Hot and Cold // Lee Know

7 (TW)

TW: Death and SH

It is now the day before Hyejin's birthday. Xenia and Yeonjun had gone out a few weeks ago to get decorations and gifts to surprise the younger with when they woke up the following day. However, they still had to get food and cake for the day and snacks for everyone spending the night. The two had agreed to meet up at the small grocery store in between their apartment buildings.

Before leaving her home, Xenia fed her beloved cat, giving the small creature a gentle pat on the head. "Eat up Gigi, I'll be back with Uncle Junnie in a bit"

And with that she slipped on her shoes and left her apartment, making her way down the street. As she walked she noticed an older man staring at her as she walked by.

"Hey there little lady, where are you heading?" he asked with a smirk, approaching the younger. She scoffs.

"None of your business, creep" the man grabs her by the wrist and pulls her back.

"What did you just call me? You should learn how to mind your manners when speaking to elders" he snapped, yanking her arm.

"And you should learn a lesson in fucking personal space, you waste of oxygen" Xenia spits, kicking the man in the knee causing him to fall to the ground wincing. She glares down at him.

"Don't you ever fucking touch me again", she turns away and continues heading toward the store. The man stares shocked at the younger as she leaves

After another few meters of walking, she finally reaches the store, seeing her best friend standing just inside the doors talking to an employee. As the younger enters the building, the door chime causes Yeonjun to turn, seeing his friend who is obviously upset about something. He bows to the employee and turns to the younger with concern.

"Hey Xen, are you okay?" he asks, worry filling his voice. Xenia sighs, lifting her reddened wrist to the boy.

"Some creep tried to talk to me on my way here and didn't like what I had to say to him, so he grabbed me, I handled it though" she tucks her wrist under her sweater sleeve. Yeonjun's eyes widen.

"He grabbed you?! Where is he?!" he turns to leave the store. The younger grabs his sleeve, pulling him back.

"Junnie I said I handled it, it's fine, let's just get our shopping done and leave" the older huffs in defeat, but nods and turns back, walking further into the store with the younger.

"You're so protective Jun~, how cute~" she coos teasingly, hugging his arm. He scoffs and pulls his arm away.

"Oh shut up" he looks away, smiling. Xenia laughs before pulling out her phone and opening the list she had made for what they needed to get.

~.~.~.~.~

A couple of hours later the two make it back to Xenia's apartment. As she unpacks their bags in her kitchen, the other is wrapping gifts.

"Hey Xen, do you have any bows?" he sets that last gift on top of the stack next to him.

"Uhhhhhh maybe? Check in my closet" the younger replies, cutting some vegetables to start on dinner. Yeonjun nods and hops up off the floor, going into the other's room.

He reaches the closet and starts moving things around, searching for the bows. As he looks he sees a small black box tucked into the back corner of the closet. He takes a seat on the floor and pulls the box onto his lap, carefully opening it. Inside he finds some old photos of Xenia and her family. Sifting through the photos he feels something fall out from between them. Looking down into the box, he sees something that makes his heart sink. A blade.

When he first met Xenia, she was not doing very well. It had only been a year since her mother passed away and she wasn't adjusting to life in Seoul very easily. He was her first friend, the first person she trusted aside from her father and Hyejin. He spent every chance he could with her, learning all about her life in Busan and what had been going on inside her head since they left. She blamed herself for her mother's death, thinking that if only she had tried harder to help she would still be here. She believed that if she would've gotten a job or quit school to stay with her mother full time, she wouldn't have been taken from this world, from her family. Xenia felt that she needed to pay for her failure and that she deserved all of the bullying she received from the other students at her new school here. But even that wasn't enough in her eyes, so she hurt herself. Every night she would use that blade to add new cuts on her legs, overlapping previous ones that hadn't even gotten the chance to fully heal. Yeonjun knew about this and did everything he could to get her to stop. Reminding her that it wasn't her fault that her mother had passed away, staying late at her house against his own parents' wishes, and encouraging her to draw more. But no matter what he did, she never stopped until she was ready to on her own.

His eyes started to sting as he picked up the small metal object. He knows that she hasn't done this in years, but the thought of his friend's pain brought him to tears. Yeonjun has always thought so highly of Xenia. Seeing her stand up for herself, being so caring and kind to others even if they were strangers to her, always being there for him and Hyejin no matter how big or small the issue was. Xenia never deserved to feel the pain that she felt all those years ago, she deserves to be happy. He sees the two as sisters that he would do anything for and he loved them dearly. All he wants is for them to be happy and safe, and he will do anything to help them achieve that.

He is suddenly pulled from his thoughts as he hears the younger call out to him.

"Did you find them? If not I know Hyejin has some, I can go up to her apartment and grab them for you" she spoke from the kitchen, placing all of her cut vegetables into a pan with some oil.

"N-no I found them, I just made a mess in here getting to them so I'm putting it all back" he wipes his eyes and puts everything back in the box, closing it up and placing it back in the corner before leaving with the bag of bows. 

After placing a bow on each present, Yeonjun carries the stack into the laundry room and puts them on the dryer. Then heading into the guest bedroom.

"I'm gonna go ahead and bring some pillows and blankets out here" he says before disappearing into the room.

The two work together to finish dinner before Hyejin and her best friend Sonomi get off of work. All four will be staying at Xenia's apartment to spend time with the birthday girl, and to save time tomorrow when they go out to the amusement park. 

^^^^^^^^^^^^

Little bit of a heavier chapter here

Always remember that if you're struggling there are people to call 

You are loved, you are beautiful/handsome, you are enough <3 <3

Til next time my loves