Chapter Text
It was the third week of the girls’ hiatus. The third week since Gwi-Ma had been defeated. The third week since they had all agreed—no more secrets. And for the first time in what felt like forever, everything seemed much calmer.
The day started like any other—little giggles and jokes while making coffee, a relaxing silence while watching TV, nothing out of the ordinary. At least, that’s how the two of them felt — as if nothing was happening. But inside one particular, very colorful head was chaos, a whole freaking tornado, making a cute, always bubbling, full of energy maknae, silent. Zoey tried to act normal, as if nothing was wrong, but it was hard to pretend, while every time the two other girls laughed and made comments about some stupid decisions in their K-drama, she just sat there, staring blankly at the screen, not even noticing what was going on.
“Is everything okay?”
Finally, a familiar low voice cut through Zoey’s thoughts, making her blink. She looked dully at the pink-haired girl.
“Hm?”
Zoey tilted her head slightly, frowning.
“Is everything okay? You’re really quiet today, Zo.”
Mira squinted, trying to read Zoey, what wasn’t too hard, since Zoey was like an open book most of the time.
Zoey straightened up and plastered a big fake smile on her face.
“Of course, everything fine, why wouldn’t it be?”
She chuckled, crossing her arms over her chest.
Mira exchanged a look with Rumi and arched an eyebrow.
“Are you sure? If something’s going on you can...”
“Yes! No worries, I just zoned out for a sec, y’know… turtles.”
Zoey cut her quickly off and grinned at them, trying really hard to draw the attention away from her.
The girls exchanged another look and shrugged it off for now. They had all promised no more secrets, so they believed Zoey would tell them sooner or later what was going on— or at least, that’s what they thought. The truth is, Zoey doesn’t want them to know—now or ever. The truth could destroy their relationships, or even the whole Hunter/X, and she won’t allow it. Especially now, after everything they had been through.
Noticing that the girls had returned to their K-drama and feeling like she was trapped in some kind of cage, Zoey stood up and stretched.
“You know what, I think I need a little bit of fresh air... and SNACK!”
She bounced on her feet and then jumped over the back of the couch.
”I’m gonna go to store!”
Without even waiting for a response from the girls, she grabbed her shoes and almost sprinted out of the penthouse, leaving Rumi and Mira as confused as ever.
—————
Zoey wandered for a while, walking forward. The fresh air calmed her and her thoughts a little, but the number of cars and people who might recognize her was overwhelming—especially since she had forgotten her mask and hat. The little maknae stopped for a second, thinking about where she could go to have some time just for herself. And then, after a minute, it hit her. She knew one place that was always calm and quiet. It’s a stupid idea—a reckless one—but God, she needs it. Zoey caught a taxi, and once inside, she muttered quietly “Airport, I need to get to Jeju Island.”
—————
Jeju Island. Was, as expected, calm and quiet. Zoey took a deep breath as she saw a familiar house and the solitary tree. She walked closer to the seonangdang, noticing the little ribbons tied to its branches. This place brought back many memories—both good and bad. Her eyes darted to a nearby bench, and she could hear voices from the past echoing in her head.
“I miss America and my dad, and mom.”
“It is okay to feel down sometimes, but don’t let it distract you.” — a quiet shift. — “If it makes you feel better... I’ll give you a phone later and you can call them, hm?”
“I didn’t expect to see anyone here”
Zoey almost jumped out of her skin at the sudden voice and turned around, clutching her hands to her pounding heart. Looking straight at Celine, she let out a breath.
“Celine...” — she cleared her throat. — “H... hi.”
“Hi.”
The older woman looked at Zoey, frowning.
“What brings you here?”
Zoey shifted her weight from one foot to the other, crossing her arms over her chest. Her fingers fiddled with the hem of her sleeves.
“Um.. Well, I just needed a quiet place, y’know. And this is the best I know... is it a problem, because if...”
“It’s not.”
Celine cut her off quickly, crossing her arms as well.
“You are welcome. Take your time.”
The woman turned on her heel and walked deeper into the garden, leaving Zoey standing there with her thoughts and memories.
She did as Celine said, taking her time as she walked through the garden, thinking about everything that had happened—how it was now and how it had been. She noticed an old training machine, remembering her first bruises and the arena, when Rumi had kicked her ass for the first time. The memories brought a small smile to her lips, but when she walked into a certain area with a grave, the smile faded away. She found Celine sitting there, staring at the headstone. Zoey hesitated for a moment but decided to come closer. She stood next to the older woman and looked at the inscriptions on the stone. She bit her lips and cleaned her throat.
“Can I ask you something?”
Celine didn’t look at her, didn’t stir, just sat still.
“Yes?”
Her voice came out small, as if it belonged to someone other than the legendary Sunlight Sister.
“I know what happened here—we all know. Rumi told us. And I was wondering… why?”
Zoey sat next to Celine, frowning.
“I mean, I don’t understand. You’ve always seemed to care about me, noticed me, tried to help me. But why have you never been like that with her? You raised her; you should love her.”
“I love her.”
“But you refused to look at her. Why?”
A bit of silence ensued. Celine shifted slightly and finally looked at Zoey, allowing her to take in the woman sitting next to her. She looked like a mess—big bags under her eyes, pale skin, and disheveled hair. Evidence of sleepless nights and a poor diet.
“It’s complicated.”
Zoey frowned, tilting her head a little.
“Is it really?”
“It really is.”
“Why don’t you tell me?”
“What are you doing here?”
Zoey frowned even more and leaned back slightly.
“That’s rude. You shouldn’t answer a question with a question.”
A small smile appeared on Zoey’s lips. Celine blinked at her and huffed quietly.
“Why should I tell you if you won’t tell me what you’re doing here and why you need a quiet place?”
Zoey bit her lip slightly.
“It’s stupid.”
“It’s not, if it bothers you.”
Zoey looked at the headstone again, pulling her knees to her chest.
“I’ll tell you if you tell me what’s so complicated.”
Celine sighed heavily and let her gaze rest on the headstone, taking a moment to consider her options.
“Okay, so... we have a deal. I’m listening.”
Zoey took a moment to think—how could she talk about something like this with, of all people, Celine? It was going to be really awkward. She let out a heavy sigh and rested her head on her knees.
“Do you know about the Saja boys? I mean, of course you do. They were demons, and… well, one of them found out about Rumi's patterns, and apparently, they met a few times… a lot? I don’t know, anyway.” — She shook her head slightly. — “God, how do I even tell you… Rumi’s going to kill me.” — A heavy sigh slipped from her lips. — “She... recently told us that she started having feelings for him, and when he… well, gave her a soul and disappeared, she started grieving over him. She said it was the first time she felt like this and... that she would never love again!”
Zoey spat out the story, keeping it short, but didn’t notice when she started to feel angry and grind her teeth. She clenched her hands into fists, looking forward as if she could hit the headstone in front of her—which would be really rude, so she wouldn’t do it.
Celine looked at Zoey for a moment, gathering the information and her thoughts. She brought herself to place a hand on the little maknae’s shoulder to calm her slightly. The gesture snapped Zoey out of her spiraling, and she looked at Celine as well. She took a deep breath and decided to continue.
“The thing is… I fell for her… a long time ago, but I was too scared to say anything. I still am. I don’t want to destroy anything, but…” — Zoey clenched her hands even tighter, until they started to hurt. — “Every time I look at her, I see him… mocking me, smiling, with that look… like he was first, like he was the only one. And it hurts… more and more every day… and I don’t know what to do. I can’t live like this.”
She shook her head and felt a wet spot on her cheek. Her hand instantly shot to her face to wipe away a tear. She couldn’t cry in front of Celine—she couldn’t be that pathetic.
Celine looked at Zoey for some time in silent, it almost looked like she lost in her thoughts, till she blinked. Her hand tuck Zoey’s hair behind her ears, catching little maknae off guard, she looked at older woman confused a little. Celine just took out a short sigh, softening her eyes.
“I... I think I understand what you feel...”
This statement caught Zoey even more off guard — what did that even mean, how could she possibly understand? She noticed a little smile at Celine’s mouth, which told her that, she looked at her mentor like a lost puppy.
“I guess it’s my turn, hm?” — Another short sigh was heard from the older woman and so she began. — “It started a long time ago, when Rumi’s mother, Mi-yeong, met a man, which turned out to be a demon. She felt for him, and it seemed he felt for her. They seemed to be happy.”
“You weren’t.”
Zoey couldn’t stop herself from making a short comment.
“I wasn’t. They were happy at least at start. Till Mi-yeong got pregnant. This changed everything,”
Celine looked at the headstone and tightened her jaw. Her hand without her knowledge found Zoey’s hand and squeezed her slightly.
“He didn’t want to be a father, didn’t want this child. He told her to get rid of a problem. A. Problem.” — She squeezed her even harder. Zoey blanked on the information she just heard. — “Mi-yeong disagreed, she wanted this baby, so she hid from him and asked me to help. I agreed of course and for some time everything went well, Mi-yeong was healthy, the baby was healthy, and we just lived here.” — A hint of nostalgia appeared in her eyes. — “Till, somehow, he found out that she didn’t get rid of a baby, and he found us. He was furious, a full demon, he attacked her... I... couldn't do anything, I tried but... it was too late. At least for Mi-yeong... she was 8 months pregnant so... I decided that I tried at least save a baby... I will skip this part, but I guess you understand...” — Celine gave a short looked at Zoey, who just nodded a little. — “I promised to myself, Mi-yeon and Rumi, that when I have sure that Rumi will be safe and healthy, I will hunt this... bastard down. Which I did. Do you now understand why it’s so complicated... to just look at... patterns on her.”
Celine gave Zoey a long look. The little maknae sat there blankly, her thoughts spiraling, beginning to grasp a much, much wider perspective of the story. Zoey snapped out of her daze and stared at Celine, shocked.
“Oh my God, Celine...” — Her hand automatically rose to her cheek. — “You just... oh God...”
Zoey looked at Celine for a bit in silence again.
“You can’t look at the patterns because... they remind you of... that... that pain and everything....”
“You’ve started to connect the threads.”
A small, sad smile appeared on Celine’s lips.
“You literally...” — Zoey hesitated, searching for the right words. — “brought her to life. Fuck... I think I’m gonna throw up. I mean… I understand so much more now.”
Zoey shook her head slightly, seeing Celine in such a different light now. Everything started to make sense. And then it hit her. “I understand.”
“You loved her... Mi-yeong.”
“I did. And I never brought myself to tell her.”
Another quiet sigh slipped from Celine, and then silence fell between the two women. Zoey’s hand slid from Celine’s cheek to her shoulder, her brows furrowed as she looked at the woman before her. She licked her lips, torn, until the realization struck.
Celine was alone. She had lost her band, she had lost her love, and now she had lost her daughter. And in that moment, Zoey decided: she would not let this woman be alone. She knew what it was like to be hated and abandoned — and she would not allow anyone else to go through what she had gone through. Not even someone who had endured far more than she ever had.
She would not let Celine be alone.