6AM in Seoul, South Korea.

The morning starts, people head out to catch the train for work, newspapers are thrown on porches, birds chirping, sun shining, everyone’s happy, right?

Wrong.

Kwon Ni Nah, commonly known as Jung Ni Nah, woke up with the worst headache of her life. Her eyes slowly cracked open at the loud sound of her alarm clock. For a good minute, she just laid there unmoving, letting the memories of last night rush back to her. The strong stench of alcohol. The endless arguments. The yells, the screams, the fists thrown, glasses broken.

Her entire body hurt to the point where she was practically numb. She laid there until she felt the other side of the bed shift slightly and someone else’s legs brush hers. That’s when she realized: it wasn’t a dream, Ni Nah. You’re still alive. Barely... But you’re alive.

Ever so slowly, trying not to disturb the person next to her, she sat up, ignoring her body’s protests to lay back down and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. She cringed when she felt every fiber in her body scream in pain but still made her way to the bathroom to get ready for the day ahead of her.

She flicked the lights on and looked in the full length mirror in front of her. If any normal person were to look at her, they would be shocked and immidately ask her if she were ok and insist on taking her to the hospital. But to Ni Nah, she was just thankful that she wasn't bleeding as much. Her fingers lightly traced the ugly bruises on her stomach and chest area, counting out of nasty habit. The bruises trailed from her chest all the way down to mid thigh, where she could faintly see two hand imprints. The only places left unmarked were her neck and calfs and arms. Places that were easily exposed to the public. Of course, and her face. He never dared touched her face.

14, she counted. She shrugged. Not as bad.

In the shower, she let the steaming water losen up her muscles and soothe some of her pain. She scrubbed the dry blood that caked in between her legs and patched up the bite mark on her . She walked out of the bathroom about 20 minutes later, her cuts covered, bruises clothed. She glanced at the bed only to realize that he was still there, snoring softly with his mouth open wide.

She sighed and walked over to him. "Yah, Yunho," she called harshly. He didn't move. She tried shaking him by the shoulder. "Yunho, you're going to be late," she said loudly. He finally groaned and rolled over on his stomach, hugging his pillow.

Ni Nah rolled her eyes. "Get up. It's almost 6:30." She didn't bother to be formal or poilte with him. Why should he deserve her respect?

Downstairs, she began her normal morning routine. Clean up the mess from last night, turned the coffee machine on, popped toast in the toaster, cracked some eggs. As she was scrambling the eggs, her phone rang and she picked it up knowing there would only be one person who would call her this early in the morning. "Neh, Changmin sshi," she answered. 

"Good morning, noona," came the cheerful reply. Ni Nah couldn't help but to smile. She balanced her phone between her shoulder and ear and continued making breakfast as she talked to her assistant. "What's up, brat?"

"Aigoo, noona, that's not nice," she could practically hear his pout.

"Ok, Ok, what's on the menu for today?"

"Sang just called me saying that he can't make it today, so we need someone to cover for him in the main branch. I also need to you stop by the office before you head out to pick up the files that Nagamura dropped off last night concerning the building plans for the Japan branch. It needs to be looked over and signed off before we can give it to the contractors. You're meeting with the wedding planner for Mrs Choi at 10 and you have that press conference at 12. Also, the delivery from both Paris and Milan come in to the main branch today so we'll need to post someone there so double check the inventory and sign everything off." Well . She sighed. That was a lot more than she wanted to do before 12. She made a mental note to pick up more pain killers and an extra pack of cigarettes on her way.

Changmin took a deep breath, but Ni Nah cut him off when he was about to continue. "Ok, ok, you'll fill me in on the rest when I see you."

On the other line, Changmin frowned. "Why?"

Ni Nah glanced up from the stove to see Yunho emerge from the bedroom, fidiling with his cufflinks. "Nothing, just because." She turned the stove off and put the eggs on a plate. "Call Hyeri and ask if she can come in early, but if not tell Yoona and tell her not to come so I'll wait for the delivery. I'll see you in a bit." Before Changmin could even say goodbye she hung up on him and stuffed her phone in her pocket.

She put breakfast on the table without a word to Yunho. He came to the dining table with the newspaper in his hand and eyed Ni Nah as she worked around the kitchen. He noticed that she wore something roughly casual for the work day: a tucked in polo and skinny jeans. He knew this was to hide the cuts and bruises that scattered her body. For a second, he felt a little remorse for her when he saw her walk with a slight limp, but then he remembered that she was the one that ruined his life and took everything from him. Like a sandcastle on the shore, all the guilt was washed away. 

Ni Nah felt his gaze on her but didn't look up at him once. She poured the coffee in two mugs and set one in front of Yunho. She chuckled to herself, realizing that the only thing that she had in common with Yunho was her taste in coffee.

Breakfast between the two was quiet, as per usual. The only sound that came from the dining room was the clinking of chopsticks and the shuffle of Yunho's newspaper. Ni Nah had no appetite whatsoever, but she knew she had to put at least something in her stomach so she could take painkillers later on.

"We have dinner tonight with umma and appa," Yunho suddenly spoke.

She didn't look up at him. "I know."

"Reports are going to be there, so don't wear something hideous."

She rolled her eyes. It's going to take a lot to find a dress that'll cover up all her bruises and cuts. Maybe she'll wear something short just to bust Yunho's .

"Wear a gown," he said, as if he read her mind.

"I wouldn't have to if you weren't such an ," she muttered to herself.

Yunho tore his gaze from the newspaper to glare at her. "What was that?" he growled.

She looked at him bravely. "I said I wouldn't have to if you weren't such--"

He slammed his fists on the table roughly, cutting her off. "Shut the up," he yelped.

"Ohh, I'm so scared," she mocked him. She knew she was pushing it, but she learned not to be afraid of him after so long. 

Yunho stood up sharply, causing the chair to fall backwards. "I said shut the hell up before I make you show up to the dinner with crutches." He glowered at her.

"You wouldn't do that," she spat back at him, "You're too afraid of what mommy and daddy might say if you're not treating thier poor innocent daughter-in-law properly."

Suddenly, he reached across the table to grab her chin forcefully and pull her up out of her seat. "You're really pushing your limits here, Kwon Ni Nah," he hissed in her face.

"What are you going to do to me? Smack me? The press will get a kick out of that." She smiled tauntingly. "The more you hit me, the stronger I get, dear hubby."

Yunho's face contorted with anger at her words. Still holding her chin, she threw her off her chair, causing her to land on the ground on her hands and knees. He crouched next to her. "Be home and ready by 7. If you're even a second late, I'll make sure that limp of yours," he pressed his palm against her stomach harshly, where most of the bruises were, making Ni Nah yelp in pain, "lasts for days."

He got up and brushed his suit off before grabbing his briefcase and keys and slamming the door behind him, leaving Ni Nah on the floor.

With a sigh, she slowly got up, hissing as the pain in her abdomen felt sharper. Her phone started ringing again and she looked at the time, realizing that she was going to be late. She answered the call. "Changmin? Can you stop by the convience store to get my cigarettes and a bottle of pain killers? I might be a little late."