Grateful

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Annie was walking hurriedly down the road, wiping her tears repeatedly. She never imagined herself in such a situation. She had been assaulted by a man she had met only a few times. She felt embarrassed, humiliated, and angry with herself. How could she have let this happen? Why couldn't she control herself? How would she face Jungkook, her sister, and most of all, herself?

She cursed herself for even thinking there could be something between her and Jungkook. They were too different. She could never match his status or fit into his world. She would only embarrass him in front of his friends.

More tears rolled down her cheeks.

She had no idea where she was and was searching desperately for a cab. She saw a group of boys standing on the roadside, cigarettes in hand. They looked drunk, and she felt a wave of fear as she quickened her pace to get past them.

As she passed, she could hear footsteps following her. Suddenly, one of the boys ran in front of her.

"Whoa, sexy lady, you look alone. Need help?" he said with a smirk.

She tried to move past him, but the other three stepped forward, forming a circle around her. Her fear intensified as she clutched the hem of her dress tightly.

Maybe leaving the club wasn't such a good idea, but she was in no state to face Jungkook. She had no other choice.

"Damn, you have a sexy figure," another one said, checking her out from head to toe.

She was terrified.

"Let me go," she pleaded, trying to push past them, but one of them grabbed her wrist tightly.

"Yah, let go of my hand, you son of a bitch," she tried to free herself with her other hand, but it was also caught by the second boy.

She felt helpless.

"Leave me!" she yelled, but they only laughed.

Unable to think clearly, she bit one of them on the hand. He yelled in pain.

"Fucking bitch," he cursed, slapping her across the face and pulling her hair.

"You’re one of those girls who walk around at night in these short dresses to seduce men. So why are you throwing a tantrum now?" He pulled her hair harder, making her yelp in pain.

"Ahh, let me go, please," she cried.

"Not so soon, sweetheart. Let’s have some fun, and then we’ll leave you, okay?" They all laughed.

One of them ripped her sleeve from her shoulder.

"NO!!" she begged.

Two of them held her arms tightly while another grabbed her by her hair.

She never thought this day would come. Even death seemed better than being raped.

"Please, leave me. I beg you, please don’t do this," she cried, but they only laughed.

"SHE SAID TO LEAVE! CAN'T YOU HEAR?!"

Taehyung was coming back from spending time at his favorite place. When he saw a group of boys trying to force a girl, he couldn’t help but stop his car to intervene.

“She said to leave. Can’t you hear?” he roared in his deep voice.

They all looked at him. It was nighttime, and only the streetlights illuminated the area, so they could barely see each other’s faces.

"It’s you who should leave, man," one of them said.

"Oh really? Let’s see who leaves first. I already called the police and sent the location. They should be here in a few minutes," he lied, trying to scare them off. He wanted to help without causing any bloodshed. He couldn’t see her face clearly, but her voice sounded familiar.

"Let’s leave her. We don’t want a police case," one of them said to the others.

"You’re right. Let’s go," another agreed.

Taehyung stood there with his hands in his pockets, ready to fight if necessary.

"We’ll see you," one of the boys said, and they all ran off, leaving her behind.

She hid her face in her palms and cried.

Taehyung’s eyes softened. He walked closer to her, noticing her torn dress. He removed his blazer and draped it over her shoulders. She looked up at the weight on her shoulders, and their eyes met. Both were equally shocked.

"You!!" he exclaimed.

His opinion of her, already not good, worsened. She looked like she had just come from a club. Why hadn’t she gone with friends? Was it necessary to walk alone?

He wanted to say many things, but seeing her teary eyes, he decided to stay silent.

"Let’s go. I’ll drop you off." She didn’t say anything. She had endured enough for one night. She stood up and walked slowly toward his car.

He stared at her, letting out a deep sigh. He opened the door for her. She sat silently without a word.

He sat in the driver’s seat and started the car.

Meanwhile, Jungkook was driving his car, gripping the steering wheel tightly. He was searching for her but couldn’t find her anywhere. He even asked a few people along the way but received no useful information.

"I guess I have only one option now," he murmured and sped up his car.

Taehyung focused on the road, glancing at her from time to time. She remained silent, tears flowing down her cheeks as she looked out the window, wiping her tears repeatedly.

"Listen," he called her.

She turned her head, and he noticed the finger marks on her cheek. Her eyes were red from crying.

He clenched his jaw tightly, his grip on the steering wheel tightening.

He looked away, unsure of what to do. She looked so innocent at that moment.

He couldn’t believe she was the same girl who blabbered nonstop in front of him.

"Stop the car," she said softly.

"Huh?" He looked at her.

"Stop. We’ve reached," she said without looking at him. Her silent treatment bothered him.

"Okay," he said, stopping the car.

She opened the door and turned around, removing his blazer from her shoulders.

"Thank you. I’ll be forever grateful," she said, and new tears rolled down her cheeks.

He tightened his grip on the steering wheel, his heart aching as she looked into his eyes.

"It’s okay—" he couldn’t finish his sentence before she had already left.

He stared at her departing figure, feeling a pang of sympathy. No one deserved to be treated like this.

He sighed and drove off.

At home, Somi was enjoying a movie when there was a knock on the door.

"Unnie is back from her date," she said excitedly, opening the door. Her smile faded instantly.

"Unnie!"

Annie threw her arms around her, crying.

"Unnie, what happened?" Somi asked with a racing heart.

"Come inside, don’t cry. I’ve got you, shh," she tried to console her sister.

She made her sit on the couch and wiped her tears.

"Unnie, are you okay?" Somi asked worriedly.

She noticed the finger marks on Annie’s cheek.

"What the fuc—" There was another knock on the door.

"Who can it be at this time?" Somi mumbled.

Another knock, this one more powerful. It felt as if the person on the other side was desperate...

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