Seohyun stirred awake, her eyes rapidly blinking as she tried to take in her surroundings. Realizing that Yonghwa was sound asleep next to her with his arm wrapped snugly around her waist, she stared down at his peaceful face and gently traced his features with a feathery touch.

A shiver worked its way through her as she recalled the events of the past night. Who was that kid? How’d he know my weakness?

Not that many people knew about her fear of . Only three people did- Yonghwa, Taeyeon, and Jungshin… or so she thought.

Her fear stemmed from her miserable childhood in that woman’s house, where that woman would threaten to hire some disgusting es to the innocent Seohyun if she misbehaved. The cycle of threats found their way to Seohyun’s heart, and she became terrified of the word, especially after one incident where that woman returned home drunk and took her anger out on Seohyun by ordering men to her. A furious Yonghwa had returned in time, but the terror stayed with her throughout her life.

Wait.

That means her mother knew of her fear.

Which means that that red-haired stranger could’ve been her mother’s henchman.

And that means her mother now knows of her reunion with Yonghwa.

A different electric shock of fear shot through her nerves as she gazed at Yonghwa.

She didn’t know whether her mother paid that boy.

She didn’t know whether her relationship with Yonghwa as in jeopardy.

She didn’t know whether they were safe or not.

She didn’t know the future.

But Seohyun knew one thing for sure- Hell would break loose sooner or later.

Lying back down, she burrowed back into Yonghwa’s arms, a feeling of security momentarily washing over her dread. If only we can stay like this forever.

Time stretched and froze as she stayed next to him, the horrors of yesterday, today, and the future seemingly long gone.

Finally the sleeping choding twitched and an enormous yawn erupted from his mouth.

“You’re finally awake,” Seohyun smiled as she sat up.

“… huh…?” Yonghwa’s eyes kept fluttering shut as he also sat up, his head drooping with the heavy longing for sleep.

“Pabo, when’d you sleep last night?” She swatted his arm lightly.

“I couldn’t sleep with such a beautiful lady next to me,” he grinned.

“Greasy choding.” Seohyun swung her legs over the edge of the bed to go wash up when she realized she was still in her dress- her dress that rode up several inches while she was sleeping. Hastily tugging it back down, she refreshed herself in the bathroom, showered, and changed into a comfortable outfit. By the time she came out, Yonghwa was standing on his feet with the half-asleep expression still planted on his adorable face, his hair completely messed up.

He came up and hugged her from the back, whispering into her ear, “Wanna go on a date today?”

Stiffening slightly, she turned around to face him. What if Red Head is really from my mother?

Searching her troubled eyes, Yonghwa knew something was up. “What’s wrong?” He asked softly.

“What if… what if that boy from yesterday was sent by her?” Seohyun’s answer was barely audible as she pushed it out with a breath of air.

After becoming rigid for a second, Yonghwa relaxed and pulled Seohyun into another hug. “Well, I guess we’ll just have to hang out here today.”

Seohyun’s lip tilted upward slightly, her smile disappearing fast as she remembered the type of woman her mother was- one who was constantly seeking after fortune, letting nothing stand in her way. Seohyun’s eyes flickered to her boyfriend’s face. “Hey. I know this usually happens in dramas and fanfics, but promise me that if my mother ever approaches you with a deal saying that if you leave me, she won’t hurt me type of thing, you won’t agree. Or if it’s a situation where you, for some reason, absolutely have to do what she says, tell me or send me a message so that I won’t be freaking heartbroken and that I can find you later?”

“I promise. And hey, same goes for me. Thankfully I’ll be eighteen in like, a few days, two days to be exact, so our troubles will be over soon. She can’t control me once we reach my birthday.”

“I bet all of our troubles will be coming in this coming day though- since that woman also knows you’re turning eighteen, the age when her power over you is gone.” She bit her lip and sighed. “Is there any way your dad could help us? Since she’s depending on his money and all.”

His face lit up. “I’ll ask.” Flipping open his phone, he came faced to face by the onslaught of ten missed calls, the majority from Taeyeon. “Shoot.”

Just as he was about to call her, an incoming call came.

“Hello?”

“Yonghwa?”

“Yeah. What’s up?” Seeing Seohyun’s anxious and curious look, he switched over to speakerphone.

“Don’t come home,” Taeyeon whispered in a hushed tone. “Whatever you do, don’t come home.”

“Taeyeon? Who are you talking to?”

Seohyun and Yonghwa both flinched at the sound of that woman’s sugary voice.

“Oh, I’m calling a classmate about homework,” they heard Taeyeon fib. “So like I was saying, we’re supposed to do page 345-368? That’s a lot! Oh, and by the way, that was my mother. She was just curious about who I was talking to. Do I need help? No, it’s okay,” Taeyeon carried the conversation by herself, attempting to find ways to enclose her warning to her siblings. “I can always ask my mother. She knows a lot. Oh you have to go? Oh, okay. Just be careful when you’re outside, okay? I heard on the news that there are a lot of bad people out there looking for someone. All right. Thank you for your help! Stay safe, okay?” She hung up.

There was a moment of silence that followed as Seohyun and Yonghwa stared at each other in shock.

“She knows,” Seohyun whispered.

Yonghwa frantically dialed his father’s number. In dramas, at moments like this, the evil mother would usually be setting up her son in an arranged marriage for money. And that sounds exactly like that that woman would be doing right now.

“Hello?” A brisk, businesslike voice came through the phone.

“Appa?”

“Oh, Yo-Yonghyun! It’s been a while since we’ve talked. Oh, a business proposal? I see. Why don’t we have lunch and talk this over?”

“Is that woman with you right now?” Yonghwa hissed.

“Yeah. That’s a good idea.” His father chuckled as if the “business man” he was talking to had said something funny.

“So that means you’re home too?”

“Of course. So where would you like to meet?”

Seohyun pointed at herself. There is no way we’re leaving this house. Yonghwa nodded. “Can you come to Seohyun’s house?”

“I remember that place! It’s been years since I’ve been there, but I can still find the way.”

“Can you come soon?”

“I suppose we can have a brunch meeting. All right, I’ll see you soon. Bye- bye.”

Yonghwa expelled a long breath after he ended the call. He wandered out into the living room and placed himself stiffly on the couch.

Seohyun’s father was already at work, leaving behind a note saying to be careful, he’d heard that her mother was back in town.

Seohyun picked up the note, frowned, and placed it back down. A little too late for that notice, but thanks dad. Positioning herself next to Yonghwa, she leaned against his shoulder. I wonder how many more times we can sit like this together?

He turned his head and planted a kiss on her forehead. “Hey. We’ll be fine.” He took her hands in his and looked into her eyes. “No matter what’s about to happen, I love you. Even if we get separated, that’s only momentarily. I’ll find you again. I love you. And remember what we promised each other earlier? How about instead of agreeing with her deals that she’s bound to make, if it comes to a situation where it looks like we have no choice but to give in to her wishes, we just disappear to another country for a while? I know in the dramas the evil person leaves no way out for the good guy except through agreeing to break up with his girlfriend, but we’re living. We’re not stuck inside a TV screen. We can change our future. So promise me this, Seohyun. If either of us is threatened, we will find a way to each other and tell each other of the threat, okay? Then we can find refuge for the time being in some safe land and wait for the storm to pass. Promise me, Seohyun. Promise me you’ll never leave me because of something she says or does.”

Seohyun stared into his brown eyes. They both knew that that woman was going to throwing compromises out to them the moment she found them. “I love you. And I promise you I’ll never leave you. We have a week until we’re free. I promise that when we’re stuck in a super bad situation, I won’t leave. I’ll stay by your side. And you better promise me too.”

“Deal,” he smiled. “Man, today’s just the day for making promises, huh?”

Yeah. But I just wonder how well we’ll be able to keep them. Seohyun was worried. What if that woman makes a deal where it’s either I leave Yonghwa or she’ll ruin his future? What will I do? She rubbed her temples.

“Seohyun, my future isn’t complete without you. I don’t care if she’s going to try to ruin my future. You’re in my future with me,” Yonghwa said, his eyes staring at the ceiling.

“What, are you reading my mind now?”

“No, but I can tell you’re still stressed.” Leaning over, he placed his lips gently on Seohyun’s. Kissing her lightly, he pulled back. “We can do this.”

She nodded.

The doorbell rang. 

~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~

HEY GUYS! Sorry I haven't updated in FOREVER.

Good news though.. The story is done! I finished typing the whole thing & now I'm uploading the last few chapters.

Sorry.. but I'm not going to be replying to comments. I was going to & checked through the comments..

and realized there were too many to reply to..

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR COMMENTING THOUGH ! 

I LOVED THE CONVERSATIONS I HAD WITH Y'ALL.

They were super interesting and they kept me going. 

However, due to the super large time span between the start of this story & now,

I'm pretty sure I've left some parts out of the story.

Like.. Jessica.

I mentioned her once & she never appeared ever again.

I apologize for that.

But er.. I have no clue how to fit her in. I'm not sure what I was thinking about back when I wrote that chapter,

but looking back I'm like "uh...?" aha.

And there probably are some other parts that I hinted at way back when, but I never continued those hinted stories because I've  forgotten what I was originally planning to do with them.

*SORRY!*