(Eight chapter)
Obscurity.
That was what was whirling inside her head for days after she had met him. A groan left her chapped lips as she closed her eyes and tried to distract herself from the confusion.
"Sowon! Come here and help me prepare the tea."
Still in thoughts, Sowon quietly obliged and stepped into the kitchen, starting to grab random jars as her focus remained stagnant.
A burning pain brought her out of the reverie she was stuck in, wide eyes focusing on the stinging hand which got hit by none other than her mother.
"I told you to make the tea. Why are you grabbing the jar of salt and adding it to the water?"
Sowon's eyes remained wide as she realised her mistake and subtly kept back the jar of salt back on the shelf. Shaking her head strongly, she firmly decided to stop being a clumsy girl for once.
Grabbing the jar of tea leaves, Sowon added a spoonful into the pot of boiling water, the hot water raging more in temperature as the colour changed into dark brown.
Next she drained the dark water into a cup and mixed with it sugar and milk. Whilst stirring it, Sowon could feel herself being pulled into a storm of thoughts again.
"If you are done with the tea then go and serve it to Namjoon. I will bring the coffee and snacks for us."
Without any retort or sound of complaint, Sowon took the cup in a tray and started walking towards the dining table where her father and Namjoon were discussing some stuffs about business.
Eyes still unfocussed, Sowon quietly kept the cup of tea for Namjoon like a mere robot and sat down next to her father, still spaced out.
Namjoon raised an eyebrow after thanking Sowon, glancing at her sideways to see if she was okay. Seeing such quiet behavior from her, it made him feel unnerved.
They were still bickering and arguing on every topic they could while Sowon was forced to act like a lady and serve him, she would either give a deadly glare or hiss some incoherent words to his direction as extra.
But since a few days Sowon looked really out of herself. Namjoon wondered if she was facing something or worse, planning another prank for him.
Her pranks were the worst.
"Sowon are you okay?"
Snapping her head towards her father's direction, Sowon could only blink like she was seeing him for the first time as her brain tried to figure what was going on in front of her.
Nodding, Sowon took her cup of coffee which her mother served on the table, excusing herself before she left for her own room to think more.
Jung Hoseok.
He was a really good guy, one of the most loyal friend Sowon has ever known since her highschool days along with Haneul. He was a new transfer student but really intelligent and would offer to help Sowon everytime he could.
Before he had left for New York, Sowon along with Haneul went to the airport to bid farewell to their good friend. It was that day when Hoseok confessed to Sowon about how much he liked her and how he would want to get a chance when he comes back.
And now that he was back, Sowon was unsure what to do. She also liked Hoseok but as a good friend and she didn't want to ruin their friendship. But again, even after five years Hoseok came back and patiently asked her.
Should I say yes?
It was obvious that he liked her very much. Maybe he was a bit straightforward about marriage but it was now upto Sowon what choice she would take.
"Looks like I am screwed."
※
"One, two, three, four."
She moved to song with her body passionately as if they were one. The music was being played from outside but she could feel it inside her soul as she danced to the rhythm, her heartbeat accelerating with the adrenaline.
Faster,
She commanded to herself as she pushed and urged her body to move around faster, not to slow down or show any mistakes.
More better,
Her body was moving at the rate of the song which change into half-beats faster, twirling and spinning at the semi-long notes with the eagerness to balance herself well.
Sweat trickled down from her down to her every body part as the heat grew on her body as she continued dancing, still not giving up with the determination to finish her dance.
Pain and burn,
Her body ached and muscles began to grow sore under her feet but she didn't waver as she dived into the most difficult part, the pivotal.
She felt like it was now or never as the song hit to the climax and so did her dance as she performed the pivotal, twirling continuosly without any break.
With sore feet, she thought she would lose balance and fall down again but with her stubbornness she did not allow herself to fail as she finished the dance, ending on a high pitched note.
I did it.
She could not believe herself as she heavily panted, the dance which she could not perform well, the one which she practised for everyday was finally successful.
With a wave of exhaustion, she allowed her body to fall to the floor as she chuckled, scrunching her nose because her body now reeked of pure sweat and evidently, she needed a hot shower to refresh herself.
"That was something else."
Her body jerked up right away as she turned her head around to find the owner of the deep voice which echoed in the studio.
When her eyes darted to the huge glass, her expressions turned into a scowl as she spotted the person arrogantly standing near the door.
"What are you doing here?" She seethed out, totally convulsed at the fact that he was here and seeing her in such a raw form.
He said nothing more and quietly watched as she grabbed a bottle of water and chucked it down, her throat feeling more better now.
"Sowon."
Her body unwillingly froze as he took slow steps and stood right beside her, his cold breathe hitting her sweat prickled skin in a cool manner.
"Why are you forcing yourself to do something you don't want to do?" He asked and she could feel a pleasant shiver climb up her spine.
Turning around, she meet him face to face as she decided to be blunt anyways.
"What exactly do you mean there?" Sowon asked, crossing her arms on her chest stubbornly.
"You know what I exactly mean. Don't lie to me or yourself."
Sowon rolled her eyes, knowing that she didn't have to hide her hatred for him because her parents were not here.
"Do you mean to imply that I don't like dancing? That I am forcing myself?"
Sarcastically she asked while pointing a finger to herself. Namjoon nodded solemnly as she started laughing at his assumption. While she observed the close distance they both were at, she wondered back in her mind if he could smell the sweat off her and feel disgusted.
"What do you know about me to say that? Do you even care what I do?" Sowon asked bitterly as she now pointed her finger at Namjoon's chest, her anger and frustration starting to rise.
When he said nothing again or gave nothing in his dead expressions, Sowon scoffed thinking she could even have a proper conversation with him. Taking a few steps back, Sowon was ready to grab her bag and leave but his words stopped her again.
"I admit that I don't know much about you. But one can clearly see how much you torture yourself with responsibilities around you."
Her throat clenched tighter as Sowon tried to gulp. No matter how hard she tried, she could not help but ponder on what he said was equally true.
Namjoon sighed, feeling downcast that he could not complete his conversation without angering the girl.
"Then what about you? Aren't you doing the same?"
Her question seemed to caught him off-guard as he wondered what to answer her.
"Nevermind. Looks like we can never be on the same page." Exhaustion was clear in her voice now.
"Yes I am unfortunately. Being born into a rich family doesn't always mean happiness because we are always spoon-fed for everything including marriage."
Sowon was surprised at the tone of his soft voice, contemplating if she should be angry for indirectly saying that he hated her or pity him for his position.
"I know. But it maybe because you don't try enough."
"Maybe I do try but no one cares to notice it." The anger in Namjoon's voice was evident but this also jerked off Sowon.
"Forget it Namjoon. You don't need to force yourself to talk to a middle-class girl like me."
Namjoon's brown orbs turned sharp and serious as he glared at the sweating girl in front of her. With such intensity, one would surely be scared of him but not her.
"You are right Sowon. Indeed you are a middle-class girl and I thought you were a bit different from others but now I know, you are just the same like every other girl. A mere girl craving for wealth and fame."
"You don't have the authority to say that-"
"Authority? Oh Sowon, I could finish your family's business in a snap of finger but you aren't worth it because all you need is money right?"
Sowon was stunned. She never expected to hear such words from Namjoon, the man who acts so wise. It was almost as if his words were venom now.
"Money? Do I look like a gold-digger? I am sticking up to this marriage because my parents forced me!" She shouted, her heartbeat racing fast as she fought the urge to run away.
I need to fight my own battle.
"So you still don't know about it? Poor Sowon, I thought you would've known by now."
Sowon shook her head, both confused and tired. She felt dizzy but kept her stance as she tried to process everything happening to her.
"W-what do you mean?"
"Forget it. You will know it soon anyways."
This riled up Sowon to the fact she badly wanted to punch his handsome face so much. Namjoon turned on his feet and left while Sowon was clear of her decisions as well.
All confusion regarding Namjoon vanished in thin air as she watched him shut the door with a loud bang. There was nothing to think about now because she had already chosen the path and,
She was sure that it was the wise one.
A/N: Welp, that was some steamy argument again. I hope you enjoyed it :)