Choices
I Was Completely Okay... Until I Met the Choi Brothers
Mrs. Choi met us on the porch, and looked nervous. "Thank goodness. Are you all okay? Did he hurt any of you?"
"We're all fine. Just a little shaken." I sighed. "Thank you so much."
"It's no problem. Now, come in come in." Mrs. Choi gestured us all in. "Mason, you can room with Minho again. Emma, we have the beds set up in the study for you and the kids. Siwon is getting them all together."
I nodded. "We really appreciate it."
"Don't worry about it, Emma. Now, why don't you go put the little ones to bed and then come back down so we can discuss all of this?"
I nodded, and TOP and I headed upstairs with Ayden and Alexa. Ayden had fallen back asleep, and Alexa was drifting in and out.
In the study, Siwon was putting extra pillows on the two matresses. He heard us come in, and turned around. "Are you alright?" He asked me.
I nodded. "Everyone is fine."
Siwon looked at TOP. "Are you okay, too?"
TOP nodded. "I texted dad and he came just in time."
Siwon nodded. "Good. If you need anything, just let me know." He left, and I walked over to one of the beds and set Alexa down.
"Emmy?" Alexa asked groggily.
"We're safe now, Lex, okay? We're at Top's house."
"Mama Choi is here?" Alexa mumbled, her eyes closing.
I nodded and smoothed back her hair. "Just fall asleep. I'll be right downstairs. Ayden is here, too."
TOP set Ayden down, and I tucked both of them in.
I shut off the light, and we walked downstairs. In the living room, Mrs Choi and Mason were bringing in mugs of something hot. TOP and I sat on the couch, Mason on my other side. Mrs. Choi sat in one of the chairs across from us.
"We'll talk when Seung Hyun's father gets home." Mrs. Choi sighed. She lightly pushed a plate of cookies towards us. "I know when I'm stressed I like to snack on things."
"Don't need to tell me twice." Mason sighed, reaching forward and grabbing an almond cookie. I simply grabbed the mug of hot chocolate in front of me and held it to warm my icy hands.
"Did you grab any clothes?" Mrs Choi asked us.
I shook my head. "We didn't have time."
She looked at TOP. "Go get some sweats of yours and a shirt for Emma, and ask Siwon if he has anything for Mason since they are more similar in size than him and Minho."
TOP nodded and hurried out. I sighed shakily and looked down at my mug.
"You're safe now, Emma. We'll figure out what to do next." Mrs. Choi assured me.
I nodded silently.
TOP came back down, holding a pile of clothes. "I found a pair of sweats with a drawstring, and one of my button up shirts. Siwon found a t shirt and sweats for Mason."
He handed us the clothes, and I got up and walked to the bathroom to change. The sweats were huge, so I tied the. As tight as I could. The shirt alone could have been a short nightgown.
I walked back out, and Mason walked in. I went back into the living room and sat down. I looked at TOP. "Thank you."
He nodded. "No problem. I'm glad I was there."
We heard the front door open, and we all looked to the doorway. Mr. Choi walked in, his police hat in high hand. He sighed and rubbed his short hair. He walked in and sat next to his wife. "He's in custody. Your mom isn't. But he can't get out on jail or bond."
I nodded. "Thank you so much. I'm sorry we have you all involved with this... That Seunghyun could have gotten hurt.." I held back the tears pinching my eyes.
"Don't worry about that, Emma. We're happy to be here for you." Mrs. Choi assured.
"We need to figure out what we need to do about the situation." Mason said, walking in.
Mr. Choi nodded. "I agree. I need to ask you a few questions first, alright?"
Mason and I both nodded.
Mr. Choi sighed. "Did you know your father was coming home?"
I shook my head. Mason spoke. "I didn't even know she left."
"So she did this without your consent?"
Mason and I both nodded.
"On a scale of one to ten, one being that you don't feel safe at all, ten being you feel completely safe, how safe do you feel at home?"
"3." I said immediately. "I always felt like he was going to come back."
Mason nodded in agreement.
Mr. Choi sighed. "Okay. I, as a father of three children, knows sending you back isnt the answer to solve the problems. But, as a police chief, I know your options are limited, especially due to your age."
I nodded. "We know."
"Do you have any family here? An aunt, a grandparent?"
I shook my head. "They're all in Florida."
Mr. Choi sighed and rubbed his face. "What is it that you want?"
"I want to be away from my parents." I said immediately. "We both do. The kids don't need to be around that."
Mason looked at Mr. Choi. "But... Don't separate us. Please. I don't want to be in a foster home."
"Okay, well.... Emma, when do you turn eighteen?"
"In seven months." I answered.
Mr. Choi nodded. "Okay... Well... There is an option, but it's only able to happen if the cause is great enough.... Emma, if you're up for it, you guys could file a suit separating yourself from your parents, and Emma, you could take custody of your siblings. It's going to be tricky since you're only 17, but you need to have sufficient evidence and proof you can take care of them."
"Proof?" I asked, setting my mug down.
Mr. Choi nodded. "Financial proof..."
Mrs. Choi looked at me. "Do you have any money, Emma?"
Mason looked at me. I nodded. "I was... Saving for my future." Since my parents always bought my everything, I always put babysitting money, birthday money, or any kind of cash I got in my bank account. I have around $15000. Maybe a little more."
Mr. Choi nodded. "That will help you. But you need to realize your mother is not going to like this one bit. Now, I did talk to her for a bit. I let her know about the different options."
"What'd she say?"
Mr. Choi sighed. "She's will to do anything to keep you all safe. She doesn't want to lose you."
I scoffed. "She said that last time."
Mr. Choi continued. "She said, if your father is staying in jail in Korea.... She wants to move back to the United States with all of you. And unless the lawsuit works and you want to go through with it, there's nothing you can do."
I froze. I felt TOP's whole body tense up. Mason bit his lip nervously.
What was I supposed to do?!
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