Chapter 30

Betray Me Not

Joonmyeon has known Yoojin for his entire life. In fact, Joonmyeon's mother, Mrs. Kim, has an old, faded Polaroid of a toddler Joonmyeon posing next to 3-year-old Yoojin, squatting next to a lopsided sand castle. In the background, you can see the corner of a bright laugh. Yoojin's mother, smiling at the two children.

 

Joonmyeon and his mother lived alone in a huge mansion, on the private island of Cheongsando. It was a sprawling estate, comprised of acres of lush gardens, a beautiful pond, and a two-story building designated as servant's quarters. The mansion was located on the seaside, overlooking the bright dunes and crashing waters of the Yellow Sea.

 

It had always been him and his mother. Just him and his mother. There was no one else on the island, save for the servants and maids. Joonmyeon’s mother had told him at a young age about his father.

 

“He’s a very powerful man, honey. And he loves us. That’s why he bought us this island, this house.” Ms. Kim told Joonmyeon when he was 2 years old.

 

“But... where is Daddy?” Joonmyeon stuck out his lower lip.

 

Ms. Kim’s mouth twisted to the side, like she had bitten into something sour. “Well... he has... another woman. And he has another son. So Daddy has to live with them.”

 

“But I’m Daddy’s son,” Joonmyeon puffed out his chubby cheeks.  “You said Daddy loved us. So Daddy should stay with us! I’ll make him sand sandwiches every day, and I’ll show him the swirly shells from the beach-,”

 

“Honey, no.” Ms. Kim grasped her son’s shoulders firmly, causing his eyes to widen. “Joonmyeon, do you know how you can get Daddy to really love you?”

 

“How, Mommy?”

 

“Be the perfect son,” she whispered. “Daddy has a big company. If you’re smart and nice and good, Daddy will love you so much, he’ll give you his company.”

 

“Oh!” Joonmyeon sat up stick-straight, beaming widely. “I can do that! That’s easy, Mommy!”

 

A tiny smile quirked up Ms. Kim’s lips. Her eyes, however, were crinkled with sadness. She hated herself for having to say this to her son, she hated herself for staying on this island, she hated Mr. Kim. But she had her pride to uphold, and her lovely son’s pride as well.

 

So she said, “But Daddy will only love you if you’re better than his other son. Do you understand, Joonmyeon?”

 

“Yeah, Mommy!” he chirped. “I’ll be the best son ever!”

 


 

Yoojin’s mother was a blessing to Joonmyeon and his mother.

 

Mrs. Lee applied to be a maid at the Kim household when Joonmyeon was 3 years old. When Ms. Kim interviewed her, she was delighted to discover that Mrs. Lee had a daughter. Lee Yoojin, 2 years old. Although Mrs. Lee was supposed to be a maid of the Kim family, Joonmyeon's mother encouraged him to befriend Yoojin.

 

"She's only a year younger than you," Mrs. Kim told her son, patting his hair. "It'll be nice for you to have some company. You’re always alone, and you don’t have any friends. Yesterday, I caught you talked to the books in the library.”

 

Joonmyeon sulked. “The books are interesting to talk to, Mommy. And besides, I have you.” Mrs. Kim laughed.

 

“But Mommy- and her books- are old and boring,” she said. “Yoojin’s your age.”

 

Although Joonmyeon initially had doubts about this arrangement, they disappeared when he saw Yoojin the following day.

 

She threw a shoe at his head and almost punched him.

 

They became best friends almost instantaneously.

 


 

The next 7 years would be the best years of Joonmyeon’s life. Joonmyeon’s world consisted of him and Yoojin. Occasionally, his mother, or Yoojin’s mother, would make appearances. But it was mostly just him and Yoojin, exploring the vast gardens of his mansions, studying the various specimen of aquatic life on the beach, and playing tag on the cliffs of the island. They had an entire island to themselves.

 

The two spent every waking moment- and some sleeping moments (like the time they camped out on the beach without telling their mothers, and they were woken up at 3 in the morning by a hysterical maid who told them that the entire staff had been looking for the two for hours).

 

Ms. Kim paid for a private tutor for both Joonmyeon and Yoojin. She considered Yoojin her daughter, as Mrs. Lee thought of Joonmyeon as her own son. All the butlers and maids working at the Kim estate adored the two children.

 

It didn’t take long for Joonmyeon to fall in love with Yoojin. She was perfect, with her huge smile and crooked pigtails and hyperactive personality. Joonmyeon was the calm, rational one, who preferred to find new kinds of seashells on the sand. Yoojin, however, was the crazy, adventurous one.

 

“Joonmyeon, I know what we should do today!” she told her best friend one summer morning, rubbing her hands together deviously.

 

Joonmyeon looked up from his breakfast, his mouth bulging with pancake. “Mmph?”

 

“We should try to swim off the island!”

 

Joonmyeon choked on his food and collapsed into a violent coughing fit.

 

Joonmyeon!” Yoojin rushed over to him and thumped him strongly on the back. “Yo! Stop choking!”

 

“Ow!” Joonmyeon exclaimed, finally swallowing his food. “Just because you punch me in the back doesn’t mean that’ll help!”

 

Yoojin threw him a face. “Oh, come on. Anyway, what do you say? Let’s do it! Whoever reaches the mainland first wins!”

 

Joonmyeon face-palmed. “You’re crazy. You’re actually crazy. You’ll tire out before you even get halfway, and then you’ll drown.”

 

“That’s why we’ll travel on turtles, like they did in Finding Nemo.”

 


 

Yoojin and Joonmyeon believed they would be together forever, living out their lives on the island. Of course, Ms. Kim continued to remind Joonmyeon of his responsibilities of taking over his father’s company. But Joonmyeon paid little attention to them; his father and his half-brother and his stepmother all seemed like imaginary somebodies, characters in a fairy tale that didn’t really exist.

 

Truth be told, even Ms. Kim had forgotten about her lover and his family. She enjoyed Mrs. Lee’s company, and she enjoyed the solace she received from her isolation. No gossiping socialites to worry about, no pointed businessmen leering at her. Just her, her child, and her friends.  

 

But everything changed. On the even of Yoojin’s 9th birthday, Ms. Kim received a phone call.

 

Joonmyeon’s father.

 

“My wife... passed away,” Mr. Kim told Ms. Kim in a low voice. “Come live with me, Soo Jin. We don’t have to worry about anything now. We can be happy together. And I want to see Joonmyeon, my son.”

 

Ms. Kim sank to the floor.

 


 

“Are we all set?” Ms. Kim called. Her mansion had been boarded up and locked, emptied of all belongings. The majority of her servants and maids had been tearfully dismissed the week before; save for Yoojin and Mrs. Lee. Mr. Kim had agreed to accommodate the two in his household.

 

Joonmyeon was crying. Yoojin slowly rubbed his back, attempting to comfort him.

 

They were moving to Mr. Kim’s estate. It had been decided; they were to reside with him from now on. The pain of having to move from his home (the best place in the world) was overwhelming for Joonmyeon. And the talk his mother gave him the night before made it even worse...

 

“Joonmyeon, we’re moving to your father’s house. We’ll be living with your half-brother from now on. You remember what I told you, right?” Ms. Kim said firmly.

 

“Yes.” Joonmyeon nodded. “I’ll beat him. No problem.”

 

Ms. Kim pursued her lips. “I don’t think you understand. You have to devote yourself to being the best son you can be. You don’t have time for your exploring games, or Yoojin-,”

 

What?!” Joonmyeon shot up, trembling. “No. No way. You’re kidding.”

 

Ms. Kim massages her temples, biting her lip. “Honey, please. I don’t want you to get distracted from your goals. I love Yoojin too, but-,”

“You’ve taken everything away from me, and now you want to take away my best friend, too? No way! I’m not going, then!” Joonmyeon shrieks. Ms. Kim pounces on Joonmyeon, slapping a hand over his mouth.

 

Shhh! What if someone hears?” Ms. Kim hisses. Joonmyeon’s eyes go wide. Eventually, he calms down. “Joonmyeon, look. If you can handle both Yoojin and everything else, then fine. Go ahead. I’m just warning you. Mommy only wants the best for you.”

 

Joonmyeon is quiet. Suddenly, he whispers, “Mom?”

 

Ms. Kim wipes her eyes. “Yeah, sweetie?”

 

“I’m scared.”

So am I, Ms. Kim thinks. We’ll be entering a battlefield, Joonmyeon, and we only have each other.


A/N: I know some of you are getting sick of Yoojin X Joonmyeon, but I think it's necessary to explain their backstory because it's vital to the plot :DD It'll just be this chapter, and the next chapter for their backstory okie

Like this story? Give it an Upvote!
Thank you!
PrincessVivi
Listening to the news about this 10 yr old boy from california who just got his high school diploma :^)

Comments

You must be logged in to comment
Zndjcjaj #1
💙💙
_Nora_0607
905 streak #2
Chapter 41: I can't believe I kinda reread this in one go!! My goodness! But it was fun 💁‍♀️
_Nora_0607
905 streak #3
I think I've read this twice with my other account. Very happy to find this and hoping to reread this as soon as possible ^^
-2Mirae-
14 streak #4
Chapter 42: Finished rereading this and I'm already missing this ?
ilahbyouh15
#5
Chapter 41: Always coming back for this story❤️
I think I’ve read this like more than 5 times but I still never get bored rereading it<3
KimHyeJoo #6
Chapter 42: Why i just see this fanfic? Awwww
Theyre so cute
Thank you for the fanfic :))
PuffTedEBear
#7
Chapter 17: What cafe is this? If the chance of Junmyeon is around, count me in!