Tainted

Chapter 8.

Recommended song: Abe Parker- Butterflies.

Days faded into weeks and Gwang-il stayed restrained even under the influences of peer pressure, like a rabbit animal chained to a tree as he chipped away at Nari revealing her vivid interior.  He soaked up every detail about her, her habit of humming, her feet always following the rhythm, hopping and gliding quietly across the carpet as she read. Her tendency to pout when she was confused or mad or scrunch her nose when she was happy or embarrassed, her long pauses as she searched for words and the scar at the base of her right ear that sparked his curiosity every time the sunlight hit its ruts.

Nari was just as meticulous at discovering him, like how expressive his top lip was, or his lips in general and his nervous habit of running his hands through his hair. His beauty spot under his left eye and his very faint moustache shadow. It didn't take her long to pick up on how clever Gwang-il was when it came to handling and reading people, in fact, he was a master at it.

Seasons gripped their surrounding as they melted and mangled into one soul, one person, barely moving without the other following. Never living without intertwined fingers and never falling asleep without the image of their love.

When beautiful days rolled around they lazed under the tree on the school field, small touches causing storms in their veins while on gloomy days they would hide away in the library completely engulfed in each other calming presence.

Nari's effect wouldn't wear off Gwang-il until he left her side and the more he knew about Nari the more he wanted to protect her but the more powerful the voice become. Unlike the other girls who Gwang-il didn't know, he knew if he killed Nari he would be stealing away a beloved daughter and niece, he knew he would be tainting one of the purest yet damaged souls with shattering fear and the monster inside salivated at the thought while his love for her shuttered in disgust.

"How did you get this?" He brushed his fingertip over the lengthy scar under Nari's ear, and she shuttered heavily at the faint touch. "My mother." She pouted, answering without hesitation. "She hit you?" He cocked his brow. "No, it was a knife." Her lazy figure shrugged. "She can get pretty angry sometimes." Nari flashed Gwang-il a sad smile, letting her head fall onto his arm as her eyes flickered from her book to the vast field in front of them. Her touch melted Gwang-il into purity, a clear light chasing away all evil crawling under his skin.

"She's almost as scary as your friends." Nari shot a playful glare through her lashes and Gwang-il chuckled and looked down, a hint of embarrassment flashing over his cheeks.

"Did she hurt you often?" He asked softly after his smile faded. "Only when I did something that made her mad, she didn't like me being too..." Nari paused, trying to grasp the right word, "Expressive." She settled thinking it got the point across and was assured when she felt Gwang-il nod in understanding.

"You know it's not normal for parents to do that?" Gwang-il twitched his lip. Nari peered at him and a cold shiver made her skin crawl when she saw his concerned face. "I know, but...she had her reasons, I guess." Nari pouted, clenching her jaw. Gwang-il wanted to protest but knew it was a sensitive topic and decided to back off when he saw Nari start picking at her band-aids. This was the first time she was opening up to him after many attempts of asking about her mom and he didn't want to scare her into not doing it again.

Gwang-il ruffled her hair, shaking all the negative thoughts out of her head and she shook his hand off her head retaliating by sitting up and placing her small hand on his fleshy cheek, giving his face a gentle shove. He flashed his gummy smile and the corners of Nari's mouth pulled back slightly, but the true giveaway of her joy was her puffy eyes.

"Why is everyone so obsessed with the sea?" Nari tossed her book down after a few minutes of silence, another magical scene unfolding in the basket of blue finally piqued her interest.