His hand trembled as someone pushed him inside of a car. He was numb all over, his mind and body weren’t connected, and he couldn’t make up what happened or where it happened. His mind could only picture her standing in front of a coffin, crying as she poured her heart. It could have been him lying in a coffin, but this time, it was her father. Her father, a man he killed by accident. A man he didn’t knew had a life full of secrets, and she was one of them.

“What the happened?!” Seunghyun said as he drove out of the place, full speed as some other cars were following them. Jiyong couldn’t talk, he didn’t even cared about being killed or followed, all he could think of was about Chaerin standing in the dais, talking about her father.

“They were there! Chaerin was there!” Youngbae said exasperated from the back seat as he tried to make Jiyong regain control. But little did he know that sentence was all he needed to get back on track. He lifted his head, glaring intensely at Youngbae as he recalled his behavior, just seconds before he found out Chaerin was actually his own target.

“You knew?” Jiyong hissed. Everything fell silent in the car, the only sound was the one of the engine as Seunghyun speeded out of the place. “You knew she was one of the heirs, didn’t you?”

“Jiyong… I…”

“You wanted to protect me?” Jiyong said in disbelieve. “Exactly when did you wanted to protect me? When you told me you liked her? Or when you saw me loving her?

“I never thought you’d love her.” Youngbae said. Jiyong shook his head.

“What are your reasons behind this? My father has something to do with this, doesn’t he?” Jiyong hissed again, and Youngbae opened his mouth to talk, then closed it. “Take me to him.”

“We’re being followed.” Daesung tried to reason, but Jiyong just glared at him.

“I don’t care! Take me to that mothering bastard! NOW!” Jiyong growled, and Seunghyun simply nodded, shifting gears and speeding out of the place. Jiyong held his hair as tears fell from his eyes, yet he failed to feel sadness, but anger. Anger that ran through his body like liquid steel, slowly burning him inside, until all he could do was scream or kill, yet he did none.

After almost an hour, Seunghyun finally took them to the Kwon’s house. Jiyong looked at the mansion, fidgeting with his fingers as he debated whether he should confront his father, or simply ignore whatever he said and take Chaerin out of town. “Ji.” Youngbae muttered, and Jiyong nodded without looking at him, another tear falling from his eye.

“You’re too vulnerable now.” Daesung said.

“You should rest, then talk to him.” Youngbae said. Jiyong nodded again, his lips as another tear fell from his eye.

“Why is he doing this to me?” Jiyong muttered. Youngbae put a hand over his shoulder, then pulled him to hug him. Jiyong’s face crashed with Youngbae’s broad and toned chest, and again, he felt as if he was the youngest one, being protected and guarded against all evil by his best friend. No one answered him the question he always had, it didn’t had any answer. Everyone remained silent as Seunghyun drove out of the place, slowly, keeping the silence as he got back in the main road, back to Jiyong’s apartment.

Jiyong remained in Youngbae’s arm, feeling exhausted. He looked at the road at the front, trying to imagine himself running away from everyone, from everything. Trying to change his own life and living however he wanted, wherever he wanted. Now, more than ever, seemed so impossible, so distant. Now he realized he will never have the life he desired, his father will never allow him. No one will let him go.

The silence was soon broken by the sound of a phone. Jiyong didn’t moved an inch, it wasn’t his. Daesung, however, moved quickly to fetch his phone from the floor. Somewhere along the road, the phone had fallen and no one noticed until now. “It’s Seungri.” Daesung said, and at the sole mention of his younger friend, he sat back up, cleaning the remaining tears on his face. It was only them that could see him so broken. It was only with them he could feel, he could breathe and feel the comfort of a family.

“Seungri!” Daesung answered, and Jiyong bit his lip, his eyes wide open as he tried to get into the phone and hear Seungri’s voice. “Is she back? Alright, no, the mission was a failure. We’ll talk soon. Bye.” He said and ended the call.

“Where is she?” Jiyong quickly asked and Daesung smiled at him.

“She’s home, safe in her apartment.” Daesung said. Jiyong felt a thin ray of hope inside of his chest at that.

“Can I see her?” Jiyong asked, and everyone shared a look, then shook his head.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea. The place’s being guarded, double security. Also, her cousins are home too.” Daesung explained. Jiyong shook his head as he looked at his own phone, which by a strange movement, was now in his hand.

“Should I call her?” He said. Youngbae crooked his head as he too looked at the phone.

“She hadn’t contacted you?”

“No one saw us, right?” Jiyong said and Youngbae shook his head.

“I dragged you out before anyone could see.” Youngbae assured him. Jiyong nodded and unlocked the phone.

“I’ll call her.” He said. Everyone nodded as he pressed the phone to his hear, his heart beating fast as he heard the rings. And, after a while, she finally answered.

“Hi, Ji.” She said softly. Her voice was almost a whisper, as if she was hiding so no one could hear her.

“Chaerin.” He said almost out of breath, not knowing what to say, or what to do. Just exactly what did you say to the woman whose father you killed?

“Now’s not a good time Ji, my family’s here and they’re not in the best humor.” She whispered. Jiyong bit his lip and nodded. It was his own fault.

“Oh, I’m sorry then. I just wanted to check up on you. Are you alright?”

“Yes, I am just fine. You?” She said, and he had to bit his lip to avoid breaking.

“I’m fine.” He lied.

“Great. I’ll call you soon. I’ll try to escape this monsters and meet with you. If that’s no trouble.” She said and he widened his eyes.

“No, of course that’s no problem. I’ll be counting the minutes.” He said and she laughed softly.

“I love you.” She said and he lowered his head, tears falling from his eyes.

“I love you too, bye.” He couldn’t take it anymore and ended the call. Jiyong let the phone fall from his hands as he tried to control himself. This situation had touched his core, and did not only touched it, broke it, tortured it and made fun of it. His whole self was compromised as his feelings were running amok, hard to be controlled, yet not wanting to.

“What did she say?” Youngbae asked and Jiyong shook his head, now looking at him through blurry eyes.

“She’ll find a way to see me.” He said. Youngbae frowned and lowered his head.

“That’ll be an inconvenience.” Youngbae said and Jiyong shrugged.

“I don’t care, I have to see her.” Jiyong said and Youngbae nodded.

“Then I take it you’re out of the Heirs mission, right?”

Her hands were cold, her heart was sore and her eyes were blurred. She missed him with all her soul, her body. Her limbs knew, her heart knew. She wanted to see him, especially now, she needed to see him. And yet, she couldn’t even escape her family’s grasp. It was all so hard for her, not being able to properly say goodbye to her father, and not having the man she loved by her side. She needed him, the person who gave her comfort and protection. She needed him.

“Who was it?” Taemin asked. She let out a sigh and looked at him, her eyes completely blank as she tried to hide the pain she was feeling.

“Can I confide something to you?” She said and he nodded, taking a lollipop out of his mouth.

“Always.” He said and she nodded, slightly smiling.

“I’m kind of dating someone.” She said. He widened his eyes, then smiled and nodded.

“Is he good?” He said and she crooked her head, then nodded.

“He’s good. But I don’t think you’ll find him that good.” She said. Taemin narrowed his eyes and crooked his head.

“Why?”

“Because, he has a temper.” She started, then remember him being so sweet and soft with her, and dangerous and menacing with the others. “But he can be the sweetest guy ever.”

“I want to meet that sweet guy with a bad temper.” Taemin said, and Chaerin looked at him with wide eyes.

“You want?”

“Whoever’s dating my cousin, I should meet.” He said. Chaerin smiled and nodded.

“I’ll arrange something.” She muttered. “First I would need to get out of their sight.”

“I can help you.” Taemin said. Chaerin looked at him with wide eyes.

“You would?” She said and he nodded.

“Of course. You want to meet with him, right?” He said and she nodded. “Then I’ll take you.”

“But, how are we going to get away? They are keeping a close eye on us.” She said and Taemin smirked.

“Stealth.” He whispered. Chaerin blinked her eyes, looking at him as if he had spoken in a foreign language, one she knew too well. He blinked his eye and stood up, grabbing a napkin from the coffee table and walking towards his father. Chaerin looked at him as he moved, too sensual, too menacing. It was as if he had turned into another person.

As he reached his father, Chaerin noticed Kikwang saw him, and her heart stopped. He narrowed his eyes, then looked at Chaerin, and nodded. She held in her breath as Taemin slightly pushed his father, making him stumble on Kikwang. Kikwang smirked and pushed Chaerin’s mother, making her fall on the floor. Her glass broke, cutting her hand. Blood was dripping, and everyone turned berserk. Sooman quickly went to aid Jaerin, and Taemin quickly gave Kikwang a look, and Kikwang nodded, gesturing Chaerin the door.

Without hesitation, she quickly stood up and made her way towards the door, where Taemin was waiting for her. She didn’t dared to breath, to blink an eye or to look back, she simply walked out without stopping. Taemin was following suit, opening the door to the stairs and slightly pushing her inside. They ran down the stairs until they reached the main lobby. There was no one there, and the receptionist was looking at his cellphone. Chaerin let out a sigh as they made it out.

They walked in a fast pace towards the car, looking everywhere as they did. The adrenaline in her veins made her laugh uncontrollably as her cousin held her in place. Her father had taught her so much she didn’t even knew. “I can’t believe it!” She said amazed. Taemin laughed and moved to his car, taking his keys out.

“Told you we could get out.” He said as he unlocked his car. She grabbed her hair and let out a sigh.

“No one noticed, right?” She said and Taemin shrugged, finally opening the door.

“They will notice, but long after we’re gone.” He said and got in. She smiled and got in the passenger’s seat, taking out her phone.

“I’m calling him.” She said and Taemin nodded as he started the engine. She pressed the phone to her ear, hopping Jiyong would answer, but after long rings, there was no answer. She frowned and looked at the screen.

“What?” Taemin asked, now making a turn. She dialed the phone number again and pressed the phone to her ear.

“Nothing, he didn’t answered.” She said as she heard the long rings, and still, there was no answer.

“Should he be out?” Taemin said and Chaerin shrugged.

“I don’t know, I’m calling his best friend and see.” She said as she dialed Youngbae’s number. It dialed a few times, and just when she thought it would redirect her to the voicemail, Youngbae answered hastily.

“Hey.” He said. She held in her breath and nodded.

“Youngbae, hi.”

“What’s up?” He said casually.

“Nothing much, is Jiyong with you?”

“No, he went out. Why?”

“I’m on my way to his apartment.” She said quickly. There was a silence in the line, then Youngbae spoke again.

“I’m here. You can come and wait for him. I don’t know when he’ll be back though.”

“Is he,” She started saying, then looked at Taemin, who was concentrated in the road. “Is he out working?”

“No, I think he’s at his father’s. He’s fine, he just needed to fix some things.” Youngbae reassured her. Chaerin nodded, letting out a soft sigh of relieve.

“Ok, I’ll see you soon. Thanks.”

“Always, bye.”

“Bye.” She said softly and lowered the phone, looking at the screen as the call ended.

“Is something wrong?” Taemin asked as she continued looking at the screen. Jiyong not answering her calls was odd, completely bizarre. Something deep within her told her something was wrong, yet, why would Youngbae lie to her about something as delicate as Jiyong’s person?

“No, nothing’s wrong.” She said softly. Taemin nodded, and Chaerin thank God he didn’t pushed it.

The place was empty, as usually, but something caught Chaerin’s attention as Taemin pulled to a stop in front of Jiyong’s building. Jiyong’s car was still there, parked on his usual spot. Her eyes instantly narrowed as she felt the annoyance rising inside of his veins. Why would they lie to her? Taemin let out a sigh as he turned off the car. She could feel him looking at her as she looked at Jiyong’s car. “This is the place, right?” He asked and she quickly nodded.

“Yes, this is the place. Thanks Taem, I owe you.” She said as she grabbed her phone and opened the door. Taemin chuckled and nodded, turning on the engine.

“If I were to charge you, you would have to sell me your soul. I’m still counting since that time you broke my nose.” He said and she shook her head while chuckling.

“We were like 7 years old.”

“But I still remember. Call me if you need anything.” He said as he put the park in reverse. “And, if they search for you, I’ll be the one calling you.”

“Thanks.” She said and closed the door. Taemin got out of the place, leaving her there watching him go. Chaerin took a deep breath and glared at Jiyong’s car again, walking inside the lobby. As usual, there was no one there, and again, the security guard was nowhere to be seen. She shook her head and went over to the elevator. The doors opened quickly, and she got in, pressing the button to Jiyong’s floor.

It seemed like an eternity when the elevator finally reached Jiyong’s floor. The doors opened dramatically slowly as she looked at them, staring at nothing as the annoyance grew stronger. She walked out, her heels clacking on the floor as she reached the only door in the floor. Chaerin didn’t knocked, she simply put her hand on the doorknob and turned it. It was unlocked. She walked in, leaving the door open, hoping to find Jiyong resting on his sofa or at his kitchen. However, she found only Youngbae shirtless, wearing only a pair of sweatpants and some flip flops.

“Chaerin, so good to see you.” Youngbae said as soon as he saw her. He was holding a glass of orange juice, and at the coffee table, there was a tray with some popcorn on it. He was watching movies, but Chaerin didn’t pay attention to the T.V, only at him.

“Where is he? Jiyong.” She said and Youngbae raised an eyebrow.

“I told you he was out.” He said and she scoffed.

“His car’s there, is he flying out?” She said and Youngbae chuckled while walking towards the sofa.

“Out with Seungri, he too have a car you know.” He said as he plunged himself on the sofa. “If Jiyong were here, do you really think he’ll allow me to eat here? He’s such a when it comes to his precious rugs.” Chaerin raised an eyebrow and nodded, walking hastily towards Jiyong’s room. Youngbae didn’t made any effort in stopping her, and she doubted her anger by now.

As she opened the door to his room, she found it neatly arranged. The bed was made and the place itself smelled like clean. The only thing out of its place was a gun place on top of the vanity. Chaerin walked into the room and towards the vanity, looking at the golden gun on top of the vanity. Something about it was oddly familiar as she looked at it. The only design it had was a dragon carved on it, making spirals around the barrel. She wanted to touch it, to see it up closer, but forbid herself to do so. Instead, she walked into Jiyong’s extremely neat bathroom and took out her dress.

Half , Chaerin looked at herself in the mirror. She looked tired, and she hadn’t noticed her makeup was running, and her eyes were smeared. She quickly grabbed the soap and scrubbed her face, cleaning out all the makeup, trying to remove everything related to that day. With her bare face, she looked at herself one more time, grinning humorlessly as she slowly took out her bra, then her .

Finally , she walked into the shower, letting the stream of water touch her skin and rinse away every dark feeling of loneliness and sadness. Closing her eyes, she prayed for everything to be over, for her life to be normal. She desperately needed a person to hold on to, and even if she had a few seconds of happiness, it would be borrowed, and that broken feeling of emptiness would invade her forever.

The water cleansed her body completely, but her mind still was pondering about her life, about the way her father’s funeral turned out to be. And as she walked out of the bathroom, Chaerin held tightly on her towel as she threw herself on Jiyong’s bed, closing her eyes as the darkness of the night took over the room. The lights were off, only the dim lights of the city were entering the crystal walls, but Jiyong had half closed the curtains, and it was a comfortable light to sleep in. She rest her head on the pillow, not caring about her wet hair as she looked at the starry sky. Now she knew why Jiyong arranged the room that way, the bed close to the crystal walls and half the ceiling made of the same glass. It gave peace to the mind, to the soul and body. Nothing disturbed her view as she so desperately clung onto dreamland, letting her exhausted body relax on Jiyong’s bed, inhaling his scent everywhere on his sheets.

Peace, it was all she could have in his apartment, in his own little world. Peace of mind, peace of soul, his scent made her feel protected, and even if wasn’t there, his presence lingered through the room, the walls, the bed. The smiling face of him was plastered in a few portraits, and it was enough for her to feel like she was in his little world. So little time has he become the source of her strength and peace, yet she couldn’t complain. It was a world she loved, and even if it was unknown, it was the most perfect place she could find. No one could take that away from her, no one would break that little world he had built and she will continue to build. She was determined, to stay with him, to share his peace, to share his world.

Gily's Notes: Because I'm good like that, another speedy update! 

I can't see the end of this, so breathe... for now xD Because I do have the end well planned, only that the road is still distant hehe

Thanks for the comments! I read them all with great happiness! Keep them coming!

Happy Reading ~

Gily ♥