I froze, silently praying that I'd misheard, that the person behind me isn't who I think it is.
Why had I even agreed to come to this party?
I felt a cold hand clutched my heart, sending shivers down my spine and I turned around, meeting the eyes of Seyun.
She was standing behind, her heels giving us even more of a height difference. She stared down at me, hands on her slim waist, eyes cold.
"I could get used to looking down on you like this."
She smirked, her eyes lingering on my wound.
I covered it up instinctively, then drew myself up to my full height. Which was- unfortunately, a mere 156.5 cm.
Obviously, she was still towering over me.
"Why are you here?" I asked, trying to put on a smile and pretend I wasn't pissed at her comment.
"I should be asking you that. I thought you wouldn't show up, being the coward you are."
The flame inside of me reignited, and I had to take in a deep breathe to force myself to calm down.
She was trying to agitate me. I must stay calm.
"Sorry, I guess you thought wrongly. As always."
I bit back, smiling at her.
Two can play the same game.
Her nostrils flared as she glared at me, hatred in her eyes.
I fought hard to return her stare, forcing my pupils to stay and not dart somewhere else. Yet my willpower was faltering. Her gaze was piercing, and it spoke a thousand words. Hate. She hated me, it was obvious. But why?
"Why do you hate me so much?"
I whispered, unblinking, breaking the intense silence between us.
"I thought I made it clear. I hated you before, and I hate you even more now. You tried to throw me in jail, remember? And that's not all. Everything I wanted, you have.
My dream has always been to be an idol, yet I couldn't. I just don't understand. How are you so successful, yet I still haven't fulfilled my dream? How are you better than me?"
Her eyebrows knitted together as she talked, frustration evident. Jealousy. That was the fuel to her fire.
"You must have been so confused and jealous, seeing Hanbin with me, linking arms with me, acting like my boyfriend.
Well guess what, that's what I have been feeling every single time I look at you and him together, except ten times stronger, because I obviously love him more. Meanwhile, you're just a cheating bitch."
She smirked, and I quickly glanced down as her red high heels clicked towards me, every step bringing more fear in me.
However, I fought hard to stand my ground, refusing to back away. I wasn't one for confrontations like this, and my heart was pounding hard inside as I tried to formulate what to say next.
"You already know I didn't cheat on him. And you deserve to be in jail, for all the bad things you've done. I guess your father got you out, I heard he's rich."
I hesitated awhile, before finally deciding to speak my mind, to try and end this dispute.
"I know you feel horrible seeing me and Hanbin together. I'm sorry. But I really love him, more than you think.
I don't want to fight with you, I just want us all to be friends.
If spending today with Hanbin can make you change your mind and think about being friends with us, then go ahead. I'll try not to think of anything and just let Hanbin stay with you for today, since that's what he's been doing."
I smiled at her, a genuine smile. It was a plea, a sincere request to end all these, to let us all go back to the peaceful ways.
She scoffed and rolled her eyes at me, drawling in a sarcastic tone,
"Give Hanbin to me for today? He came to me because I threatened him that I'll hurt you if he doesn't listen to me. He's been such a good boy. As long as I keep threatening him with you, he'll stay well behaved. He'll stay mine.
But of course, I can't have you running to him and telling him what I've just told you. That'll ruin all my plans..."
She took another step towards me, her eyes fixated on me, the corners of her red lips lifting up slightly like those of a clown.
"What... what do you want? If you hurt me, Hanbin's not going to listen to you anymore." I stumbled back, my heart throbbing impossibly fast inside my chest. We were alone here, she could do anything she wanted to do to me and get away with it easily.
"I don't want much. I know I seem like a psychopath, but I can't help it. You annoy me to no end.
And of course I know that. But think about it, with you out of the picture, wouldn't it be even easier for Hanbin to accept his love for me?
Besides, I'm not going to let someone who tried to destroy me go about safely.
And we're alone now. Not a single soul in sight. Guess what I can do to you?"
She hissed, her dark pupils glinting like that of a cat's against the darkness of the night. I backed away from her, distinctly feeling my phone ring in my pocket.
Damn it. That would probably be Junhoe, calling to see what was taking me so long. He probably thinks I'm lost, but I was in an even worse predicament right now.
I heard someone shouting my name from afar, repeatedly, the sound coming closer and closer towards me.
June, please come and save me.
Will June reach here and save me in time? Or will Seyun hurt me first, whatever she was planning to do to me?
I shrank back, wary of Seyun's every action. She took yet another step towards me. I stepped back again. I felt like a prey, and she the predator, hunting me down, making me retreat.
I wobbled unsteadily on my high heels, feeling my ankle sprain a little. A stab of pain shot through me and I almost lost my balance. Damn it, what if I have to run later?
"Look Seyun, I just want everything to be the way it was in the beginning. Can't we settle this in peace?"
I made one last attempt at peace, hoping that she'll take it and leave me alone.
But of course she wasn't one for peace. She laughed sarcastically and flicked her long blonde hair over her shoulders, her expression smug.
"Don't be so afraid of me. You want us to be friends, but how can we be if you're so intimidated by me?"
I didn't reply, didn't know how to. What could I say? That I was truly afraid of her, after her many attempts to murder and hurt me? That I was ready to let bygones be bygones?
I winced as I placed my sprained ankle hard onto the ground, the pain unbearable for a few seconds.
She noticed, her eyes flickering down to my injured foot, her expression smug. She knows she's already won this battle.
"Now... to finish you off."
She advanced on me, this time determined to get me.
Wide-eyed, I stood there in terror, watching as she took each slow step towards me. Paralysed, the most I could do was lift my hand up to try and fend myself from whatever she was going to do to me.
I thought she was going to hit me, to lash out at me and inflict whatever damage she could, but she didn't.
Instead, she pushed me.
The impact knocked me off my feet, my arms flailing around, desperately trying to grab onto something.
Unfortunately, my hands met air, and I was falling.
Everything seemed to become slow motion for me. I was vividly aware of my heart palpitating wildly inside, my pulse quickening. My heartbeat throbbed like the deafening roar of the thrashing sea in my eardrums as I fell backwards.
I squeezed my eyes shut, bracing myself for the pain that was sure to come once I hit the hard ground.
But the pain didn't come.
Instead, water did.
I had backtracked so much that I was just centimeters away from the pool. I hadn't realise that, but Seyun obviously had, thus pushing me into the pool.
I hit the pool full force, my back making contact with the water, a loud splash resounding around me.
I was submerged underwater in a second, my back aching from the painful impact. Stunned, my reaction was barely fast enough to stop me from sinking all the way down to the bottom.
Desperately, I tried to kick my legs to stay afloat, but my sprained ankle just wasn't cooperating.
Bubbles escaped from my opened mouth as I sunk down into the deep pool. It must be at least 2.5 metres deep - almost twice my height.
Struggling desperately, I suddenly remembered that I'd sprained the same ankle before - when I had been attacked by Seyun's friends.
She knows. She knows my injiry was bad, that it would cause me to be unable to swim.
She's really out to kill me.
The fight went out of me with every air bubble that escaped from my mouth. I could hear the distinct beating of my heart, thundering in my eardrums. It was slowing down, struggling just as much as I was, screaming out for oxygen.
I guess this is God's cruel way of karma. I've tried suiciding by jumping into the Han river before, thinking that my life was over after believing that Hanbin was cheating on me.
How stupid I had been. A life given to me, and I hadn't cherished it. If it hadn't been for Hanbin coming to rescue me in time, I would have long died.
Hanbin's face appeared in my mind as I let out another row of bubbles of air.
Will he be sad with me gone? Will I still remember him in my next life? Will he ever regain his memories?
With me dead, I rather he not.
Please, spare him the pain of losing a loved one...
With his foolish grinning face etched in my mind, I smiled and let out my last breathe of air, sinking further.
May we meet again as lovers in our next lives, Kim Hanbin.