“Thank you.” I say to the lady on the counter when she hands me my order. I didn’t have much time to go to a fine restaurant since I got out of work a little late. But it doesn’t stop me from going to JoonHee. He deserved a treat for his good deeds even if the food I have now comes from fast food. I walk to my car and dial his digits. I need to tell him I’m on my way.

Several rings after and he doesn’t pick up. He must have placed his phone somewhere far from him. Until the operator tells me he can’t be reached.

I try calling him again. It’s the same thing.

Something is wrong. I climb inside my car and rush to the hospital.

“Why did you lie to me, Kang Joon Hee?”

The veins in Tae Woong’s forehead are about to pop. He’s in so much anger right now that he’s venting out all of it on me. I try to push him away from me.

“Sunsaengnim…let me go.”

He punches my face to suppress my resistance. I ignore the sting on my cheek as my knees grow weaker.

“I saw Shi Won’s right slipper in front of the storage room. I saw her get out of your apartment this morning. Now tell me why the hell you’re hiding her?”

I can’t look into his eyes. They’re on fire. I have to get off from him and call for help.

Then my phone rings inside my pocket. I’m about to get it when he snatches it first and sends it flying to the wall. I watch it crush and scatter into pieces.

“Now you can’t get away from me. Tell me, JoonHee. What is Shi Won doing in your place?”

“Sunsaengnim, I said let me go.”

“Shut up!”

“Won’t she run away if you didn’t force her to?”

I earn a hard punch on my stomach from him. So the truth makes him uneasy. It hits him hard.

“She’ll come back for me. Keep that in mind.”

“Let her decide. It’s clear that you suffocate her.”

And the punches come like flood in the next minutes. I cannot defend myself from his attacks. I lie weakly on the floor while welcoming every blow hitting my body.

Until he falls down when a blow hits him on the back. My eyes are half-closed and weak to see who saved me. But he drifts out of my sight when Tae Woong hits him hard on the cheek.

“Stop!” I shout. But the fight still goes on.

“Joon Hee-ah!” Yoon Jae shouts and when he falls on me, we’re both knocked down.

Joon Hee finally wakes up after being knocked unconscious for more than three hours. I feel relief rushing through my body when he squints his eyes and smiles at me. I smile back, reaching out for his head and ruffling his hair.

“I’m sorry I came in late.” I say.

“It’s alright. My body hurts so much.” he says.

For a brief second, a twinge of hatred surges inside my chest. Tae Woong mauled Joon Hee to get what he wanted. I don’t like seeing JoonHee hurt. He’s been through enough and I don’t want him to go through another trouble because of Shi Won.

And because of me.

For the most part, I’ve been the guiltiest person in Joon Hee’s life. Loving me put his heart into risk. It was stupid of me to take it as a joke when he was serious. Now that time has passed, I can prove that he really loves me so much. This budding feeling that I have for him is starting to take over my every waking thought. Somehow I find myself giving up on Shi Won. I don’t care about her chasing me. I only care about JoonHee. I promise to myself that he will never get hurt by anyone again.

“Where did Tae Woong hit you?”

Joon Hee breathes out an exhausted sigh.

“Everywhere. He almost killed me.”

I clench my teeth to control my rage. He won’t get away from this.

“Let me see.”

He sits straight up on the bed. He shows me the bruises on his cheek and the swell on his lower lip.

“Lift your shirt up.” I say while getting up and sitting straight on the bed facing him.

He lifts the hem of his shirt up. The scratches and bruises are all clear to me. My heart drops at the thought of not coming early to save him. I look away from his body.

“I’m okay, Yoon Jae. There’s no need to worry.” he assures me.

“No, you’re not. Tae Woong will pay for this.”

He holds my hand. “He’s your brother. Don’t do anything stupid to him.”

“But he hurt you –”

“No, Yoon Jae. Please. Let’s not make matters worse. All we have to think about now is Shi Won.”

Yeah, that girl too. She started all of this.

“I guess we’ll have late dinner then. I’m hungry.” he says, putting on a silly smile while looking at the food I bought for him on the table.

When I don’t say anything, he pulls my hand and says, “Let’s eat.”

But before he leaves the bed, I pull him close to me and lays him down on bed. Before he has a chance to protest, I pin both of his arms and kiss his lips softly.