𝙄 𝙒𝙄𝙇𝙇 𝙉𝙊𝙏 𝙆𝙄𝙎𝙎 𝙔𝙊𝙐 ♡ 𝙖𝙡𝙞 𝙖𝙗𝙙𝙪𝙡

008

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Thump!

After a long ride of being blindfolded to an unknown location, you were so rudely thrown on the ground, half naked with your clothes tossed elsewhere. Struggling to get the blindfold off, you used your knee to wedge it off of your eyes, then untying yours wrists, then ankles in an orderly fashion. Quickly grabbing your clothes and throwing them on, you turned to the sight of a similarly half naked woman. Her hair, her voice. Oh. It was that lady. The one who couldn't name her child. The one who threatened you so in the first game. She'd probably heard your presence, because out of nowhere, she began shouting at you.
"Untie me!! I know you're there, bitch!!!"
She'd scream, to which you stepped away. You were going to help her. Were. Until she started being rude for no absolute reason. To be honest, you were afraid of her. Afraid that once she knew who you were, she'd kill you, or... Something of the sort.
Walking away, her shouting faded, and you were back in the city. The money was a bummer. But it was better than dying, right? You tried not to think of it.
Walking towards a building, you tried to get some reception, when footsteps and a voice called at to you.
"Y/N!!!"
You turned to its owner, none other than Ali. Expression nonchalant, you raised a hand, waving. You felt a small smile creep up your lips.
"Y/N, are you okay? I was worried sick! I spent the last ten minutes looking for you! How lucky am I?"
He'd grin, speaking with short breaths. You only hummed, nodding.
"We have a lot to catch up on, don't we?"
You'd lightly chuckle. Thinking briefly, you'd realized neither of you had likely eaten anything the past day.
You'd glance at him before pulling out your wallet, counting the money.
"Ali, are you hungry?"
You'd ask, to which he hesitantly nodded.

Obviously, you took him to go get tteokbokki. You owed it to him, didn't you? To be honest, it was the perfect time and weather. Cold at night. Sliding the dish towards him, along with some fried potstickers, you simply watched him eat. As good as it looked, you were limiting yourself, money being tight. Ali was, needless to say, fascinated by the food, and seemed as if he couldn't express just how delicious it was.
"Are you sure you don't want any, Y/N? I don't mind. You bought it, after all."
He'd offer, sliding the dish towards you. You shook your head in response, trying to seem cool.
"I'm fine. I already ate earlier-"
Just as you were about to say so, your stomach growled very audibly. Your face flushed red with embarrassment, the two of you going silent. Ali stared at you before poking the tteok with a toothpick and holding it out for you to eat.
"I don't think you ate earlier, Y/N."
He'd reply with a stifled laugh to which you bit into the rice cake, sliding it off the stick as you held it between your teeth before sliding it into your mouth, chewing it.

Yeah, you were definitely hungry.

"So, have you found a place?"
You'd ask him, trying to ease up the tense aura surrounding the both of you.
"No, not yet."
He'd reply. Had he been sleeping on the streets, or something? Maybe a motel? Thinking for a moment, as if you were considering something, your head parked back up.
"Hey, you can stay at my place if you want. I don't mind."
You'd offer, to which the man, mouth full of tteokbokki, nodded. Once the two of you had finished eating, the you walked to your shabby apartment. You were embarrassed to show Ali how awfully you lived, but he didn't seem to mind it one bit. If anything, he complimented the small space. Perhaps his strained attempt to try and be nice. It was roughly the size of a child's bedroom, including a fridge, a small counter and sink, a foldable table and cushions, a large, old bookshelf filled with books in English, Korean, and some in other foreign languages you invested yourself in learning - being the obnoxious scholar you were, you wanted to pick up on more Urdu like Ali was Korean. You slept on the floor with a foldable mat, blank, and a cylindrical pillow - all a light, light mung bean-green.

"Hey, listen - I have to go to work tomorrow, so feel free to go around if you'd like, or just chill in here until I get back. Sound good?"
You'd ask Ali, who was preoccupied in looking through your family album you had stocked up on your shelf.
"Sounds good. I'll wait for you in here. I'm still very tired from all of what just happened. By the way, you were a very cute baby."
He'd add, to which you quickly marched over and took the album, closing it with a flushed expression.
"We don't talk about that. Let's just head to bed. I'll sleep on the floor tonight. You get the mat. Tomorrow, we can go shopping and get you some bedding."
You'd say, hanging a sheet over a piece of wire reaching from one side of the room you the other, creating. A makeshift dressing curtain. You quickly changed into a shirt and some sweatpants before heading over to the sink to wash your face.
"Go ahead and change if you want, I'm not gonna look."
You'd say casually before splashing more water over your face, getting the dirt and people's blood off of it.
You made a little makeshift bed with some jackets and a towel, Ali hesitantly laying in the futon set. He'd offered to switch so much, you'd snapped at him to just go to bed. He'd complied after that, accepting his defeat.

The next morning, you woke up to the sound of something cooking. No, burning. Eyes snapping open, your head whipped towards the kitchen, the sight of thick smoke closing the room, Ali in a frantic state of pouring water over a pan. You shot up and scurried on over to the window, opening it before walking over to the stove. You turned it off and without another word, grasped the pan from Ali, setting it aside. If he kept adding water, more smoke would keep coming out.
He looked at you with an apologetic, shameful look as you tapped your foot, pinching the bridge of your nose.
"I'm really sorry, Y/N! I didn't mean to ruin your kitchen!- I tried to cook you breakfast, but it burned, so I tried washing it off, and a bunch of smoke came up, and I-"
He'd hastily try to explain himself, gripping at the sides of his head in distress before you hushed him calmly. You were too tired to deal with this so early.
"Ali, Ali. Shut up for a second. It's fine. I'm not mad, okay? As touched as I am that you tried to make me... Whatever this was going to be, I don't normally eat breakfast. If you're hungry, I can give you some cash to go buy something. It's no big deal."
You'd calmly say, to which the man lowered his hands. Smiling lightly at him, you grabbed him by the arm and walked him out the divided kitchen, walking behind the curtain.
"I gotta go to work now, so you're in charge here. Bathroom's down the hall to your left if you need it. I'm warning you, though, it's public, so there's a high possibility that you'll see some nasty shit in there."
You'd instruct as you swiftly stripped off your nightly attire and slipped on your work uniform before exiting the curtained off space. Ali seemed puzzled.
"Y/N, what does 'shit' mean?"
He'd ask you, causing you to pause.
"You know what, don't even worry about it. I'll be back by 7, don't answer the door to anyone. Got it? I'm sure you do, bye Ali!"
You'd say in a rush before quickly exiting the apartment, leaving Ali alone. For a moment, he stood there, blinking. You had spoken so fast, leaving in such a hurry he had forgotten half of what you had said.

Well, this was odd.

Not knowing what else to do, Ali took a good look at your small space. The corners were literally with papers everywhere, empty cans of coffee and ramen cups, unshelved books, and the occasional unfolded clothes.
Wanting to do more for you, feeling bad about this morning, he got straight to work and began to scurry around, cleaning your apartment. He had stuffed the empty cans and ramen cups into a plastic bag, shelved your books, and folded your clothes. When putting your clothes away into the small drawer, he was careful to look away, in case his eyes accidentally landed on something you likely wouldn't want him to see. In other words, bras and underwear. He collected your papers, not throwing any away in the fear that they may be important, and set them aside neatly. He had also gone the extra mile in sweeping your floors, which, mind you, needed a good clean either way, and washed the old dishes you hadn't bothered washing.
He had accidentally broken a dish or two, but cleaned the shards hastily.
The room was beginning to seem more homey.

Suddenly, there was a light knock at the door. Then, a woman's voice. She seemed far older than he was. However, Ali, being the absolute sweetheart he was cursed to be, was quick to open the door.
"Hello?"