XIII

Avarice

thirteen.

Amber winced when she was grabbed by the collar and pulled forward, causing her to stumble over her own feet and she almost fell onto Seulgi had the latter not been holding her by the shirt and keeping her upright. She looked into anger-filled eyes that were practically burning holes through her and she swallowed hard.

“I swear to God if anything happens to her, you will be the one I hold responsible.” Seulgi said threateningly. “So you better start praying she stays safe.” She released her, pushing her back slightly and Amber nodded meekly, backing away from her as the businesswoman took out her phone and dialled a number. She grabbed the car keys from her table while still waiting for the phone to be picked up and gestured for Amber to follow.

“What? Me?” She pointed at herself, confused.

“This is your fault after all.” Seulgi grabbed her arm and dragged her out impatiently. “You’re coming with me to find them.”

Amber didn’t try to protest and followed obediently. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know it would turn out like this.” She apologized profusely once they were in the elevator. “I didn’t think she would do anything crazy and…Oh God, wait, could it be because..” Amber’s voice faded out when the possibility dawned on her and Seulgi looked at her questioningly.

“Because what?”

“N-Nothing.” Amber stuttered, diverting her gaze quickly. “I can’t tell you.” She blurted.

Seulgi’s eyes narrowed and she turned to give her a death stare that made her shiver. “Listen here, Amber.” She said in a low voice and the poor girl really thought that this would be her last time hearing her own name. “Joohyun could be in danger right now and it’s your fault that this is happening. The least you can do now is cooperate and tell me everything you know.”

“I guess you’re right.” Amber mumbled as Seulgi stormed out of the elevator and she had to jog to keep up with how quickly she was walking. She didn’t even have time to properly admire the expensive sportscar before Seulgi yelled at her to hurry up and get in. Amber quickly buckled up and Seulgi was already calling someone else.

“Hello? Who is this?” The girl on the other end of the phone asked cautiously when she picked up.

“Seungwan, it’s Seulgi.”

“What the hell? How did you get my number-”

“That’s not important right now!” Seulgi cut her off. “Is Joohyun with you?” She asked urgently.

“Joohyun? No, she isn’t.” Seungwan stuttered, stunned at Seulgi’s distressed tone. “Is something the matter? Why are you looking for her?”

“I’ll explain that to you later, what’s important is finding her now.” Seulgi said, raking her hand through her hair anxiously. “Do you know where she might be? Did she tell you where she would be going today?”

“You’re scaring me, what is going on?”

“Just answer me!” Seulgi accidentally raised her tone out of impatience and she tensed up when she realised how rude she was. She released a tired breath, palming her face while the other side of the line stayed silent. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to yell at you. I’m not in my right mind.”

“I-It’s okay.” Seungwan pushed aside the thoughts of why Seulgi was so desperate to find Joohyun and focused on recalling where Joohyun said she would go today. She thought back to their brief conversation over breakfast before Joohyun left and gasped when she finally remembered. “She said she was going to go home and pack some more things.” She exclaimed.

“Go home?” Seulgi sounded confused.

She thought the line got cut when there was a moment of silence. “Like… Your home. Or what used to be.” Seungwan said awkwardly.

“Oh.” Seulgi paused and then smiled bitterly at the reminder. Could she even call that her home anymore? Did her home even exist anymore? Sure, she currently owned a place in the most expensive part of the city, filled with everything she could ever want and that was where she lived, that was where she returned at the end of every day.

But it wasn’t home.

Because Seulgi had realised much earlier on that home wasn’t a place. To her, home was a person and it didn’t take a genius to figure out who.

“Amber, does Krystal know the address of our apartment?” Seulgi asked, turning her head to look at her.

“Yes, she does.” Amber mumbled while keeping her head down, ashamed and flinched slightly when Seulgi hit the side of the steering wheel with her palm, cursing under her breath. Amber saw the way she clutched the wheel so tightly that her knuckles were turning white and she wanted to say something to reassure her and tell her to calm down but she was scared of getting snapped at again so she stayed mute.

“Thanks Seungwan, please let me know if you hear any news about Joohyun.”

“Wait, you haven’t told me what’s going on-”

Seulgi ended the call and turned to Amber again. “What were you going to say in the elevator? Spit it out, and fast. I don’t have time to waste.” Seulgi turned the ignition on and the engine rumbled to life.

Amber fidgeted nervously. “Okay, well…”

...

Joohyun gasped when the splash of ice cold water hit her face and her weak eyelids fluttered open to see the world through unfocused vision. Her head was throbbing and her vision was still hazy as she turned her head sluggishly to make sense of where she was.

“Wake up.” She felt a light slapping against her cheek and her eyes wearily looked up to see a face in front of hers.

“What…What is going on?” She asked in a hoarse voice, blinking hard to adjust her vision as the figure in front of her sat back down on her chair across from the dining table. Joohyun tried to reach up to clutch her head but soon discovered she couldn’t move her arm at all. She looked down and was shocked to find herself tied against the armrests of the chair. “Why am I tied?” She struggled to move her arms but the confinements were tight and it only hurt more as she struggled. She looked up with eyes that were much more alert and panicked, and that was when she finally realised who was sitting before her. “Krystal?” She asked in disbelief.

The girl smirked, her eyes glinting. “So you know who I am, huh?” She said, sounding quite proud.

“Why are you here? Why am I like this?” Joohyun looked down at her state again before averting her confused gaze back on the girl. “What do you want?” She stammered.

“Don’t worry. I just wanted to have a nice talk with you, I won’t hurt you.” She said reassuringly, although the scalpel she was toying with in her hands spoke otherwise.

“I don’t remember us ever meeting.” Joohyun’s throat went dry as she eyed the dangerous object in her hands. “For what reason would you want to talk?”

“For this reason.” Krystal swept an arm around to gesture to the house they were in and Joohyun struggled to keep her voice stable.

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“Oh quit the innocent act already.” She hissed, slamming her hand on the table and leaning closer which made Joohyun flinch. “I know all about you and Seulgi, so don’t bother pretending.” She stood up and walked around to tour herself around the small apartment while leaving Joohyun still bound and speechless.

Krystal hummed to herself, running her fingers across the white sheets that covered the furniture as she walked past. “Cute love story you had there, it’s unfortunate it had to end so tragically.”

“What do you want?” Joohyun asked with more anger and firmness in her tone.

Krystal didn’t acknowledge her question and continued inspecting the place. “Is that where you slept together every night?” She asked, looking at the bed and Joohyun could sense the jealousy dripping from her voice. “What a cute place. So, very small though.” She tutted, walking back over. “How do you live in a place so cramped? I can see why Seulgi chose to leave you.” She chuckled and Joohyun narrowed her eyes at her. “Have you seen her house now? Even her bathroom is bigger than this pathetic place. She was smart to choose a life that would give her so much more than just this.” Krystal gestured not only at the house but also at Joohyun.

She still said nothing, only staring with silent anger at the girl who towered above her. Krystal looked down and made an expression of fake pity. “Aw, don’t feel so sad. You should’ve known Seulgi was only with you for the money. Such a shame that Bae Enterprise got shut down and you became useless without your big company and your daddy.”

“Don’t talk about my dad. Don’t you dare.” Joohyun warned, her hands clenching into fists and tugging uselessly against the restraints. “And you’re wrong. Seulgi and I were only together after I lost everything and became ‘useless’.” She said, feeling oddly satisfied by the surprised look on Krystal’s face.

“But eventually she realised she couldn’t deal with living like a peasant.” Krystal recovered from her embarrassment. “And look where she is now. She’s achieved so much after leaving a burden like you behind.”

Joohyun refused to show weakness because it would make the psychopath in front of her feel triumphant, but tears pricked her eyes and she had to try her hardest to force them to stay in. She wasn’t even sure why she was crying; perhaps it was out of fear. At least, that’s what she hoped, because she didn’t want to acknowledge that she was crying because Krystal was probably right.

“I’m curious about something.” Krystal leant down, bending her knees so that she was at eye level with Joohyun. “Do you regret it? When you see how successful and how rich she is now, do you wish you had chosen to cling to her so that you could be living that life right now too?”

Joohyun kept her unwavering gaze on the girl’s and she had to admit this was a question she often asked herself too. “The only regret I have is not trying harder to make her stay.” Joohyun replied with surprising calmness compared to her previous shakiness. “If I had clung to her more, if I had begged and cried more, maybe she wouldn’t have chosen to go down the wrong path. I regret letting her go so easily.”

“Wrong path.” Krystal sneered. “You call success the wrong path.”

“You know what kind of things your father does to get to where he is today.” Joohyun said angrily, raising her voice when Krystal turned around.

Again, her words went unheard. Krystal straightened up, pacing back and forth with her hands running through her hair like she was contemplating something deeply. Joohyun heard her muttering inaudible things underneath her breath and then finally Krystal spoke up again. “You said you let her go. But then why the are you trying to take her away from me now?” She demanded, eyes flaring up with newfound anger.

“What?” Joohyun’s eyes widened at the accusation.

“It’s you! You’re the reason she’s rejecting me. No one ever rejects me, I’m Krystal Jung! What I want, I get. Seulgi is mine and I won’t let you take her away from me.”

“You’re crazy.” Joohyun said in disbelief.

“Why does Seulgi think about you when I’m right next to her? Why does she care so much about you when I’m the one who is always with her?” Krystal demanded, storming closer and Joohyun tried to back away but she was stuck right where she was and she winced when the girl grabbed her face to force her to look up. “It’s because you’re pretty, isn’t it? It’s only because you have a pretty face.” The crazed look in her eyes made Joohyun shudder in fear and she tried to shake her head to remove herself from the forceful grip but Krystal only tightened her hold on her face as her other hand reached behind to take the scalpel from the table.

The cold tip of the sharp blade touched the side of her face.

“So if you’re no longer pretty, then Seulgi won’t care about you.”

...

“I can’t believe you’re still terrified of thunderstorms even after so many years.” Seulgi teased.

“S-Shut up.” Joohyun mumbled into her shirt, clutching onto Seulgi’s arm tighter and burying her face into the crook of Seulgi’s neck when another thunderclap shook the world, letting out an embarrassing squeak in the process which made Seulgi laugh out loud. Joohyun punched her shoulder lightly for making fun of her, looking up with an angry pout that was so cute she couldn’t possibly think she was being intimidating.

“Okay, okay I’ll stop.” Seulgi grinned, kissing her forehead before pulling her in closer and enveloping the smaller girl’s body with her own, feeling Joohyun eagerly nuzzle closer to her warmth. “So… What exactly are you scared of?” Seulgi pondered aloud.

“The loud noise, idiot.” Joohyun replied with a muffled voice.

“That’s all?” Seulgi stifled a laugh. “I thought you were scared of getting struck by lightning or that the thunder would attack you or something.”

“You’re making fun of me again.”

“No I’m not.” Seulgi smirked, knowing full well she was.

There was a light shove against her shoulders, placing distance between them and Joohyun gave her a glare. “Forget it, I’ll find someone else to sleep with.”

“No, no. I’m sorry.” Seulgi wrapped her arms possessively around Joohyun’s waist to stop her from moving away and Joohyun smirked at how easily she gave in to her. “I’m the only one who can protect you from the storm.”

“Yeah? And how exactly do you plan to fight off a thunderstorm?” She asked, relaxing in her embrace and leaning her head against Seulgi’s chest.

Seulgi furrowed her brows, contemplating it deeply. “I could try.” She said with absolute seriousness that made Joohyun burst into laughter.

“That sounds ridiculous.” She almost teared up from laughing at the image of Seulgi valiantly attempting to fight the sky and failing miserably since it was practically impossible to do so.

“Laugh and call it ridiculous all you want, but it’s true.” Seulgi said with a shrug, leaning back so that she could meet her gaze. “I would go to the ends of the earth for you, Hyun. I’ll do anything it takes to protect you.”

Her heart swelled in her chest at the words that reminded her how perfect her girlfriend was and exactly why she was so in love with her. A smile spread across her face as she caressed Seulgi’s cheek. “I know.” She told her before covering her lips with her own and smiling as Seulgi kissed her back just as tenderly.

Joohyun was given a confused look when she broke the kiss early and she pressed her forehead against Seulgi’s, making sure the younger girl’s eyes were locked on hers. “Just promise me you won’t do something stupid and hurt yourself trying to protect me.” She mumbled.

“Okay. I promise.” Seulgi whispered back.

...

“Seulgi!” Joohyun heard her own voice, loud and clear, yet distant as if it didn’t come from her. Everything sounded distant to her in this moment. Everything was a blur and it was as if all of her surroundings just faded because all she could focus on was Seulgi and Seulgi alone.

Well, the blood too. The unsettling and extremely worrying amounts of crimson pooling on the floor beside her that sent Joohyun’s mind into haywire.

Behind her, although muffled and somewhat echoic, she heard Krystal crying and repeating over and over again that she was sorry and that she didn’t mean to do this.

“T-This wasn’t meant to happen!” She stammered, eyes wide at the sight before her and hands shaking after she dropped the scalpel to the ground.

Amber held onto Krystal, desperately trying to calm her down and reassure her that it was okay. The last thing any of them wanted was for her to lose her mind even more. “Hey, hey, look at me! I know you didn’t mean it, and it’s going to be fine. We’ll get through this, alright?”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to hurt Seulgi! I don’t know why…I couldn’t control…” Krystal’s voice cracked and the tears didn’t stop flowing. She was shaking all over and Amber just hugged her tightly whilst hushing her. The hysteric girl tried to go over to Seulgi but flinched when Joohyun yelled at her to stay away and Amber pulled her back gently to prevent her from making anything worse.

Joohyun was on her knees beside Seulgi, hands trembling and hovering unsurely because she was terrified of hurting her even more.

Seulgi reached up and held onto Joohyun’s hand, stopping the shaking. Her hand was still warm and she gave her a reassuring squeeze, a strained smile on her face. “Hey, I’m okay. Don’t worry about me.”

“How can you say that? You’re bleeding to death as we speak.” Joohyun’s voice was full of panic and worry, her eyes darting back and forth between Seulgi’s face and the spot on her abdomen that Seulgi was clutching with her left hand.

She laughed and then winced when laughing proved to be painful with her current state. “It’s fine, I’m not going to die from this.” She reassured, applying more pressure onto the wound and hissing quietly. Her attention was drawn away from the pain when she noticed the small cut on Joohyun’s face, just above her cheekbone. She cupped her face and brought her closer, eyes flashing concern when she looked at the thin red line marring the once flawless skin. The blade must’ve somehow nicked her during the chaos. “You’re hurt.” She said, sounding more worried than she did when she talked about herself.

“Don’t try to change the topic.” Joohyun brought Seulgi’s hand away from her face but kept clutching onto her hand. “You lied to me. You promised me you wouldn’t do something stupid and get yourself hurt. Why did you do that?” Joohyun demanded, her worries suddenly shifting into anger. “You’re such an idiot!” She yelled, and she didn’t know she had been crying until Seulgi reached up to gently brush the tears from her cheeks with her thumb.

She was yelling at her and scolding her while she was in pain yet Seulgi still wiped her tears for her and smiled at her like she was the most beautiful being she had ever seen. (Because she really was.)

“I promised I wouldn’t do something stupid, and I didn’t.” She replied. “It’s never stupid if it’s protecting you.” She added earnestly, making more tears flow from Joohyun’s eyes. Seulgi diverted her gaze down to Joohyun’s hand that was clasped in hers, seeing the light bruising around her wrists and for some reason, that seemed to hurt more than the gash on her side. “Are you hurt anywhere else?” She asked, running her thumb across the marks.

“Worry about yourself first, Kang.” Joohyun said, breathing out a short sigh of relief when she heard the sound of the ambulance finally arriving downstairs.

“I’m not worth worrying about.” She shook her head, smiling weakly and Joohyun shook her head in disagreement. She grew concerned again at how pale Seulgi looked and how her hand was less warm than before, making her clasp Seulgi’s hand tighter in both of hers in a desperate attempt to give her some warmth.

“Just wait a little more, you’ll be okay soon. Don’t worry.” She said, the words of reassurance directed at Seulgi although she was the one who needed it herself.

Seulgi smiled, her gaze lingering on their joined hands for a moment before she spoke again and Joohyun could tell how it was painful for her to even speak loudly. “Joohyun?”

“Yeah?” She moved closer to hear her over the sound of the commotion caused by the ambulance downstairs and the paramedics making their way up.

“Will you be there when I wake up?”

“Of course.” She drew in a shaky breath, not wanting to think about the possibility of Seulgi not waking up. She held onto her hand a little tighter, refusing to let go because she was afraid of what would happen if she did. “I’ll be there, so don’t sleep for too long.”

...

a/n: HEY i'm back again!
now let's get to some real seulrene moments yeah?
(but warning: the angst is not over yet)

btw i have twitter if you want to be friends :) 
thanks for reading. love u <3

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angrywater
got featured :O thank you so much to everyone for reading and for supporting this fic <3 love you

Comments

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howdoyouknowmee
501 streak #1
🌷🤍
Apcxjsv
#2
Chapter 23: Simply spectacular🤍🤍
munsolar #3
Chapter 10: u r genius. i love this trope
dancingseulo
#4
Reading this again.
seulrene_daze #5
Chapter 23: ah.. rereading this again for the nth time coz i cant never get enough about this story hahaha
Oct_13_wen_03 36 streak #6
🤍🤍🤍
Luvylynn #7
Chapter 23: The angst really gets me. You really good at playing with my feelings author-nim. But I’m really glad to stumble into your masterpiece though you make me feel sick in my stomach with all the emotional turmoil. Nevertheless, It’s really a good read where you can literally feel the character’s emotions.
gomtokkim
2113 streak #8
Chapter 1: rereading<3
xantheaverielle
#9
Chapter 23: This was so soooo good! Finished it in a day 😭 This was so beautifully written. Every word portrayed each character's emotions well. I appreciate that the story didn't only revolve around Irene and Seulgi and their relationship but it also gave us a glimpse of the lives and thoughts of the people around them. This easily goes into my Top 10. I love this so much. Thank you for writing and giving us Seulrene endgame despite all the angst. This is really my type of fic. Thank you!
Jensoo4everlove #10
Chapter 23: That was beautiful ❤ The angst got on my nerves though 😂