Chapter 2:

6:37 PM

Checking yourself one last time in the mirror, you made sure the dress wasn't too tight on you.

I'm fine, everything will be fine... You sighed, faking a smile and finally making your way downstairs to join your family.

6:50 PM

It was a month after Chris disappeared. Your mother was so furious about you staying out the night without informing her. She grounded you for two weeks of going out, except for school that is.

You didn't dare tell her what happened back then with your soulmate.

You didn't mind being grounded, didn't want to be around people anyway. So each day after school, you would lock yourself in your room, and completely isolate yourself from everyone and everything that could remind you of him.

7:00 PM

"Are you ready?" Your brother asked, putting a hand on your shoulder.

You looked at him, then out of the car windows.

You were so caught up in your thoughts the whole ride, you hadn't noticed you were already in the school's parking lot.

You felt a hand grab yours, you looked at it and then back up to your brother's face.

He was smiling reassuringly, "Don't worry, it'll be fine."

You tried to smile back at him, but you couldn't.

He knew something was wrong with his little sister, and wanted to help her. If only he knew, he wouldn't be of much help, even if he tried.

"Yn Seo please come up stage to receive your diploma."

You had zoned out, again. Lately, that seemed the only thing you were able to do, not having control of your mind, to stop it from straying away.

You didn't progress that you needed to get up from your place, until you heard your mother clap excitedly beside you, followed by the rest of the crowd.

You closed your eyes, mentally reassuring yourself that it was going to be okay.

You put on the best fake smile you could master, before making your way upstage.

You shake the principal's hand after receiving the diploma, ignoring his congratulating words. Turning to face the crowd, you suddenly felt nauseous, you tried your best to hide it.

You caught yourself looking for a specific face amongst all the people present there.

He's not here. You thought.

You quickly bowed and made your way down the stage.

Walking to your seat you locked eyes with a certain person. One you didn't see or talk to a long while ago.

Roseanne smiled at you sadly, thinking that maybe, if she made the first move you would finally talk to her.

But to her misfortune, you didn't have the energy for that. You missed her, for sure... But her being Chris' sister only reminded you of him. And you couldn't afford to break down in front of your best friend.

Breaking eye contact with her, you rushed to find your seat.

7:56 PM

The ceremony continued, many of your classmates had received their diplomas, and some of them even gave speeches.

But your mind was busy of course, not bothering to keep up with the rest of the ceremony.

"Lewis..."

Your brother turned to look at you, slightly surprised that you called him, you haven't talked to him in days. But he quickly hid his shock, giving you his full attention.

"I'm tired." You sighed out, looking down once again.

He wondered if you were tired from the ceremony, or if it was something else. He wanted to know... He needed to know. He was witnessing his little sister straying away from him, and he couldn't do anything about it.

Staring at you for a while, he suggested "Do you want to go home?"

You silently nodded, standing up and ready to leave.

Both of your parents followed you and your brother out of the ceremony hall, not questioning your sudden departure, and quietly complied by driving you home.

8:56 PM

It was an hour after you got back home. You lay on your bed, not even bothering to take off your dress or makeup, and absentmindedly stared at your ceiling, while twirling the ring around your finger.

Fuck it, I'm doing it.

You abruptly sat up, determined on executing your well-thought plan. You got out your largest backpack and stuffed as many clothes and necessities as you could fit in.

You took your laptop, booking the soonest departing train ticket possible, before sneakily making your way downstairs and out of the house.

**

Breathing out a sigh of relief after successfully closing the front door without making too much noise, you threw a glance at the window.

You could see your parents both cuddled up on the couch, watching their favorite show.

Thankfully the living room was a completely excluded area from the entrance hall and stairs, so you had managed to get out without being caught. Also, the house is pretty huge, your father was a very known CEO, so you could say your family had their way in life.

Standing there for a while, you pondered on what would happen after you execute your plan... But you quickly snapped out of it, the train would move at exactly 10:30 PM.

Just as you were turning around, you felt your nose bumping in someone's chest, carefully lifting your head, you found yourself face to face with Lewis.

Shit. You mentally cursed yourself for not checking if your brother was home before going. What am I going to do? Think Yn, think.

He just came back from a late-night date with his soulmate. Nobody knew, including you, that he had found his soulmate back a few months ago, and he thought it should stay like that until he decided otherwise.

"Where do you think you're going like that?" He asked, raising an eyebrow suspiciously.

That only made you more nervous. But you hid it well.

"Rosé invited me for a sleepover..." You innocently said, hoping he would believe you.

"Do mom and dad know?" He inquired, not sure about the events taking place.

"They are watching their show, I didn't want to interrupt them. Could you tell them instead?" You smoothly saved yourself from being any more suspicious.

Walking past him, you didn't let him answer your question. You wanted to go away. . .

When you finally thought you could escape from your brother, he stopped you by grabbing your wrist.

You slowly turned around to face him. "Yn... You know I love you, right?"

Your whole demeanor softened. Your brother was always caring and knew how to make you feel safe. Maybe he deserved to hear those little three words from you, for the last time.

"I love you too, bro." He smiled, finally letting you go.

And oh, if only he didn't.

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A/N: note that chapters written in italic are specifically past events that occurred in the early years of adulting of Yn (18/19).

Also chapters specified for past events will be relatively shorter than the ones for present events.

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