Protecting Seolhyun

“Myungsoo, are you ready?”

Myungsoo let out a nervous breath before nodding. “I think I am,” he replied.

“Okay then.” Sarang took out something from her bag and handed it to him.

“What is this?” he asked her as he took it.

“It’s an earpiece,” she answered. “We can communicate with each other through this. The CAIL Association finally fixed it, so I don’t have to use a notebook to communicate with you anymore.”

He nodded in understanding and wore the earpiece onto his ear.

“Alright, so I’m going to try to get Sunwoong to go home by himself without Seolhyun,” she said. “You know what you’re supposed to do, right?”

Myungsoo let out another breath and nodded again. “So is the plan going to start now?”

“Yup,” she replied. She placed a hand on his shoulder. “Good luck and don’t screw this up.”

He looked at her nervously. “I’ll try not to.”

“Thank you for offering to take me home,” Seolhyun said to Myungsoo.

“It’s nothing,” he replied. “It’s dark out right now, so of course I have to… um…”

“Protect her. Say that you’ll protect her,” he heard Sarang say through his earpiece.

She had successfully convinced Sunwoong to walk home by himself, and was now stealthily following behind the two in her cat form. If you’re wondering why she went back into her cat form for this, let’s just say that cats are way better at sneaking around than humans. Plus, they’re way smaller.

“Protect you!” he immediately repeated. “Yeah… um… I’ll protect you.”

Seolhyun giggled and said, “Then thank you for protecting me.”

He nodded and returned the smile. “Um… you’re welcome,” he said.

They continued walking in silence as Myungsoo secretly waited for Sarang to tell him what to do next. “Alright, so we’re going to do our plan now,” she said through the earpiece. “In a few minutes, the guy from yesterday is going to come and he’ll start hitting on Seolhyun. You will then step in and protect her just like we practiced yesterday, understand?”

He was about to answer when she spoke again. “And don’t answer me out loud or say anything out loud. Just nod or shake your head or do any other unsuspicious looking gesture you want. I can see you since I’m watching you guys from afar, so don’t worry about me not being able to see your response.”

Myungsoo nodded in reply. “So you understand?” she asked again. He nodded once more.

“Good,” she replied, smiling after seeing him understand her directions.

After walking for a few minutes more, the man that he saw from yesterday came just as they have planned and stopped in front of him and Seolhyun.

“Hey…” the man said in a husky voice. “You’re pretty cute. Do you want to come and play with me?”

“Myungsoo, that’s the cue! Start protecting her!” Sarang said.

Myungsoo nodded before pulling Seolhyun behind him and standing in front of her protectively. “No, you… um… can’t take her!” he said.

He tried his best to stare the man straight in the eyes with no fear like Sarang had taught him yesterday, but it was failing since the man’s eyes seemed way too menacing, causing for him to repeatedly look away and break eye contact.

The man narrowed his eyes at him. “What? Are you saying that I can’t take her?”

Myungsoo nodded and tried looking at the man in the eyes again. “Y-Yes! That’s right. You can’t take her,” he said.

“But I bet that she wants to come with me, though. Right, pretty one?”

Seolhyun saw the man eyeing her and she held Myungsoo’s arm tighter from fright. “I-I don’t want to go with you,” she managed to say.

“Aww, don’t lie just to make your boyfriend feel better. I know that you want to come with me.” The man smirked and looked at Myungsoo with an intense gaze. “So don’t worry, I’ll make him have to let you come with me. It’ll be pretty easy since he’s a scrawny one.”

The man cracked his neck and looked like he was preparing to fight. Myungsoo gulped and frantically whispered into the earpiece. “Sarang, he really won’t hurt me, right?”

“Of course not, he’s just a doll. He won’t be able to hurt you,” she assured.

Myungsoo looked back at the man and saw him smirking with a dangerous look in his eyes. He then started blaming Sarang in his head for making him have to go through something like this. Sure, he wanted to get Seolhyun to like him and all, but did they really have to go this far just because of that?

“Myungsoo, you’ll be fine,” he heard Sarang say. “I’m controlling him so I’ll make sure that he won’t give you a single scratch on your body.”

“Really?” he asked, still feeling nervous. “You’ll really do that?”

“Yes,” she replied. “Now do you want to say any cool catchphrases before he starts fighting you?”

“What kind of cool catchphrases?”

“I don’t know. Anything that you think is cool.”

Myungsoo thought about it, but nothing came up into his head.

“Hey, you’ve got anything to say before I beat you to a pulp?” the man questioned.

Myungsoo widened his eyes. He wasn’t sure before if he should try to think of a cool catchphrase or not, but he guessed that he has to now. “Um… uh… in the name of justice… um… I will punish you!” he said in a loud voice with a finger pointing at the guy.

“Really, Myungsoo? Sailor Moon?”

“It’s not Sailor Moon,” he retorted. “Sailor Moon says in the name of the moon, I will punish you. But I said in the name of justice. There’s a difference.”

“Okay… I think that the catchphrase was a bad idea,” she said. “Let’s just start with the fight.”

“Now he’s going to come at you and swing at your face with his right hand. He’ll do it slowly, so make sure to block it on time and punch him back, and also don’t hold back. We have to make this looks as realistic as possible so punch as hard as you want. He’s a doll so he won’t feel anything, and if you see him bleed somewhere along the way, just remember that it’s fake blood.”

Myungsoo nodded in understanding as he could feel his hands starting to tremble. “Okay,” she continued. “He’s going to come at you with his right hand in 3… 2… 1…”

Myungsoo saw the man coming at him, ready to punch him in the face with his right hand just like Sarang had told him. He then did as she instructed him to do and blocked the punch before closing his eyes and punching the man back as hard as he could, right into his gut.

“Oof!” the man said as he flew back. He looked like he was in a lot of pain as he tried to stand up again. “You dare to punch me?!” he said. “Well, I’ll punch you back twice as hard!”

The man came after him, but not before Sarang had told him what he was about to do and what Myungsoo should do to successfully block him and counter the attack. This went on for quite some time with the man continuously getting up and trying to hit him, while Myungsoo blocked and countered his attacks as he heard Sarang’s instructions coming from the earpiece.

“Hey, I think I’ve got the hang of this,” Myungsoo said, his confidence growing and nervousness slowly disappearing.

“Myungsoo, pay attention. He’s going to come at you in—“

“But how long are we going to continue this for? This whole fight scene has gone on for a long—“ He stopped midsentence when he felt a stinging pain on the left side of his face. He then fell down while holding onto the slightly throbbing area, not knowing what had hit him.

“Oh my gosh, Myungsoo!” Sarang said into the earpiece. “Are you okay? Are you fine? Are you dead?”

He furrowed his eyebrows at her last question. “Dead?” he asked back.

“Oh, so you’re not dead.” She let out a sigh of relief. “That’s good, so let’s continue.”

“Continue?! I just got punched in the face!”

“Yeah, yeah, I know. But we have to finish this,” she said. “You have to look like a hero right until the end, so go over there and give him a good punch in the face or whatever. Let’s finish strong.”

He sighed, but nodded. “Alright, but tell me that it will be all over once I do this.”

“It will be all over once you do this,” she said without skipping-a-beat.

“Wow, I didn’t expect you to reply that fast,” he said. He then stood up and walked towards the man, not feeling as afraid anymore since he already got punched. The whole time he was afraid of getting hurt anyway, but now that he had already gotten hurt, it doesn’t really seem to matter anymore.

The man stared at him without moving, and Myungsoo wasn’t really sure what to do so he gave the man a slight punch in the ribs. Despite the impact being small with him not trying that hard to punch the man, the man crumbled down and landed with a thud onto the floor.

“Ow! It hurts!” the man yelped. “Please, don’t hurt me.”

Myungsoo looked at him in surprise since he didn’t expect that kind of reaction. “Myungsoo, say something cool!” Sarang told him.

“Again?” he asked. “Okay then, um… in the name of just—“

“No,” Sarang said, interrupting him. “Please say something else. You’re not Sailor Moon, Myungsoo.”

“I’m not trying to be Sailor Moon,” he said back.

“Then say something else.”

“Okay, um… you have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will—“

“Myungsoo,” she interrupted again. “You’re not arresting him.”

“I know.”

“Then why are you telling him his Miranda rights?”

“I don’t know. Cause it sounds cool?”

She sighed. “You’ve been watching way too many crime shows.”

“But you like them too!” he said. “Who was the one who told me to watch that one crime show with her?”

She scrunched her face up and realized that he was right. “You’ve got a point,” she said.

“Okay, okay, I won’t lay a hand on her!” the man yelled as he stood up. “Jesus, why do you have to be so strong?” The man then started limping away and disappeared into the shadows, but not before giving Myungsoo a few glances along the way.

“Myungsoo!” Seolhyun yelled when the man left. She came out from her safe hiding spot and ran over to him. “Myungsoo, are you okay?!”

“Y-Yeah, I’m fine…” he said.

“But I saw you get punched in the face! Are you really fine? Does it hurt at all?” she asked him worriedly.

Myungsoo smiled reassuringly and shook his head. “No, it doesn’t,” he replied. “It’s only a punch.”

“Only a punch?” she repeated in disbelief. “This punch caused for your lip to bleed! How is this only a punch?!”

He furrowed his eyebrows after hearing what she said. “Only my lip bled? How is that possible? It felt like this side of my face should have more injuries than just that.”

“Don’t say that!” she said. “Just be happy that there isn’t and that you only got a bruised lip.” Myungsoo nodded in response. “Now let’s go. We should head home now.”

She stuck by his side, afraid that he might stagger somewhere along the way, and they started walking again. The whole way to her place was full of her nagging and asking him if he was really okay or not. It actually made him feel really happy to have Seolhyun do that since it showed that she was worried for him and he didn’t mind the nagging at all.

“Let’s go to my place so that we can treat it,” she said when they arrived in front of her apartment building.

“No, it’s okay. I’ll just treat it myself when I get home,” he replied.

“But you got hurt because of me. I should at least repay you by doing this.”

He shook his head and said, “No, it’s really okay. It’s just a small bruise on my lip. It’ll go away in no time.”

“Are you sure because I have a first aid kit just insi—“

“I’m sure,” Myungsoo said. “I’m really sure, so just go inside. I don’t want you to stay out here in the cold or stay up any later just to fix me up. It’s dark already and we still have work tomorrow. I don’t want for you to be late or tired in the morning.”

Seolhyun slowly nodded in understanding and felt slightly touched that he was worrying about her. “So… I guess this is… goodbye?” she said.

Myungsoo nodded and gave her a smile. “Goodbye Seolhyun-ssi, I’ll see you tomorrow.” He waved at her and turned to leave when the unthinkable happened.

“Myungsoo!” she called. He turned around again and looked at her. “Just call me Seolhyun from now on and don’t speak formally to me. We’re friends, we should speak informally with each other so… let’s just be comfortable with each other from now on.”

He couldn’t believe what was happening as a joyous smile formed on his face. “R-Really?” he asked just to make sure. “I can really do that?”

Seolhyun nodded. At her response, his smile grew even wider and he said, “Then bye Seolhyun, I’ll see you tomorrow!”

He excitedly waved at her with both hands, causing for her to giggle and wave back at him. He then turned around and started running home, not believing what had happened and planning to tell Sarang everything that Seolhyun did—from her being worried about him to her telling him to speak comfortably with her.

“Myungsoo!”

“Oh gosh!” he jumped when Sarang suddenly jumped in front of him out of nowhere. He then stared at her in disbelief. “Stop trying to give me a heart attack!”

She held back a laugh and shook her head. “You’re such a scaredy-cat,” she said. She then saw the wound on his lip and looked at him worriedly. “Oh no, you got injured.” She went closer to him and examined it. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” he answered. “But you won’t believe this. Seolhyun actually told me to just call her Seolhyun without being formal and all.” He was giddy as he told her about it and was feeling extremely happy from just remembering what Seolhyun had told him.

He then let out a dreamy sigh. “I can’t believe that my goddess finally told me that it’s okay to talk to her informally. I think that I can die happy now.”

Sarang held back a laugh. If only she could record him right now, it would be hilarious to watch it later on. Myungsoo in his love-struck state was a priceless sight to see.

They then went to a convenience store near their apartment, and Sarang made him sit down on the chair outside the place. “Wait here, I’ll go buy a first-aid kit,” she said.

He looked at her in surprise and she left before he could say anything. After a minute, she came out again and sat in the chair that was next to him.

“Kim Myungsoo-ssi, I will start with the operation now,” she said dramatically while opening the kit. “Would you like to say anything before we start?”

He looked at her weirdly and was about to say something. “Too late!” she interrupted. “We’re beginning now.”

“Wait! I have a question!”

“What is it?”

“You said that he was just a doll and that he couldn’t hurt me,” he said. “You lied!”

“I know,” she said. “That was the only way for you to be a little less nervous about fighting him, so I lied. But at the same time I didn’t think that you would get hurt. And also, it was kind of your fault for not paying attention in the middle of it.”

He frowned. “You still should’ve told me that it could punch me in the face.”

“But you know now so… yay?”

He stared at her, expressionless. “No.”

“Then… sorry?” She then started poking his arm. “Will you accept my apology, Myungsoo? Myungsoo-ssi? Myungsoo-ah?”

“I still think that you should’ve told me that that doll or whatever he is, could punch me in the face like that.” He brought a hand up and pointed at his wounded lip. “Look at this! It’s bleeding!”

“I know, I know,” she said. “That’s why I’m going to treat it as an apology for you getting hurt.”

“I would like it more if you bought me something to eat.”

“I’ll buy you an item in the convenience store if you forgive me.”

It didn’t even take him a second to agree to her offer. “Deal,” he said, back to his happy state.

She smiled at how easy it was to cheer him up, and scooted closer to him. “Now, hold still,” she said as she started treating his wound. “One tiny movement may mean sudden death.”

He furrowed his eyebrows. “But it’s just a small cut on my lip.”

“I know, but doesn’t it sound way more serious and intense when I said that? It sounds like we’re in some sort of medical drama or something.”

He looked at her strangely. “You’ve been watching way too many dramas these days.”

“Hey, it’s a way for me to relax,” she said.

“Yeah, you seem really relaxed when you’re yelling at the screen when the character you don’t like comes on,” he said in an amused, yet sarcastic tone.

“Don’t make fun of my hobby.”

“I’m not. I’m just stating facts. Making fun of something involves me coming up with creative, negative remarks about them. For example, I don’t understand why you like to watch something that has a bunch of clichés in it. It’s like opening a box and being all excited each time you open it, despite already knowing the contents inside.”

She frowned at him. “That wasn’t creative, and you watch them too,” she stated.

“I’ll admit that I watch them, but I’ll have to say that I don’t get as emotional when watching them compared to you.”

She scoffed. “Says the one who bawled his eyes out when Dal Bong died and got frustrated when Sena didn’t end up with Shiwoo.”

“Hey, we both loved that dog and we both agree that Shiwoo should’ve ended up with her!” he said, defending himself.

“Yeah, but you were the one who yelled at the screen when that happened,” she mentioned.

“I just got… slightly emotional, okay?” he said with a light hint of pink approaching his cheeks.

“Aw, is our little Myungsoo embarrassed?” she asked in a teasing voice.

“N-No, I’m not.”

She lightly laughed at his expression and started dabbing the wound on his lip with the medication. He then realized how close her face was to his as she focused on applying it, and suddenly felt his heart starting to race. His breath hitched in his throat and he forgot to breathe for a second.

Again, he wasn’t used to a girl being this close to him, so again he was reacting like this. He was actually kind of annoyed with himself since he just couldn’t seem to control his reactions when this was happening. Like seriously, why couldn’t he just still act normal without blushing or anything when she was close to him?

It wasn’t like she was that close to him either, but why was his heart still beating rapidly? He hated himself for being awkward like this, and continued to try to subdue the heat going up to his face. The only thing that made him snap out of his thoughts was when the medication caused a stinging pain when it was applied onto his wound.

“Ow!” he yelped.

Sarang heard his cry of pain and looked at him with worried eyes. “Oh, oops! Does it hurt?”

Myungsoo shook his head even though it really did hurt. “No, not at all,” he lied.

“Really? Then does that mean that I don’t have to worry about hurting you if I apply a little more pressure?”

“Um… n—Wait!” She looked like she was going to apply more pressure, so he immediately stopped her. “It hurts! Don’t apply more pressure!”

She laughed before placing the medication down onto the table and picking the band aid up. “I guess that you only tell the truth when I do something like that.”

He took a moment to register what she said and had on a confused expression. “When it hurts then just tell me that it hurts,” she continued. “You don’t have to lie about it.” She placed the band aid onto the cut on his lip and leaned back.

“I-I wasn’t lying,” he lied again. “It really didn’t hurt at first.”

“Yeah, whatever you say,” she said, not believing him. “But also, why were you blushing before?”

“What are you talking about?” he asked, confused.

“When I was applying your medication you were blushing,” she said.

It took a minute for him to realize what she was talking about, but then he slightly started to panic. “W-What? N-No I w-wasn’t!”

“Uh-huh…” she said with suspicious looking eyes.

“Y-Yeah, I-I wasn’t b-blushing. Y-You must have s-seen wrong.”

Just as he was about to turn away to hide his face, he got the shock of his life when she suddenly leaned in with her face being really close to his. He nearly got a heart attack from seeing her face being only a few inches away, and seeing her directly stare at him in the eyes without breaking eye contact only made it worse.

“I’m sure that you were, though,” she said.

“I-I r-really wasn’t.”

She tilted her head and continued staring at him. “Myungsoo…”

He didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t even think of anything. All he could do in that situation was to sit there, not moving even an inch as his heart continued to beat abnormally fast.

“… I…” She was still looking into his eyes as she smiled. “…think that you’re really fun to tease.” She then started laughing as she leaned away from him.

He sat there in shock as she was laughing at him. “S-Stop teasing me!” he said, still feeling extremely embarrassed.

“Sorry, but your reaction is too priceless.” She wiped away an imaginary tear and fanned her face since it got heated up after laughing so much. “I’m dying over here,” she said with a few giggles escaping her lips.

Myungsoo frowned at her, and she could see that he was mad. “Okay, sorry,” she said. “Are you mad?”

“No,” he replied without looking at her.

“Myungsoo! Myungsoo-ssi! Myungsoo-ah!”

“What?”

“I’ll buy you anything you want from the convenience store.”

“Really?”

“Yup.”

He then had a questioning look on his face when he had just realized something. “Where did you get the money anyway?” he questioned. “I thought that your bag couldn’t provide you with money.”

“Sometimes I go out and open up a love themed, fortune telling tent,” she answered. “I make some money out of that.”

He furrowed his eyebrows. “A love themed, fortune telling tent?”

“Yup, I make the customers pick out a card and everything like a real fortune teller. I even have a fake crystal ball standing in the middle of the table,” she said. “The cards and crystal ball are just for show though, but my predictions are quite accurate. I am love counselor after all.”

She then stood up from her chair. “So do you want to me to buy you something or not? I’ll give you 5 seconds to pick out something from there.”

“But how did you open up a fortune telling business without me knowing about it?” he asked.

“4… 3…”

“Wait, did you already start the timer?!”

“… 2… 1…“

He shot up from his seat and dashed into the store. She then held back a laugh as she watched him frantically run around the whole place, trying to find something that he liked. “Countdowns always works,” she said as she also went inside.

Oh gosh, Myungsoo. Why are you so love struck when it comes to Seolhyun? *tsk, tsk, tsk*

But yay! The chapter is up! Let's congratulate Myungsoo for earning some points with Seolhyun! *applause*

I hope that guys liked it and as always, remember to have a great weekend!^^

Also, here's bonus Shiwoo gifs for mentioning him in this chapter!