Garden Days

Tomorrow

They were gone.
The garden was gone.
Everything but the light of the sun had disappeared, the ceiling of her bedroom replacing the previous setting.
Irene sat up and wiped her eyes of sleep, seeing that the letter from Sehun had fallen from the nightstand and onto the wooden floor again. "So, it was just a dream? Or maybe a nightmare."
Seok-jin arrived at the end, waking her from the dream and still, she could feel the panic and hurt his presence brought. She knew she could love him if she let herself, if she didn't hide away like did, if she was honest. Whatever she felt for Sehun, whether it be fondness or something else, Irene had to be truthful about it- to herself (and Jin) especially. Keeping things to herself was a habit she had to break whether she liked it or not.
A knock at the door stole her attention away.

"Irene, are you awake?" It was Jin.
"I'll be right there!" Before running to the door, she stuffed the letter under her pillow. "Hey!" She greeted him with a smile upon seeing that he looked a little weary himself.
Jin lifted a hand and motioned for her to come closer in which he took that time to poke at her tousled hair, twirling a strand. "You might want to look in the mirror again- unless you haven't already." He suggested teasingly.
The young woman frowned and swatted away his hand before doing as he suggested, going to the vanity and staring back at his reflection as she responded. "I'm not dressed."
Hesitantly and without permission, he entered. "I, uh... Thank you for yesterday. It means a lot to me. If you have time later, maybe I could play a song?"
"Oh? Oh, the guitar!" Joo-hyun remembered how they went to Jin's house and picked up his guitar. It had been earlier than promised but he had helped her so much already, she had to return the favor. She stood away from her mirror and smiled. "Of course. I have to run out to the garden for a minute but maybe after that-?"
"No rush. We have all day." Seok-jin nodded and headed towards the doorway. "I'll wait for you." The door closed behind him, leaving Irene alone again.
She sighed and walked to her wardrobe, thinking of how the day might go. Would Sehun still be in the flower patch or would he have left already? If he was there waiting, would they talk now or later? It would have to be later since she told Jin a few minutes, right? This was getting to be all too much so she decided to think about it when the time came. Dressed and ready, Joo-hyun exited the bedroom. Her fiancé had his back to her, rocking back-and-forth on his heels while he waited. It was puzzling. What was it that had her father so worried? "What's for breakfast?"
Seok-jin jumped at the sound of her voice, placing a hand over his chest before looking bashfully back at her.

"Irene, please...don't sneak up on me." He reached out and accepted her hooked arm.
Said woman smiled slyly as they headed downstairs. "You scare easily, don't you?"
Jin flushed and mumbled something under his breath. "You just surprised me- that's all." He pouted. When they made it into dining room, he suddenly looked concerned. "If you ever want to talk about anything, I'm here."
"Thank you. Are you alright?"
"Oh yeah, I'm fine." He scratched the back of his head, black eyes darting to the set table before meeting Joo-hyun's gaze again. "I just thought it'd be of comfort to know you have someone to lean on and to...tell things to." A smile brightened his features.
Irene returned with a small nod, paranoid by his sudden comment. "Thank you- again." She took his hand with a smile of her own. "I'll be back before breakfast is over." The young woman headed out, leaving through the brightly lit den. Thankfully, it was a warm and gorgeous day. Perhaps she could convince Jin to play outside.
Not too many minutes later, she arrived in the Baby's Breath patch, expecting to see the man from her dream. He wasn't there. "Sehun?" It was a relief but also a concern. Usually he'd wait until she arrived, so where has he gone? Taking a moment to sit, Irene noticed a slip of paper buried under a pile of leaves and rocks.

I'll see you at home.

"...home?" Said woman jumped to her feet, feeling a slight panic as she turned in the direction of the house. When would Sehun arrive? Had he been there the whole time? Jin was alone-. "No," Irene had to shake that thought away as she headed back to eat breakfast. "He wouldn't do that."
Coming up to the den door, she took a deep breath in an attempt to calm down. Her heart rate had increased with every two steps closer to the house. If Jin saw her flustered like this, he'd know something was wrong. "He's probably just...for me." Joo-hyun could see the image in her head and closed her eyes before placing a hand on the knob, nervously ready to go inside.
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Yikes, I'm running through these chapters- and they're short too. The next chapter is Jin & I'm dedicating it to a couple of you. I've been waiting for a decently good chap.
The Ghost Detective is so suspenseful y'all but really good and the OST is even better ugh please don't sleep on such a wonderful Kdrama