When the Clock Strikes|Pi Han Ul x Reader|

(S02) Chapter 39

And still breathing.

Somehow. Still breathing.

And all I want-

All I want is to go back to yesterday.

When I was lying in his arms.

Before I convinced myself I didn't deserve it.

I step outside, the soles of my sneakers sticking to the pavement, like the ground wants to hold me down-
like even the earth knows I'm not ready to move forward.

My breath fogs in front of me. I press my hands into the sides of my coat.
I pretend I'm not shaking.

And then-

"Unnie?"

I turn so fast I almost trip over myself.

So Min.

Tae Sung's sister. Wide eyes. Flushed cheeks. A book clutched tight in her arms like a shield.

Tae Sung is beside her. Quiet. Still.

I force the corners of my lips to lift.
It hurts.

"Hi," I say, my voice just barely above a whisper. "So Min-hey."

She walks up closer.
Peers at me like I'm under a microscope.
Like she sees too much.

"You look like you cried out all your lungs," she says.

I blink. Stumble over nothing.
And laugh.

Too quickly. Too loud. Too fake.

"Ah-what? No, I'm just-tired. That's all. Long shift. You know how it is."

So Min doesn't look convinced.
But she's kind.
She just hugs her book tighter and nods.

"Alright," she says softly.

Then Tae Sung clears his throat.

"I'll catch up in a bit, So Min," he says.

His voice is gentle. Always.

So Min looks at him, then back at me.
And smiles. "Okay. Take your time. Don't worry about me."

She walks off with that energy still in her.

Tae Sung steps next to me.

I don't know what to say.
But he does.

"I heard about Ha-Ya," he says, his voice careful. "I'm sorry, Ye Na. I-I really was shocked. I knew her too. Not as well as you, but..."

He stops. Looks at me.

"I'm sorry."

I nod. But my throat tightens.

And then he says it.

"Are you okay?"

A beat.

And then, with a breath-
"I shouldn't even ask that. I know you're not."

Something inside me cracks. Not loudly. Not violently.

Just-
quietly.

Painfully.

He looks at me like he hears the sound.

But he doesn't press it.

Instead, he glances away, exhales once, and then-

"You know what," he says suddenly, brightening his voice with artificial sunlight, "I'm freezing. And that café across the street makes a mean ginger tea. You're coming with me."