Wonwoo's Protection

8. Inha's Hell

TW: Physical and Mental Abuse

Inha was back in her room in their Changwon house after her engagement with Wonwoo. She still couldn't believe that she was betrothed to him and was fidgeting with the ring he put on her finger, which served the purpose of reminding her that she was indeed a betrothed woman now. Mia was helping her remove the dress she wore for the engagement, as the back zip was stuck.

"Call me when you change into your night clothes. I'll wait outside," she said as she pulled down the zipper on Inha's dress and stepped out of the room to give her privacy. Inha just nodded and locked the door, slipped the dress from her body and stood in front of her mirror in nothing but her undergarments. She saw her body, which she grew to hate, which was covered in burn marks and scars. She sighed as her deep-seated worries that she had buried before the engagement came to the forefront. She wondered what Wonwoo's reaction would be if he saw her like this. She knew that she could not hide her body from him forever, as they would for sure indulge in sexual intercourse in due course of time.

But still...

Inha noticed her cheeks turning into a faint tinge of pink when her thoughts turned towards the not-so-holy deeds that could happen with Wonwoo. She wondered how it would be to kiss for the first time or even to make love with a man, for that matter. Even though these thoughts were a welcome distraction to steer her away from the worry that was etched all over her about how Wonwoo would react to her situation, she shook them away so that she could concentrate on changing. She slipped into a comfortable cotton nightgown and opened the door for Mia to enter. 

"Sit, I'll remove the pins that are on your hair", she said, and Inha sat down on her dressing table chair as Mia worked her way through the innumerable pins that held the updo on Inha's head.

"Eonni", Inha suddenly called out, breaking the comfortable silence around them.

"Umm?" Mia hummed as she removed another pin.

"What if Wonwoo-ssi hates me after seeing my body?" She asked, which made Mia stop what she was doing.

"What makes you say that, Inha?" Enquired Mia as she met Inha's eyes through the mirror.

"I don't know... It's just, men love beautiful women with smooth skin, and you know about me"

"If he does, then he is the complete loser for prioritising outer beauty over inner beauty", said Mia. "However, I don't think Wonwoo is a loser like that. Seokjin also mentioned that he's one of the good ones, so you don't have to worry. Okay?" Mia said, squeezing Inha's shoulder as a sign of assurance. She left out the part where she did a background check on him and the conversation she had with him a few hours ago. She didn't want Inha to know that, as it might hurt her.

"Mmmhh. Okay, I trust you. But if he happens to hurt me, then I am coming straight to you and Seokjin Oppa." Inha said as she let out a small chuckle.

"We'll be glad to whoop his ass, but I hope and pray you don't fall into a situation like that. I trust Wonwoo that he won't hurt you," she said with resolve as she finished taking the last pin out of her hair. "Now finish removing your makeup and get ready for bed. You must be tired. Think only happy thoughts. Okay? Good night!" She said and squeezed her shoulders as she prepared to leave to sleep in the guest room.

"Okay, Eonni! Good night. Take care and give a goodnight kiss to Mijin from my side"

"I will," Mia said before leaving Inha's room.

Inha then removed her makeup when her phone dinged. She checked the notification and smiled after seeing a message from Wonwoo. They had finally exchanged their numbers, Wonwoo taking the initiative to ask hers first, and Inha was glad to give her number to him.

"I hope you rest well, Inha-ssi. You must have had a long day. Good night! Sleep tight," read the message, and Inha felt giddy upon receiving such a sweet message from her fiancé. She stepped outside her room to drink some water while typing him a reply, when someone snatched her phone from her hands. Because she was busy texting him back, Inha was not aware of her stepmother and half-sister's presence in the living room. Unfortunately, her phone was now in her half-sister's hands, who was now going through her messages.

"Mamma, look, she received a message from her fiancé", the half-sister Kang Suya said while chuckling.

"My my, they are already texting, are they?" Quipped Inha's stepmom, Kim Sumi, her voice laced with something that resembled contempt

"Yes. And he's wishing her good night. How sweet," laughed Suya as she dangled Inha's phone near her.

"Please give me back my phone, Suya", Inha said, her voice breaking as she tried not to cry. She hated it when she found herself under their mercy. If it were any other day, Inha would have walked to her room without saying anything back to them, but because Wonwoo was probably expecting a reply from her side, something came over her which made her want to stand up for herself.

"What was that bitch?" Cursed her sister even if Inha was older than her. "Mom, did you see that? Did you see her talking back to me?" She complained to her mother like a brat.

"Yes, darling. Looks like someone has grown bolder after getting engaged. Do you think we should give her the curling iron treatment once more?" Said her stepmom, chuckling as she got up from the couch, coming closer to Inha, who was now cowering in fear, the word "curling iron" bringing back traumatic memories. Sumi then held out her hand for Inha's phone and held it high up, only to drop it forcefully, shattering the device into pieces.

Inha fell to the floor, her floodgates opening as the act of breaking her phone pushed her over the edge. She felt anguish and sorrow not only because she couldn't text back the man who sent her a good night message, but also because she was still in a helpless situation where she couldn't fight against her stepmother. 

"Don't you ever think you can escape from me just because you are getting married. Do you understand?" Sumi said as she crouched down to Inha's level and grabbed her by her hair to force her to make eye contact with her. Inha couldn't help but weep at the statement as she wondered if she would be able to escape this hell even if she got married to Wonwoo, the hope of her bright new future slowly dissipating away from her heart.

"Now clean this mess and go to your room." Sumi barked at her before leaving Inha alone in the living room to collect the broken pieces of her phone. With each piece she gathered, her heart grew sadder as she couldn't even text back for the first ever message that he sent her.

The whole world felt bleak to her; her engagement day's happiness long forgotten under her stepmother's assault. Inha didn't even have the energy to think further as she finally collected all the pieces and went to her room. Dumping the pieces on her desk, she walked wearily towards her bed and fell on the mattress with a slump, willing for sleep to take over as she wiped a tear from her eyes.
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A/N
Hi guys! Extremely sorry for the late update. I got quite busy, and I will be busy for the next two weeks as well. So, giving you a disclaimer that updates could be slow.

I hate my writing in this chapter. Has it ever happened to you that you have so many thoughts and ideas, but find it difficult to pen them down? This chapter was like that for me. Ugh!

Anyway, sorry for the heavy chapter, but I promise that better chapters are coming. The next few chapters will be Wonwoo's and Inha's interaction, and I am already excited about writing it. I just hope I finish it soon!

Again, thank you so much for reading and supporting this book. Pls do vote and comment if you liked this chapter.

Thank you again!
-Aara.