imprudent [imˈpro͞odnt] adj - not showing care for the consequences of an action

“What are you working on?” Kris asked curiously as he peeked over Mihyun’s shoulder.

“Just a sketch of the Noye house,” Mihyun responded absent mindedly. She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and pasued the movements of her pencil. “How was your time with Jaesuk?”

Kris scrunched his nose at the memory, and scoffed as he rested his hands on the back of his head. “That guy really wasn’t made for consoling people.”

Mihyun chuckled in agreement.

“It helped though,” Kris admitted quietly as he laid down across the bed. “Having his company.”

Mihyun smiled to herself as she continued to work on the sketch, “I thought it would.”

“Do you think… do you think you can save them?” Kris asked as he stared up at the ceiling above him. “They deserve a better life than the one they’re currently living.”

Mihyun hummed in agreement, thinking about what other details she should add to the sketch. She glanced at Kris out of the corner of her eye and sighed silently to herself. After a minute hesitance, she tucked her pencil back into her case and pushed her chair back so she could climb out.

“Are you going to bed already? This early?” Kris asked with a raised eyebrow as he stared at the pile of work abandoned on her table that still required completion.

Mihyun pressed her hand against to stifle a yawn and nodded her head, “I think it’s about time I get more than just 3 hours of sleep before the sun rises again.”

“Baekhyun was asking for you today,” Mihyun spoke up as she pulled out her sleep wear to change into. She side glanced at him, “He misses you, you know. You’re like another Hyung to him already.”

Kris smiled fondly at the thought of the cute younger, and pushed himself off the bed to trail after Mihyun to the bathroom. “What did he say?”

“He wanted to know where you were,” Mihyun answered as she tied her hair up into a bun, tucking the loose strands behind her ear. “Chanyeol wasn’t all too happy about that.”

“He stares at me like I’m going to steal Baekhyun away from him,” Kris scoffed as he leaned against the door frame.

Mihyun eyed him with a raised eyebrow, “Wouldn’t you?”

Kris let out a mischievous smirk and pressed a finger against his lips, “Keep it a secret from Chanyeol.”

Mihyun shook her head as a soft chuckle escaped her lips, “It’s rather regretful you didn’t see them for another time, don’t you think?”

“You act like I’m never going to see them again,” Kris scoffed as he crossed his arms.

Mihyun paused for a second before she resumed what she was doing, “Life is rather unexpected, wouldn’t you agree? You never really know what the next day will bring.”

Kris hummed in agreement, excusing himself when the girl said she was going to change.

“Come with me to see the boys tomorrow, will you?” Mihyun requested as she slid under her bed sheets. She turned to Kris who was settling himself into the makeshift bed Jaesuk had brought for him a few days ago after being absolutely appalled that Kris had been sharing the same bed as his Agashi.

There was a beat of silence before Kris nodded his head in agreement, “Yeah, that would be nice.”

“Good night, Kris,” Mihyun called out as she leaned over to turn off the lights. “See you tomorrow.”

“Yeah,” Kris gulped in reply as he the letter that lay hidden underneath his blanket covers. “See you tomorrow.” He lied there in silence for the longest time, waiting for the timed breaths of the girl to signal that she had fallen asleep. Truth be told, he knew she had slipped into a world of dreams only a few minutes after they had bid each other their nightly greetings, but he simply couldn’t get himself to step out of the comfortable confines of his bed.

Was he really willing to do it?

Was he really willing to leave her?

He knew that by leaving Mihyun’s side, he was discarding all the protection he had around him. The chances of him actually surviving in the cruel world alone were next to impossible, and he honestly didn’t expect him to survive for more than 2 months, 3 at the very latest.

He took a deep gulp of air to summon enough courage to stick a leg out of his bed and onto the ground. A few more minutes passed before he finally followed up with the other leg.

He would regret leaving, he was sure that he would. Yet at the same time he knew he would regret it even more if he delayed his departure. After a large intake of air, Kris slowly pushed himself off of his mattress and onto the hard ground, cringing when the springs let out quiet squeaks.

After stealing a glance at Mihyun who was sleeping soundly in her bed, he decided it was safe enough to move forward. With slow and steady steps, he carefully maneuvered his way around the furniture of the room to reach the bag he had secretly stashed earlier that evening. He gnawed down on his bottom lip as guilt filled his system, knowing completely well that the bag contained goods he had snatched from the girl’s dressers and cabinets.

He stared down at the letter in hand, and quietly placed it on Mihyun's work table, hoping that it wouldn't get buried underneath all the other papers Mihyun had scattered about. He cast one last, longing look at the still figure tucked underneath the blankets, before finally making his way over to the girl's balcony. 

With his bottom lip tucked inbetween his teeth, he slowly pulled open the glass door, praying silently that the noise wouldn't cause the girl to jolt awake. He finally managed to open door just enough so he could slip through it, and stepped into the cold air. Kris eyed the wide distance between the ground and Mihyun’s balcony. His throat went dry at the thought of jumping down, and he wiped his sweaty palms against the front of his slacks. Perhaps he should have thought of his escape more thoroughly.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you.”

Kris spun around at the sound of the amused voice, and his eyes widened in shock as he stared at Mihyun who was perched casually on the side of her bed. He his lips nervously, and his eyes darted from side to side as he tried to come up with some sort of cover up. “M-Mihyun.”

Mihyun stared back at him without even a hint of amusement, and he took a deep gulp of air. He knew there would be no point in attempting to lie to the other, for she would have been able to sniff out his lie the near second it left his lips.

“Didn’t think I would have liked to know that you would be leaving, did you?” Mihyun asked in a tone that was blank of any sorts of emotions.

“I did-didn’t thi-think—” Kris stammered nervously. He eyed the bag that was in his hands and tried to hide behind his back discreetly. He was more terrified with the judgments Mihyun would pose on his thievery than the possibility that she would turn him in.

“You’re right, you didn’t think,” Mihyun responded plainly as she pushed herself off the bed to make her way over to him. Kris held his breath the entire time she was stepping towards him, and he felt bile creeping up his throat from how utterly horrified he was. Once she was less than a foot away from the man, she held out her hand expectantly, “Hand it over.”

Kris immediately understood with great shame as to what Mihyun was referring to, and slowly pulled his arm away from his back. He couldn’t profess how sorry he was as he handed the sack of goods over to the girl, his eyes trained firmly on the ground the entire time.

“You aren’t too bright, are you?” Mihyun sighed as she walked over to her bed to empty the sack of items. Kris’s face grew more and more red each time she picked up an item to examine what Kris had attempted to steal. He was absolutely mortified, and for a split second considered hurling himself out of the balcony to fall to his uttermost death.

“Tell me something,” Mihyun stated as she leaned herself against the frame of her bed. “What exactly were you thinking when you took these things?” she asked as she gestured to the expensive jewelry and hand crafted vases that had tumbled out of Kris’s sack.

Kris’s mouth immediately went dry, and he opened his mouth to respond but no words would escape his throat. He felt more horrible now than he had when finding out about the news of his deceased family.

“Well?” Mihyun asked as she tapped the wooden frame with her finger. “I’m waiting.”

“I… I thought about how sorry I was,” Kris answered sincerely, not daring to look the girl in the eye. “How sorry I was to be taking these things from you when you had treated me with nothing but kindness.”

“Obviously not sorry enough,” Mihyun responded in a hard voice. “You know what will happen if I report you, right?”

Kris stiffened at her question, and he slowly nodded his head once. He clenched and unclenched his fist repetitively, waiting to hear what the girl’s next words were to consist of. Would she report him? He wouldn’t be angry with her if she decided to do so. He had nobody to blame but himself.

Mihyun murmured something under her breath, and Kris had to strain his ears to catch what she had said, “You’re lucky.”

“What?” Kris asked, his brows furrowing in confusion.

Mihyun let out a loud sigh as she ran her fingers through her hair. “I said you’re lucky.”

Kris remained silent, obviously not understanding why the girl had told him such a thing. How exactly was he lucky? And why did the girl think so?

Mihyun offered no further words of explanation, so Kris didn’t ask for any. The pair of them simply remained there, standing silently for the longest time before Mihyun finally spoke up.

“How do you expect to survive with such worthless jewelry?”

Kris glanced up in surprise and confusion, not really understanding what the girl meant. “What?” he asked dumbly.

“I said, how did you expect to survive with just jewelry and other useless objects?” Mihyun repeated herself as she crossed her arms. “Can you eat a vase? Can you protect yourself with jewelry? Can they provide you warmth?”

“I… I was going to pawn it,” Kris admitted as he nervously played with his fingers.

Mihyun stared at him silently for a few seconds before scoffing, “Are you stupid? What do you think the owner will do then? Happily exchange the proper amount of money these objects deserve and send you happily on your way? If you tried to pawn these items, there are three possible scenarios that could happen. The owner would report you to the authorities, knowing fully well that there was no way you could have proper ownership of such expensive items, not with the way you look. Either that, or he’d kill you and happily take everything in your sack. If you got lucky, then maybe the owner would actually give you something in exchange, but you can bet that it would probably be 1/10 what these items are worth. Two out of the three possible scenarios end up with you dead, do you understand now?”

Kris’s jaw dropped in realization, knowing completely well that the words the girl had said were true. He casted his eyes shamefully to the ground – he definitely hadn’t thought this through.

“If you’re going to steal, you might as well steal properly,” Mihyun muttered under her breath as she shot him a sharp glare. She sighed as she pulled the now empty sack off of her bed, and moved towards the dresser.

Kris had been staring down at his feet the entire time, but he peeked up curiously once he registered the sound of the dresser opening. He watched as Mihyun pulled thick sweaters from the dresser before tucking them carefully into the sack, muttering quietly under her breath as she did so.  Kris flushed when she added a handful of his underwear that Jaesuk had bought for him into the bag without even blinking an eye.

After making sure there were a few sets of clothes in the bag, she moved on to rummage through her cabinets, knowing well that everything one needed to survive would be found in her room. She liked making sure she would be completely prepared no matter what situation she was met with. The bag was stored with more items of survival, such as matches, candles, medical supplies, and more.

She carefully tied the top of the now filled bag, and leaned it against the frame of her bed before she disappeared from the room with a quiet, “Wait here.”

Kris continued to stand there awkwardly as he awaited for the other’s return, not daring to make even the slightest movement in fear of upsetting the other.

Mihyun returned a few minutes later with a new backpack in hand. She calmly walked over to Kris and guided Kris’s arms through the slings, making him feel like a child all over again.

“What is this?” Kris managed to ask through a cracked tone.

“Food,” Mihyun answered promptly without even sparing a glance at the other, “Enough to last you a week, two if you consume it carefully.” She moved over to her work table, and rummaged through one of her drawers before withdrawing something rather small.

Kris remained silent as Mihyun pinned a small badge to the front of his shirt before taking a step back to admire her work. Finally, after such a long period of silence, Mihyun looked up to stare straight into his eyes.

“It’s a Han emblem,” Mihyun explained as she gestured to the pin. “If anybody tries to question you or get in your way, just show them that pin and they should know well to back off.” She then placed a small stuffed doll into his hand. “There’s 500,00 won hidden inside, use it wisely.”

Kris, who had remained nearly silent the entire time, stared at the girl before him, engraving her facial features into memory so that one day, maybe months, or even years from now, he would recognize the girl if they were to ever cross paths again. He finally whispered, “You’re much too kind for your own good, Mihyun.”

Mihyun sighed at his words and shook her head, “How many times do I have to tell you, Kris? I’m not as—”

“—Kind as you might think, I know,” Kris finished with his lips pursed in a small smile. “You always say that, yet you haven’t done anything to prove those words to be true.”

Mihyun thought back to the fight she had witnessed earlier that night. She recalled the eye contact she had made with that boy, the way his lips had mouthed the words, “Help me”, yet had still turned a blind eye. She bit down on her bottom lip and turned her face away from him. “You’d be surprise,” she replied in a slightly bitter tone.

“Do you know what you plan to do?” she asked.

Kris shook his head.

“Do you know where you plan to go?” Mihyun asked with a frown.

Kris shook his head again.

“Foolish,” Mihyun sighed as she clucked her tongue against the roof of . “I would rather not find out about your death a few days from now, so if you plan to die, please choose a secluded corner to do so.”

Kris winced from the harshness of her words, but couldn’t bring himself to get upset with the other. “I… I don’t know how to thank you.”

“So don’t,” Mihyun responded simply in her familiar cold tone. “I’d rather not hear thanks for this, because I’m not doing this whole heartedly.”

Kris nodded his head and offered her a small smile, “I know, but still, I am very grateful.”

Mihyun glanced at him, “Didn’t I say that I didn’t want to hear it?” She glanced at the clock and sighed to herself as she began to head towards the door. “It’s nearly 3 in the morning and I have to wake up in a few hours so I will send you on your way. Rather than risking your life from falling to your death, I would be pleased if you could use the front door this time.”

Kris nodded his head sheepishly, and followed the other out the door and down the stairs like a scolded puppy.

“I’m not sure what I’m going to tell Baekhyun,” Mihyun sighed as she ran her fingers through the side of her hair.

“Tell him I’m sorry,” Kris murmured shamefully.

“I will do no such thing,” Mihyun responded curtly. “I’m going to tell him that you were a total jerk and ran away after stealing valuable items from me.”

Kris cracked a small smile, “Fair enough.” He glanced at the front door of Mihyun’s home – a door he had never seen before after sneaking out the back way so many times – and took a deep breath of air. He turned back to the girl and offered a smile, “I guess this is good bye?”

Mihyun bit down on her bottom lip and glanced away, “I guess it is.” She was taken aback by the sudden pair of arms that wrapped themselves around her, but made no movements to push them away.

“Bye, Mihyun,” Kris called out gently as he opened the door to the dark early morning.

“Kris,” Mihyun called after him after a beat of silence.

Kris glanced over his shoulder, “Yeah?”

Mihyun paused momentarily before continuing with, “I thought you would owe it to me to tell me your real name.”

Kris froze momentarily in shock. How did she know? He stared at her for a long time, before letting out a soft chuckle. Perhaps it was better off not knowing how Mihyun was capable of discovering such things. The girl would truly never fail to amaze him. He spent a few seconds thinking, and decided that after all she had done, she deserved to hear the name he had owned since birth.

He opened his mouth to answer, but was cut off once Mihyun held up a hand to stop him.

“I don’t mean right now,” Mihyun clarified. She cracked a small smile when she saw Kris’s confused expression, and further explained her words. “If we are to ever cross each other’s paths again in the future, I wish that you will introduce your true self to me then.”

“That means that you can’t die any time soon,” Mihyun added in good naturedly.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Kris responded after a long pause. He held up a hand to the girl to wave her a last goodbye, and stepped out the door to be swallowed by the darkness of the early morning.

Mihyun continued to stand there, starring off to where Kris had disappeared to until finally having to close the door after goose bumps appeared on her arms from the cold. She wondered if she would ever meet Kris again, and chuckled softly at the thought as she climbed the stairs back up to her room. The odds of that were rather low.

“He’s gone, then?” Jaesuk asked quietly, joining her side once she stepped in front of her room.

“Mhm,” Mihyun hummed, she glanced at the man who stood loyally at her side. “You did well to tell me that he was planning to leave, Jaesuk.”

Jaesuk nodded his head, smiling at the praise he was offered.

“Sometimes I think you’re just as observant as I am,” Mihyun smiled as she stretched upward to ruffle the front of his hair affectionately. “Thank you for being by my side, Jaesuk.”

“I always will be, Agashi,” Jaesuk smiled as he opened the door for her. “You should get to bed. You have a meeting that you have to wake up for in a few hours.”

Mihyun hummed in agreement and offered him a soft good night before slipping back under the soft covers of her bed.

Mihyun thought back to what she had said earlier, when she had told Kris that he was lucky. She let out a slow sigh as she stared up at the ceiling of her bedroom. He was lucky that she had passed the official judgment on him earlier. Lucky to have claimed the title that would protect him from anything that was in Mihyun’s power.

She let out a soft groan as she turned to bury her face in her soft pillow. She wanted to be angry with Kris for daring to both steal from her and leave without a word. She wanted to yell at him and turn him into the authorities to receive his rightful punishment.

But she couldn’t.

To be honest, she couldn’t even get angry with the other.

“You’re so stupid, Han Mihyun,” Mihyun whispered quietly to herself as she hit herself lightly on the head with her small fists. She rested her arms at her side and let out another soft sigh as she thought about Kris. Deciding that there was no point in wasting more time thinking about something that had already been done, she closed her eyes shut, and allowed sleep to consume her thoughts.

For the first time in a long time, Mihyun spent the night dreaming peacefully