please remember to vote and comment!
Friday, December 25
Choi Hanbyul heavily trudged up the stairs to her room, holding in her emotions as she went over her fight with her best friend. Did I really just let Jaehyuk walk out on me because of some dude I met two months ago? Just like he said? She couldn't help but wonder, opening the door to her room.
The brunette was surprised to see the dress she had planned on wearing, laid out on the bed, along with matching accessories and shoes. She saw a note next to her makeup, a set of instructions on what colors to use — written by Junkyu himself. She could make out his messy handwriting, depicting he had quickly scribbled it down before leaving the house, making Hanbyul sadder.
No matter how hard she tried to hold it in, the tears fell down her face, her knees giving out and falling on the floor, sobbing uncontrollably.
I didn't choose Haruto. I kept my promise. To keep my word. I didn't choose Haruto. I–I do like him, but not more than my family. Maybe just as much as them, but I can't. I'd never choose Haruto over my family ... would I?
Hanbyul pulled on her hair in frustration, confused at the thoughts that went in her head. Everything was a mess, and she didn't know what to believe. She didn't know how long she stayed on the floor, hugging her knees, but she knew she had to get up soon and start changing.
She grabbed a towel and went to the washroom, knowing she'd cry some more in there as well. After a long bath and more crying, Hanbyul walked out of the bathroom, grimacing at the sight of her reddened and puffy eyes in the mirror.
Put some cucumbers. Or something cold. Junkyu's words echoed in her head.
It was on her sixteenth birthday. The day was almost over and Hyunsuk hadn't wished her yet, and she cried in her room, disheartened that her brother didn't remember her birthday. Junkyu was the only one who saw and came up with a quick solution to get rid of her puffy eyes before the others could see and question it.
After getting some cold towels, Hanbyul wore her pajamas and laid on the bed, the towels over her eyes to reduce the puffiness. She had a lot more in her — to cry — but she didn't want to. She was exhausted. As she laid on her bed, Hanbyul's phone rang, and she peeked at it, trying to read the caller's name.
Seeing Yedam's name, her heart tightened, the whole scenario replaying in her head. Hanbyul slid her finger over her phone, answering the call, putting it on speaker before dabbing her eyes with the cold napkins.
"Hani? Han?" Yedam let out a sigh, knowing the youngest would not talk to them, but instead of hanging up, he continued speaking. "I'm sorry for what happened, and I apologise for not doing anything, but you know ... I couldn't really say anything."
"We hope you are not angry with us, regardless of what we said." Hanbyul heard Asahi's voice, and she pressed the napkins harder against her eyes, not wanting to cry again. "We did mean everything we said, but only for your good. I understand that you are not a part of MAGNUM, but you are still tied to it because of your brother. And at the end of the day, Haruto will always be the leader of SEKIRYU before he is whatever he is to you." The blond avoided the words, and the girl realised that maybe everyone kind of knew at this point.
Hanbyul heard someone clear their throat before speaking. "We won't be coming home today," Yoshi spoke, and Hanbyul lowered her hands, staring at the phone sadly. "But not because of whatever happened, there's been a lot going on these days and we haven't been able to properly work it out," he quickly added, not wanting the girl to feel bad.
"We want you to be safe, Hani. Because even though you are tied to MAGNUM, you are still your own person, and you make your own choices," Yedam stated, and it was obvious how difficult it was for him to say it. "Just like you've told us, it could be possible that Haruto really joined school to complete his studies, but we would appreciate it if you turn on your location, just so we can rest assured."
Hanbyul silently took her phone, immediately turning on her location. She heard a 'ping' on the other line, notifying the others of what she did. "Thank you, Han." She could almost see the smile on Asahi's face. "Have a great time at the party and stay safe. It's your life, and we'll always respect your decisions, even though we'll freak out in the beginning."
"Well," Yoshi mumbled, letting out a sigh as the girl hadn't spoken a single word, "we'll leave you to get dressed, then. See you as soon as we can, Han. We –"
"Am I ..." Hanbyul trailed off, taking a deep breath as the boys intently listened to what she had to say. "Am I wrong, guys?" She asked softly, her voice crack breaking their hearts.
"Words hold more power than weapons, therefore we vow to adhere to every spoken and unspoken word. Not for as long as we are in MAGNUM, but for as long as we live," Asahi quoted their pledge of loyalty when they joined MAGNUM, the words quite familiar with Hanbyul as well.
"Dad always said that." She referred to the man who raised them, Yang Hyunsuk. "Blood makes you related. Loyalty makes you family and don't ever take sides with anyone against your family." Her words fizzled out as she realised what she said.
Haruto was against her family. And she took his side.
"SEKIRYU isn't against MAGNUM." She heard Junkyu's voice on the other line, almost as if he could hear her thoughts. "Yes, we are rivals, but we never caused them harm, nor did they do it to us. We are the best two on top of the hierarchy, which just makes us competitors. You aren't wrong," he explained, wanting the girl to understand that she wasn't wrong.
Yes, it was wrong for them as they were bound to MAGNUM's codes, but not for Hanbyul. She stood by her morals, and she was right.
"You are just sticking to your words, like a true soldier. You aren't in MAGNUM, but it instils its values in you, and you are simply following them. You aren't wrong at all, Hanbyul ... even if you really like Haruto."
The call ended before the brunette could utter a word — but she was sure she wouldn't have said anything — leaving her alone to her thoughts. Especially, the last words Asahi told her.
|<><><><><>|
Watanabe Haruto stood outside the door, waiting for his date to open it. He would be lying if he said he didn't feel nervous, because he did. This was his first time taking a girl to a party, and though it was a part of his plan to make Hanbyul fall for him, he still wanted to do it right.
Hanbyul was something else, really. She was amusing without trying, and she ran through the boy's mind more than it was normal. She made him smile, and even laugh. There was a brighter aura around Haruto after he met Hanbyul, and people around him could see it.
Sometimes, Haruto would remember something Hanbyul did and crack a smile at the oddest of times, confusing people around him. But his mafia personality gave his soldiers whiplash at his mood swings, so they didn't really think much.
However, Haruto was warming up to Hanbyul, and possibly feeling something too, but he buried them deep, struggling to uncover due to other emotions overtaking them.
The boy was pulled out of his thoughts as the door opened, and he looked up, meeting Hanbyul's gaze. He shamelessly let his eyes travel south, taking in her appearance. The dress was unlike anything Haruto had seen before, making him question women's fashion for a while.
Hanbyul wore a plain black knee-length dress with an unusual crisscrossing thread that held the top and skirt of the gown together, and the same pattern was on the sleeves as well. The skin on Hanbyul's stomach and shoulder area were exposed, but Haruto wasn't complaining at all.
"If you are done checking me out, may I get an input, Sir?" The brunette sarcastically asked, biting back a smile when she saw Haruto's pink cheeks.
"I didn't know we had a sexy concept going on. I would've done something more," Haruto retorted, and the girl nodded, eyeing his outfit.
"I mean ..." she trailed off, jutting her bottom lip out. "... you are already there, I don't know if you can get sexier than this." Hanbyul grinned as she gave the answer to Haruto's subtle flirt, enjoying flustering the boy.
Despite liking him, Hanbyul enjoyed this harmless flirting they had with one another.
"Give me a second, I need to look sexy too. Can't have you stealing my thunder." Haruto took off his coat, handing it to Hanbyul, who looked confused.
He removed his tie and unbutton his shirt, observing the younger for reactions. As he unbuttoned the first three buttons, he saw Hanbyul's slightly red and puffy eyes – that she seemed to have tried to cover – making him wonder if anything was wrong.
"How are you today?" Haruto asked as he wore his coat, confusing the brunette at the sudden question.
"Suddenly?"
"Yeah, how are you?" He repeated, watching the girl who seemed to hesitate to answer the question. Only now did he notice how hard she was trying to be her normal self, shocking himself in the process.
Why am I noticing all these things?
Hanbyul smiled, but Haruto noticed the pretense behind it. "I'm doing great. Let's go?" She quickly changed the topic, not wanting to dwell on it longer.
The raven-haired male nodded, shaking his head to himself as he guided the girl to his car. As he walked to the driver's seat after Hanbyul settled in, he wondered what was wrong with him.
Why I am so concerned about her? Okay, she lied about feeling great, but why do I care? Just do the fucking plan and make her yours before Hyunsuk. Get it together, Haruto!
***
so ... hanbyul likes haruto ...
SKSKSKS it was such a good chapter until HARUTO HAD TO RUIN IT WITH HIS EVIL GENIUS MAFIA PLAN OOOOFFFF
share the love! please remember to vote and comment!