Chapter 19

Wolfheart
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Raina smiled at her guests, marble eyes empty. “More tea, anybody?”

The teapot hovered in her hand, elegant and gold-spouted. It didn’t shake at all, Jandi noted, even though it had to be heavy and piping hot, and Raina was probably exhausted from waking up early to make breakfast arrangements for the visitors. Another part of the dollhouse facade, it seems.

“No, thank you,” Kyungsoo said politely, taking another sip from his own cup. “This is excellent tea though, Raina. Is that orange blossom I taste?”

“Yes, Mr. Do. With a hint of jasmine as well. We import it from Byrdia at the end of the second tea harvest season every year.” Raina’s voice was so perfectly soft, her gaze so impeccably subservient, that Jandi wondered if even Kyungsoo was aware of the firecracker lurking beneath the veneer. If he was, he didn’t show any sign of it, merely offering their hostess a smile before returning to his breakfast.

Impaling a bite of buttery sliced toast on her fork, Jandi tried to munch as quietly as possible and stared down at her plate, wondering if the tomatoes ought to be eaten with a fork or a spoon. I hope I’m doing this right. She still didn’t know what was considered proper table manners in the Capital - most days, she took her meals alone, and it wasn’t as if she’d had an etiquette tutor of any sort. She didn't think Raina or Kyungsoo would mind any table manner missteps, but the stakes would be higher for the dinner party scheduled for that night. Making a mental note to ask Kyungsoo later what all the different utensils and cloths were for, she swallowed. The toast stuck in , dry and rough under the buttery top layer, and she resorted to washing it down with tea for fear of choking.

Thankfully, Jeongmin was absent for breakfast - Kyungsoo was scheduled to make a speech in the city square later that day, and he needed to finalize the security detail - but Jandi still felt like there were eyes watching them in his absence. The serving staff, perhaps? If Mansoo has our chauffeur reporting our every action back to him, I wouldn’t be surprised if Jeongmin has similar arrangements in place.

“Jandi, I’m afraid I’ll have to leave you here for most of the morning,” Kyungsoo said, bringing her attention back to the conversation. “I need to discuss some logistics with Jeongmin’s team before the rally, but I’ll be back after lunch.”

“Oh.” Jandi caught the raised eyebrow he directed at her, understanding the unspoken question. “Yes, that’s fine. I’ll be fine, don’t worry.”

The teapot wobbled in Raina’s hand for a second before she steadied it, the flash of surprise across her features disappearing as she poured herself another cup of steaming tea. “Yes, the gardeners have just brought in some newly cut flowers. We can make floral arrangements for tonight, Jandi, to put on all the tables. Jeongmin does love for the place to look nice when people come over.”

Something about Raina’s tone, or perhaps the brief twitch of her lips, convinced Jandi a plan was being hatched - as Raina would say, sabotage. Perhaps Jeongmin was allergic to flowers? If so, Jandi would be ever so happy to spend the day arranging flowers. Fighting down the urge to cackle, Jandi nodded.

“Well,” Kyungsoo said, looking faintly surprised at the wide grin on Jandi’s face, “that does sound nice. Flowers can do a lot to liven a place up.”

Jandi exchanged a glance with Raina, who was hiding her own smile in her teacup. Oh yes, they can.

***

“Oh, he’s allergic to everything!” Raina wrapped a strip of lace around a bunch of lilies gleefully, tying off the bow with a crooked grin. “Roses, calla lilies, baby’s breath - even the little green filler leaves! He's going to be absolutely miserable tonight.”

A giggle bubbled out of as Jandi tried to imitate Raina’s neatly tied bundles to no avail. Kyungsoo had left nearly half an hour ago, and the two women were sprawled on the floor of a guest room with mountains of flowers all around them. “Really? How does he ever go outside in the spring?”

“He does his best to stay indoors. Allergy medicine only does so much for him.” Raina pursed her lips. “Do you like the leather fern in this bundle? I’m worried it clashes too much with the smaller flowers.”

Peering at the arrangement, Jandi blinked. “I think it looks quite nice. Actually, all of your arrangements look leaps and bounds better than mine.”

Raina waved her off, giving her flowers a final once over. “Oh it’s alright. If you don’t like how yours look, we can stick them in the master bathroom upstairs so Jeongmin has no refuge from the pollen, even when he needs the toilet.”

Grinning, Jandi gave the bundle she was working on one last rueful prod. “Sure. But Raina, won’t he be angry with you?”

“He’s always angry.” The other woman waved her off. “Anyway, I doubt he’ll suspect that I made the floral arrangements. The bastard only ever notices my existence when he wants something from me, and I don’t think the concept that I have my own mind has ever occurred to him. If he’s angry, I’ll tell him some politician friend of his had the flowers delivered. Besides, he won't hit me when we have so many guests over.”

Something churned in Jandi’s stomach at her bitter tone and the way she rubbed at her neck mindlessly, willing away the memories of long-healed scars. “Raina, can’t you… can’t you do something?”

Eyes focused on a rose stem she was t, Raina hummed. “I am doing something. I’m annoying him.”

“No, I meant… I don’t know, can’t you leave him? Or something?” Jandi knew she sounded naive, but the injustice of the situation was unbearable. She’d only known Raina for less than a day, and already she knew that here was a woman with a sharp wit and a pretty face, a woman in the height of her youth who was intelligent, perceptive, and wholly deserving of a better life. Having to hear about her mistreatment at Jeongmin’s hands was enough to make her stomach ache with suppressed anger.

“Or something.” Raina snorted. “In case you’ve forgotten, I have four children. It’s not like I can just run away. I accepted that the moment my eldest was born.”

“Maybe w

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THANK YOU to the lovely individual who advertised Wolfheart 😭😭😭 I don’t deserve you lovely readers

Comments

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NoraMyFics #1
First of all, I hope you are there, safe and sound.
It's been years since last update, 4years exactly, and I hope there will be a response, on whether this story will be discontinued or maybe one day you'll continue it again. Because this is a really nice story, memorable one and I don't want to quit it, unsubscribe.
mitochondria1207 #2
Chapter 32: I loved this story. I hope someday you get some time to finish it but nevertheless it's still amazing!! Thank you for writing it. I absolutely love kyungsoo's character
Binjin70 #3
Chapter 32: You could've kept a soft kiss scene at the last passage !😭😭
Aaaaaa !

Btw it was a freakishly amazing story !Loved it !
Binjin70 #4
Chapter 2: Omg kyungsoo is such a jerk
TasmiahRitu #5
Is it incomplete ??
TasmiahRitu #6
Does anyone has some fic suggestion of kyungsoo arranged marriage AU with OC/YN please ?
bbaekang #7
Chapter 32: I miss this story so much
Multifanstan
#8
The only reason I haven't started reading this is because it's incomplete. The plot sound quite intriguing but I can't handle suspense. I hope the last chapter isn't left on a cliffhanger
hellollyn
#9
Chapter 32: I just found this story through recommendation, and read it two days straight! The plot is quite different and i like it. There are lots of mysteries to unveil, but seeing that youve been pausing this story for a while, i hope you can continue this. I hope you are doing fine, and have a good day! Wherever uou are <3
Shanwreeb
#10
Please don't give up on this story!!