SANCTUARY

prologue

[tw // alcohol, toxic relationship]

Another alcohol bottle laid down on the floor, probably the sixth one he had today. Baek Dan had a rough day, despite not having a proper job or attending college. Geum Ahyoung, on the other hand, was scared to death the longer she stayed with him.

"Hand me another bottle of soju", Dan ordered Ahyoung who had no choice but to follow. She got another bottle of soju from the fridge and handed it over. He grabbed the bottle from her hand and opened it, then chugging it down. "Did your parents send you your money? Give me half"

"They haven't yet...", Ahyoung trembled.

"Well tell them to hurry up!", he shouted, annoyed that he couldn't get his hands on some money. "I need to pay back some people"

Ahyoung nodded, knowing that if she argued, it could be the end of her. She never thought that her boyfriend of one year would change the moment he moved into her place, saying that he was struggling. Ever since he moved in, he was a complete douchebag.

Ahyoung took out her phone when she felt a buzz. She looked at who messaged and it was her best friend, Zhong Chenle. She smiled and texted him back.

"What are you smiling for?", Dan scoffed. "You're cheating on me? Oh how dare you—"

The sound of glass shattering filled the room as Dan hit the soju bottle on the wall. With the broken bottle, he pointed it towards her and she froze. She was trembling and didn't know what to do. Her first instinct was to leave her apartment right away.

Ahyoung made a run for the door and managed to escape. She dialed Chenle but he didn't answer. She cursed under her breath and ran down the stairs, Dan running after her.

"I just need to find someone", Ahyoung muttered and looked around the ground floor of the apartment building. To her luck, she spotted her best friend walking towards her. She ran towards him, hiding behind him as Dan showed up. "Help me, please"

Chenle was surprised by her actions and looked at her boyfriend who had blood on his hand and a broken bottle.

"Oh, so you are the boy she replaced me with?", Dan scoffed.

"No, but I'm a hundred— wait no, a million times better than you though", Chenle smirked. This made Dan pissed. "Oh, did I offend you?"

"You're putting on a show, aren't you?", Dan questioned, his eyes widening.

"Leave Ahyoung alone", Chenle said seriously. "Or else I'll have to sue you."

"You can't do that, we're in a relationship", he cockily replied. "Right, Ahyoung?"

Ahyoung tightened her grip on Chenle's shirt, fear present all over her.

"And a prison cell is just a room", Chenle nonchalantly added. "It's your choice"

Dan didn't reply and started to run towards Chenle with the broken bottle pointing at him but Chenle swiftly moved away, holding Ahyoung's hand to guide her.

"You little—"

"Don't you mean you?", Chenle chuckled.

Dan lost his patience with Chenle and was about to attack him until he suddenly felt his body go numb and was getting dizzy.

"What's happening?", Ahyoung squeaked.

"He lost too much blood already", Chenle pointed to the multiple cuts on Dan's hand. "He would collapse any minute."

Like what Chenle predicted, Dan fainted right on the spot.

"How were you so calm?", Ahyoung asked, her hands still shaking.

Chenle smiled and held her hands tightly to stop them from shaking. It did help Ahyoung, as he was the only best friend she had due to Dan's threats that would make her friends leave her.

"I've prepared myself for this and I'm not even surprised", Chenle explained. "Also, if I panicked, you would've panicked as well. It would be best if I stayed calm than not"

"Thanks", Ahyoung thanked him. "What do we do now?"

"Let him feel some pain for a couple minutes and I'll call an ambulance", he replied nonchalantly, having his phone ready already. "It's best if you stay far away from him especially since you don't have any evidence against him, he'll be free after a week or two. Maybe a restraining order can help him stay away."

"I don't know where to stay...", Ahyoung muttered, thinking of a place.

"You can stay with me", Chenle suggested. "I'll be your personal bodyguard!"

"It'll be a burden", Ahyoung was against it. "I'll just find a place far away from him"

"Trust me, you're not a burden", Chenle tried to brighten the mood. "How about you stay with me until Dan is out of sight and that it's safe for you?"

Ahyoung looked down, thinking about it. She did want to stay with her best friend for assurance and she did want to feel safe for once.

"I'll move out when I'm ready", she accepted Chenle's offer.

"Great! Let's go to my house then!", he exclaimed and grabbed Ahyoung's hand, pulling her to walk to a bus stop.