Chapter 8 : Shadows Between Us
The house felt different that morning. It was brighter, maybe. Louder, definitely.
Yeri noticed it the moment she stepped into the hallway. The sound of laughter was light and familiar, coming from someone who felt at home there.
But she didn't. Not really.
She tugged her cardigan tighter around her shoulders. The sling was finally gone, but her arm still ached. The stitches were out. The bruises were fading. Yet some pain wasn't visible.
Downstairs, the laughter grew closer. And then she saw her.
Tall. Confident. Eyes that seemed to own the room. Her ponytail swung like something out of a movie. Yunjun was smiling in a way Yeri hadn't seen in weeks—a real smile.
"Sia," he said, his voice softer than she expected. "It's been too long."
Before Yeri knew it, the woman's arms were around him. He didn't pull away.
Yeri stood frozen at the top of the stairs.
Then Sia turned slightly and spotted her. "Oh," she said, grinning. "Is this her?"
Yunjun followed her gaze, and his expression changed—only a little, but enough.
"This is Yeri," he said. "Yeri, this is Sia. She's an old friend."
Sia tilted her head, eyeing Yeri like she was trying to solve a puzzle. "You're even prettier than he described."
Yeri blinked. "He didn't describe me."
Sia laughed, smooth and carefree. "Not with words, maybe."
Yeri forced a tight smile and turned away before either of them could say more.
She wasn't sure why it bothered her. She had no claim over Yunjun. He wasn't hers—never really was.
But still, that smile—that ease. It was everything she had been seeking with him, and here it was freely given to someone else.
She wandered into the garden and sat under the same tree where she'd once overheard Soojin yelling into her phone. Funny how that day felt like the worst of it. Now it seemed almost simple.
Inside, Yunjun watched her go, a line forming between his brows. "Did I say something wrong?" he asked quietly.
Sia plopped down onto the couch and kicked off her heels. "I think you forget how hard it is to feel like the outsider."
"She's not an outsider."
Sia raised an eyebrow. "She thinks she is."
Yunjun sighed. "She's complicated."
"You love her?"
He hesitated too long.
"I care about her," he finally said.
Sia shook her head. "I didn't ask that."
That night, dinner was quiet—too quiet. Yeri kept her eyes on her plate. Soojin had said nothing all evening, moving like someone still trying to disappear into guilt. Yunjun tried to make conversation, but his warmth was gone.
Sia filled in the silence with stories about their school days, about how Yunjun got drunk off cherry soju, about a girl he swore he'd marry at sixteen. Yeri didn't laugh or even smile.
Finally, she stood up. "I'm done."
Yunjun looked up, surprised. "You barely ate."
"I'm not hungry."
"Yeri—"
But she was already gone.
Later, Yunjun found her in the hallway, sitting on the bench beside the window.
"Why are you avoiding me?" he asked quietly.
"I'm not."
He sat beside her. "You are. And I don't know why."
Yeri stared at the floor, her hands clenched on her lap. "I just realized something. I don't belong in your world."
"What are you talking about?"
"You smile when you're with her. You laugh and relax. You've never looked at me the way you look at her."
Yunjun blinked. "Yeri…"
"You don't have to lie," she whispered. "I'm not mad. I just… I don't want to be someone you feel responsible for."
His voice dropped. "Is that what you think you are to me?"
"A burden?" Her voice cracked. "Sometimes. Yeah."
He turned toward her, the words tangled in his chest. "I didn't bring Sia here to hurt you."
"I know."
"I'm not in love with her."
Yeri finally looked up. Her eyes were glassy and tired. "Then what are we doing, Yunjun? Because it feels like we're stuck in something that never had a name."
Yunjun swallowed hard. "I don't know how to be good at this."
"Neither do I."
They sat in silence, the weight between them heavier than anything they had said.
Then Yeri stood quietly. "I think I just need some space."
Yunjun didn't stop her. He didn't beg. He just nodded.
As she walked away, something inside both of them cracked, but neither said a word.
Later that night, Sia found Yunjun alone in his office.
"She's hurting," she said gently.
"I know."
"She's not angry at me. She's afraid of how she feels around you."
He rubbed his hands over his face. "I never wanted this to get messy."
Sia smiled softly. "Then maybe it's love."
Down the hall, Yeri stood in her room with her hand against her chest, trying to hold something broken inside her still.
It wasn't jealousy, exactly. It was fear.
The fear that this thing between them wasn't real. That maybe it had always meant more to her than it ever did to him.
And maybe—just maybe—she was finally ready to let go.
To be continued....
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