Rainbow

Chapter 14

Irene's POV
"I just can't believe that you have a boyfriend. I thought you were single." Seulgi said in disbelief.

I looked away and smiled sadly. "I can't say if he is still my boyfriend until now. You know, we didn't break up, but we also had no communication for twelve years now. Our last talk was during our vacation before my third year of college. That time, he asked me if he could audition because he really wanted to be an actor. And even though I didn't want to because I was afraid he might find someone else there, I still agreed. I don't want to be a hindrance to his dream. But after he auditioned, we lost contact. He changed his phone number and deleted all his social media accounts. A few months after that, I saw him as a junior actor in one drama. Then a year passed, he became a second lead. He became famous just in two years in the industry and had his first drama. So after I graduated from college, I tried to audition as an actress. But the agency said it would be better if I became an idol. I was about to refuse, but they persuaded me by saying I can be an actress even if I became an idol. So I agreed because I also love music. While I was a trainee, I was happy for him when I got the news that he already had a degree, even though he was busy with his career. After three years of being a trainee, the agency informed me that I was one of the trainees that was going to debut with the name group of Wawa Girls. But the happiness I felt disappeared when the agency took back what they said to me and said they would surely join me in the next group. I wanted to give up and quit at that time. But the longing to talk to my boyfriend was the reason I didn't quit as a trainee. My family even told me that maybe it wasn't my time yet, and to wait patiently on it. My family thought I just wanted to become an idol. But if they knew my real reason, I think my dad and brother would stop me from my plan." I said and laughed softly.

"Why?" Seulgi asked with confusion in his voice.

I looked at him and saw him furrowed. "Before, they really liked my boyfriend for me, but it changed after what he did to me."

He nodded in understanding at what I said and looked in front, which I also did. "Maybe your boyfriend has a reason why he didn't talk to you."

I noticed he didn't ask my boyfriend's name, maybe because he wanted to respect my privacy.

"That's also what my mom and my sister articulated. So until now, they really like him for me."

"I hope you will talk to him someday and fix your relationship." He said sincerely.

I smiled at what he said and looked at him. "Thank you. By the way, I'm done sharing. It's your turn."

He looked at me. "I'll tell you next time. It's a long story. You might be late to---" I cut him off.

"Yah." I glared at him. "Do you have a death wish?"

He laughed, "I'm just teasing you, my woman."

I grimaced and looked ahead. "Go. I'm all ears."

I saw from my peripheral vision that he smiled and looked ahead. He cleared his throat before speaking. "The storm in our family started when our flower shop fell at that time when I finished my first-year college. My parents tried to salvage our business, but just after a month, my dad left us, saying he loved someone else. I was so mad and hurt by my dad when he left us. Our lively house became vapid. One time my grandparents, who were my mom's parents, went to our house and helped us with our business. They even tried to give me a car for my study, but I refused and said I was okay with a motorcycle because it was less expensive for maintenance. I was still immature at that moment. So I rebelled because of what happened to our family. That was why I started to smoke when my former classmate encouraged me to do it, which helped me somehow to relieve my stress. Also, I always came home late even though my class was in the morning. And not only late but drunk too because every time I came home not intoxicated, I remembered our family that was full of joy, which tormented me. But I came to my senses when I saw my mom crying because my younger sister overdosed on sleeping pills. That time, I realized I wasn't the only one hurting because I witnessed how vulnerable and ravaged my mom and my younger sibling were by what happened. So, I decided to be strong for them and took on my father's responsibilities as a husband and father. I also decided to have this tattoo on my upper left arm as a motivation. They said black rose tattoos sometimes serve as reminders of mourning and remembering someone or something lost, but where there is death, there is also birth, and so a black rose can also represent a farewell to something bad and a new beginning of something good."

"Oh, I never knew there was a meaning behind that tattoo."

He chuckled, "But do you know what? My mom scolded me after I got this tattoo. She said it's not good for our body having a tattoo, and it looks dirty."

"I agreed to what she said," I said as I nodded.

"But Chaeyeon likes it. This was one of the reasons why I captivated her heart. She said I looked attractive having this. So when we were dating, she told me she wanted us to get a couple tattoo."

"Did your mom scold you again?"

"She didn't. She liked Chaeyeon for me. So, when I said it was Chaeyeon's idea, she even praised the tattoo." He chuckled as if he remembered those times.

I laughed softly. "That's ridiculous. Anyway, I'm curious about how you and Chaeyeon met?"

"We met when she visited my sister in the hospital. After that day, we got in touch. And we started dating during my vacation before my third year of college."

I quirked my eyebrows. "That was fast."

"Why prolong it when you have mutual feelings, right?" He remarked with a playful voice.

I shook my head while smiling at what he said. "I couldn't agree more."

We became silent after that for seconds before he spoke again. "But you know what? I thought our life would be peaceful and happy, but I was wrong because another storm came to our family."

I glanced at him. "What happened?"

"When we, with my mom's siblings and family, went to my grandparents' house to surprise them because that was their wedding anniversary, we heard them talking about our family in their backyard. We discovered that was their plan why our business sank."

What the hell?