Chapter 56: Responsibilities and Consequences

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Yiseul never did say to leave her alone. So, he finds his spot beside her whilst holding the umbrella above the two of them. Slipping off his jacket, he places it around her shoulders. She must be in such deep thought that she doesn’t even flinch from his actions. 

Seconds tick by and neither of the two say a word.

“Don’t worry about me, my arms aren’t tired or anything,” Hanbin breaks the silence, his teasing remark finally forces Yiseul to meet his eyes. He sighs, “I knew that wouldn’t be enough to get a smile from you.”

“Why are you here, Hanbin?”

“Well, Mino told me you were crying and I didn’t want you to be all sad on your own.”

Again, Yiseul doesn’t say anything. She’s normally quiet, but this is strange even for her. 

“This is the second time,” he remarks.

“What is?”

“This is the second time I’ve seen you cry,” Hanbin explains. “And, I still don’t like it.”

“You should go home,” she responds as she looks down, finally noticing the warmth she’s getting from his jacket. “You’ll get sick–,”

“I’ll go home when you decide to.” There’s no way he is leaving Yiseul all alone on this bench. 

At first, he was able to put one teasing remark together, but now he just feels upset. Upset that he could guess the person that made Yiseul cry. Upset that he couldn’t do anything about it. 

“Yiseul, it’s frustrating because I know I can’t help you.” That’s the sense he’s getting anyway. “But, I try my best to remember that you’ll be able to figure it out. That’s the type of person you are. I won’t meddle again. So, please– I don’t want to keep seeing you so sad.”

“I don’t know what to do, Hanbin.”

“Yes, you do.”

“What if my decision hurts someone else?”

“Who cares, Yiseul,” Hanbin responds. “Who cares if you choose to be selfish for the first time in your life?”

“I don’t think I have it in me–,”

“Then, just take responsibility.”

Her brows furrow as he continues.

“Take responsibility after the fact.”

***

Hanbin heads home after Yiseul insisted that she could make it home on her own. 

Coming up to the house, she looks up and finds her mother outside, waiting for her. A sigh of relief leaves her mother. 

“Yiseul–,”

“It wasn’t my fault.”

Miss Lee clenches her hands at her side while watching Yiseul fidget nervously before her. “Mrs. Kang was harsh in her–,”

“No, what happened those many years ago, it wasn’t my fault,” she says more adamantly.

The two of them fall silent.

Only when she could see Yiseul’s eyes b with tears again did she pull her daughter into a tight embrace. “Okay, I understand.”

“How do you know if I’m telling the truth?” Yiseul speaks into her mother’s shoulder. 

“All these years, you haven’t defended yourself once. Until this moment, you have been so quiet. All I ever wanted to do was ease your suffering– no matter where it stemmed from.”

Her mother steps back and takes a look at Yiseul.

“You need to get out of your wet clothes– whose jacket is this?”

Leading Yiseul back inside the home, the two of them realize that there is another wall to scale. Mrs. Kang, who is impatiently sitting on the couch, stands to her feet upon seeing them. 

“What do you have to say for yourself?” she asks. 

“You can speak to me,” Yiseul’s mother replies instead and turns to urge her daughter into another room. “Step out for a moment.”

Doing so, Yiseul finds Mina following after her. 

Confronting Yiseul when it’s just the two of them, she asks, “What has gotten into you?”

“How I’m feeling isn’t anything new.”

“Is this all because we told you to move back in with me? Why are you so mad? What’s wrong about me not wanting to lose you to those duds at Touchstone?”

“What this is– this is so much more than that.” 

The look of frustration on Mina’s face deepens. “Is it wrong that I want for things to go back to the way they were? Before you met them and before they manipulated you into–,”

“Mina, this isn’t normal. Our relationship isn’t normal.”

“What’s abnormal about it?”

“This isn’t friendship. This isn’t how two people care for each other. This is forced. You’re just too privil

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Sriracha31
Hi everyone! Just trying to get the message out as efficiently as possible- if you would like to connect outside of fanfics, follow me on instagram at staceface_art.

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Comments

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Wanderer_bj
#1
Chapter 62: Ohh how I miss reading something not so heavy like this. I just love this and the end was just perfect. 😍
peachyjoonie_
#2
God, I miss you. Thank you for writing.
WholesomeRain
#3
Chapter 62: I miss these characters so much I’m going to puke.
WholesomeRain
#4
Chapter 60: It makes me sick that they aren’t all real people 😔 (even tho they are, but you get what I mean haha)
WholesomeRain
#5
Chapter 35: Oh, I’m also referring to Jinhwan, of course✊💯
WholesomeRain
#6
Chapter 30: That post that says “girls don’t want real men, they want fictional men written by women’ but I’m solely referring to the versions of Hanbin that you write. (Rereading chapters, yet again)
Amsohappy
#7
Chapter 62: Wow! I finally get to finish reading this breath of fresh air. I love your style.
All through the earlier chapters, I was chanting girl stand up for yourself like a mantra. I knew it wasn't easy to just up and switch. It took time, but I'm glad she achieved it in the end. Thank you, for this refreshing read.
Amsohappy
#8
Chapter 52: Girl, that's the spirit.
I don't want to.
maysui
#9
Chapter 57: The way Hanbin gives Yiseul a space and choice for her to decide shows how much he respects her.

All this time, she can't say no and I can't blame her for that. I hope they can leave safely and live how they want to.
maysui
#10
Chapter 55: Manipulating? Brainwashed? seems to be talking about herself hahaha I'm so proud Yiseul is speaking up for herself!