FREVOR

03

Author pov:

Jin-ah groaned as the morning light filtered through her curtains, her head pounding like a drum. Blinking clearly, she struggled to recall the events of the previous night, but her memory was shrouded in a fog of confusion.

Just then, her younger brother Niki burst into her room with his trademark smirk. "Well, well, well, look who finally decided to wake up," he teased, his voice dripping with amusement.

Jin-ah rubbed her temples, trying to shake off the remnants of her headache. "What happened last night?" she mumbled, her voice thick with sleep.

Niki's grin widened. "Oh, you don't remember?" he replied, his tone laced with mischief. "Let me refresh your memory."

Last night:

As Jin-ah reluctantly joined her family for dinner, her mind was consumed by thoughts of Taehyung and his sudden reappearance in her life. She couldn't shake the feeling of dread that gnawed at her insides, casting a dark shadow over what should have been a simple family meal.

Her mother's cheerful voice calling her to the table only served to heighten Jin-ah's anxiety, each step towards the dining room feeling like a march towards her own personal battlefield.

As she took her seat at the table, the weight of her relatives' expectations pressed down on her like a leaden cloak. Her aunt's relentless chatter about her latest designer purchases grated on Jin-ah's nerves, each word driving a wedge deeper between her and the rest of the family.

But it was the appearance of soju at the dinner table that truly set Jin-ah on edge. With each passing moment, the bottle seemed to mock her, taunting her with the promise of temporary relief from her mounting stress.

"Why is he here?" Jin-ah muttered under her breath, her voice barely above a whisper as she stared into her glass, the clear liquid swirling hypnotically before her eyes.

"Mumma," she whimpered, her voice catching in her throat as tears welled up in her eyes. "I can't do this. Not tonight."

Her mother, preoccupied with serving the meal, glanced briefly at Jin-ah before returning her attention to the task at hand. "It's just dinner, darling," she replied absentmindedly. "You'll feel better once you've eaten."

But Jin-ah knew that food was the last thing on her mind. With each passing moment, her anxiety threatened to overwhelm her, like a tidal wave crashing against the fragile shores of her sanity.

And then, as if on cue, her aunt's voice pierced the tense atmosphere, her words dripping with condescension and thinly veiled insults. "Honestly, Jin-ah," she said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "You really should try harder to fit in. No wonder you're still single."

The words struck a nerve with Jin-ah, igniting a firestorm of anger and resentment within her. Without thinking, she lashed out, her words sharp and biting as she retorted, "And no wonder you're still miserable, Auntie. Maybe if you focused less on your wardrobe and more on your personality, you'd actually have friends."

The room fell silent, the tension thick enough to cut with a knife. But Jin-ah refused to back down, her defiance burning bright despite the disapproving glares from her family members.

And then, in a moment of desperation, she reached for the bottle of soju, her hands trembling as she poured herself a generous glass. "Why is he here?" she repeated, her voice growing louder with each word. "Mumma, I'm gonna kill him."

But her mother, now fully aware of Jin-ah's distress, moved to comfort her, wrapping her arms around her daughter in a tight embrace. "Shh, Jin-ah," she whispered soothingly. "It's okay."