Chp.32 | The Wanderer

“YOUR BROTHER, JI WON!”

That was my mother freaking out. The day hasn’t ended yet. The moment I entered the house, she attacked me with a broom in her hand, bombarding me with questions about Jin Hyung’s disappearance. The little brat had gone out without letting my mother know and he still hadn’t returned. My father on the other hand was failing at his attempt to stop her from chasing me around the house. The reason why I was running was because my mother preferred to use the stick end of the broom.

I held my hands up, in a surrendering gesture. “Umma! Can’t you see that your own daughter is injured?!”

“And what about Jin Hyung? He could be suffering right now. He could be kidnapped and…” she trailed off, dropping the broom as she cried against my father’s shoulder.

I felt angry because my mother failed to notice that her own daughter was the one that she needed to worry about, not the little spoil brat who was probably out, having the time of his life. I clenched my fists and bit my tongue, preventing myself from saying something stupid.

My father gave me one of his ‘we-have-to-do-something-about-this’ expressions. “Your mother has been trying to contact you for the past two hours.”

I thought about my own kidnapping and realized that I didn’t have my phone with me. Na-Na had taken the phone, but she never returned it. It was no wonder why she couldn’t reach me. “I lost my phone, somewhere. I don’t know.”

“You and…Mr. Park’s son. Jung Sang is his name, right? Were you with him?” my father inquired further.

I couldn’t lie, especially not to my father. “Yes.”

My mother pushed away from my father and said, “I’ve heard things about him and they're not good things, Ji Won. How could you date someone like him?”

I knew my mother. She only said that because she was upset over Jin Hyung. She never disapproved of our relationship in the first place. As a matter of fact, she did not care at all, until that moment. It was another excuse for her to get upset and hysterical.

“Umma---"

“UMMA!!” a voice echoed me.

There came Jin Hyung, running towards my mother with opened arms. She returned the gesture and pulled him close before holding him back to look at his face.

Lee Jin Hyung had a black eye. I would have laughed out loud, but considering that my own face wasn't better, I kept my mouth shut. I’m telling you, it didn’t make the situation any better. I wasn’t going to even ask him how he got that black eye. I bet the kid deserved it.

“My gosh child, what happened to your face?”

That was the question that I expected to hear from her when I entered. I was wrong to expect it.

Lee Jin Hyung, being his deviant self turned to me and said, “Some older guys picked on me. Ask, Ji Won. She was there at the time, that’s why her face is more messed up than mine.”

The little bastard had an alibi. I didn’t hesitate when launched myself at him. “JIN HYUNG! YOU LITTLE BEAST!!”

My father took hold of my arms as I stuck my foot him to kick him hard in the rear, forcing him to stumble into my mother who nearly lost her balance too.

My mother put herself in front of the brat, afraid that I would do harm against her only boy. “Lee Ji Won. Go to your room!” she commanded tartly.

I glared at Jin Hyung, who cowered behind my mother like some scared puppy. “Why umma? You’re gonna believe that little brat?!”

“How dare you speak back to me that way?!” my mother burst in response.

It’s never a clean argument whenever I came in confrontation with my mother. “But umma, you have to listen to me---"

“Listen? I am your mother, young lady. You listen to me!!”

Of course, my father had to join in. “You hit her with a broom and you expect her to listen to you?”

So there I was, caught up in a heated confrontation with my mother and then I realized that I really didn’t want to be there. Why? Because it was more than I could handle for the day. I didn’t like being wrongfully accused of something that I didn’t do. I needed solace. I needed time alone. I needed the feel of Park Jung Sang’s arms wrapped tightly around me. I needed something of comfort and I sure as hell wasn't going to find it here.

“I can’t stay here. I’m leaving.”

I heard my father call after me when I stormed out of there like a whirlwind.

---

Park Jung Sang came to mind first when I escaped my house, however it was Kim Soo Jin whom I ran to.

Her father at the door greeted me and informed that his daughter had the chicken pox.

I was standing outside of her house when her head peeked out of her bedroom window. I could barely recognize her with all the red dots on her face. “I’m sorry, Ji Won. You have to find another place to stay for the night. How about a hotel?”

“You crazy? I don’t have any money. Do you?”

“No.”

“Then why suggest it?”

She shrugged carelessly. “Just trying to help. Have you had the pox before?"

"No."

"So, you can't stay here. Go to Jung Sang’s place. You’ve got no choice.”

“But…a girl and guy. I can’t stay at his place for the night,” I protested, even if I knew I had no choice but to go to him in the end.

Soo Jin smiled widely. “You’re gonna end up giving it up sooner or later. Why are you being so uptight?”

I glared up at her, understanding her implication. “Well maybe because I’m not a ?”

“It doesn’t make you a . Girls these days do it all the time."

"And that's normal to you?"

"So I guess---most girls are labeled s to you then?”

“Unlike most girls, I value my ity.” I could honestly say that I was proud to make such a declaration. When I thought deeply into it, I really couldn't understand why Soo Jin was defending the non-s. “Yah! And how come you’re speaking as if you’re not one?!”

Another head poked out. It was Kim Soo Jin’s older brother Kim Jun Ho who attends college. He was neither handsome nor cute---just average looking. He had a girlfriend of three years who dislikes me whenever I visited Soo Jin because she was afraid I would put a move on her not-so-good-looking boyfriend. “Yah! Ji Won. How bout we go out for something to eat tomorrow?” Jun Ho called out.

Do you see the kind of effect you have on guys when you mention that you’re a ?

Soo Jin glared at her brother in annoyance. “Tomorrow eh? Tomorrow you’ll be infected by the pox. Who told you to come into my room?!”

Her brother just looked at her blankly and said, “Sh*t. I forgot.”

“,” she muttered when he retreated.

I sighed in exasperation and said, “Well, I’ll see you in a week or two. Call me tomorrow. I have a lot to tell you.”

“Yeah,” Soo Jin agreed.

Then I remembered that I didn’t have my cell phone on me. “No. I’ll call you.”

“Okay,” she said, bobbing her head nonchalantly.

When I turned my back on her, she called back to me. “Yah, Ji Won. You never told me how you got that awful bruise on your face.”

“Like I said, I’ll tell you later,” I called back over my shoulder as I started to walk away.

---

I wasn’t a block away from Soo Jin’s house when I was greeted by a familiar figure who came and stood in front of my path. I let out a small surprise gasp, afraid that he would attack me.

Standing with his hands tucked in his pockets of his hoodie, and a cigarette dangling from between his lips was prettyface Kim Tae Woo. Half of his face was obscured by darkness while the other half was bathe by the streetlight. He appeared almost fictional. As if he was impossibly real.

“Tae Woo…” I uttered in surprise.

Removing the cigarette from his between his lips, he jutted his chin out while observing my face impassively. “Your face. Who done that to you?”

“It was just---" I paused, deciding to withhold the truth from him. “It was nothing. Catfight with some random girl on the street.”

He took a step toward me. “Why?”

I retreated a step. “Why, what?”

“Why did she fight you?”

“It was stupid. I wasn’t looking where I was going and I accidentally bumped into her on the street.”

“And your forehead?”

“I was pushed against the brick wall,” I replied, gazing into his face, wondering just how much he was hurting. After hearing what Jung Sang said to me, I didn’t hate Kim Tae Woo as much as I thought I did.

He wanted to reach out to touch my face, but withdrew his hand away immediately. “Does it hurt?”

The way he had asked me, I had sensed the hurt in his voice and it made me wonder about his feelings.

“It kind of stings, but I’ll survive.”

“And that’s why you stood me up, right?”

I nodded, feeling the bile of guilt rising from my throat.

He almost snorted when he said, “As much as I want to fall for this bullsh*t, I can’t.”

He knew. He probably knew everything. I hated how he always had to know everything. “Tae Woo, listen to me---"

“You don’t fight, Ji Won. You were never a fighter to begin with. You probably allowed her to beat you up. Admit it, you got beat up.”

Or perhaps, he didn’t know after all. He just knew what type of her person I was. “You’re right,” I blurted suddenly. “You’re right.”

He smiled. “Then you’re forgiven. I’ll take a rain check on it.”

I looked around, realizing how late it was and people were starting to empty the streets. “What were you doing out here anyway?” he asked, gazing off into the same direction.

“I was just wandering.”

“You wander this late?”

“Uh huh.”

“Aren’t you afraid of being kidnapped?”

Oh, the irony of it all.

“I don’t think about that stuff when I wander.” I looked back at him and said, “And you?”

He was smirking at this point. “I like wandering too.”

“Aren’t you afraid of being kidnapped?”

He shrugged his shoulders and answered, “Nah. But I do hate being stalked.”

I forgot just how popular he was. “Have you been stalked before?”

“Yes. It’s not fun. Especially when you have girls buying you boxers and briefs---or sending you a lock of their hair and vials of their blood, telling you how much you mean to them.”

I almost choked on my saliva. “What?”

He smiled. “I’m kidding.”

I returned the smile. “I didn’t know.”

He looked puzzled for a moment. “Know?”

“That you could be like this?”

He pointed to his face. “It’s the face. No one sees past it. You could say that it acts as a distraction.”

“Not to mention the cocky attitude,” I added.

“That too.”

Silence fell between us. I was staring down at my feet and Tae Woo was staring at me. I was starting to feel very uncomfortable until he decided to speak again. “Let’s wander together.”

I agreed. We started down the street, side by side, acting like strangers who were getting to know each other for the first time. Kim Tae Woo glanced down at me. I had to admit, he has a nice profile. “How is Jung Sang?”

That made me wonder whether it was just and idle question, or if he was actually concerned for his friend. “He’s the same.”

“I’ve never really been a good friend to him.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Because it’s the truth,” Tae Woo said before letting out a deep breath. “I’m sure he knows about our date. Na-Na probably told him already.”

“Yes.”

“He’s not angry, is he?”

“I supposed he wasn’t. He didn’t look angry.”

“That is why I still hold him as my friend. Because he accepts me for being me. Because he understands why I do what I do. And because he doesn’t hate me for being prettier than he is.” Another deep breath. “He’s a good person. You’re lucky to be with him. He’s one of a kind.”

I couldn’t understand what Tae Woo was rambling about, but I was pretty sure that it was his way of telling me that he finally accepted our relationship. For a moment, I was touched by Tae Woo’s selflessness.

We were about to cross the street when Tae Woo grabbed my left wrist and pulled me back hard against him. A car swerved by the moment I was in his arms.

Kim Tae Woo released me and shouted after the lunatic driver. “YAH! YOU RETARD! CAN’T YOU SEE US WALKING?!!” He picked up a crushed can and whipped it at the car, only having it to fall short.

“Tae Woo,” I called to him. “It was my fault. I wasn’t looking.”

Tae Woo spun around and walked over to me. “Now I can understand why that girl beat you up. If I didn’t hold you back---"

“I know. Thank you.”

He lowered his gaze. “Let’s stop wandering. I’ll walk you home.”

I lifted my hand as if to stop him. “Wait. I can’t go home. My mother is upset---I can’t go home yet.”

“Then where to?”

How to get out of this one, Ji Won? “I’ll just keep wandering and you can go home. I’m sure it’s late and---"

“If you keep wandering the way you do, you'll kill yourself. I’ll take you somewhere then."

I shook my head but he persisted. “Do it as a repayment. I saved your life just a minute ago. And besides, you still owe me.”

"You could always beat up Yoon Tae. This time I won't stop you."

"I don't feel like beating him up right now." He started walking ahead of me. "Let's go."

“Where?”

“You’ll see.”

---

“A BAR? I CAN’T GO IN THERE. LOOK AT MY FACE!!!” I screamed when Kim Tae Woo was pulling me towards the entrance.

“Come now. It’s the only place that is open during the late hours,” he said, trying to sound reassuring.

“My face. Look at my face. Can’t you see that---"

“It’s not that bad.”

“But I’m ashamed to be seen in public.”

“But you were wandering around with that very same face,” he pointed out.

“I don’t drink,” I argued.

“You don’t have to. I will.”

“But---"

He let go of my hand and took off his hoodie, throwing it over my head. He was left wearing his muscle shirt, exposing the kind of arms I never thought he had. I stared. “Wear it. Cover your face, if you want to.”

I gave up trying to fight against him and reluctantly pulled the hoodie down and slipped my arms through the sleeves. It was baggy enough to make me look like a boy. I pulled the hood over my head and followed him inside.

The place was crowded with students. Most of them attended my school. All of them were trying to act or appear older than their age. Some were dancing, others were lounging and the rest were drinking and getting rowdy. A few of them greeted Tae Woo as we strode by.

One of the guy stood up from the bar stool and blew a wisp of smoke into my face. I coughed at him when he lowered his head to try and glimpse at my face. He retreated and made a rude remark. "B*tch is ugly."

"Like you're any better looking. You look like my dog!" I retorted in anger.

Truth is, I don't even have a dog. I just felt like saying that out of anger. Tae Woo had to pull me away.

When he led me away, I tugged my hood lower, thinking I could making myself invisible. We he finally settled for a table at the far end of the room, I quickly sat down in relief.

“Tae Woo oppa!” some random girl called out, sauntering to our table with high heels on.

I glanced up to see that she had put on too much make-up. Her hair was all curled and pretty looking and she was donning an outfit that didn’t do well to cover up her skinny body. “Who is this?” she pointed down at me.

I sat with my shoulders hunched forward, trying to think of a way to escape when Tae Woo pulled on my chair and threw an arm around me. “My girl,” he stated.

I was going to kill him for that.

I caught a glimpse of her expression. She made a disgusted face and said, “Eww. Why is she hiding her face? Does she have some kind of disease?”

I was really going to kill the next person who made fun of my face. Standing up from my chair, I slammed my fists against the table and threw my hood back. "That's right b*tch. I have leprosy. Now get the out of my face!"

She covered in shock and hurried away.

Tae Woo tugged at my sleeve. I sat back down and pulled my hood up again. "This isn't the right place to be."

"That's why we both need a drink," Tae Woo said, snatching for the shots that the server was carrying on a tray.

"Here. Take it. It'll help."

I looked at him with uncertainty. "That's peer pressure."

"Nah, it's alcohol. Now drink."

I took the glass from him and held it to my mouth when someone shouted, "EVERYONE LOOK. SHIN HYE MIN IS GOING CRAZY?!!”

Shin Hye Min was there also? Why would she go to a bar after all that happened?

Everyone in the room gathered towards the center of the room, forming a circle around the commotion.

Tae Woo stood up and hurried towards the center. I followed him, pushing and shoving my way through to see that Hye Min was straddled on top of some random guy, kissing him in front of everyone. Tae Woo made a move to grab her but another figure placed himself in front of him. Park Jung Sang stood there with a stoic expression. He looked at Tae Woo and then glanced briefly at me before hauling Hye Min off the guy. For a moment I wondered whether he knew that it was his girlfriend who was hiding under the hood. I hope he hadn’t recognized me. For all I know, things were bad enough as it was.

She fought against him, kicking and screaming as he dragged her from the bar.

Tae Woo shouted after him, following them out.

I shouted after Tae Woo and followed him out.

Once we were all outside, Jung Sang released Hye Min, Tae Woo stood five feet away, and I was left standing there dumbfounded, staring like a dummy.