His Cinderella | Choi Soobin

Ten ♚

|| HYEWON ||

I've always been a big fan of Cinderella. But today, every time I see the book of fairytales standing on my desk I find a sudden wash of sadness fall over me.

Cinderella always gave me hope that I'd find someone like Prince Charming for me one day. But ever since Soobin started talking to my sister, that feeling perished away. I don't know why.

The music from my iPhone plays through my earbuds as I walk through the empty streets of Seoul, quietly listening along to the lyrics of the songs, returning home from school after a long day.

I've always been a fan of classical music. From Mozart of Beethoven, all of their pieces hold a special place in my heart. Unlike Hanjin who always spend her time blasting famous K-POP songs, I often listened to the ancient pieces of music, enjoying the chords mindfully.

But it was as if I had a change of heart because suddenly I found myself listening to foreign artists that were the opposite of my usual taste. Well, I know why. Classical music speaks to your heart with instruments, but there are no vocal lyrics to relate to, unfortunately.

The songs finished just as I open the door to the awfully quiet home of mine. A home that felt so foreign despite me living me my entire life. But everywhere for me is foreign, even my bedroom. I don't feel comfortable anywhere.

"I'm home..." I say groggily, taking off my sneakers and my coat before walking to the living rooms in the direction of the stairs. I'm just about to leave when I see two giggly teenagers both in the kitchen, their backs turned to me.

"Oh, Hyewon. You're here." Hanjin says, her laughter dying down as she greets me. She smiled at me, but something felt as if she didn't want me home. Next to her stood Soobin, his hands covered in a white powdery substance as he massaged some dough with his fists.

"You're cooking..?" I ask. Hanjin has rarely ever stepped in the kitchen, let alone cook her own food. The fact that she was able to be cooking without burning anything so far is truly an achievement for her. But, then again, she's Ahn Hanjin. What can't she do perfectly?

"I-I'll go." I stutter, avoiding the eye contact Soobin was trying to make with me as I try my best to run past the duo, but am stopped by Hanjin's voice calling for me.

"Oh, Hyewon. Can you watch the oven for a little bit? I need to use the bathroom." Hanjin says, running away before I can take no as an answer. Hanjin must think I'm stupid because this is obviously a trap. She's too possessive to leave me alone with Soobin. But now I have no choice.

I place my bag onto the kitchen counter, leaning against the fridge as I watch the first batch of cookies rise up and down under the heat of the machine. It would be relaxing to watch if Soobin wasn't staring right at me.

"So, your name is Hyewon?" Soobin chuckles softly, his honey voice ringing in my ears like the chirping of a hummingbird in the dusk of the morning, waking you up peacefully at your windowsill.

I didn't respond to him, mainly because I didn't have the courage to. It's a test, don't fall for it. Any sort of communication with him could easily be the end of your life. I repeat to myself in my head.

"S-Sorry. You clearly don't want to talk." He clears his throat, quieting down as he goes back to mixing the cookie dough together.

"What are you guys cooking?" I ask, regretting it after. I broke my own rules that I gave to myself, way to go Hyewon. If Hanjin sees you conversing with him you're as dead as meat.

"Chocolate chip cookies. Your sister is quite good at cooking. I heard she cooks all the time for you and your siblings?" Soobin says.

Hanjin cooking for us? I have to laugh. She gags at the thought of even looking in the oven, I'm surprised she and Soobin are even doing this together without her complaining throughout the whole duration.

"It's stepsiblings." I correct him as I watch his cheeks flush up a scarlet red. He bows down apologetically to me. He's very polite, from what I can tell.

"My bad. Stepsiblings." He corrects himself. It's in fact the last thing he says before Hanjin stomps her heels on the marble floors and into the kitchen, of course, needed for her dramatic entrance.

"Okay, you can leave now." Hanjin dismisses me with a blank face, obviously excited to talk to Soobin again after her break. She clings around his arm as she gushes some things about 'how good of a husband Soobin would make'.

I leave the room, but not before I hear Soobin say something. Something about me. "That was kind of mean to say to your sister."

"What do you mean?" She asks in return. I can already imagine her lower lips pouting as her puppy eyes switch on.

"I mean, not to be intrusive, but you told her to leave in sort of a rude way. If you don't mind me asking, do you guys have a bad relationship with each other?"

Hanjin laughs humorously. "What, you're being silly! Hyewon is like my best friend. She was even the one who convinced me to go to the party! If it wasn't for her, we would have never met. But it just seems like sometimes she shuts the world out, including her precious family."

She sighs, snapping her fingers. "What do you call it? Ah! A withdrawal from society. She doesn't talk to people often and doesn't have any friends. The thing is, she used to get bullied at school, but I would always save her from being tormented. But I guess that took a big impact on her, no matter how hard I tried to prevent it from happening. So yeah, I'm sort of like her role mod-"

I couldn't listen to any more of their conversation before running away upstairs to my room. I collapse onto my bed, out of breath from the sudden exercise I participated in.

She lied, as always. I mean, her whole relationship with Soobin is technically a lie, so that's nothing new or special that we need to cover. That's not what bothers me.

A withdrawal from society.

Is that what people think of me? Someone that seeks extreme confinement from others? I've been trying to become more social and open to talking to other people, and this definitely didn't help.

It hurts more when it comes out of Hanjin's mouth. I always knew Hanjin had a tongue that said what was whatever on her mind... But she called me a loner. And she didn't even think twice while saying it to him.

Maybe she's right. You don't even have any friends besides Taeyoung, and when was the last time you texted him? You're a loser, get over yourself and accept the reality. You're just a failed mistake. Failed mistake. Failed mistake. Failed mistake. Failed mistake. Failed mista-

Stop it. I don't need negative thoughts right now. Maybe I should distract my mind from studying. The test is supposedly extremely hard anyway, and I'm not naturally smart like Hanjin so I have to worry more about my grades in high school.

"She used to get bullied at school, but I would always save her from being tormented."

Sigh.

Pathological liar Ahn Hanjin strikes again.