(split the prev part in two it was too long)
YN crouched nearby small Daniel as he struggled to calm a ferocious Enu. Gingerly, she unwrapped the bandages on her wrist. Her bruises were getting abraded by the bandages, causing net-shaped bloody impressions on her wrists. She quickly wrapped them with the new bandages she had just purchased. Enu had moved to the alley behind the store
YN grimaced as Daniel received a particularly vicious bite. "If you're okay with getting bitten, try-" YN suggested, but then was interrupted by the arrival of someone else. A tall pretty girl was standing at the entrance of the alley. A shock of familiarity flashed through YN, but she couldn't place from where.
"Hello, you know enu?" she asked, wide eyes sliding from YN to Daniel. Daniel answered for her, and the he and the pretty girl began small talk.
YN discreetly took out her phone. She typed "HNH chairmans daughter."
Guess who showed up.
"Ah... yeah... Oh so we're the same age. I thought you were older than me," Daniel was responding with negative rizz when YN checked back into the conversation.
"Goodness! Do I look that mature to you?"
"No! That's not what I meant.
"That's thoughtful, you brought canned tuna and water. Someone just brought food before."
YN flinched. Both her and Crystal were the chairman's daughter. Either Crystal was lying, or the internet was lying, and the internet never lies. What was their relationship? And how did the woman know about the food earlier? Unless Crystal told her...
"Oh, well she can't eat only food in the street. You know Enu is pregnant? She has to eat and put on some weight. I'm worried that she's too thin," Daniel said, a cute smile on his chubby cheeks. The other girl seemed to glow as she watched Daniel attempt to convince Enu to eat the food and not him.
"Hey...If it's ok, how about we work out together?" Both her and Daniel seemed to have forgotten YN's presence. "I like exercising too so... It's been really effective." The girl scratched her head sheepishly. "I'm always on a diet. It's my specialty." The girl was rambling now, but she smiled away the blush on her face. "You were working out before...I think I can help you."
Daniel contemplated this, a grin spreading across his face. "Thanks for the offer, but Enu is here fighting alone, so i want to do this myself too."
YN froze. That was exactly what Crystal had said to Big Daniel in the alley. Sure, Big Daniel and Small Daniel were roommates, but this was repeated almost verbatim. "I want to overcome this on my own. If someone keeps helping me, I will probably want to rely on them."
YN was tempted to intervene and deliver her rant again, but last time it hadn't gone so well and at that moment someone interrupted.
"--Piggy!" Zoe flounced into the alley. "The store is locked! And what are you doing here? You now how long I waited outside?" she scolded angrily.
"Sorry!" Daniel said quickly, not wanting to incur Zoe's wrath.
"Come on! You're making customers wait!"
"No! I just came to feed the dog!"
Zoe dragged Daniel out of the alley and back into the CVS. Crystal seemed to have forgotten that YN had also been in the alley and left without looking back.
YN rested against the filthy alley wall, and thought about Daniel, Crystal, the pretty girl, and Enu. Enu barked, growled, chewed, and attacked them, but they were still insistent on helping the dog. The dog was not nearly as good at running away from help as she was. She had learned from Sinu after all. Suddenly her heart began to ache. When was the last time she had run away? Jace had given up on pestering her, and instead settled for observing her. Vasco was supportive as always, strong and dependable. And she hadn't talked to Johan for a month. Guilt settled like a boulder in her stomach. She still hadn't apologized for running away from him. Anxiously, she dialed his number. She gnawed on her thumb, a nervous habit, and one that caused a line of blood to bead on her thumb. Her nose dripped as well, but she was too anxious to notice.
Ringgggggggggg Ringggggggggggg Ringgggggggggg.
It rang out. YN hurriedly fumbled to text him, almost dropping her phone.
YN: Johan.
Are you up?
Please be up.
Please.
I'm so sorry.
Can we talk?
Johan in the God Dog HQ grumbled as a loudly ringing phone woke him up. He never got calls unless it was from Jin Jang. And Jin Jang was 100 ft away in another room at the dart place. Johan grunted angrily and painstakingly pushed himself up from his collapsed position. He flexed to stretch out of he slumber, then winced, touching the side of his bare chest. A dark purple bruise was formed there. Johan touched his face and winced again. He had only half-finished bandaging the cuts on his face before he had collapsed into sleep in one of the private karaoke rooms of the dart place that the God Dogs used as an HQ. He swore quietly to himself. A month ago he would not have been injured at all. YN had thrown him off his game. He had been fighting a gang moving into Gangbuk from the north until he had tripped and and face-planted into gravel. Then sustained a heavy kick to his ribs. It was nothing he hadn't recovered from, but if he had been in a better mental condition, there was a couple of things that would have happened differently. First, the gang would have been disposed of far more quickly, second, he would not have ever tripped, third, he would have flipped or done something cool when he fell instead of dropping like a hot potato.
Not his most elegant moment.
Another loud Ringgggggggggggggg sounded, snapping Johan out of his recollections. He felt the ugly bruise one last time, then stood rummaging through the hoodie and shirt he had thrown across the room when he had returned to the HQ for the phone.
He just barely glimpsed the "YN Jang" across the caller ID before the call dropped.
"FUCK!" he swore loudly, dropping the phone. She ghosts me for a month and now this? Johan had contemplated calling her many times over the month. He wanted to call her and scream at her for breaking her promise yet again. But eventually, after enough cuts and bruises, he realized she wanted nothing to do with him.
But texts buzzed in, all from the same caller ID. Johan read them, and hated himself for the flutter in his stomach.
He read them again, then again. Are they fake? Some elaborate prank from Jin? He stared at the screen. Another "please" appeared under the "can we talk?"
YN stared anxiously at her phone. She thought that if she twisted her fingers any tighter they'd come off. The three dots danced, signaling he was looking at the chat. She would totally understand if he said no. She did a really shitty thing and she didn't know how she was going to make up for it.
Johan: I really hate you you know that?
YN faltered. What does that mean? I mean, I would hate me too, but is that a yes? No? She waited as the dots danced some more.
Johan: Fine
The park
Bench
Right now
A huge smile spread across YN's face, and her stomach erupted in fluttering. She didn't know how she would ever make it up to Johan, but at least she would see him again! She began running to the park where Johan and Yenna first met.
Johan slumped onto the karaoke couches, his usually strong legs seeming to lose their ability to stand. He twisted over and began banging his head on the couch.
"You. Fucking. Idiot," he mumbled to himself, punctuating each word with a blow. He didn't know why he was beating himself up. Even if YN would ghost him every month, he knew he would always run back to her. If he couldn't run, he'd walk. And if he couldn't walk, he'd crawl. But he'd always end up back where he never had a problem being. At her side. He fell backwards, the cold leather of the couches sticking to his back. Then he jumped up and grabbed his shirt and hoodie, ignoring the sting as his skin was wrenched from the leather. He was going to find her, he was going to yell at her, and then he'd figure out what to do.
YN clutched at her knees, curling up on the bench where they had met in the park. She pulled the oversized sleeves of the hoodie over her dry hands. The white champion hoodie that she had stolen from Eli was no replacement for the black one she had lost, but it would do. YN close her eyes and rested her forehead on her knees. She was acutely alert of every sound that happened in the park. The sky was a navy blue, brightened by lamplights that occasionally lit the path. She sighed, her breath emerging as opaque clouds in the cold air.
There were steps down the path and they stopped in front of her. She knew immediately it was Johan. He sat next to her on the bench. He didn't say anything or even shift around in his seat. He was deathly silent.
YN didn't know what to say. Her breath condensed on her cheeks, cooling off her flush. How did you apologize for someone after inviting them somewhere in the middle of the night, running away, then ghosting them for a month? Especially after she had promised to never leave him. Eventually she looked up at him. He was staring at her, eyebrows furrowed in a disgusted scowl.
"I'm sorry Johan," she began. He stayed silent, waiting for her to continue. "I'm sorry I ran away again. You deserve better than that. I really fucked up, I know. I just had so much on my mind and– There's no excuse. I shouldn't run from the people I love, and I shouldn't run from my problems, but that's all I ever learned to do. It won't happen again. And, I know I said that before, but I really really mean it this time."
Johan maintained his gaze. "You promised," he said simply.
YN's mind flashed back to the memory she had received. On a particularly cold day when she and Johan had been bundled together, his arm around her, their Conversed feet touching.
"This is nice," Johan murmured into her hood, eyes still intently focused on the Varma Kalai video displayed on YN's tiny phone. YN thought it was quite fascinating, perhaps the best one yet for her small stature. It focused on pressure points, similar to gou shou or dim mak. If she could move fast enough, think fast enough, she could disable her opponent before they did any damage.
"Think fast, move faster," she mumbled to herself. It was her own personal motto.
"What?"
"You're right this IS nice."
Johan pressed a cheek against the top of her head. "Never leave me YN."
"I won't, I promise." she breathed, her face hot, attention finally removed from the video.
"Say that again?" Johan asked teasingly.
"Shut up."
YN's stomach plunged, and her head filled with misery.
"I know I did. And–there's nothing I can do to prove I'm not going to run away again. I'm begging you, please give me another chance." A tear rolled down her cheek. She fiercely wiped it away. She didn't deserve tears. This was her fault after all. "I need to stop running from my problems. I need to learn to rely on people I love. I've got to open my heart. There's a lot of things wrong with me, and those are only some of them, but I will fix it all one by one for you."
Johan was silent. YN didn't know what else to say.
"If it was anyone else I'd break their knees, then make them kneel and beg for forgiveness," he said finally.
YN slid to her knees, the rough gravel digging in through her leggings. She knelt in front of Johan and grabbed both his hands. He stiffened, probably at her cold fingers. His hands were indeed very warm.
"I AM begging you. I will do whatever you want. I'll send good morning texts, goodnight texts, call you every hour to get updates on your life. I will come whenever you call, I'll walk Eden if you wish, I'll do anything for you." YN's eyes watered with unshed tears, but she held her gaze.
Johan was speechless. He pulled his hands away and covered his face. He leaned back against the hard wooden bench, running his hands through his thick brown hair. "I really hate you."
"What?" YN asked, moving to stand.
"I said anyone but you YN, goddammit."
YN's heart rose a little bit. Does he forgive me?
"I forgive you. I will always forgive you. Even if you rip out my heart and stomp on it, I will keep coming back to you." Johan uncovered his face and looked up into YN's eyes. Even in the dim light she could see his face glowing a bright red. YN's hands reached out and cupped Johan's face with a mind of their own. His eyes widened in shock and his face got warmer. She traced his cheekbones with her thumbs, entranced in his dark eyes. One hand stayed on his face and the other strayed into his thick hair, playing with the strands that made up his glorious mullet. YN's mind choked back the words she felt like saying, because they didn't make sense. She thought back to Jace's definition of love (armor against amour) which felt like a lifetime ago. But she was spared having to think of it any longer when Johan grabbed her wrists and pulled her close. His arms wrapped around her, caging her in a hug, and he hid his face in her neck.
A pathetic sigh escaped her lips as she relaxed into him. Pressed up so close, she could feel every chiseled muscle under the soft hoodie. She could feel the delicateness in his hold, his refined features pressing against the soft skin of her neck. She could feel every slow breath Johan exhaled into her hoodie. She rested her head on his slender shoulder, closing her eyes. He was warm and safe, and she was never going to let that go.