TRIGGER WARNING: MENTION OF SEXUAL HARASSMENT/GROPING

"Yeah mom, I got it. Yes, I have my phone. I have packed extra clothes too for your just in case events and for the 20th time, no, I don't want a lunch box," I sighed. Omma has been nagging me since morning. Initially, I thought Oppa will be the anxious one but now I know better. She's been fidgeting so much as if I am leaving for the Antarctic. I just hope it's not her GAD that's acting up.

"But won't you feel hungry?" she asked and I don't know how to reply to that question. It's not even an hour's journey, I will be there in no time.

"Eom-ma, neither is your daughter leaving the State nor she is taking part in Olympics so please try to hold back," Oppa added with a smirk, sarcasm dripping from every single word. Omma gives him a look and he shakes his head before walking away, playing his stupid whistle. Now looking back at me, she continued.

"Okay, if you say so. But don't forget to send—"

"Yes, I will share my location with you as soon as I reach there. I will also share it with Oppa and Mathew-ssi*. I have to call you when I reach there and no matter what time it is, I can always ping you up," I completed her words while counting them down on my finger's tips. She has been on this for hours now.

"Good," and she pats my head, kinda messing with my hair. I should be mad but I am not. I love her little gestures of love... they remind me how much I mean to this woman. Looking into her eyes, I can clearly see her love for me shining. I hugged her. She hugged me back, holding me in her big embrace while kissing the side of my temple.

"I want to share good news with you," I mumbled under my breath but being the woman she is, she still caught my words, "What?"

"Hehe. Maybe later," I gave her my stupid smile and now I can see heart-melting in those beautiful eyes.

"Okay, let me go. I have to go now," I shook my body out of her embrace and bid her my goodbye.

♡♡♡♡

"Hey! Did you wait for long?" I asked my friend who was waiting for me outside the car.

"Nah, you good." one of them replied distracted.

"Where's Allena?"

"She ain't coming. She got stuff to do at the farmhouse. Anyway, get in." Esther took my hand and walked me inside the car.

"So why are you driving her car, Brian? You don't even have a license!" I question him with worry while holding onto my seatbelt like my life depends on it, because it does. I don't want to get hurt because of his inanity.

"Babe because I want to. Now, tone that tone of yours down and if you really have so much energy, focus it on praying, so we get there safely," he sneered over the loud popping music. All the other passengers were laughing, at me.

These people are not my friends. I know them but not to the extent of friendship. Their presence suffocates the life out of me. They are just so different, weird, and unnecessarily complicated. For me, I really want to jump out of this car but only one thought is holding me back. I am attending this shit load of party only for one reason, for that one person and I hope everything goes great for us. As much as I hate it here, I have to thank Eliza for adding my name, to the list of attendees. She made everything so easy and memorable.

After our awful ride, we reach our destination. I instantly jumped out of the car.

"Easy, babe, easy. Don't break your bones over a carouse," he laughed at me. If anything Brian is truly passionate about- it's how to make me feel miserable. Not a day goes by without him shaming me for basically, just living. He has always made me feel so meager but not anymore. Wait till tonight, we will see who's gonna have the last laugh, I said that in my mind and chuckled at its very thought.

Anyway, ignoring that fool, I took out my phone from my purse to text Omma.

"Look guys, who's here? Sara, you look incredible today. Pink is definitely your color!" Eliza walked towards me, complimenting me and my look. She really knows how-to see-through people's effort. I am really glad I choose to wear my pink dress with pearl heels. They look so great together.

"Thank you. You look great too and thank you for inviting me," I thanked her. She's really an angel. She smiled at me as sweetly as ever, in reply and then excused herself to meet other people.

"I told you not to attend today's party. Then why the hell are you here, all dolled up?" Ana hissed at my face.

"And what makes you think I will follow your words?" I glared back at her with equal intensity.

"Oh, nothing. For quite some time, I thought you were a smart person but you can't really tell the book by its cover. I wish you luck, smarty pants!" She walked away from me after bumping her shoulder into mine. I don't like her.

It's past 11 o'clock and I am hanging out by myself on a weekend night. Sara is out for her fun night; Omma has her fundraising event and Mandy is enjoying his own sweet family time.

Everyone is having their own fun except me, I thought as I threw PS controller on the sofa. I picked up my phone and went through every app just to see no text or shared location from Sara. Despite many requests and warnings, she still choose to act like any other irresponsible teenager. I try calling her but her phone is not reachable. When I got tried to sending her voice mails, I dial to Omma in hopes that at least she has a message from her.

'The number you are trying to reach is currently busy. Please leave your voice message after the beep.' Frustrated, I cancelled the call urgently. Both ladies are not attending their damn call. I instantly type a message and send it to mom, promising myself to wait for her reply only till 12. After that, I will be the one to make calls.

'Done with your dinner?' I send a text to Mandy. His reply was almost instant.

'Yup. You?'

'Not really. Only had ramen.'

'Want me to bring something for you?' and he's the sweetest. I knew, he's the only one who loves and care for me unlike some people I know.

'Aww, no babe. Thank you.' I send it with the bunch of kisses emoji.

'Oh, don't be modest around me. I know, you are hungry. We really have a lot of food for you as Luka barely ate anything.'

'Luka who?'

'Our Luka!'

'By Luka, you definitely don't mean your family dog, right?'

'Yeah. That Luka only. He wasn't feeling really well today, so we have his leftover dog food. Should I bring it to you?' he sends to me with a bunch of laughing emojis. Does he think it's funny? I definitely take my words back. Only my mom loves me truly in this world.

We exchanged a few more texts until he fell asleep. Checking on the clock, it's past 12. I stood up from the couch, grabbed my jacket, wallet and keys, and marched towards the door when the doorbell rang. 'Finally.' I mumbled to myself. I open the door in a rush but what I see isn't something I signed for.

I see mom in some very fancy attire with her glam makeup on, for obvious reasons but what really surprises me is the fact that, right now, she's swinging in the arms of a total stranger. "Yes?" I gave her my questioning look and she sigh, right onto my face. It's our first-time meeting in person but by her features, I think, I know who this person is and noticing her expressions, one can tell that she is not so impressed.

"May I?" she asked and with a nod I give her space to enter. I supported my Omma from the other side and finally helped her in settling down on our couch.

"What happened to my mom? Why's she so drunk?" When she heard the word 'Mom', her eyes slightly widened but she quickly recovered from her shock.

"She just drank too much," and it's obvious that one gets drunk when they drink too much. I mean, what kind of dumb answers is she giving to me?

Shaking my head lightly, I asked her again, "'One gets drunk when they drink too much', I know that much of science. Now can you tell me why she drank so much? Did something happen in the event because the look on your face concerns me?"

Giving me a frustrated look, she continues, "Ms. Park drank a lot because that's what done in events and I don't really know why she drank so much in the first place as I went there as her companion and not assistant. We were talking to attendees on the different ends of the hall. And as far as your concern is concerned, something did really happen."

"What?"

"Well, as I told you, it was an event, which means a lot of alcohol and money. So, some intoxicated donor got 'flirty' with Ms. Park in the after-party and she took it upon herself to educate him."

"What?"

"I know, right! That was my reaction, too. I mean, she should have just ignored and moved on. He is a pretty powerful man—" my blood is boiling.

"No. Just educating his filthy ass and letting him go? It's nowhere near the punishment he deserves. Take care of my mom," I said grabbing my keys again, walking towards the door.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"To beat the crap out of that bastard." I yelled.

"Oh, boy! You are not going anywhere," She held my hand at a lightning-fast speed, getting a hold of me. She is so fucking strong. I shook her hand off me but she held it again. And again. And again.

"What do you want? It is not related to you, so mind your damn business and leave me the f- alone!" I am losing my temper and she wants to play stupid hand games with me.

"First, language! Second, I am indeed minding my business. Ms. Park has already embarrassed him a lot in the event and as far as your plan to 'beat the crap out of him' is concerned, A. He got bodyguards to protect him. B. You will end up in jail. C. You will put your mom in more trouble," she said with a neutral expression. 

Her face irks me.

"Then what do you want me to do? Leave this matter alone?"

"Indeed, sir!" And there's that bitchy expression of her.

"And why should I listen to you?"

"Because even your mom listens to my advice," she said lifting her left eyebrow, making her point more obvious. I feel so helpless and frustrated. Why does Omma have to go through something like that? She took the keys from my hand and made me sit on the other side of the empty couch.

"You want to know what happened?" she offered politely for the first time in forever. I choose silence over a reply.

"Nevermind—"

"With details," I said with authority as my curiosity got the best of me.

"Now, I don't really know the details in detail but I will tell you what I know with significant details," she said with a very twisted choice of words. I know it was on purpose. "So almost all the activities were over. The organizers raised a lot of cash, thanks to Ms. Park and her friends. Everyone was enjoying the afterparty. I wasn't with Ms. Park then. Around midway to the afterparty, we hear a loud shattering noise of glass. As I turn around, I see a broken bottle of red wine besides Ms. Park— sharp residuals of glass all over the place. I rushed towards her and that's when I notice one of the biggest donors of today's event, abutting her, touching her arms and shoulders, inappropriately..." As soon as those words left her mouth, my blood started boiling again. How dare he—

"She brushed him off and we rushed to the bathroom. She kinda filled me in on how he was flirting with her but she ignored him, low-key giving him the warning to stop but he kept testing her limits. Anyway, after talking about it and cleaning her dress, we returned to the party. Everything was going well until Ms. Park started getting real tipsy."

"But why didn't she just stop? When she knows she can't hold more liquor, she should have said no and stopped everything!" I said out of repressed anger.

I don't blame my mother for anything, it's just that I am worried. If she knows her liquor limit, she should stop before crossing them.

"Listen boy, this is the real world. You can't just say no and even if you said, here 'no' doesn't always mean no. There's always a limit to how much you can hedge one's bets. This is reality. In real life, we have to comprise, adjust and lower ourselves to accommodate." she sighs.

"Anyways so as Ms. Park started getting tipsy and that creepy director re-appeared. He started with his crap again. We tried to dodge him but after some time it became really difficult to do so. So, we ducked and decided to leave but only after talking to our last donor and long-time client who helped us in raising some prominent figures. As she was talking to them, the creepy old director joined them starting with his sick games again. This time Ms. Park wasn't having it. She slapped away his hand and give him a few earfuls. As I was far away, I couldn't hear the details but I guess he must have said some really provoking stuff for her to be this mad," She completed her words with a horrified expression.

"What happened?" I prompted.

"She got so mad at him that even before I could stop her, she splashed almost a glass full of champagne on his face— in front of all the people. And you know what's worse? She told him and I dare to quote her words—that if he ever dared to act like today again with her or any other woman, it won't be just a glass of wine embarrassing his gross face. And if he ever dared to even touch her shadow, let alone her body, she won't play before coming for his soul. As parting words, she told him to remove his spit-worthy presence out of her face." And I chocked. I chocked on my breath and failed to suppress my laughter. 

This is hilarious.

I can imagine her doing something like that. She's just so cool.

"You are seriously laughing?" This woman standing right in front of me, questioned my entire existence with her petrified eyes. She's offended. "Why don't you understand the seriousness of this situation! We were in great trouble. He was fuming with anger and it was sheer luck and blessing that we had enough people to rescue us from his wrath," She completed her words with a sigh.

"Why was he mad? He literally begged for it! And he should be the one apologizing, not the one who gets to throw tantrums," I plainly stated the facts.

"But—" she tried to continue but I cut her short.

"I am sorry but I don't want to talk about this anymore. The more I listen, the more I feel enraged. So let's drop this here," I said while brushing a hand through my hair. 

Today is a frustratingly bad day.

"Anyway, it's getting late, so would you like to sleep here or should I drop you off?" I asked politely.

She dwells on the question for a few minutes before answering- "I would like to stay here for the night."

"Fine with me. Wait here. Let me check the guest rooms," I asked her to wait with Omma while I went for a usability check of our guest room.

The room was locked from outside and dirty from the inside. A very fine layer of dust was hugging the sheets and I couldn't find extras to replace them. So, in conclusion, I can't let her use it. Coming back to the living room, I notice her fidgeting. She's nervous. I went inside the kitchen to bring some lukewarm water.

"It's okay, take this. Everything will be fine. Don't sweat over this," I said, offering her the water. She looked at me, puzzled.

"You don't even know what I am thinking about!" She chuckled lightly.

"I don't but no matter what it is, it's not worth wasting your beauty sleep."

I winked at her and her face kissed some delicate tint. She mumbled something like, 'kids these days' under her breath.

"By the way, the guest room is not in usable condition so if you don't mind, you can sleep in my room!" I offered.

"What about you?"

"I can either sleep in with Mom or use my sister's room," I stated, shrugging off.

She went with my plan. After she settled down in my room, I moved mom to her bedroom. She was out of it like any other drunkard. Covering her with sheets, I brought some tissues with makeup remover on and tried to clean her face, as much as I can. When I was satisfied with the results, I walked to the other side of the bed, snuggling in, I made myself comfortable in not-so-foreign bed. I tried calling Sara again but still it was unreachable. I set my phone down and hugging Mom, I drifted to my good night's sleep.

He's so gorgeous. Around 1.82 m with broad shoulders, great biceps and a face of a Greek deity, he looks like a dream. A dream designed in heaven, engraved in reality by angels.

I notice his moves all day from afar still processing the fact that this gorgeous boy is mine. I wait, wait all day for our moment only to feel a little disappointed that it's been so long and he didn't talk to me, not even once the whole time. We only made eye contact once when he arrived here with his friends. I even tried talking to him but he was too busy socializing with others. No, it's more than that. He is consciously ignoring me. But why? 'Did I do something wrong?' I thought to myself. What did I do wrong? Is my makeup ugly or do I look weird in this dress? I asked mom, and she said I look great... in fact, everyone at the party also complimented me then what's wrong? Even our clothes match. Though it's a perfect coincidence, the way my dress compliments his button-up shirt is indefectible. We look like a couple.

"In place of fangirling, why don't you just go and talk to him?" Eliza whispered in my ear softly.

"I am not fangirling. I am his girlfriend," I replied shyly. Eliza's eyes shined notoriously.

"Oh, and who said girlfriends can't fangirl on their boyfriends? Now talk to him. I am sure he is missing you terribly, so just go... go!" She rushed me and I went with the flow.

"Hi Ryan," I said to him shyly. Christ, why am I even shy? He is my classmate, best friend and now my boyfriend, for god's sake.

"Hi, Sara. Where were you? I missed you so much," he hugged me. Eliza was right. He really missed me. I hugged him back but before I can get comfortable in those enormous arms, he moved them away from me, cutting our precious moment so short. Ignoring that, I look up to his exquisite face with a smile, "I missed you too. I was—"

"Wait, a second please..." he said to me, pointing a finger to his lips, "What the fuck, bro? No! That shit didn't happen... For a real dude! What the fuck!" He continued his conversation with his friends, getting more engrossed in it more than ever.

I don't understand more than half of their conversation. Every other word is flying over my head, even when everyone is conversing in English. And for the part I understand, I don't approve of it. Talking shit about others, throwing their partner secrets out in the group, rating each other's skills and mindless flirting despite having a partner by their side... their talk makes me sick in my guts.

As their conversation gets some more momentum, the distance between me and Ryan also increased. Now, he is not touching a single part of my body and I feel so out of place. I feel like we are at the distance of the moon and sun. I pushed through people to reach him but before I can get a hold of him, his best friend said something which made me stop in my way...

---- to be continued

***

AUTHOR'S NOTE : THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR EVERYTHING pal ! I am so indebted to the love and support I receive from you. You make everything worth it.

Chapter 5 is a long ass update lol! Let me know how do you feel about it! I am really looking forward to your reaction.

AGAIN- I am really VERY SORRY FOR THE SLOW UPDATES. I have exams and a lot of stuff going on in my real life.