Nothing further happened with Minda and that situation, and I finally relaxed.

On Thursday afternoon, I decided to talk to Bella and try to convince her to go out with me. I thought it might be good to put some of Minda's advice into practice. Besides, once everyone saw that my goal was still to get back with Bella, they would stop saying those things about Minda.

I dressed to impress, took a deep breath, and walked out my door and headed toward the apartment that Bella shared with Cindy. It was in the same apartment complex, so it didn't take more than five minutes to get there.

I knocked on the door and waited patiently. After a few minutes, Bella opened the door.

"Oh. Hi, Seokjin." Her voice made it seem as if she wasn't exactly thrilled to see me.

I ignored my misgivings and flashed her a smile. "Hi, Bella. How are you?"

She stared at me for a few moments, as if I had dared to say something ridiculous.

"Okay, I guess," she finally replied. She still hadn't smiled. "You?"

"I'm always fine," I replied with a smirk. Then, without warning, I pushed past her into her apartment and stood in her living room.

Her mouth opened in surprise before she composed herself and closed the door. "Well, come in, I guess." She walked around me. "Would you care for a glass of water or...something?"

I stood in front of her and leaned closer. "I want you to go to dinner with me."

She blinked. "Uh, what?"

"Let's go have dinner," I repeated. "Maybe a few drinks. I'll wait while you get ready."

She shook her head slightly. "Are you kidding?"

"Of course not," I replied. "Let's have an early dinner. I promise I'll have you home early."

"Seokjin, I--"

I didn't let her finish. I cupped her face in my hands and leaned down to kiss her. I felt her jump slightly in surprise, but when she didn't break away, I pulled her closer. When I felt the insistent stirring in my pants, I broke away. I didn't want to spook her by moving too fast.

"So what do you say?" I asked. I knew I was supposed to just tell her we were going out instead of asking her, but it had always been my habit to do only what she wanted.

"Well, I...don't know," she said softly.

Then I realized that maybe that was the problem. I always let her decide. I decided to stick to my so-called lessons.

"Yes, you do know," I said firmly. "Now go into your room and get ready, or I will go in and dress you myself." I spun her around and pushed her gently toward her bedroom.

"Okay, okay," she said, looking over her shoulder. Before entering her room, she turned to look at me. "But this is not, like, a real date. You're just lucky that I didn't have any plans. Just a friendly dinner."

"Whatever you say," I smiled. She disappeared into her room, and I sat on the couch.

After about 20 minutes, she stepped out in form-fitting jeans that accentuated her long legs and a flowy black top with long bell-shaped sleeves. I jumped to my feet and didn't realize I was biting my lower lip as I looked at her until she walked up to me and poked my mouth.

"Stop that," she admonished. "This is just dinner."

I quickly reined in my thoughts. "Of course. Shall we?" I held out my bent arm, and she smiled before placing her hand on the crook of my elbow. As I let her precede me out the door, I couldn't keep my eyes from glancing down at her denim-clad ass, and I bit my lip again. My self-imposed celibacy was driving me insane, especially when she looked this good.

The most important thing, however, was that she was going out with me. The plan might work after all.