45 — Obsession and Delusion

A faint, strange little smile came to her face.

"Thank you... Jae-il... Oppa." She whispered. Her eyes shone bright in the darkness.

Then she dipped her head and kissed the top of the kitten's head. It purred in response, seemingly content with this affection.

"Let's call you... Myeon! What do you say, eh?" Dae Hee beamed.

Meow. Myeon purred. As if to show approval of the name. I sighed. Well, not as though the name mattered in any shape or form.

"Are you feeling better?" I questioned, my eyes shifting from Myeon to Dae Hee. The kitty was being suffocated between Dae Hee's bosom, the valley of soft pillows forming a safe nest to curl into. I had to admit, if I were a cat, I wouldn't have minded sleeping in there either—granted that she was a consenting adult giving an equally consenting cat the necessary consent for snuggling between boobs.

It seemed to be quite warm. Myeon, for one, appeared quite satisfied. Lucky fella.

Dae Hee let out an appreciative giggle. She scratched behind its ears.

"A bit." She admitted after a moment or so, her voice coming out a bit more softer than usual. "It was pretty bad, to be honest..."

I blinked.

"My... fight with Go Bin." She specified.

"Oh, right." I nodded, wondering if I should have a small intervention about the topic with her or if it would simply make her feel even more embarrassed or self-conscious about whatever had transpired. "Was the argument serious enough?"

Her lips pursed into a pout. She nodded. "Umh, kinda..."

A beat of silence.

Then two.

I threaded carefully. "You wanna talk about it?" Living and dying once kind of made me quite the wise old crow, especially when it came to human psychology. I'd dealt with some fucked-up stuff and dealt with some serious PTSD myself. There was some level of personal, first-hand experience, when it came to dealing with psychological issues. At the very least, I was a great listener.

As for the rest... well, it all had to do with a good dose of emotional intelligence.

Reading body language was, thankfully, one of my specialties.

Her brows knitted together. "Uh... I don't think... um. I mean, it was... just so stupid—!"

"Well, you don't have to. But I wouldn't mind listening to whatever you've got to say."

Her head dipped. She fiddled with the rim of her soda can.

"I know." She murmured, almost to herself. "But if I say it out loud, it'll sound even more stupid."

"Most things do." I said lightly. "Doesn't make them any less real."

That earned me a tiny look, one of those quick flickers that darted up and away before you could pin it down. Her lips curved for half a second, then straightened as if she'd just remembered she wasn't supposed to smile.

Really?

Myeon purred against her chest, stretching one tiny paw like it wanted to claim more space.

She breathed out slowly. "It's nothing important."

"You're sure?"

"Mm." A nod. Firm, but not quite convincing.

I let it go. People who want to talk will talk. People who don't will only dig their heels in deeper if you try to drag it out of them.

Instead, I leaned back on my palms and looked up. The night sky had that washed-out city glow that made you wonder if stars even existed anymore.

Not the kind of sky a romantic story starts out in. There were no fairytales about neon-lit skylines and the smell of exhaust fumes, or about girls named Dae Hee who tried too hard to be liked.

So much of life was a grey area, that space between the extremes that no one wrote books or made movies or told each other their dreams about. The sort of place where real life lived and thrived.

The type of place Dae Hee seemed to live in. Always in the grey area of everything.

The wind stirred her hair, and her nose scrunched as a stray strand brushed over its tip.

"It's quite late." I said upon checking the time. 3.45 AM. "We should head back."

She smiled sheepishly. "Yeah. I guess it is late." Her tone was wistful, like she wished there was more time, more space, to keep the moment from ending.

I stared at her for a moment.

Dae Hee returned the gaze, eyes softening with warmth, with something vulnerable. Then she dipped her chin. Her smile was almost hidden in the dim glow of a street lamp. "Oppa is very kind... you know that?"

"Sure." I said dismissively, chuckling at that. "Sometimes I like playing the good person."

Dae Hee's expression brightened, then fell, her eyebrows knitting. "Are you being sarcastic?"

I shrugged, standing up and reaching a hand for Dae Hee, who took it a moment later. Her skin was so warm and soft.

"Whatever you want to tell yourself." I replied, the corners of my mouth quirking. "If that helps you sleep better at night."

Dae Hee nodded, accepting the comment as a good enough answer. Then she took a deep, steadying breath, and her expression melted back into that familiar smile.

Her lips curved, sweet and shy as ever. The same look she'd worn a hundred times before.

"Thanks... for being here." Her words sounded genuine, with none of that high-pitched gushing of false sentiment.

A genuine, sincere and sweet thank you, and that was it. No fuss. Nothing flashy. Just Dae Hee.

Or so, I hoped it was, because something about the young woman wasn't quite… right.

...

The walk back home was a quiet and pleasant one.

The silence between us wasn't uncomfortable.

Eventually, once we'd gotten close to the apartment building, I looked up at the structure and then at the girl and the fella in her arms that was already sleeping soundly. She looked content just staring down at him.

"Is it really okay?"

"Hm. What is?"

I glanced at Myeon. "I mean, don't you need to get your parents' approval to bring a stray animal home?"

"No." She chuckled. "I live alone. My parents were… well, umh, they passed away in a tragic car crash. So I have no parents, per say."

"... Ah. Sorry." I frowned, scratching my neck in thought. This information came as a bit of a shock to me. Especially considering Dae Hee's cheerful disposition, one would almost forget she could have been a product of a complex, difficult life, full of trials and tribulations. 'Just like mine'.

"No, don't be! It's okay, I'm used to living on my own anyway, so." Dae Hee then glanced up and waved. "Here we are."

"Mm." I hummed. "Well, then..."

"Well, then..." She parroted, not quite willing to end the conversation, but equally unsure as to what to do next.

I turned around, waving.

"Mmm." She hummed again, a little louder. She stood there, watching, blinking.

"Dae Hee..."

"Yes?" She perked up instantly.

"Get back inside."

"Fine!" Dae Hee smiled like a little imp, teasingly, as if to playfully mock my exasperation.

With a roll of the eyes, I gave her another short goodbye and left.

Once I made sure that she wasn't lingering around, I began to walk away.

Rustle—

A faint sound reached my ears. I stopped, glanced back. Nothing. Just a curtain swaying behind her window.

Her window...

"......"

I narrowed my eyes.

xXx

Dae Hee's POV:

Oops. He almost caught her. Such sharp eyes, and even sharper ears. That boy.

Her lips curved as she carried Myeon inside, bare feet padding softly against the floor. The living room smelled faintly of laundry detergent and the citrus cleaner she'd used earlier, when she thought tonight would be boring. It wasn't boring. Not at all. Part of her wondered how it'd have turned out—if she had invited him in.

Just thinking about it had her face slightly blush.

Her mouth felt dry.

She placed Myeon down before procuring two bowls she had no use for, and repurposed them for her new companion.

Once Dae Hee made sure Myeon had no further needs, she wandered into her bedroom, closing the door without thinking. She leaned against it for a second, heart fluttering in her chest like a moth against glass. A strange feeling.

She exhaled, eyes going down.

One hand over her chest.

It was the first time she felt such an… intense emotion, almost overwhelmingly sweet.

Intense enough that she couldn't simply let it be.

Let him be.

Dae Hee got up, walking over to one of the drawers. Inside were a cap, sunglasses, and a mask. No one would recognize her like that. As beautiful as she was, she was your typical South Korean woman. Dark hair. Pale skin.

To be honest; she hated Jae-il, initially.

Because of what his father did.

She thought, and really thought, what could she do to gather evidence. What could she do to get her revenge? And what better way than to corrupt Yeong Gu's precious, prodigious little boy?

Have him become someone so depraved, desperate, and absolutely pathetic. Have him become hers. Yes.

And all this while she would've gathered the information she needed. The evidence to incriminate the whole family.

So that her family could've finally received the justice they deserved. It was the correct thing to do. Her parents were innocent people. She deserved to grow up with parents too, just like him.

Just like him.

"But what is this..."

Dae Hee slammed the drawer shut and sighed, almost disgusted with herself, for craving the son of the man who shattered her world. What kind of creature longs for the bloodline of their destroyer?

"Ugh..."

He really had to go and make it complicated. Stupid eyes. Stupid little smiles.

Too complicated.

This little act was backfiring.

She could scarcely believe Jae-il was that man's son. They hardly looked anything alike. Appearances could be deceiving. Jae-il could be deceiving her as well... but she doubted that was the case. At times, she got the impression his interest in her was as sparse as the hair on his father's head.

A laugh slipped out, soft and shaky. She pressed the back of her hand to her mouth, then let herself fall onto the bed. The mattress dipped under her weight, the sheets cool against her skin.

For a moment, she just stared at the ceiling, breath shallow, chest rising and falling in little waves. Then her arm slid across her forehead, hiding her eyes from the pale glow seeping in through the blinds. She didn't know what to think anymore. Some nights she sank into grief; other nights she longed to let the hatred slip away.

Dae Hee knew how all-consuming that kind of fire was.

But then she'd visit their graves and be reminded of it all.

She exhaled, gulping.

Purple eyes burned behind her eyelids. A soft shade, almost unreal.

Her knees curled in slightly. Her body warmed, pulse picking up like someone had lit a fuse under her skin. She gritted her teeth, hating herself for each inch her hand moved further and further away.

She could easily imagine every little line and ridge of his body. That unfairly handsome face.

Dae Hee swallowed, again. Hard.

"Damn you, Jae-il…"

Damn you. Damn you. Damn you. Damn you.

Her hand went down.