It’s not as if they were moving houses in the sense that they’d have to take boxes and boxes of things, valuable and trinkets alike, nor did they have to move their general furniture and beds with them. Nari and Hana were simply going to live with Seunghyun now – and realistically, they only had to take their clothes. Nari of course took with her some important, sentimental things… But she didn’t have an awful lot in the first place.

Which brought them to the next weekend, on the Friday evening, Hana slurping away at a milkshake while Nari parked up in front of Seunghyun’s enormous house. Did he really live here all alone?

The sky was twinkling with its few stars as Nari stepped out and went to the other side of her car to get her daughter. She looked around unsurely: this was an area for the elite people. Not her. His house was gated, so that it closed off everyone except him (and now, Nari and Hana as well). There was a small fountain that Hana started to ooh and ah at while Nari started to retrieve their few suitcases. “Mom,” Hana said. “It’s like a castle, isn’t it?”

The house itself was grand in appearance; Hana was right. It was a chateauesque structure – with minimised ‘towers’ on either side of the centre front. It was… Dreamlike from the outside.

Nari wasn’t sure what it’d be like on the inside.

Seunghyun stepped out from the double front doors as if on cue.

“Daddy!” Hana exclaimed cheerily, bolting to her dad. He bent to catch her, then lifted her up. “We’re here, Dad!”

“I can see that, sweetheart,” Seunghyun chuckled and kissed her cheek. He walked towards Nari with a smile. “Nari, leave that. I’ll get it inside. Come on in… I made dinner.”

“Uh…” Nari looked at her suitcases and Hana’s small patterned ones. “Seunghyun, it’s okay, really.” She smiled at him. There was hesitance behind it. “You two go in, I can get these no problem.”

“Nari…”

She tried not to glare at him in front of their daughter.

She did so anyway.

Hana shivered. Nari frowned, and looked at her softly. “Seunghyun, take her in – can you wrap her up in a blanket? I think she’s coming down with a cold… She had a bit of a temperature earlier.”

Seunghyun looked at Hana with concern. “Alright. Come on, trouble,” he nicknamed their daughter and closed her further in his arms before walking inside. The marble steps Nari eyed as he disappeared, lips twitching unpleasantly. Stone of luxury…

She grabbed the biggest suitcases and wheeled them up to the front of his house and left them at the door, and then went for two more rounds getting the smaller suitcases and other bags. On her third round she locked her car and stared at the big house she was going to have to feel ‘home’ at, and wondered about her future while the gentle waves of sadness rocked her insides.

When she eventually came into his house, Nari looked around. It was all black and white. No colour was evident anywhere, giving the place a cold atmosphere. There were long hallways, and where there were windows they were gigantic; staircases swirled rather than led up to floors in a vertical manner. There was a clinical, depressed feeling about his house; like it wasn’t really a home. Art hung on walls, various types from classical to minimalistic – Nari found herself staring into the blank eyes of European monarchs and then simply gazing at blank lines on huge canvases.

There was nothing about the place that felt… Nice.

“Nari, you here? We’re in the kitchen.”

Seunghyun’s low voice boomed through, practically echoing; she followed the deep, resonant notes until she found herself in a brightly lit kitchen, large and warm from what must have been a while of cooking – she looked at Seunghyun with appreciation – and in the centre were dishes to be brought to the closed off dining area. Nari didn’t realise just how hungry she was until she saw all the dishes of vegetables, stews, soups, noodles, meats, rice cakes… Her stomach rumbled loudly.

Seunghyun smiled to himself.

Hana was wrapped in her dad’s thick robe and she sat at the dining table, twiddling her thumbs and making childish noises as Nari and Seunghyun both took the dishes out. “Make it here alright?” Seunghyun asked Nari, who nodded in response.

“Yeah,” she told him, fixing Hana’s fingers around her chopsticks, “it was okay – but the streets all start to look the same after some driving around. I wanted to familiarise myself with the local stores and such… Found myself in a small loop.”

“I’ll show you the area tomorrow.”

Hana was far too busy twirling her noodles around before slurping it in to take note of the adult talk going on around. She then realised something: this was her new home.

“Dad! What’s my bedroom like?”

“Jin Hana,” Nari scolded. Seunghyun glanced at Nari at her use of ‘Jin’. It reminded him that neither of the two had his name. “Don’t talk with your mouth full.”

Hana apologised and then resumed eating while Nari took small bites herself, thanking Seunghyun twice or thrice for the food.

It was going to take a while to get used to this.

She was still very on edge about suddenly moving in with the man that didn’t give her another glance so long ago.

“I thought that we could do your bedroom together, sweetheart.” Nari cocked her head at Seunghyun who glanced back at her in slight alarm. She immediately knew what was going on: Seunghyun simply didn’t know how to design and put together a bedroom for a five-year-old girl. His screaming look simply communicated the words help me! to her. Nari grinned while biting into some vegetables. “I bought numerous paints for you to choose from. We can spend this weekend doing it.”

Nari her lips and asked, “Won’t you have work?”

Seunghyun smiled. “I’ve taken a few days off. To help you both settle in.”

She smiled back at him… He was being considerate, after all.

“What does yours and Mom’s bedroom look like?”

Nari almost choked.

Seunghyun’s warm expression didn’t falter at all, on the other hand. “We have two bedrooms. The one that’s ready is very big, sweetheart. The biggest in the house. The second one I want your Mom to help me with as well. We’re going to be very busy this weekend, won’t we?”

Hana nodded enthusiastically, and then announced that she was finished at the same time Nari had cleared her plate and bowl as well. Out of habit, she got up and went to her daughter, wiping and without really realising it, telling her to come with her to the sink so that she could wash her slightly sticky hands.

It hadn’t even occurred to Nari yet that this wasn’t really her home as she moved around comfortably.

Seunghyun, however, didn’t mind at all.

When they came back to the table, Nari remembered something.

“Oh, Hana – didn’t you want to ask your Dad something?”

Seunghyun leaned forward with interest.

Hana walked to her father, putting her arms out. He lifted her into his lap, and smiled. “Hm?”

“It’s bring-your-dad day to school on Wednesday. Will you be able to come?”

He kissed his daughter’s cheek. “Of course I will. Anything for you.”

She clapped her hands happily. “Yay!”

Nari smiled to herself as she started to take the dishes from the table to the sink. Anything that was left over, she wrapped up and stored away – she never let anything go to waste. Seunghyun watched her before he whispered to Hana to wait at the stairs for him and he’d show her which room would be hers.

Then he approached Nari who was already washing up. He touched her wrist, not minding that bubbly water was on his fingers now.

Nari looked up at Seunghyun. “Oh… Yes?”

“Do you mind if I have Hana for tonight?”

Nari breathed deeply. “No. I don’t. You’ve never had her for a night.”

“I’m sure you’re wondering where your bedroom is. It’s plain as of now, but of course everything will be perfectly ready by tomorrow. I’ll show you.”

“Okay.”

She didn’t realise how cold she sounded until she finished washing up, and Seunghyun took her little hand in his, closing his fingers over hers. Nari’s stomach fluttered. What was he doing?

She didn’t want to be part of a show.

As they found their daughter standing at one of the spiralling staircases obediently as asked, Seunghyun didn’t let go. She tried to ask him why he was holding her hand like that, but he wouldn’t let her.

“Now let’s see upstairs.”

Eventually, Nari stopped fighting against their joint hands.

Instead she appreciated how their hands seemed to fit perfectly, despite the difference in size.

*

“Hana, stop running!”

It was late afternoon, and Hana’s bedroom was almost ready. Seunghyun had hired people to do the work which was probably a good call since Hana, as well-behaved as she was, was getting overexcited and the childish burst of energy wasn’t going to die out any time soon. The room was looking beautiful: pastel pink, blue, and yellow themed with the feature wall filled with light flowers. A part of the room had been made into a play area, and there was a mini vanity table near some of the drawers. Her extensive wardrobe was perhaps too big for a child… But money was something peculiar; rich people had a different taste. With all the things going on, it was surprising that there was still any space but there was a lot of it somehow left over and so the heart of the room was clear of obstacles; only a huge bear rug in the middle that she was sure to lie down on.

Nari couldn’t thank Seunghyun enough.

“Mom, it’s so pretty! Look!”

“Darling, I am looking!”

The workers either didn’t mind or were paid to be silent.

Their professional paint were thick, and long, and faultless and all weirdly in time with one another. They worked steadily yet quickly, as if every second was a second to bring forth the fruitful outcome. Nari admired their patience.

Seunghyun appeared from his ‘quarters’ (where his bedroom, enormous closet, second office, and some other rooms were located) and took long strides down the hallway. “I’ll take her,” he offered to Nari. “Come here, trouble.”

And so they left off, hand in hand, while Nari went back to her own bedroom to continue painting.

Her bedroom was coming along fine – she refused any help at all, wanting to do it on her own instead. The blank walls which were already white she simply went over; it was only the centre wall which she was struggling with since it was so huge. She chose a lovely rose hue to paint it, and though her ladder was sturdy and safe (Seunghyun had made sure of this), it was her own fear of falling that made her wobble with her big paint roller.

Nari had developed a fear of falling rather than a fear of heights after she’d had Hana. It was a fear that refused to go away no matter how hard she tried. As she carefully moved the paint roller along the huge wall, Nari found herself uncomfortable; her breath was strained.

Then, it happened so fast.

Just as she was moving a little along on the highest step of the ladder, her foot brushed against her other one, making her tremble on her toes slightly before her entire body failed her. Falling, Nari’s breath hitched after a squeal, ready to fall onto the ground. Eyes squeezed shut, she didn’t realise she’d been caught until Seunghyun repeatedly asked, “Nari? Nari?”

Nari opened her eyes, staring up into Seunghyun’s concerned gaze. “Are you alright?” he asked.

She remembered to breathe now.

She hadn’t fallen.

She’d been caught.

His arms held her close, one hand tight around the smooth curve of her waist while the other rested on her legs.

Nari, for a moment, wanted to touch his face.

“I’m fine.” She had to breathe some more before she managed to say, “Thank you.”

How long had he been standing there, watching her?

He’d managed to get her so easily… As if he knew she was going to fall.

His eyes travelled to her stomach which had been exposed.

More importantly, the long scar that curved slightly at each end.

He set her down.

“What’s that?”

Nari looked down at the scar; his eyes were almost accusative. She hurried to push her shirt down to cover it, almost as if she was ashamed of it. “Nothing… Nothing.”

“Nari.”

By now, she’d gotten used to when his tone would become commanding. Nari shrugged out of his grip but he simply took a step forward each time she moved away.

“Stop. I’ll tell you.”

He released her, and watched as she walked over to the mirror. This time Nari pulled the hem of her shirt up to gaze at the scar, finger running over it.

“I had to have an emergency C-section. This is the scar. To save both of us, the C-section was necessary. It happened when I had just reached the end of my 8 months of pregnancy: somehow, in some way, someone had pushed me down the stairs of the rail system. Maybe accidentally, or maybe out of general malice… I don’t know. But as much as I tried to fall in any way other than on my stomach—I… I couldn’t. I could only cover my bump with my hands, which too got cut up from the heavy fall.” Seunghyun’s jaw was tight. His eyes were murderous as Nari showed him the scars on her hands as well; faint now, and so easily missed. He’d never noticed.

His eyes went back to the C-section scar in the mirror. Fury went through him.

Someone could’ve killed his child.

Someone could’ve possibly killed Nari as well.

“… But I fought, I guess. Doctors, after the birth, mentioned how I was weak anyway and they were unsure when I was brought into the emergency unit if both of us would be fine. I just knew if Hana was alright, and was born without complication, then I would be okay, too.” Her eyes started watering at this point.

Seunghyun suddenly kneeled before her.

“Nari…” He looked up at her.

“What are you doing…?” Nari whispered.

“Lift your shirt up,” he requested of her.

“Seunghyun?”

“Just do it.”

And so she did. Hands on either of her hips, Seunghyun leaned forward and pressed his lips on her scar. The kiss on her skin made her gasp. She felt choked up. When he pulled away, he stared at the scar in amazement before his long, cold fingers skimmed across the length of it. “This scar – don’t you ever be ashamed of it,” he uttered. Standing now, he took her hands in his. “Promise me that.” Her promise was weakly-sounded, but he accepted it anyway. “That scar is a reminder of how truly unbelievable you are. I am… So, so sorry that I wasn’t there. You went through everything alone. All of it. The pain—I can’t even imagine, Nari. I can’t. I’m indebted to you. No money or house will be enough to pay you back for giving me such a gift that you went through hell for.”

Her hands he lifted, pressing kisses to her scars as well.

Nari was speechless.

“I’m sorry, Nari.”

She was overcome with emotion. “It’s… No, Seunghyun. Don’t apologise. Thank you—for everything that you’ve done in this short time. I’m the grateful one. You don’t need to be sorry for anything; from the very moment I knew I was having Hana… I knew that I’d do it alone. I’ve never hated you for anything, Seunghyun. We live different lives. We come from different walks of life, more importantly. It’s okay.”

He shook his head. “It isn’t,” he murmured. It was strange to hear his deep voice so soft. Nari couldn’t fight away the feeling of warmth he’d brought to her insides.

As he embraced her, she didn’t fight that either.

She simply thought about how maybe she ought to be thankful for everything—that although she truly had gone to and through hell some time ago, she was here now; and he was here beside her.

Regardless of everything else, Seunghyun was willing to build a new life.

With Nari.

She just didn’t know it yet.

AN: hello hello how ya doing
I'd just like to dedicate this chapter to one of my lovely reviewers momo8808 whose comment I loved so much - it motivated me to finish writing this chapter and putting it up. Thank you for being so sweet!

So... Some new things in this chapter, then. Also slight progress with Nari and Seunghyun. What do you think will happen in the next chapter?
Let me know in the comments! I love responding to everything. There may be a delay between my next update (I'm going on a road trip and I'm working longer shifts when I'm back), but I'll try my best to squeeze one in. Thanks for reading as always.
xxo