by J. S. Lee
Towards the end of the course, Jihun’s phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket, and without a word of apology to the people at the table, he got up and walked off to take the call. He didn’t even have the decency to take it in another room. He’d moved over to the couch, sitting down and staring out of the window at the rain falling in the twilight sky. Whatever he was saying, it was in Chinese, so I could only assume it was work-related too.
“I hope you’ve enjoyed your time on the island while you’ve been here,” I said, politely to the rest of the table as plates were cleared away.
“It has been interesting, slumming it,” his father said, turning up his nose.
I had to fight to keep my surprise from my face. The chalets were luxury as far as I was concerned. What was he missing? Solid gold buildings?
“Your dress is pretty,” Jimin said, suddenly.
“Thank you,” I said, once again trying to hide my surprise. “Have you managed to spend some time playing with Jongsub’s siblings?”
Jimin nodded. “We played in the swimming pool this morning.” For some reason, that made me happy. I had been expecting her to say she had spent all day inside, studying. “Are you going to marry oppa?”
“Jimin,” Jiwon hissed.
Under normal circumstances, the amount of times Jiwon had hissed someone’s name in warning might have been amusing, but I could see he was still worried.
“No, I would like to hear the answer to that,” his grandfather said, returning to the table.
The answer wasn’t a simple one. Yes, I wanted to, but I wanted to be able to marry all of Onyx if I was going to do that… “One day, I hope to be able to,” I answered, as honestly as I could.
“I’m sure you already have a designer dress picked out,” he murmured, turning to indicate that our starters could be brought out.
“I designed it myself, years ago,” I said, dryly, before I could stop myself. “I intend on having the body lined with diamonds.”
Jiwon’s mother almost spat her wine out.
“While I note the level of sarcasm in your tone, I suspect there’s some truth to that statement,” Jihun said, coldly.
The main course came out. This looked like beef and a few pieces of vegetables with bubbles around the plate. I was convinced we had a Michelin grade chef preparing meals for us and I couldn’t enjoy it. Instead of picking up my cutlery, I turned to Jiwon’s grandfather. “Sir, I love your grandson. I’m not thinking about marriage just yet, because I know he has so much more to accomplish as an artist. But if and when we do get married, I’m more concerned about the marriage than the wedding.”
Had I had dreams about my wedding when I was younger?
Yes.
Had they involved six men?
No.
Whatever I had dreamed of then had changed drastically. I wasn’t even sure I could ever get married, in the traditional sense of the word. Whether I was wearing a Vera Wang or Walmart special wasn’t important.
“I hardly think what my son does for a living could be classed as being an artist.”
I blinked rapidly. That was the first time I’d heard Jiwon’s father speak, and what stood out to me was that he didn’t have the Busan accent Jiwon did. In fact, neither did his father. And then my brain translated what was being said.
“Your son is very talented,” I told him. “He is one of the best singers I’ve heard and a talented dancer. He has the presence on a stage to hold the attention of an audience, and I think you’re doing him a great disservice by not recognizing that.”
“Kate-”
Jiwon’s low warning was cut off by his grandfather. “Jiwon’s talent it very firmly secured in his inability to follow instructions. He is treading a very dangerous road, flaunting on a stage like a cheap whore.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” I blurted out, in English.
“Kate, I think you should leave.” My head whipped around to Jiwon, his gaze fixed on mine, but his expression unreadable.
“Jiwon, I-”
“Please.”
I sucked in a deep breath, picking the cloth napkin off my lap, and setting it down beside my plate. I flashed Jiwon’s sister a sad smile. “Bye, Jimin,” I said, softly. Only because Jiwon’s eyes were locked on me, did I refrain from a parting shot at the family.
Rage was simmering in me and I also decided against thanking them for their hospitality, knowing I wasn’t going to be able to manage that without saying something which I would ultimately regret. Instead, I rose, pushed my chair under the table, and calmly walked out of the chalet.
제15 장
Blue Flame
Outside, the temperature had dropped considerably from the rain, but it still felt warmer than the atmosphere inside. It was still raining, although the waves had calmed a fraction.
Unlike me.
The rage was still simmering inside of me.
I marched away from the chalet, heading towards mine, but at the last moment, diverted to the deserted communal area. The area was lit only by soft lamps, making the area look cozier than it was.
The tables and chairs had been replaced with comfortable looking wicker armchairs. I sank into one. It was damp from the rain being blown in at some point, but I didn’t care. Except for the wind, waves and distant croaking of frogs and crickets, it was peaceful.
No matter how much I thought I knew about these guys, it was only as much as they were willing to share – either to me, or to interviewers. I knew Jiwon had a fucked relationship with his family. I knew his grandfather was the one calling the shots and was a grade A douchebag.
I’d just never really considered how bad it was.
Just imagining what Jiwon had been brought up with, it was no surprise he wanted out. In some ways, I was surprised because I was willing to bet, when presented with options like money, a lot of people would have gone into the family business.
The fact that, if you looked at him, you could never tell, was crazy.
But it was no excuse for knowing so little about him.
“Kateniss?” I looked up as MinMin walked into the area, peering over at me in the dim light. “What are you doing out here? I thought you were with Jiwon and his… Oh.”
“Yeah,” I sighed.
MinMin rubbed at the back of his neck. His hair was damp, but considering his clothes were dry, it was probably from a shower and not being out in the rain. He moved over and sat down in an empty chair beside me “That bad?”
“Yes and no,” I shrugged, staring out at the ocean. It was like a big black pool of ink now, and I couldn’t see much further than the chalets. I couldn’t even tell where the sea ended, and the sky began. I turned to MinMin, finding him watching me. “Considering how I was expecting it to go, it wasn’t that bad. But then again, I didn’t have high expectations to start with.”
“I can’t work out if that’s good or bad?”
“The dinner wasn’t great, and I didn’t expect it to be, but it was like his mom and dad weren’t there. They barely said anything, so in that respect, it was a little better than expected because I thought I would get torn apart by all of them.” I sighed, glancing down at the skirt of my dress.
“But something else happened.”
It wasn’t a question, so much as an observation, but it was one that required a response. The problem was, if I told him how my heart was breaking because I felt so bad for what Jiwon had put up with, then I was maybe betraying a secret. None of Onyx seemed to know about that side of Jiwon. Or maybe they did, and they’d also realized it wasn’t their secret to share.
I had a suspicion that it was the former though. When the fans had really upped their game with shipping MinMin and Jiwon, Jiwon’s reaction had been ugly and it had only been then that we’d learned something about why.
Spending an hour with his family, and I was surprised anyone could turn out normal.
But was that fair? Was that just me pushing my western upbringing and values onto long-sta
nding eastern traditions?
I bit my lip feeling miserable again. If Jiwon could open his eyes and his heart and see the different ways of thinking despite his upbringing, maybe it was fair. But did I have a right to pass that judgement?
“You look like you’re going to cry,” MinMin said.
“I’m fine,” I told him. “It has just been a long day, I’m tired, and I’m sure this baby is doing strange things to my hormones.”
MinMin glanced down at my belly and cocked his head. “Can you feel it?”
I shook my head. “I’ve had food babies I’ve felt before,” when MinMin frowned, I shook my head for a second time. “No, but I can tell Baby Gem is there. Does that make sense?”
“Baby Gem?” he repeated in amusement.
“Baby Onyx felt like I was calling it a Pokémon and Baby Gem felt more…” I shrugged, “natural?”
“I like it.” MinMin stood and looked down at me. “If you’re tired, you should go to bed.”
“I should go to bed, or we should go to bed?”
I caught a hint of pink on MinMin’s cheeks, but he shook his head. “You said you were tired,” he protested. “I was just offering to walk you back to your chalet.”
I got up and stood beside him. “Don’t worry. I’m teasing. You’re right though; I should go back and get some sleep.”
MinMin reached for my hand as we started walking back to the chalet. The rain was starting to ease off, but the temperature had eased off and the cool breeze was hovering around the line of just right and too cold.
As we got close to the chalet, I looked over at MinMin, noticing his frown. “Why are you out?” It wasn’t late, and it wasn’t like everyone had to stay in their chalets, but we were the only ones out.
MinMin shook his head. “It’s not important.”
“Am I stopping you from doing something?”
“No, I was coming to see you.”
I stopped, pulling MinMin around to face me. “What’s up?”
With his free hand, MinMin rubbed the back of his neck. “I just…”
“Tell me,” I urged. Whatever it was, I wanted to hear it.
MinMin pursed his lips, before moving from the center of the walkway so that he could lean back against the wooden post. The light above him cast weird shadows on his face. “Please don’t be mad.”
“When you say things like that, it gets me concerned, not mad.” I stepped in front of him, our eyes almost level. “What’s wrong, Minhyuk?”
“I told my parents about us already.”
“Okay,” I said, drawing out the word. I wasn’t sure why that would make me mad.
“They seemed surprised, but I don’t think that it’s a bad thing.”
I was still struggling with how this was bad.
“But I don’t think they’re ready to know you’re pregnant,” he suddenly blurted out.
“Why would I be mad about that?” I asked him, tilting my head. “You know your parents better than I do.”
“Because we came here to tell them all everything.”
I fell against his chest, wrapping my arms around him as I closed my eyes. “Tell them as much as you think they need to be told. You know them better than I do.”
MinMin’s hands circled my back. He pressed his cheek against the side of my head, and I felt him relax a little under me. Instead of saying anything, we both stood there, listening to each other breath as the rain fell on the roof and ocean around us, the bugs and frogs in the background.
Suddenly, MinMin tensed, his arms tightening around me. “What’s wrong?”
“Someone is heading to your chalet.”
“Someone as in a burglar managed to get to the island, or someone as in JongB who has a terrible habit of sneaking into places he shouldn’t be?”
“I’m not sure it’s either,” he muttered, relaxing his hold.
I spun around in his arms, spotting the figure straight away. The figure looked suspicious – I’d give MinMin that. He was walking with his head bent and a hoodie pulled up covering his face. With his hands thrust into his pockets and his shoulders squared, it wasn’t easy to see who it was. The light was coming from his far side, so the shadows weren’t helping either.
His height looked deceptive, but I was sure he was too tall to be Youngbin who was only a hair taller than MinMin. The guy wasn’t wearing shorts, so that automatically ruled out Xiao. He wasn’t moving like someone trying to be sneaky, so that took JongB off the list; even if he wasn’t still grounded, he’d be trying to move like a ninja just because he thought he could.
I was just about to rule Jiwon out because he was probably still with his grandfather when the figure straightened. All I saw was the side profile of a face as he stared at my chalet, and I knew it was Jiwon.
“Something happened,” I muttered before I could stop myself. I could feel MinMin’s questioning stare bore into the back of my head as I pulled myself away, instinctively walking over to Jiwon.
As I grew close, MinMin just behind me, Jiwon’s head whipped around and he spotted us. “What the fuck are you doing out here? It’s freezing.”
It wasn’t freezing. It was cool enough that I’d have rather have a hoodie on myself, to give a little extra warmth, but I was hardly about to turn into a human popsicle.
“I was walking back to mine and I bumped into MinMin,” I told him. “Why are you out here? What happened with… what happened when I left?”
Jiwon glanced between the two of us. “I need a cigarette,” he responded. Unless he had brought a pack with him, which I doubted, he was out of luck. There was no store here. And then, Jiwon pulled his hood up further, like he was a member of the Assassins Creed, and started walking past my chalet. I shared a look with MinMin and then the two of us followed.
There was nothing much past my chalet other than the beach. Apparently, that was where Jiwon was heading. I wasn’t sure if he expected the light rainfall to put us off, but I followed him down the steps, onto the sand. It was, of course, wet, and my feet sank into it.
We had to stay closer to the tree line as the tide was high, but both MinMin and I followed him in silence. I was actually becoming convinced that, with his hood up, he hadn’t noticed we were behind him.
In the end, because I kept tripping up in the near darkness, MinMin pulled out his phone and turned the flashlight on. It was only then that Jiwon let out an exasperated sigh and he whirled around. “Why the fuck didn’t you stay back in the resort where it’s safe?”
“Why didn’t you?” I retorted.
Rolling his eyes, Jiwon sank to the ground, bringing his knees up slightly as he rested his elbows on them. “Dessert left a sour taste in my mouth.”
I let go of MinMin’s hand to walk to the other side of Jiwon and sat down beside him. It had almost stopped raining, but the ground was damp beneath us, despite the shelter offered by the trees above us. I didn’t care.
I opened my mouth, ready to ask him if he was OK, but then I clamped it shut. He wasn’t OK. That was obvious. Despite his casual pose, I could feel his body tensed beside me.
I shuffled closer to him and then I wrapped an arm around him, bringing his head to my shoulder. He didn’t fight me. As I draped an arm over him, I felt him crying, silently, against me.
No. This wasn’t right.
I didn’t want any of them to cry unless it was happy tears, but this cut me deep.
Moving like a ninja, MinMin sat down on Jiwon’s other side. Tentatively, he started to thread his arms around Jiwon’s body.
Jiwon sat up.
And then something happened which I never expected.
He turned and pulled MinMin to him, embracing him in a hug as he cried into his neck. My mouth fell open as I stared at MinMin over Jiwon’s shoulder. Jiwon didn’t do hugs. He didn’t do PDA. He didn’t even like it when the others saw him showing affection to me.
Considering how open the others were, I’d found that a little odd at first. Until I’d discovered that
it was probably brought on by his less than affectionate family.
So to witness him acting like this with MinMin scared me.
“What do we do?” I mouthed at MinMin.
MinMin’s eyes went wide as he gave me a miniscule shake of his head. The light from his phone was almost blocked from their bodies, but there was enough to see how tightly Jiwon was clinging to him.
MinMin seemed to know what to do more than I did. He just held onto him.
Until his hands started rubbing up and down Jiwon’s back.
Jiwon leaped to his feet, but his face was contorted in pain, not disgust.
“I’m sorry!” MinMin cried, instantly, but I was on my feet.
With Jiwon’s attention on MinMin, I grabbed the bottom of his hoodie and pulled it up before he could stop me. I managed to catch a glimpse of a red weld just below his samurai tattoo, just before Jiwon jerked back and forced the fabric from my hand.
“What the fuck?” I demanded. “Did someone hit you? Was that your grandfather?”
“No!” Jiwon cried, embarrassed, but glowering at me like I had revealed a shameful secret.
“No?” I repeated. “Jiwon, it looks like someone took a belt to you.”
“What?” MinMin demanded, up on his feet.
“No one hit me!” Jiwon snapped.
The hell they hadn’t. I pushed past them both, marching towards the resort. Fuck this – I didn’t give a crap if our cultures were completely different. I didn’t give a crap if Yoon Jihun was the richest, most important person in Busan. I was going to go back there and-
Arms wrapped around me, pulling me to a halt. I knew it was Jiwon, even in the darkness. “Don’t,” he said, his tone low and warning.
In his arms, I struggled to break free. “I am not scared of your grandfather. Let him try hitting me.”
“It wasn’t my grandfather, and he didn’t hit me!” Jiwon said, refusing to loosen his grip. “I don’t want you getting hurt too.”
I stopped struggling, but I was still shaking with rage. “What the fuck happened, Jiwon?!”
