Mari flung her bag across the room. Her feet took her to her mother, whose body shivered on the ground. Her half-lidded eyes stared back at Mari, her vision blurring in and out of focus before she closed them. Mari held her hand, trying to shake her awake. “Mother! Mother, you need to wake up! Please talk to me,” she tapped her cheek. Her mother cracked one eye open, wincing. “Mother!”

“Your father…” she mumbled.

“What about him? Please, talk to me!” She brushed her arm down her mother’s arm, careful not to touch the fresh bruises. Tears pooled in her eyes. “Did he do this to you? Did he hurt you?”

“Chaehee...I need to see her.”

Mari drew her eyebrows together. “Mrs. Park? We need to take you to a hospital.”

Her mother waved a hand. “No, no, I’m okay.”

“Mother, you’re not okay, please! Let me take you to the hospital!”

“Chaehee,” was the last thing she said before drifting out of consciousness again. Mari balked, calling her mother one last time, but she remained unmoving. Her hands shook as she ran to the other side of the room, fumbling for her phone.

“Pick up, Chanyeol, pick up!” The line didn’t go through, even after the third call. Mari let out a cry, speed dialling the one person she could still rely on. He picked up on the first beat, her name spoken from his lips in a haste. Mari choked back a cry. “Baekhyun! I need you to call Chanyeol. S-something happened.”

She heard a door being unlocked. “What’s wrong? I’m on my way there.”

“No, don’t come here! Go get Chanyeol, he needs to come home now!” she glanced at her mother, fingers barely touching her lips when she spoke. Her mother laid on the floor with shaky breaths, her lips contorted into a frown. Mari hadn’t ever seen her Mother like that, and she couldn’t stop the tears from falling. “My mother...she’s here.”

Baekhyun went silent for a moment, then, “I’ll pick him up right away.”

When Baekhyun ended the call, Mari clutched her phone. She rushed to her Mother’s side, picking up pillows from the couch. Mari rested her Mother’s head on top of it, regulating her breathing while she held onto her phone for dear life. “Just stay there, Mother. You’re okay, I’m here for you,” she croaked out, clasping her cold hands into her trembling ones. She made no movement as a response, not even a nod or a deep breath, and Mari sat there for who knew how long.

Her tears dried on her cheeks eventually. She’d placed her fur coat around her Mother’s bare shoulders, kissing the pads of her knuckles while praying she’d wake up soon. Her Mother’s mention of her Father made Mari press her Mother’s knuckles against her cheek, begging her to wake up and caress her child’s face. But she remained unmoving, shallow breaths leaving her lips, and Mari cried.

Did her Father do this? Did he hurt his own wife? Mari shook her head. The very few memories she had of her Father consisted of him always being welcoming to her. They always looked at each other with adoration. How could this happen?

Kyo’s words replayed in her head about his past. How their Father had kicked him out and practically disowned him, all because he couldn’t handle seeing his own son. A heavy feeling settled in her stomach as she sat closer next to her Mother’s still form. Perhaps she didn’t know her Father that well. Maybe he really was a ruthless man who hurt his own family, but why was Mari the only one who remained unscathed?

Mari’s eyes widened. Had it been him who kept her away too?

The door slammed open. Chanyeol walked in with his hair flying everywhere, Baekhyun right at his shadow. The taller man’s gaze landed on them both, and he darted to them. Chanyeol fell on his knees, cradling her Mother’s head on his lap and his hand flying out to check for a pulse on the side of her neck. “Mari! What happened?”

“My mother…” she her dry lips, freezing for a moment when Baekhyun’s perfume enveloped her. He’d taken off his coat to rest it on her shoulders, his presence behind her warming her body. Mari shook her head, running her hands through her hair when Chanyeol sighed in relief. There’d been a steady pulse, although it was a little weak. “...She-she—”

“What is she doing here?”

“I don’t know, but she wants to talk to your mom. It looks like someone beat her up.”

Chanyeol scowled. He waved a hand at them, shedding off his coat and throwing it to the couch. Chanyeol rolled his sleeves up to his elbows and loosened his tie, his arms coming behind her Mother’s head and behind her knees. Her head lolled to the side, yet Chanyeol held to her tight, his face not showing the least bit of struggle as he carried her. “Come on. We should go. I’ll go help your Mom, you head down with Baekhyun.”

“I’m sorry,” she blurted out, standing up on shaky legs with the help of Baekhyun. “You were on a date with Evelyn—”

“Apology accepted. But for now we need to get your mom to safety first.”

Mari took a step back, her back colliding with Baekhyun’s chest. “Safety? Do you know what’s going on?”

“Not the slightest idea, but if she wants to talk to my mom, then we have to respect her decision.”

Mari felt a tug in her arm. She looked to her side, only to find Baekhyun gazing back at her. His eyes were drooped down low and his jaw was tight, yet his grip around her bare arms were gentle. He led them out of the room first, but not without picking up Mari’s heels first. The shoes slid onto her feet with ease and Baekhyun stood up, an arm encircling her waist before they headed to the elevator. Chanyeol wasn’t far behind, although he took another elevator, saying they needed to contact Mrs. Park to wake her up, leaving Mari and Baekhyun alone.

Baekhyun glanced at Mari, who was nipping at her nails. “Your mother...what happened?”

“I don’t know what’s going on as well,” she admitted, letting her hands fall to her side before looking up at him. “Baekhyun, I’m scared.”

“You’ll be alright. We’ll keep you safe.”

“No, no, you don’t get it,” she cried, shaking her head at him. “Something’s wrong. She-she talked about my Father and something’s not right. First, it was nightmares, then my brother said my Father kicked him out and now my mother?”

“Mari, calm down. Panicking about it won’t get you answers.”

“But all of it doesn’t make sense.”

“I know it doesn’t, but we’ll find out sooner than later, okay?” he held her hand firmly that she no longer trembled. Mari felt small yet secure in his hold, yet she still felt like she could fall at any moment. Her mind was muddy with nightmares and assumptions of everything that happened, her memories of her Father blurring into gray and white smoke. Her tears fell down her cheeks as she took several deep breaths, focusing on Baekhyun’s voice instead. His voice was hard and firm, strong yet assuring, and she held close to him. “Chanyeol and I will be there every step of the way. We’re going to be right beside you.”

The elevators opened. Baekhyun squeezed her hand one more time before he took her to a car already waiting outside the front doors. The hotel staff glanced at them with jaws dropped and mouths open when Chanyeol followed close behind, her Mother still passed out in his arms.

Mari longed to touch her, but the three of them ran to the car at a speed she wondered how she didn’t trip at all. Baekhyun opened the back door while Chanyeol carefully placed her Mother inside. Mari followed suit, sticking close to her Mother and cradling her head while Chanyeol took the front seat next to Baekhyun, who revved the engine and flexed his neck.

Chanyeol locked his seatbelt. “We have to go now. My Dad is away at work, but my mom’s at home. She should be safe at Park Manor.”

Mari nodded without another word. Seoul flashed by her in a blurred combination of black and white that she didn’t know where one part began and the other ended. Her fingers slipped through her Mother’s hair with ease, stopping only when Mari detangled the knots. Her Mother’s delicate features were pinched together in a grimace, groans falling from her lips with every bump they passed by.

Baekhyun mumbled apologies from the front seat, while Chanyeol held tight to his seatbelt. By the time they arrived at Park Manor, the lights in the garden were flashing brightly at them, the gates open and awaiting. Mrs. Park stood at the front door, hands wrapped around the knot of her silk nightgown, her hair up in a messy bun.

Mrs. Park’s empty face looked wide awake when Baekhyun pulled up at the driveway. Her footsteps shuffled to them, Chanyeol leaving the car first as he opened the back door. “Chanyeol!” she exclaimed, placing a hand over her heart when Chanyeol carried her Mother. “Oh my gosh, Yoriko! What happened to her?”

Mari left the car as well, clutching Baekhyun’s jacket tighter around her. Mrs. Park opened the doors for them, ushering them inside while the rest of their security team sent worried glances. “I-I don’t know. She just came and...I don’t even know how she got inside.”

Mrs. Park winced at Mari’s mother’s cuts, waving a hand. She led them up the stairs. “No matter, no matter. Take her to my room. I’ll take care of her for now,” Chanyeol nodded and they went inside her room, Mari pausing on the door.

Her feet remained flat on the ground as she watched her Mother’s silhouette in the darkness. Baekhyun stood beside her with a rigid posture, brows furrowed at the scene. Mrs. Park lifted her blankets up to her Mother’s chin before she paused, leaning down to her Mother’s ear. She nodded for a few seconds, then pushed Chanyeol out of the room, closing the door behind them with a dark look on her face. “You both go ahead and get some rest. Yoriko’s fine, she’s just resting.”

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