Dreizehn

“I’ll be going to work now, Nari.”

Nari glanced up from the breakfast table, and gave Sehun a small smile as he waved at her cheerfully whilst putting on his outdoor shoes. It had been two days since she stayed over at Sehun’s apartment, and she had pleaded for him not to tell her parents about her just yet.

For some reason, Nari felt like if she saw her parents, she would just completely break down.

“Have fun at work,” Nari widened her smile at Sehun and placed on a cheerful tone, but Sehun saw through the fragile mask she placed on right away.

Choosing not to mention it, Sehun just returned Nari’s smile, reminded her gently about eating lunch and such before leaving out of the apartment door. Yet as soon as Sehun was outside the door, he let out a frustrated sigh, the warm smile on his face immediately fading into a worried frown.

The Nari right now, was seriously making him consider whether he should just marry her right now so he could legally protect her from any harm this sick president of hers may try to do.

Yes, Nari had never been the outgoing type, but she was a happy person. Her eyes would shine and her skin would glow with vibrancy, and the small smile never really left her lips. Yes, Yoo Nari was not the bubbly person, but she was a contented person.

No, she used to be a contented person. 

The Yoo Nari right now, as she sat hunched on the chair, her shoulders tense as if prepared to fight any time wasn’t happy. The Yoo Nari, as her eyes would stare dully at inanimate objects for hours wasn’t contented. The Yoo Nari, whose complexion looked ghastly and fatigued does not make Sehun believe that she was comfortable.

The Yoo Nari right now, looked scared.

Letting out a dissatisfied grunt, Sehun walked out of the apartment building as he glanced up at the dim sky shrouded in morning fog, and he shook his head as he got into his car and shut the door behind him with one goal in mind.

And that was to go and break off all ties Nari had with her boss.

I blinked as I suddenly snapped out of my daze, and I frowned a little as I realised that I had been staring at the table top for quite a while. Glancing up at the white clock on the wall, I bit my lips as I felt my heart drop.

It had been 5 hours since Sehun left for work, and I was still sitting on the breakfast table, just zoning off into emptiness.

“H-Haha, Yoo Nari, you’re not even being confined right now,” I felt myself letting out a nervous laugh, “don’t go back into that habit of zoning out.”

Shaking my head, I stood up and began pacing around the room. My legs were numb and prickly from sitting for so long, but I ignored the physical pain and focused on sorting out the messed up and confused emotions inside of me.

Yet as I glanced around the apartment, the cosy and warm space before suddenly seemed so small and empty, and my breath started to come in short, haggard gasps as I stopped walking and fell to my knees on the ground. Without Sehun’s presence, I suddenly felt trapped, confined, suffocated.

My hands trembling just slightly, I grabbed Sehun’s sports jacket left on the couch, slung it on me in a rushed manner and sprinted outside the apartment building, ignoring the confused look the receptionist gave me on my way out.

As soon as I was outside, and was taking in the crisp fresh air and bright, sunlit day, I felt a lot better and I began walking idly down the path as I tried to regain my mindset. Shuddering a bit as the cold wind nipped at me, I zipped up Sehun’s jacket to my neck and buried my nose in the neck of the jacket as I continued walking, trying to get the claustrophobic feeling out of my system.

“Excuse me, lady?”

I blinked a little as a hoarse voice spoke behind me, and I turned around to look at a middle aged man looking in his fifties standing behind me. He was wearing a black beanie pulled over his greyish hair, and he wore a green parka jacket as well as black trousers and a pair of scruffy looking runners.

“Yes, how may I help you?” Despite his friendly smile, I felt like something about him wasn’t right. But ignoring the feeling, I returned his smile.

“Do you have a few spare dollars on you?” The man asked me as he dug his gloved hands into the parka pocket, “I’m a few coins short on buying myself a sandwich from the convenience store.”

“Ah,” I frowned a little as I searched through Sehun’s pocket, and my expression relaxed as I found a note. Pulling it out of t