ICE AND FIRE - CHAPTER 51&2
💜 DON’T TAKE A STEP 💜
°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°°
“Just ki|| me already!!”She said in tears and the car kept approaching her with full speed.
She closed her eyes, expecting the worst to happen.
The car screeched to a halt,in front of her,then ji-hoon, A-Yeong and Yu-Jun rushed towards her.
A-Yeong was the first to pull her to a hug and aerum slowly opened her eyes.
“A… A-Yeong!!”She hiccuped hurtfully.
••••
<45MINUTES AGO~CINEMA>
Ji-hoon went after A-Yeong,who already rushed out of the cinema in sadness,he pulled her back by the arm then hugged her tightly.
“What…what are you doing?”A-Yeong stuttered in shock and ji-hoon closed his eyes,still hugging her tight.
“What if she….”
“She again huh?”Ji-hoon cut her off, breaking the hug.
A-Yeong took her bottom lips in,then looked away.
Ji-hoon exhaled,then turned her face to him.
“Why are you doing this?”He asks calmly and A-Yeong gulped nothing.
“Can…can we go out tonight?”He asks her.
“Yu-Jun is… still inside”A-Yeong pointed and ji-hoon exhaled.
“I know,but I just want to go out with you alone! If you’re not comfortable we can call beom-seok and Aerum to join us!”Ji-hoon said and A-Yeong nodded slowly.
He brought out his phone and dialed beom-seok number,and when he picked up he wasn’t talking.
A-Yeong and ji-hoon exchanged looks,but their eyes widened at the voice that blarred out through the speaker.
*Why…why did you choose to play with my feelings huh?*
“$h|t!!!!”Ji-hoon cussed while A-Yeong shook her head.
“That’s..that’s.. Aerum’s voice right?”A-Yeong asked unbelievably and ji-hoon nodded.
*Where you using me to get back at your brother?*
*That was also the reason but why I made you fall in love with me was to get revenge from you*
“Beom-seok!!!!”Ji-hoon clenched his fist and disconnected the call immediately.
“We have to go now cos I don’t think Aerum can bear this…she h@??s breaking trust!”A-Yeong said and ji-hoon nodded.
Yu-Jun came out and saw ji-hoon standing with A-Yeong while discussing,she glared at them and tried walking away but A-Yeong saw her.
“Yu-Jun!”She rushed to her.
“What?”She snaps angrily.
“It’s not what you think… aerum is, aerum is.. you have to come with us”A-Yeong pulled her and she followed reluctantly.
They entered ji-hoon car and drove off roughly.
•••
<PRESENT TIME>
“A.. A-Yeong!!”she hiccuped hurtfully.
“Let’s leave,it’s raining heavily”A-Yeong broke the hug and tried helping her up.
“He broke my trust!”Aerum said again and A-Yeong sighed heavily,the rain drenching each of them completely.
Ji-hoon sighed, and went over to aerum.
“You’ll catch a cold,let’s leave here first”Ji-hoon said and Aerum nodded slowly.
A-Yeong guided her to the car and when they’ve all sat down, ji-hoon roared back the car to life and soon they where out of sight.
•••
<DAESHIM HOUSE~AERUM’S ROOM>
Though,it was really difficult that escape Aerum’s mom question,cos she kept asking how she get drenched and why she’s crying. After a long question and answer session,they finally brought her into her room.
“How are you feeling now?”A-Yeong asked after she changed her dress.
“I’m good,just that my heart hurts”Aerum smiled sadly and A-Yeong sighed.
“If I don’t ki|| beom-seok tomorrow then I’ll know what caused it. How can he? Are you a joke?”A-Yeong gritted and aerum forced a smile.
“He broke your heart and made you shed unnecessary tears. Why don’t we go there right now? Beating him to pulp will be good!!”Yu-Jun roughed her hair.
“I don’t really blame him yunno,I blame myself for falling deeply for him”she smiled sadly again.
“Gosh!!! That punk!”A-Yeong cussed glaring at nothing in particular.
“Don’t even shed another tears okay! We are here for you and besides that punk doesn’t deserve you, don’t cry again cos of him”Yu-Jun cooed and aerum turned to her with a smile.
“Thanks!! I wasn’t really crying over him,I was crying for myself,for stupidly and foolishly trusting and giving the wrong guy my heart. Come to think that he shattered the trust,he did something I h@?? badly….*BREAKING TRUST*”Aerum dragged and shook his head.
*BREAKING TRUST*
The statement began ringing in Yu-Jun brain and memory non-stop and she couldn’t help but feel bothered. She gulped into nothing, looking at Aerum then at A-Yeong.
“Guys, take care of her…I have to catch up with something!!”Ji-hoon told them and they nodded.
He flashed a smile to A-Yeong,which she returned back… Yu-Jun just rolled her eyes at them in jealousy.
💌”Sorry that we couldn’t go out today,there is still another day”
A-Yeong read the message,which ji-hoon sent the moment he left the room,she exhaled and looked at Aerum.
“Let me go prepare something for you okay?”She patted her back and aerum nodded.
Meanwhile in….
<BEOM-SEOK ROOM>
He just gulped the third glass of a vodka drink,he is sitting on the titled floor with the bottle of vodka bedside him.
He’ve been feeling restless,sad and at the same time guilty.
He poured himself another drink,then stood up and walked towards the window,he pulled his window curtain then began staring out through the glass window,it was still raining heavily.
“She ran out and it’s been raining!! How is she doing?”He asks himself but scoffed afterwards.
“Not like I care anyways”He gulped a small quantity.
His mind,soul and everything within him was totally restless.
“f-__-k!! This shouldn’t be happening!”He cussed in frustration,then threw the cup away which met with the wall shattering into pieces immediately.
His room door opened roughly and ji-hoon walked in with pure anger,which kept building in him as he looked at beom-seok.
“Why did you do that huh? After all the warnings? You were still bent on hurting her huh? Is that how heartless you turned?”Ji-hoon asked and he scoffed before sitting on his couch.
“Are you here to yell at me?”He asks nonchalantly and ji-hoon roughed his hair in anger.
“I wanted to punch your face,so hard that you’ll bleed!! How could you huh? You needed to see how broken she was!!”He half yelled and beom-seok turned to him.
“Don’t yell!!”He warned sternly and ji-hoon arched his brow unbelievably.
He shook his head, then slumped on the bed dejectedly.
“Beom-seok,this is not you!! This is not the beom-seok I know. How could you hurt a girl and not be bothered huh?”Ji-hoon shook his head as he asked, beom-seok sighed and looked away without replying.
He wouldn’t deny he is not feeling bothered,he is!! He’s feeling sad and hurt at the same time which is strange! He has always wanted her hurt and broken,now what’s happening? Why is he feeling this way instead?
Ji-hoon swallowed hard,with his eyes closed. He opened them and stood up from the bed,then went closer to beom-seok sitting on the empty space beside him.
“Beom-seok!!”Ji-hoon called slowly, placing his hand on his shoulder.
Beom-seok sighed heavily again! Ji-hoon isn’t helping matters,the way he just called his name is making him feel more guilty! f-__-k! He don’t like this feeling!! Not one bit.
“I’m still surprised you did this,I mean you clearly told me that everything about her reminds you of Ara,why would you hurt her if you love Ara? You should have forgotten about the revenge stuff,at least for the fact that she holds some similarities with her”ji-hoon exhaled and beom-seok couldn’t help but feel more guilty.
Ji-hoon is right,he shouldn’t have done that! He shouldn’t really have! What if she was sent by Ara? What if Ara possessed her? What if she’s he’s second Ara? How could he hurt her? That’s bad!!
At the thought of that alone,a drop of tears escaped his eyes,he couldn’t help but think how broken she was and it’s all thanks to him, will Ara ever forgive him for doing that to the person she possessed?
Nevertheless, ji-hoon exhaled and continued.
“You’re my friend,and I won’t ever lie to you. I’m sure you love her,you where only blinded by the thought of getting revenge on her,that you couldn’t realize this even upto now. I know you said alot of hurtful words to her, which you shouldn’t have but all I’m telling you is to sit and do a rethink!! I don’t want you to live in regret all your life,nah!! Beom-seok don’t let your brother rejoice and have her, she’s yours…you guys are meant to be!! Please don’t let her go,I beg of you. I know you really love her,it’s funny how you wanted to get at your brother and then take revenge from her too,but ended up falling. I’ve always known you for years and this tears rushing down your cheeks,shows and proves that you love her!”Ji-hoon smiled and beom-seok touched his face,he’s being shedding tears all the while ji-hoon was talking? Oh God!!
Ji-hoon could be right that’s he’s falling in love with her! Was that the reason he’s been feeling like this after all the harsh and hurtful words? There’s no other reason to explain this feeling,other than that he’s falling helplessly for her!!!
••••
<A BAR>
“And cheers for separating them!!”Seo-Jun raised her glass and shang-hoon did same.
“Cheers!!”He replied and their glasses finally clicked.
“That was great, everything happened so fast,that I didn’t even see this coming”Seo-Jun smiled and gulped a large quantity from her glass before keeping it back on the table.
“Yunno,it’s all thanks to you. I couldn’t have come up with this,if not with your help”shang-hoon said and Seo-Jun smiled.
“Yunno,I’m always the best”she winked.
“Yahh!! You’re,but my soon to be babe it’s the best”shang-hoon replied and Seo-Jun rolled eye.
“So what’s the next step?”Shang-hoon asked and Seo-Jun looked at him funnily.
“Are you seriously asking that? Do I have to spell it out for you? This is your f-__-king opportunity guy,grab it and don’t let it slip away,ever again!!”Seo-Jun told him and he smiled again.
“Yunno,I’m worried about you”shang-hoon began and Seo-Jun looked at him.
“Why are you worried?”She asks and shang-hoon exhaled.
“He doesn’t love you….”
“We’re in the same boat shang-hoon,aerum doesn’t love you too,so work on yours while I work on mine too!”She scoffed and shang-hoon raised his two hands up in surrender.
“Fine! Don’t eat me when I’m still alive”He said and Seo-Jun rolled eye.
••••
<NEXT DAY~A HOSPITAL>
A woman,claded in a big coat made her way inside the hospital,she walked straight to the receptionist who directed her to the doctors office.
She sat on the waiting room, eagerly waiting for her turn and soon she was called in.
“Good morning doctor”She greeted slowly.
The woman was none other than Hyun-Woo mom.
“Morning ma’am,and how can I be of help?”He asks slowly and the lady exhaled.
“18 years ago….”She began with the story and after she was done the doctor heaved deeply.
“So what do you want?”He asks after a few minutes silence between them.
“All I want is to set my eyes on him,to know what he looks like at least. I was showed a dead child,instead of mine which was alive. I barely knows what he looks like”She said at the verge of tears.
“There’s a problem ma’am, according to you This happened last 18yrs and you weren’t the only lady who delivered in that year. How will I know the nurses that attended to you?”He asks in confusion.
“You can check your files sir,all I want is to see him,to know how he’ve been fairing”she begged further.
“That’s one hella of a hectic work, going through the files from 18 years…nah!! Go and come back some other time,by then I will make sure to have gathered all the nurses,you can recognize the one who attended to you right?”he asks and Hyun-Woo mom nodded hurriedly.
“Go then,I’ll gather them all through that you’ll be able to identify the nurse who attended to you and ask her the whereabouts of your son and who it was sold to”he told her and she nodded happily.
“Thanks doctor, this means alot to me”She thanked him happily, wiping the drop of tears that came out from her eyes.
••••
<ONE WEEK ON~GLITTERING HIGH>
Yeah,it’s one week already. Time ticks and flies like there’s no tomorrow.
Alot has being happening for the past one week, beom-seok has being trying to get close to aerum and ask for her forgiveness but she’s been totally avoiding him like a plague.
Aerum smiled,while walking out from the library with two of her friends each by her side.
“We need to talk!”Shang-hoon said, blocking their path.
Aerum exhaled with a clenched fist,her friends looked at her then excused their self.
“What do you want from me huh? Haven’t you done enough? I’m sure you’re happy!!”She scoffed,with her hands folded under her B-__-bs!
“I’m really sorry aerum,all I ask is for your forgiveness and trust me when I said it wasn’t my attention for things to get this worst. I only wanted you to know the truth,than staying with someone….”
“Cut it shang-hoon!! What else do you want that’s what I’m asking”Aerum cut him off and shang-hoon gulped.
He never knew it was gonna be this tough, trying to get her.
“I only want us to get….”
“If you think I’ll ever accept you,then continue to swim in the ocean of your dreams! Now if you excuse me,I have something important to do”aerum scoffed and walked past him.
Shang-hoon roughed his hair dejectedly before walking away too.
Aerum went slow to the rooftop,then sat down and she couldn’t help but think about beom-seok!
It was still heartbreaking that everything they shared ended just within an eye blink!! She heaved deeply and opened the novel in her hand,but then slowly she heard sounds of footsteps approaching her.
She turned sharply,and lo and behold it was beom-seok walking towards her,she stood up angrily glaring at him.
“I’m sor….”
“Don’t take a step!!!”
*
*
*
*
TBC…