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❝There comes a time in a relationship when you'll realize that love isn't enough.❞
HWANG EUNBI.
eunbi woke up with sound of faint knocking at the front door of yerin's room. for a second she thought that maybe it was jackson coming for her but she remembered that jackson's knocks were rough and demanding, this one was soft, a little bit demanding but soft nonetheless.
she got up from the bed, groaning when her body lost a familiar warmth that once belonged to yerin's fur blankets. quickly running to unlock the door, she was met with the smell of spicy fried chicken coming from the other side of the door.
"what took you so long to open the door, yerin-ah? the chicken is almost cold! yah - oh! i didn't know she had a guest over."
"i slept here last night," she answered, making way for her. taking of her shoes and nodding at her direction, sojung went to the kitchen and opened the aluminum container that contained the chicken she smelled earlier. "i kind of just woke up."
"i'm sorry if i woke you up. c'mere, i can't finish all this alone, the other one was for yerin but since she's not here you can take hers instead." sojung told her and she sat at one of the plastic chairs and grabbed a chicken leg, making sure not to drop a blob of garlic sauce so she wouldn't have to clean it (since she doesn't even know where the tissues are.) "eunbi right? we have one class together, i think? the extra classes?" she nodded and sojung continues, "yerin doesn't invite anyone here except me or maybe yewon too. you're pretty special, huh?"
"not really." she blushes, throwing the chicken bone in the trashbin and grabbing a chicken thigh. " we're just. . .friends."
"hmm." sojung hummed, "you're jackson's girlfriend right? he knows you're here?" she asked and eunbi visibly paled, the good thing was, sojung was eating chicken to pay any mind of how she looked like a vampire.
"yeah. how about you? boyfriend?" she answered, changing the subject.
"girlfriend." sojung says and eunbi's eyes visibly widened. "know it's weird but we've been together for two years already. yerin kind of accepts our relationship. . . i don't know if you would."
"it's not that i'm weird with it. trust me. it's just that lesbian couples are hard to find at the university. and the only couple that i know is sana and mina from my dance team." she assures her, handing her a new plastic container that is full of garlic sauce after she saw her finish hers, sojung sending her a thankful smile. "how many years have you been together?"
"hmm. three? four? we don't really count. we've been together since i graduated from highschool. how are you and jackson doing? you're like the most popular couple at campus. we don't see much of you anymore."
eunbi sighs, the day she moved into her dorm room and her first day at college, she had found out that jackson had started drinking and taking drugs even before she had graduated from highschool (the reason why he couldn't go to her graduation was because he passed out at the dance floor and he was robbed off all his things.), she had been hurt and even encouraged him to stop, even setting up an appointment to a therapist. but it was no use since he was pretty much addicted.
the first year wasn't that rough, no beatings but he was becoming a bit crazy that time, resulting to failing the whole school year and he had to repeat. but he was a bit nice that year, they went to dates and loved each other. until jackson's parents were getting divorced the time he was being told that he had to repeat the whole school year, thinking that he was the reason his parents were getting divorced, he became crazier, drinking almost everyday (his water bottle was full of vodka) and empty packets of drugs were scattered around and not even his friends can stop him. not even eunbi.
the second year was when the physical and mental abuse started. she was cleaning up jackson's apartement, empty soju bottles and expensive empty wine bottles were in her hands when he shoved her out the way, making his way to the kitchen and gulping down a jug of cold water. he watched her stand up weakly, whimpering quietly to herself. it was the time when suddenly there was a switch flipped inside him and he just wanted to hurt her, the reason being her so similar to her mother and he just wanted to hurt her how much she hurt him as her child.
that was also the year when she fell out of love, can't even get out of a relationship that was slowly falling apart, the abuse too much but she can't because she's scared of how possessive he was and a breakup could end badly and other people could get involved.
yerin even.
"we're good. he's just busy so we don't see each other often." sojung nod in agreement.
"schedules are pretty fucked up for dates huh? same. anyway, have you seen the school newspaper's last article about him?"
"no. did something bad happen?" she asked, already fearing for the worst.
"it's really bad eunbi. like really bad. apparently at yuju's party last week, i think, someone filmed a video of him getting high and drunk as hell and sent it to the school press. it was published in the school papers as well in the school website. his face was blurry due to lightning so we don't really know if that was him. his fan club as usual, defended him." she breaks of rolling her eyes. "but i think the articles are becoming wilder don't you think? i'm starting to think that was really him, but seeing you content and happy as well makes me think that maybe that was someone else. i hope the articles aren't taking a toll at your relationship. the school's press always fucking meddle with everything."
"i doubt that jackson was getting high, i mean, i know he was at yuju's party but i don't think he'll get high and drunk since he has a girlfriend." eunbi lied. sojung believed her and both of them proceed to talk about other things until both of them finished their meal and bid goodbye.
before going back to her room, she took a bath first (still used the clothes yerin gave her) and made the bed, leaving a note of thanks before grabbing her bag and hurrying of to her room hoping that she will escape jackson's fury.
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it turns out that she can't avoid him as he was sitting in her mini sofa and drinking soju as he sees her.
"you're back." he says in an expressionless voice that she braces herself for the worst.
"y-yes. but if you don't want me to i'll - i'll go out." she answers, lowing her head in submission.
"no. clean the room of the mess, make it fast, my mom's visiting the room today, i've been evicted off my apartment and someone moved my things here and i'll be living here from now on. get your fucking things out of here since this place is mine now." he says.
"b-but where will i live, jackson? i don't have anywhere else to go." her lip trembled as she tried to control her shaky voice, tears falling in silent frustration.
"that's not my problem isn't it?" he snapped. "i'm taking a bath. when i finish, i want you out of this room with your belongings and this room clean. got it?" she nodded and jackson tsk-ed making his way to the bathroom.
sobbing quietly to herself, she cleaned the whole place quickly before putting all her thing in two big suitcases, putting some of her treasured ones in her rucksack. with much difficulty, she lugged her two suitcases in the stairs, avoiding curious questions to why she was lugging two big suitcases with her and making her way to the school's mini cafe and ordering an americano to drink her problems away.
completely heartbroken, eunbi drank her americano quietly shedding a few tears as she reminisced about her and jackson's perfect relationship back then.
it seemed as if it will never go back to the way it was before.
