Legend [YEONBIN] ✓

fifty-eight ; yeonjun

I pushed opened my front door so hard it slammed against the wall. I cursed at the sound as I fought to push off my shoes.

“Wow, you’re in a grand mood.”

I wasn’t even surprised to see Taehyun.

“You know, it’s bad manners to break into someone’s house. Twice.” I finally wrestled my shoes off and kicked them into the corner.

“Where is he?” Taehyun asked.

“Who?”

“The president,” Taehyun said in a blasé tone. “Soobin.”

I ignored the worry and my bad mood and pushed past Taehyun toward the kitchen.

Everything felt a mess. Soobin confessing what he’d done. Detective Hae appearing, telling him he was his father. He’d left. Just walked out the door without a word. I knew I should have stopped him, but I’d been so mad. And now I didn’t know what I was. I pulled open the fridge and stared at the measly contents.

“What happened?” Taehyun asked.

“His father,” I said without looking away from the almost-empty fridge.

“What about him?”

I closed the refrigerator without taking anything out. “He’s here.”

Taehyun’s lips twisted into a scowl that looked out of place on his handsome face. “Something’s wrong.”

“What is it?”

Taehyun eyed me. It was clear the dokkaebi wasn’t willing to part with what he knew. So I put my cards on the table.

“Listen, I just found out my halmeoni gave her gi so I could live with Soobin’s bead inside me. And it’s probably why I’m having seizures. So if something is going on with Soobin, I kind of have a stake in it.”

Taehyun nodded. “Ara’s missing. I can’t get in touch with her.”

“So?”

“So a gumiho shouldn’t be missing. She’s the one who makes people disappear.”

“I’m well aware of that.”

“Ara would never just vanish at a time like this.”

“Time like what?” I didn’t like how the dokkaebi spoke in vague circles.

Taehyun ignored the question. “It’s important that Ara is here before the next full moon.”

“Maybe Soobin is better off without his mother around,” I said.

The dokkaebi’s expression became sharp, like he had judged me and found me lacking. “Whatever your feelings are about Ara, she protects her child. Everything that woman does is for Soobin.”

“I don’t care what Ara does.”

“Oh, you care,” Taehyun said. “You care because you think she took Soobin away. You think that without Ara’s influence, Soobin wouldn’t have left you.”

“It’s none of my business if Soobin chooses his mother over me,” I said stubbornly.

“Soobin chose you.” Taehyun flicked me in the forehead. “He left for you. He came back for you. And you sit here like a big crybaby because he has the audacity to love the mother that’s always been there his whole life. If anything, you should feel sorry for Ara. You’re the one destroying his daughter.”

“Now you’re definitely not making sense.”

“Do the math. You’ve had Soobin’s bead in your weak human body for almost a hundred days.” Taehyun spoke slowly as one would when explaining algebra to a three-year-old. “If Soobin doesn’t absorb it again and start feeding at the next full moon, he’s going to be in real trouble.”

“He hasn’t been feeding?” I asked. “If he goes a hundred days without feeding, he’ll die.”

“Ding-dong-daeng! Tell the boy what he’s won!” Taehyun announced like a variety show emcee, but his showman’s smile didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“Why didn’t he tell me this?”

“I don’t know. Maybe he was trying to protect you from the responsibility of choosing your life over his.”

“He has no right to make that choice for me.”

Taehyun chuckled. “You know what? I might not dislike you so much after all.”

“What will happen if Ara suddenly appears again?” I asked.

“Then I’d find a suit of armor because she’s very likely to come right over and yank that pretty bead out of your chest.”

My hand rubbed against my sternum, which suddenly felt sore. “Why are you doing this? Helping us?”

“Because I’m getting paid.”

I rolled my eyes.

“If I can give you some unsolicited advice,” Taehyun said.

“What’s this been all this time?” I asked sourly.

Taehyun continued like I hadn’t interrupted. “I’d run if I were you. What’s the point of sticking around when two gumiho are after you and your only family’s a log.”

My fists came up, wanting to connect with Taehyun’s perfect jaw.

The dokkaebi danced back, lifting his hands for protection, but he gave a saucy grin that proved he wasn’t that worried about my anger.

“Anyway, you can’t say I didn’t warn you.” Taehyun slipped out the front door, leaving me alone with my futile anger.