"How's your first day at university?"
I received a text from Dad as soon as I stepped out of the shower. My fingers hovered over the keyboard as I considered how to answer. Great day? Sure, if passing out and making a fool of myself in front of strangers counted as "great."
"It was fine, Dad. Thanks." I replied quickly, hoping that would be the end of it.
No such luck. My laptop's screen buzzed almost immediately with a FaceTime request from Skype. Of course, my older brother was there too, both neurosurgeons, settled in Massachusetts. They both grinned as soon as my face appeared on the screen, and I forced myself to smile back.
"You look… tired, Aera." Eunhyuk oppa's brow furrowed. "What happened? Did you run a marathon or something?"
"I'm fine, just… not used to, y'know, being a functional human after all that time inside," I said, shrugging.
Yeah, fine. Just a minor issue of dying and somehow jumping back two years. Totally normal stuff.
Dad squinted at the screen. "Aera, what's with your hair? Your eyes are dark, did you put heavy eye shadow on or what!" I had put on too much eyeshadow and it wasn't easily removed.
Maybe being a dark broody cannot be my style anymore. I shouldn't have acted out in the morning, cutting my hair in layers and going out with a full gothic look.
Before I could even come up with an excuse, Eunhyuk oppa snorted, narrowing his eyes. "Dad's right! Are you going through your goth phase now? Or, did you join a vampire club?"
I rolled my eyes. "Can't a girl change her style without an interrogation? I just felt like mixing things up."
What a terrible lie, Choi Aera! You just made yourself a total fool! You are given a chance to make things better and the first thing you did was to follow the halloween costume.
Eunhyuk oppa leaned back, arms crossed, his signature smirk in place. "Mixing things up, huh? Sure. Puberty finally hit, is that it?" Then he turned to dad, "your baby daughter is growing up, dad! You should bring her back home before she makes herself a complete clown."
"Oh GOD! Can't you just stop speaking rubbish, oppa?" I said.
"Aera, you know you can tell us if something's wrong." Dad intervened, stopping us. "Did you have a fight with Jinwoo?" He asked.
Ugh. Jinwoo. Just hearing his name made me want to scream. "Dad, Jinwoo is just a friend, and no, we didn't fight. I've just decided… it's better if I avoid him for a while. Don't ask me why."
Eunhyuk oppa, of course, jumped on this new information. "FINALLY! I never liked that guy! He always seemed a little… off. I'm proud of you, Aera. You dodged a bullet. I was already picturing you divorcing him later."
"Oppa, seriously? Why do you always act like I'm about to marry every guy I talk to? We were just friends! Friends."
He raised an eyebrow, giving me that "I know better" look. "Uh-huh. Friends. Right. Everyone says that. I did too."
Just then, my phone buzzed again. Jinwoo's name flashed across the screen.
"Speaking of," I mumbled. "Dad, Jinwoo's calling."
"Answer it," Dad said, a little too eagerly. "You should probably talk to him if you're serious about ending things. Don't just ghost him. Leaving someone hanging isn't right." And with that, the call ended.
Ugh, fine. I answered, bracing myself for whatever this conversation was going to be. Jinwoo's voice came through, cold and… strange.
"Aera, I'm outside. Come down."
I blinked. "Uh, what? You're outside my house? Why?"
"Come down, now. Or should I come inside?" His voice was flat, but there was something… unsettling about it. He knew my door key password. My stomach twisted. Since when did he sound so creepy?
"Alright, alright! I'm coming," I sighed, grabbing my jacket. My eyes caught on my stun gun, and I hesitated. Am I seriously thinking about taking this with me? But something about Jinwoo's tone made me uneasy, so I slipped it into my pocket before heading out.
I stepped outside the front, and there he was—Jinwoo, looking like a complete disaster. Even though I hated myself for admitting, Jinwoo's look could win any girl over with his sweetness and flirting skills. But now, he looked pathetic. His hair hung in his handsome face, and his clothes were dishevelled. But what really threw me was the blood. It dripped from his knuckles, smeared across his cheek. My breath hitched as I took in the sight of him. His lip was split, and bruises darkened the corners of his face. My heart clenched. I hated that I still cared. I hated myself.
"Jinwoo, what the hell happened to you?" I ran toward him, my chest tightening at the sight. Despite everything, my heart still twisted in pain. Seeing him like this… it hurt, no matter how much I tried to deny it.
He glanced at me. His lips trembled slightly as if he was fighting back tears. "It's nothing," he muttered, looking away.
I rolled my eyes, frustration bubbling up. "Nothing? Jinwoo, you're literally bleeding all over the place. We're going to the hospital. Now."
"I'm not going anywhere," he said, his voice tight. "Just… stop. Please."
I paused, studying his face. He looked like he was barely holding it together, like one wrong word would make him snap. My heart sank.
Was it his father again? Jinwoo's father had been abusive for as long as I could remember. I'd seen him bruised and beaten far too many times. He never reported it, though. Even when his modelling career took off and he could've been free. His dad would go to his house, ask for money and beat him up. This continued forever.
"Was it your dad?"
He didn't answer, but the silence spoke volumes. His dad. Of course.
"Jinwoo…" I sighed, trying to keep my voice calm. "We have to go to the police this time. You can't keep covering for him."
He shook his head. "No. No police. No hospital. Just—just stay here for a minute."
I wanted to argue, to drag him to the hospital if I had to, but something in his eyes stopped me. Instead, I exhaled slowly. "Fine. But we're at least going to patch you up. Let me grab the first aid kit."
As I turned to go inside, he grabbed my wrist, stopping me in my tracks. "Why did you ignore me all day?" His voice was sharp. "You said we'd go together, but you went alone, I called you so many times but you didn't receive, then I heard you passed out, and I saw you with… those guys taking care of you at the infirmary."
Those guys? Oh. Right. Bohyun and Sunghoon.
"Seriously? That's what you're worried about right now?" I raised an eyebrow. "You're standing here, half-dead, and you want to talk about that?"
Jinwoo's eyes darkened. "But you promised, Aera."
This was not the conversation I wanted to have. Not right now.
"Look," I said, softening my tone. "We can talk about it later, okay? Right now, we need to deal with this." I gestured to his wounds. "I'm not going to let you bleed all over my porch. And I have something to tell you too."
His jaw clenched, but he didn't argue. "Fine."
I ran inside my house, grabbed the first-aid kit, and returned. Kneeling beside him on the stairs, I started cleaning the cuts on his hand, trying to focus on the task and not the million questions swirling in my mind.
"You know," I said, trying to lighten the mood, "this would be a lot easier if you weren't such a drama king."
Jinwoo actually let out a low chuckle. "Drama king, huh? Coming from you?"
I smirked. "Hey, I'm not the one lurking outside people's houses like a serial killer."
"You are the only person I can come to, Aera," he retorted, lowering his head.
My hand stopped in mid air. I ignored what he just said, continuing my work. His smile faltered. "Aera… I don't know what's happening between us. You have never ignored me. It's always me who ignores our plans or promises. This is the first time you stood me out and it made me so devastated. Then I saw some guys at the infirmary looking after you, I cannot tell you how bad I felt. Every guy at the department was talking about you. I realized what you really mean to me. I will be good to you, I promise."
My heart skipped a beat. "Jinwoo…"
WHY?
He cut me off, stepping closer, his voice low but sure. "Aera, will you be my girlfriend?"
My breath hitched, and for a split second, the world stood still. Wait... what? Did he actually just say that?! Heat rushed to my face, my thoughts spinning out of control.
What the hell just happened?