even though injoo being naive & dumb is the foundation of this drama’s plot & has actually landed her in so much trouble, i really like how doil has always used this weakness of hers to plan things in her favour which ends up strengthening her. like he knows she probably wouldn’t be able to lie to the court. he knows she would accept using that money for small things & nothing else. he then used this opportunity to create a new story & manipulate the reality in her favour which reduced her sentence. he never degrades her because she isn’t smart. the only time he made fun of her naivety was to actually defend her on trial. he then made up later by assuring injoo that being financially illiterate doesn’t mean she’s stupid. in the past too he has always excluded her from his plans because he knows she won’t be able to lie which might actually be dangerous for her. as he himself said “your biggest charm is that you take things at face value”. i think this is the biggest reason he fell for her. since childhood he has worked for rich, evil & manipulative people. her innocence & naivety is like a breathe of fresh air for him. this is why he goes to such extreme lengths to protect her.
❝ he calls me ‘dude.’ i can’t date a guy whose term of endearment for me is the same one he uses for johnny suh. ❞
PAIRING ▸ mark lee x fem!reader
GENRES ▸ fluff, crack, high school au, best friends to lovers, childhood friends to lovers
WARNINGS ▸ profanity, underage drinking, honestly just a lot of fluff, johnny has a twin sister in this, mark drives with one hand on the steering wheel and i thought this deserved a separate warning, me fulfilling my mark lee gamer bf needs, fluffy kiss scenes, and mutual pining (but they think it’s unrequited love) ofc !!
SUMMARY ▸ in which it takes you six years to accept that you’re in love with mark lee. (it takes him one.)
PLAYLIST ▸ crush by lucian, tiffany day • falling for u by mxmtoon, peachy! • rising, rising - bassnectar remix by crywolf, bassnectar
WORD COUNT ▸ 10,514 words
AUTHOR’S NOTE ▸ i was very much in my mark feels so i wrote this spontaneously !! this actually feels short to me idk why but 10k in 2 days ??? im fucking crazy………. but im free. hope u guys like it <3
YOU WERE ELEVEN YEARS OLD WHEN YOU FIRST ACKNOWLEDGED MARK LEE’S EXISTENCE.
He was Johnny Suh’s best friend—stuck at the hip since they were preschoolers. You had seen him around the house when you went to play with Johnny’s twin sister, Jia, but you never paid him any attention. At the age of eleven, you and Jia could care less about boys; you just wanted to see who could braid each other’s hair the fastest and see if you could fit into her mom’s evening gowns without her noticing. (Spoiler: you couldn’t.)
Since you lived down the street, all you had to do was walk a few minutes to get to Jia’s house. Mark, on the other hand, always rode his bike. Your mother didn’t allow you to go over on weekdays, so you practically lived at Jia’s house on the weekends. Now, though, it was summer vacation, so you could do whatever you liked. Like it was any other Saturday morning, you walked over to Jia’s in the summer heat.
Jun-ho is from a well-to-do family and his parents are both attorneys. He especially admired his mother, and tried to be a lawyer but didn't make it. Even though it was his dream, Jun-ho doesn't have any sense of inferiority or complex watching all the attorneys around him while working as a law firm employee.
That's why KTO thought Jun-ho is a really nice person and would fall for a girl whom he can admire and respect, and then Young-woo came into his life. She did what he could not, and this newbie attorney comes up with a brilliant idea that no one could. And the wedding dress scene was a spark.
In EP3, Jun-ho counts with Young-woo when she goes into Atty Jung's office. That was KTO's improvisation. He thought because Young-woo has a routine or a habit like that, Jun-ho would also be used to that.
In EP2, Jun-ho clinks his glass with Young-woo's when she can't do it with the others. That was also a scene made by KTO. He said it's easy to notice things like that when you're interested in someone, so he did it, then the director decided to do a close-up at his hands.
KTO's favorite scene is the sunset scene in EP4. He likes how Jun-ho says "I want an attorney like you to be on my side." not "I'll be on your side."
Jun-ho always carrying a backpack = also KTO's idea. Jun-ho is a litigation staff who supports attorneys, so he thought it would be necessary for Jun-ho to carry all the materials.
Summary: Young-woo gets a visitor after the case and reveals a secret to Jun-ho.
Author's note: I thought we were completely off the rails and then the writers pulled it together for the things I cared about: whale couple and attorney Jung. My favorite scene today was Young-woo finding out she's a big sister and everything her eyes and body did, ergo I wrote this fluff to expand on that because I love that she has a little brother to protect now. She gets to take care of someone🥺 please bring him back in season 2!
"Attorney Woo I'll drive you back to the office." It's hard to keep the smile off his face, to remain professional when all he wants to do is tell everyone that they're back together. They had both decided that they shouldn't break up because they could only be happy together.
"Okay." He hears her curt reply, sees her affirmative head nod in the corner of his eye and all he can do is stare in awe. Despite his initial confusion about her unusual investment in this case and her ability to meet with someone like Tae Sumi, he had felt nothing but pride watching her run off with that heart stopping smile on her face as she decided to do the seemingly impossible.
But the impossible became possible for her. She was brilliant and kind and had one of the purest souls he had ever seen. Just being the one beside her was enough for him.
"Noona, wait!"
He can feel her jolt beside him before peering over her shoulder slowly twisting to find the voice, and he turns as well watching Attorney Tae Sumi try and fail to wrangle her son before he can rush over to Young-woo.
His eyes are bright and filled with wonder despite the outcome of the case, despite his own inevitable punishment.
In that moment, watching the brave young boy on the stand he reminded him of someone else with the same sense of righteousness. It was hard not to see the resemblance.
The younger boy stands right in front of them before bowing at Young-woo. He carefully watches the interaction between the two, confused but endeared by the sight.
"I wanted to thank you again. For helping me and convincing ou-um my mom to let me testify. The guilt that I felt is starting to fade, maybe one day all those people and even Mr. Bae will be able to forgive me."
The mistep is minor but it stands out in his mind. Ou...what word did he initially intend to use? But Young-woo's response distracts him from thinking about it further. He can't help but notice the way that Sang-Hyeon avoids his gaze eyes locked on Young-woo instead.
"I'm not sure if they will. What you did wrong and foolish. If something went wrong it could have affected eighty percent of the country."
The young boy's gaze shifts with evident shame to the ground and he winces at the frank and deceivingly cold words but he can't help but agree with her and so he remains silent, a mere audience member.
"But you confessed and you apologized. I've had many cases now and that's even hard for adults to do, they usually try to lie and hide." She says the last bit with a frown on her face as if remembering those dastardly clients.
He smiles in admiration, grinning when the boy immediately perks up a small smile on his face now. That was the first time he'd ever seen her comfort someone, it makes his heart swell.
"I did the right thing, right noona?"
It's hard to miss the obvious look for approval.
"Yes, you did what is legally right when you commit a crime. But you shouldn't break the law anymore."
"I promise I won't."
She nods evenly at the promise looking satisfied.
"Noona?"
"Yes?"
"You were really cool today. I hope you keep being that cool, I want to be like you when I grow up."
"To be like me?" She looks confused, pointing into her own chest as if she never expected to hear anyone utter such words.
"Yes. You're the coolest person I know."
This time he can't remain silent, not when he agrees so passionately with what the young boy is saying.
"I agree Attorney Woo, you were super cool today."
She tucks her chin into her chest as if to hide the wide gleeful grin that spreads across her pretty face, thankfully it's not hidden well and he's blessed with its beauty.
"Are you.....are you someone special to my noona?" Sang Hyeon finally acknowledges his presence peering up at him with a suspicious weary gaze.
My noona.
He can't ignore the slight possessiveness in his tone and he raises a single brow at the tone. Did this little punk have a crush on his Young-woo? It was as cute as it was annoying.
However there is no longer any uncertainty in his reply this time unlike that other night, he knows what he is to Young-woo now. What they are to each other.
"Yes. I'm her boyfriend."
He could proudly announce that now to people. He had already changed her contact in his phone and each time she called just because she missed him he would see my girlfriend across his screen and that made every day a great one indeed.
"You have a boyfriend?" Sang Hyeon spins back to Attorney Woo who only pauses for a second before nodding and answering, "Yes, this is my boyfriend Jun-ho ssi. We are officially dating now so it's acceptable for us to kiss outside my hou--"
"Attorney Woo!" He cuts her off with an embarrassed squeak, red flush rising on his neck and cheeks. But the young man seems unfazed by her inappropriate comment, glaring at him now as if he's searching for something.
After a silent stare off, the boy finally says,"Take care of my noona. If you hurt her, you already know what I'm capable of."
This is a first for him, being threatened by someone so much younger than him but he can't help but grin at the hard glare being sent his way.
"I will always take care of her." And he means it with his whole heart, even a few days without her was torture he never wanted to go through that again.
"Okay. Good."
They seem to reach an understanding but then he watches in amusement as Young-woo reaches out and grabs the younger boy's ear, twisting it with her thumb and index finger it's such a strange sight that he can't help but laugh loudly.
"Noona!"
"You shouldn't threaten my boyfriend or your elders. Where are your manners?"
He's almost certain it's something she has seen on a show or heard from someone else about scolding your juniors.
"I'm sorry noona, I was just joking." He squirms in her hold but makes no real attempts to escape, accepting his reprimand without much fight.
Several eyes turn to watch them in shock and confusion, all except one. Attorney Tae Sumi, who he can only describe as stunned. There's an indescribable look in her eyes but her face is softer than he's ever seen on a woman like her who is a master of hiding her emotions. He blinks blankly as she turns away from the sight with a hand pressed to her mouth and suddenly starts to leave with her bodyguards never looking back.
"Noona, I think I have to go now. Thank you again." He rubs at his ear now looking at his mother's retreating back.
"Okay. You're welcome."
They stare at each other before the young boy turns to follow his mother but he can see how he hesitates. Motionless for a long moment before turning back around with a hopeful look in his large eyes.
"Noona, is it okay if.... could I maybe...."
Young-woo waits for the rest of his sentence patiently perceivably unaware of what Sang Hyeon wants to ask but he can see it written all over his face.
"CouldIhugyoujustonce?"
It all comes out as one jumbled mess, his tongue tripping and stumbling over the words and he looks weary as soon as they leave his mouth.
Young-woo tilts her head still looking at him in confusion.
"What?"
And the other boy looks too scared to repeat the question so he helps him out.
"I think he wants to hug you. To show you his gratitude."
She turns to look at him, it almost makes his heart jump. Who's he kidding there's no almost about it.
"To show his gratitude?"
She echoes back at him then looks over at the younger boy whose eyes are now glued to the ground. She contemplates the question, he can see her processing- watches her lips twist and her eyes dart around until her body calms.
"Okay. You may hug me."
Sang Hyeon looks just as surprised as he feels but he doesn't hesitate for a moment, stepping forward with open arms and wrapping them around a stiff Young-woo who doesn't reciprocate, at first he worries that she's pushing herself despite being severely uncomfortable but then he sees her arms lift and she starts to pat Sang Hyeon awkwardly with just the tips of her finger.
Returning the hug in her own way.
Tap. Tap.
Tap. Tap.
And he already knew this but he can't think about anything but how much he loves this woman and her huge heart.
He was deeply in love with Woo Young-woo.
"I....am Tae Sumi's daughter."
He almost drives them off the road at her sudden confession, swerving back into his lane and accepting the horns that he receives from other drivers. He deserves them.
He tries to keep his eyes on her and on the road simultaneously.
"What?!" He can't help but exclaim, everything suddenly making perfect sense beneath his surprise and confusion.
"My father met her in college and they had me. But she didn't want to have a child and my father begged her to let him have me."
He's not at all prepared for this conversation. Could never foresee this being the secret she promised she would tell him about. It was like something out of a drama.
He takes a deep breath before finally speaking.
"It must have been hard for Attorn--your mom. It must have been unbearable to make that decision."
She's silent beside him and when he glances over he can she can brain working, as if the idea never occurred to her.
"You think it was hard for her?"
"Well I don't really know, but I imagine it would be hard for anyone to give up a baby they had with them for nine months."
"Oh."
That's all she says and he doesn't push it. Has no right to tell her not to resent the mother who refused to raise her but was raising someone else. And then it hits him suddenly, everything falling into place.
"Sang Hyeon is really your brother. You're really his noona."
And this bursts the bubble of melancholy that had settled in the car, breaking her from her silent thoughtfulness.
"Yes. He came to me for help because he said that he knew that his noona wouldn't listen to mom." Her smile is surely enough to power a city it's so illuminating.
"Are you that happy to have a little brother?"
She turns to him this time and he doesn't care about the cars behind him or their horns honking or anything else, nothing else matters so he meets her eyes and doesn't look away, not even for a second.
"Yes. I like it. I've always been someone that others take care of and now I have someone that I can take care of. Someone who comes to me for help."
Yeah. There's no doubt, this is the woman he's in love with. And he's going to love her for the rest of their lives.
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