Then I Met You | Lee Jeno

16~ The Deal

Yuri returned back home emotionally exhausted. The one thing which she wanted to fend off desperately was done again. Years of agony and trauma were ripped open, again.

Closing the door of her room shut, she rested her head against it. Soft sobs escaped her lips as the memories from the past were awaken anew.

Disgusting- was what she exactly was feeling about herself. Her body felt like it was set on fire while her heart was feeling heavy. She wanted to shout, scream and cry her lungs out, let out the misery, heartache she felt over the years but the feeling of numbness started surrounding her.

Aimlessly staring at the wall, the memoirs of the past replayed like a movie. She could see the younger version of herself smiling brightly while being chased by equally happy Jaehyun in his apartment. Another memory of Jaehyun cooking food in the kitchen while Yuri sitting on the counter babbling about some random things as he attentively listened to her popped up.

"What happened to us?" her voice came out as mere whisper, tears streaming down her face.

Staring absentmindedly at the white wall, she stood upright on feet. Her body felt void of any emotions.

Her feet led her to the bathroom. Entering inside, she faced the mirror. Tear stained face, mascara running down her face, dishevelled hair and  outfit. It was as if she saw the younger, broken self again. Her heart clenched to see herself in this state again.

Sobs escaped her lips as she couldn't believe herself anymore. Johnny's word about "Don't expect healing from a person who broke you-"  echoed in her mind.

Standing under the shower, she drenched herself, still clothed, tears mixing up with water.

Something inside Yuri was telling her to let is all loose, let it break down but her psyche was telling her to hold on, to stay tenacious. She wasn't a naive teen anymore, she was business woman who runs an organization who cannot be lackadaisical about it.

Stepping out of her drenched clothes, she wrapped herself in a towel. She checked herself out in the mirror, eyes still puffy from all the tears that she shed.

A fight between your heart and mind is something onerous to rule out because they both are a part of you. One needs comfort while the other needs understanding.  It's like a fight between want and need. Your heart needs comfort while your mind wants understanding.

They say time heals you. However, it's also an unidentified fact that time doesn't heal you but it's just you who gets comfortable with the fact and live with it, pushing it at the very back of your mind. Its like a wound covered with a band-aid. It won't hurt unless ripped open.

For Yuri, she thought time will heal her from the agony of her past. Unfortunately that was not the case. Right now just like her brain understood that she cannot be drowned in the emotions, she also needed comfort. Someone to comfort her.

A sigh left Yuri's lips as she exited the bathroom. Changing into her comfort clothes, she lied down on the bed, blocking off all the happenings from today.

The next morning, Yuri woke up like nothing happened yesterday. It was like that situation never even took place.

She strutted through the foyer of her office, looking more intimidating than before, confidence exuding through her.

As soon as she settled down in the cabin, the arrival of her secretary caught her attention. "Good Morning Ms.Park," Mr.Kim greeted her.

"Good Morning Mr.Kim. What is my schedule for the day," she questioned. "Well, you don't have much for today, but you got a business proposal from the The Lee Corporation. You might want to check it out," he informed.

The name took her by surprise. "A business proposal from the Lee's?" Yuri questioned again since it was something very unexpected. "What is it related to?"  she asked again.

"It's related to the upcoming project," he replied. Yuri's brows arched in surprise. "Okay, please print it out and give it to me. Also forward me the email they sent," she announced. Mr.Kim nodded and left the cabin.

Not long after, Yuri had the proposal in her hand. Something that surprised her  was that the proposal was introduced by Jeno himself.

Brows furrowed, she started concentrating on the proposal, mentally going through the pros and cons of it. To be honest, Yuri was very much impressed by the detailed proposition.

The proposition was unequivocally persuasive. Yuri gave a thought about discussing this with her father and her brother. She closed the file mentally making a note about taking it home with her.

The day passed by in a blink. Yuri was so consumed with the paper work on her desk that she did not realize it was already 7 pm. It was until Jisung knocked on the door.

"Yuri, are you planning to stay in the office? Like if you are staying then I don't mind because mom cooked some really delicious food back at home," he said in a nonchalant tone.

"She did and you think I'll miss that? No way in the world!" Yuri exclaimed.

"Then pick your butt and let's go home~" he sang. "I guess, sometimes you really forget that I'm older than you," she replied giving him the stanky eye. Jisung knew he probably invited his death. Without wasting a moment he dashed out of her office.

Before stepping out, Yuri did not forget to take the proposal file as she got ready to go back home.