Ari

Chapter 30

Nari took me out to lunch on my first official day in teaching training. It would only last a few days before I'm paired with a tutoring class. I noted my special interest in working with young kids and the program director said he would make note of it.

Lunch was at Nari's favorite place that served a traditional English tea. She said she missed it from her youth, so coming every month was like a reset button.

The tiny sandwiches and cakes along with black tea and cream was surprisingly more filling than I thought it would be. Filling her in to the latest, she couldn't believe any of it. Maybe she could fill me in on the questions I had about Sun-Hee.

"That bitch. I can't believe she acted that way in a public setting," scoffed Nari taking a sip from her flowery porcelain tea cup.

"It really caught me off guard. I didn't even know who she was," I grumbled taking a cake into my mouth.

"She's always had the reputation of being one though. Even back then when we were all in university. She was a graduate student then. It was like she had Jun wrapped around her finger. Ordered him around everywhere. Super possessive."

So that's where that kink came from.

"Jun said he thought she moved to London, do you know why?" I asked.

Nari's eyes got a little bigger. "She moved to London? I didn't hear about that! Jun just told us she moved out of the country. I wonder why he'd keep a detail like that from me of all people?"

"Maybe he thought you would get involved?" I shrugged.

"With her? No way. I barely tolerated her company whenever he brought her around. So many awkward dinners." She shook her head.

I chuckled at how disgusted Nari was. It was nice to know there was someone I could talk shit with. And if there was anyone who could do it with class, it was her.

"I wonder why she's back."

"Who knows. She studied fashion back then. She interned in France the summer before she and Jun got together. Wouldn't shut up about it. So, you ran around and picked up coffee and pastry for some designer's assistant. Big fucking deal," scoffed Nari.

Trying to maintain some decorum in place like this, I laughed in my hands. But the big question hung over me.

"Do you think she wants Jun back?" I asked calming down.

Nari sighed and rolled her eyes. "If she had any sense, she wouldn't have let him go in the first place, so who knows. But I do know that Jun is without a doubt obsessed with you. So you've nothing to worry about."

Taking a bite of a tiny sandwich, a smile crept in the corner of my mouth. "What have you heard?"

"Oh, a few things. Nothing super detailed though," she teased. "I also have eyes. He can't keep his hands off you for a minute, and his attentiveness to your mood is eerily sweet."

"Was he like this with her?"

Nari shook her head as soon as I asked. "Not when I was around them. He's so much more sure of himself with you. I don't know if it's age or experience, or maybe it's just how secure you make him feel. But this is a different Seokjun."

It was reassuring to know that he was different with me, but the more Nari and I talked the more I could see the scars that were left behind on him from Sun-Hee.

His obsession with me making sure I ate enough, probably steaming from her lack of it. His worry about us being purely physical in the beginning, could have come from how she practically used him for his body. Even his overtly romantic gestures and words, spilling out from being deprived of it after their relationship failed. I felt bad.