"Now is the winter of our discontent
Made glorious summer by this sun of York;
And all the clouds that lour'd upon our house
In the deep bosom of the ocean buried."
- Richard III, Act I, Scene I (William Shakespeare)
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⚠️MATURE WARNING ⛔️ 🔞⚠️
PASADENA, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 2009
Most students the world over dreaded the beginning of a new school year; whether it was your first day of school as a preschooler, a senior in high school in the final year before adulthood, or a college student venturing into the last years of your formal education. There was always something about the start of the autumnal months that brought forth anxieties to students and parents alike. Every beginning was a source of anticipation, the first dip into a new unknown.
In her sophomore year of college, Son Ye-Jin was one of the very few who genuinely embraced the beginning of the school year with full gusto. She was downright impatient to begin, dreading not the last vestige of summer, but the interminable passing of the remaining days until she could begin the new academic year.
This, of course, had nothing to do with her zeal for learning, and everything to do with the boy she was living with - and taking great pains to avoid.
After the incident in his bedroom, she had pulled away from his presence as much as possible. She left early, and came home late; took as many shifts as she could at McDonald's and at 7-Eleven. On weekends, she left even earlier than usual to help out her parents at the Motel 8, then came back to her building to man the Super's office.
While all this industriousness had the benefit of improving her bottom line, it had also added weight to her eye bags. She was running on very little sleep. Bin was constantly at home, and she couldn't risk sleeping in and running into him in their common area. Whenever she did bump into him, she made her usual excuse of needing to get cleaned up and having a very early morning ahead.
They both knew what she was doing, and she was hoping that he would make the first move and just demand that she return his deposit so he could move out. She was giving him the chance to find alternative accommodations, not being cruel enough to just kick him out on the curb. But for some reason, he had yet to do so, or even hint that he was on the verge of vacating the apartment.
Spring was when all this had started. Their curiosity for each other had driven them to an uncomfortable and sticky summer, when 'feelings' had grown and morphed into a gruelling minefield of doubts and regrets. She just knew that if they didn't nip this all in the bud, but instead allowed it to persist, it would bring nothing but sorrow and heartache for either of them.
Autumn was twilight: A season of reaping what spring had sown. They needed to cut their losses, and accept the inevitable conclusion of their mistake. Autumn was the harbinger of the end. For Ye-Jin it was the start of the winter of her discontent.
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CHANGSIN-DONG, JONGNO-GU, SEOUL - AUGUST 2020
"Can we take this somewhere less crowded?"
Ye-Jin observed Gong Hyo-Jin's cold expression, and surmised that this wasn't the call she had been expecting. Hyo-Jin's whole countenance looked unforgiving. Whatever reason it was that Hyo-Jin was here, it was not to absolve Ye-Jin.
"Eonni, is that-" Kyo pointed wide eyed at the CEO of Jangin Chemicals who was looming over a nervous looking Min-Jung, Gong Ji-Cheol with his arms crossed on his chest, acting as her personal sentinel.
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Something About Ye-Jin
Fanfiction💬'It felt like a thousand shards of glass had embedded into her chest, making her wonder how she was still breathing. How was it that even though she'd always expected that painful moment, the reality was even more devastating? To the day, she stil...
