone happily. Her pair of huge doe eyes scanned the text messages she received from her little brother a while ago and she couldn't help giggling like a little girl.

"What's the matter?"

The voice startled her, but she didn't bother hiding her mirth as she swiveled her chair around to face the owner of the sound. "Hubby! The little brother really knows a few tricks," she declared like a proud momma before she stood up and launched herself towards her husband who looked confused.

"What did Tohru do?" Park Yuchin asked, totally guessing that it was about Tohru James that's making his wife titter.

There was no trace of jealousy in his words and in his expression, however. As he looked at his wife who browsed her phone again, there was only fondness and indulgence in his eyes. Just like his friends and sworn brothers, he was one of those men who were stoic towards other people but a total softie towards their wives and children.

For them, family was everything.

"Well, the little brother's on a date at the moment," Jisoo announced as she wiggled her brows towards her spouse who looked surprised.

"Are they together now?"Yushin was surprised. After all, he was just with Tohru yesterday and there was still zero progress on his love life.

Jisoo shook her head and laughed. "No, no, no. Tohru tricked Yanee into going shopping with him today. He asked me to gather everyone for the party tonight," she said as she walked back towards her seat and began sending messages to the other girls.

"Party tonight?" Yushin never heard of anything like that. He even took out his phone to scan his calendar for the day to make sure. "We don't have a party to attend tonight," he said matter-of-factly, making his wife laugh again.

"Well, we have one now, mister. So don't go anywhere."

"What?"Yushin was aghast, and Jisoo immediately explained why and what they were going to do.

"Oh…"Yushin was amazed. "That little brat's evolved into a fine Romeo, huh," he commented amusedly as he removed the coat he just wore earlier.

He was originally planning to go out and do some work at the office, but since his wife has an impromptu party to organize, he decided to stay with her and give her a hand. He strode across the room and sat next to his wife and busied himself with his phone, calling people to start organizing the party.

On the other side of the city, two people strolled along the streets of Itaewon-dong. The area was a popular one for shopping which boasted a hundred shops specializing in imported fashion brands. There's a plethora of products sold in the district such as leather goods, handbags, shoes, souvenirs, and antiques. In case one couldn't find clothes they liked, there were also local tailors offering custom-made apparel.

However, for the pair, there was not enough time to ask for anything custom made, and so, they trudged along the shops offering a variety of clothing in different sizes and styles.

"Boss, I feel we came to the wrong place," Yanee stated seriously as she looked around.

Since Itaewon was an area with specialized goods, it was not surprising that everything here's expensive. For something she'd wear only once, Yanee thought it's a pity to buy from here.

"Why?" Tohru James asked as he studied her profile. He already had an idea what she's thinking but he's not going to have any protests from her.

"Because I feel it's wasteful to buy something from here when I will only wear the dress today," she answered as expected and he raised a brow at her in amusement.

"Yanee Lee, are you totally sure you will never attend any event like this in the future?" he countered, making her stop and look at him in wonder.

He had fun watching her have a light bulb moment as she realized that yes, there's a possibility she had to attend events and she could wear the dress again. After all, with her current work, she always had to tag along with her boss and mingle from time to time.

"See?" Tohru looked smug at his quick thinking.

Before she thought of something else to say, he entered one of the boutiques, so, Yanee had no choice but to follow him. Inside, the attendants quickly welcomed them with a smile.

Yanee smiled back shyly, not because she was not used to buying things from high-end places like this. She was not a cheapskate and her family background certainly made her used to these kinds of places. Yes, Yanee's family had a company in Nagoya, it's why they settled there. It was just as soon as they got work, she and her sister became financially independent and didn't like wasting their hard-earned cash.

Without waiting for her, Tohru told the assistant that they're there to check out cocktail dresses for Yanee. The assistant happily ushered them inside the shop and started showing them what they had.

Unbeknownst to Yanee, Tohru's sharp eyes spotted a sapphire and black colored cocktail dress for a woman and a suit for a man in the same color motif, and inspiration hit him.

"Miss, could you get that for us?"Tohru requested causally as he pointed at the clothes in question.

"Oh, sir has good taste!" The assistant was so excited as soon as she saw where Tohru was pointing at and didn't wait for another word before rushing to get the dress. She, of course, didn't forget to take the suit for the man as well, thinking that the customers must be a couple and it's why the handsome man asked about the matching outfits.  

But Tohru signaled for her not to bring the suit, and so her mood fell, realizing that they only wanted the dress. She still smiled as she brought the dress to them, however. The assistant just felt that it's a pity that they wouldn't be wearing the matching outfit.

Or so she thought.

"Try this one," Tohru said as he handed Yanee the sapphire and black dress.

Yanee saw what the dress looked like and appreciated the potato's taste. She had to admit that it would look wonderful on her. The cut of the cloth would fit nicely to her curves but wouldn't make her look like a tramp. In fact, it would make her look elegant and stylish. The Sabrina style would also showcase her collarbones.

Since she had no complaints about the dress, she obediently went to the changing booth to try it on, not seeing the triumphant smile on her boss' face as soon as she left.

"We'll take that dress,"Tohru told the assistant as soon as Yanee was gone.

"Er… You will not wait for the Miss to come out, sir?"

"No need. It will fit," he answered.  

The assistant was hesitant, but noting the confident look on his face, she immediately changed her tune. "I will process the purchase then sir," she said.

"Wrap up the matching suit for me as well," Tohru added which made the assistant's face light up further.

"Yes, sir!"

So were they a couple? The assistant wanted to know but didn't dare ask as she went on to finish up her task.

As Tohru had already expected, Yanee wouldn't come out of the dressing room to show him with the dress. When she came out, she was still wearing her original clothes but handed the dress to the staff and told her she liked it. With that, Tohru James successfully got them their first couple clothes.