Jin twisted in her sleep. Moaning an almost incoherently 'no' against her pillow. She was Hae Soo again. It was hard for her to breath, So was angry with her for leaving him in the dark about Wook. The pain stunned her as So grounded out. "How could you hurt me like this? Why is it Wook, of all people?"
Why is this happening? Jin pushed against the skin of Soo, feeling trapped within this nightmare. She had never fought like this with So.
"You always had Wook in your heart." So accused.
Hopeless fear overwhelmed Soo, she reached out to touch So's hand. "Pyeha."
"Do not touch me." He snarled, jerking away from her. "Starting today you will never see me again."
No! Jin screamed at Soo, struggling to stop him from walking away. Tell him the truth! She urged Soo, needing him to understand her reasoning. Don't let him leave! "So, please!" Rushing after him, Soo cried out. She wrapped her arms around his waist, determined to not let go. "You are the only man in my heart. I love you." Burying her tear stained face against his back, she whispered. "Forgive me."
Make him undertand, Jin demanded of Soo. So grasped her hand, forcing her to release him. He turned around, pinning her against the wall as he coldly stared down at her. "Please forgive the girl in me for wanting to go home." Soo said in a quiet voice. "He was my family and I would have married him. He was my friend and I did love him. To say otherwise would be a lie and I refuse to lie to you."
Letting go of her hand, So stood silent before her. Jin felt the wall between them, hating it. She had to rip it down. There had always been truth between them, no matter how aweful. "I know what he has done, Pyeha." Soo took in a deep breath, willing away the pain. "To me, to you, and to his brothers. And I will never be able to forgive him." She sought his eyes, hoping for understanding as she touched the sleeve of his robe. "What I have done has not been for him, but for you. I don't want you to stain your hands with his blood. I know how much it hurts you. I cannot bear for you to be called a monster."
So weighed this information. "Then why are you leaving me?" Uncertain, he croaked out. "Why do you want to marry Jung?"
Daemok. So was not her husband. Catching her breath, Jin realized the danger Soo was in. "In order to survive." Soo bowed her head, then looked up, beseeching. "I have something I have to do and I don't have long to do it."
"Soo-ya!" He pulled her close, frantically searching her gaze. "What do you mean?"
"I'm dying, Pyeha." Soo could barely get the words out, her throat tight. A tear spilled down her cheek. Stepping out of his embrace, she took his hand and placed it over her stomach. "I won't survive long enough to have our baby here. You know she won't allow it. The only place that is safe for us is with Jung."
Elation mixed with trepidation, So's hand caressed the tiny bulge. He leaned his forehead against hers. "I'll kill her first." His face grew dark. "I won't let you leave me."
Soo shook her head at him. "I'm not leaving you." She touched his face. "I just need to leave this place. I don't want her raised within these poisonous walls."
"Her?" So grinned, his lips sliding reverently over Soo's.
Jin jerked awake from the dream. Dazed, she reached for So, then remembered that she was in the guest bedroom. What was that about? She wondered. Sitting up in bed, she hugged her pillow and glanced around the unfamiliar room. "So-ya?" She called out, her voice shaky. She wanted him with her. Tossing the pillow aside, she scrambled off the bed, heading for the door when it opened. "Jinnie, are you alright?" So frowned down at her bloodshot eyes. "What's wrong?"
Jin plastered herself against him, hugging him tight, nearly knocking him off balance. "Whoa, jagiya."
"It was horrible, So." She sniffed against his bare chest as he stroked her back. "I dreamt I was back in the palace and we were arguing. You were going to leave me. I was pregnant and dying. A-and you were married to Yeon Hwa. Then I woke up alone." She hiccupped.
So fought to keep the chuckle from slipping out as he smoothed back the chestnut curls from her blotchy face. "That will never happen." He raised her head up, giving her a reassuring kiss. "I'll never leave you. You can't get rid of me." He grinned down at her, soothing away her tears. "It was a bad dream, nothing more. As if I would have been so stupid to be trapped into marriage by that clan."
"It's not funny." Jin mumbled, her anxiety replaced by desire as her gaze drifted from his face down to the satiny warmth of his skin, hard muscle under her hands, and against her belly. "I don't want to sleep alone." Blushing, a shaky sigh left her as heat pooled between her thighs. Her body flushed with need as it remembered the hard feel of So against her, inside her.
Jin put her arms around his neck as he lifted her high into his arms and carried her to the bed. The buds of her nipples crested, sensitive against the soft cotton of her t-shirt. He sat her on the edge of the bed and gently pulled the shirt over her head. She shivered as cool air hit her breasts. Then he tenderly pushed her back to lay on the bed as he covered her body, his mouth skimmed down her throat down to take one nipple between his teeth, causing her to groan and arch her back to get closer.
She barely acknowledged the removal of her panties as she ran her hands down his taut stomach to slide her hands into his pajama bottoms. Oh, how she missed this! "Where did you put the condoms?' He grunted in her ear, his breathing ragged.
"In the top drawer." Jin answered. So sat up, opening up the drawer to a plain, teak Oriental bedside table. She got up, rubbed her breasts against him like a sensuous cat, running her lips and tongue along the muscles of his back. Mine! She mentally staked her claim on him. He growled as he tore open the foil packet. It was only prudent! A sensual giggle fell from her as he turned on her and pushed her to the bed, then he grasped the back of her thighs and pulled her forward as he bent over her.
Next morning
Jin grimaced as she screwed the top back onto the bottle of tea. Shuddering over what passed for tea in this century. Lady Oh would not have approved. "What's wrong?" Eun Ji asked as she flopped down on the couch in the common room. "It's your favorite."
"I guess my taste buds have changed." Jin smiled with a shake of her head as she set the bottle onto the table. "I started drinking more loose teas and found I like the taste better."
"Oh, well, unnie." She rolled her eyes at Jin as she got off the couch and headed for the kitchen. "I can get you a bottle of water."
"Yah, Ji-ya." Jin huffed at her younger sister, following behind her. "It's okay. I don't need a bottle of water. I'm here to raid your closet."
"Of course." Eun Ji sighed as they headed for her bedroom. She sat down on her made up bed, hugging Dooly to her as Jin opened her closet. She noticed how relaxed Jin was as her older sister pulled out two pairs of jeans, shorts with a floral design, and three cotton shirts. "So...?" Eun Ji raised her eyebrow at Jin.
Jin ignored the question as she took down a deep burgundy summer dress with long, puffy sleeves and ruffled skirt. She bit her lip, then grinned as she put the dress up against her and turned to Eun Ji. "What do you think?" Then studied herself in the mirror. "I'm meeting So for lunch after I'm done here."
With a wicked grin, Eun Ji jumped off the bed as she dug through the back of the closet. "Thankfully, we are the same shoe size. I have a pair of black sling backs." She tossed the shoes from the abyss of clothes. "I'll fix your hair and make up. Anything for brother-in-law." She winked.
"Mind your own love life." Jin laughed as she stripped off the jeans and shirt she realized she had been wearing for three days. Even though the clothes had been washed, she still felt the need to get out of them. "I'll do my own make up, but I would love for you to fix my hair."
"As an American friend of mine would say 'when it rains, it pours'." Eun Ji chuckled as Jin smoothed the dress down her thighs. Eun Ji whistled at her. "Sexy! Brother-in-law will love it." Grinning, she stood behind Jin as she sat down before her mirror at her vanity. Running a brush through Jin's hair, Eun Ji explained. "I have two dates this week. Inspector Kwak Tae Si asked me out for lunch. He'll be in Seoul and wanted to see me. Then Hwang Jung Hwa called and pretty much wants to feed and interrogate me...about you and your relationship with his brother."
"And you didn't refuse?" Jin asked as she met Eun Ji's eyes. If Hwang Jung Hwa was anything like Prince Wang Jung then he would be stubbornly persistent. She gave a fond smile as she remembered the younger prince.
"I'm just as curious about him." She pursed her lips as she laid the French braid over Jin's shoulder. Jin applied a soft pink tint to her lips and blush.
"Unnie." Came a trembling, young female voice from the doorway. Both women turned to stare curiously at the girl. Joo Hee fell across the bed. Eun Ji gave her a speculative raised brow, her hand on her hip. "Park Joo Hee, what now?"
"Well, while on break, I had to go to the bathroom, so I rushed from the studio down the hall." She explained as she stared sadly at the ceiling. Eun Ji and Jin moved to stand over her. Jin's eyes widened at Joo Hee. Omo, will there be more people incarnated from Goryeo showing up here? "I was still in my bear costume and the head got twisted and I couldn't see when I crashed into him." She sniffed but valiantly held back the tears. Eun Ji nodded her head as Jin handed Joo Hee a Kleenex. "Thanks." She sobbed as she took the tissue and blew her nose. "Well..." She hiccupped, trying to get her nerve up. "The head went flying off and I found that I had landed on top of oppa."
"Oppa?" Jin frowned down at Joo Hee, then up at her sister. Eun Ji sank down to sit on the edge of the bed.
"Baekhyun." Dumbfounded, Eun Ji breathed out slow and Joo Hee gave a small sob. "You knocked Baekhyun from EXO to the ground." Wailing, Joo Hee flung herself into Eun Ji's arms and the older woman patted the girl on the back. After a few minutes, she said. "Go take a shower and I'll make lunch, then we have dance class." She herded Joo Hee toward the bathroom.
How is Baekhyun connected with Prince Wang Eun? Jin absentmindedly wondered, glancing down at her watch. "Oh, I have to go, Ji-ya." She gave Joo Hee an encouraging smile as the girl waved good-bye. "I hope everything will be alright. I'm sure it will."
"If she survives the EXO-L fangirls or our manager wrath." Eun Ji muttered as she shut the bathroom door, shaking her head. "Okay, unnie, I'll pack up some clothes and have a suitcase sent over to brother-in-law's condo." She led Jin through the apartment to the door. "Have fun at lunch. Where is he taking you?"
"I'm going to meet him at the museum." Jin smiled as she slipped on the heels at the door. "He wants me to see the Goryeo wing. I'm looking forward to it. Then he said something about an Italian restaurant."
"Oh, pasta. Bread." Eun Ji moaned, leaning against the wall. "Call me later and let me know how the restaurant is. I can work the extra calories off." A determined glint entered her eyes. "I might suggest it for one of my dates."
Jin laughed at her sister's machination. "Good idea." She turned back to Eun Ji to bid her farewell. "I'll call you later."
"Bye, unnie. Give brother-in-law my love." Eun Ji winked before she closed the door.