"

"Areum, we need to talk."

"Sure." 

 "Can you come to my office?" 

She was backed in a corner and there was only one way out...

As the moon reached its highest point in the sky, the moonlight entered Areum's room through the cracks in the blinds. She was tossing and turning in bed, her forehead covered in sweat as she mumbled something unclearly. The peaceful night was not that peaceful after all, as the nightmares followed one after another. Haunting her down like a wolf hunting its prey. 

***

"Bi*ch, get back here!" 

She heard Dal hiss, but she knew she had to run, otherwise, another round of beating is waiting for her. She didn't know what she had done wrong, but he was angry. He was drunk and drugged. He needed to take out the anger and of course, on who else but Areum. She gulped, as she hid in the pantry, her back on the door, as she prayed to God that he wouldn't come banging. Ari was in her arms, silent as she clung to her mom. 

"Areum! Don't make me call you again!" 

He started banging on the door making Ari cry. Areum tried to calm her down, but she couldn't. Dal didn't give up until he got her out of there. He grabbed her by the hair and dragged her toward the bedroom. 

"Let me out Ari down..." Areum begged through tears. "Please..." 

He grabbed Ari and literally threw the baby on the couch making the screams and cries echo through the house, but he didn't care. The male dragged Areum towards the bedroom and the things that followed afterward were horrible. R*pe or beating? She didn't know what was worse...

***

"No..." She mumbled. "No!" 

***

“I told you,” Dal grabbed her hair again. “You think the police can help you? You think my dad won’t tell me that you went there?!” 

Areum was silent as she tried to get out of his grip. 

“Are you listening to me b*tch?!” 

“Y-yes…” Areum’s voice cracked. 

He let out a laugh and threw her to the ground. “This better be cleaned up until I get back! Otherwise, I won’t stay away from Ari!”

***

Areum jumped into a sitting position, her heart beating fast as her breaths were short. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths to calm down. It was only a bad dream, nothing else. The ticking sound of the clock on the wall helped her calm down as she focused on it. After a few minutes, once she made sure that she was alright, Areum dragged herself out of bed and towards the bathroom. 

She hated seeing him, let alone reliving all that in her sleep. He had a way of haunting her down, he had a way of letting it get to her and always used Ari to get his way, and the day she finally got rid of him felt like she was born again. She could breathe again and move on, fight the demons she had and prepare for what was coming. Areum remembered his words clearly that day in the courtroom and she knew that he wasn’t joking. 

***

“I will hunt you down like an animal,” He hissed in the courtroom. “You will pay with your blood, mark my words.”

Areum looked at him as the two police officers held him down. There was nothing to be said to him. He wasn’t worth it, and with all that happened, she had no energy to argue with him anymore. 

***
 

After everything he had done, it took her time to recover from it all, and it wasn’t easy. He left a deep trace inside of her, but in the end, she came out as a warrior. A fighter. A person who was now ready to face him, no matter what. Did she like the fact that he was back? No. What was his next move? When will he make his move? She had questions but no answers to them.

Junmyeon had every right to worry, after all, he saw his sister in different states and none of them were pretty. At times, he thought that she had gone insane, and he had every right to think that. She would cry day and night, rocking back and forth, refusing to do anything, except see her daughter. The first six months were the worst, but thanks to her brother, Eun, and the two bundles of joy she was able to slowly get back on track. 

She was able to find her path again and go back to the thing she loved the most, pushing her fears aside and finally having the encouragement she needed. Dal had belittled her, telling her that she wasn’t good enough, stupid, and couldn’t do anything right. At some point, she started believing him that she was worthless. That she was nothing. 

There are things that even to this day she never told her brother or Eun. She can’t bring herself to talk about the terror she went through, but they knew enough. They never asked, they never pushed her or forced her to talk, it was her own free will, and they supported her. Day in and day out they showered her with their love, not allowing her to be alone. Telling her that she will be alright, that she’s brave, and that nothing can bring her down. 

***

“Are?” Junmyeon called out as he walked into his sister’s room. 

She was sitting on the rocking chair, looking out the window as she rocked back and forth. “Hey…” 

“How is my favorite sister today?” He walked up to her. “I heard you went out for a walk today, that’s good.” 

She smiled slightly and looked at him. “I am okay… don’t worry.”

“You’re my sister, of course, I will worry.” He replied softly. “You know who you remind me of?” 

She shook her head. “Who?” 

“Athena,” 

“Athena?” She blinked. 

“You’re a fighter,” He stated simply. 

***

He was right, she was a fighter and she was able to get out of it all. Preparing for the day he returned, and that day finally approached, although she wished that it hadn’t. Areum looked at herself in the mirror before splashing some cold water on her face. Going back to bed was not an option as she wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep, so she might as well get ready for the day, and what better way than to go for a morning run? 

It was time to shrug it off and try to forget about what she had dreamt. She couldn’t allow it to affect her. It was nothing and she was stronger than that, that was for sure. Areum brushed her teeth and washed her face, before lifting her hair up into a ponytail and making her way back into the bedroom to get her sportswear. Once ready she grabbed her phone and walked out of her bedroom and down the hallway to check on her daughter before leaving. 

As she walked into her daughter’s room the little girl was sleeping so Areum tucked her in and kissed her daughter’s forehead. Ari was her life, light, universe. Ari was everything to Areum and she was ready to do anything to keep her daughter safe,