Lee Dawon's POV
My heart ached as I watched my sister cry in the arms of our father. She was hurting and so was I. I never wanted to see my sister suffering like this. She suffered so much already. But the fact that she worked as a stripper, I didn't know how to react that's why I just decided to walk away from them to think things through.
I went inside the washroom to wash my face and to refresh myself.
A sigh escaped my lips. "She's been nothing but a great sister to me. It doesn't matter if she was a stripper. She raised me well so why should I even bother?"
"Dawon, Dawon, Dawon. This is for Dawon. It will make Dawon happy..." Jimin hyung's voice echoed as he walked towards the toilet to do his thing before he continued talking. "Your noona loves you so much. All she thought of was your welfare. It was okay for her to suffer as long as it wasn't you."
"And you think I'm not aware of that?" I looked at his back that was being reflected by the mirror that's in front of me.
I heard his zipper close before he faced me. "I didn't say that. But hey, your sister needs you right now." He walked towards the sink and started washing his hands.
"When your mother died, you were the person that she got her strength and will to go on with life."
"I know that too," I said, wiping my hand dry with some tissue.
"You get what her work was don't you?" He asked me as he also dried his hand.
I shrugged then threw the tissue properly. I know what strippers are but not so much.
"In other words, your sister was an exotic dancer. Compared to other dancers, the only difference is that your sister was only wearing cute or sexy bras and panties ㅡ lingeries to be exact. Aside from that, she didn't sleep with any men, really." He leaned against the sink and threw the tissue that he used.
"Yeah. Only with you," I said with a sigh, remembering that night which made my skin grow goosebumps once again. Argh, when will I ever get that night out of my head. It's horrifying.
"Yeah, only mㅡ wait, what?!" He stood straight and looked at me in surprise. "You know that me and your sister do that thing?"
I glared at him. "How can I not when you both were so loud that night?!"
"Oh," was the only thing that that he could say.
I don't know if this conversation should be funny or annoying but I swear, after that night, I couldn't even look at my sister and him without those sounds echoing back inside my head. It's hunting me.
"Was that when I slept over your apartment?" He asked, clueless.
"Of course!"
He chuckled. "Not my fault that I'm hot and I'm great with it," he said with shrug.
"I'm a minor," I reminded him. He's talking about it so casually in such a way that I think is not very educational.
"Oh, right." He scratched the back of his head. "Anyways, I'll get going. I'll probably stop by tomorrow."
I nodded. "Okay. Get me some strawberry milk on your way too."
"Sure. And by the way, you should have a talk with your noona too," he said before tapping my shoulder.
"Yeah, I will. See you tomorrow."
Jimin hyung finally went out of the washroom. I sighed once again. It's not like I have a choice. I need to talk with my family to clear things out.
As I went back inside the venue, my father was already giving his ending speech of appreciation. I'm not sure where my sister is so I just went beside the stage and waited for my dad to come down. I'm tired anyway. I didn't do much but after what happened outside, I feel like my energy was used to its fullest.
"Where's noona?" I asked my father after he went down the stage. He placed his arm on my shoulder and pulled me with him.
"Your sister is already waiting inside the car," he sighed. "Your sister is suffering because of me."
"No one wanted this to happen tonight, Appa. Stop blaming yourself. Besides, she has already forgiven you," I told him as we were walking our way towards the car.
"But it still wouldn't happen if I took care of you. She wouldn't need to work just to provide you the needs that I wasn't able to give," he sighed once again.
"But you came back at the right time and saved me from dying. Appa, please stop blaming yourself, okay?"
He nodded and kissed my temple. "I'm so happy that your sister has raised such a good boy like you."
"It's because Jiwon noona is a good person that's why she was able to guide me and raise me well," I smiled. Even if we experienced poverty, I was fortunate to have Jiwon noona as my sister. She's the strongest, bravest, and most amazing woman that I know (aside from our mom) and I just hope that she knows that too.
As we got inside the car, I found noona staring blankly outside the window. I wanted to talk to her but I didn't know how to start so I just kept silent until we made it home.
I decided to just go to my room. We can talk tomorrow and besides, maybe she wants to rest and be alone.
As I was putting my shirt on, my father knocked on the door. "Dawon-ah, are you still awake?"
"Yes, Appa. Come in," I said and finally put my shirt on.
He opened the door. "Let's talk with your Noona. I know that you have a lot in mind too."
I sighed and smiled sadly. It is true that I still have a lot of questions in mind. She may be my sister, but I only know a few things about what has happened and what is happening with her. She's just so used of keeping everything to herself but I understand that she just didn't want me to feel how cruel life was.
Both Appa and I went in front of her room. "Jiwon?" My father called after knocking on her door. She didn't answer back but she opened that door for us.
"Noona?" I called her softly which made her cry. She immediately started apologizing to me and I didn't know why. She has nothing to apologize for because she never did anything wrong.
I immediately cried and approached her on her bed. She was crying hard and it felt like I was being stabbed on the chest. I decided to give her a hug. The last time that I saw her crying ㅡ that I saw her vulnerable ㅡ was when our mother died.
"Dawon-ah, I'm sorry," she kept on apologizing and I shook my head.
"Noona, stop saying sorry to me. You did nothing wrong. Please stop crying," I hugged her tighter.
Our dad joined as we both comforted my sister until she had finally calmed down.
"Noona, why did you hide it from me?" I asked after she was calm.
"Because I was scared that you'd look at me badly ㅡ because the woman that broke our family was also a stripper like me," she answered while fiddling with her fingers.
I asked her more questions like why were we with Chanyeol hyung and not Jimin hyung back then. She answered them all for me to clarify the situation which made both me and Appa understand what she went through.
It was a long and tiring night. But I never want this night to happen again because I don't want to see my sister crying and hurting again.
***
Park Jimin's POV
Since the start of our story, I've been always chasing her and following her regardless of her permission. I've always had the feeling that I should protect her and as if my insticts could really tell that she won't be okay in some certain times when she goes away from me.
"Jimin!" My mother called me after I stood up to follow Jiwon but I refused to be stopped by anyone.
I kept on searching for her everywhere until I reached the garden and saw her there, being harrassed by someone.
It was her birthday night, but that incident made her have the saddest memory for her day.
"You knew she was a stripper?" My mom asked in disbelief. "Jimin, how could you? What? Did she seduced you or something?" She laughed sarcastically. "How could my son have a slut for a girlfriend?" And it clicked on me, making me furious after hearing her say that Jiwon is that kind of woman.
"Eomeoni, she didn't seduce me, okay?! She's still Jiwon, and you don't fully know her story! How dare you call my girl a slut!" I angrily yelled back at my mother, unable to control myself. This could be one of the saddest stereotyping of people. For fuck's sake she's just a stripper, not a prostitute! She didn't even went around and slept with people.
I received a slap from my mother. "Just because of that bitch, you are already disrespecting your mother? Parqk Jimin, what did she do to you?"
"You liked her before, what happened now, Eomma?" I asked her sternly. "Just because she was a stripper, you're now treating her differently?" I huffed. "Is that the kind of person you really are?"
"How dare you talk back on your mother?" She angrily asked me, pointing her finger on my face.
My sister joined the scene. "Eomeoni!" She stopped my mom from slapping me on the face again.
I gritted my teeth and breathed in deeply to calm myself. "So what if she was a stripper? It doesn't necessarily mean that she had been up all night, having sex with random men for money. Having sex and strip dancing are very far from each other. And she did that to earn money as she was the bread winner of her family. With her deceased mother and her father having no news about his children's state, Jiwon worked instead of living her life to support Dawon and her education and their other needs financially. Stop being so judgemental without knowing her true story because all your criticisms about her are wrong. She's not a bitch nor even a slut. She's a woman with a miserable past who became tough to survive." My mother remained quiet and I hope that my words were knocking onto her senses.
"He has a point," my sister said which made our mother look at her. "But she still worked in the club and went around there with her body to earn money!" My mom told my sister furiously.
"And what's so wrong with stripping?" I asked my mom, diverting her attention back on me. "As long as she didn't have sex with anyone, that's okay. And for the fact that I was her first experience, it was enough for me to know that I'm the only one she offers herself to."
I grabbed my jacket that was laying on the couch to leave the scene but Jiree noona asked me, "How sure are you that you were her first though?"
I looked back at her and smirked. "I broke her hymen the first night that we had sex in this house and she left a stain on my bed." I answered and immediately walked away but I heard my sister giggle.
"Park Jimin, when did you do that here?!" My mother shouted. "Yah! Come back here and answer me ahshkdjlsh..." I could still hear my mother's voice but I could no longer understand what she was saying. I know it was disrespectful to talk back on my mom while she was lecturing me but she was also being disrespectful to someone's personality and I had to fight for Jiwon because none of what she was saying was the Jiwon that I know and love.
The engine of my car roared after I started it up and drove my way to their house. "If someone is going to be called a hoe, I think I deserve that more." I laughed to myself and stepped on the gas to speed up.
I want to see her. That was all I have in mind since the moment that I opened my eyes this morning. We're over, but the hell do I care? I know deep down inside that she still loves me and that she still wants me by her side. I saw it all. I saw how her eyes longed for me the moment that I stood before her yesterday night. Behind those swollen eyes full of tears were her hidden emotions that was only meant for me.
Dropping by a convenience store, I decided to grab some ice cream mochi and some corndogs and tteokbokki for her to eat. I'm sure she's been locking herself inside her room. I don't know if I can make her eat or at least let me in her room, but I'm just really hoping for the best. I want her to get better. I miss my old sassy Wonwon.
Arriving at the Lee's residence, I found Dawon sitting in the living room while playing with his x-box by himself. "Jimin hyung!" He exclaimed right after sensing my presence.
I smiled and threw him a bottle of strawberry milk. "Where's your dad?" I asked. "Upstairs," he answered nonchalantly. He popped the tiny straw in the bottle and sipped.
"How's your sister?" I asked.
His mood changed. He sighed. "We haven't seen her since last night after we had a talk. She hasn't at least left her room. I wanted to talk to her again but neither me nor my father was able to go inside. Appa kept on persuading her to eat or at least let us in but she just won't budge. We don't know what to do."
"You think she'll let me in?" I asked. He suddenly smirked. Ah, kids' mood just really changes quickly. "I bet you 5,000 won, you can't go inside either."
"Now you're playing." I chuckled. "Call." I went ahead and walked up the stairs, ignoring the poor boy who is now complaining that he is poor compared to someone like me. "Hyung! Come on, I was just kidding!" He growled.
I cracked into a loud laugh and faced him. "Don't you trust your gut feels? Come on, Dawon, you can do better than that!" I teased him.
As I reached upstairs, I found Mr. Lee knocking the door of her room. He looked sad and seeing this situations saddened me too. "Mr. Lee?" I called to inform him of my presence.
He sighed and looked at me. "She won't come out, Jimin."
"Can I try?" I asked for his permission and he only nodded. I knocked on the door gently. "Jiwon? It's me, baby. It's Jimin." I said softly, hoping that she heard my voice and it can make her open her door to let me in.
A few moments of silence, both me and her father staring at the closed door, hoping that she'll finally open it. Seconds became a minute but she still hasn't opened the door. "Wonwon-ah," I called her name gently.
"Where's my 5,000 won?" A smirking Dawon asked, reaching out his hand to receive the non existing money yet. About to get my wallet, the door knob clicked open, making me pull my hand back out of my pocket.
"You should go first," I told Mr. Lee. Shaking his head, he warmly smiled and said, "No, you should go instead. She opened the door for you." He lightly tapped my shoulder. "Please make sure that she's okay for me."
He walked away, bringing Dawon along with him going downstairs.
***
Slowly, as if every movement that can make a loud noise would awaken a baby from its slumber, he entered her room and found her on the bed. She was staring at the closed curtains. Her room was dark, but the light from the opaque curtains were enough for him as a guide to walk his way to her.
"What are you doing here?" She asked coldly.
"Then why did you let me in?" Jimin asked back, making Jiwon feel somehow irritated ㅡ the first emotion that she ever felt since last night aside from sadness.
"Is it right to answer a question with another question?" She asked back, irritated.
Jimin chuckled. "I miss you." His voice sounded soft and lovely. Her heart melted. Damn, she missed him so much. She missed the way her small frame felt around his arms, he missed his scent, his warmth ㅡ everything. Who was she kidding? Letting Jimin go did help her find herself, but she's dying deep down inside just to kiss him and hug him and hold him tight again.
The addiciting feeling of loneliness devoured her to the point that she can no longer think straight. But this time, she has come take control of what her heart really wants.
"Hmmm," she hummed, even if she wanted to tell him that she missed him so damn much. Finally, she looked at Jimin who was standing on the opposite side of the bed.
Her tears were uncontrolable as they fell down her eyes, dampening her dry cheeks. "Fuck you!" She cursed, not knowing why, but she just wanted to.
Jimin was taken aback. "I mean, I'd fuck you too?" His voice sounded innocent and clueless, though supposedly it was a joke.
For the first time, Jiwon felt a hint of happiness in her heart as she laughed at Jimin. "I'd love to be but not now?" She asked, joking back at her ex.
"Let's have a comeback?" Jimin asked nonchalantly.
Jiwon bit her lower lip, suppressing the joy she's suddenly feeling. Hell yeah, she wanted to scream but she remained quiet and nodded her head instead.
"But..." she trailed of, scared of asking the question in her mind.
"But, what?"
"But your parents hates me now," she frowned with the thought.
"I spoke the senses out to my mom and hopefully she got my point. Abeoji and noona understood the situation when we came home last night and immediately talked about the situation." Jimin sat down on bed. "Eomeoni was just too sensitive that I only got the chance to talk with her earlier. But no need to worry, everything is okay now. And you will be too."
She smiled genuinely. "How come you convinced your mom to believe you?"
"Well..." he teasingly looked at her, "I told them I took your virginity in our house."
Her cheeks felt fire on them as her eyes grew wide. "Jimin!"
"I mean, you just danced. You never had sex with anyone." He shrugged.
"I had sex with Chanyeol once." She confessed. Jimin froze and she noticed that. "I'm sorry," she apologized.
"Did you enjoy it? Did you feel horny? Did you want it?" He asked continuously.
"Ahm..." she shyly smiled, "Honestly, no, no, and no. It was just a bonus that he is a doctor and he knew anatomy, but nonetheless, no. And we did that days after I broke up with you though." Her answer made a big smile cross onto Jimin's lips. "Then we are good." Hearing those made Jiwon smile bright which made Jimin's heart jump.
"You're smiling," he blurted out, staring at her swollen eyes which was now bright with happiness.
"Thank you." Jiwon cupped his face and softly caressed his cheek with her thumb. "Thank you for always making me smile."
He held her hand against his cheek. "I'll only know that you are thankful if you promise to get better. No pressure. Take your time. Because in that way, I know you can smile even without my help."
"Minmin," Jiwon's voice sounded soft and small and oh fuck the hell, Jimin felt his whole body float in the heavens after hearing her call his name in that way again. He giggled and scooped her frame closer to him and she allowed herself to snuggle in his warmth, pressing her head against his chest where she could hear his beating heart.
It felt surreal ㅡ being in the arms of his beloved man. She was stupid, but now she followed her heart from what it wants. "I missed you so much," she breathed, drawing line patterns on his chest.
"I'm sorry for kissing another woman, I was drunk and I didn't know what I was doing." He was surprised by her scorching lips that pressed against his. It was just a peck, but it made Jimin's whole being fire up, not from lust but from the longing for her warmth. All the coldness that he felt when he was away from her has been thawed with just that simple peck. He wanted to make it a kiss ㅡ a deep and passionate kiss ㅡ but he refused because what he wanted more to feel the warmth of her embrace and hear her sweet voice as they cuddled all day.
Yeah, the sex god wanted a cuddle more than sex.
"Hush," she said after pulling away. "I know, Jimin." She smiled warmly. "I'm sorry for not letting you explain. I'm sorry for not communicating well with you and not clarifying things with you. I promise that I will try harder in being more expressive of my thoughts and try harder in listening to your side so that we won't have many misunderstandings in the future," she said and hugged him tighter.
Silence filled the room with only there breathing heard until Jiwon's stomach grumbled, making them laugh and look at each other. "You're hungry, aren't you?" Jimin asked in between his chuckles. She shyly bit her lip, also nodding her head in the process.
"Alright, I brought some food. You can wait here while I heat them up." He freed himself from her embrace. "Take a shower too, you smell already!"
"Yah!" Jiwon threw her small pillow on Jimin's back as he walked away towards the door but he ignored her, laughing with a warm heart.
"How is she?" Her father asked after he passed by them on his way to the kitchen.
"She's doing great. You don't have to worry."
"Thank goodness."
"Aye," he called Dawon's attention.
"What?!" The poor boy grumply asked. "I'll pay, don't worry. Meanie!" He rolled his eyes and continued playing with his xbox.
He came back inside her room right after he finished eating the food up.
Jiwon was laying on her bed, scrolling through her cell phone. Her gazes met Jimin's eyes right after she heard the door opened which he lightly kicked due to his occupied hands. On his hands held the tray on both sides that contain the food. The sight of food made her eyes sparkle.
She missed simple moments like this with him ㅡ simple yet warming and memorable. She hopes to stay like this for all her life until she grows old with him. She wants to be with him always, but she's afraid that she needs to be far away for awhile before completely coming back in his arms as a whole. And after that happens, she's never really leaving him again.