The protector

Close Friends (M)

Before reading:

This chapter is dedicated to a person who is special to me. Sadly, differently from her, whose writing is excellent and who also creates gif to die for, and fan art to die, resurrect and re-die for, I'm not equally talented, so this chapter is the only vaguely artistic thing I've been able to create for her. Also, but this is more a gift for the readers, I kindly suggest you to read her works (https://www.wattpad.com/user/NRv2009) and follow her on Twitter (https://twitter.com/NRv229) and Instagram to fall in love with her art.

Rain of hugs VW, you've been one of the few good things of the lockdown, and thank you for your friendship, your precious suggestions, the nerdchats, the virtual traveling together, and all the laughs. You came here where I was secretly hoping to find a footnote addicted without daring to hope it for real, bringing ideas and discussions, your brilliant irony and your deathly, wise maledictions that always make me smile, your good sense and your outdoor lifestyle, so inspiring that it ended with an orthopedist appointment (and here someone will think it's a joke but it's not.) You're a gift, to me and to those who can enjoy you as an author, an artist, but above all as a person.

Because you're a supergirl

And supergirls just fly!

Warnings: 

Description of an anxiety attack. If you don't feel like reading, stop when you find the word "fifth" and go to "sixth." Violence description near the end of the chapter. Stop reading at: "Something bitter" and go to "The wounded girl" if you want to skip it.

Author's notes:

In the first part of this chapter you'll find a flashback. It's two parts of a chapter I already posted months ago – Five Weeks – but with some additional scenes that will explain what really happened on those days. The two parts will start with a quick recap to allow you to remember the scenes and the general context. I suggest you, even if you think you remember the chapter, to read the recaps because they have additional infos too.

In general, this is the chapter where we'll come to know about the Ri's defection plan. This would be useful to understand some of the behaviours of the two during the last months. We'll also come to know what the two feel the one for the other, or at least what is their opinion about it. I'm not saying and not not saying, and I also suggest you to pay attention to the title of the part, because this chapter opens a new part of the story, and the titles of the parts are never casual.

Last info: I knew I told you we would have come back to the weekly update, but this chapter is a special one and is about 30k words, so I think is better to give you two weeks. See you in October!

Pyongyang, 2027, September

*Scene 1 recap*

- Jeong Hyeok has spent two weeks in Swiss in August. When he's back, he hasn't called nor texted In-ah for a week, skipping even her classes at the dojang, the taekwondo gym, the thought of Se-ri stuck in his head making him nearly catatonic. On the first day of the weekend though, he suddenly realizes he's actually missing In-ah. He also realizes that In-ah hasn't called nor texted too, and decides to go back to the dojang, to have the opportunity to talk with her.

However, in the following days, the man realizes that In-ah's behaviour has changed. She just swiftly greets him when they met at the gym, and at the end of the classes she ran to her changing room/office. Jeong Hyeok waits for her every day out of the dojang, but it soon becomes clear that she spends time in the office just to not meet him.