ଘ ⱮąϚҠƐᎠ ଓ | hyunin

21

No one can wear a mask for very long.
—Author Unknown
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"mother?" his voice came off confident, although questioning. the woman stared her bored eyes into him, but lips soon broke into a smirk. her maroon lipstick matched the color of her suit, a black satin tank top underneath. overall, her aura intimidated hyunjin. she made everyone around her feel as if they were below. the power of women.

"i came to pick seulli up." she said in a cheerful voice, clasping her hands together. hyunjin felt the little girl wince at the sound, clearly uncomfortable being in the presence of her.

"why? it's only been a few days." jeongin was confused, and you could tell that the woman didn't appreciate the curiosity. she took her shades out of her hair, running her hand through it. hyunjin shuddered at the thought of her hand running across his scalp with those nails.

"we have a family dinner she needs to attend." the woman said cooly as she put on her sun glasses. completely unnecessary in a dimly lit room if you ask jeongin.

"but doesnt our family consist of four?" unable to stop himself the boy mumbles off of impulse. he regrets it the moment he realized she has heard him.

she laughs. "don't be silly. granny died nearly two years ago. or did you forgot?"

while hyunjin listens to the conversation with eyes size of a quarter, his hands slowly reaches to cover his mouth. jeongin scoffs at the words of his mother, feeling his glare growing stronger.

"i meant myself but of course you looked past the fact that i'm your son as well." she seemed surprised at the rush of words. jeongin never talked about his feelings. he talked back, but not about how his parents abandoned him.

the tension was skyrocketing at this point. you would need a chainsaw with its sharp and powerful blades if you wanted at least a chance to cut through it. the woman awkwardly cleared her throat, eyes that were slowly shifting towards the floor looking up and meeting haseuls.

"we can try talking about it later. let's go haseul."

hyunjin could tell the girl didn't want to leave. the way she didn't try to push herself away and didn't look directly in her mothers eyes said it all. hyunjin didn't intend to let go either. but when his eyes met the piercing glare the woman was sending him, he was reminded of the somber reality.

he had no choice in this. she was powerful, and she wore that power like a crown on her head.

hyunjin avoided looking into haseuls jilted eyes as he sat her on the ground. the girl let go of his clothes that were still trapped in her fists once the sensitivity of the situation sunk in. with slow steps she made her way to her mother, who's face slowly broke into a smile as her daughter stood by her side. hyunjin couldn't tell if it was genuine or not.

"hi sweetheart." warmth replaced the cold tone of her previously used voice. hyunjin was impressed that she didn't fall over on her heels when she crouched in front of the girl. "did you enjoy your stay here?"

with no hesitation haseul nodded, sending a small smile towards jeongin.

"that's good! go check if i left any of your things behind while the boys help me carry the suitcase." moments later haseul was nowhere to be seen. she ran towards the room faster than light, the sound of her feet tapping against the ground. soon, she was hidden behind the walls of jeongin apartment.

without saying another word, jeongin grabbed the suitcase and carried it out side. hyunjin wanted to step in, as carrying a heavy looking suitcase down the stairs in pitch darkness wasn't safe at all. but stopped when the woman stood in front of him with a harsh stare.