|chapter fourteen|
"What's my problem? What's her problem? She literally agreed to move in with the devil himself. I will treat him reasonably at the restaurant, but not in my own home." SeungMin brushes SaeRon off and stands directly in front of MinSung.
I try to pull him away, but he's much too strong for me.
"It's fine. You should go get your stuff. I'll wait here." MinSung smiles sweetly as he reaches out to pat my shoulder.
"Don't touch her." SeungMin hisses through clenched teeth as he catches his hand before he can make contact with me.
I hesitantly slip away and head toward my room. SaeRon follows closely behind me. She glances back over her shoulder, afraid to leave SeungMin alone with MinSung.
"Are you sure this is what you want? I don't want to stop you, but SeungMin seems to know that guy and not in a good way." SaeRon mumbles as she picks up one of my boxes.
"It's SeungMin. He's probably just overreacting to something. He thinks I'm his puppy, remember? I appreciate him caring so much, but it can get to be a little too much at times." I reassure her as I try to get all of my belongings in one go.
"You're probably right. He holds grudges, too. So for all we know, the guy could've done something to him in elementary school. The guy could've bumped into his on the street and SeungMin would be at his throat—especially when it comes to you." SaeRon nods in agreement as she and I slip into the hall.
I toss one final glance at my nearly empty bedroom. This is probably the last time I'll see it—at least for awhile.
"I swear to god—if she comes running back here crying because of you—I'll hunt you down myself. I won't even think about calling the cops. I'll handle you on my own. If I hear that you treated her like anything besides a goddess, I will not hesitate to beat the shi—"
"Okay—she's all good to go. Here's her stuff—make sure she goes to bed at a decent time and takes her meds." SaeRon quickly steps in to cut SeungMin off. She hands MinSung the box she had been holding and quickly begins piling some of the things I had been carrying on top of it.
He doesn't seem to mind all the weight. He looks as if he could manage it with his pinky finger.
"Do you want to set her up here, too?" MinSung chuckles he glances over at me.
"No. You will not carry her anywhere." SeungMin steps between us and holds his arm back to stop me from moving closer.
"I've got him—you go." SaeRon pulls SeungMin aside and motions toward the door with her head.
I quickly tug the door open and slip outside into the rain with MinSung. I notice a strange chubby man standing beside what I assume is MinSung's car. He opens the trunk for MinSung and quickly helps him place my things inside.
"Song, this is Byeol. Byeol, Song." MinSung introduces us lazily.
I bow my head slightly before standing awkwardly beside MinSung. He slams the trunk shut and tugs the back door open for me.
"After you." MinSung motions me into the car as Song climbs into the drivers seat.
I silently slide into the backseat. I stop in the middle seat and stare forward. I don't like sitting in the back, but I can usually manage as long as I don't have to go too far. The one thing I can't manage is having someone directly beside me—someone who is muscular and has wide shoulders to be exact.
MinSung sits beside me and shuts the door. He glances at me in confusion. He clearly has no idea what he got himself into when he offered to take me in.
"Why are you sitting there? You know there's another side, right?" MinSung questions as he looks over at the empty seat.
"Yes. I'm aware." I mumble innocently as I stare toward the front.
"Am I missing something? If you wanted to be close to me you could've just said something." MinSung chuckles as he looks me up and down.
"Nice try, but that's not the reason." I shrug as I try to keep as much space as possible between us without obstructing my view of the street in front of us.
"What's the reason? If it's not me, what else could it possibly be?" MinSung asks intriguingly as if he thinks he caught me in a lie.
"Claustrophobia." I glance toward him before staring back out the window.
"Oh—I guess that makes sense, but there's a window on that side, too." MinSung mumbles as he casually tries to scoot as far away as he can.
"There's also a seat directly in front of me. In the middle I can see what's in front of me. It's not perfect, but it's the best of the worst." I sigh as I lean back in the seat. I hadn't noticed how comfortable it really was until now.
This car has to cost a lot of money. It looks like something I'd never be able to afford, even if I became a global star. It's one of those 'I have so much money I don't know what to do with it' kind of cars.
"Is there anything else I should know? I'd hate to make you uncomfortable." MinSung asks, slightly concerned with my potential response.
"There's too much to name off right now. Trust me, you'll get the hang of it quicker than you may think. You could do some research on your own, but you'd have to keep in mind it varies a bit from person to person." I mumble as I lean forward and fight the urge to rock back and forth.
"What exactly should I research?" MinSung questions hesitantly as he pulls his phone out of his pocket.
"Aspergers. It's an autism spectrum disorder." I explain casually as if it were a daily thing for me.
"You have autism? Why do I find that hard to believe?" MinSung chuckles as he types it into the search bar.
"Forget the research—let me give you a mini lesson right now." I turn toward him, more than willing to share some information with him. I honestly don't mind telling people about my condition—as long as they are respectful about it.
"Do I need to take notes?" MinSung asks with a straight face.
"Lesson number one, sarcasm is a no go. So if you're trying to be sarcastic, it's not worth it. I just don't get sarcasm. I can sometimes figure it out when someone uses it, but to me it's pointless. Things should be literal. So—no—you don't need to take notes. It's more of a live in the moment and learn kind of thing." I state as I take his phone from him and lock it. I lean forward to set it on the passenger seat. If I'm doing this, I'm doing it with his full attention.
"Okay, so no sarcasm. That's simple enough." MinSung mumbles as he tries to file it away in his head.
"Lesson two, I'm really sensitive to touch. I don't like being touched. I can't wear certain fabrics." I explain casually.
"Okay, so no touching. That's not strange at all." MinSung nods his head reassuringly.
"Lesson three, I have severe anxiety. The smallest and stupidest things can make me have an anxiety attack. Lesson four, anxiety attacks can lead into meltdowns or meltdowns can just happen." I glance up to make sure he's paying attention.
"Lesson five—I'll stop after this one for now—don't touch my stuffed animals." I insist firmly. My stuffed animals are the key to my existence. SeungMin doesn't even touch them often.
"Okay, I think I got it. No sarcasm, no touching, anxiety, anxiety attacks, and stuffed animals. That's nothing." MinSung tries to play it off as common, but I know better than that. I'm far from common.
"Anxiety attacks and meltdowns." I correct him. It's important he gets the meltdown point. Meltdowns aren't something I can control. Once they start I have to play them through. Honestly, it can be hard for some people to watch. SeungMin hates seeing my meltdowns, but he's one of the only people who can help get me out of them.
"Got it. One question though—what exactly is a meltdown?" MinSung asks as he turns to me.