NOVEL NEXT Chapter 44
Chapter 44: Chapter 44
Chapter 44
“It’s… it’s not that I’m angry at you, Hyoyoung. Well, actually, I AM angry at you, but you are not the source of my anger. I know I’m not making sense… This is hard to explain. And really embarrassing…”
Hearing Mikyung struggle to speak, Hyoyoung hugged her tighter and replied, “I know what you are trying to say. I can imagine how angry you would’ve been at yourself for getting angry at me…”
“Huh…?”
“But Mikyung, I don’t know who you think I am, but I am an idiot. I am slow and silly. I am not good at anything, and I make stupid mistakes all the time. And you know this!”
“You…! Have you been reading my mind or something?”
“It’s because we are friends!”
“And even despite that, you’ve been treating me this badly…”
“Like I said earlier, I’m really sorry. But you know that you are the person I am most comfortable with, right?”
“Wow! Again, a very nice excuse. Where do you find these excuses?”
“Mikyung… I meant what I said. Everyone might hate me and don’t believe me, but you are on my side, right? I know you always will be there for me, and that is why I have been acting that way. I’m really sorry.”
“Well, I guess there is no need for your apology.”
“But I really am sorry. And I will explain everything. All of it.”
Finally, Mikyung slowly turned around to face Hyoyoung.
“Hyoyoung Ahn.”
“What, Mikyung Lee?”
“You don’t have to tell me anything. There is no need because I understand that you would have had a good reason for it. I don’t want you to tell me just to appease me. The only thing I want… is for you to stop lying to me. Please don’t ever lie to me. If you do, I will never see you again, got it?”
Hyoyoung swallowed hard at Mikyung’s warning. Over the weekend, she, together with help from the guys, came up with a story to tell Mikyung. It was a mix of truths and lies, but it seemed like her story wasn’t going to work at this point.
The bigger problem here was that Hyoyoung now couldn’t lie to Mikyung anymore. And it wasn’t like she could tell Mikyung that she had no choice but to continue to lie to her.
All Hyoyoung could do was nod and reply, “Alright. I won’t lie to you anymore.”
“Thank you. I admit that I felt awful about getting mad at you…”
“Mikyung…”
“Hyoyoung…”
They finally made up and hugged. Mikyung seemed content, but Hyoyoung remembered the conversation with the guys last night. She sighed and wondered, ‘What should I do…’
***
When Hyoyoung returned home with Jiwoo after the fight with Mikyung on Saturday night, she ended up sitting with the guys in the living room to discuss the situation.
They bombarded her with questions as soon as she walked in.
“What should we do? Mikyung is your only friend, right? And you lost her…”
“Are you ok, Hyoyoung?”
“OMG, are you going to be bullied at school now?”
When Hyoyoung looked confused and surprised, Jiwoo patted her shoulder and explained, “I told them everything! I texted them while we were walking home!”
Hyoyoung replied angrily, “What? Why did you tell them?”
“Why? Because… we are the reason for all your misery!”
Hyoyoung looked at Jiwoo in annoyance. She asked, “And you think telling the guys about my situation is helpful?”
Jiwoo shrugged his shoulders in embarrassment. He knew that he and the guys couldn’t help her much.
But the guys still offered Hyoyoung advice. Hyojun started first.
“Can’t you… just tell her that I, your older brother, got involved in a weird religious group? And you were just trying to get me out and fix everything?”
“Hey, I have a better idea. Why don’t you tell Mikyung that Hyojun is a member of The M and ask her to keep it a secret? That way, you are telling her part of the truth.”
At Jiwoo’s suggestion, Hyojun replied in frustration, “Are you crazy? The moment you tell one person a secret, that secret will be known to 100 people within the hour. How can you trust her to keep it a secret? What if she tells someone about it and asks the same of them? To keep it a secret?”
Hyunsuk agreed with Hyojun, “Hyojun is right. That’s not a good idea.”
“Then, just beg for her forgiveness. Tell her that you have a good reason for everything, but it’s not something you can tell her. Just because she is your friend doesn’t mean she has to know everything about you, right Hyoyoung? I think a secret is better than a lie.”
“Hey, Hyoyoung, why don’t you tell Mikyung that you are… the youngest FBI or CIA agent?”
“Gosh, Jiwoo Kang… that’s ridiculous!”
“Then, what about if we mix the truth with a few lies? Tell her… that Hyojun became a trainee at an agency, and it turned out to be the same agency as The M! So the CEO told Hyojun to keep his trainee status a secret to keep The M’s identity safe. And that is why Hyojun is not telling anyone about being a trainee… and Hyoyoung is helping him.”
“That is too complicated. And what would be the difference between that lie and telling Mikyung that Hyojun is actually a member of The M? Your story would be harder to follow, and Hyojun would have to act like he is leading a double life, which means he would be leading a triple life.”
“Oh, and Hyojun is not a good actor, so this would be a bad idea. You know how Hyojun can’t keep a poker face.”
“That’s right. Hyojun shows everything on his face. He sucks at poker. You can tell exactly what he has by watching his face.”
“Why do you think we started wearing masks?”
Hyoyoung replied in confusion, “I thought it was to keep your personal lives private…”
Hyunsuk answered, “That was part of it, but it was also because of Hyojun. You can tell exactly what he is feeling, which is a very bad quality in an entertainer.”
“No wonder Hyoyoung and Hyojun are siblings… you guys resemble each other.”
Hyoyoung sighed deeply and dropped her bag, she was so frustrated.
“Oppas.”
When she sounded very serious, all the guys turned to her nervously. Kiwook asked cautiously, “… What?”
Hyoyoung looked at them darkly and asked, “Do you guys truly feel sorry at all for what you are making me go through? Do you even care?”