Chapter 53: Pity Party

Naeun went down the stairs with a frown on her face. She hadn’t really expected Lee Taemin in the parlour when Butler Wang had alerted her of a guest. Guest… really?

“To what do I owe the pleasure of seeing your face so early in the morning?” She crossed her arms on top of her chest and scowled. He was sat on the piano stool, playing his scales like the pro he was with that cocky smile plastered onto his face.

“Maybe I should’ve come last night so that that sentence actually sounds accurate.” He implied ual connotations, of course but Naeun merely rolled her eyes.

“Ugh… What do you want, Taemin?”

“Is that how you treat your guest?” He feigned a gasp, hands over his mouth dramatically.

“This isn’t my house and you’re not my guest. Besides, are you of all people, giving me pointers on five-star hospitality?”

“Yes, well… Sorry about that.” He grimaced and at least had the decency to look guilty.

“Are you?” Naeun scoffed, raising an eyebrow and staring him down. He met her stare with a frown.

“Don’t make me go on my knees. There are better positions to be in if you want me to beg.”

“.” Naeun retorted back.

“A fine one I might add.” His eyes flickered to her face.

“Get straight to the point, Taemin.”

“There’s someone who wants to meet you.”

“Who?”

“You’ll see. Now, would you rather spend the whole day playing fetch with Minho over there or would you rather come and help out an old friend?” He clicked his tongue and Minho stiffened at the words ’fetch’, Naeun felt his rage palpitating off of him.

“I’ll come play fetch with you instead.” Minho growled.

“Funny.” He grinned. “He’s getting funnier, your bodyguard.”

“Let me get my coat before you guys get into a fight.” Naeun said.

Taemin drove them to a café near Hongdae, it was the usual chain ones. Nothing suspicious for now. When they got out of the car, he turned to Minho.

“Now sit.” Taemin smiled, his eyes alight in mischief.

“I’m supposed to watch over her.” He points out, arms crossed over his chest. At least he had the height to make him look masculine.

“Naeun, can you tell your guard dog to sit?” Taemin huffed, getting out of the car.

“Just… stay put. If you’re bored, then grab a coffee inside or something.” Naeun suggested and ignored the hurt look on Minho’s face. “I’ll be right back.”

“Woof.” He said dramatically and Naeun rolled her eyes.

“You know I don’t mean it like that.”

“Fine. But call me if you need me. And get the heck out of there if that one tries anything funny.”

Taemin lead them to a booth at the corner of the café. There was a person sitting there but she had her back facing them.

“Well, you wanted to see her. Here she is.” Taemin sauntered forwards, that lazy pretense in his voice.

“Soojung?” Naeun asked out loud. Jung Soojung was wearing all black, radiating that chic cold aura that Naeun now associated with her. Her hands were clasped over her iPhone and her lips were pulled in a tight straight line. But when she removed her designer sunglasses, Naeun tried her best to hide her surprise. Her eyes were swollen; the concealer didn’t help at all and they didn’t really hide the bags under her eyes. She must have been crying all night seeing from how tired she looked. Naeun’s own sleep was disturbed last night.

She had managed to tuck Kai into bed with the help of Minho but he was still a mess. Crying and clinging to her like a child until sleep and exhaustion took over him. That morning when she woke up, Minho said he had already left for the office.

Naeun stared at Soojung now. She was still cold and icy but there is something else about her that seemed so frail now. The way she looked at Naeun imploringly, it was so strange to see her this… fragile.

“Most people actually call me Krystal. Please sit.” She motioned to the other side. Naeun sat down and Taemin slipped into the seat next to Krystal.

A waiter came to take their orders and Taemin ordered a strong black before turning to Naeun.

“Do you want anything?” Taemin asked, and Soojung looked to away towards the other side, fidgeting uncomfortably in her seat.

“I’ll have a latte.” There was already an iced coffee in front of Krystal but Naeun didn’t see her touch it since they got there. “You-you wanted to see me?” Naeun started once the waiter was out of their view.

“I wanted to… to…”

“Apologise?” Taemin supplied and Soojung gulped, picking on her perfectly manicured nails.

“Yes… I treated you badly. I was under the impression you were… ”

“Krys thought you were a after her man.” Taemin chipped in and Krystal pinched him in the side.

“Shut up. Stop interrupting me!” Her voice broke out into a higher pitch, turning to glare at Taemin. Naeun recognized the flicker of a smile on Taemin’s face. She didn’t comment on it though. “I want us to start over. I’m sorry about what happened. I was just very disillusioned.”

“You mean jealous.”

“Yah, Lee Taemin!” They were attracting attention now and Krystal ducked her head in embarrassment when the waiter came to serve their drinks.

“Are you afraid someone might see you with me? Paparazzi?” Taemin asked Krystal with a coy smile, whilst stirring his coffee.

“Don’t your own ego. It’s large enough.” Krystal scoffed and rolled her eyes. This time, Taemin really did smile a real smile with no dark undertones or hidden meanings. Naeun forgot how blinding his real smile could be- all soft and warm and fuzzy and nothing like Lee Taemin. Her eyes flitted in between them and Naeun wondered if this has been going on for long. She realizes she's being too quiet and Taemin gives her a daunting look, as if he knew she was watching him, watching them. She cleared and the tension snapped.

“You’re not going to… to tell anyone, are you?” Naeun asked in a small voice. Krystal’s eyes widened and she shook her head vigorously.

“No. That would be unfair to you. And I could never do that to… to Kai.” His name was barely but a whisper and Naeun understands her confusion when her face scrunched up. She deserves an explanation too, but Naeun does not know how to explain anything.

“It’s not his fault. Not entirely that is.”

“I understand. I know Taemin had something to do with it.” She glanced to the side and the person in question was as composed as ever.

“Now I’m the bad influence?” Both Naeun and Soojung gave him the ‘really?’ look. “Good. I always was.” He shrugged it off and took a sip of his coffee

“Let’s be friends.” Krystal gave her a sweet honest smile with no hint of the model practice or the forced politeness before. Naeun was slightly taken aback by the 360 degree change. But she knew Kai was right. That Soojung wasn’t so bad under all the hard exterior. There must be a reason after all that Kai was in love with her.

“Soojung, you don’t have to force yourself to-“

“Krystal. All my friends call me Krystal.” She insisted again, voice chiding. Naeun nodded.

“Fine, Krystal.”

“Do you still love him?” Naeun finally asked when Taemin left the table to pay the bill at the cashier. It was a sharp question though Naeun’s intentions weren’t to harm.

“Feelings are complicated things. I could try, I could force it, but I don’t think I could ever cut off my feelings for your brother.” Krystal replied honestly, her voice wavering but she looked at Naeun without fear. There was something in her eyes that stirred Naeun. She had the same kind of exhausted, haunted look about her. Perhaps they needed each other more than they realised.

“I understand. It’s not easy to lie to yourself about love.” Naeun almost drifts and choked on her own memories of him but she shoved them into a drawer at the back of her mind, locking it and throwing the key into oblivion. He didn’t need her in his life. He didn’t need this mess of a soul.

“I never understood why Jongin was so hard to crack. Why he would never drink unless it was at a formal event, or only when he was forced to. He refused to touch me, you know? I thought that perhaps he was just being gentlemanly. But it’s been two years. I even wondered if I repulsed him.” Krystal continued, guillotining her faraway thought.

“You’re hardly repulsive, Krystal.”

“Appearances are just that- physique. I kept waiting for him to tell me he wanted to end it. But he didn’t. It was so pathetic… Waiting to be told you were unwanted or unneeded. He told me to wait and because I was helplessly, foolishly in love I did. And then he proposed.”

“And you said yes.”

“I thought that I finally had him. That he’d finally trust me and tell me everything. He could become so distant sometimes. I didn’t even know he had a step-sister.”

“I’m not supposed to exist. He was trying to protect you.”

“But you do. And I don’t know how you’re able to do it, to look at him and not pull away, to even be in the same room with him.” Naeun hears her voice break from wanting to cry, her eyes glassy with almost tears.

“Oh, it’s not all easy I tell you.”

“You must be a saint.” Krystal half smiles, eyes refusing to meet hers. But Naeun doesn’t feel like a saint. She feels like a sinner.

“No. Afraid not.” She deadpanned.

“How long have you been in love with Jung Soojung?” Naeun asked softly. She didn’t exactly want Minho to hear but he was in the same car and Naeun knew he secretly heard anything anyway despite the fact he was driving.

“There’s no point in lying to you is there?” Taemin said, those sad eyes turning to her. Naeun knew that look too well. On rare occasions, Taemin would tell the truth. He would be unguarded and blunt and those moments would always be so heavily charged and messy that Naeun would avoid it altogether, because it made things so very complicated. Sometimes, she would rather not know what’s happening inside his head. She thinks it would look like hell. Sometimes, she’d rather just believe he was simply an with too much time.

But he wasn’t. Well, not totally.

“Not really… Don’t worry, I don’t particularly have any agenda to mess with Soojung’s feeling or yours for the matter. I’m not you.” He burst into laughter after he heard that, and then pretended to brush nonexistent tears from the corners of his eyes.

“It’s impossible to lie to you.” He sighed.

“It’s impossible to lie to each other.” Naeun corrected him.

“Perhaps not. We know each other too well, don’t we?”

“Makes me wonder where we could have all ended up if none of this ever happened.” It was useless to think of these things but right then, faced with her past and present; Naeun could not help but think how easy things would be if things weren’t so ed up.

“I don’t regret it… quitting ballet.” His voice is as smooth as ever, and yet Naeun knows him too well.

“I thought you said no lies?”

“Damn… You’re good, Son Naeun. Sure, I’d probably be a principal dancer, headlining somewhere in Europe if I accepted that offer. Maybe you’d be a soloist by now. Kai would’ve been CEO and a good businessman. But this is fate… where we are.” He chuckled and smiled but the humour doesn’t reach his eyes.

“I never took you as someone who would’ve believed in something as fragile or frivolous as fate.”

“I’ve grown.” He insisted.

“Go take a reality check.” Naeun scoffed.

“I’ve grown a bit. This isn’t the same. I’m not the same too after that happened. None of us are.”

“Fate’s a .”

When they arrived at the mansion, Minho passed Taemin his car keys and he went to open the boot, rummaging around for something.

“Wait a second. I have something for you.” He brought out a worn book bag and passed it to her.

“What’s this?” She asked, looking inside the bag.

“It’s a peace offering.”

“Is it weed?” Naeun asked skeptically.

“Go ask Kai if you’re looking for a quick fix.” Taemin scoffed, rolling his eyes in mock annoyance.

“Have you guys been on it again?” Minho piqued, the concern in his voice made Naeun wonder if Kai really was all that sober. And that she needed to be more alert of her babysitter.

“No, mom.” Taemin raised his hands in surrender. “Go ahead, open it.”

Inside the wooden box were rows upon rows of artist grade gouche, acrylic paint and watercolours. There was also a small sheaf of Bristol board and dainty brushes. It made Naeun’s heart leap for a moment but then she closed it quickly, it was too much.

“Minho, can I speak to Taemin privately for a moment?”

“There’s no such thing as privacy in this house.” He answered cockily. She knew he was just being difficult because she hated Taemin’s guts and she sighed.

“Please? I’ll step inside in a moment.” Her voice was firm but her eyes, pleading.

“Fine.” He agreed, sending her a look that said – I don’t trust this jackass.

“Shoo.” Taemin smirked and Minho glared back. He had an uncanny ability to piss people off too easily. It was a talent, really.

“Don’t you ever get tired of it?” Naeun shut the box and put it back in the bag.

“Of what?” He pretended not to understand.

“Playing bad guy all the time?” She sighed. It was so tiring to go round and round like they did.

“Who says I’m playing?”

“Taemin. No lies.” He dropped the façade when he heared the tone of her voice.

“No… It’s never tiring. We needed it. You needed it. He needed the separation. So that you’d hate me more than Kai. So that he would see you didn’t need him and he didn’t need you.” He shrugged blasély. Naeun thinks about the time she wasted, curled in the worn seats of those trashy clubs watching this man, this man she somehow used to love. The strobe lights would blind them and light up his lovely face with all sorts of psychedelic patterns and they would reach for each other. Lips meeting in the dark, reassuring, unfeeling, pretending. And though it wasn’t spoken out loud, it was known, they both knew- that it was just one huge farce. But she clung to that lie. And he used her for his own ends. Kai's own ends.

“Sadist.” The word escaped her.

“Masochist.” He corrected.

“Why…” She doesn’t understand. Not that he was ever understandable.

“We all have to do things we don’t like, Naeun. I made the wrong decisions because I loved you both. I was ignorant and stupid and it so much to see us all self destruct like this. But give me a second chance. I need you.” There was a sick kind of desperation in the way he said those words.

“You mean you need the merger?”

“That too.” He admitted, eyes downcast.

“So we’re just going back to the past? When I loved you and you used me and I’m supposed to help you with something? Go to hell, Lee Taemin.” She sputtered the last sentence.

“Business is still business. I’m not the one pulling the strings. You know that.” He shrugged again.

“She’s right. Sons are more biddable.” Naeun said underneath her breath, resigned to her fate.

“Excuse me?”

“It must be tiring to play devil's advocate all the time.”

“Exhausting.” He whined dramatically. Naeun always thought Taemin was more suited to be an actor with all his bravado. “Look, if you ever get tired of nice guys and white horses, you know where to find me. Ciao.” He brushed her hair and for a second, she sees Taemin as the shadow of himself. Their eyes met and Naeun didn’t want to break eye contact. She didn’t want him to leave, she wanted answers. But she doesn’t stop him when he drives away.

She didn’t need him anymore.

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A/N : Sorry guys I was so busy with some personal . Gah I need a holiday.

Myungsoo is coming back next chapter ! Wooow!

I don’t know what I’m writing anymore but I hope you guys enjoy it ^^