Hee Jin rested her head back against the airplane seat. Heading to their honeymoon, she relaxed knowing that she didn't have to see anyone for the upcoming month. It reeled into her brain as she settled into the delicious luxury of first-class flying. Not that she was familiar with any type of flying. She would've been out of her wits scared if the bigger part of her wasn't so excited.

It was the first time she settled down since the wedding preparations. Everything had been about the marriage, the responsibilities awaiting her and what scared her the most was living in the family mansion. So when Woo Bin had declared that they would be in a separate living situation, she could've cried with relief. How she would have squeezed the life out of him in a hug had not her morale been so down that day.

The wedding day would've gone without a hitch except for a trick made by the universe to mock and degrade her. In the tiniest second, she could've gotten away with it. Yet as soon as the day had started, she was dealt a blow to the chest.

No one had to see her deformities for the rest of her life. She had made it a promise to herself to keep that part hidden away from everyone including herself. To this day, these scars are a testament to her stubbornness and the punishment it caused her. So many whips and so many lashes, some haven't been able to heal properly still, coloured her back as a sign of ownership. The scars still felt like leashes kept holding her down. To remind her of her place, always.

First, it had been that young assistant at the boutique. Hee Jin had been able to stomach the fact of that girl seeing those scars. After all, Hee Jin didn't have to see her again. But her mother-in-law seeing them was a whole other story.

She had seen those leashes etched into her skin, those marks of ownership all over her back. For just a split second, Hee Jin could've dressed quicker. Or she could've locked the door to the dressing room in which she was changing with a key before she stripped down bare. Instead, the same curiosity that drove the young assistant to peek into her dressing room was the same that piqued her mother-in-law as she opened the door forcefully without permission from Hee Jin.

Her mother-in-law had been spewing hatred, fighting with the stylists as they sat outside, waiting for Hee Jin to finish dressing in the privacy of her room. She grabbed the doorknob, entering upon the terrified Hee Jin.

The look on her face was something Hee Jin could never forget. Absolute horror contorted on her face as she took a big gasp, invited herself inside and closed the door quickly behind her. Hee Jin managed to hide bits of herself her frail arms could cover, but they couldn't hide the bones protruding from her skin, a sign of years of starving the few months of regular warm meals could not hide. Angry gashes of skin all around her back sneaking into her front abdomen as if in a tight embrace from behind.

All her flaws, faults and weaknesses were on display for the woman who hated her the most to see. Hee Jin shrieked and backed away from the woman who looked at her with unadulterated disgust.

"Please, I beg of you." Hee Jin had muttered, in a moment of weakness, the courage she had once had before fleeting away in the presence of that powerful gaze while she wore nothing but her shame and insecurities.

Her mother-in-law had left at once at her request. She hadn't talked to her again for the rest of the day. Hee Jin didn't have the time to mull over what had happened. She still had a wedding to attend. Instead, Woo Bin's words had made her feel the safest she had been since she entered the Songs' lives.

She didn't know why, but she trusted he was telling the truth. When his eyes held hers as she walked down the aisle. When he held her trembling hands for a second the nerves and tremors in her body stopped as he smoothed over her nerves. And up on that rooftop, Hee Jin believed even for a second that Woo Bin wouldn't hurt her. That he would shelter her from the misery that came with being his wife. It was reckless and thoughtless but it helped her sleep at night.

His words and the company of two girls had been the reason she could survive the day. Jan Di and Ga Eul, they were called. Each was a friend of Woo Bin and was respectively in a relationship with one of the F4. A smile crept on her lips as she remembered a subtle joke Ga Eul had made and the loud snicker of Jan Di.

"What is it?" Woo Bin asked beside her.

"Nothing, I just remembered Ga Eul and Jan Di." She replied, not believing it had just been yesterday.

"They're great people." Woo Bin said, smiling.

"They seemed like it." She replied. She wouldn't have expected them to be anything like that. She was exposed to ladies of high society all evening and they were nothing like them. The two girls were having fun simply being in each other's company. Hee Jin felt jealous at first, remembering her lost friend.

But the girls came over to her dressing room and introduced themselves early on in the day. They managed to remain civil to her despite the haywire tension they experienced in that room, and after exchanging her vows with Woo Bin, they asked her about her well-being and it had struck Hee Jin that it had been the first time in God knows how long someone had done that. Hee Jin replied truthfully that she felt like choking the next person who attempted small talk. That had gained laughter from the girls and from then on, they had stuck to her like glue, telling her all the hidden ins and outs of events like these.

Hee Jin had remembered something that surprised her. They both said that it took them a while to get used to these events. Looking back at it, they had seemed much more down to earth than the other guests.

"What families do Ga Eul and Jan Di belong to?" Hee Jin asked, curious.

"No one in particular." He said, smirking.

"That doesn't make any sense, and why are you smiling like the Cheshire Cat?"

"Cheshire Cat?" He chuckled. "Like the one in Alice in Wonderland?"

"Yes, that one."

"You know that movie?" He asked.

"It was played a lot on the TV at the orphanage. Why didn't you answer my question?"

"I'm sorry, I'm not used to people asking these questions anymore. Everybody knows that Ga Eul and Jan Di aren't from wealthy families."

"Then, are they like me? Like our situation, I meant." She asked, part of her hoping that she wasn't alone.

"No, their relationships weren't arranged. Anything but. Both Yi Jung and Jun Pyo are disgustingly in love."

"I didn't ask about what your friends feel. I asked about Jan Di and Ga Eul." She insisted.

Woo Bin shot her a look. Of course, Jan Di and Ga Eul reciprocated. It was too obvious.

"Isn't that taboo in your world?"

"Our world now." He corrected her. "And yes, it is. Extremely so. But no one could stop Jun Pyo and Yi Jung from getting what they wanted. They're far too important."

"Why didn't you do the same, then?"

"First off, I'm unlike Jun Pyo and Yi Jung."

"Pfft. Do you expect me to pity you? That you're not as powerful as them."

"I never said that I'm not as powerful as them. It's a matter of responsibility. Each one of us has certain responsibilities to uphold, and an arranged marriage was part of my responsibility. Besides, I didn't have any reason not to get married. I don't have someone of my own like Jun Pyo and Yi Jung."

"Yet. Wouldn't you want someone of your own like them one day?" She asked.

"I don't think that's a possibility for me. Before or after getting married. Either way, I have you now." He said sarcastically.

"I wouldn't mind if you had one. Before or after."

"I know. Me neither."

"What?" Hee Jin asked, shocked.

"Why are you surprised? We don't owe each other any feelings, so if you ever feel inclined to have feelings for anyone else, I would support you."

"Normally, it's the man who's allowed to have a lover of his own. The wife doesn't get to have the same privileges."

"You'll get to see that I won't be that unfair of a husband. All I care about is for us to be amiable towards each other."

"Would you have been this lenient if I were someone else? Someone more suitable for example?" She asked, feeling a twinge of hurt. Was she that undesirable? Had she been someone else, would he have gotten jealous? She knew she was being unreasonable for being hurt over this. It had been her hope all along that he wouldn't care for her yet the idea that she was that unwanted wounded her.

"On the contrary, Hee Jin. If it had been someone more suitable for me, like you worded it, I wouldn't have cared as much. But because it's you, I'll try to make things better for you. I owe it to you. It's the least I could do."

Hee Jin bit her tongue, confused by his words. Somehow, the Woo Bin in front of her now didn't resemble the guy she had in mind. He didn't resemble who he was a month ago when he had tried to convince her to get married.

"You don't have to be so sorry. It took two people to say 'I do'." She replied, easing some of the guilt he had on his face. If he was feeling guilty, why did he try to persuade her into this marriage before? Was it solely for Ms. Kim?

"Have you ever been to Italy before?" She asked, yawning.

"Yes." He replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. Of course, he had been.

"You can sleep for a while. You don't have to entertain me for the next twelve hours nor would you have to worry about me hurting you in any sort of way while you sleep. I'll tell the flight attendant to get you a blanket." He said.

As he had promised, Woo Bin laid the blanket over her. At first, she decided to persevere against the sleep but the blanket was warm against her skin. Her seat was so comfortable and the sleeping mask Woo Bin put over her eyes made her surrender in no time.

Woo Bin's eyes were fixated on her while hers were on the ginormous hotel lobby around her. He eyed her bafflement with amusement.

In her whole years of living, Hee Jin had not expected something this beautiful to exist, nor that she would have the chance to look at it. This had to be what heaven looked like, she thought to herself.

Sunlight pooled down from the glass dome ceiling atop her head. Everything was covered in bright sunlight. Where the dome had stained glass, a beautiful array of colours reflected on the walls surrounding her.

Woo Bin cleared his throat, signalling for her to march along with him to the reception. He took care of everything while she zoned out, still entranced by the beautiful building.

When they arrived at their suite, Woo Bin put her bags in one of the rooms. She felt relief knowing they wouldn't be sharing a room.

"If you need anything, just knock on my door." He said, before closing the door behind him.

Hee Jin quickly slumped on the bed as if on cue. She let her head rest against the soft mattress. The room was perfect and Woo Bin had been nothing but a gentleman so far, so why was she so afraid? She was far more safe than she had ever been before. Yet, she still waited for the moment everything would turn to shit all over again. No matter how things felt like shaping up, Hee Jin knew that's when she would suffer a blow to the head once more. How safe exactly was safe? When would Woo Bin break his promises and how long would it take for his mother to meddle in her life once they get back home?

Up till now, no one had known exactly who she was and that gave her a bit of an advantage. As his mother had said before, she was a nobody and there could be no telling what this nobody could do, but seeing her so weak and vulnerable, Hee Jin was sure her mother-in-law saw her as easy prey now. Good God, was she saved or trapped all over again? Did she make a mistake?

A gentle knocking on her door woke her up.

"Come in." She said groggily, not understanding her surroundings, yet. A little light came in behind him as Woo Bin opened the door.

"I'm sorry to wake you, but I ordered room service. I knew you wouldn't be able to get down to eat." He said, holding a tray of food.

"Huh? Did I sleep the whole day?" She half sat up, confused.

"It's still the same day. You slept for five hours, but you haven't eaten yet, and I was getting something to eat so I thought I might as well."

"Thank you. That's very thoughtful." She smiled.

"I'm going to leave it here." He put the tray on the nightstand beside her and left again.

Hee Jin placed the tray on her lap and devoured the steak in front of her in a matter of minutes. She didn't realize how hungry she was until the food was placed in front of her. Her eyelids were heavy and her brain barely functioning, she placed the tray on the nightstand again and went back to sleep. She couldn't find it in herself at that moment to care about anything except rest.

For the next few hours, her mind was in a haze of waking up then dozing off again in a matter of seconds. She could never tell what time it was or even register that she was in Italy. There was one time she felt Woo Bin's presence in her room, but she could've been imagining that. Her sleep was plagued with weird dreams and nightmares, and it wouldn't have been unexpected if her brain conjured up the image of Woo Bin, the perpetrator in her nightmares, to be in her room.

It was only after a particularly vivid dream that Hee Jin couldn't go back to sleep. It was already dawn the next day. There was dim light outside as she opened the curtains.

She freshened up in her private bathroom and tried taming her hair which was sticking out in every way possible from tossing and turning all night.

When she went out to the living area, she realized she was alone in the suite. Woo Bin had left her a note on a small table that he was out. Looking at the clock, she realized she had been sleeping for almost an entire day. Of course, he got bored and left. He didn't specify how long he'd be, so Hee Jin took it upon herself to venture around the suite.

There wasn't much to see, it was nice and luxurious, but it couldn't compare to the Song mansion. Only the lobby managed to take her breath away.

Hee Jin chuckled to herself, thinking about how snobbish she might sound to her younger self. It was only a year ago that she was a beggar on the streets.

Committed to entertaining herself, she swapped through the channels on TV, but none was in a language she understood.

At some point, she gave up finding something to watch and just aimlessly went from channel to channel. She didn't want to think about all the horrible possibilities roaming her brain. How she was in a foreign country where she had no one and couldn't speak the language to get by. She had no one to rely on except Woo Bin. A guy she knew nothing about was now her husband.

Great, with that rate, she'd go crazy before he even returned, she muttered to herself.

And what were the odds, she heard the door handle turn and it was Woo Bin.

"You're awake?" He asked.

"Yeah." She mumbled.

"I was out for a bit of fresh air, and you had been sleeping for a while."

"It's okay. You don't have to explain. We're not on an actual honeymoon."

"Well, I'm not explaining anything. I'm only informing you." He said.

"What are you doing?" He asked as he threw his phone on the small table before her and sat beside her crouched-up frame on the couch.

"Flipping through the channels."

"Find something you like?" He asked, amused.

"No, I don't understand the language." She said, frustrated by him. Did he find it funny that she wasn't educated like him?

"Do you find it funny?"

"Do I find what funny?"

"That I can't even do something as simple as watching TV?" She asked.

"Are you always this defensive?"

"What's wrong with defending myself?"

"There's nothing wrong with it unless that person wasn't attacking you in the first place." He countered.

"And you weren't making fun of me just a second ago? Forget it, I'm going back to my room." She said, standing up.

"Hey, hold on a second. You only assumed that my amusement was meant as a jab at you. Truth is, I find it endearing. Your curiosity, I mean."

"Endearing? Isn't this sugarcoating what you truly meant to say? Let's face it, Woo Bin. You think I'm beneath you. Is it so endearing that I'm curious about everything you're already accustomed to? The hotels, the clothes and the people. Do you find it funny that I'm not on the same level as you?"

"Don't put words in my mouth. I never meant it that way. I have never once treated you as if you're beneath me."

"Never!" She exclaimed.

"You only started being nice to me on our wedding day. You threatened and berated me. Is that being respectful to you?"

"You were the first that started this dance, Hee Jin. You insulted me. You don't get to provoke someone and then blame them for their reaction."

"Insult you? Are you being serious?" She was outraged.

"You treated me like I was a monster. You called me revolting." He defended himself.

"You and your father cornered me into accepting this marriage the first time you saw me. Don't act ignorant about my background. It was my every right to be scared of you. It still is."

"I know that fully well. But did you think you're the only one who was cornered into this marriage? I have known about you for months before I met you in that restaurant. I have tried everything to dissuade my grandfather from this marriage. I have tried bargaining everything I could think of for this marriage to never happen. I tried being reasonable with you while showing you the gravity of the situation. And you treated me as if I was an animal. And my God, I'm not saying that I was right in threatening you, but I have been at my wit's end and being treated like a savage was my last strand."

"You don't get to act like you were misunderstood. It wasn't this one time you threatened me. You were still cruel to me the few chances we met before the wedding."

"Because you proceeded to make the worst possible decisions for yourself. You shouted at my grandfather for God's sake. If I hadn't instilled some fear in you and shown you the effect your stubbornness will have on others around you, you wouldn't have agreed to this marriage this quickly. If I had to be the bad guy you so quickly believed me to be, then so be it."

"You're saying you manipulated me for my good? Why would you even care, huh?" She shouted.

"You don't want to listen to anyone but yourself. Do you think my cruelty was the worst that could've happened to you? You've heard about my family. What we could do. Do you think my grandfather wouldn't have burned anything that you touched or ruined what little peace you had for you to succumb to this marriage? If I couldn't stop this marriage, then I had to save you from the dangers you put yourself in. You're right. We're not equal in this marriage. I would always be the monster who agreed to marry an unwilling bride who has suffered all her life by the likes of myself. I will always be the villain and I have to live with that for the rest of my life, so the least I could do is try to provide you with a life with as much comfort as possible. I would say I'm sorry for the way I acted, but if it got us married without having you suffer then I'm not sorry at all."

"Why should I trust a word that comes from your mouth? Do you even understand what you're asking of me? To put my faith in a stranger when all my life I have been stomped on and berated. I don't know what to believe anymore."

"You don't have to believe anything I say. Only time will tell." He said, massaging his temple and getting up.

"I'll be out for a while." He said, closing the suite door behind him forcefully.

"Fuck you." She shouted after he left. He was the mad one? He didn't get to act like the victim now. He was the one who had all the choices in the world. He was the one who got to leave when he felt suffocated while she was stuck inside because she had nowhere to go. He said that he had no choices yet every time he was the one who had the chance to leave when things got too hard, and she was left to bear the consequences of the choice they made alone.

He had friends who cared, a family that loved him, no matter how unconventional they were, and most importantly the freedom to walk away. And yet he dared to act like had gotten the short end of the stick.

Livid, she locked herself in her room and pulled out her frustration on the mound of pillows on her bed.

She was sure she wouldn't be guilt-tripped into thinking she had misjudged him as the hours went by and she was left alone with her thoughts yet his words were on replay. Some of his words were making sense, and she hated that she could've been wrong. She remembered what it was like when her mother-in-law treated her like a vermin, but she ended up doing the same thing with Woo Bin.

He hadn't been utterly bad to her. Insensitive and cruel at times but when it came to what mattered the most, he held her hands in front of that officiant and calmed her in what was one of the scariest moments of her life.

He still wasn't trustworthy nor did she think what he did was right, but she could've been projecting her anger on the wrong person. If she thought about it hard enough, it wasn't him all her anger should be directed at. He was the low-hanging fruit.

She willed her body to sleep to escape this suffocating feeling, but her body had gotten all the sleep it needed and she was left tossing and turning angrily.

Her failed attempts were interrupted by the sound of the suite door opening. It wasn't long before there was a knock on her room door. She didn't want to see him, so she didn't reply.

"If you don't want me to come in then you have to say so now."

Again, she kept her silence, so he came in anyway.

She lay on the bed, her back was to the door and she didn't bother turning to face him.

"I know you're awake." He broke the silence.

"It's okay if you don't want to talk to me. I only came here to apologize. I didn't mean to hurt you with my words. I know that what I did was awful to you and maybe unforgivable, but I want you to know that everything I have done up till now was done with good intentions for you. I don't expect you to trust me right away, but I hope my words will provide you some comfort in the meantime."

Hee Jin hesitated. She was still angry, but she felt her resolve wavering each time he spoke to her. At least, he was truthful to her. He manipulated her along the lines at some points but never lied to her.

"I apologize as well. I didn't know I hurt you the first time we met. I don't appreciate it either when people dehumanize me. But that doesn't give you the right to walk away whenever you feel like it. You said you were trying to make it up to me, but you show me each time that you can walk away so easily while I'm left to suffer." She said in a soft voice, her back still to him. She didn't dare to face him.

"Is that what you think I'm doing? I thought I was doing you a favour by not showing my face to you since you find me revolting."

"Are you going there?" She raised her eyebrows although he couldn't see.

She felt the bed sink beside her as she realized he was sitting behind her.

Swiftly, she turned to face him. He was sitting sideways on the bed with a foot dangling on the ground.

"I'm joking." He smiled at her.

"I didn't mean to make you feel alone. I wanted you to know that seeing me wasn't an obligation and that you could have space from me whenever you wanted." He clarified.

"I don't want to feel like I'm the only one carrying the weight of this, whatever this is, on my own. I can't be the one staying behind while you run away."

"I'm not running away. If anything, I'm giving you the chance to run away from me. But if it makes you feel better if I stay then that's what I'll do unless you tell me otherwise." He promised.

"I'll try to make this work however you like, Hee Jin. But I need you to trust in me a bit. I would never harm you or let anyone do so."

"I'll try to." She said, softening at his earnest words.

She was no longer angry nor feeling miserable for herself. Instead, Hee Jin felt a foreign wave of comfort wash over her as she held his eyes.

This was the second time Woo Bin had managed to be there for her when it truly mattered.