She's Off Limits ¦ taerose

Chapter 1

Park Chaeyoung has a heart condition. She had a surgery when she was still a child but she still needs to take her medicines regularly and was required to see her doctor once a month. Due to her condition, she easily gets tired and stressed out. Because of this, her family became overprotective of her, most especially her big brother, Park Jimin.

The school year had just ended. Unlike others, she loved school days more than semestral breaks. It’s because she’s rarely allowed to go outside the house during breaks. Her parents were busy with their businesses most days while her big brother always had a summer camp to attend to. Last summer, she was envious of her brother being able to attend a music camp. She loved singing and playing the guitar. So she really wanted to attend that camp. But no matter what reasoning she can think of, her parents never said yes. This summer, her brother was attending another one, a dance camp. She liked dancing but her condition prohibited her in pursuing it. She can’t exhaust herself too much or her heart might not take it well.

She was standing by the window of her room, looking at her brother leaving for his camp. He looked excited as he danced his way to the bus waiting for him outside the house. She sighed, she wished she can enjoy this vacation as much her brother and her friends. Her three best friends, Lisa, Jennie and Jisoo, were also enjoying their own vacation at the moment. Lisa visited her relatives in Thailand. Jisoo and Jennie, who were sisters, went to visit their grandparents in Jeju Island.

As she was thinking of her friends’ vacation, she got an idea.

She hastily ran outside her room and barged inside her parents’ home office. She was catching her breath when she got there. Her parents looked at her in surprise and worry.

“I’m . . . fine. I’m fine!” She said while raising her hand as if to stop them from worrying about her. Most of the time, they overreact when it concerns her. She took in a deep breath and stood straight in front of her parents. “I want to visit halmeoni.” She declared assertively.

“But . . .” Her mother started to say.

But Chaeyoung did not give her mother a chance to finish her sentence when she interrupted, “No, Mom . . . Dad. I won’t take no for an answer. I’ve already told halmeoni about my visit and she was ecstatic hearing about it.” She whispered her last sentence, finding it difficult to say an outright lie towards her parents.

She knew how much her mom loves her grandmother. Aside from the fact that her grandmother was her mother’s own mother, her mother almost always complies with her grandmother’s requests after her grandfather died two years ago. Her grandmother was completely devastated when he died. So her mother, being the only child, vowed to do everything to make her mother stay happy.

Her mother heaved a deep sigh before making a call to Chaeyoung's grandmother. Chaeyoung gulped a lump in her throat when the call connected. She was earnestly praying that her mother won’t find out that she lied earlier. Or her summer escapade will be flushed down the drain, like her many other requests.

When the call ended, Chaeyoung looked at her mother with worry clouding her eyes.

“Chaeyoung . . .”

“Yes Mom?”

“Your halmeoni sounded surprised when I told her about your wish to visit her.”

“She . . . she was?” Her eyes widened in surprise of her own. “But I really mentioned it to her last time we talked over the phone. Maybe she just forgot about it?” She asked in full anticipation.

“Yeah. She said the same thing.”

She mentally raised her fist in the air for triumph. But she can’t hide the wide smile plastered on her face. “So . . .” She raised her eyebrows at her mother, hoping for a positive response from her.