leejiieuns

[leejiieuns]

muse: asher hale, late 20s, assassin (and villain tbh) / @yibyeol plot: x

His weekends were relatively normal. He had laundry to do, a fridge that he needed to restock, and a shelf he's needed to build for months. Normal. Sometimes, the occasional odd text or call would come, and he'd spend the better part of the day doing surveillance or gathering intel. Sometimes, things would get physical and he'd come home with a few bruises. But, otherwise, normal.

Asher was in the middle of putting his iPad away after having just read the most recent news, scoffing at some politician's false promises, when he heard the doorbell ring. His brows furrowed. His colleagues never ring the doorbell, and he didn't exactly have friends. He didn't have neighbors for miles either, which was exactly how he liked it.

He grabbed a knife from the console -- he always preferred to use knives indoor; less noise, less fuss-- and made his way gingerly to the door. Asher looked through the peephole, and couldn't believe what he saw. His door flew open, his grip on his knife tightening, though he doubted he needed it at their state. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

[leejiieuns]

He was dreaming. Surely, he was dreaming. What other explanation could be there for Rachel to be fluttering around their kitchen, making breakfast like everything was normal? Like he hadn't just stood at her grave two weeks ago, his heart shattering into a million little pieces as they lowered her to the ground? And yet, there she stood, so real, so -- alive. Her voice as clear as day. "I'm.. I--" What could he even say? That she had been gone? That he had watched her die and she shouldn't be here? But just as he was filled with disbelief, he was also filled with longing, and if this was a dream, he didn't want to wake up.

"I missed you," he said, trying to keep the pain from his voice so to not alarm her, afraid to burst his newfound bubble. Eli touched her arm and gently pulled her to him, wrapping his arms around her in an embrace. He could cry; the smell of her shampoo engulfing his senses, and he thought he would never get to experience this again. Gingerly, reluctantly, he let go and looked at her. "You should have woken me when you did. I could have helped with breakfast."

muse: rachel ryu, er nurse

there’s nothing out of the ordinary that morning; everything is as usual, and once again, rachel has failed her daily goal of not accidentally burning an egg. at least the first one anyway, the second one always proves to be easier, having learnt that sometimes multitasking has more cons than pros like when one of the tasks is frying eggs. pleased for a brief moment, she has decided to ride on the high and crack another egg onto the pan, only to let out a whisper-yelp of a curse when egg's contents slide out, accompanied by a sickly odor.

"oh shit shit--" the frying pan is dumped into the sink, and before she could clean the mess up, a witness has already arrived at the scene. "don't laugh!" she says, pointing a finger at him jokingly. bout to turn back to the task on hand, she does a double take instead. "why do you look surprised? not like you haven't seen me burning things before, but in this case, it's really not my fault." not that she really takes any offense, but in a rather good mood, she shuffles closer to him and pushes him toward the dining table, a smile growing. "come on, let's have breakfast. i can't tell if it's my stomach's growling or if it's yours now."

[leejiieuns]

muse: eli choi, trauma surgeon / @yibyeol

He woke with a start, and for a second, Eli forgot where he was. His eyes adjusted to the bright morning light seeping through the gray blinds, coating his bedroom in a hue of yellow, and he remembered. With a sharp exhale, he pulled the comforter up to his head, unwilling to start the day. Ever since she died, Eli felt like nothing mattered—especially not the job he hadn’t shown up to in the past two weeks. What was the point in trying to save lives when he couldn’t save the one that mattered?

Then, a noise came from the kitchen, and he remembered that was what had woken him in the first place. His brows furrowed as he got up and made his way toward the sound, wondering what on earth could be making it. And then he saw her—the love of his life who had died almost a month ago, looking anything but dead—and all the color left his face. “Wh… What?”

[leejiieuns]

"You said it was a ghost story. It isn't." "No?" "It's a love story." "Same thing, really." (x)

[leejiieuns]

Yeonju & Junho + Songs

Oh, we made quite a mess, babe It's probably better off this way And I confess, babe In my dreams you're touching my face And asking me if I wanna try again with you And I almost do

[leejiieuns]

Yeonju & Junho + Songs

So if that's all it was If you're good giving in, giving up, oh So if that's all it was Hope you feel better now

[leejiieuns]

there's no morning glory, it was war, it wasn't fair

[leejiieuns]

Send “Because I love you!” for your muse to blurt that out during an argument!

[leejiieuns]

i would stay forever if you say 'don't go' but you won't

[leejiieuns]

"I'll defend you against every single troll, babe," he said, placing a quick kiss on the top of Harim's head as they walked. Though he thought that probably wouldn't be necessary; how could anyone hate Harim? He kept his arm around her shoulders the entire time as he surveyed his surroundings, smiling as he recalled the aforementioned photo. How could Seungmin even forget? That had been the happiest day of his life then. "Yes, of course, we'll get the best frame for it," he said, taking a quick sidelong glance at her, his smile still on his lips. "Although I did look like a deer caught in the headlights. I guess I was still too surprised over the fact that Seo Harim wanted a picture with me." His tone wasn't self-deprecating, but more matter-of-fact. Seungmin had always been the quiet one, and had always been content with blending in the background. Harim always seemed to shine, and he was simply in her orbit. And yet, she chose him. "You know, I heard Joon once brag about how you confessed to him you had a crush on him, and I think I couldn't focus on our Algebra lessons for a week," he said, a chuckle falling from his lips at the memory. "When he asked me for help in Biology a month after, I told him I didn't understand the lesson, and I don't think he bought that." Seungmin had always been a diligent student, after all, but he did feel slightly bitter at the time, and did not want to help his classmate at all.

"no. no. nope." she shakes her head a few times while her arm has already automatically find its way to snake itself around his waist. "out of all of the things i could get famous for, being a hoarder should not be one of them." a playful complaint that is accompanied by a light pinch to his waist. harim's gaze narrows a little in pretense warning when he moved back, and only huffs in response. "lucky for you, i have no plans in becoming a hoarder, or a celebrity. imagine going on social media and seeing your girlfriend getting made fun of for hoarding things." it's not entirely impossible, given that she does work in the fashion industry. it's just never been something she's too interested in. truth is, harim doesn't really pay much attention to what other people think of her, having always been someone who prefers to focus on all that goes on in her life and that only. she's content with her small life, and as of now, nothing beats her excitement for a new, important chapter that she's starting together with her boyfriend. hence, a grin returns to her face as she puts an arm around his waist again, using her free hand to help push the cart. "well, i'll try not to." she laughs delightedly. "you better get pretty ones though. so they can remind you of me whenever i'm not home." following his gaze, she then points to the direction signboard on a wall some distance away, so they could find their way. "do you remember the first photo we ever took together back in school? before we got together? i still have it, cherish it like a baby honestly. so we should definitely put that up too."

[leejiieuns]

A humorless laugh fell from his lips at her query, but Sungjae found himself unable to answer her question. Why did he want to hurt Wei as much as he did? At first he thought it was because of humiliation. He was no match for the other guy who seemed invincible, and he just felt pathetic. But Sungjae knew that going into this, and that was one of the reasons he considered the parabatai thing in the first place. But even as he thought that, he knew that wasn't it, and yet, he couldn't quite figure out what the reason was, exactly. "Wei and I aren't exactly friends," he said quickly, arms crossing against his chest as he scoffed at the term. They weren't friends, he thought. They were more than that. The bond they shared was something he didn't have with anyone else, not even Marco, and yet he didn't know why he couldn't stop wanting to hurt Wei. His jaw clenched at her apology, brows furrowing as he met her gaze. Somehow, her words just made him feel even heavier than he already did, and so he decided to ignore them instead, worried the ghosts lingering might realize just how much she was unnerving him. A noisy sigh escaped his lips, and he dropped his hands and stuffed them in his pockets. "I'm on my way to see him, actually. Well, who he's with." The edge in his tone made him take pause and then, without much preamble, he began to walk in the direction of where he knew Wei would be. "If he tells you to fuck off, I get to say I told you so," he said, only bothering to throw a quick look over his shoulder.

confusion fills her entire being, brows furrowed as she stares at the other. so many questions fill her mind that yan couldn't even begin to pick one to start asking. because he's right; why wouldn't her brother talk to her? why was he so upset at sungjae for bringing her to him? was she the only one who spent years wondering and regretting? so she focuses on the one thing that she is hoping would be the easiest to get an answer for. "why do you even want to piss him off?" those words of his caught her attention the most, still vividly remembering her being shocked into some state of helplessness, unable to do anything but watch in horror at wei beating the crap out of his supposed friend—parabatai, she corrects herself. "i thought..." yan trails off, searching for words that don't come right away, "i thought you brought me here to surprise him. to do something nice for him, as friends?" and it's not lost on her that she—both her and her brother, in fact would owe him a favor for this. it's the same thought that subsequently has her hesitating, eyeing sungjae warily before gesturing at her own jaw with a hand quickly. "does it hurt a lot?" she could almost expect the answer, but she still hopes it's anything but. it's terrible, having to come to terms that wei is why sungjae's hurting. "i—let me apologize on his behalf. sorry bout that." she says, wincing a little and hastily pointing in the direction of sungjae's jaw, guilt painfully evident in her tone. "he's...wasn't usually like that. at least from what i remember." mouth pursing in thought, she looks up at sungjae again, "but you didn't answer my question. do you know where he could be? i can go there myself."

[leejiieuns]

She was the last person Sungjae thought he would see that afternoon, which was funny since he brought her to town in the first place. But he hadn't expected her to stay, especially not after the display of violence between Sungjae and Wei the other day, and the hostility her older brother greeted her with. Sungjae had expected Wei to react badly; had wished for it, even. He wanted his surprise to cut and hurt Wei like he'd been cutting and hurting Sungjae all this time during their combat training. And yet, even he was surprised when Wei seemed so intent on sending his sister away. Even more so that she was still here, looking for him. How was it that Wei could push people away, and they would chase after him? It's always Wei, Wei, Wei, the whispers in his ear became prominent once again, and a sharp exhale left his lips as he tried to ignore the sound. Sungjae didn't know where Wei was, exactly, but he knew Jane wasn't in her room as well -- he'd gone looking for her that morning, only slightly hopeful that she would agree to put the damned ghosts to rest, at least for the day --, so he could only guess. "He didn't seem to eager to want to talk to you the last time I brought you to him," he said, placing his arms across his chest and regarding her with furrowed brows. "And normally, I'd be first in line to want to piss Wei of on any given day, but my jaw still hurts thanks to your asshole brother."

she isn't supposed to be here. that's just one of the many thoughts that have been preoccupying her mind so much that she couldn't just focus on all her other responsibilities. she isn't supposed to wandering around looking for her brother, however minimal the chance of running into him could be. people say that you don't realize what you had until you lost it, but for yan, she thinks it's not as simple as that, but quite the opposite too. she only realizes what she had lost over the years, when she has it back again. and all the more desperate and reluctant to let it slip past her again. wei, her older and only brother who had disappeared and died, is now alive and back in her life. what she wants more than anything now is just for him to stay. that's all that matters to her now. it doesn't matter if he told her very specifically multiple times that she should not ever attempt to reach out to him again, it doesn't matter if kang sungjae, the guy who was said to be wei's...parabatai—whatever that meant is lost to her—is probably the only one she could ask for help now, considering she's just bumped into him, even though there's a lingering voice in the back of her mind that it wouldn't be the best idea; the entire fight between wei and sungjae that happened in front of her was still replaying vividly in her mind every now and then. "sorry—do you know where he is then? can you bring me to him again? i need to talk to him." she asks, stepping in front of him then. yan pauses for a split second, considering her words before continuing, "about what happened. i think we need to talk about that."

[leejiieuns]

Sungjae could barely focus on the words on the text book, his thoughts not at all within the four corners of the library. Marco threw him a look as he shifted in his seat for the umpteenth time that afternoon, but he just couldn't shake the heavy feeling that had been nagging him since he woke up that morning and saw the empty bed next to his. If Marco asked, Sungjae would say he just thought the whole chapter they were expected to study was stupid, but the truth was far more complicated. He would have thought he'd learned his lesson from all the things he'd regretted doing, but no -- it seemed his tendency to act without thinking still hadn't changed, and he was left to sit with the uncomfortable feelings, remnants of what had happened days prior. Just as Marco was about to speak, Sungjae stood finally, muttered something about needing some fresh air, and walked out of the hall without much preamble, only to almost bump into someone else by the entrance. "Watch where you're going," his tone was impatient, but when he saw the other person, the scowl on his face softened just a little, his uneasiness growing. "If you're looking for Wei, he's not here."

[leejiieuns]

Jane could only sigh in response, the memory of what went down between her and Sungjae still vivid in her mind's eye. She couldn't ever remember hurting anyone the way she wanted to hurt Sungjae at that moment; his words always managing to slice through her even though she was well aware of how cruel he could be. But above all the anger was the fear. Not of Sungjae, but of herself. Jane had never wanted to hurt anyone, even before she got her mind control abilities she was always considerate of how her actions could affect how other people felt, and although she knew that she was more than capable of hurting someone-- she had caused her late friend's death, after all --, it was only then that she discovered she was capable of wanting to actually cause someone pain, and use her abilities to do so. "It wouldn't work on him now, anyway," she said, sounding resigned. "How does that guy somehow get the good end of this whole parabatai deal and you're just stuck with an asshole?" Her despise for the guy was evident in her tone. Wei's words elicit another small laugh from her, and she pushed away any thoughts of Kang Sungjae and focused on the present. Despite the heaviness Jane felt whenever she thought about her family, there was always a sense of happiness whenever she talked about her brother. "If it's any consolation to your ego, my brother is quite possibly the best person on earth, and he finds you cool, so," she said, lifting her shoulders in a light shrug, trying to ignore the pang in her chest that seemed to grow. She missed her brother, terribly. She missed his easy laughter, and his little jokes. Jane may have been considered the miracle child by her parents, who had almost given up on having kids until they had her, but Matty had always been the gift. Jane turned her head so she could flash Wei a grateful smile, but the bittersweet feeling still stayed. She wished she could believe that she had some semblance of control, but she was close to giving up. "If only I could make myself believe, huh?" she mused, a small laugh accompanying her words. "I thought that having mind control abilities would make me be like Jean Grey or something."

jane's reaction isn't entirely surprising, because the dislike she—or most people, really—has for sungjae is nothing but obvious, yet it still has wei frowning. part of it because the last time jane tried to do what she just said, it hadn't been pretty and wei could still remember how furious sungjae was, and how upset he was for his parabatai had tried to hurt jane. yet now, wei hates how there's a nagging voice in the back of his mind that maybe they should make sungjae suffer a little more. wei likes to think he's more or less used with the guy's tricks that could get a bit cruel, like jane said, but regrettably it's never quite as simple as that. "please don't do that again. you know he won't just sit back and suck it all up." he says to her, probably sounding more serious than he's been for the first time during their conversation. "i'd hate for anything to happen to you. sometimes i feel like i'm still mad whenever i think about what happened last time." to say that he's worried would be an understatement. he highly doubts he wouldn't finish what he started when sungjae had oh-so-proudly brought yan here, thinking it as a favor; the guilt might wear on him, and maybe he doesn't even want to entertain such a thought, because parabatais are supposed to get along and not trying to fight each other the entire time. "wow. and here i thought being seen as cool could probably boost my ego a little." he shakes his head, the ghost of a grin still present. he falls silent while jane talks, only nods slowly to indicate that he's listening. it isn't hard for him to see where she's coming from, her concerns all the difficulties and challenges at stake, that it makes something weighs a little heavy on his heart. their circumstances may be very different, but he supposes there's a certain understanding between those who can't go home. often, he's found comfort in the fact that at least they still have each other. at least he still has her when things get bad sometimes, like now. there's a brief few seconds of hesitation, before he leans forward and reaches a hand out carefully to touch hers. "maybe you could, but you won't." he says, head tilting a little, hoping to catch her eye. "you just need to believe in yourself that you won't. like how i believe you."

[leejiieuns]

The furrow in her brows only deepened at Wei's response, and Jane suddenly felt furious at Sungjae for Wei. She wanted to shake him, scream at him, make him explain to her how absolutely evil he could be to do this to Wei, of all people. Surely Sungjae knew. He now had access to Wei's abilities, so he would know about the ghosts, and yet.. "He's so cruel," Jane said, shaking her head as she stared at nothing on the ground, absentmindedly pulling at the grass. "I should make him crash another one of his cars." The result of that had been almost detrimental to Jane the last time she tried to do it, but she would do it again. It wouldn't even come close to the pain he'd caused Wei, but at least it was something. Wei's words only made Jane feel angrier, but also, more worried. How far would Sungjae go to hurt Wei? Another thought lingering in the back of her mind: could Wei possibly kill Sungjae one day? She pushed the notion out of her mind for the moment, not wanting to entertain it, and turned her head so she could look at Wei. Sometimes, she would think about how guilty she felt for burdening him with her thoughts, but all of the time, she felt grateful for him. "Well, Matty finds a lot of things cool, so the bar is pretty low," Jane said, managing a light chuckle. Talking-- and even jus thinking-- about her brother always brought Jane conflicting feelings. She missed him, terribly. She missed them all. But she also wanted to protect them, from her-- from the harm she could cause to them. Jane shook her head in response to Wei's question and considered, for a moment, what she wanted to say. "I think he still believes I can control it," she started, her words careful as she tried to articulate her thoughts. "That the reason why he only almost jumped out of our third floor window was because I was in control. He thinks I can't-- wouldn't hurt him. But I can. We all know I can."

jane's question is one that wei has asked himself enough times that he's lost count. does he regret it? maybe so. does he want to regret it? no. or at least he tries not to. he has done a significant amount of questionable things after he's given a second chance at life again, and most of those times he wasn't even in the right headspace to start with. what he's done, what he wants to do—it tears him apart more often than he'd like. and it's not until the school, and the entire concept of having a parabatai that gives him some sort of direction that maybe he could make something good out of it. be stronger. less alone. whatever that promise was when he first got to know of it. well, if they don't kill each other first, that is. "i'm trying not to," he admits after a beat of silence, mouth pressing into a line. "i mean, there's really no turning back of all that, right? good thing i can't die so... what's the worse he could do?" he trails off, feeling dread creeping up the back of his mind at his own question. but he shakes it off for now; one way or another, somehow they will have to figure it out eventually. "younger siblings, huh. they never listen." the corners of his lips curved upward a little at that, impressed that her brother has shown up once again despite knowing better. "i'm almost sorry to say this but it's nice to know that at least someone found us cool. it's the only good thing that came out of that entire shit show." it's a joke, obviously, but it's a sigh that escapes when he he leans back then, arms stretched behind him and palms flat on the ground to support his weight. "let me guess. you didn't talk to him again this time either, did you?"

[leejiieuns]

Seungmin laughed along with Harim, though it did make him curious if she really did want an actual dog. He wasn't sure if their apartment would let them have one, and he made another mental note to check just in case. He took her hands and pulled her to her feet, draping an arm over her shoulders when she was finally standing, reveling in their newfound proximity. "A hoarder for a girlfriend?" He pretended to consider this, and then chuckled. "That probably won't be too bad. Who knows, you could become famous and get on one of those tv shows about hoarders." Seungmin stepped back momentarily, only so he could look at Harim and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Then my girlfriend would be a hoarder and a celebrity. Not too bad, not too bad," he said, grinning at her before he resumed his previous position. He didn't think there was anything Harim could be that he wouldn't ever accept. Seungmin wasn't exactly good at expressing his emotions sometimes, but there wasn't anyone else he felt for the way he felt for Harim. He began to walk along with her, leading her to the next section of the massive store, his arm on her shoulders as he pushed their cart. "I am looking for some frames," Seungmin replied, looking around the store for where they could be. "I have quite a few photos that I'd like to display. They're mostly of my girlfriend, so I hope you don't get too jealous." His tone was teasing.

"right? i think it's not too many conditions to fulfill." putting on a more serious look to play along, harim nods a few times. his reaction to all her requests and suggestions are not entirely unexpected, yet it still never fails to cause her heart to swell in happiness every single time. with how busy both their schedules are, she's only ever grateful whenever they get to spend time together and she couldn't quite recall there was ever a time when he hadn't entertain her antics. so, a surprised laugh leaves her when he actually put the plush toy into their cart. "keep that up and i might even make you get a real dog for me soon." she jokes, before straightening up a little, extending an arm out lazily. an unspoken invitation so he could pull her to her feet. "you need to stop spoiling me. i'm sure you don't want a hoarder as a girlfriend." as much as she appreciates him for always indulging in her, it's their home together; she would want nothing more than him feeling comfortable and at home in it as much as she would. "i'm very excited to live with you too, but you know you don't have to cater to everything that i like, right? we should get something you really like too." she pauses, a grin starting to tug at the corners of her mouth, "besides me, of course."

[leejiieuns]

"He definitely won't listen," Jane said, her voice taking on an exasperated tone. "But that guy needs some talking to every now and then." She tried to avoid Kang Sungjae, as much as she could. Him trying to kill her at one point was more than enough for Jane to dislike the guy, but he and Wei were parabatai, and so he'd become unavoidable, but still just as intolerable as ever, if not more. She didn't possibly understand how this whole partnering thing between Wei and Sungjae could work, when they were almost always at each other's throats. "Do you regret agreeing to the whole parabatai thing?" she inquired, having always been a little bit curious about the whole arrangement. Jane didn't have one, and she didn't really know whether she wanted it anyway, but she didn't really have the luxury of choice. Ironic, with what she was capable of doing. She wanted to ask if his sister was still in town, but dropped her questions when he changed the topic abruptly, sighing deeply at the mention of her brother. "He did, yes," she nodded, a faraway look in her eyes and the smallest of smiles on her face when she remembered a text message she got from Matthew. "He saw your whole showdown, you know, and sent me a whole paragraph about how cool you guys looked." She hadn't replied, of course, because she didn't want to encourage him. Her brother had the tendency to forget the danger that he was subjecting himself too, after all.

wei looks at her then, brows furrowed slightly. "i'd rather you not." he finds it a bit unnecessary, really. even if her intentions are probably good to start with. but they're talking about kang sungjae here. if people had thought wei was a ticking time bomb, especially with his kind of abilities, the bigger and far more unstable one would be sungjae. who knows what he could, would do anyway? "it's not like he'd ever listen. no matter what you say." yet wei wouldn't deny that if jane still insists on talking to him, there's a selfish part in him that hopes that she makes it terrible for the other. that, and he's also quite certain that he will be worried. if there's one thing he knows about her, it's that the girl is perfectly capable of taking care after herself, but still. fingers toy with the plastic lid of his coffee idly while he thinks over her question, realizing that with everything that happened, he never did ask how his sister has been after all. so many years of never having spoken to one another, and all he did was tell her to go away. "maybe. i don't know." he manages at last, feeling his throat go dry. "she didn't look scared, but she can be surprising sometimes." at least that's how he remembered she used to be. at least he knows he was scared. of how she would think of him, of people like him. suddenly desperate for a topic change, he asks instead: "enough about me. how about you? did your brother come again?"