day 19
5.32 pm
lee haru

protector

hours passed
and i'm here scared half to death

jeongguk's absence is sending chills down my spine
because for some reason
it's like i've just lost my protector
it's like i'm a child who lost her parents
in the supermarket aisle
it's like i'm a vulnerable prey running in the open fields

please come back soon

i hum to the songs jeongguk sang to me before
stare out at nothing in specific
as i come up with all kinds of
imaginations in my head
to keep me company

to me
as soon as the door creaks open again
it sounds like the gates of heaven
opening up to me

and jeongguk is an angel
welcoming me
to a life of eternal happiness

he has a smile on his face
an entertained expression which
makes me think that maybe he
has had alot of fun while i was left alone
here to drown in my own
endless sea of thoughts
not forgetting to mention;
in the darkness of the room

"let's go!" jeongguk pipes cheerfully
and i scramble to my feet
hitting him on the shoulder

"you selfish idiot
where have you been?
what time is it?
how long have i waited for you—"

"shhhhh relax, calm down
i'm here now"
he pulls me to his chest and
wraps his arms around me
stroking the back of my head

"they took me on a drive around the city
we took some photos together
they won't post it, i hope"
he adds later
"they seem to know daegu really well"

it takes me awhile to realise that i'm sobbing
like a 5 year old into jeongguk's shirt
"i hate you, you know that?
i was t-terrified and you were gone for so long
i thought you'd leave me"

"what? of course i wouldn't leave you
pinky, look at me"
he tilts my head up with a finger under my chin
so that i'm staring into his eyes
"i will never leave you even if
i had the chance
we both said we'd get through
this together right?
a promise is a promise"

i nod, sniffing dumbly
"y-yeah, okay, i'm fine"

he smiles, finally feeling reassured
as he pats my head
and wipes my tears away
gently with a thumb

i hear footsteps from behind us
and it's the three boys who kidnapped us
except that now they have
warm smiles on their faces
unlike the cold glances they
gave me from before

"you mentioned something about
daegu food
on your bucket list didn't you?"
jeongguk asks
and i glance up at him again
knitting my eyebrows in confusion

"yeah?"

"they're actually very cooperative"
jeongguk glances back at the
boys behind us
and one of them gives me a
wave of a hand
"they know some really good places to eat around here
i'm sure you're starving too"

"why do you even trust them?
they could turn us in to the police"

"trust me, they won't
they just want to help"

"jeongguk, friendly reminder that
they were the ones that kidnapped us"

he gives me a look
before his lips curve into a smile again
"don't worry, even if they do
try to do something
i'm your protector am i not?"

i take a deep breath
"fine, let's do this"

///

"i never planned to like you this much.
and i never planned to have you on my mind this often."

Current Bucketlist Note:

#1 Kiss a stranger [√]
#2 Sneak in somewhere without paying [√]
#3 Leave a signature on a wall [√]
#4 Get a tattoo [√]
#5 Steal a car [√]
#6 Sleep under the stars [√]
#7 Go skinny dipping [√]
#8 Enter a haunted house [√]
#9 Watch the first snow [√]
#10 Rob a minimart [√]
#11 Go to a nightclub [√]
#12 Daegu food
#13 Attend a live concert or music festival
#14 Bask in a flower field
#15 Watch the floating lanterns in Busan