“You’re an effen horrible person,” Tae Hyun scathingly spat out after he sat a very happy Yoori down on the bench. He was clearly pushed over the edge for that was the third time in the recent week that he called her a bad name.
“Evil, that’s what you are,” he panted after he collapsed onto the bench. His abdomen rose and fell dramatically while he tried to coordinate his state of breathing.
“I should punish you for calling me names but I’ll forgive you since you just ran a couple of miles for me,” she replied sympathetically.
She cast her eyes onto the bench instead of on his tantalizing abs. My, my, my…how sexy those things look though… She sighed, taking stock of his fatigued countenance. She felt guilty for wearing him out so much, but not guilty enough to wipe the pretty little smile off her face. She moved closer to him with the intention of making him feel better. What fun would all of this be if Tae Hyun wasn’t at least civil with her?
“Come on,” she began, nudging him. She pouted when he kept his eyes closed, refusing to make eye contact with her. “Fine, if you can’t handle this, then you can quit,” she suggested almost mockingly. She knew what to say to get him to talk to her again. “You’ve actually been a pretty good assistant this week. If you’re too weak to continue on, then you can quit.”
“Quit?” His eyes flew open. He sat up straight and narrowed his eyes onto her. “I nearly killed myself this week being your assistant and you’re telling me I can quit?” He laughed dryly. “Thanks for the offer, boss, but I agreed to take this punishment like a man and I’ll come out like one.” He then snorted. “And ‘pretty good’ assistant? I’ve been nothing short of amazing.”
“You talk back though. That’s a no-no in my Master handbook – err – ” She stopped when she realized she said something unfiltered and offensive. “Sorry I meant ‘Boss’ handbook, not ‘Master’ handbook. Heh...I don’t know why that came out…”
He shook his head at her. “That’s because I’m your assistant, not your slave.” He stopped to glare at her in bitterness. “The difference of those terms may have gotten lost on some people but I reserve the right to be able to at least talk back. It’s the only thing keeping me sane.”
“Fine,” Yoori said quietly, crossing her arms and casting her eyes over to the scene of two parents teaching their son how to ride a bike. She was still secretly happy that Tae Hyun was willing to be her assistant until his term ended, but she wanted to fake being sad and forlorn with him so he wouldn’t be too bitter with her. She was sneaky like that.
They were quiet for long seconds before Tae Hyun, who had since calmed down, turned to her. “And were you having a dream this morning? I heard you murmuring something when I woke up to shower. You seemed pretty bothered.”
However hostile their previous topic of conversation was, he seemed genuinely concerned when he asked this. That was the thing about Tae Hyun and Yoori – they were that versatile as a conversational couple that they could go from bickering, to having a heart to heart within a moment’s distraction. This change in mood was no exception.
Yoori shrugged, recalling having a dream. She just couldn’t recall what it was she dreamt about.
“I don’t know, maybe? I don’t really remember the dreams I have anymore.”
It was an honest reply. After finding out that she was An Soo Jin, Yoori had been consciously, and subconsciously, freaked out about having dreams. She wouldn’t be surprised if she was having dreams but was too subconsciously afraid to recall them. Not that she cared too much. Her dreams were never good dreams anyway.
“It’s funny because I remember mine clearly,” Tae Hyun shared whimsically.
Yet again, the mood was switched up as quickly as it was switched down.
She eyed him. Naughtiness was in his eyes when he stated this. It really made Yoori curious. “What’d you dream about?”
His eyes grew strangely sultry when he smiled at her. She almost regretted asking that question. Before she could even rescind her words, he had answered.
“I dreamt that my little assistant has been very bad as of late.” Yoori held back a knowing smirk as he went on. “I also dreamt that today would be the seventh and final day of my punishment. In the dream, I remember telling her, ‘You should definitely watch how you treat me today because I’ve been keeping track of everything you’ve been doing and rest assured that I’m ready to return the favor.’”
She laughed fretfully when she was reminded that payback was just around the corner. Of course Tae Hyun wouldn’t go down without a good fight.
“Aww, that’s true, right? Our roles switch tomorrow...”
Tae Hyun nodded smugly, unable to smother the grin off his face. He was deviously happy.
Yoori smiled back, not afraid of Tae Hyun and what his payback may be. “Are you going to make me give you piggyback rides too? Or make me carve stars out of ice? Or perhaps burn the romance novels I made you read?”
She faked a pout when she said all this. She wasn't worried. This week had been too good of a week and nothing could bring her down – not even the threat of retaliation.
A muscle worked in his jaw when he was reminded of the romance novels. The subtle fire in his eyes said it all: he was going to burn it all.
But then, something occurred that threw Yoori off course.
He kept his grin and said, “Don’t you worry about what happens tomorrow, babe. Let’s just say if everything goes well tonight, you won’t have to worry about anything.”
Yoori furrowed her brows. It sounded straightforward enough but she could’ve sworn she saw a suspicious crafty light in his eyes. Not to mention the usage of his smooth and silky voice raised a red flag for her. She was actually a bit intimidated at that moment.
Since their last “questionably romantic” encounter, Tae Hyun had reverted to his “normal” self. But every now and then, he’d use that silky smooth voice on her and she’d feel the nerves of her legs weaken as his voice stroked over her. He never went too far with it but every single day, he'd use just a bit more charm on her. It was like he was preparing her for something... But, of course, she wasn’t too sure if it was preparation for anything or if he was just teasing her because he secretly enjoyed watching her become socially awkward.
It was probably the second possibility, she thought, eyeing him suspiciously.
“What are you up to?” she accused shrewdly. Surely the guy was up to something. She knew him too well.
He manufactured a look of confusion. “I’m just trying to remind you that I’ve done nothing but complied with your wishes this week.” He gave her one of those breathtaking smiles of his. “Just make sure you free up our night. I have a surprise for you.”
She was very interested. “A surprise?”
He nodded, his firmly sealed lips hinting to her that he wasn’t going to give anything away.
“What are you planning?”
He gave her a chiding look. “If I told you, it wouldn’t be a surprise anymore, would it?”
“Fine.” She knew when to back down from Tae Hyun and when to set up a fort and fight. As for the defenses for this little battle, it wasn’t worth the energy—at least not at that moment.
Unable to pinpoint what it was he was up to, Yoori reprised a smile unto her face. She knew that Tae Hyun must’ve had some master revenge plan up his sleeves but it didn’t scare her. The only thing that mattered was that she had one last punishment to seal the deal and she would be done for the week. Well, it wasn’t necessarily a punishment per se…just something she had always wanted to do with him.
“I know that you’ve probably concocted some big revenge plan but I have one thing I wanted you to do with me anyway. After that, I’m pretty much done with your ‘punishments.’”
The smile Tae Hyun had faded once he saw the crafty look in Yoori’s eyes. The muscles throughout his body stiffened. He stared at her with caution. Fortunately for Tae Hyun, he was smart enough to know that Yoori was going to sav
e the punishment of all punishments for the last night. Unfortunately for him, there wasn’t anything he could do about it.
“Oh God, what are you going to make me do with you?”
“We're going to the movies.”
A look of doom came over his face. He already knew what movie she would be dying to see and knew what movie he would die from seeing. “Are you kidding me?”
Though her smile remained, she gave him a look of warning. “Kwon Tae Hyun, be good. If you ruin this experience for me, I’ll hate you forever.” She made sure to smile sweetly as she drew closer to him. “Come on, I think you’ll have fun. You can hold my hand if you get scared."
He glared at her attempt of a joke and then shook his head at her. Misery and resolution poured into his stubborn eyes. “No…no I’m not going. You’ve gone too far this time, Choi Yoori. I won’t sit by and have you put me through a world of misery. I won’t…I won’t let you do that to me...”
Yoori rolled her eyes at his stubbornness. “Stop being such a baby. I really think you’ll like it and we could—”
Quack! Quack!
She stopped talking when she heard the voice of an old enemy. Tae Hyun’s eyes grew concerned when he spotted the source of the sound before her. Like a lioness spotting her nemesis, she whipped her head around and caught sight of it: the stupid duck.
Her eyes morphed into bitter slits. “There’s ducks here too?” she inquired gravely.
“There’s a pond around here,” Tae Hyun answered hesitantly.
“Eh, Tae Hyun, Tae Hyun,” she said urgently, nudging his bicep. “Doesn’t that duck next to that cute fat kid look like the stupid white duck who attacked me at the lake house?”
“No,” Tae Hyun replied at once. He was clearly lying.
“Don’t lie to me!”
He gazed at her uncertainly. The muscles on his body tensed up like he was ready to hold onto her just in case she decided to do anything violent to the duck.
“Why the hell are you looking at it like that?”
She wasn’t paying attention to his question.
“Go kick it,” she commanded instead, her eyes still on the duck and the little boy.
“What?”
“Hurry, hurry! It’s coming closer!” she informed urgently, still nudging Tae Hyun, who had an expression of horror on his face.
The cute fat kid was throwing a trail of bread on the ground and the duck was following the trail. It was a picturesque sight for everyone else in the park but a horrific sight for Yoori and Tae Hyun. The direness worsened when the duck and the cute fat kid inched closer and closer to them. Yoori felt her blood boil at the sight of the duck being so carefree.
“I’m not kicking a fucking duck that’s playing with a cute fat kid in a park that I exercise in everyday,” Tae Hyun clenched through his teeth, folding his arms in defiance.
Yoori scowled. She knew she was being unreasonable, but she was too angry at the memory of what the stupid duck at the lake did to her to care. Because of the damned duck, she had been the constant butt of jokes for Tae Hyun. He was always teasing her about the duck attack and it was killing her. Someone – or something – had to pay for this misery and it was going to be the animal of the same species.
“Aren’t you a gang leader?” she tried to instigate, feeling the urge to pinch him to do as she commanded. She wanted to tell him it was his fault that she harbored so much hatred for ducks. Despite the urge, she kept this information to herself. Tae Hyun didn’t need more reason to feel proud of himself because of how much he affected her.
“That’s your way of trying to convince me to assault a duck?” he asked incredulously. He was clearly unimpressed with the mechanics of her persuasion.
“You’re such a bad assistant!” she finally shouted impatiently, anger searing through her. “I would totally do it for you.”
That was a lie. She totally wouldn't.
“Don’t try to apply peer pressure on me. I won’t do it.”
“Ugh! Okay, get ready to run then.”
“WHAT?” Tae Hyun bellowed, stiffening up in his seat and unfolding his arms in disbelief.
“On the count of three,” Yoori instructed like she was a sergeant on a mission.
“Wait—”
“One.”
“Choi—”
“Two”
“—Yoori!”
“THREE!”
Tae Hyun tried to reach out to grab her but it was too late. Yoori had escaped his hold by mere whispers of a millimeter and was now charging at full speed toward the duck and the cute fat kid.
At that moment, several things happened:
KICK!
“QUACCCCCCCCCCCKK!”
“WAAAH! MOMMMMY! MOMMMY!”
Yoori had kicked the duck with full force, the duck was sent flying like a squawking soccer ball into a nearby pond, and the cute fat kid was crying mercilessly at the unforgiving violence shed before him. As the duck flew into the pond, people were gaping in dismay as Yoori, like a little blue cheetah, vacated the scene of the crime, leaving a horrorstruck Tae Hyun to stand in the middle of the park with his eyes and mouth gaping open.
“HAUL ASS, TAE HYUN!” Yoori commanded in the distance, snapping Tae Hyun out of his dumbfounded state.
Smiling nervously when all eyes of the park rested on him after Yoori called out to him, Tae Hyun bowed uncomfortably. He began to retreat backward in the direction in which Yoori made her dramatic exit. No longer able to withstand the stares of disgust and horror bestowed upon him, Tae Hyun turned on his heels and sped out of the park with lightning speed. His neck twisting about, he muttered a muted curse as he searched for his partner in crime – or partner who performed a crime.
“Tae Hyun!” a dim voice called out from the corner just as he was about to run across the street.
He turned and saw Yoori standing nervously behind a big oak tree. The only part of her that was visible behind the big trunk was her head and her beckoning hand.
Panting with a shake of a head, he walked over to her beckoning hand.
“You just kicked a duck,” Tae Hyun voiced appallingly when he reached her.
Though guilt was displayed on her face, Yoori couldn’t help but scrunch up her face in defense.
“Don’t judge me,” she said weakly. She was already judging herself for her moment of unprecedented weakness and anger.
“You just kicked a defenseless duck that was standing next to a cute fat kid,” he elaborated again with disapproval. “You made a cute fat kid cry.”
“He was a casualty of war,” she combated dimly, already feeling the flood of guilt rise through her.
“He’s a cute fat kid that’s crying,” Tae Hyun countered swiftly.
Leave it to Tae Hyun to not only continually jab her with relentless guilt, but also to be the only one who could affect her enough to knock some guilty sense into her. Despite the fact that she knew she was wrong to give into her violent temptations, she couldn’t help but further defend herself.
“I had to get my revenge! Do you know how angry I am that the stupid duck attacked me?”
“So you go crazy and attack a lookalike duck instead?”
“I—I—I…”
Shit, he had such a good point.
She was flabbergasted on what her next witty comeback should be.
“I—I—Shut up, assistant,” she replied desperately, knowing her only way out of this argument was to take advantage of her “power” over him.
Tae Hyun scoffed knowingly. “I knew you were going to pull out the ‘boss’ card.”
“Can we just go home now?” she asked tiredly, wanting to get as far away from the scene of the crime as possible.
She emerged from behind the tree and stood beside Tae Hyun. She could still hear that cute fat kid cry in the distance. Or was it the duck? Someone or something was crying in the distance and she was sure it was one of her victims.
“Yeah,” Tae Hyun voiced lethargically, casually grab
bing her hand and intertwining his fingers with hers. “Let’s go before your ass gets hauled in for animal abuse.”
"Har har, you got jokes, huh?" Yoori voiced bitterly at his statement. She was so fragmented with guilt that she didn't even realize that they were actually holding hands.
With locked hands and bitter faces on, they began to head back to the apartment. Feeling the cool morning breeze murmur over their skins, Yoori began to feel a bit at ease with herself until her “assistant’s” voice brought cryptic words of wisdom into her mind.
“You know that this means that more ducks are going to attack you, right?” Tae Hyun prompted gravely. He was hiding back a smile. Clearly he was trying to freak her out.
Though she knew what he was trying to do, Yoori’s eyes expanded in horror nonetheless. “Don’t jinx me!”
Freaking jerk shouldn’t give ideas to the universe!
“It’s how nature works,” he continued unperturbed. “You got your revenge so the ducks will get theirs soon enough.”
“You’re just trying to get back at me because I’m making you watch that movie with me,” Yoori bit back bitterly.
A frown enveloped his once smiling face at the reminder of a movie he didn’t want to see for the life of him. “I’m not going and you’re not going to make me. I told you, I’m not going to watch it.”
Yoori snorted. “We’ll see about that.”
“I swear to God, Yoori. If you make me watch it with you, I’m punishing you tonight.”
“Punish me?” Yoori inquired skeptically. “What are you going to do? Spank me?”
The Fall of Gods (A Welcome to the Underworld Novel, Book 2) Page 23
