Ayy, the music really sets the mood for this chapter!
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I stared at the two envelopes. One was big, and the other was small. That meant there was an acceptance and a rejection.
I picked up the small one first. It was from Stony Brook. Of course they'd reject me, it's so competitive to get into. Knowing what was inside already, I opened it and read the rejection.
"Thanks anyways..." I muttered as I grabbed the acceptance.
SUNY Potsdam. I opened it and stared at the pamphlet of the clock tower. Not going to lie, it was beautiful. I grabbed the other acceptances and compared the amount of money the school was giving me.
So Goucher was giving me only $10,000 a year, yet everything together is like $50,000 a year. This college would put me into so much debt. The opportunities are nice and all but... Sighing, I put it to the side and picked up the other ones.
No matter how bad I want to leave the city, going to a CUNY would be the cheapest option. Growing up in the city, I never had the "true high school experience". Not a lot of high schools here have their own parking lots, football fields, swimming pools, etc..
So what will my decision be? Should I choose a private, SUNY or CUNY? If I choose a private or SUNY, I'll be away from my family, squad, Yejun and end up paying way more. If I go to a CUNY, I'll end up staying with everyone and pay less.
Yejun even said I could stay with him.
I rubbed my temples. This is frustrating. The answer is right in front of me, but it's just hard. All this time I had a game plan laid out, and now I'm going against it. I picked up Hunter College's acceptance and went over it.
Should I?
I squinted my eyes closed. I should. It's cheaper, I can afford it. I might even be able to go for free. I completed my FAFSA back in January, so I know what my package will be like.
If I go to Hunter, I won't have to pay for room and board. I looked at the SUNYs and cringed at the prices of room and board. Even though they're all the same, it's still expensive.
Shaking my head, I put the SUNYs away and looked over Hunter again. What will I be majoring in? I love languages, but would I make money majoring in Chinese language? I'm pretty sure Yejun would hate that.
"Oohh... They don't havee the Koleanu language?" I muttered trying to imitate him.
Maybe I should major in international studies? I want to travel, and I love learning about different cultures. International studies sounds really fun. Maybe I can minor in Chinese language! Does Hunter even have some type of martial arts club?
I suddenly realized how excited I was for this.
I'm excited to declare my major and join clubs, but I've never thought about the academic aspects. Is it true that I'll spend my whole nights studying for exams? I don't want to survive on ramen and junk food, but if I'm living with Yejun, that won't be a problem.
Living with Yejun.
My heart leapt at the thought of living with him. How would things be between us? Will he have to return to Korea? What if he stops teaching? What if Haeun does something to us? I don't want to see her as evil, but I can't see her as the nicest person either.
She's only doing what's best for her company.
I sighed and laid back in my bed. Is this real life? Do I really have to go through shit like this? I ask myself these questions every day, yet I never come up with an exact answer.
Picking my phone up, I went to Yejun's contact: Bae 🇰🇷❤️ Tapping it, I put the phone to my ear.
"Len?"
I smiled at the sound of his voice.
"Hey Yejun."
"Hey, is everything alright?"
"Everything's good. I made the decision."
He paused. "Oh... I'm just letting you know this, I'm not forcing you to make any decision. Don't let me influence what co—"
"Anyways, I'm going to Hunter College."
Yejun let out a loud exhale. "Thank God!" I laughed at his reaction. "I've been so... worried these past couple of days. I'm glad you chose to stay here. Are you going to move in with me?"
I sat up. "I was thinking about it, but I'm scared that I'll be a nuisance to you."
"Nuisance? Len, I wish you were here everyday. I feel more at ease when you're around." I couldn't help but blush. Here I was thinking Yejun would get tired of me. Are we even still in the honeymoon phase?
"Are you alive?"
"Ye- yeah! Sorry!" His laugh was the best thing ever. Everything about Yejun is just perfect. "Well?"
"Okay, but you know... I have to contribute to rent."
"...Len, I mean..."
"Either that, or I'll just stay here."
"Aish, I'm trying to help you and you're making things harder on yourself." I rolled my eyes as he continued, "You'll only contribute to it when you get a job, okay?"
That sounds fair. "Thanks Yejun."
"I assume you got home safe?"
"No, I died on my way back. I'm a ghost— oOoOo!"
"Len!" I burst out laughing and heard him loudly exhale. It's bad enough Yejun's afraid of ghosts, but joking around about it puts the icing on the cake.
He muttered something in Korean and I raised an eyebrow. Oh, he wants to play this game again? "What did you say?"
"Nothing!"
"Yejun."
I heard the smile on his voice and rolled my eyes. "It's nothing bad, I promise."
Yejun must be talking mad smack. I should curse him out in Mandarin. As we continued talking, my phone buzzed. I took it from my ear and looked at it.
Private number.
Who the fuck is calling me from a private number? "Yejun, I'm getting a call from an unknown number."
"Pick it up, I'll wait." I scoffed. This bum ass guy really think I'm about to pick it up? I waited for it to stop and rolled my eyes when they started calling again.
"They're calling again."
"Len, I really think you should pick up."
"Have you not learned anything? I just want to know how those scary ass people got my number."
"You think it's Choi Haeun?"
"Who else would call me from an unknown number?" I scoffed.
"Just pick up." He groaned.
You'd think this guy would tell me not to pick up. As soon as I was about to press accept, it ended.
Bruh.
Then they called from an actual number. I stared at it. This number is definitely not American.
"One second, I'm putting you on three way. Mute your phone." I accepted the call and merged it.
I expected a bitchy voice, but was confused when a soft voice asked for me.
"Who is this?" I asked.
Their accent was obviously Korean. "I am Haeun, do you have a minute?"
Oh yes I do bitch! It's lit.
"Hello Haeun. I have a minute, but how did you get my number?"
She sighed. "Please don't worry about that. I j—"
"Girl, you know I can't put that past us. You can't just call me from an unknown number and then not tell me how you got my number."
"Len Hunter, 18, born the 2nd of March in Brooklyn, New York." My heart painfully throbbed as my eyes widened, "Daughter of Ginel Powell and Chadrick Hunter Sr. Currently att—"
"How do you know these things about me?!" I yelled. She softly exhaled.
"Len. Where is Yejun?"
My hand trembled. A knock on my door made my head snap to it.
"Are you okay?" said Chad as he peeked in. I nodded and he shrugged and closed my door. I waited until I heard the beads he past through and continued.
"I will not ask again." Although her voice was soft, it held authority in it. Who is she talking to like this?!
"Fuck outta here!" I yelled, "How you call my phone asking me all this bullshit?! If you know all of this about me, then you should know where Yejun is. You're funny Haeun, you really are. You must be on some good shit to think you can do this."
"...I don't understand."
"Don't ever call my damn phone again. You're bugging." Before she could continue, I hung up.
Now I got her number. She really did a background check on me... How did she even get my last name? Shit, I hung up on Yejun. My phone rang and I picked it up.
"How could you hang up on me? You're so rude..." Haeun softly spoke.
"Did I not just tell you to stop calling me? Take the L and go away."
"Take the L?" She mumbled more to herself, "What L?"
My phone began to buzz. I picked up Yejun's call and quickly talked. "Hey, I'm going to put you on three way. Mute your phone." I merged the calls and sighed.
"Haeun, I'm letting you know this right now. Are you listening? Okay, I'll take your silence as a yes. Yejun is my man and my man only. Whatever contract his deceased mother signed doesn't apply to any deal anymore. Nobody cares about your bum ass company. Hop off our nuts. And really, you sent hitmen? Are you serious?! You know I got my arm dislocated?! Oh so help me God when I see your ass!"
She was silent. I heard her voice quiver and smirked. "I'm sorry." Her voice cracked as my eyes widened. Is she crying? "I'm so sorry Len... I-I..." She sniffed and continued, "I just want this all t-to be over. I don't want to take Yejun from you, but our families made this deal for almost three years now. I apologize for that... It wasn't me who sent them. It was his father..." I gasped as she continued, "My father is getting old, and because I have no brothers and I'm the oldest, I'm the next in line. Marrying Yejun will boost the influence of my company, thus making us go to #1 in producing Taekwondo gear."
My heart fell. It wasn't her? Yejun's father sent them? But how... How could someone do that to their own son? It's worse she sounds genuine. Not even she wants this... I sighed. "Can't you marry someone else?"
"I can't. It's his mother's dying wish. She's talked to me from young, but officially signed it almost three years ago. I didn't know it was serious until my father told me I would be married to Mr. Min's middle child— Yejun. It's something that's been talked about before my birth. You see, our families are close. Yejun was supposed to go to Yong In University so he could meet me there. It was my job to get close to him, but then the plan faltered when he went to America. His mother tried to convince him not to go, but he already booked the ticket six months in advance."
I felt everything drain out of my head. They had this shit all planned. I felt like I stepped into a K-drama.
"And then you came along..." She whispered, "I-I never believed his mother. She loved telling stories, she'd always tell me how I would grow up and marry her son. When I saw Yejun, he seemed... off. There was something about him that scared me, so I never talked to him. The first time I ever spoke a word to him was at his mother's funeral, and even then... Even as I spoke to him... he seemed disinterested. He looked at me as if I was nothing." She her voice quivered as she sighed. "And it hurt so much. It hurts because I grew up with this fairytale that turned out to be a nightmare. I fell in love with someone and couldn't be with him because of this nightmare... I had to leave my boyfriend of two years. I beg you Len, I'm begging you to convince Yejun to come back."
I'm waiting for cameras to come out of nowhere and people laughing. This can't be real. It would be so selfish of me to say no, but who am I to convince Yejun? Who am I to control what he does with his life? Who am I (24601) to even think about this?
This isn't about me. I paused and took a deep breath.
"...no matter what I say, it isn't me who has the final say. I cannot force Yejun to go back to Korea..."
Hearing her sob on the phone caused me to sigh. I could only imagine how Yejun feels hearing about this. I swallowed the lump in my throat and continued, "How would you feel if you were me?"
She sniffed and lowly inhaled. "...I-I... It would be hard. But if I can break up with my boyfriend, so can you."
...if I can break up with my boyfriend, so can you.
...so can you.
...you.
Instantly, my guilt diminished. Excuse me? "Dutty gyal, get off mi phone." I ended her call and sighed.
"Yejun?" He stayed silent. I closed my eyes and stayed with him on the phone. Hearing his breathing quiver only confirmed what I was thinking.
I deeply sighed and gripped my phone. "I'm coming over, okay?" He didn't respond, "Don't worry Yejun, I'll be there shortly. I'm hanging up, okay?"
Still nothing.
"Or.. I'll stay on the line?"
"...I would like that." He whispered.
I got ready in record time and told Chad I was going to Kat's.
"Yeah, sure. Are you on the phone with Kat?"
I nodded and he scoffed.
"You think I'm stupid? It's 11:00 Len."
"She needs me right now." I muttered.
"Just be honest, I'm not Mom or Dad. But you and Ye..."
"Yejun."
"Yeah, him, you guys better not be doing anything funny."
Rolling my eyes, I hugged him and left. I slung my bookbag over my shoulder and spotted a cab. I shot my arm out and waited for them to drive over. He stopped in front of me and I went in. "I'm in a cab now, okay? I'm coming."
After telling the driver the address, I arrived at Yejun's place 15 minutes later. I handed the driver a ten and ran to Yejun's door. "I'm at the door." He didn't respond, so I pressed the doorbell.
"Yejun?" I sighed, "Are you there?" He didn't respond. I looked at my phone to see if he hung up and rang the bell again. After waiting a minute, I tried the knob.
It turned.
Furrowing my eyebrows, I walked in. "Yejun?" I called. I took my shoes off and closed the door. Slipping my feet into some slippers, I checked the living room and kitchen.
Suddenly, a loud noise caused me to turn my attention to upstairs. Ending the call, I ran upstairs and opened the door.
Yejun was a mess.
The smell of alcohol hit me so hard, I tasted it. I ran to his side and helped him up. He staggered and fell again. I grabbed his shirt and sighed in contempt when he wrapped his arms around me.
"Len..." He whispered in my ear.
I led the koala to his bed and helped him lay down. His face was extremely red, maybe the alcohol was doing that. His dark eyes stared back at me.
I dabbed his forehead with my shirt and laid my head on his chest. I spotted over five bottles. Even with Korean written on them, it was obvious they were liquor bottles.
"Nae sarang." He muttered, "I want to meet abeonim.."
"Abeonim?" I asked as I sat up. "What does that mean?"
Yejun stretched and looked to the side. I took my phone out. "A-beo-nim." I muttered as I typed it in. A Korean to English dictionary popped up.
"Aish, it's so hot!" I jumped and my phone fell out of my hand. His hands tugged at the hem of his shirt and tried to take it off.
"Yejun, I don't think y—"
Before I could finish, he took his shirt off and threw it across the room. He sat back and stared up at the ceiling. "Fuck I hate him!" He yelled. I've never seen Yejun drink before, and seeing him in this state is both amusing and sad.
But even so, I only sat there and listened to him curse everything in English and most likely Korean. Even though he has an accent, understanding him when he's drunk was harder.
"Aish shibal, I hate my family! I always got the short end— oh fuck my family! What's a mother?! What's a father?! How do you set me up for failure?!"
My heart painfully throbbed at his anguish. Yejun got out of bed and began pacing. I furrowed my eyebrows when he opened a drawer. He pulled out another bottle and started opening it. Oh nah! He's has enough!
I got up and walked around the bed. "Yejun, put it down." He ignored me and popped the cap open. "Yejun!"
Still ignoring me, he put the bottle to his lips. I grabbed the bottle out of his hands and froze when he glared at me.
"Why am I with a woman who'll take my bottle away?" My mouth slowly opened at what he just said.
Drunk or not, that's fucking rude. He staggered and put his hand on his head.
"I'm sorry.." He slurred, "I.." Hiccuping, he tripped on his own feet. Quickly thinking, I caught him with one arm and held on to the bottle with the other. I bit my bottom lip when a bolt of pain shot up my shoulder.
It just had to be that arm.
He pushed himself off of me, causing me to grab nothing and fall back. I instantly became tight when my clothes got soaked in alcohol. I put the bottle to the side and got up.
Yejun smirked and grabbed my hand. "You're so cute." I had the urge to smack the shit out of him.
"You think I want to smell like alcohol Yejun?!" I snapped. The smirk was instantly wiped off of his face as he glared at me.
"Oh, is that so?!" He slurred, "I'd rather smell like alcohol than have no fucking parents!" He yelled.
I flinched as he continued, "I don't even know if I can stay here! To be very fucking honest, I've been thinking about going back! But wanna know why I can't?!" He let out a giant burp.
"Pig." I muttered.
"Fuck you, I can't go back because of you! You, Len Hunter! You're the reason why I have to stay here." He let out another burp and tried to catch himself. I grabbed his arm and he snatched it away.
"I should let you fall on your ass since you're really being one right now."
He scoffed. "Why do I love you so much?" I crossed my arms and watched as he fell onto the bed. Yejun began patting his stomach and sheepishly grinned. "Len look, do you see my abs? They're more prominent."
I almost broke out a grin, but kept my face neutral. He stuck his tongue out and reached his arm out towards me. "Come."
"You stink."
"So? Come."
Sighing, I walked over to the bed and held his hand. I squeaked when he pulled me into his arms and wrapped them around me. His body was so sweaty and sticky. On top of that, I felt uncomfortable since my clothes were wet.
"What would you do if I went back to Korea?" He murmured in my ear.
I squeezed his arm and turned around to face him.
"I don't know..." I responded, "You're not going to leave me, right?"
He shook his head. "Ne—" His eyes widened as he shot up and ran to the bathroom.
"See how you already left me?" I yelled.
I heard him emptying the contents in his stomach and went to the bathroom. The veins in his arms protruded as he held on the the toilet seat for dear life. I rubbed his back, grateful he was done after a minute.
Yejun got up and flushed the toilet. He was about to walk back to the bedroom, but I stopped him. "Go brush your teeth."
"No."
I gagged and covered my nose. "Yejun, your breath smells like ass!"
"So do you, but you don't see me complaining."
"It's because of you!" I said as I slapped his arm. He shrugged and I inwardly cheered when he went to brush his teeth.
I went back to the room and picked my phone up. Damn, I forgot I dropped it. Oh yeah! I began reading the dictionary.
'Abeonim can be used to refer to one's father, or father-in-law...'
What? He said he wanted to meet abeonim, does he want to see his father again? That makes no sense. Yejun came out of the bathroom with water dripping from his face. "Why do you want to meet your father?"
"Aish, I hate that man..." He muttered as he held on to the door. "Abeoji..." All of a sudden, he started speaking Korean.
He looked at me as if I was supposed to respond. I stared at him in annoyance. What the hell did he even say?
He began talking again and I whipped my phone out. I went to Google translate and walked up to him. Yejun continued talking as I used the voice translator to try and understand him. When he was done, I waited for the transition.
"...meatballs, oh I want to eat spaghetti and meatballs but if I go downstairs, I will die. Be dead like my family! I worry for Jaewon, but I want spaghetti and meatballs."
Either this translation is shit or Yejun is wilding.
He continued talking to me in Korean. I scoffed and crossed my arms. Whenever he stopped talking, I would say dumb shit to him in Mandarin. Yejun sat next to me and smiled as he responded.
We spent the rest of the night doing this until he fell asleep.
--
I stretched as my alarm went off. My eyes fluttered open and went into focus. The smell of alcohol made me gag; I got up and turned the alarm off.
"Yejun?" I hovered over him and held his nose. After five seconds, he began to move and his eyes opened. I let go and his hand rubbed his head.
"Damn..." He muttered, "What time is it?"
"7." He nodded and slowly sat up.
"Ah, my head. What hap— oh." He squinted his eyes closed as he rubbed them.
"I'm going to take a shower."
"I'm goin—" He instantly shot up and ran to the toilet. Poor thing is hungover.
Thirty minutes later, Yejun managed to get an undershirt on. "I feel like shit." He croaked as he went through his closet.
"Len.. What should I wear?"
I walked up to him and looked through his closet. I don't think today's a suit day for him. I went through his outfits and decided on casual. I spread them on the bed and watched him judge the outfit.
"I never wear these together."
"Switch it up, while you're putting them on, I'm going to get you a glass of water." He groaned as I walked downstairs. I went into his fridge and took out the pitcher.
After pouring the water in the glass, I put the pitcher back in the fridge and went back upstairs. Yejun was seated on the bed and his hand held his head. Was he dozing off?
"Hey, I have the water." He opened his eyes and looked up at me. My eyes raked over his body. Damn he looked really good.
He smirked and held his hand out. "Water?" I flinched and felt my face heat up. "H-...ere..." I muttered as I handed it to him.
Yejun took a giant gulp and sighed. "Do I look that good? Maybe I should make you choose my outfits more. Anyways, are you going to get dressed? We have to leave soon."
"Uh.." I've been walking around in a giant shirt since we took a shower. "Mind if I go through your closet again?"
He groaned and looked down. Taking that as a yes, I went through his closet and decided on a black shirt and grey sweats.
"You're not going to wear underwear?" I blushed and looked back at him.
"Haven't you seen this ass? I can't fit into your boxers."
He shrugged as I put his clothes on. "Okay, let's go."
Ten minutes later, we were waiting for the train. "You know, I'm sorry about last night."
"Don't be sorry."
"Especially about the soju, I appreciate you taking it from me. I don't normally drink, I hope you don't see me differently."
I smiled and shook my head. "I'm Jamaican. We all have that one uncle who's a drunkard— not saying you're a drunkard, but we're used to it."
"Thanks Len. Do you drink?"
"Sometimes."
He looked at me in shock. I can't blame him, but I barely know any West Indian people who don't drink. We're known for being party people for a reason. The N train pulled up into the station and we got on.
"Do you think we'll be late?" I asked.
"Most likely."
--
Shibal - Fuck
Wassup you crabs. I added in pics and gif for more flavor lmao, but I won't do it for the next chapters.
What do you guys think of Haeun?
ALSO! Shoutout to it_is_kat , Goddesslexy , btstaemonster, _Lifesnotsobad, Oreo-chan, MaddisCakesx3, sammykkkk, faafoo and Saliecia for being so active with 180 Days! I enjoy reading your comments and just want to say you all suck eggs.
Especially Kat and Lexy
❤️❤️❤️