collateral damage 🔞 - COMPLETE

•forty-two•

~~~~~Naeun

Tonight Jin is coming to pick me up. I haven't been on a date in I don't know how long... What if I embarrass myself? Rifling through my closet, I come to the sad realization that I have nothing to wear. After a while of searching, I remember that Haerin has a whole collection of dresses. Most of them may not be appropriate, but I'm sure there is something I could borrow.

When I enter her apartment, I notice she is just sitting on the couch, staring at the wall.

"Haerin?"

"Hmmm??"

"Is everything ok?"

She turns towards me, and I see how tired she looks. The evidence that she had been crying is clear on her face, but she just nods her head. I sit down, deciding that my date pales in comparison to whatever may be bothering her.

"Talk to me Hae... Why have you been crying?"

"Unnie... Jeongguk says that he loves me still..."

"That's good news... isn't it?"

"I'm afraid Unnie... What if he finds out the truth about me? He'll never be able to forgive me... I should have listened to you years ago..."

"Haerin-ah... Don't look backwards... Tell him everything, and let him decide for himself..."

"He'll leave me again... Once he knows... He won't be able to look at me the same way. I think it will kill me if he becomes disgusted by me..."

"He won't... I've talked to him Hae... He has convinced me that he won't hurt you again."

"Unnie... I'm a whore... I'm not good enough for him..."

"Oh Haerin... You are good enough... And you can stop working at Rush... He will take care of you and the kids. He wants to... Maybe it's time to let him..."

"I'm sorry Naeun Unnie... You must be tired of having to do it... I should have realized..."

"That isn't what I meant Hae... He wants to take care of you, and the kids... Let him show you!"

She just stares at me, and I see the gears in her head turning. I understand she's far from believing her life will ever be a happy one, and it hurts. I wish there was something I could say that would convince her, but it's going to take a while. It took 5 years to break her into pieces, so healing her overnight is too much to expect.

"Aren't you supposed to be getting ready for a date Unnie?"

Her question brings me back to what I came here for.

"Oh! Yes I am... Do you have a dress I could borrow? Something pretty, but not too short?"

The laugh that leaves her makes me smile. I love it when she laughs genuinely! Her eyes are little crescents, and she's clutching onto her stomach while giggling.

"So you're saying that you want a dress that doesn't make you look like a slut... but will make him think about getting you out of it... I have the perfect thing!!"

She gets up, and I watch as she digs through her wardrobe, humming and discarding many options. When she comes to me with a beautiful navy blue dress, I smile at how pretty it is. I think back to when she emptied her own closet on the bedroom floor, before meeting the Jeons for the first time, and find the irony in this moment. She seems to have realized it also, since she's smiling evily at me...

"Oh how the tables have turned Unnie..."

~~~~~Jin

The moment I met Naeun, I wanted to know more. From what I've seen so far, she is beautiful inside and out. I love how she's sacrificed so much for her friend, because it shows her character. We had a long conversation where she told me everything that's happened to Haerin, and how she's tried to help her. I know it was difficult for her to share with me, and I appreciated her trust.