DISGRACE ──── ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ ✔️

27 ── ᵈⁱˢᵍʳᵃᶜᵉ

ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ
ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ
ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ

Mi-hee had barely stepped into the house when she felt it—the oppressive weight of her father’s anger. The atmosphere in the room was thick, suffocating, and she knew immediately that the moment she walked in, something was wrong.

Her father stood in the middle of the grand foyer, his face contorted with annoyance and disappointment. He was holding a picture in his hand, and Mi-hee felt her stomach drop as he glared at her.

"What is this?" he spat, his voice sharp as a whip. "What business does a Yun princess have in a place like that?" His finger pointed toward the image, and Mi-hee felt her pulse quicken.

The photo was from few days ago when she was with Kang ha. It showed her—dressed in fuzzy pink pants, her hair a mess, walking out of the communal restaurant. She looked, as her father so kindly put it, homeless. The humiliation stung, but she had no time to react. He was already on a roll.

"Old and ugly," he muttered, shaking his head in disgust. "How dare you, Mi-hee. How dare you embarrass this family. We’re royalty, and you—you're nothing but a disgrace."

Internally, Mi-hee was almost grateful that he didn’t know she had met Kang Ha that day. She didn’t need him digging into that. Her heart beat in her throat as she tried to compose herself, bowing deeply in respect, as her father demanded.

"I am sorry, Father," she began, her voice trembling slightly. "I will make sure this—"

Before she could finish her apology, the sharp sound of her father’s hand meeting her cheek echoed through the room. The slap was so sudden, so violent, that Mi-hee almost lost her balance, her body stumbling back at the impact.

Her hand instinctively flew to her face, feeling the burn of the slap. But the pain in her cheek didn’t compare to the suffocating ache in her chest. A bitter laugh bubbled up in her throat, and before she knew it, she was laughing—hysterically, maniacally, as if her whole existence had just become a joke.

The sound of her own laughter caught her off guard, and she laughed even harder. What else could she do?

Her mother rushed into the room at the sound of the slap, grabbing her husband’s arm in an attempt to stop him. But Mi-hee hardly noticed. She felt like she was losing herself, slipping further into the dark abyss of her reality.

Her father stood still, staring at her with disgust. His voice was cold as ice when he spoke again. "Leave," he commanded, his words cutting through the air like daggers. "Get out of my sight."

Mi-hee stood there, frozen for a moment. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest, every breath shallow and painful. She wanted to scream, to lash out, but it wouldn’t change anything. She wasn’t allowed to express anything here. All she could do was obey.

Without a word, she turned and left the house, walking into the night. The cold air hit her like a slap in the face, but it was almost a relief. She needed to be far away from that place, from her family. She needed to be away from everything.

As she walked down an unfamiliar road, the tears came, unbidden and relentless. She was so tired of crying. So tired of this life, of pretending, of being trapped in this cycle. But no matter how hard she tried to push it all away, it was all still there, pressing on her chest, suffocating her.

Her feet led her down the road, mindless, lost in her thoughts. Everything about her life felt so messed up, so utterly fucked up. And in that moment, she didn’t care. She didn’t care about the consequences, about anything. All she wanted was for it to end.

And then, the honk of a car echoed through the mist, breaking through her thoughts. She didn’t look up at first, but when she did, she saw the headlights piercing through the fog, coming right at her.

Without thinking, her legs moved, and before she could stop herself, she was standing in the middle of the road, eyes closed, waiting. Waiting for the impact. Waiting for the end.

Everything in her mind told her to stop, but she couldn’t. It felt like the only release, the only way to escape the suffocating weight of her life. The car’s honking grew louder, closer.

Mi-hee’s heart raced, but she didn’t move. The impact was coming. And she welcomed it.

But just before it could reach her, she heard a screeching halt, the tires grinding against the pavement as the car came to a stop mere inches from her.

Her eyes snapped open, wide in shock. Her hands trembled as she stepped back, her breath ragged, almost choking in her throat.

A man got out of the car. It was Rian. Of course, it had to be him. The person she was least interested to show her vulnerability.

"Mi-hee!" he shouted, rushing toward her with panic in his voice. "What the hell do you think you’re doing?!"

His hand grabbed her arm, pulling her away from the road, away from the danger. But Mi-hee couldn’t process what was happening. The adrenaline, the emotions, everything was too much.

"I…" Mi-hee’s voice faltered. "I just wanted it to end, Rian. I can’t take it anymore."

For a moment, Rian was silent, his grip tightening around her arm, his expression unreadable. Then, with a harsh breath, he pulled her into a tight hug.

"You're okay, Mi-hee," he murmured, though she wasn’t sure he even believed the words himself. "You’re okay."

But Mi-hee didn’t know if that mattered anymore. She just wanted to disappear, to vanish from this world of lies, control, and pain.

For now, though, she had no choice but to hold on.

ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ
ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ
ʰⁱᵉʳᵃʳᶜʰʸ