Bruises | l.mh

12

//yena

"WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO find a different place to do it."

I sigh, leading Minho toward the back stairway. "I don't know why you're insisting this. The bathroom is a perfectly good place."

"Yeah, maybe for you, but I'm a guy, Yena. I'm not really supposed to be in the girl's bathroom."

"Since when do you care so much about that?" I ask as we stop on the middle landing of the back stairway.

"I don't want you to get into trouble," he explains.

"How would I be in trouble?"

"You'd be right there with me. If someone walked in and saw us in the bathroom, they'd assume something and we'd both get in trouble."

Heat rises to my cheeks. "Okay, yeah, I get it."

We sit down on the landing and Minho gets his makeup stuff out of his backpack. He hands the stuff to me and I start covering the bruise on his jaw first.

"This one is looking a little better," I tell him as I'm putting the liquid foundation on.

He doesn't respond as I finish covering the bruise on his jaw and move on to the one underneath his eye.

"And that one is looking worse?" He asks as I begin putting the liquid foundation underneath his eye.

"No," I say quickly. "It doesn't look worse. It looks a little better from yesterday. This one is just going to take some more time to heal."

Minho sighs. "I'm gonna have to buy a lot of makeup, right?"

I pause. "Or you could not go downtown and get into fights. Then you wouldn't have any bruises."

He doesn't respond at first.

I finish blending the foundation over the bruise and begin dabbing a little bit of powder on the area. Once I'm finished, I hand him the supplies.

He takes them and starts to put them away in his bag, but he suddenly stops and looks up at me.

"You know what happens to me," he says. "You saw how I got these bruises. But you won't tell me how you got yours. Is that fair?"

I furrow my brows. "I accidentally came upon you, downtown, in a fight. Just because I accidentally found out doesn't mean you all of a sudden get to know everything about me. We talked about this."

"I know." He sighs. "I just... I won't lie to you, Yena. I want to know what's going on in your life, and I can't exactly explain why. I want to... I want to make sure you're okay."

I press my lips together.

Minho shakes his head. "I'm sorry, I know we said we weren't gonna do this, because friendships don't have to be one hundred percent honest. You have a right to not tell me things."

I look down at my hands. "I just can't talk about it, Minho. I can't."

He nods. "I know."

We sit in awkward silence for a long moment.

"Well, your face is all made up," I say quickly. "I'll probably see you in detention."

I turn to leave, heading toward my first period.

"Yena, wait."

I stop and turn around, my eyes meeting with Minho's.

"Will you come over tonight?" He asks. "Just for dinner or something. Or something else. Like watching a movie or something."

My lips turn up in a smile, but my eyes are sad.

Hanging out at Minho's house sounds much better than locking myself in my room to hide from my mother all night. But I know there's no way I could spend time at his house.

"I can't."

Minho looks disappointed.

"I'll see you later." I turn away.

<<<

WHEN THE LAST BELL rings throughout the school, I'm already making my way through the hallways toward the front door. Surprisingly, I didn't receive detention from any one of my classes.

Part of me was a little disappointed because I knew that would be the only place I would have seen Minho. But another part of me was glad, because I don't really know what to say to him right now.

I just can't seem to figure out how I truly feel about Minho. I think he's a good person and wants to be my friend, but I just don't know if I can have any kind of friendship.

Just like I thought, he kept talking and asking about me and my life, even after I told him I can't talk about it. But humans are naturally curious and I think he might care about me, too.

I just haven't ever been able to have friends.

And if we keep running into each other and I keep helping him cover his bruises and he keeps asking me things, I don't think there's any way that Minho and I can be friends.

Once I make it home, I go straight into my room. My mother and Ji-sub aren't home yet, but I don't want to be out when they do get home. I can't handle them today.

I turn on some quiet music and let it play from the speakers on my computer. I get my notebook out and pull up my homework for tonight on my computer and get to work.

My phone buzzes.

I let out a sigh. I really don't want to answer it, because there's only one person it would be.

Still, I reach over and pick it up.

I'm sorry I keep asking about everything going on in your life. I'm curious yeah, but I'm also concerned. I want to make sure you're okay and obviously you're not. I just wish I could know so I could help you. I just want to help you Yena.

I chew on my lip and try to think of a response.

I know that Minho just wants to help me and he cares about me. But I just can't risk him finding out exactly what happens to me and why I get these bruises and... he can't stop it.

The only thing that will stop this abuse is when I move out and go live on my own. And I know that sounds difficult and almost impossible since I have no job and no money, but I can do it. I have to do it.

And nothing else will stop this. Nothing else will stop her.

I get it Minho. I'm sorry too. I just can't do it. I can't let people in and I can't risk certain things by letting you in. I'm sorry I led you on. And I'm sorry I put you through this. I just don't think we can be friends or see each other anymore. I'm sorry.

Before I do anything else, I add one more text.

Btw, there are lots of makeup tutorials you could use for covering bruises but I hope you won't need to do that soon. Goodbye Minho.

Then I feel okay about how we're leaving things, so I click on his contact and then I click delete.