The two have never discussed Felix bringing Mrs. Park on a walk at all. They only agreed to bring her to her dormitory safely, and then they shall proceed to do all of their respective university duties for the next 2 days. Then on the last day, right before she goes home, the two would have a proper chat together with her.
It is an impromptu plan, but Felix is glad that he can take the source of his partner's stress for once.
Both Felix and Mrs. Park walk to the garden where Felix has held many memories. He lets the older one take a seat on the bench first while he follows, revealing the view of the beautiful fountain in front of them.
With the calming silence and the sound of the water in the background, Mrs. Park's expression turns relaxed. She folds her arms, heaving a soft sigh before she speaks, "Felix. How long have you been dating my daughter?"
"It's only been a couple of days, Ma'am." He replies politely, reminding her again. "But we have been friends for a while now."
She nods, her eyes still resting on the beautiful infrastructure in front of her.
"What made you date her?"
Even though her tone sounded harmless and simply curious, the way she phrased her sentence just came off a little awkward for Felix. He wonders if this is the reason why sometimes Eugene can't take her mother's words well.
"I don't know myself." Felix chuckles softly, gaining the woman's attention. "Originally, I never even planned on becoming friends with her despite being neighbors—let alone, dating her." A wave of memories from the early days suddenly come rushing into him.
He remembered how childish he was back then, always being overly anxious, inconsiderate, and even rude. But Eugene had always been patient—she had never done anything that hurt his feelings. If anything, despite being mistreated, she stood up for him against his own classmates.
She even understood why he was behaving that way at that time and forgave him without even thinking twice since he was at the lowest point of his life. He didn't know what he had done to deserve that unconditional support from her.
"Eugene... is a beautiful person." As Felix speaks, he instinctively begins to smile, his lips curving up into a genuine smile. The thought of having her as his partner now fills him with a sense of warmth and love.
"She always puts herself in other people's shoes. She believes that people can change and will look past their mistakes. She always works hard and gives her best, and instead of accepting failure as a roadblock, she is the kind to take it as a lesson to thrive better in the future."
Felix then heaves a soft sigh before he faces the woman next to him with a tiny grin on his face.
"One thing for sure. She's perhaps one of the most passionate and resilient people I've met in my life." He states with full honesty, hoping that her mother will understand the message that he is trying to convey.
Mrs. Park's eyes stay fixed on Felix's. Even though she doesn't smile at his answer, he can see her gaze soften.
"I didn't know she was that kind of person." The older one murmurs in a quiet tone, almost as if she feels disheartened by the revelation. "She always acts tough and calm, and that worries me a lot."
Ah. Is this another misunderstanding? Felix's lightbulb turns on his mind after hearing her mother speak.
"She never shares anything about her life to me."
"I see." The boy almost immediately understands where Mrs. Park is coming from, considering that he has witnessed Eugene calling her a few times while he was there too. He remembered how calm and collected, yet cold and firm she sounded during those calls. Unlike the typical family catch-ups people do over the call, hers reminded him more of a reporting.
But it makes sense, given that Mrs. Park always asks about her academic stuff instead of everything else. She too, has never initiated asking things about her well-being, making Eugene believe that other parts of her life are irrelevant. Felix takes the time to think, wondering how he can communicate his thoughts to the woman next to him.
And hopefully, help Eugene to start a new with her parent.
"Mrs. Park," Felix starts with a gentle tone, "I think Eugene feels uncomfortable from the way you pressure her with getting perfect grades. In her eyes, it may seem like that is the only thing you care about, so she is insecure about bonding with you." He outlines his thoughts with a softer approach, hoping that the woman can digest his words.
"Even if she looks tough outside, she's actually a pretty sensitive person too." He adds, "So for you to bond with her, communicate with gentle words. Maybe that will change her perspective."
The woman ponders Felix's words, giving it a thought in her mind as the two sit silently on the bench with the sound of the water fountain accompanying them. The deadly silence is slowly eating the younger one out, but he reminds himself to stay strong to fight hard for his partner, as he has promised.
"Was I too harsh on her?" She shoots one of the questions that Felix fears the most. He straight up wants to slap a sense of reality on her face but that also means his good boy image that Mrs. Park has constructed herself will immediately get destroyed.
No, I should focus. This is for Eugene. Felix tries to come up with the best statement to address her partner's concerns about her mother, but also the one that doesn't seem too offensive.
Let's recall what we have discussed. He quickly brainstorms in his mind, before carefully answering the question, "I believe that some people have their respective way of living, and Eugene's definition of succeeding in life is not about getting perfect scores and owning the perfect job—that is what she said."
Her mother's face turns bitter when hearing him, and he feels a spike of anxiety when she appears to dismiss his words. But he quickly maintains his friendly and understanding demeanor, refusing to let her bitter expression get to him.
"So, to answer your question, yes, you may be a bit too harsh on her in terms of life values. But I understand that you too, have a different perspective from her and only want the best for her." Felix recites the sentences and ideas that he has prepared previously with Eugene just in case they both get bombarded by her mother.
"Eugene has been trying her best to live up to your expectations and follow your life values. But it seems like she doesn't find it suitable enough. So maybe, it is time for you to take a look at her life values and consider adopting a different perspective." This sentence, however, is spoken with a firm tone despite Felix, smiling his eyes out at the woman.
His advice startles the woman, breaking the flow of the conversation and abruptly bringing about a deafening silence.
And Felix absolutely hates those awkward pauses where neither of them speaks.
"You... are very well-spoken." After a good, 3 minutes of no words exchanged, Mrs. Park comes to speak her thoughts.
"Maybe I can... try." She doesn't specify what she will try to do, but at least she is finally digesting the male's words. And that makes him a little more hopeful regarding the situation, secretly doing a mini celebration in his mind over his successful speech.
"Thank you. I wish you all the best for you and your daughter. Eugene is a precious gem after all." He says with a beautiful smile on his face. And unexpectedly, Mrs. Park also does the same, even though her smile is looking more bittersweet.
"Yes. At least I know that she is in good hands."
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Author's Note: GUYS HELLO! HOW HAVE U ALL BEEN SKDFJHLSDJK I lied when I said that the storm will rage but honestly? Not too bad. I don't want it to be too negative because gurl I feel like these 2 uni students could never catch a break so I decided to chill (a little bit) on this chapter
Also, I usually update once in every 2 days since I'm still on holidays but UGH I've been busy with Chinese New Year ANDDD my country's presidential election (it's so tense in here holy moly but at least it's done without too many issues! :3)
Have a wonderful weekend everyone <3
- Howley.
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PIXELATED | Lee Felix
FanfictionA story of two university students who started off being terrified of each other due to their pixelated faces, but came to develop a bond that could never be replaced. "I think the universe wanted to teach us the true meaning of seeing beyond appea...
