You missed the cherry blossom festival this year.
It should had been around a month ago.
Usually you would visit your favorite quaint small cafe at Yeouido Park, with Yejin and Chen.
Where you could watch the millions of pink flowers blooming and blanketed the row of trees along the pathway next to the river.
The color and the smell of spring, people visiting the festival around the island, and the mild breeze as the sign of the weather started to leave the cold winter months behind.
Your last visit was a year ago, it felt so long that you almost forgot how it felt.
The thought of how you missed it, left a bitter taste in your mouth, you didn't even realize the lone tear on the corner of your eyes dropped to your lap turned to stream instead.
You wiped your eyes furiously, didn't want to shed tears because of him.
This wasn't normal at all.
It was the second day of you being confined in your room.
You didn't know whose demand it was, because when you were awake after being drugged the other day, you were already in your room, with your lunch on the table in front of the TV, and the door being locked from outside.
Maybe it was his order, after being informed by one of the boys, of course.
That also meant you needed to brace yourself for the impending storm ahead once he comes home later.
You tried to bang on the door many times, hoping somehow you would get some super power to break the door, but of course, with no luck.
At least it did something for your pent anger, if not because your palm had to bear the result, you would be happy to keep going.
They were purposely ignoring you.
Your only chance to have a social interaction was when Mrs. Kwon brought you food, with Sejin always waiting around the door.
They always kept their silence, only answered to your questions whenever necessary.
At least you hadn't lost your sanity.
It was eight at night when you were sitting on the couch, flipping on the TV channel randomly with disinterest, when you heard the sound of the turned lock and the door being pushed open.
Hoseok walked inside, with both hands in his pocket pants.
He wore bright blue denim pants with long sleeve white shirt untucked, looking strangely casual to you.
On several occasions you saw him before, he was always in a formal attire.
This was the first time you saw him close by, and had the opportunity to observe the handsome man.
"Are you ok?"
His dark brown eyes was staring at you with concern.
In different kind of situation, you would be pleased to spend time admiring the guy, just like when you watched your favorite K-Drama actor.
But this delectable specimen also the one who drugged you, and you resented him for that.
He was Yoongi's accomplice after all.
They had been treating you like animal.
Dart gun, for god sake...wasn't it intended to cripple big animal like you saw in the movie?
You looked at him with irritation.
"I've been locked in this room for almost two days. What did your common sense tell you that I might feel right now?"
You scoffed and threw the TV remote on the table, trying to show him how mad you were.
He stepped closer to you, and sat on the couch a few inches away from you.
"You shouldn't have tried to run away. I thought you were more sensible than that."
He stared at you with sympathetic look in his eyes.
"Will you believe me if I told you I didn't try to run away?
It's been a month since the last time I went out of this house, I just want a day out.
It was one thing to prevent me to meet my family, but to lock me up completely inside?
What did I even do to him that I deserve all of this?"
So many things that had been accumulated inside you, waiting to be spilled over, your chest hurt to hold the latent emotion for the past three months.
The tears that had been dried up were flowing again, and you couldn't stop yourself from sobbing.
There was something about Hoseok, ever since the first time you saw him with that friendly smile, you had a feeling somehow you could rely on him.
You felt his hand on your back, started to rub it with multiple gentle stroke.
He didn't say anything, just waited and listened to your sobs, while you covered your face with your palm, too ashamed to let him saw you cried your heart out, he was still a stranger to you after all.
It was probably five minutes later, when your cry subsided into sporadic gasps, he pulled his hand of you.
"I know. These whole thing aren't about you, it's about Yoongi.
He's just too.....intense sometimes."
"Why me? And why he has to keep me here? Even if he really wants me, he doesn't need to lock me up."
You gasped in between sniffs.
He reached to the tissue box, pulled out several pieces and handed it to you.
"Yoongi isn't too good in expressing his feeling, so in the end, well ...I guess he just tries to protect the one that dear to him."
Hoseok looked at you with soft eyes, and it calmed you down a bit.
"Was he..like this too with her? Estela?"
You could see his shoulder tensed upon hearing the name.
You almost forgot, Hoseok also got history with her.
He chuckled cynically.
"Estela? She was only a brief fancy fuck for him. No, he didn't keep her locked up like he does to you. He didn't need to.
Estela wouldn't leave him even if he asked her to. I doubted he was even affected when Estela left him.
Maybe a little, but with you, it's totally different."
It just didn't make sense.
"I thought he loved her so much, he even has her picture hung in his room. And ... and she is very beautiful.
Nothing like me."
"Both of you are pretty, only in different way.
As to why he locks you up, you should understand, he has his reason."
"What reason?"
A surprise look might be the last thing you expect from him.
"He has never told you? I thought by now you would have known about his family."
"He almost never said anything besides the trivial stuff, mostly about movies that I watched, headline news on TV, or about you guys.
Nothing too personal."
To think about it, both of you and Yoongi had never really talked about your life or his life in general.
He was often away during noon.
When he was at home, it was usually before dinner, and Taehyung would join you both.
Yoongi mostly talked to Taehyung instead.
After dinner, he would take a shower, then he would normally stay in your room whenever he didn't have work to do at home.
Having sex, or just laying down with you in his arm, listening to music, watching TV together, talking about your study, sometimes a little about his work.
Very domestic if you looked at it .
But he had never talked about his family or your family, or Estela.
As if that topics were off limits for him.
It was once when you asked him about her, but he kissed you instead, and took you for another round of steamy sex that made you forgot about it.
He was with you almost everyday, but he was a stranger to you.
He had never stayed overnight in your bed, even.
He would always laid down with you until you fell asleep, then he would go back to his own room.
"What is the reason?. It's about time I know the story, I've been living with him for three months, yet I know so little about him."
You observed his features shifted from soft to hard, like he was reverting something bad from the past.
"I guess you are right, you indeed have the right to know.
If I tell you, do not mention any of this in front of him.
He doesn't like it, ok?"
You nodded several times, too eager to hear him spill the information.
Hoseok leaned back to the backrest, staring to the blank TV screen in front of him.
"Yoongi's parents were shot to death by a jopok member.
His father wasn't in the gang circle, but he needed their help in securing his business from regular crimes, therefore he needed to make agreement with them to protect his business.
Unfortunately, one of the member shot them to death in one of the visit."
Hoseok ruffled his hair, closing his eyes before continuing.
"His mother wasn't supposed to go out that day, but his grandma kept asking her to come to her house in Gwangju, resulting in the unfortunate death of his mother.
In the end, Yoongi believed that his mother would be safe if only she had stayed in the mansion instead of went out.
His father kept his mom inside the mansion at all times, unless she went out with him."
Hoseok then turned his head, looking straight to your eyes.
"Just like what he does to you now."
That explained his behavior, but.. it was abnormal.
He had an irrational fear of your safety, and in the end, it hurt you and your family.
And the worst part, he didn't even realize it.
"And all of you think that what he does is ok? You should try to put common sense in him, not justifying his action."
"This isn't my call to decide.
I betrayed him the last time, I won't involve with what he does anymore. Besides, he will never mean harm to you.
I know him well, we have been together since childhood."
He moved forward, reaching for another tissue to give to you.
"The last time I interfered, Yoongi almost got killed."
"What do you mean he almost got killed?"
"Estela, she slashed him on the chest."
That was quite unexpected, you looked at him in shock.
"How..how is that possible? Why? I thought she loved him."
"She aimed to be his wife, but Yoongi never had any intention to marry her.
Maybe she thought, if Yoongi was dead, she could marry me, and I'm the one next to Yoongi's position as the leader of our companies.
I was too blind to see."
He shook his head, looking regretful.
"Do you....do you still love her?"
He fell into silence on your question.
A beautiful man like him, with all the affluence that he had, he could get any woman that he wanted, yet you could tell he wasn't someone to play around.
"It was quite a long time ago.
I tried to forget her the moment I knew she stabbed my cousin."
"You..you are Yoongi's cousin?"
How many more things Yoongi didn't tell you about?
"You don't know?"
"How could I know when he rarely talked about his family?"
You pouted.
"I see...Yoongi isn't really into talking heart to heart, and it can be unbearable sometimes."
He shook his head in disbelief.
"But at least you knew about Taehyung, right?"
"What about him?"
"Taehyung is Yoongi hyung's half brother, so he is my cousin too."
Another shocking revelation.
Now you knew, why Yoongi was so fond of him, always cared about him.
You had grown attached to Taehyung recently, with all the time you spent with him when Yoongi was away at work.
You had thought about rely on him to help you escape from Yoongi.
But now that you knew he was Yoongi's brother, there was a very slim chance he might want to help you.
Slim chance to none.
What could you do now?
Who could help you in this situation?
Yoongi wasn't in his right mind, and the other boys seemed to justify his actions because they thought Yoongi loved you.
A sick and twisted obsession.
You needed to get out from here, before you fall too deep for him.
"Do you have a sister, Hoseok ssi?"
Maybe he would understand.
His raised his brows over the question.
"I have one older sister. Why?"
"If what happen to me now, also happen to your sister, will you allow it?"
He gave you a warning look.
"You're not gonna guilt trip me, Yuri, it won't work."
"Then what will?"
You had an idea, it was risky, but you would never know if you didn't try, one could always hope.
You shifted to his side, and sit on his lap, wrapping your arms around his neck.
You stared at him, looking at his widened eyes, in shock on your sudden behavior, rendered him speechless.
"What do you think you are doing?"
It amazed you of how he regained his composure quite fast.
"If you and I end up together, don't you think he will let me go in the end? Just like Estela."
You tried to blink back your desperate tears, but it was hard.
Hoseok looked at you with softened gaze, wiping your tears with the back of his fingers.
"You wanted him to let you go? Then..this is definitely not the way.
Yoongi hyung, he likes challenge.
The more you resist, the more he will be drawn to you.
It's not the same like before."
He held your wrists, and pulled your arms gently away from his neck.
"I'll let you out tomorrow, but don't try anything funny, ok?
Yoongi is not here, but there is Jimin.
You don't want to get to his bad side."
You looked at him wearily.
"Hoseok ssi, why are you here?
You've never stayed over unless there is a mission."
"We are here to watch over you.
I shouldn't let you out from the bedroom, but I'll make exception this time."
He patted your back to urge you to move over and stood up.
"It's late, you should sleep.
I'll come at eight tomorrow morning, you can have breakfast with us."
Then he walked out from the room, and locked the door.
You were still staring at the blank TV screen a moment later, too absorbed in your own thought.
You couldn't hope on Hoseok and Taehyung to aid your escape, it should be someone else outside the family ties.
Definitely not Jimin or Seokjin, they were scary.
Remembering the way Seokjin stabbed the guy's hand caused shiver ran down your spine.
Maybe you could try with Jungkook, he looked quite pliable.
He was the youngest among them, and often times you saw how they tended to him like he was the little brother.
You would have a chance as long as you could approach him without Jimin around.
There was a terrible guilt in you to think about how an affair would threaten their relationship like before, but this time you decided, you needed to think about yourself.