Ruby(Red 2) JC [Revised]

20: My Birthday

"How are you doing, old man?"

Aerin smiled, looking at the grave. The inscription read 'HERE LIES JOOWON PARK.' She placed the flowers on the top of the grave and sat beside it, the white roses trembling mildly in the gentle breeze of summer.

"It's my birthday, appa," Aerin spoke up after a long silence. "Another birthday passed. I know you forgot it. But you didn't forget Jeonghan's birthday, right? You never do." Aerin let out a sad chuckle.

"You know what, I'm finally going to get my revenge on Jeonghan, appa. I know you aren't happy. After all, it will affect your favorite child a lot, right? Actually, you are the reason he's here. If you hadn't cheated on mom, neglected me for years, I wouldn't have killed you. You could have been alive. I know your body is in our old house's yard, but you can hear me, right? You are the reason I became a fucking monster. You made Aerin Nicole Park a fucking vampire who sucks the happiness out of people's lives."

Aerin's voice cracked, tears forming in her eyes while she was trying hard not to cry.

"Believe me, appa, I'm gonna hurt Jeonghan so bad. I'm gonna make him suffer so much that he becomes a fucking demon too, just like me. See, I hate myself now, and I'll make him hate himself too."

Aerin paused for a bit before continuing further.

"Joshua, he is just like you. He did me wrong just like you did with mom. Are all you men like this? You know you can't defeat a woman in a war, so you defeat her in love? I loved him. I probably still do. But I have a bigger motive now. I'm finally going to take Seungcheol from Jeonghan and make him mine. I'm going to take Jeonghan's favorite toy. He's gonna be so angry, right?" Aerin chuckled like a maniac.

"That's just the beginning. For you, Jeonghan, this is just the start. And you know what, appa, I'm gonna prove it to you that I'm better than him. Then you'll love me. But the question is, will you? Will you ever love me? I'm your daughter too. You gave birth to me, appa. I'm sorry. I miss you a lot."

A drop of tear dripped from the corner of Aerin's eye.

"Mom isn't happy without you. She thinks I'm a criminal, but I did all of that just to save you. Then why does she hate me? She always did, actually. She thought you didn't love her because of me. Why am I that unlucky? Why doesn't anybody love me? Don't I deserve love?" Tears streamed down Aerin's cheeks.

"What if Seungcheol doesn't love me too? What if I'm nothing but a baggage to him too? Should I just die? Don't I deserve to live and love?"

Aerin lifted her face, and her eyes fell on a guy and a girl holding hands and talking. The girl was cheerful and bubbly, her mouth continuously chattering while the guy patiently listened to her with love and affection. The sight twisted something deep inside Aerin. She envied their simplicity, their untainted affection, a stark contrast to the chaotic mess her life had become.

Aerin wiped her tears, her expression hardening. "No," she whispered to herself. "I won't die. Not until I get what I deserve. Not until I make everyone who hurt me feel the same pain I did."

"What if Seungcheol doesn't love me too? What if I'm nothing but a baggage to him too? Should I just die? Don't I deserve to live and love?"

She stood up, placing one last kiss on her father's gravestone. "Goodbye, appa. Watch me from wherever you are. I will make you proud, even if it means burning everything to the ground."

Aerin lifted her face, and her eyes fell on a guy and a girl holding hands and talking. The girl was cheerful and bubbly, her mouth continuously chattering while the guy patiently listened to her with love and affection.