off limits ✧ zb1 applyfic

✧ twenty six

For the first time in a while, Jaewook had slept like a baby. Whether it was thanks to the softness of the mattress, the kind welcome from the Seok family, or the moment she'd shared with Matthew, she couldn’t quite tell. In any case, she hadn't slept so soundly in what felt like years. But all good things had to end, and she needed to go home. Or whatever that house was. Because it sure as hell wasn’t home.

"Thank you very much for letting me sleep here," Jaewook said, bowing ninety degrees as she faced Matthew's parents.

His mother gave her a tender smile. "No worries. A friend of Matthew is a friend of ours."

"And, Jaewook?" his father spoke up, taking a step towards her. "If you ever need help with anything, don't hesitate to call me. Or Matthew, of course."

Jaewook could hardly stop an unusually sincere smile from appearing onto her face, as she nodded. Matthew's family was not at all like hers, at least on her father's side. They were warm, supportive, kind and selfless. Even though Mister Seok was involved in business with her father, he was still offering her his help in case she needed it. She saw, now, why Matthew was the man that he was. He had amazing parents, who loved him unconditionally and supported him no matter what. Oh, how she wished she and her brothers could have the same.

As Matthew walked her to the door, he cleared his throat. She turned to him. He was even cuter early in the morning, his hair sticking up in weird places and his face slightly puffy. Enough to put her in a good mood for the day.

"I hope you're alright, Jaewook. Like my father said, if you need anything, consider this your second home. Or, er, third? Fourth?" He scrunched up his nose, trying to find a definite answer.

A light chuckle escaped her, and Matthew stopped suddenly. "I get it, I get it. Thank you. Seriously."

Her fingers tingling, Jaewook couldn’t stop herself from reaching towards him. But before she could do anything strange, she simply patted him on the shoulder, trying to pass it off as a friendly gesture. She hadn’t learned her lesson yet, it seemed. But keeping her hands off him was harder than it looked.

They exchanged goodbyes, and when the door closed, Jaewook let out a heavy sigh. This brief respite from reality had been healing in ways she hadn’t expected. But she had to dive right back into the usual. The boring, the upsetting, the downright depressing.

When she unlocked the front door of her father's home, Jaewook prayed he had already gone to work. She slowly creaked the door open, trying to make as little noise as possible, and quickly got rid of her shoes so she would be able to sneak to her room silently.

Judging from the frenzied sound of footsteps coming her way, she hadn’t been as discreet as she wanted.

"Oh my god, Jaewook, you're home!"

Thankfully, the first face that greeted her wasn’t her father's. Gunwook ran in from the living room, still wearing his pajamas, a panicked look on his face. He immediately grabbed her shoulders and inspected her from head to toe, most likely looking for any sign of injury. Jaewook couldn’t suppress a snicker. Why was he acting like her mother?

"You're alright," he whispered, more so to himself, his hand on his heart. "I was so worried. I heard that you argued with dad and left, but then you never came back and it was dark and I thought—" he stopped himself to take a deep breath. "I was scared you'd be attacked or something, while on your way to the dorms..."

If she'd been in a normal state of mind yesterday, she would have remembered to text him to tell him she was safe. She knew how prone to worrying Gunwook was, especially when it came to his siblings. In her teenage years, she'd sneaked out of her room after arguments so many times she could hardly count them on her fingers. And even though Gunwook was only a child, he would always wait for her to come home, sitting at the bottom of the stairs, his leg bouncing uncontrollably. She was quite convinced yesterday had been the same.