Uneventful | Michaeng

Chapter 16

Now fully dressed in their scarves and jackets. Mina pulled Chaeyoung to the car. They could see their breath in the night sky.

"Minari, where are we going?"

"I told you it's a surprise."

Chaeyoung groaned as she got in, and Mina tapped her nose at the cute response. The stars sparkled brightly due to the lack of light. Most families were asleep already. In the soft hum of the car, Chaeyoung felt her eyes droop, and she fell into a deep slumber.

__________

She stirred awake again when she felt the sensation of a nudge on her arm.

"Mina?"

"Chaeng, we are here. Let's go."

Expecting a restaurant or carnival, Chaeyoung looked at the space around the parking lot, but to her surprise, around her was just the clear sky and rocky terrain. Mina came around the car and opened Chaeyoung's door. She extended her hand, which Chaeyoung took happily. She breathed in the musky scent of the earth and felt the crunching of rocks under her boots.

"Where are we, Minari?"

Mina looked Chaeyoung in the eyes and said something that made her forget about her questions and froze her world.

"I love you, Chaeyoung."

Chaeyoung's heart began to pound, and she felt her cheeks heat up.

She smiled brightly and moved her hand over to encase it with Mina's

"I love you too, Mina."

Chaeyoung brought her empty hand over to Mina's chin and pulled her closer gently. Mina's hands found their way to both sides of Chaeyoung's face, and they shared a passionate kiss. It was not haste, nor was it asking for anything. All it wished for was to stay in that moment. For time to stop, the only sound to be their heartbeats and the only feeling, the satisfaction of having someone to call their own.

Mina pulled away, a content smile on her face. She slowly opened her eyes in a daze, shook her head a little, then spoke.

"Mmm, let's go?"

Chaeyoung's eyebrows scrunched. Where more was Mina taking her? They were already in a wide-open spot, but before she could ask more. Mina grabbed her wrist and began to walk. In about five minutes, they ended up near three trees. Mina let go and began to kick up the dirt.

"What are you doing?" Chaeyoung laughed. All she thought was that her girlfriend had gone mad.

But her laughter quickly subsided when she saw a flat metal hood uncover from the ground, etched onto it a wide open eye. Mina used her strength and pulled the lid over, which exposed a ladder heading downwards. She pulled out her phone flashlight and entered.

"Chaeyoung! Come on!"

She yelled from below. Hesitant, Chaeyoung turned her flash on as well and stepped down the ladder. She found herself staring at an almost futuristic lab. Her mouth hung open, and she looked around. Besides the many screens and microscopes, there were brushes, paints, and canvases. The drawings depicted a small girl playing with toys. Before she could explore more, Mina spoke.

"I have to show you something."

Chaeyoung spun around to her girlfriend.

"What?"

Before Mina could say, her eyes diverted to the area behind Chaeyoung and she stood frozen.

In confusion, Chaeyoung spun on her heels to see a man and woman. They were an old couple. Their hair greying, posture sloping, and bodies presenting a constant shiver. Seeing Chaeyoung, their faces instantly broke into a smile.

"These are your parents, Chaeyoung."

Hearing Mina's voice, Chaeyoung felt her body give out, to which two arms held onto her tightly. The voices around her got louder, her vision began to shake, and her tears began to stream down her face.

"But how? Why! You left me! Was I not enough for you?"

Her tears began to flood, and she buried her face into Mina's chest when she felt a pair of hands cling onto her arm. She looked back to see the woman, her features distinctly like Chaeyoung's. Tears were welling up in her eyes as well. She turned Chaeyoung by the shoulders and cupped her face.

"Chaeyoung. Is that really you?"

She sniffed a little, not minding to wipe her tears. Behind her came the man, presumably Chaeyoung's father. His eyes were shiny as though he might cry as well, but he was attempting to keep a tough exterior for his wife.

"We never wanted to leave you. We didn't have a choice. We love you, and you were always enough."

Chaeyoung calmed at their comment, and they sat her down on the small art stool in the corner of the room. There, they began to explain everything; how there was a run-in with the Mafia, to leaving Chaeyoung with a heavy heart at a foster home. All they gave her was a name tag reading 'Son Chaeyoung.'

All so that they could keep her safe and away from being found and harmed.

After many hours of tears, stories, and laughs. Chaeyoung, with a heavy heart, climbed up the ladder to go back home. She waved goodbye and sat in the car. She felt a mix of emotions that she could not fully identify yet, so instead, Chaeyoung looked out the window and watched the stars.

"So, this was your Mafia?"

She looked at Mina to see a nervous wreck of a human. Fidgeting with her clothes and biting her lip.

"Umm, yes." She spoke slowly, "But now I'm the head of the Mafia, and I assure you nothing, and I mean nothing! Will happen to your parents."

Mina looked at Chaeyoung, her face expressing visible worry and guilt. Seeing this, Chaeyoung turned in her seat; and her fingers found their way onto Mina's lap.

"Look, I'm not happy with what your dad did. But, two things,

one, you had no way to stop him, and two, if he hadn't, I would have never met you the way I did. So let's not dwell over what the past is, even though it will take me time, I could never hate you."

She paused to see a quiet Mina, though her fidgeting had stopped. She was staring at the ground. Chaeyoung pulled her closer, leaning her jaw onto Mina's head, "I love you, and no matter what, I won't stop." She kissed the top of her head ever so slightly as she felt a wet droplet fall on her hand. "That's why you asked before we saw them, right? You were afraid of how I would react once I found out about what your dad did."

She felt Mina nod a little yes. To which she lifted her chin. "I don't want you to ever worry about that. Okay."

____________

That night Chaeyoung didn't head over to her house but instead to her home, and she slept a peaceful night's rest in Mina's arms. Though, not all the problems were over yet. She wasn't worried about how she would pick herself up when things went wrong. She had her parents, her friends, and most of all-- Mina.

Author's Corner:

Hey Guys! I finally got around to making a cover image for this book. I hope you like it! After this chapter, there are only a couple left! Wow, we've come so far. We officially reached 1K reads on Uneventful and 100+ votes!!! Woah, when I first started writing this story. It was for fun. I was just trying to be like my favorite authors, but genuinely, I felt so happy and supported to see all of you read, vote, and comment on the chapters. I love reading all of your comments and they light up my day!

DM if you ever need to talk-- judgment free

I love you all

Keep Smiling :D

V.C.K