Happy Fervor Day! Thank you for sticking, and make sure to read the important author's note at the end. 

24. Of Past and Regrets

Somin Jung stayed in hospital for the next week, and since she “behaved”- like they called it, so properly, she was discharged earlier than any other in her position. Hyun Joong’s threats were coming in handy like never before; Somin was listening to the doctors and nurses, agreeing to therapy and eating and resting will. She was fresh and healthy- nobody would’ve believed that she had ever tried and wanted to end her life.

Somin’s mother was calling every day, pressuring her into meeting with her aunt and cousins, and even though she had agreed that she would- the pressure was rising for each time the call was received. Her mother hadn’t wanted to wait another day for her daughter’s false explanation as to why she was not meeting with her family, and had given her deadline of two days before she would fly over and pull her by the ear.

Somin- being the afraid cat she was lately, had called her aunt right after her discharge and planned to meet up the day after. She had used the day to prepare herself into meeting somebody she hadn’t seen or talked to in several years, but nothing could’ve readied her for the approach the woman had made once she had stepped into the café.

“Somin!” The well-dressed woman squealed loudly- making everybody look up at her tall figure in question.

The niece stumbled out of her chair in respect and froze like a statue upon noticing the changes in her aunt: She looked nothing like last time they had seen each other. Her once natural hair was now coloured light-blonde, and her hazel eyes were standing out, shining like a diamond caught in sun. Still young, but more wrinkled, and her red lipstick was making her look like an evil, but beautiful queen.

She looked happy, Somin concluded in her mind with a sigh. Finally.

“Somin, my baby niece!” She all but threw herself at the girl- making her stumble back a few steps, but still somehow managing to wrap her tiny arms around the aunt’s wider back.

“Gosh, You have grown so much!” The aunt squeezed her niece into her chest- feeling this motherly love and connection with her. She was genuinely happy to see her brother’s daughter so beautiful and well, and was looking forward to their time together.

“Yeah……” She mumbled back when her aunt started peppering her warm cheeks with loud smooches.

“God, I’ve missed you so much! Remember when you were a baby-“

“Ugh,” Somin interrupted in that moment- knowing all too well the woman was going to bring up an embarrassing moment of her childhood. “Maybe we should sit down first!”

“Yes sweetie, let’s do that first. Have you drank anything?”

“Not yet,” She replied truthfully and sat down cautiously with the straightest spine she could muster- like a good kid on a school bench.

“Let’s have something then, what would you like?”

“I don’t w-“

“Oh, I know!” The aunt clapped her hands in excitement. “You used to eat croissants like a hungry street child, I bet you still love those!”

Somin looked down and smiled guilty. Oh yes, she still loved those freaking croissants.

The woman- Diana, happily walked away from their table, and not a long time after, was she back with two coffees and croissants placed on a plastic tray.

“Here you go,” She smiled at her niece and reached over the table to brush away few strands gluing themselves to her company’s forehead.

“Thank you,” Somin nodded politely and cautiously brought the cup up to sip the hot coffee. Once the sip was taken, she was ready to talk business.

“It has been so long since I’ve seen you,” Diana thought out loud, “You were 12 last time I visited.”

“Yeah,” She nodded, remembering that it had indeed been many years since she had seen her aunt and rest of the family. “How have you guys been?”

“Fabulous!” came the immediate answer, “We’ve been so good Somin, you don’t know, life here is so great.”

The girl understood, because she herself couldn’t agree more. Even though Seoul had brought bad experiences for her, it was still the place she would wish to life for her whole life. Her friends were here, the opportunities were here. Her parents away, nobody to insult her or make her feel like an outcast. Seoul was surely a dream.

“Your cousins miss you so much! They wanted to come too, but you see your cousin has just started her internship at this hospital nearby, and the little one is having an important test. They can’t wait to see you again!”

“About that-“ Somin organized her thoughts tidely before letting them sprout out from . “I understand that mom’s wishes won’t work well with any of us, and I’ve tried talking to her, but she is not willing to listen. Have you tried talking to her? I’m sure she’ll understand that I can’t disturb your family like that if you talk to her-“

“What?” Diana coughed on her black, sugarless coffe. “What are you talking about sweetie?”

She rushed her words in nervousness this time, “If you could just tell mom that I can’t live with you, it would have been great for me.”

The older woman scrunched her nose- as if she was disgusted either by the talk or by the taste of her bitter coffee. “Why would I do that?”

Somin had already opened to thank her aunt, but closed it like a fish when her aunt’s words registered in her mind. Why would she do that? Why would she not do that? “What?”

“Why would I say that I don’t want my niece to live with me?” Her tone was confused, yet so angry. “Don’t you want to live with us?” She was hurt even. Her niece- whom she hadn’t seen in so many years was basically rejecting her gracious offer. Why would she not want to live with them?

The girl felt like she was being attacked, and all hopes were leaving her body now. She had believed her aunt would help her, but now it didn’t seem like she would at all. Her family was clearly getting together and scheming against her and her plans. She felt defeated.

“It’s not that-“ It was exactly that, she didn’t want to live with somebody who’d control her life the same way her parents had. “It’s just that…… how am I supposed to go to university, work and all?” It was a pretty lame excuse, but she couldn’t give up without trying once at least. “I feel comfortable living on campus, it gives me easy access to everything auntie.”

“You don’t need to worry about that,” Auntie argued rationally. “You’ll be living only a 20 minutes’ drive away from both the university and the city. Where do you work at?”

Somin rubbed her forehead tiredly and put on a fake smile. “I work at a café nearby.”

“That’s great!” Diana clapped her hands excitedly, “Then everything is settled, you’ll be moving in as soon as you get your stuff moved.”

“But, but-“

“There are no buts Somin,” Her aunt rolled her eyes, “You won’t be bothered at all, don’t worry, your uncle drives to the city every day for work anyways, and he’ll be your transport system, okay?”

“I don’t want to bother him…..”

“There’s nothing bothersome about that, stop treating us like we’re some strangers and not your family!”

Diana was acting offended- but inside she was laughing evilly. That horrified expression which took place on her niece’s face was priceless as she tried convincing her that she had misunderstood and was overthinking her reason for not wanting to move.

“Just listen to me and I will believe that you don’t hate us.”

“Auntie-“

“If you don’t listen, I’ll take it you dislike us and therefore don’t want to live with us.”

That’s all it took for the young girl to agree- still with a heavy heart and protesting consciousness. She really admired her aunty and her cousins, but the idea of living with them didn’t exactly seem attracting. Now it seemed she had to put herself in a position she didn’t like the thought of, all because of her childish and demanding mother. Somin felt angry and controlled, but knew she wasn’t about to protest or anything.

* * * * *

Somin knew hell was awaiting her the moment she stepped inside her dorm. Hyun Joong was standing over a cross-legged Haera, his face angry and his hands closed into two fists.

She really didn’t want to have to deal with him in that instant, and was about to sneak inside the bedroom, but unluckily for her- Haera spotted her first and breathed out a sigh of relief.

“Take it easy, she’s here.”

It was never good to curse over your friends, but in that moment, Somin couldn’t help but curse at Haera for opening and telling him she had arrived.

The man spun around, stalked to the woman owning his heart and gripped her wrist in a painfully harsh way. “Where were you?”

“Let go of me,” She told him, not wanting to answer his question, and instead trying to claw his hand off her wrist. She didn’t like the way he had been treating her for the past week- as if he was her parent, or at times her husband. He was demanding and controlling- nothing of the likes of hers.

“I said, where did you go?” It was a demand to know. He was angry she had disappeared without informing even her roommate. He was simply paranoid, and believed  that whenever Somin was alone, she was actually performing a mission of suicide. He feared that someday he’d have to pick up a call where it would be said that Somin Jung had committed suicide, so he made sure to have her locations and doings controlled at all times. Also, as per the