"Is everything okay?"  Seunggil asks, and my heart skips a beat when Joonha opens the door, but he goes out right away and prevents me from seeing her by slamming it.

"Yeah, it's okay," I answer after an eternity, making it obvious I am not telling the truth. "Is it your stepmom?"

"Yeah," I feel some astonishment but guess that he has been told about the whole issue. "Oh, alright. Just focus on us, he must be taking care of it. No need to worry. You know how good he is during arguments."

"Hm, the argument is not what worries me," I peek at him but push one ear back to try to listen to what is happening in the hallways. "Wait, we're coming back in a few seconds Iseul, we need to talk about something," he tells her but reveals who she is. She is the one who has a crush on Joonha, the one he hung out with for her birthday. She agrees without seeming pleased. "I can just leave it, stay together in this call," she goes away to leave us alone.

"Can you tell me what is happening? Why are you scared?" he asks in a soft voice, showing genuine care. "She told me to go downstairs by text, but Joonha took my phone so that I wouldn't answer, so she came here to knock on the door...and...she called me, so he turned my phone off...but I know she's mad at me..."

"Y/n," his voice does not resound the same way anymore as if he was serious, and I look up at him but feel the anxiety hasten the speed at which my blood is running through my throbbing veins. "Are you scared of her because she does something to you? Does she hurt you...?"

I shake my head but feel and see the tears grow in my eyes, feeling tired of lying, tired of all the overwhelming emotions that are suffocating me at the thought of Joonha being hurt by her right being this door.

"Hm...Well, I'm gonna talk to you about something very personal, and you can tell me if you don't wanna hear about it, okay?" he talks to me very carefully, making me feel like Joonha has talked a lot about her and me. "I wanna know..." I snivel but keep my hands on the ears of the headphones to cover mine and listen to him. "You must have heard what I said about my parents some minutes ago, right?"

I nod and let him continue. "Well, when I was young, I used to be very scared of my parents. Not just my father or mother, but both, and it all started when I was seven. There used to get drunk and high all the time, they weren't working, they were spending all their money into that shit without caring about feeding me or buying me clothes and stuff for school, and the worst started when I was around ten, I'll never forget that day when I came back home, but I was five minutes late because my teacher talked to me about how worried she was for me, and I had to run back home since I missed the bus, I was literally scared because I knew my dad would not understand but be mad, and I kinda ran for my life but almost fainted because of how hard I pushed, and when I got home, my mom had already shoot some heroine in her veins, so she was barely conscious of anything, and my dad was drunk, but I tried to explain to him, and since he was intoxicated, he took it as some disrespect and thought I was shooting back, and I will never forget the way I felt my body fly into a wall and hit the ground," he tells me everything but manages to not even shed a tear while I am crying.

"That was the most terrifying and most agonizing moment I have ever lived in my entire life, I still have nightmares about it, I can still feel the pain and fright he made me feel after beating me up, and he never stopped until I was able to leave the house on my eighteenth birthday," his story makes me speechless. "So...I just feel like I know why you feel that way around her, I know that you must be keeping it to yourself because you think no one's going to be able to help you, or that you'll bother people with your problems, you're maybe scared to take it to the court, or you think that you deserve to be treated that way, but trust me, I went through that type of pain and manipulation, so trust me, you don't deserve any of that, you're not bothering anyone, and I know that Joonha or his dad wishes you would tell them the truth and not allow this woman to harm you or have any type of control over your life..." he cites every little thing, every worry, and every thought that I have but never dared to talk about, and I feel like I have never done before. He knows exactly how I feel. I did not expect that from him.

"You can tell me if she's hurting you, there's no need to be afraid of anything, Joonha, Mister Jeon, and I will help you, and we'll not be bothered because we want nothing but you to be healthy, happy, and safe, and we both know that every minute is important with this woman around, right? And no matter how small you think your problems are, you are in danger, and trying to deal with them on your own for longer might cost your life, y/n...I'm talking out of experience, so I'm not making up anything...I just want you to know how much at risk you are, even if you think she will always stop herself to only cause pain, one day, she won't, and sure, you won't feel pain, but you won't feel anything anymore because she'll have gone much further than she planned and made you breathe for the last time..." his dreadful words that are nothing but true hits me right in the heart, and I glance down to cry and not be seen. "I'm not trying to shock you or anything, but I just want you to understand. I don't want you to go through what I want through...I want you to be safe and out of danger."

"Have you told someone about it?" I soak my tears with my sleeves to look up at him, and he nods. "I told Joonha about it, and he helped me so much, he literally saved me."

"But what's gonna happen if I tell someone about it? I don't want to go to the police, I don't want to go to court and talk in front of judges or people I don't know, and my dad will never come back if she's not there anymore..." I let my words out without even thinking anymore. "What do you mean by that? Do you think your dad will only come back if she's there?"

"I'm sure of it...if he thinks about coming back, he will only do it for her...because he never tried to come back for me..." I hate the words I am saying, hating the truthfulness of them that I always denied in order to not face reality. "This will maybe sound harsh, and I know it's easier said than done, but if your dad doesn't come back for you, you shouldn't waste your time and energy on him. He doesn't deserve it."

"But I still love him and miss him...at least he never hurt me the way she did it..." I wipe my tears away to be able to see what is around me, but they keep filling my eyes and rolling down my face. "Do you remember when she started doing this to you?"

I shake my head, not knowing exactly. "It started recently...she used to starve me in the beginning...but one day, she found out I was hanging out with my boss that she used to work for and who rejected her after she tried to date him, but she was drunk as well after coming back from a nightclub, and she went insane and hit me, but we were at the top of the stairs, and I fell down them but had to go to the hospital because I had a head injury...since then, she often calls me a slut if I am too close to men, if I wear skirts, dresses, or crop tops in front of the ones she brings to our house...I think she already drugged me so that I wouldn't be awake when she would use those men...and since she met Mister Jeon, she's become very violent, and I'm so scared of her now...and I don't know what to do anymore..."

"Do you think there is a reason for her to have become even worse since she met him?" he listens and tries to understand, and for some reason that I cannot figure out, I am comfortable talking about it with him as if the fact that he went through that too gives me enough reassurance to talk about it since he knows what I am feeling. "She's jealous...I don't know...she threatened me the other day after she noticed that I was close to him...she hit me again and almost drowned me while everyone was sleeping...she told me that if I was approaching him again and acting like such a whore around him that she would make sure to do this again and never let me out of the water..." my voice trembles with fear at the memories of it. "And you think you deserve all that?"

"I do..." I sob. "If I was a good person that is worth someone's time, then my dad would never have left me, my mom wouldn't have left me either, and one of them would have looked for me, but they never did...I'm the only one who looked for my dad, but he still left again...so I must deserve that..."

"You don't, y/n. No matter what your parents did to you, no matter what this woman did to you, you deserve none of that. Have you seen how much you mean to Joonha and Mister Jeon? They both love you, you're a precious person to them, and they'd do anything to protect you and make sure you're happy. I also like who you are, and I can tell you that you're an amazing, sweet, and lovely person, the sweetest I've ever met. So you do not deserve any of what she makes you go through."

I cover my eyes with my damp sleeves to soak everything up, having a hard time breathing with my runny but stuffy nose. "You're a great person, and you deserve no pain. You're a strong person, and I'm truly happy and proud of you for telling me all this. I know how hard it is, so I'm happy you let it out. We're going to get you out of that and make sure this does not happen anymore. We'll do it slowly so that you have time and do not stress out about the whole process, but she will pay for it, and she'll never be able to hurt you again. You know this is the best for you, right?"

"I'm scared to go to the police, I don't want it to be serious..." I shake my head, but right when I clear my throat, I get startled by someone taking the headphones off my head and look up, but Joonha pulls me up and takes me in his arms.

Do not tell me he was listening this whole time.

Given how tight he is holding me, he must have heard everything.

My tears dripping on his hoodie, he touches the side of my face and moves his head back to raise my chin up. "She's the one who caused those bruises, right?"

I look into his eyes, but since I know this would be unnecessary to lie at this point, I nod. Momentarily, he rushes towards the door, but I catch his arm and do not let him go. "No. Please, I'm begging you, don't do anything."

"Are you serious, y/n? How can I stay here and do nothing when I have the proof that she physically hurt you and made you go through hell? How could I? I've already waited way too long, I can't—"

"Joonha...please. I...I'm just asking you for at least tonight, don't say or do anything. I don't want the night to be ruined, I just want to go out and spend some time with your dad, I don't want this to be ruined," I beg him to let me have this one night without having to deal with anything that will hurt me, and he stares at me. "Please..."

"Y/n," he sighs but walks back to his computer, so I take a look at him but notice that Seunggil left. Joonha grabs his phone as if he had received a text, so I ask him what is wrong.

"Nothing, Seunggil told me he left so that we could talk," he puts it down without answering, and he gazes down, seeming lost and bothered. "What happened with her...?" I ask to know about it, hoping for everything to not have gone wrong. "I don't want to talk about it now. I want to focus on you," he lays his eyes on me, my heart still beating hard. "I can't keep quiet anymore, y/n, this fucking bitch..." he sharply exhales, his breathing sounding shaky, but he glances away. "Why didn't you tell me all that...?" his voice exposes his grief, and once he makes eye contact with me, I discern the tears in them.

I hate seeing him feel that way because of me. I did not want this to happen. I only want to enjoy good times with him and not think about that anymore. I should have shut my mouth and kept it to myself without dragging them into my messed-up life.

"I'm sorry...I didn't want you to know. I wanted this to be my problem only..." I give him the reason, and he tries to hide his tears by looking away. "Don't say sorry. I don't ever want you to apologize for anything."

"I don't want you to cry. I'm okay, Joonha, there's no need to worry," I reassure him, not completely lying since I do feel better since I am with him and his dad. "No, you're not okay. How can you say that? I heard what she did to you. Everything. So how can you say that you're okay when you're being abused? And I still cannot digest the fact that this fucking bitch dared to hurt you under this roof and that I didn't even hear anything like an asshole."

"It happened in my bathroom, no one could have heard anything," I do not let him feel bad for something that he could not even have been aware of. "And I was so terrified that I couldn't scream because I thought she'd do worse, and I just wanted it to end."

He clenches his jaw and peeks down at his phone. He wipes his tears away to get rid of the blurriness and looks at a text. He types something on his screen then comes closer to hand me the device. "My dad wants to call you."

I bring my attention down to it and take hold of it, but after only a few seconds, his picture already pops on the screen, so I peek up at him. "Don't do or say anything, please. I count on you, alright?"

"Yeah...but after that date, you have to promise me you won't stop me again," he considers this as something romantic when I just invited his dad for a movie, and I quickly answer. "I promise I won't," I walk towards the bathroom to pick up the call and clear my throat first.

I hope he will not hear how stuffy my nose is. "Hello?"

"Hey, sweetheart, I'm coming back home right now, so I'll be waiting for you at the bus stop nearby. Is it okay?" his voice puts a smile on my face and takes all the awful emotions away from me. "Yes, it's okay. You haven't told my stepmom about it though, right?" I hope for him to not tell me otherwise.

"I haven't, don't worry," he relieves me, and I breathe out with delight. "Great, you should hang up now if you're about to drive, just text me whenever you're about to be there. You can text me and not Joonha, my phone will be turned on."

"Alright," a smile exudes through his answer and softens me. "I'll text you, see you in a few minutes."

"See you, be careful on the road," I remind him, and he tells me one last 'I will' before hanging up. Now that it is done, I get out and join Joonha. He is sitting at his desk, so I place his phone next to him and grab mine, but while turning it on, I check up on him.

He is crying and trying to cover it with one hand over his mouth. I cannot stand this. I knew I should not have said anything.

Not liking to see him in this state, I grab his arm to clear the way out and get on his lap, and I wrap my arms around his neck to hug him. "Stop crying, please. I'm happy right now, I'm feeling fine. I don't want you to feel any kind of sadness or pity for me."

"I can't..." he sobs and hugs me back to nestle his head in the crook of my neck, but out of pain, I press a kiss on his cheek and rub his back. "I promise I'm okay. You make my day so much better, and I've been feeling good these previous days because of you and your dad, so don't be worried."

"It hurts me so much to think about what you went through...You're just like a fucking little bean that I wanna cuddle and protect, so how could someone do all those things to you?"

"I'm not a brat anymore?" I smile and attempt to make him stop crying. "You're a cute and lovely brat...but not always. Sometimes you're just a baby."

"You're not always a jerk either," I laugh but squeeze him in my arms before looking at him, and I then receive a text.

< I'll be there in less than 10min ]

[ Alright, I'm leaving the house >

"I'm going to go to the bus stop to meet your dad there," I tell him so that he is aware, and he passes his sleeve over his cheeks and looks up at me. "He's not coming here?"

"No, otherwise, she will see us," I tell him but get off of his lap to stand up. "I'm coming with you. I don't wanna stay here anyway," he follows me without thinking twice, but I like this idea, so I do not say anything against it. "Wait," I turn around and stand in front of the door before opening it. "Do you find this outfit pretty?" I ask for his opinion about my matching cardigan, skirt, and thigh highs, but he looks me up and down, and a smile forms on his face. "You're pretty, and this looks cute on you. He'll think the same for sure."

He used the right words to make me have some confidence. I hope this will be the case.

"Thank you," I open the door to get out as Joonha made Choco come with us, and I walk down the stairs but hope my stepmother will not do anything. Once I reach the lower floor, I make fast to head towards my shoes and put them on, but I do not look behind me. "I'm gonna get Choco's leash, so wait for me," he walks away but orders the puppy to sit down near me, so I check if my stepmother is here but do not see anyone other than Joonha. This is odd.