by Marian Tee
Park bristled at the possessive tone of the other man’s voice. His head snapped to Violet, whose face was now entirely white, her body stiff with tension.
“Maybe we can talk somewhere privately for a moment?”
Violet nodded jerkily at the other man’s oily-sounding request, her eyes turning to the manager. Park inhaled sharply, not liking the look in those eyes. It was as if she was pleading them not to interfere but at the same time she was pleading for help.
“Please take your time,” their manager said, making a small bow as he did. Park had always appreciated how traditionally courteous their manager was, but right now he wished the older man could be rude and stricter, maybe even get mad and prevent Violet from leaving.
“You’re not going to stop them?” Akito asked as all their gazes followed Violet and the other man as they walked through the hotel’s back exit.
Did he have a right to stop her? And should he stop her even if he did? Park didn’t know if there were any right answers to those questions, but what he did know was that he hated seeing Violet let the other man take her hand.
* * * *
It was stupid of Violet to think Park would come after her, that he would shout “stop” and take her away from the man standing next to her now.
Stupid, Violet told herself firmly even though she had the strongest urge to cry. Stupid, stupid, stupid! She had to be strong and not depend on Park or anyone else.
“This is really where you want to talk?” Andrew asked in disgust. “In some abandoned alley?”
Just his voice alone made Violet want to take a shower, several times. He made her feel so unclean. He made her feel so fake, too, like the Violet that everyone here knew wasn’t the real her.
But it was. It had been. The fake Violet was the one who had been with Andrew. She had to remember that.
Violet had been fifteen when she fell in love with Andrew. He had been the hottest guy in school and since most people considered her the hottest girl in school, it felt like serendipity for them to be together.
Her lips twisted at the memories, at the way she had been so happy with the way everyone thought they were the perfect couple. It only showed how stupid she had been back then.
When Andrew had asked her out, she had been over the moon. She had really thought he was the one–the only guy who didn’t think she was a slut just because she liked to flirt. But she had been so wrong.
“Reminiscing about the past, love?” Andrew sneered, seeing the look on Violet’s face.
She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of showing him how much he bothered her. Violet asked tonelessly, “What do you want?”
Andrew hated how composed Violet was now, a far cry from the broken mess she had been when she turned up for her first day in college, her eyes bright with hope in thinking she could start again—only to realize that Andrew had gotten to everyone already.
Everyone in their high school had thought Violet was a slut. It had been easy to make everyone believe him, the way Violet looked, dressed, and acted with the guys. And when they graduated, Andrew made sure they had gotten into the same college. He had spent a fortune entertaining the college crowd, just to make sure he was able to spread the same rumors about her, hoping it would force Violet to turn to him.
Andrew had wanted Violet to realize that she needed him to make things right. He thought isolating her would do the trick, but what he hadn’t fucking counted on was for Violet to run away and put an ocean between them, hiding in this strange country that Andrew always thought was for freaks. Worse, he didn’t count on everyone doubting his word with Violet gone, as if everyone felt guilty for playing a part in pushing her away.
“You look beautiful, Vi.”
Once, hearing such words from Andrew would have made Violet smile. Now, it only made her feel even more revolted, remembering how easily she had fallen for his fake charm.
“I don’t want you coming here again.” She could see that her words irritated him. She had spent enough time with Andrew to know when he was close to losing his temper, which he often did. His eyes would narrow into slits, like a venomous snake, and his mouth would have a petulant look to it, like a child who was used to getting his way. Those things described exactly how Andrew looked now, and it chilled her.
How in the world had she ever fallen in love with Andrew?
“Why is that, Vi? Is it because you’ve found a new boy to fool around with?” he taunted. “Made him think you’re game to do anything when all along you’re a frigid virgin who doesn’t know what to do with her body?” He caught her wrist as she attempted to slap him, laughing almost maniacally as he savored the look of fear on Violet’s face. “Nobody here knows about your past.” The look in her eyes was answer enough and Andrew’s own gaze gleamed. “My poor love,” he said mockingly. “Are you afraid they’re not going to like you when they learn what a whore you are?”
“You’re hurting me.” She gritted the words out, telling herself she had nothing to fear. Although they were standing at the empty alley behind her workplace, it was still a public street. Surely if she screamed someone would come running to help her.
But if she screamed, Park would know and…she didn’t want that.
“Then scream for help,” he said slyly, as if reading her mind.
She couldn’t say anything.
An ugly, triumphant grin slashed his lips. “But you can’t, can you? Because here they probably think what other people used to think about you—that you’re a sweet sexy angel everyone can only look at but can’t touch. They don’t know that you once had ten naked men in a room with you and they were all going to take turns—”
One moment Andrew was nearly salivating in his rage in front of Violet, and then the next thing Violet knew he had been bodily tossed to the sidewalk across from them, his nose bleeding from Park’s punch.
Violet turned around with a cry, just in time to see a livid-looking Park about to walk past her. “Park, wait!” She did her best to pull him back, not wanting him to get involved.
Park forced himself to stop, hearing the genuine distress in Violet’s voice. He had badly wanted to beat the other man up at the way he had manhandled Violet. But Park had restrained himself, knowing that Violet wouldn’t want him to see her at a disadvantage.
However, all thoughts of letting Violet handle her battles on her own flew out of the window when he heard those last words.
He looked down at Violet, managing to keep his voice soft and gentle even though he was shaking in his effort not to go after the other man again. “Do me a favor, Violet.”
She swallowed. “Please let this go, Park.”
How that fool had been fucking lucky enough to make Violet fall for him was beyond Park’s imagination. But that was the past, and this was the present. He would not let this idiot hurt Violet again.
The emotions inside him were too strong and violent—it had been so long since he felt this much and it terrified him. But what was more terrifying was the fear lurking in her dark eyes. Park couldn’t stand not doing anything when Violet had that look in her eyes. “Please go in and I’ll take care of this for you.”
She shook her head quickly. “No. Just please—let me handle this, please. I know how to handle him.” In the corner of her eye, she saw Andrew picking himself up from the ground, a familiar nasty look on his face. It scared Violet, that look—Andrew was used to getting what he wanted and he was the type not to stop at anything if he was crossed. As far as she knew, Park was the only one who had gotten to Andrew this way, and she was sure it was a slight Andrew wouldn’t let go of so easily.
Half of Park wanted to do what Violet had said. He hadn’t signed up for this, hadn’t wanted to be friends with Violet in the first place. But the other half of him had already crossed a line he didn’t want to think about, and that part already thought of Violet as his.
“Park, don’t talk to him—” Andrew was walking towards them, his face murderous, and the sight caused Violet’s voic
e to shake.
“Yeah, you Asian freak, go and run before I make you pay for what you’ve done,” Andrew spat.
Park didn’t even turn to look at Andrew. “Trust me, Violet. Let me take care of this.” He paused. “Of you.”
She gasped, and Park knew she had more than understood how much it cost him to say those words.
After his breakup, he hadn’t just sworn off women. He had completely sworn off all kinds of complications, preferring to isolate himself and live without even friends.
But this time Park was choosing to get involved, to claim someone as his, and to just fucking care enough to do something.
“Park…” Violet choked. He could see that there were words brimming on her lips she wanted to say but couldn’t. He gazed at her steadily, willing her to understand that there was nothing to fear.
Violet drew in another shaky breath. Had he heard everything Andrew said? And if Park had, what did he think of her now? Violet looked into his eyes searchingly, unable to believe the calmness on Park’s face was real.
“Go.”
Violet closed her eyes, knowing she was about to take one of the biggest risks in her life. Please God, please let this be the right thing to do. And then she was whirling away without a word, quickly walking back to the hotel without even looking back.
“Where the hell are you going?” Andrew tried to catch up with Violet, but Park effortlessly held him back, twisting the other man’s arm so he would look at Park.
Andrew cried out in pain as he turned to Violet’s co-worker. Who the hell was this jerk anyway? “Do you know who I am?” he half-screamed. “You’re going to pay for your life for what you—aaah!” The other man had twisted his arm even harder this time, and he crashed to his knees from the pain.
“What’s your name?” Park asked quietly, still not letting go.
“Fuck—aaah!” Andrew moaned in pain when the other man released his hold only so he could punch Andrew in the guts, hard enough to have him thrown on his back to the cold hard ground.
“I’ll ask you one last time. What’s your name?”
“Andrew Schwartz,” he spat. “I’m the son of Jonathan Schwartz. Ever heard of him? He’s the richest man in Florida and he’s going to sue you for—” Andrew ended up choking on his blood, with Park kicking him hard on the ribs just before pummeling his face nonstop.
When Park pulled away, Andrew’s face was multicolored with bruises, eyes swollen shut, and blood pouring out from his mouth. Staring down at the pathetic lying piece of shit in front of him, Park said in a menacingly soft voice, “Listen well, you son of a bitch. You will not come near Violet again. You will never contact her, never talk about her, never even think about her. If I ever catch you doing any of these things, you will regret it.”
He crouched down, taking satisfaction at the way Andrew instantly tried to move away, which only caused him to groan at the pain that unwise movement caused.
“Don’t move, Andrew. I’m not yet finished and you’re just pissing me off every time you try to escape me.”
Andrew froze.
Park snapped his fingers.
It was a curious thing to do, at the very least, enough to make Andrew force his less-injured eye open. What he saw made him close his eyes again, wishing he hadn’t looked. He was completely surrounded, men in dark suits, their faces ruthlessly stoic—the kind that wouldn’t blink when asked to take a life.
Park gave Andrew a feral smile. “Do you see them, Andrew? They’re with me all the time and they’re paid to protect me. I’m now going to tell them to check up on you all the time because I think you’re a threat. I’m telling them now that if I feel there’s a slightest possibility you’re coming back at me or Violet, they shouldn’t hesitate to kill you. Do you understand?”
His Adam’s apple bobbing furiously in his throat, Andrew found himself nodding jerkily, knowing that the threat was real.
“Tomorrow, I’m going to expect you to email me the video—yes, I know you have a video. Guys like you always do. You’ll give it to me and then get rid of whatever copies you have of it. Sometime in the future, men will go through your computer, your home, everything that belongs to you, and if I find out you’re keeping a copy…well, you know what’s going to happen, right?”
Andrew nodded. When he opened his eyes, the man Violet was with was gone. The others had blended back into the darkness, but it didn’t matter. They were there. Andrew could feel their eyes on him, and it forced him to move fast, cursing the day he had met Violet York with every aching step he made.
* * * *
Violet refused to look at Park for the entire shift after he came back to work, still speechless with suppressed rage. For most his life he thought of the entourage of security that went with him wherever he was as ridiculous and even embarrassing. Today was the first time he had found a use for it, and if it was the only way to keep Violet safe, then Park would gladly bear having them present every fucking minute.
His fists involuntarily clenched, his vision going red every time he thought about Schwartz’ words. That fucking jerk didn’t even deserve to be in the same world Violet was in, much less have his fingers graze Violet’s precious skin.
Ten p.m. came sooner rather than later, and it was time to clock out again, with Violet and Park still not exchanging a word. Being proud as Violet was, Park figured she would probably have found an excuse not even to go home with him tonight, maybe have one of the girls tell him she had gone somewhere else.
It was no surprise then that Park did a double take when after locking the store, he turned around and almost crashed into a pale and silent Violet. “You little—” He caught himself in time, the words coming out almost instinctively. “—poor thing,” he ended instead, for a moment at a loss at what to do. He was not the type to feel an urge to comfort a girl on the verge of crying, but the way Violet looked right now made Park feel strangely protective.
“Hey.” A wobbly smile touched Violet’s lips.
The smile hit him right at the center of his heart, and Park lost control. He forgot all about wanting not to have anything to do with girls–especially in public–and closed the distance between them in one stride.
Violet gasped in shock as Park hauled her to his arms.
“There’s nothing to be afraid of anymore,” he said fiercely against her hair, his arms tightening around him and feeling violently murderous at the way her small slim body shook against him. Schwartz was lucky not to be around or Park would have beaten him again, the way he was feeling now.
Violet wiped away her tears but then they kept falling. What the hell? Violet decided to let it all go and she started crying almost right away, drenching Park’s shirt.
Park’s jaw dropped, unable to believe Violet was allowing him to see her crying. And in his arms no less! “Violet?” He tried pulling away to look down at her but she resisted, burrowing deeper into his chest.
“It’s your fault!” she sobbed out, crumpling his shirt in her hand in a futile effort to keep herself from crying.
“What the hell are you talking about?” he hissed. Since Violet had said those words in Japanese, most of the guests in the lobby area had understood her and were now throwing Park dirty looks after glancing at Violet sympathetically.
Violet suddenly tore away from his hold and ran to the exit, still sobbing loudly. More accusing looks went his way, which he tried his best to ignore even as he called out Violet’s name. “Violet, dammit, wait!”
This time, the women in the area openly scowled at him. Park gritted his teeth, torn between wanting to comfort Violet and strangling her for making everyone look at him as if he were a woman beater.
Outside the hotel, she was sobbing as she tried hailing for a cab. “Why are you crying? Everything’s okay! Don’t you believe me?” Park couldn’t stand waiting for her answer, unable to bear the way she was crying her heart out.
He hauled her back in his arms again and lifted his hand to hail a cab. When
a cab arrived a moment later, Park quickly bundled her inside. Shutting the door closed, Park glanced at the still-crying Violet in consternation.
“Why are you crying?”
“I don’t know!” she snarled in English, still sobbing with her hands covering her face. “I wish I wasn’t, but I just can’t seem to stop!” She inhaled deeply. “This is your fault!”
Park swallowed down his instinctive retort. “Yeah, it is,” he gritted out. “I’m sorry then. Please stop crying?”
“I’m trying.” She glared at him with tear-glazed eyes. “I didn’t plan to cry, you know!”
Park paused. “Does that mean…you sometimes deliberately plan to cry?”
Violet sniffed. “Yeah.”
Park hid a smile. “But you didn’t plan to now.”
She choked on another sob. “No…but then I saw you and I realized how stupid I was so I cried.” She let out a loud wail. “Like I’m doing now!”
He was about to answer when he caught sight of the cab driver giving him a nasty look through the rearview mirror. Oh for fuck’s sake! Since they had been speaking English the whole while, the cab driver only had their voices and actions to go by. Park scowled back. Did everyone really think he was capable of making this she-devil cry?
“It’s not my fault,” he said defensively in Japanese.
“You should be ashamed of yourself,” the driver retorted before giving Violet a sympathetic smile through the mirror. “There, there, miss, it’s okay. You don’t deserve a loser like him.”
Violet let out a teary laugh.
Park glared at her. “Find this funny huh?”
She nodded, smiling a little. “Yeah.”
By the time they reached their dormitory, Violet had finally managed to keep her tears in check. Mortified by her outburst, Violet couldn’t even look at Park. The moment they stepped inside, she turned away, mumbling over her shoulder, “See you tomorrow—”
“Oh no, you don’t,” Park said grimly and dragged her inside his room.
Violet waited for Park to reprimand her for being such a crybaby. After all, he hated it every time she got a little too emotional, would go as far as deliberately bribing Violet just so she wouldn’t talk about anything sentimental.