⇥ underdog || v-hit / how to fight

ch ¹¹|| egg

hi again
sorry i havent updated this book for a month
i just havent had the motivation to continue writing this for a while bc i was having a hard time figuring out the timelines of the story and trying to get ( y/n )'s backstory in line with the actual manhua.

in the end, i just settled with recycling the backstory of ( y/n ) from my weak hero fic.

—————-——

"hey yeorumi?"

"hm..?"

"what was ( y/n ) like when you were younger?"

yoerumi raised an eyebrow as hobin's question, her eyes questioning why he'd be asking such a question.

"i— we dont really know alot about her, so i thought it would be better to get to know her from the roots." the brunette explains, rubbing the back of his nape hesitantly.

the rest of the group nods along (taehoon being the exception as he was simply sitting in the background, toying around with the apps on his phone.)

yeorumi sighs, "did you ever think that maybe asking her, herself would be better?"

"w-well, we're not really that close to her to ask about it.@" gaeul grins cheekily, hugging a pillow while sitting on the carpeted floor, her legs comfortably crossed.

"ever heard of the phrase, 'curiosity kills the cat'?"

they all jump at the sudden appearance of your voice, eyes nervously shifting to the entranceway where you leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed with an eyebrow arched.

they visibly gulped, afraid to have crossed the line, but they relax when you laugh, waving a hand in dismissal. "im kidding."

you took paced steps to sit and lean on the couch next to yeorumi, sighing in satisfaction when the couch swallows you whole, the comfortable cushions forcing you to relax.

"i'll let yeorumi tell you the side of her story then i'll tell you mine."

yeorumi smiles at the sentence, knowing that you were far too burnt out to actually tell the whole thing.

"well, to put it simply, she and i were just bestfriends when we were younger. all we did was play around as kids would and try to get by the best we can." she starts, avoiding the fact that you both had grown in a place of poverty.

"it wasn't just the both of us though, there was another girl. i cant remember her name since it was more than ten hears ago, but i remember hearing that she was an orphan that was adopted by a couple in our neighbourhood." she paused, glancing over to you to see if you'd be comfortable with the topic.

you send her an assuring smile, nodding as confirmation.

"we heard awful rumours about her being abused by her adoptive parents. and when we asked her about it, she just gave us vague answers. of course, we just kids back then and we didn't know what to do." a sigh leaves her lips as she settles her phone down on a nearby table.

"unfortunately, she...she went missing one day and her body was found in a nearby stream. not much was enclosed about how she died and all we were told was that she had committed suicide."

the room grows silent, everyone sharing glances as they stare at you and yeorumi with pity. (one stared with sympathy, but we wont be enclosing that)

"shortly after the incident, ( y/n ) goes missing too. i was worried so i tried to file a missing person report but the police said i couldnt when she hasnt even been gone for 24 hours. i waited, but she still didnt return. i tried filing again, and they just laughed at me.

it wasnt until 10 months later that ( y/n ) finally returned.

i was surprised because she wasnt even injured in the slightest. and not much changed. it was like she didnt disappear at all.

when i asked her about what happened, she didnt answer. she just kept dodging the question." yeorumi sighed, shaking her head.

"and guess what? after that, she disappeared again! but this time, she left a note telling me not to worry and that she'd be fine. like that is gonna make me feel any fucking better! she never came back and only returned a few weeks ago when i was being attacked online." the blonde sent glares towards you, her mouth tugging down to a frown.

"that's basically it. now go on and share your side, ( y/n )."

you feel a drop of sweat form and drip down your chin at the tone of her voice. you smile nervously and open your mouth to speak.

"well, when i disappeared..i actually got lost in the forest while crying about her death." you sigh, slightly embarrassed that you had to share about the part where you had gotten lost in the midst of crying. "and, some old man found me and had me live with him for a while. he wasnt a weird hobo or anything. he was actually pretty nice." you assured before she could interject.

"why'd you stay with him over me?"

you paused, taking a moment to choose the right words to answer her question. if you answer this without much thought there woukd be no doubt she'd be hurt. of course she would, who wouldnt get hurt when your best friend chooses you over a stranger.

"he...he offered me a deal. a part of it is that i cant tell anyone about it." you half lie, feeling guilt for having to keep the closure away from her. it was best none of the company knew. you wouldnt know what to do if they knew.

—————————

you place the goggles securely around your head, the cases perfectly sheltering your eyes from the curse of the onion.

your hands move skilfully with the knife, cutting precise pieces on the onion. you slide it off of the cutting board after you've finished, watching as the god forbidden ingredients fall into the bowl.

you move to grab the eggs next, preparing to crack them into a separate bowl but a familiar hand (which you've—embarrassingly—had caught yourself staring at am alarmingly long time) takes them before you could.

you look up to meet eyes with taehoon, who's wearing one of the spare aprons, the string tied securely behind his back.

you grow confused, trying to push out the fluster in your feels. you're not sure what to say or even do.

"it isn't your fault she's gone." he suddenly speaks, not bothering to face you as he cracks them onto the bowl.

you completely freeze, surprised.

"i-i see..." is all you answer with, biting the inside of your cheek once the atmosphere is swallowed by awkwardness.

instead of trying to start a proper conversation, you decide to continue with cooking. it was your turn with making dinner, and yeorumi requested egg fried rice.

once you turn to see how the taekwondo prodigy was doing with the eggs, you're surprised to see a mess, egg shells spilling into the bowl, the whites and yolks disgustingly sticking to his fingers.

that's why he's so quiet.

"t-taehoon that's not how you crack eggs!"