Just at the sight of him and Chaeyeon walking towards the gates, the security hired by Minkyoung eagerly swung open the gates to let them in. At least the beginning was smooth sailing. The tricky part still awaited Mingyu as he stiffly walked forward, hating every second of it. If not for Chaeyeon accompanying him, there was no way he would have voluntarily gone out and clarified everything with his mother.
"You do the talking," Mingyu muttered, words slurred and hasty, and swallowed thickly. Sweat clung to his palms, despite the unusual, windy night.
"I was going to,"
"Okay,"
The familiar echo of the doorbell daunted Mingyu's ears the moment he heard it, and when the door was opened, it made him want to hide. A maid bowed and led him and Chaeyeon inside, and he couldn't help but take in the thick atmosphere in the mansion. The place looked quite unrounded, unlike what Mingyu was used to seeing; almost like a layer of the most depressing grey had been set over everything inside. The maids and butlers swarming around, going about their assigned tasks, seemed less in number as well. What had Minkyoung's living standards reduced to?
By the looks of it, Minkyoung had already been informed of their arrival. She walked down the stairway, with that patronising aura she had always had, but it seemed a lot more downplayed as Mingyu discreetly observed her. There was an unreadable expression on her face, making him question his decisions over and over again, although nothing would change the repercussions they might bring. She dismissed all servants from the living room as she reached.
"Hello, Mother," Mingyu greeted, giving her a stiff bow, and Chaeyeon next to him did the same.
"Take a seat," Minkyoung, without acknowledging the greeting, gestured to the lavish excuse of a couch. Mingyu knew better than to sit before she did; it might worsen whatever was coming.
With a nearly unnoticeable hum, Minkyoung settled herself on her usual spot, and that was when Mingyu and Chaeyeon followed. "What brings you here? After all these months? "
There was an expected, unmistakable bite to Minkyoung's voice, which Mingyu tried to not get affected by. "Chaeyeon here, has a few things to talk about,"
"I don't see the requirement of your presence, then,"
"He needs to be here," Chaeyeon sharply interrupted. If not for the current situation, Chaeyeon's apparent dislike towards Minkyoung would have made Mingyu laugh.
"I don't remember asking you to speak, dear," Minkyoung stated.
"I will, because if I don't, I'm afraid your establishment is at stake,"
Mingyu despised the way his mother silenced herself the moment money was introduced in the conversation. It spoke a lot about how and why she was so power hungry.
"Go ahead. It looks like you have a lot to say,"
With a deep breath, Chaeyeon began revealing everything she'd told Mingyu in the morning. He could only alternate his glances between her and his mother, observing how confidence seeped into Chaeyeon the more she spoke, the exact opposite happening to Minkyoung as Chaeyeon continued.
Minkyoung's composure was completely lost by the time Chaeyeon approached the end of her rant. To say Minkyoung was flabbergasted would be an understatement, since this was one of the rare occasions Mingyu witnessed his mother at a loss of speech.
He nearly jumped out of his seat when Minkyoung spoke after a deafening pause. "How did you find out about your... Situation, in the first place?"
"Let's just say Mr. Lee was careless about keeping his things properly,"
Minkyoung nodded, an air of solemnity having settled on her. She thought hard for a long while, leaving Mingyu and Chaeyeon to share awkward glances between themselves and the older woman. "Thank you for letting me on, Chaeyeon. What I do next should be none of your concern. Just do me a favour," Minkyoung looked up to stare at Chaeyeon dead in the eye, almost as if what she would say next should be interpreted as a threat. "Keep shut about this, alright? I don't want anyone to find out about this,"
"I don't have a reason to leak this, Ma'am. And I don't say this because I'm suddenly siding with you. The things you've put Mingyu through still don't sit right with me,"
Oh for fuck's sake, Mingyu panicked, why in hell would she voice it in front of Minkyoung! The stare that the woman sent his way didn't go unnoticed by him, or Chaeyeon. Chaeyeon looked a bit sheepish, but stood her ground before Minkyoung could catch on to her hesitation.
"You should go now, Chaeyeon. I'll send a chauffeur for you-" Minkyoung began.
"I'll be fine by myself, thank you for the offer," Chaeyeon bowed, and trotted away from the living room, and soon disappeared into the massive hallway that connected the room and the entryway of the mansion.
Uh oh. The way his mother slowly, agonisingly turned to fix all of her attention on him told Mingyu he was fucked. "I think we need to... Catch up quite a bit, don't we Mingyu?"
Mingyu dared to look at Minkyoung for once, expecting to see steel-hardness in her eyes. Instead, he was met with something much more humane than he'd seen all these years.
