Hostage Handbook

Normal Ending | Destiny is Jealous of Us

YEOREUM

Victoria the Second kicks her yarn ball at me.

The fluffy material hits my hand like a caress from a small child, something the stretching limbs within me have a chance of becoming.

Victoria the Second was only a kitten when I first met her, quietly curled up in Jungkook's car. It has almost been four years now. Victoria the Second is four years old, and she went from loving me enough to never walk away without licking me to loathing me so much that she bit me with her mild temper.

Something about this realisation makes me touch the tears swarming down my face. Victoria the Second halts her steps and turns around. Her deep emerald eyes glisten against the sunshine.

I place my hand on Victoria the Second's neck, but she doesn't wince. She just keeps her eyes fixed on me like she is testing to see what I can do to her.

"I'm sorry, Victoria the Second," I mutter.

I fall to the ground with a shudder. The positive pregnancy test slips out of my underwear, cracking to the ground with a hollow slap.

"I've done too many things you would never do," I say. "It's okay to hate me. You don't need to forgive me."

Victoria the Second blinks and catches the opportunity to seize her yarn ball. Her paw clumsily swipes the pregnancy test under the bed. I bury my face between my legs to muffle the wails my throat fails to suffocate.

Victoria the Second suddenly inches towards me and moves her tongue across the back of my hand. The soft, wet flesh leaves a warm sensation.

I lift my head to meet Victoria the Second's gaze, casting around her wide eyes to find the malice lurking behind them moments ago. But there is only the gentleness she previously served me. It is a magical look that communicates a thousand words of comfort, like a nostalgic hug from a long-lost friend on a gusty Spring day.

I think Victoria the Second understands me. 

The door swings open with its normal clatter. Jungkook dashes towards me, looking as pale as the cream walls. A streak of his slicked-back hair wags over his face at his anxious pace.

Something inside the door panels has fallen loose after Jungkook kicked it down, but Jungkook hesitates to get it repaired. He knows a stranger could disturb my frail mentality.

When I was trying to save myself from the world that day, I heard Jungkook's violent intrusion. Although I was already on the verge of unconsciousness, that sound alone was enough to paint a vivid image of Jungkook's fear-stricken face in my mind. The face he is pulling right now.

"Yeoreum, are you all right?" Jungkook cries. He crouches down and shoos Victoria the Second away before bracing his arms around me. "Did Victoria the Second hurt you again? I'll move her out of here."

I like making people anxious. It makes me feel wanted. The thought of someone losing their shit about something I said, fretting over my wellbeing like I can determine their life and death, makes me ecstatic. It quenches my need to feel valued and loved (and it is also incredibly entertaining to watch).

I know Jungkook knows this quirk of mine by now, but he still plays my game like it's his first time manoeuvring through it. He does it masterfully and impeccably.

"Yeoreum, please answer me." Jungkook grabs my shoulders and shakes me. "Are you hurt anywhere? What did Vicky do to you?"

"No," I say. I shift towards Jungkook to hide the pregnancy test under the bed. "She's fine."