Chapter 32
"The last straw"
"Su Bin got a lot of compliment during our monthly evaluation," said Yeonjun to his friends during their lunch break, "but it makes sense, she is by far the best trainee in the company and everyone knows that. Even though I practice with her every night, I just can't keep up with her."
"Woah," said Kai with a smirk on his face, "sounds like someone has gotten himself a girlfriend."
"What?" said Yeonjun, looking truly confused.
"Come on, you have been rambling on about this 'Su Bin' every day for the past week," said Beomgyu, "not even Taehyun talk about his girlfriend that much."
"What?" said Taehyun in the same confused voice as Yeonjun had used before.
"What does Taehyun's relationship with my sister have to do with anything?" asked Yeonjun, "besides, he rambles on about her all the time as well, he just can't do it in school because she is still a substitute teacher here."
"Ah, I guess that is true," said Beomgyu and everyone nodded in union, while Taehyun still looked confused.
"But seriously, Yeonjun," said Soobin, being the only one who hadn't said anything until now, "is something going on between you two?" Yeonjun sensed the seriousness in Soobin's tone and couldn't bring himself to simply discard his question with a joke or a laugh. Instead he leaned back and took in a deep breath.
"Dating is prohibited for trainees. It is also prohibited for 3 years after debut," said Yeonjun, no need to explain further for the boys to understand what situation he was in.
"So you do like her?" asked Taehyun, feeling like he was the only one who had been clueless all this time. Yeonjun just turned his face and looked at his friend with a smile.
***
"Mom, can't you at least think about it?" said Yoo Jin, trying to keep her voice down as to not anger her mother even more.
"I already said no, I won't change my answer even if I 'think about it' like you want me too," said Jeong-Yeon and continued putting away the groceries she had just arrived home with.
"But why?"
"Because."
"But why?"
"BECAUSE!" yelled Jeong-Yeon and stopped what she was doing, "I have never, ever told you I approve of your so-called relationship with that boy and now you want me to invite him home for dinner?" Yoo Jin's face froze in an angry expression, but she couldn't even bring herself to yell at her mother. What good would it do? It was all a lost cause at this point.
Will I ever be able to bring my boyfriend home to meet my parents? wondered Yoo Jin while standing in the entrance to the kitchen.
"Why are you spacing out? Are you going to help me cook dinner or not?" said Jeong-Yeon in a harsh voice, completely discarding the conversation they had before.
"I will help," said Yoo Jin and let out a sigh, having no more strength left in her body to argue with her mother. It broke her heart a little more each time she got rejected, but she couldn't imagine how much more it broke Taehyun's heart to know how her parents felt about him. He never said it out loud, but she had seen the fallen look in his eyes when she once again brought the sad news to him.
"How is the job market these days? Any luck?" asked Jeong-Yeon, her voice a little kinder than before.
"Like always, I guess," said Yoo Jin while cutting the vegetables her mother had given to her, "I get call backs for job interviews, but someone else always gets picked instead of me."
"They want those with experience," said Jeong-Yeon, "it doesn't have anything to do with you, you know that, right?" Yoo Jin looked up, surprised by the oddly comforting sentence her mother had said to her. Was she feeling bad about their argument before?
"I know that… thank you, mom," said Yoo Jin and smiled at Jeong-Yeon.
The calm atmosphere suddenly got interrupted when the front door was opened and Yeonjun came running inside.
"Hey mom, Noona!" said Yeonjun as he peaked inside the kitchen.
"Yeonjun," said Jeong-Yeon, "shouldn't you be at the company tonight?"
"Yes yes," said Yeonjun and laughed at how strange it felt to have his mother's support for once, "I just needed to pick up some things before I go there. Mm, it smells good, I wish I could eat your home cooking instead of the same take away I eat most of the time."
"We will put something aside for you in the fridge, you can heat it up whenever you want," said Jeong-Yeon.
"Really? Thank you!" said Yeonjun and then ran upstairs. After a few seconds he returned, looking like he was ready to leave.
"Take care," yelled Jeong-Yeon.
"You too," said Yeonjun, "oh… and mom?" Jeong-Yeon looked up again, waiting for Yeonjun to continue.
"I was wondering, can I invite a friend home for dinner next weekend?" asked Yeonjun while keeping his eyes on the floor.
"A friend?" asked Jeong-Yeon, the image of a certain young boy appearing in her mind.
"Yes, her name is Kim Su Bin, she is… a friend from the company." Jeong-Yeon's face immediately lit up in relief when she heard the name.
"Kim Su Bin, you say," said Jeong-Yeon, "is she your girlfriend?"
"What? No! Mom, I already told you that dating is prohibited as a trainee," said Yeonjun, "she is just my friend. She is living in the company dormitory, her family lives far away so I just wanted her to eat a home cocked meal for once."
"I see," said Jeong-Yeon, "so you aren't allowed to date, but you like this Su Bin, am I right?" Yeonjun rolled his eyes.
"I don't have time for this," said Yeonjun, "can she come or can she not?"
"She can come, sure, let me know what day to expect her."
"I will, bye!" With those words, Yeonjun left the house and the silence once again returned to the small kitchen. Jeong-Yeon turned her head and noticed Yoo Jin who had stopped cutting the vegetables and instead was staring directly at her.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" asked Jeong-Yeon.
"Are you kidding me?" said Yoo Jin and put down the knife so it hit the cutting board with a thud.
"What is going on? Why are you throwing a tantrum all of a sudden?"
"I am not throwing a tantrum, but to be frank, I don't even care if you think I am, because I have every right to be angry," yelled Yoo Jin, "for months… MONTHS… I have been trying to get you to invite Taehyun for dinner. You either avoid the subject or yell at me until I give up."
"Yoo Jin, this and that… they aren't the same situation," said Jeong-Yeon, feeling the rage from Yoo Jin fill the entire room.
"Why not? Because the neighbors will talk? Is that it?" yelled Yoo Jin, "or is it because of his parents? Because they are too unconventional for your taste? Is that it?"
"Yoo Jin…"
"No, I don't even want to hear it…" said Yoo Jin, her voice lower than before, but her face still stuck in an angry expression, "you know what… I am done!"
Jeong-Yeon watched as Yoo Jin walked out of the kitchen and up the stairs. A few seconds later, she heard a door shut loudly.
A sigh left Jeong-Yeon's body and she looked down at the vegetables in front of her. She will calm down, she is just throwing a tantrum, it will pass, thought Jeong-Yeon while she continued preparing the dinner.
She marinated the meat and put it in the fridge. She cut all the vegetables. She washed the rice. Everything was coming together, but she hadn't heard a sound from Yoo Jin since she walked up stairs.
Maybe I should check on her? Just as that thought appeared in Jeong-Yeon's mind, she heard footsteps nearing and when she turned her head, she saw as Yoo Jin walking downstairs, a bag swung over her shoulder. She didn't look at Jeong-Yeon even once, instead she walked directly towards the front door, making Jeong-Yeon run after her in confusion and fear.
"Yoo Jin, what are you doing?" asked Jeong-Yeon while Yoo Jin put her coat on and tied her boots.
"Can't you see? I am leaving," said Yoo Jin and Jeong-Yeon widened her eyes.
"W… what?" stuttered Jeong-Yeon while Yoo Jin still avoided all eye contact, "but… where will you go?" Yoo Jin stopped while her hand was on the doorhandle.
"I don't know yet," said Yoo Jin in a low voice until she turned her head and stared into her mother's eyes with more determination than ever.
"But one thing is sure," said Yoo Jin firmly, "I won't stay in a house where my boyfriend isn't accepted even for one more second. Goodbye."
Hello everyone!
It seems Yoo Jin finally snapped, but where will she go? What do you think will happen and do you think her parents will come around eventually? Let me know your thoughts in the comments.
I hope you are having a wonderful day wherever you are. Please take good care of yourself and stay safe!
Love, Annalise~