Tainted

Chapter 10.

Recommended song: Fifty-fifty- Lovin' me.

As the car rolled into the underground parking lot the artificial light replaced the shimmering sunlight as Nari's shakey hands wiped down her school skirt, desperately trying to remove any creases. 

Gwang-il chuckled as he pulled into his parking spot, he grabbed her hand, stopping her from disappearing into oblivion as he always did. "Calm down," He laughed, lightly squeezing her hand making sure not to hurt her fingers, "Everything will be okay."

Nari nodded but every breath began to hurt as her chest tightened, a devastating thought wrecking every inch of her soul. Every family she had ever been associated with had fallen apart, albeit it was only two families, she was two for two in her mind. 

Gwang-il opened the passenger door, escorting Nari out of the car, the pair walking hand in hand to the elevator. Glittering eyes watched Gwang-il's long fingers go to press the golden button which would take them to the top floor of the apartment building. 

"Wait." Nari cried, gently grabbing his hand. Gwang-il looked down at Nari with a pout and knotted brows, "What's wrong?"

"Gwang-il, I'm bad luck." She muttered, her hand hovering over his, her head dropping to look at her shuffling feet. "What?" He questioned, his head tilting to one side. "I'm bad luck, problems follow me everywhere," Nari could feel Gwang-il hiding a smile, holding in a laugh, "It's true!" She frowned at her feet, "and I don't want to bring anything bad into your home, to your family, to you." 

What started as amusement for Gwang-il quickly turned to an aching sadness spreading through his veins. He lifted his hand, placing it on the back of Nari's head, and pushed the sulking girl into his chest. He held her there for a moment, just knowing she was in his arms began to mend his shattering heart. 

His hands moved from her back to the sides of her head, which he held, forcing her to look up at him. "Nari, you are my lucky charm. I was lucky to meet you and I'm even luckier to keep you." Fierce eyes burnt into Nari's shivering pupils, Gwang-il's eyes never wavered away from hers. 

"Just meet my parents, they will change your mind if I can't." He smiled. Nari was holding her breath, she blinked finally breaking the intense stare the pair had been holding when her knees started shaking. She nodded, the sound static sound of his hands rubbing over her ears filling her brain as she stared at the buttons of his shirt. 

The elevator opened directly into the Kim family apartment, the dark oak and gold details flowed from the elevator into the apartment. Gwang-il noticed Nari hesitating to leave the elevator so he placed a comforting hand on her waist, gently guiding her into the foyer. 

"I'm home." His loud voice echoed off the shiny tiles causing Nari to jump. Gwang-il chuckled a 'sorry' before slipping off his school blazer, and then Nari's blazer. 

"I'm in the kitchen." A familiar female voice called, which Gwang-il followed, pulling Nari along behind him. Each room they passed through got bigger and grander until they entered the kitchen. 

The room was filled with a sweet smell, carried around the room by the steam, a wild wind that blasted through the open windows and knocked the white steam around, creating whirling patterns in the sunlight. 

Nari's eyes fell from the steam to a thin woman patting the sweat from her forehead. "Mom, I brought a guest for dinner." Gwang-il smiled, moving behind Nari and pushing her further into the enormous kitchen and closer to his mother. 

"Haven't the boys eaten enough of my-" The words got caught in her long neck when she looked up and saw a doe-eyed Nari staring back at her, her son standing behind the girl with a goofy smile.