DISGRACE ✴ kim rian

23 ── ᶜʳᵃᶜᵏ

ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ
ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ
ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ

Kim Rian didn’t speak, and neither did Mi-hee. The silence between them was heavy yet oddly comforting. Mi-hee’s sobs gradually subsided, leaving her feeling exposed and vulnerable. Slowly, she pulled away, avoiding his gaze as she wiped at her tear-streaked face.

“I—” she started but faltered. What could she even say to justify her breakdown?

“You’re a mess,” Rian said quietly, his usual edge missing from his tone.

Mi-hee bristled instinctively, but when she glanced up, his face was unreadable. There was no mockery, no cold indifference. If anything, there was a flicker of something she couldn’t quite place—maybe understanding.

“Thanks for the reminder,” she replied, her voice still shaky but laced with sarcasm. She turned away, grabbing the hoodie he’d thrown her and slipping it over her dress. It was oversized and smelled faintly of cologne—his, she assumed.

“You don’t have to stay here,” Rian said after a moment. “You could’ve gone home.”

Mi-hee froze, her hands tugging at the sleeves of the hoodie. “Your mother wanted me here,” she said flatly. “It’s not like I had much of a choice.”

“Yeah, well, that’s how she operates,” Rian muttered, almost to himself.

There it was again—that crack in his armor, the hint of vulnerability that she wasn’t sure she was ready to see.

“Why do you put up with it?” she asked before she could stop herself.

Rian shot her a sharp look, his walls slamming back up. “What else am I supposed to do? She’s my mother. This is my life.”

“Your life doesn’t have to be like this,” Mi-hee argued, surprising even herself with the conviction in her voice. “You could… I don’t know. Walk away. Do something different.”

Rian let out a humorless laugh. “You make it sound so easy. But you of all people should know it’s not.”

Mi-hee couldn’t argue with that. She did know. She knew all too well how tightly their lives were controlled, how every move was scrutinized, and how impossible it felt to escape.

But still.

“I’m trying,” she said softly.

Rian looked at her, his expression unreadable again. “Trying what?”

“To be better. To… not let this world define me,” she admitted, her voice barely above a whisper.

For a long moment, he didn’t respond. Then, to her surprise, he smirked. “Good luck with that.”

Mi-hee rolled her eyes, some of her usual fire returning. “You’re such an ass.”

“And you’re a mess,” he shot back, though there was no malice in his tone.

For the first time in what felt like forever, Mi-hee felt the corner of her lips twitch upward. It wasn’t much, but it was something.

“Let’s just get through this night,” she said, her voice steadier now.

“Fine,” Rian agreed, stepping past her and heading for the door. “But don’t think for a second that I’m letting you off easy.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” she muttered, following him out.

As they walked side by side down the grand hallway, Mi-hee couldn’t shake the feeling that something between them had shifted. She didn’t know if it was for better or worse, but for the first time, she wasn’t entirely dreading the answer.

ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ
ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ
ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ