[A/N]: Chapter Update 3/7; I highly advise to bookmark the last chapter you read since it might get confusing with the multiple updates I will be making.

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“You sure you’re gonna give me an extra pay for this?” Yookyung dropped the box containing office materials on the dining table. “Whew. That was heavy.”

“Definitely,” Chorong answered. “Thank you, Yookyung-ah.”

“Why are you helping by the way?” Yookyung asked suspiciously.

“Ahh… this? She only knows a few people and that includes you and me. So I guess that’s why she asked you as well.”

“You’re even gonna give me an extra, but why drop her stuff here and not her hou-”

“See you later at work, Yookyung-ah. I’ll give the pay for your hard work on your shift.”

“Ahh. See you later.” After Yookyung left the house, Namjoo came out from one of the rooms.

“Are you sure they’re not aware we’re sisters?” Chorong asked her younger sister, pertaining to the loan sharks.

“Yes. We didn’t even know about it ourselves,” Namjoo answered. “I don’t think anyone saw me yesterday coming into your house. Besides, you won’t rouse suspicion since I’m not legally listed as your sister.”

Chorong relaxed in her seat. “I see. I guess you’re safe here with me.”

“Yeah…” Namjoo pursed her lips. “For now.”

-----

“Err…” Eunji took small steps back upon arriving at their destination. “W-what are we doing here? Are we gonna play with kids or something?” she asked, her face turning pale.

“No, silly,” Naeun answered laughingly. “I don’t want you to die because of your phobia so we’ll just stay out here.”

Just outside the orphanage, the two of them were sharing an umbrella under the rain.

“After going to rehab, this is where I lived during my high school days,” Naeun said. “Looking back, I was really reckless and unbothered. I wasted my teenage years away, sleeping with every guy I met. If it wasn’t for a friend of mine, I wouldn’t even have my high school diploma.”

Eunji wondered why the younger woman was telling her story all of a sudden, but she did not dwell on her own thoughts much. Instead, she paid attention to every detail being said to her.

“The incident from the club last time, do you remember it?” Naeun asked.

Eunji nodded. “How can I forget? Those douche bags took on a girl half their size,” she remarked with smug look on her face.

“Yeah.” Naeun giggled. “There are times that my body acts uncontrollably on its own when I am touched by a guy. I don’t know why it is like that but I do know how it started.”

Eunji felt the younger woman searching for her hand. The latter continued after locking their fingers together.

“It’s because of my father,” Naeun said. “After my mother died, my father… he… he… he…”

“T-the nightmares?” Eunji asked hesitantly, earning a slight nod from the woman.

“The scars on my back,” Naeun continued, “all of them were because of him. During middle school, my class adviser was worried that I wasn’t going to school that she personally came to my house, but she found the door unlocked and she went inside and… and saw us, my father and I…” Naeun was shaking, not because of the cold breeze, but because of the memories that were coming back to her vividly. “I thought… I thought that he was going to kill me… and then the police came and took me for interrogation.” She heaved a deep, long breath. “During that long process, my father was found guilty of child abuse and homicide.”

“W-w-wait a second. Homicide?!”

“Yes,” Naeun answered. “He murdered my mother when they had a fight. I-I s-saw him… my mother in a s-sack… and the floor… the floor was red…”

Eunji widened her eyes in distress. The experiences of the younger woman finally dawned on her.

The strong wind was blowing their umbrella so they had to take shelter at the porch of a cafe nearby.

“Just last month, I received the news that he died peacefully in his prison cell. He didn’t deserve that,” Naeun said bitterly. “That ing bastard! He didn’t even live out his lifetime punishment!”

Naeun managed calm down when she felt Eunji squeeze her hand.

“But you know, it left me thinking about myself,” Naeun said, sticking out her hand to the rain. “In my life, there are things that I am in control of and things that I am not, and the same goes for all the people in the world. One of those things out of our control is death, which comes untimely to anyone. So what did my father do when he was alive? Did he regret the things he had done? Was it the life he wanted to live?” She stared straight at the older woman—at those pair of eyes that gave her pure solace. “Is this the life I want for myself?” The older woman pulled her closer by the waist. “Another question transpired from all of these.” Naeun closed her eyes and allowed her senses to take over. “How should I live my life now? Time is not going to stop and wait for me as I get myself together.”

The two of them sighted some kids across the road playing in the rain. She rested her head on Eunji, and they remained in that position for a long time.

“My past will always be the unchanging part of me no matter how hard I try redefining it,” Naeun continued, facing Eunji this time. “The story I told you about myself is what made me today.” She bent her head down a bit disappointedly.

Eunji smiled. The back of her fingers traced the cheeks of the younger woman whom she thought was even more beautiful than she was yesterday. “We can still shape the future with what we have now, right?”

“That’s true,” Naeun said with a smile on her lips. Looking at their hands gently pressed together made them giggle. “We have no idea what lies ahead, but at least we can do something to ease the feelings of uncertainty our tomorrow brings.”

-----

After working hours, Hayoung left her car back in the parking lot of her office as she wandered in t