Remember who’s watching you, Jongin.
Those words kept replaying in Kim Jongin’s head, reverberating off the walls of his skull, driving him insane. He looked at himself in his bathroom mirror, his pure, unblemished face staring back at him. From the eyes of an outsider, Jongin had everything: looks, popularity, and wealth. However, as the worn out and over told story goes, those things do not bring forth happiness of any sort.
All of Jongin’s life, he had lived as a puppet, dumbly following the instruction of his parents. They dictated what he wore, what he said, and, as of late, whom he was to love.
At that moment, Jongin’s mother slowly entered the bathroom. She quietly crept up behind him. He didn’t acknowledge her presence and kept his eyes on his reflection.
“Your father is waiting downstairs.”
“Are you going to go meet her?” Jongin watched his mother nod through the mirror’s reflection.
“She’s a nice woman, and she has resources.”
“But do I love her?”
Jongin’s mother looked at him with pleading eyes. “Jongin, you know I’ll always be on your side-”
“Then why are you letting this happen?” He bit his lip, trying to suppress his anger.
“You know how your father gets when he’s set on something. It’s impossible to convince him otherwise.” She put her hand on Jongin’s shoulder, urging him to turn around and face her. When he didn’t budge, she sighed. “Look, Jongin. I’ve let you have your way up to this point. Can you at least do this one thing for us?”
Jongin finally turned around, appalled by what he was hearing. “Really? I’ve had my way? You must be talking about your other son named Jongin because for as long as I can remember, I’ve been your doll to dress and move as you please. Not once have I ever done anything on my own will.” He pushed past his mother and exited the bathroom. Just as he grabbed his jacket off his bed, his mother’s words stopped him.
“Jongin, please try to understand your father. The only reason he’s being so strict on you is because, after what happened to Jongup, he’s-” she stopped mid-sentence as she was caught by Jongin’s morbid glare.
“Never, use Jongup as an excuse,” his voice was a low whisper, “Ever.” With that, he stormed out of his bedroom, slamming the door behind him.
---
“Married?!” Taeyeon and Baekhyun exclaimed in unison, earning a few pointed glares from customers.
“Yes! And will you keep it down?” Suzy hushed her friends as she looked cautiously at surrounding tables. “I don’t think anyone is supposed to know yet.”
Taeyeon scoffed. “I highly doubt we’re even supposed to know, and we’re her closest friends.”
“I know right,” Suzy nibbled on a piece of her donut.
The trio sat in silence, letting the news sink in. Just a moment ago, Suzy revealed some shocking information that their close friend, Jung Soojung, was engaged to be married. Granted, it wouldn't have come as such a shock if not last week, Soojung had gone on a passionate rant about her never-ending status of singleness.
“I mean,” Baekhyun spoke up, “unless she was hiding some relationship from us –which is another story –this marriage is totally and completely out of the blue. As far as we know, she hasn’t been seeing anyone for years."
“And how did you even find out about this?” Taeyeon sat up straight as she eyed Suzy wearily. Suzy had a habit of jumping to wild conclusions.
“Well, it was last night when I went over to help her organize her closet. Her phone started ringing so she went to the other room to answer it. Now I had no intention of eavesdropping, but she was talking loud and the walls were thin.” Taeyeon and Baekhyun rolled their eyes at their nosy friend’s excuse but continued listening. “She started talking about an engagement dinner and meeting the groom.”
“Now are you sure she wasn’t talking about someone else?” Baekhyun probed. The last thing he wanted was to start a rumor about his friend.
Suzy nodded. “I thought that, too, but then she started saying stuff about not wanting to get herself fitted for wedding dresses if she didn’t talk to her fiancé first, and I almost had a heart attack.”
“Daebak*…” Baekhyun sat back in his chair.
“But why would she keep something as big as a marriage from us? How could she keep something like this from us? We see her, like, 24/7!” Taeyeon just could not understand.
Suzy let out a gasp, startling the other two. “What if … what if the reason she hasn’t told us about her marriage, is because it’s not a real marriage?”
“Huh?” Taeyeon tilted her head to one side.
“Explain,” Baekhyun prodded as he leaned in closer.
“Think about it, guys. Soojung comes from a fairly wealthy family. Her parents are considerably strict about what she does. Perhaps they set her up with a rich fiancé.”
Taeyeon nodded and tapped her chin. “Hm, that actually doesn’t sound so far off.”
Baekhyun sipped the last of his coffee before speaking up. “All I know is that regardless of what we heard, or what “evidence” we have, we shouldn’t believe anything until we’ve talked to Soojung. Alright?”
The girls nodded. At the end of the day, Soojung's word would trump any hearsay.
“Well here’s our chance. Look,” Suzy motioned towards the shop entrance. There was Jung Soojung, about to enter the line to order, when she caught sight of her friends sitting at a table.
“Oh, I didn’t know you guys were here!” Soojung waved as she walked over, her heels clicking against the wooden floor.
“Don’t you usually get off later?” Taeyeon asked.
“Yeah, but I was feeling a bit suffocated. I decided to throw in the towel early.”
“Ah, I see…” Suzy nodded as she fumbled with a napkin.
“I’m actually glad I caught you guys here. Lately, I’ve had a lot on my mind, and I’ve been meaning to tell you all something.”
The three looked around at each other nervously.
Soojung took a deep breath. “Baekhyun, Taeyeon, Suzy. I’m getting married.”
---
*Daebak: A Korean word literally meaning "big win" or "success". It is commonly used to describe something amazing or unbelieveable
