#I am so furious that the beauty industry is making you think that a concealer will make acne go away

[lhaewiel]

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[lubdubsworld]

Sleep Walking to You , it’s out of my control.

Chapter 9

Chapter 9

I woke up to a throbbing jaw and an incessantly pounding head, complimented by a buzzing phone. Blinking groggily, I fumbled across the sheets, grabbing my phone and staring at the dialerv screen blinking ominously.

Hansol.

I grimaced and dropped the phone on the pillow , the movement of my jaw sending a shaft of pain through my skull . I winced and pressed a hand to my cheek, aware that I was probabaly black and blue from how the bastard had hit me. Sure enough, one glance at the vanity mirror over the dresser told me that unless Yoongi and Hoseok spontaneously lost their vision overnight , they were going to figure out. I had less than an hour to get it covered. I stared at the blooming blue stain and realized that even washing it was going to be painful. A renewed bout of anger shot through me. I should have kicked his ass, i thought miserably.

Self defense classes,  i thought miserably, using a small pad of cotton wool dipped in milk to wipe my face gently. No amount of foundation or concealer was going to hide this from anyone.

In the end , i took a shower and actually slinked into the small beauty salon that was located three blocks down from our building. The lady was sympathetic and did a marvelous job covering it up. But the sting was just a painful reminder of a misguided choice gone terribly wrong, regret oozing into my bones as I lightly touched my lips.

But he looked so normal,  I thought with a shudder.  Handsome, rich and polite successful producer with a good name in the industry. why on earth would he just...

He'd always been unnecessarily rough with me. Had that been some sort of a warning sign that I'd missed. i swallowed drily. I didn't want to see him again, I thought thinking about the blocked number.

My phone buzzed again.

From unknown:

You think you can run from me bitch? I'll fucking ruin everything you care about.

My heart began to pound a little as I bit my lips. What did he mean by that?

From unknown.

Why didn't you tell you were Mr. Kim's daughter? Had a nice, long interesting conversation with your old man yesterday.

I froze.

Oh, God.

From unknown :

He's got the major shares in most of the companies you're precious Yoongi and Hobi have tie-ups with. I told him I'll put him in touch with some pretty good contacts , in case he wants to get his son-in-law out of the picture.

I pressed the dialler button, fists clenching as I waited for him to pick the phone.

"What do you think you're doing?" I gritted out.

"why didn't you tell me daddy dearest no longer approves of your wonderful husband?"

"If you come anywhere near Hobi , I'll rip your guts out." I said softly.

He laughed.

"Well, that's not exactly ideal is it? Come on babe. Your father seems like such a nice guy. I mean, he only wants what's best for his daughter. And apparently, a nice, rich producer who would help him get into the entertainment industry is so much preferable to a spineless dancer. "

I shut my eyes.

"If you think my father will respect or honor whatever promise he made to you, Hansol, let me tell you right now that he won't. He'll screw you over so bad you'll be reeling for  decades.  it's how the man operates. " I spat out.

"I don't particularly care. " Hansol whispered. " As long as I get to screw  you  in the process. And trust me , it won't work this time. You can't ride anyone's dick to get out of this , my little slut.... " he sneered. " unless it's mine. Come back to me and I'll make it all go away."

An icy chill swept through me, making my throat dry and achy.

"You're never touching me again." I whispered.

Hansol chuckled.

"Even if it means  ruining your husband and his buddy? Yoongi and Namjoon will have to shut their companies down and your husband would probabaly have to start stripping for money..."

"I'm not listening to this crap." I spat out, furious.

Silence.

"Meet me for a drink. One drink. In public. Let's talk this over. I respect Yoongi and namjoon as well. i don't want to do this either. If you're reasonable everyone can be happy in this situation." He said smoothly. I hung up.

There was just one thing to do.

~~~~~~~

" Back so soon? " My father smiled as I clenched my fists , staring at him in disgust.

"What do you want from me?" I whispered.

My father smiled.

"A son. A heir. Someone who will be raised the way I want him to be raised, who will take over my company after me. Someone from my blood." He said casually.

"And if i don't agree you'll hurt innocent people? Is that what you're saying?" I said, voice shaking.

"I have no interest in Hansol. If i don't support him, he cant touch Yoongi or Namjoon and if you listen to me, I won't support him. It's as simple as that. Here."

My father slipped a paper across the table and i stared at it.

"What is that?"

"I paid the loans. You don't need anyone anymore. Give me a grandson and I'll make sure that Hansol never comes anywhere near you again." My father said casually.

"It's not like I can have one shipped from somewhere..." I hissed in disbelief. " This is a baby, we're talking about !!"

My father laughed.

"Six months. I'll give you six months . If your husband can't get the job done by then , I'm finding someone else."

"What am I, a brood mare?!!" I snapped.

"No! You're the fucking heir to my company!! As my daughter you were born into this responsibility. Did you forget that  you  picked Hoseok  when i offered you the choice to marry one of my investors sons? You picked him!! You chose him when i showed you all those profiles for your seon! I let you choose! And what did you do? You couldn't even keep him in your life! You couldn't do the one thing i wanted you to do for me!" My father snarled.

I stayed quiet, letting the hurtful phrases wash over me. i had been nineteen years old. And Hoseok had looked ... nice. reliable. Someone who wouldn't hurt me. My naive nineteen year old self had picked him out of instinct. Apparently, I would be punished for it for the rest of my life.

"I ... he was in love with someone else..." I whispered, remembering the way my heart had shattered the first time I'd known.

"But he isn't now, is he? For once, stop being so damn selfish and think about someone besides yourself. Go work on your fucking marriage and pay me back for all the years I spent feeding and clothing you! You have till the end of the week to make a decision. Talk it over with Hoseok and come meet me for dinner. Both of you. Now get out of my sight. "

I stared at the amber liquid in the glass and tried to resist the urge to reach for it and toss the contents on his face.

"So, what do you say?"

"One night. Just one night." I swallowed, not even sure why I was agreeing.

"Of course. For closure. " Hansol said softly. There was something in his gaze that rubbed me the wrong way.

Looking back, I think that's when i should have run.

~~~~~~~~~

"And in return you stay the hell away from Hobi." I snapped.

Hansol shrugged.

"I like Hoseok. And yoongi and Namjoon. I don't want to hurt them, but it's your fault you aren't being reasonable. I would leave my wife for you, you know that right? Tell me you'll marry me and we can forget any of this happened."

"I'd rather die." I spat out, not untruthfully.

Hansol frowned.

"I can't ever understand you. You do realize you'd be one of the richest women in Korea if you marry me?" He glared.

"This conversation is making me sick. Can we get this over with?" I said, feeling the first stirrings of bile in the pit of my stomach.

"Let's discuss a safe word." He said casually.

My entire body went stiff, throat going dry .

"A what?"

"A safe word. I don't want to rape you. I don't want you changing your mind half way through. If you do... you use the safe word." He shrugged.

"If you hurt me..."

"Come on babe. I'm not a monster. It'll be fun . I think we need a safe word that will remind you that if you do ask me to stop, it'll be your husband who will suffer. "

I stared at him, biting my lips hard enough to draw blood.

He smiled.

"Hobi. " He said casually and I clenched my fists. " That'll be the safe word."

~~~~~~~~~~~

"That wasn't so hard was it? " Hansol whispered, lips trailing saliva over the back of my neck as he lightly loosened the tie, letting my hands fall back to the bed.

I couldn't bring myself to respond. Instead , I dragged my self up, reaching for the discarded clothes on the bed. Movement felt like hell and my mind felt oddly fractured, my skin too hot to the touch and my blood icy cold. every breath felt like a struggle, my body fighting me every step of the way as I struggled to slip on the bra and the blouse. I caught sight of countless bruises, some of them actually bleeding and i shut my eyes, the sight of my own body suddenly nauseating.

When I managed to stand on my shaky legs, it was purely out of adrenaline. Only the thought of getting away from Hansol helped me move.

"This is good bye then. It was a pleasure doing business with you, Jiah. " He whispered when i stepped out of his apartment and into the hallway. I shut my eyes as he slammed the door shut on my face.

I made this mess,  I told myself.  I'll fix it myself. But how?

Hospital.  

I groaned, trying to keep myself upright as I managed to get into the lift. It was five in the morning and I knew cabs would be scarce. I felt something trickle down the inside of my thighs and suddenly the extent of my injuries hit me like a sledgehammer.

As i stood there in the elevator, my limbs started trembling slowly.

Wht did i do?

What the hell did i do to myself?  

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.  

Panic began to flood my senses as I tried to keep the hysteria down . Regret and guilt washed over me as I tried not to draw attention to myself. Outside, the air was crisp and cool, a light drizzle falling. The sky was still dark and I walked two blocks before finding a cab. The cab driver stared at me for a few seconds before stepping out of the car. i panicked badly , stumbling back but he held both hands up.

"Ma'am. You look hurt. Like really badly hurt. Please give me a number I can call."

I swallowed.

"No one. I... I'm fine. I need to go to a hospital." I choked out.

He hesitated but nodded slowly.

"I understand ma'am but I want you to give me a number I can call.Do you have a husband or a boyfriend?"

jung Hoseok.

"No. No, I don't have anyone...I... Please. Just help me get to a hospital." I said desperately and he sighed before taking a deep breath.

"Ma'am were you assaulted.?" He said softly. " My sister was raped a few months ago. That's why i'm asking. " He said suddenly.

"No!!" I snarled, the word rape sending shivers down my body.

It wasn't rape.

Rape would make me a victim and I couldn't afford to be a victim. Not when there was literally no one to rescue me anyway.

"I wasn't raped. It's just a little... blood. I'll be fine." I muttered.

He stared at me, clearly not buying my words.

"Okay. Do you need help getting into the cab."

The thought of anyone touching me right then was a bit too much.

i shook my head.

"I'll be fine." I said nervously. As i sat there in the cab , i suddenly felt like a fool. Why had I come to Hansol? I should have gone to Hoseok...

And what?  Tell him you wanted have his baby because , once again you were too much of a coward to stand up to your father. Hey Hobi, i let my father ruin your life once, let me do it again. Let's have a baby and then we'll have one more life to destroy.

I swallowed. Why was it so damn hard to just cut off all ties from Jung Hoseok and move on?? Even now, with my head spinning, I felt his presence like a weight on my head. It was no longer pleasant.

Why did you have to come back into my life...

The first tug of unconsciousness was subtle. So subtle that I hardly noticed it. My vision flickered briefly and sweat broke out over my lips and across my forehead. I bit my lips, trying to shit awkwardly on the seat, well aware of how badly every inch of me ached.  But the second time, I felt my head spin a little as I tried to sit up. I had to stay conscious when I reached the hospital. But the third time, it hit me like a freight train and I felt my head drop down into knees as I tumbled over the edge of consciousness.

~~~~

"Are you...?"

"Her father. Yes."

Dr. Lee stared at the intimidating man in front of him and swallowed. He was one of the most powerful men in the country and right now he looked like one wrong word would result in his head on a platter. Next to him, a tall , handsome young man stood. He had introduced himself as Jung Hoseok and had gone quiet afterwards. Dr. Lee recognized that look. He saw it often on the spouses of assault victims. A sort of helpless fury and disbelief.  How did i let this happen when I was still alive?  And the invariable guilt.

"She's hurt pretty badly..." he said nervously

"How badly?" It was Hoseok who whispered the words, his eyes dead and scarily calm.

The doctor hesitated. He wasn't sure how to put it.

"The injuries are intrusive and ... internal. " He held the form out slowly and Hoseok took it. Dr. Lee watched the blood drain out of Hoseok's face as he read through the report.

"She was raped then...?" The father said roughly and Hoseok let out a snarl, whirling around and punching the wall of the waiting room so hard that Dr. Lee went still.

"About that... I'm not sure if we can book a case."

"What?!" Hoseok snapped looking like he was going to murder him.

Dr. Lee swallowed.

"There are no defensive wounds on her person. She has no sign of drugs in her system. There are no scratch marks or skin cells under her nails. Mr. Jung, your wife did not put up even a little bit of fight against her assailant."

There was a sudden ringing silence and then without any warning, Hoseok grabbed his father-in-law by the lapels of his shirt, slamming him hard against the wall. The punch to his face made Dr. Lee flinch. He held a hand out, hoping to break them apart but froze when Hoseok all but roared.

"You did this to her you filthy fucking bastard!!"

Dr. Lee watched, horrified , half expecting the older man to reciprocate but he did no such thing, calmly shutting his eyes against the assault.

"Mr. Jung ... this is a hospital..." He said weakly and Hoseok took a deep breath, biting his lips before turning to him .

"Will she be okay?" He said softly.'

"Physically yes. But i would advise you to seek psychiatric help for her , just to be safe."

Hoseok sighed, letting go of his father in law and running a hand over his face.

"I need to get out of here."

He stalked out angrily.

~~~~~~~

"I'm going to kill him. " Hoseok's voice was eerily calm and Yoongi hesitated , folding the last of his clothes into the suitcase. Jiah hadn't regained consciousness for some reason and the doctors had been baffled. She had no head injury to speak of but apparently she did not want to wake up. Yoongi could relate to the urge to kill .

"He lives in an apartment in Ilsan. Guess, we should be ' paying him a visit, " Namjoon supplied, stretching lightly.

"What about his wife?" Yoongi said casually, moving to the closet and grabbing a huge travel bag and tossing it on the bed. it's been a while since he's 'paid someone a visit'. He opened the bag gently, staring with satisfaction at the gloves, the baseball bat, the three shining black glocks and the shiny metal rod with the knobbed end ( that was going to be intimately acquainted with the back of Kim Hansol's skull in a while.)

"Penthouse in Gangnam. I've already made sure he'll be at home tomorrow night. " Hoseok said casually, linking his fingers together and flexing till the knuckles cracked. " We need to get things ready ."

"Namjoon , you sure you wanna do this with us?" Yoongi frowned. All three of them went way back and although Namjoon and Hoseok weren't exactly friends, they had grown up in the same underground scene. Yoongi had personally witnessed Namjoon break way too many bones to doubt his efficiency.

"Are you kidding. I already have a wish list of the things I'm going to do to him." He grinned ruthlessly.

"Good. Hobi, this is where I do the right thing and tell you to stay with Jiah."

Hoseok froze.

":What the hell, hyung..."

" We're not going to kill him. We can't afford to. " Yoongi said firmly and Hoseok clenched his jaw.

"He hurt my girl." He growled, his voice low and raspy. " I'm going to fuck him up."

"No. You're going to land in prison. Which is not ideal. We're going to take good care of the guy. Trust me. You should go be there when Jiah waked up."

"We'll take a video, if that's your thing." Namjoon said from the background and Hoseok flinched. Yoongi chuckled before moving to thump Namjoon on the back

"Remind me not to get on your wrong side, you sadistic bastard." He grinned before sobering up and staring at his best friend. " Hobi, you can trust me. You have my word that I'll make the guy regret he was ever born." He said seriously.

Hobi didn't reply, merely moving to grab his jacket.

"I'm going to the hospital. In case Jiah wakes up. "

He stopped near the door. As a dancer he knew exactly what part of the body hurt the most when injured.

"Yoongi, hyung . Break both his knees, will you?"

"You got it buddy."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I'll not contact her again. Take this."

Hoseok stared at his father in law as he slid a file across the corner of the bed in which Jiah was still asleep.

"What is this?"

"Her inheritance. " The man sighed. " I've thought about it and I've liquidated most of the immovable assets and transferred them to her account. This is the land deed to a villa in Macau. It's right on the ocean front. Costs a fortune. I used to take her and her mother there for the summers . She loved it. I want her to have it."

Hoseok sighed, resisting the urge to just snap at the older man. Apparently the sight of his daughter in a hospital bed had finally knocked some sense into him. But Hoseok wasn't feeling particularly sympathetic.

"You pretty much caged her in till she had no way out. Do you even realize how hateful that is..." He snapped.

"I never asked her to go to him." The anguish in the man's voice was real. " i was so sure that she would come to you instead..."

Hoseok frowned.

"Me?"

"I told her she would have to work on her marriage. Give me a grandson..." he muttered.

Hoseok clenched his fists , fury radiating to his fingertips.

"You know what? I really think you should leave before i fucking punch you again."

The man didn't reply, standing up slowly and staring down at her one last time.

"Will you take care of her?" He croaked.

"Better than you ever did. Now get the fuck out of our lives."

~~~~~~~~~~~

Yoongi had missed the smell of fresh blood.

"Fuck.. Fuck.. Fuck..." Hansol was crawling across the floor of his apartment, both knee caps shattered, a gaping wound on the back of his head and nails broken and bleeding. Namjoon grinned and casually stepped on his hands, making the man whine and scream .

"I swear to God, we should just shoot him." He said thoughtfully and Yoongi shook his head.

"Not yet." Yoongi lightly tapped the edge of the baseball bat against the floor before slowly stalking over to the man. He squatted down and examined his face from all angles.

"Please,... fuck.. Yoongi ... i'll give you money... how much ever you want.. please... don't..."

"You know... Hansol... we really weren't planning on getting rid of you... but... we've been making some enquiries and you're apparently on the hit list of one of the gangs in seoul after you cheated them out of a drug run.... Is that true?"

Hansol went completely still.

"What the fuck does that have to do with anything..." He spat out.

"Nothing much... Except that, you know... if I were to pull the trigger and blow your empty little skull, it's more than likely that they'll write it off as a gang hit. And honestly, I can't pass up an apportunity that good.  "

"Fuck.. Yoongi... no... please..."

"Did you honestly think... you could touch her and get away with it? Have you not heard about me and Hoseok in the underground... You're the stupidest motherfucker I've ever met... " Yoongi shook his head in disbelief. He slipped a hand into the holster at his waist, casually pulling it out and cocking the pistol before pressing it against his skull.

"Yoongi..."

"Stop begging. It annoys me." He snapped.

Hansol immediately shut up, still staring at him in genuine terror.

"And it's pointless. I made up my mind about killing you the moment i found out you hurt her. Grab that pillow Namjoon. "

Namjoon grabbed the small white throw pillow on the couch and Yoongi pressed the muzzle into it to muffle the sound before smothering Hansol's face with it. He sighed , feeling the man begin to tremble beneath his grasp.

"You did this to yourself, you filthy piece of shit."

He pulled the trigger.

~~~~~~~~

Author's Note : I think my head needs to be opened and examined. i don't know why i do this to myself and to my protagonists. Sorry jiah. Soory Yoongi. ( he's so hot when he kills people. I'm sorry . Not sorry. 0 I was initially going to let Hansol live but.. meh.