Enchanted (Bbangsaz)

57

Minji stepped inside the apartment, the sound of the door clicking shut amplifying the tension that crackled in the air. Hanni stood a few feet away, arms crossed tightly over her chest. Her expression was an icy mask, unreadable, but Minji could feel the storm raging beneath the surface, the weight of everything that had gone unsaid between them.

"Say it," Hanni's voice sliced through the silence like a blade, flat and cold. "Whatever excuse you came here with, just get it over with."

Minji flinched, her chest tightening, but she stood her ground. She had expected anger, maybe even hatred, but the emptiness in Hanni's tone? That was worse. It felt like a punch to the gut. "I didn't come here to make excuses," Minji said quietly, her voice steady despite the knot in her stomach. "I came here to tell you the truth."

Hanni let out a bitter laugh, shaking her head as if she couldn't believe what she was hearing. "The truth?" she repeated, her voice dripping with disbelief. "Since when do you care about the truth, Minji? You've been living in lies for so long, I don't even know if you remember what honesty looks like."

Minji took a cautious step closer, her heart pounding in her chest. "I know I deserve that," she admitted, her voice unwavering despite the weight of everything she had done. "And I know I hurt you. But, Hanni... I swear to you, I never cheated. Not on you. Not on us."

Hanni's eyebrows shot up, and for a moment, her face twisted in disbelief. "You're kidding, right?" she asked, voice rising, her fury unmistakable. "You're seriously standing here after everything, telling me you didn't cheat? That's your version of the truth?"

"Yes," Minji said, her voice firm, despite the storm of emotions threatening to break through. "That's the truth."

Hanni froze, the words sinking in like ice in her veins. Her body was rigid, her eyes narrowing as if she couldn't even comprehend what Minji was saying. "You're fucking with me, right?" she asked, her voice low, dangerous. "You're seriously telling me that all of this, all this mess, was just some sick game to you?"

"No!" Minji's voice broke as she took a step closer, her eyes pleading. "It wasn't a game, Hanni. I lied because I thought it would be easier for you to hate me. I thought you were done with me anyway, so I tried to make it easier for you to move on."

"Easier?" Hanni's voice cracked, the word leaving her lips like a wound. Her eyes burned with anger, but there was pain there too, raw and bleeding. "You thought it would be easier for me to think you betrayed me? Do you even hear yourself right now, Minji?"

"I know it was wrong," Minji whispered, voice trembling. "But please, let me explain. Please."

Hanni's gaze hardened, a mixture of anger and confusion clouding her features. "I don't even know what to believe anymore, Minji. How am I supposed to just take your word for it after everything?"

Minji's heart thundered in her chest, her voice low but desperate. "Hanni, you don't get it," she said, her eyes searching Hanni's face for some sign of understanding, of hope. "I've already lost everything. You're everything to me, and I screwed up so badly, I don't even know how to fix it. But I swear to you, I have no reason to lie anymore. I don't. I've destroyed everything already. What's left for me to hide?"

Hanni's chest tightened, her breath quickening as she stood there, staring at Minji with disbelief. She didn't respond right away, but when she did, her voice was quieter, almost like she was speaking to herself. "Then why?" she whispered, the words barely a breath. "Why would you do this to me?"

Minji closed the distance between them, her voice urgent, almost frantic. "Because I'm an idiot," she admitted, her eyes desperate. "Because I thought that if you hated me, if I became the villain in your eyes, it would be easier for you to move on. I thought if I pushed you away, you'd be able to let me go."