HEADS UP: I'VE UPDATED A LOT OVER THE PAST DAY, SO MAKE SURE YOU'VE READ THE PREVIOUS CHAPTERS!

“Mirae, wait!” Jongin cries. He dodges a passerby and runs after her. Finally, Jongin throws out a hand and catches her by the arm.

“Let go of me,” she commands frostily. A sense of fear churns through Jongin’s stomach. This girl is the polar opposite of the normally happy-go-lucky Hwang Mirae. This girl is cold. This girl is curt. This girl is fearsome. A tremor runs through Jongin’s spine.

“I’m really, really sorry, Mirae,” he apologizes. “It just slipped out, I swear. If I could take that back, I would-,”

“But you can’t, can you?” She yanks her arm away from him. “Get away from me.”

“Let me drive you home.”

“No.”

“Mirae, it’s late at night, and it’ll take you an hour to walk home. I’ll drive you.”

She whips her head back around. Her eyes are burning; when she opens to speak, her voice is shaking with pure loathing. “Sorry, I don’t want to let this obnoxious, clingy girl inconvenience you any further. I’ve already forced you to hang out with me. Please don’t let me burden you anymore.”

“Mirae, stop,” Jongin exhales. “Let’s just pretend that never happened, okay-,”

“It must be nice to have that luxury,” Mirae hisses. “To be able to ignore every single mistake that you make, to pretend like nothing ever happened and everything’s fine. That’s your ing problem, Jongin. You never face any issue in your life. You just run away. Even I can see that, and I don’t even know you.”

He blinks rapidly. “That’s not true.”

“You know what you are? You’re a spoiled, selfish little brat who thinks he’s entitled to everything. If something doesn’t go your way, or if someone does something bad to you, you throw a fit. That’s what happened with your dad, isn’t it?”

“Don’t talk about my dad,” Jongin says in a low, threatening voice. Normally, Mirae would have been intimidated by this. She would have stopped talking. But her rage causes everything to spill out of her, every single flaw she has felt towards Jongin, every annoyance she has experienced from him.

    “It’s about time you did start talking about him,” she snarls. “I can guess what happened with him. He had a bipolar mood swing, he hurt you, and you were traumatized by the experience. I would be furious and scared of him, too. But he’s trying. He’s been trying to patch things up with you for so long. Why won’t you give him a chance? Because you’re a whiny baby who’s still pouting after-,”

    “SHUT UP!” Jongin bellows, slamming Mirae against a wall. His body is trembling with anger.

    “NO!” she roars. “It’s time that someone told you all of this to your face. What, you think everyone doesn’t think this? I’m just the only one who’s had the guts to tell you! Money can’t buy you a good personality, you piece of !”

    Jongin’s fist flies through the air. For a second, Mirae thinks that he is actually going to punch her. She glares back at him defiantly, unwilling to wince. Let him punch me. I don’t care.

    However, his hand hits the wall right next to her ear. Jongin’s jaw is clenched. His chest is heaving.

    “Get off of me,” Mirae finally utters, shoving Jongin away from her. She angrily stalks away in search of the nearest bus stop.

    Jongin is frozen in place. His mind is reeling from shock. Mirae’s words replay in his ears like a voice recording on loop.

    “You’re a spoiled, selfish little brat who thinks he’s entitled to everything.”

    “It’s time that someone told you all of this to your face.”

“Money can’t buy you a good personality, you piece of !”

    Suddenly, Jongin’s phone buzzes in his pocket. In a daze, he picks up.

    “Hello?” he whispers weakly.

    “Jongin?”

    His eyes widen. It is his father.

    “Jongin, where are you?” Mr. Kim asks concernedly. “Your mother and I are rather worried right now. Are you at a party right now? Are you okay? Jongin? Hello?”

    It feels like there is something lodged in Jongin’s throat. “Dad,” he finally whispers, his voice breaking.

    For the first time in years, Jongin sits down and talks with his dad.

    They discuss a range of topics. The incident that occurred when Jongin was a child, when Mr. Kim slapped him during one of his post-mania depression phases. It was back before Kim Jaesun realized he had bipolar disorder. Before he started getting treatment. Jaesun emphasizes that.

    “I feel so sorry for that day, every single day of my life,” he tells his son. “I regret it so badly. I wish I had recognized that I had a problem earlier.”

    Jongin shakes his head. “But at least you started getting treatment. I should have recognized that, and let you into my life again. I didn’t give you another chance.”

    Jaesun smiles. His eyes are welling with tears. “Jongin, I love you so much. I am so proud you are my son.”

    Jongin rubs his eyes, laughing a little bit. “Thanks, Dad,” he murmurs, hugging his father.

    “It’s been so long since you called me ‘Dad’,” Jaesun sniffs. “I’m so happy that you’re talking to me again. I’ve missed you so much, son.”

    Jongin cannot say anything. He is too choked up.

    Later that night, after father and son have finished speaking, Jongin realizes that this is all thanks to Mirae. If she had not given him the cold, hard truth, then he would not have been able to recognize the error of his ways.

    Mirae’s been trying to help me this entire time, he thinks, his chest full of self-loathing. And I thanked her by nearly revealing her biggest secret to Suyeon. I’ve treated her like a pest this whole time, with complete annoyance and contempt. I never appreciated her like I should have.

    I need to set things straight with her.

    “Sehun, what’s our schedule for today?” Jongin asks Sehun the following Monday at school.

    His best friend scratches his head. “Uh, after school, we have 3 hours of tutoring. Then we’re free. Why?”

    “Can we find Suyeon and Mirae instead?”

    Sehun blinks. “Why?”

    “I need to talk to Mirae.”

    He gives Jongin a calculating look. “What for?”

    “I just need to discuss a few things with her.”

    “Sure,” Sehun says slowly.

    Jongin can barely get through the day. He drums his fingers in anticipation while staring at his watch every 5 minutes. Butterflies the size of bats flit around in his stomach. He practices what he’ll say to Mirae in his head.

    I’ll tell her, Mirae, I’m so sorry about Saturday. You were completely right. I talked to my dad and we are finally improving our relationship. I’ll help you with anything you need to concerning your disorder, or telling Suyeon about anything.

    When the final bell rings, Jongin tears out of the classroom and heads for his car.

    “Sehun?” he says, calling his best friend. “Yeah, where are they going to be? Okay, I’ll meet you there.”

    Mirae is teaching a 5th grader decimal division. She gently corrects his mistakes, reminding him of the steps he is supposed to take.

    “You’re supposed to add a 0 at the end, remember?” she says kindly.

    “I’m sorry!” the boy frets, erasing his work.

    “No, don’t worry!” Mirae laughs, patting his back. “You’re doing awesome!”

    Suddenly, she hears a commotion behind her. “Well, well, what are you two doing here?” Mirae hears Suyeon ask teasingly. Mirae turns around and sees Oh Sehun and Kim Jongin standing in the doorway of the cafe. Sehun is talking animatedly to Suyeon, of course.

    But Jongin’s eyes are pinned on her.

    Mirae sets in a hard line and turns back to her student.

    “Can I talk to you?” Jongin asks after her tutoring session is done.

    “Suyeon, let’s go,” Mirae says, completely ignoring the boy. “I have a ton of homework tonight.”

    “Uh, okay,” Suyeon says, glancing at Jongin. Why does he have that desperate expression on his face?

    “Mirae, please,” Jongin begs, following her. “Just give me a minute.”

    “Hey, Mirae,” Sehun greets. She gives him a friendly nod, and- without even looking once in Jongin’s direction- exits the library with Suyeon.

    “What’s going on?” Sehun asks Jongin, who is staring after Mirae in frustration.

    “I need to say sorry to her,” Jongin admits. “I... never mind.”

    Outside the cafe, Suyeon has the same question for her friend. “Any particular reason why you’re ignoring him?” she asks.

    Mirae shakes her head. “It’s nothing.”

    She’s done with Kim Jongin.

A/N: i love you mirae jongin doesnt deserve you