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Chapter Five

"Get out and stay out!"

Kang Haerin stumbles forward over her own feet into the pouring rain outside, her head spinning and the taste of tequila stagnant in the back of her throat as she makes contact with the bin outside the bar. It crashes to the ground loudly, splashing more water into her face as she follows after it a moment later. She throws an arm out to stop herself from falling flat onto her face with a cry of panic, groaning at the pain that shoots up her wrist the second it makes contact with the concrete with her weight crashing on top of it, her whole arm bending at an odd angle. The rain is pouring down heavily all over her, causing her clothes to stick to her skin as thunder crashes loudly above her. A grunt of exasperation escapes her as she turns onto her back and blinks up rapidly at the rain that falls onto her for a few moments in an attempt to catch her breath, her wrist cradled to her chest.

"Screw you! He threw the first punch!" She manages to gasp out as she sits up slowly, but the bouncer is long gone, back inside the confines of the bar she's just been thrown out of, the door swinging shut behind him. Her wrist throbs painfully, but more than anything, Haerin's trying to simply swallow the bile rising in the back of her throat as she glances around the sidewalk quickly to see if anyone has witnessed her fall from grace.

There are a few stragglers, but either the rain is that thick or a majority of them are just as drunk as she is on this Friday night, because they barely notice her, thankfully. Her jaw is aching, and she pokes her tongue out to probe the flesh of her lip that's been cut open, the tangy, metallic taste of blood hitting her taste buds, but she doesn't bother wiping it away.

She's more focused on trying to calm the pain in not only her body but her heart.

Great job, Haerin...You've hit a whole new low..._

Two weeks.

It's been two weeks since she's heard from Hanni. Two weeks of torture away from her best friends, her family...the people she's come to care about since coming to this hellhole of a city. Minji and the others are at least still talking to her, Minji calls Haerin the next day after the fight and tells her to simply give Hanni some time to calm down. But it's been two weeks.

How much longer is Haerin supposed to keep going on like this?

She knows the Astonishing Ador hasn't been operational, Hyein had told her that the pipe was still causing issues with the plumbing throughout the entire building now, which means Haerin isn't the only one out of a job right now. The longer that bar stays shut, the more money they lose, and Haerin knows their regulars are probably getting frustrated at their favorite hangout place no longer being accessible. If that pipe didn't get fixed soon...

Haerin wants to help. She has no idea where she would even begin, but Ador is her home, those people are her family, she has to do something...

But with Hanni refusing to talk to her no matter how hard Minji tried to calm her down, there isn't much she can do.

Haerin gets it. She does. That bar was more than just a business to Hanni, it was the middle finger to her parents who had always believed she couldn't survive without mommy and daddy by her side. It was everything that made Hanni who she was, everything that proved that she was an independent woman who didn't need her parent's help or guidance...it was everything that proved she wasn't just some rich daddy's girl who lived off his life savings.

So, Haerin gets it. She gets why Hanni was so mad about Danielle trying to buy the bar. Many have tried in the past and have gotten worse than a torn up check thrown at their faces. And Haerin had slept with her, had slept with the woman who was trying to take that away from Hanni. Her home, her independence, her freedom, her worth...Everything that proved that Hanni was her own woman.