Chapter 5 - The fight

Valerie's POV

I am exhausted after just one day of going to school. I walk into the kitchen only to find Solomon by the kitchen counter, typing off on his phone. I roll my eyes and say a crooked "Hey". He looks up and gives me a tip chin. At least he looked at me this time. I am about to go back into my room when I see Granny coming in with some grocery bags in her hand. I rush to her side and so does Solomon. I look at him weirdly and he gives me the same look back. We collect the bags from Granny and place it on the kitchen counter.

         "What is wrong with you two?" Granny asks, giving us a weird look.

       "Nothing. " Solomon answers with a shrug.

      "Well, if any of you two wants to assist me, you have to get along."

       "Please..... I can't get along with him. He is just too....."

     "Too what?" Solomon interrupts me.

     "Too proud, rude, hostile! Oh, if I could just go on and on and on about how annoying you are!" I say in anger.

     "Really? How about you? You are just too full of yourself. You think the world should revolve around you. Always trying to steal people's attention!" He half yells at me

     "Whose attention did I try to steal exactly?"

      He looks shyly towards Granny's direction and everything dawn on me. He is angry at me because he thinks I am taking Granny away from him.

       "Oh, wow! You are jealous. Because of Granny? I am shocked. The Almighty Solomon is scared that a steadying factor of his life is slipping away. " I say with amusement in my voice.

He looks at me angrily, like he is about to explode. All this while, Granny just stands back, watching us bicker like children with amazement in her eyes.

    "Both of you, enough with the attitude. The reason you both can't get along is because of your pride. You just have to come down for yourself, okay? I love you both and it will be my joy for you both to get along. Can you do that for me?"

       "Well, I can try. Anything for my halmoni." I say, intentionally emphasizing on the word 'halmoni' just to spite Solomon.

       "Whatever. She is the one that practically raised me, so that  makes her my halmoni too." Solomon replies, giving me a stern look.

      "Yen yen yen...blood is thicker than water." I say, sticking my tongue out at him.

     "Jeez, you are so childish."

      "Both of you, stop it now!!! Now, both of you should help me bring those stuff out of the bag so that we can all start making dinner. You know, they say food binds people. "

We all start the preparation and Solomon just takes control. It is like he is on a food show.

      "I didn't know you can cook." I tell him.

      "Well, there are a lot of things you don't know about me...." He pauses a little and continues,  "When I was young, I use to sneak into the kitchen just to watch Granny cook. She taught me a lot of culinary skills. " He looks at her with so much love and happiness in his eyes. I wish I can have this kind of relationship with Granny, but I guess I will get there someday.

We continue making dinner, arguing, fighting and making jokes in between. There was even a time we did 'food fight'. I must say, Solomon is not as bad as I think. He still has his ego but there are some hidden attributes about him that one can get along with. We finish making dinner and the  maids come in to take it away to set it on the dining table. Granny decides to go freshen up and Solomon goes to get ready for dinner. Since I am left alone, I decide to go for a walk.

The cool breeze hits me in the face as I step outside. The weather is so cool. I start walking towards the garden and I see Ro-bin coming in my direction. It is like these people are living here. Don't they have their own house? I remember my encounter with Ro-bin and I decide to apologise to him.

       "Hey," he says as he approaches me. He looks nervous and embarrassed.

      "Hi there," I wave a little at him.

He puts his hands in his pocket and starts rocking on his heels.

      "Uhmmm....can we talk?" I ask him.

      "Sure."

      "Over here. " I point to the swing close to us in the garden and start walking towards it. We both sit down and start rocking on the swing. The cool breeze hits me again and goose bumps appears on my skin. I rub my arms with my hands and shiver a little.

He removes his jacket and offers them to me.

       "Take this, it will keep you warm."

      "Thanks." I say shyly. Damn Val! Why are you so nervous??? You were not shy when you were insulting him today.  Oh, shut up! I didn't insult him, I just....

      "So, what is it you want to see me for?" He interrupts my thoughts.

      "Oh, yeah right. I just wanted to apologise for the way I reacted earlier today. That was so rude of me. I am not always like that. It is just that I was in a very bad mood. "

He looks at me for a while and just smiles.

       "It is okay. I get it. You must find boys annoying now."

       "What do you mean?"

       "Well, your breakup didn't go well. So...." I give him a confused look, wondering how he knows about my breakup.

        "Remember? The little show you put on for your Grandma the day you broke up. " He says smiling.

      The memories of that night comes crashing and I just start laughing. He also joins in, giving me a clear view of his clean white teeth. Wow, his laugh is beautiful. Valerie!!!! Focus.

We start chatting about stuffs like music, movies, Solomon... He tells me funny things about Solomon which just keeps cracking me up. It seems like we have same taste in music. He is great fan of Blackpink, IU and BTS, just like me. Unlike Solomon, Ro-bin seems reserved and calm. Solomon is the blunt type who just tells you what comes to his mind, not caring if it hurts you or not. Ro-bin, on the other hand, is always careful with what he says around me. Maybe he just doesn't want to annoy me by saying the wrong thing. It is like he is being a little formal with me. Not a bad thing but I just want him to be free with me.

We keep talking and from the corner of my eyes, I catch a view of Solomon, watching us from a distance. As soon as he notices me watching him, he looks away and leaves the spot immediately. That's weird. I check the time on my phone and realise it is getting late. I should get going now and besides I haven't eaten anything sensible since I had breakfast in the morning and I am starving. It seems Robin gets the idea because he stands up and says;

     "I should get going now. Thanks for making my day. " I blush a little and stand too. I pull his jacket closer to my body and realise that I should return it.

      "Oh, your jacket."

      "You can keep it. I can tell you are still cold."

      "Thanks." I say shyly. I gave never been like this around a guy. This is making me so childish and naive.

      "Bye." He waves and walks off.

I turn around only to hear Robin calling my name. What now??? Does he want his jacket back??? I turn to face him and he says:

    "Can you tell Solomon that I came by and that I will see him tomorrow?"

   "Sure thing. " I smile at him. Looks like my thought went crazy for a while.

    "Thanks and goodbye for real this time. "

      "Jalja." I say smiling. He just looks at me with admiration and walks away.

*********

I walk into the house just to see Solomon waiting by the door. As soon as he sees me, he turns around and walks away angrily. What the hell is wrong with him?

        "Solomon, wait up. " I run after him and put my hand on his shoulder to stop him. I spin him around so he can look at me but he averts my gaze. Why is he acting weirdly??? I thought we are cool during our binding before dinner. Why the sudden change of attitude?

He looks down and spots my jacket...Robin's jacket I mean. His eyes widen immediately in surprise.

       "Ro-bin told me to tell you...."

      "Whatever," he interrupts me. "I don't care." He walks out on me angrily and never looks back for once. Jeez, that dude is psycho. Well, I have got better things to do though, like eating and sleeping early so that I can wake up early for school tomorrow. I hope Solomon's 'PMS' is gone before tomorrow morning😀.

***********

(The next day)

I walk out of the kitchen only to see Solomon coming down the stairs, with his backpack slung on his shoulder. I walk towards him hoping he will offer me a ride to school but he just walks past me like I am invisible. What the hell did I do to him? Did he just put on a show yesterday night just to please Granny??? That must be it, that cunning bastard!!! I guess I am taking the bus today. Looks like the Old Solomon is back.

Solomon's POV

I am sitting down in my massage chair at our regular meeting room before going to class. When I say our, I mean the guys and I. The guys are yet to come so I am left alone in this quiet room. I can't seem to get the image of Seo Ro-bin and Valerie out of my head. Their stupid faces plastered with horrible smiles, rocking on MY swing in MY garden. So annoying. Why do I even care??? It is not like I have feelings for Valerie or anything. Oh, shut up! You know you do.

I am so frustrated right now. The jacket Valerie wore last night belong to Ro-bin. I once asked him to give me that jacket and he refused, saying it is really dear to him. That betrayal! My thoughts get interrupted when Michael walks in talking on the phone.

        "Let me talk to you later Mia. I need to do something now. " He pauses a bit and says;

      "Alright baby, au revoir. " He hangs up and he stares at me with his dilated puppy eyes.

     "Baby? French? What are you up to this time? Is the innocent girl your next target now?"

      "What do you mean? Mia is just my friend. "

       "Yeah right. " Ro-bin replies sarcastically, walking into the room.

      "You were on the phone with her the entire time on our way to school. "

       "So? How about we talk about your obsession with Valerie... Solomon, you didn't know? Our little Robin here has a huge crush on Valerie."

I look at Ro-bin and his eyes say it all. He didn't even bother denying it. Wow!

       "You can't like Valerie!" I say quickly, mentally slapping myself for the outburst. Ro-bin and Michael look at me with confusion and Robin says;

     "Why not? I get to like whoever I want."

     "I didn't mean it like that. What I meant is that, uhmmmm, you shouldn't pursue any relationship with her because if it all goes wrong, it will affect your relationship with Peggy. I am just looking out for you. "

      "Really? Are you sure you are not talking for your own benefit?" Michael asks me. He and his stupid smart mouth. Can't he just keep them shut.

     "Hey, I was not talking to you."

     "You know, Michael is right. Do you also like Valerie, Solomon?" Ro-bin asks me.

     "What do you mean? Cut the crap dude, I am only looking out for you as a friend."

     "I don't need to be looked out for. I am not a kid. I think I can take decisions myself."

     "Of course, no wonder you gave her your favourite jacket."

    "She was cold. What would I have done?"

      "I asked you for that jacket but you refused to give me, saying it is important to you. But you went off giving it to just any random girl."

       "Valerie is NOT a random girl. She is the girl I like, take it or leave it."

All this while, Michael just sits back, watching Ro-bin and I arguing. He has a smile on his face and I am pretty sure he is recording the conversation on his phone. I give him a stern look and his smile grows even wider. Bastard!

       "I don't know your big deal about this girl though." Robin says.    "Last time I checked, you didn't show any interest in her, treating her like she was invisible and now you are going all caveman on her. You just admitted that you don't like her so what is with the attitude?"

      "You know what? Screw all of you." I say in great annoyance and turn around to leave the room.

      "Yeah run. Just like you do every time, you are such a coward."

I freeze on the spot and turn around immediately. I take two steps and grab Ro-bin by his shirt, dragging him up with me.

       "Bwah? Bang guem mwol haessni? What did you just say?!!!" I say to Ro-bin, my face just few inches away from his. Michael quickly runs to us and separates us.

    "Guys, geumanhada, we don't have to do this."

      "Whatever, I am done here anyways."

I walk out angrily and head to my class in annoyance. I am pretty sure I am late for class, all because of Seo Ro-bin and his nonsense lover girl.

************

Valerie's POV

I walk into the kitchen only to see Granny having a weird look on her face. She looks down, off, sad, excited and optimistic at the same time. Jeez, school was handful today, why do I have to deal with this again.

          "Granny, what's wrong?" I ask her.

        "Oh, you are home. Have you eaten?"

      "No, why do you have that look on your face?"

     "Don't mind me, I am just stressed."

I give her a worried look and she waves me off.

       "Here, have some cup noodles. It is really spicy." I take it with a bow and dig in.

      "Valerie darling, I need to talk to you about something."

     "I knew it. Your face tells it all. What's up Granny?"

     "Well, it is about your dad....." As soon as that word leaves her mouth, I freeze instantly. Valerie, keep calm, I tell myself repeatedly.

         "What about him?"

       "Uhnnnnn....he called and he said he wants to meet up with you."

       "What? Granny...are you really sure nothing is wrong?" I give her a worried look because what she just said seems off.

      "Look, your father is not the bad guy here. You have to meet up with him."

     "What are you even saying Granny? He left for 11 years and never looked back and now he wants to meet up????? I don't want to see that monster. "

      "Valerie!!! Your father is not a monster."

    "How can you be siding with him after what he did to your own daughter?"

     "That's because you don't know the whole story. He is not as bad as you think. Who do you think got you the school uniform you are wearing?"

       What? I look at her with shock and move back a little.

       "I can't believe you lied to me Granny. What else are you keeping from me?" I half yell at her, trying so hard not to cry.

      "That is not my story to tell. You have to ask him yourself. He has been contributing in your life since he left.

      "Wait, so you mean all the  presents, clothes, shoes, bags you give me are all from him?"

       "Not all, but most of it though." She says, staring at her finger.

      "Wow." I fall back on my chair and just stare at Granny. I can't believe this.

     "Aren't you going to say anything?" Granny asks.

     "What do you want me to say, uhnn? You want me to explode? Scream at you? Oh, I will do a lot of that because I am furious with you right now!! Everybody lies to me. Daddy said he will always be there for me but where is he now? Lies! Mum said she will never leave me but I guess that  was a lie to right? Even Lee said he will love me forever but that was a lie too. And now you? My whole life is a lie!!!" By now, I was already crying to the fullest, million of tears rolling down my cheek like rainfall.

          "You know, I can't stand you right now. I need some air from you and your lies!!"  I walk out angrily to get some fresh air. I need to get away from all these. I step outside and cool breeze hits my wet face. Winter is just around the corner. I look around to find somewhere to hide and I spot a figure near the wine cellar. That's probably Solomon. I wipe my eyes quickly and walk towards him, hoping his 'PMS' is over.

       "Hey." I say as soon as I get there. He didn't even bother turning around to acknowledge my presence. Wow! I grab him by the shoulder and turn him around saying,

      "What the hell is wrong with you?" No response.

       "Wow, silent treatment uh?" This dude is really tempting my anger. Thank God I need someone to lash out to anyways.

         "You know Solomon, I thought we were cool after the dinner preparation, but looks like you put a great act for Granny. You should really be an actor.... Why are you so full of yourself? Who do you think you are? Oh, I know what your problem is. Your inferiority complex is battling with you. You are such a coward."

       "Oh, you are calling me a coward? Says the girl who is so scared of meeting up with her dad because she is afraid of the outcome."

What the..... Looks like Solomon did not think properly before he spoke because as soon as his words came out, regret filled his face.

       "How did you....." Oh, he must have heard my conversation with Granny.

      "Valerie, I didn't mean it that..."

       "It is okay." I cut him off. "You are right. I am actually scared of meeting up with him. I guess I should gather some courage and face him right? I have to go now."

I turn around and hurriedly leaves the spot. I am not really angry with him but his words actually stings. At least he made me realise what I have to do.

I walk into the kitchen and I see Granny sitting on a chair. She raises her head and looks at me with her teary eyes. She looks so lonely and sad. Tears starts flowing from her eyes. I quickly walk up to her and give a hug. Her tears stain the front of my uniform but I don't care. What was I thinking getting mad at my Granny? I can't afford to be mad at her.

       "I am really sorry." She says in tears. I just pat on the back and unfold my hands from her neck. She does the same and hold my hands, looking at me in the eyes.

        "I am going to do it. I am going to meet up with dad."

A/N

Hey guys, sorry for the late update. There are lots of fight in this chapter, lol😀. Anyways, I hope you like this chapter. Please, to show me your love, vote and comment. Thanks for your support. I welcome any constructive criticism though.

The next chapter is gonna 'wow'😱 you. Wait for it...

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Love you, xoxo😘💕❤