Desire - ATEEZ Mingi

13

Yeeun's POV:

"Yeeun?" I heard my mom call as she walked into the house. she was home from work a little earlier than usual.

"In the living room, mom!" I called back. I heard the clacking of her heels come closer and closer until she walked into the living room. She took one look at me and sighed. It wasn't a relieved sigh or a tired sigh. It was a defeated sigh. I furrowed my eyebrows.

"Sweetheart, we need to talk," she said, coming over to sit next to me on the couch. She laid her purse down on the coffee table before turning to me. I picked up the remote and muted the tv.

"About what?" I asked nervously. Was I in trouble? I couldn't think of anything I'd done wrong. My mom pursed her lips, taking my hand in hers.

"I've been thinking about it all day. All week and I came to the conclusion that..." She trailed off for just a moment before speaking again. "You deserve to know who your father is."

My eyes widened. "R-really?" I stuttered in disbelief. She nodded, smiling just a bit. My mouth was slightly agape, and I was suddenly excited, anxious, and nervous all at once.

My mom licked her lips before opening her mouth to begin. "His name is Daniel Park," she started. I took note of her saying is. That meant that he was still alive. "I met him in college. He was so sweet and handsome. I was thrilled when he asked me out." She said, glancing down and smiling softly at the memory.

"We went out for a long time, and right after we graduated from college, he asked me to marry him. And of course, I said yes. We couldn't wait to get married and start a family," she continued. But suddenly, a frown formed on her face. "So, what happened?" I asked curiously.

She sighed loudly, squeezing my hand. "He changed," she said. "After we got married, we went on our honeymoon, of course. But he started acting strange and different."

"What do you mean?" I asked, hearing her swallow hard. "He got angry a lot. The smallest things would make him mad. He started throwing and breaking things." She said. I swallowed hard as well, not liking where her story was going. I already had a pretty good idea what she was about to tell me.

"When we got home from the honeymoon, I was actually afraid to start living with him. I was starting to believe that marrying him was a mistake," she paused. "And I was right."

A pained expression came over her face and I noticed how soft her voice had gotten. I knew what she was about to say.

"Instead of throwing things around when he got mad, he started hitting me," she said, confirming my prediction. Her voice was getting shaky, and I almost told her that she didn't have to tell me anymore, but I wanted to know where he ended up. So, I let her continue.

"It got worse and worse and time went on, but for some stupid reason, I stayed with him. Maybe there was a part of me that believed he would change and that the man I fell in love with was still inside of him somewhere," She paused. "Or maybe I was just too scared to leave."

Immediately, I thought of Mingi. I couldn't believe how much he and my father were alike. I've never thought of Mingi as abusive. But my mom said that my dad only got worse as time went on. I was suddenly afraid that Mingi would follow in my dad's footsteps.

And I understood her being too afraid to leave and believing that he would change. That's how I feel every day.

"One night," she continued, her voice cracking. I watched as her eyes quickly filled with tears and I squeezed her hand tightly. She let out a sob but took a deep breath and calmed herself down. "He, um," she paused to prepare for whatever she was about to tell me. I could feel my heartbeat quickening. "He forced me into sex," she said, wiping a tear that fell from her eye. "Three weeks later," she continued, forcing a sad smile. "I found out I was pregnant with you."

My mouth fell open a bit in horror. I'd been brought into this world as the result of my mother practically being raped by her own husband. Now, I wanted to cry too.

"Your dad was actually thrilled when he found out," she said, blinking back her tears. "Throughout the entire pregnancy, he only hit me a couple of times. He would still get angry, but he wouldn't take it out on me as much because he wanted you to be born a healthy baby," she paused and dropped her gaze down to her lap. "But the day we brought you home from the hospital, he went right back to hitting me."

A horrifying question popped into my head. I didn't want to ask, but I needed to know.

"Did he ever...hit me?" I asked, reluctance in my voice. I was relieved my mom shook her head. "No. He loved you very much. He treated you like you were the most precious thing in the world," she replied, smiling a bit. "You were his little princess."

I bit my lip, looking down at my hands. I wasn't sure how I felt about such a terrible man cradling me in his arms when I was just a defenseless little baby. How could he treat me so good and my mother so poorly?

"One night, when you were about six months old, your father came home drunk," my mom went on. "He beat me up more than he ever had before. I was hurt very badly, and I was scared that I was going to die. So, I called 911.

The police came to the house and your father was arrested. I spent a couple days in the hospital before I had to go to court and testify," she said. "In just a couple of days, they sentenced your father to thirty years in prison."

I blinked a couple of times, taking all this information in. Finally, I knew.

"After that, I filed for divorce and changed your last name to my surname. Then I sold the house and you and I moved here," she finished. I huffed out an overwhelmed sigh.

"Wow," I said, my eyes wide. It was a lot to take in all at once. My mom squeezed my hand again. "I know." She said in understanding. Then she wiped away a stray tear before taking my other hand in hers.

"Yeeun, I want you to promise me something," she said. I instantly nodded. "Anything." She sighed, scooting a little closer to me. Her body language was making me nervous.

I know he wouldn't, but if Mingi ever lays a hand on you wrongly, promise that you'll tell me." She said. I swallowed hard, feeling my heartbeat quicken.

I knew I couldn't promise her that, so I simply nodded my head. She gave me a sympathetic smile. "I know it's scary to think about the boy you love hurting you. But I need you to be careful. I don't want you to end up the way I did." She said. I nodded in understanding, bowing my head to look at my hands.

My mom squeezed my shoulder before standing up and walking away. But before she could leave the living room, I stopped her.

"Hey, mom." I said. she stopped and turned around. "Yeah." She replied. I gave her a small smile. "Thanks for telling me," I said. Even though it was a terrible story and it was probably very hard for her to talk about, I was grateful. Finally, I knew the truth about my father.

She returned and smile and nodded before walking out of the room. I exhaled loudly, feeling overwhelmed. while my mind continued to process all the new information Id just been given, I felt like I was forgetting something. I sat there for a while, trying to think about what I could possibly be forgetting.

It continued to bother me all night, up until I crawled into bed at 9:45. I checked my phone to see if Id received any texts or missed calls, only to feel stupid. No one ever calls or texts me besides Mingi and my mom.

But as I gazed at my lock screen, I couldn't help but notice the date; Friday, October 5th. My eyes widened in fear.

Friday.

I missed Mingi's game. My phones screen faded to black, only to light up a second later, telling me Id received a text message. from Mingi.

Mingi: Get over to my house right now

I swallowed hard, replying with an 'okay' Then I tossed my phone to the side, running my hands through my hair in frustration with myself.

Mingi's going to kill me.