Read Whispers and Winks :: A job offer

Love? Marriage? Sia treated them like mismatched socks—necessary but rarely exciting. Her dimples, she figured, were her secret superpower: they charmed waiters into extra dessert portions. As for her long hair? It doubled as a makeshift scarf in winter. Life, she declared, was a bakery aisle—choose your slice wisely.

Kai’s words landed like a thunderclap. Sia blinked, trying to process what she’d just heard. A contract marriage? That wasn’t even on the list of things she’d imagined—romantic confessions, awkward silences, maybe even a dramatic exit—but not this. “One year, no strings, I’ll fund your studies abroad. After that, we part ways,” he said, his tone as calm as if he were offering her a business deal. Sia stared at him, stunned. It felt transactional, surreal, yet oddly considerate. Her mind raced through memories, doubts, and the strange familiarity of Kai’s eyes. Was this fate, or just a bizarre twist in her already unpredictable life?

"I dont need your answer immediately, I have my reasons lets get married for a year, you take the money after a year we will get divorced" Kai said it like job offer.

Sia retorted, “A job? You’re quantifying me with cash?”

"That’s not what I mean", Kai said "your dad told me that you are not interested in marriage and want to study abroad, I thought we could make things right. I pay for your studies you marry me and divorce me. You don’t interfere in my business; I will not interfere in yours"

That seemed like a fair non-negotiable offer from Kai, Sia's inner thoughts started wandering, "how was Kai in a relationship with this little talk." "Should I tell him that I knew him from the railway sation"

The living room buzzed with curiosity as Kai and Tae Hyun made their exit, leaving me in a whirlwind of rooftop memories. My gaze lingered on Kai's retreating figure, but he remained resolutely forward-facing—no dramatic glances back, no lingering smiles.

And then, the parental inquisition began. Mom and Dad, tag-teaming like seasoned detectives, cornered me. “Sia,” Mom said, her eyes narrowing, “what transpired up there?”

I squared my shoulders. “Mom, I’m an adult. I deserve some privacy.”

She scoffed, her hand playfully swatting my head. “Adult, huh? Last I checked, adults don’t live under their parents’ roof.”

I grinned. “Touché, Mom. But this adult needs time to think.”

“Think about what, Sia?” Dad leaned in, eyebrows raised.

I took a deep breath. “About getting married.”

Their expressions shifted—Mom’s from curiosity to shock, Dad’s from amusement to mild panic. I wondered if they’d expected a rooftop confession of love, not a pragmatic contemplation of matrimony. And offcourse Parents cannot know about the job offer because they are parents.

And so, in our cozy living room, with the scent of Mom’s cooking wafting in, I pondered the oddest job offer of my life. Maybe adulthood was about making choices—practical, whimsical, or a little bit of both.

As for Kai? Well, he’d just become the CEO of my heart, and the stock market was volatile.