𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐲

chapter 20

A/N: THIS CHAPTER MADE MY HEART GO WJNFEJFHLIAEURFLJNL ONCE AGAIN SO ENJOY! *THROWS CHAPTER AT YOU AND RUNS AWAY TO HIDE*

When you reach your apartment you turn to Seojun with a smile on your face.
"I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" you tell him, and he thanks you for helping him once again.
"Seriously, it's fine. Gowoon is like a little sister to me, I'd gladly help you."

After saying your goodbyes you turn to open the door, pausing when he grabs your arm and moves you to face him once again. You raise your eyebrows in curiosity, wondering if something is wrong, but he doesn't say anything. He reaches into his pocket and wordlessly pulls out a little box, and you just watch him in confusion.

When he opens the box you realise it contains a bracelet, and your eyes widen. You move back slightly and shake your hands as if to say it isn't necessary, but he just grabs your wrist and pulls it towards him.

You watch him with a mixture of shock and confusion as he helps you wear it, wordlessly putting the bracelet onto your wrist and gently running his finger along the chain after he clasps it shut. Your skin tingles and you take in a sharp inhale at the contact.

The bracelet is simple, a silver chain with a little charm on it, but you love it regardless and your heart warms when you realise that he had gone out of his way to do this for you. He gently grabs your entire wrist after a few moments, glancing at the bracelet for a few more seconds before looking up at you.

"Wear this all the time, okay?" he says. You just nod, unable to find your voice at first due to the shock.
"You didn't have to do that," you breathe out after staring into his eyes for a few moments.
"I wanted to though."

"Okay," you say gently, as if speaking any louder would wake you up from what feels like a dream, "thank you."
"It's okay," he whispers back, smiling lightly at you.
"I should head in now," you say softly and he nods, finally letting go of your wrist. You say goodbye to him one more time before walking into your apartment, leaning back against the door once you close it.

You let out a deep exhale, finally able to breathe.
"What the heck was that?" you mumble to yourself, still able to feel his lingering touch on your hand. The butterflies flutter in your stomach as you lift up your wrist to look at the bracelet, admiring the new piece of jewellery.

When you enter your apartment Seojun remains outside for a few seconds, staring at the door where you were standing just seconds before. He glances down at the new ring on his pinky finger and lets out a little smile before finally walking away, heading up to his own apartment.

You enter the living room and greet your mother who's sitting on the sofa watching television, joining her and leaning your head on her lap.
"Did you eat?" you ask her after a few seconds, and she hums.
"I had some leftovers of the food you made me yesterday."

"Are you still hungry? I can make you something else." You move to get up, but she smiles before pulling you back into her embrace.
"I'm okay baby, you can just rest," she reassures you. You reluctantly agree and make yourself comfortable, wrapping your arms around her waist and resting your head on her chest.

She runs her fingers through your hair and you hum in content, finding comfort in the sound of her heartbeat.
"Did you have fun with Seojun?" she asks, and you nod against her chest. She notices the bracelet on your wrist when you reach for the remote to increase the volume, not remembering you wearing one when you left in the morning.

"The bracelet is pretty."
You lift your hand so it's at your eye level, staring at the bracelet for a few seconds and just wondering what it means.
"Yeah," you say softly, "it is."

"You really like him, don't you?" she asks when she sees your expression, and you stay quiet.
"It doesn't matter how I feel," you respond eventually, leaning back into her embrace with a sigh and tightening your arms around her waist. "He doesn't like me in that way."

"But-"
"Even if he did return just a fraction of my feelings it doesn't matter, he's starting to like Jugyeong now. I can tell," you say. "And she's my friend too. I don't want it to cause any issues between us, so there's no point in getting upset about it or acting on my feelings."

Your words sadden your mother - she really did think Seojun liked you.
"Just have patience, everything will be okay." You just turn around to bury your face into her shoulder again, seeking comfort. You hum at her words but don't respond. She can tell you don't want to continue talking about it, so she drops the subject with a little sigh.

You get up after resting with your mother for a while, stretching a little before exiting the living room, and walk over to the kitchen to get to work. You make a few dishes for your mother to eat for the next few days before heading to your room to pack a suitcase for the school trip, which would be commencing the following day.

It took a lot of convincing from your mother and friends before you actually decided to attend, you being too worried to leave your mother alone for that long. She reassured you that she would be fine, though, and that she had Gowoon and her mother right upstairs if she needed anything.

You're nervous because you've never been on a trip before; It was partially because of the bullying, since you had no interest in being around your classmates overnight where they could do anything and you'd have no getaway, but also because you were afraid of leaving your mother alone for that long. This is the first time you'd been offered to attend a trip with your mother out of hospital, so in the end you decided to go.

You grab all of your belongings to pack for the trip before walking back to the living room and sitting on the floor, so you could be with your mother while organising your suitcase.
"You're sure you're going to be okay?" you ask while you fold your last few shirts, looking up at her once you're done.

"I don't have to go on this trip. I can stay home with you and we can watch movies together and-"
"-Y/N," she cuts you off, so you stop rambling and look up at her. "Come here." You walk over to sit beside her, and she places her hand against your cheek with a soft smile on her face.

"I'll be okay, you don't have to worry about me. Just go and have some fun, okay? You deserve it." You take a deep breath, closing your eyes and leaning into her palm.
"Promise me you'll let me know if anything happens."

"Okay," she reassures you, "I promise." You nervously nod your head and smile back at her, before getting up to move your suitcase into the hallway so it would be ready for you to pick up the following day.

The next morning you walk into your mother's room after getting yourself ready, taking a tray of breakfast for her to eat. You place the tray on the table beside her bed, sitting down and gently shaking her.
"I'm leaving now," you tell her softly once she's awake, and she nods tiredly.

You lean down and place a kiss onto her head with a smile.
"You're sure you don't want me to stay home with you?" you ask one more time, and she smiles before gently pushing you in the direction of the door.

"Nope, just go and have some fun." You laugh at her words. "I'll see you in a few days." You hum before walking over to the door, throwing her one last smile before finally heading out.
"I love you," you call out as you leave.
"I love you too baby."