9
ヽ(°〇°)ﾉ
Location: Sophia's room
*Sophia pov*
Where am I?
I open my eyes slowly and check my surroundings. This is the room I was kept in by Katseye. Did they get me out? I look down and see nearly my whole body wrapped in bandages.
I get up out of bed and take slow, painful steps toward the full-body mirror. When I finally stand in front of it, I unwrap the bandages one by one.
I gasp when I see what was underneath them. Yunjin stayed true to her promise. She ruined me. All over my body, there are ugly wounds that will most likely scar.
I trace my fingers over them slightly and flinch when I feel a sting. I'm ugly. How will Manon ever want me like this?
It almost seems like I summoned her through my thoughts when the door opens, and Manon walks through. She puts down whatever she's holding and walks towards me with a worried expression on her face.
"What are you doing?! You shouldn't be walking around right now."
She reaches out towards me, and I back away. I turn my back towards her to try and hide the ugly scars on my body, but she carefully takes my hand and tries to turn me back towards her.
"What's wrong?"
Sophia looks down at the floor and fiddles with her dress.
"Aren't you disgusted by my appearance?"
"No. Never. You are beautiful no matter what."
Manon puts her index finger under my chin and lifts my face so my eyes can meet hers. She wipes away the tears that fell from my cheeks unnoticed and places a kiss on each cheek.
"When your wounds heal, I will kiss every single one. No matter what anyone says to me, you are the most beautiful woman in the world."
Sophia nods and smiles brightly.
"Thank you. I would hug you if I could." I say as I slowly start making my way towards my bed.
Manon puts my arm around her shoulder and supports me until I sit on the bed. She goes into the bathroom and comes out with the first aid kit.
She takes out the bandages and starts wrapping up my legs, arms, and torso. Then, after she's finished, she guides me to lie on the bed and wraps her arms around me as she lies down next to me.
I blush at Manon's actions and turn my face towards hers. She's already looking at me when I meet her eyes. She lifts her hand and tucks a loose strand of hair behind my ear before gently kissing my lips. When she pulls away, she sits up with an apologetic look.
"I'm so sorry." She says.
"I'm so sorry for not finding you soon enough. Because of how long it took for me to find you, you suffered so much and- "
I cut her off with a finger against her mouth and shake my head.
"You did your best, and you found me. You could have just ignored the fact that I was kidnapped and left me to my fate, but you didn't. You did your best trying to find me, and now here I am. So don't think for a second that you need to apologize, okay?"
Manon nods and lies back down. They stay like that for a while, lying in each other's arms while looking each other in the eye until someone knocks on the door.
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*Author pov*
Yoonchae's sitting in her office while looking down at a document. She smiles down at it. Finally, Manon's birthday present is finished.
Today, all shall be revealed. She gets up out of her chair and walks towards Sophia's room, where she knows Manon will be, with the document in hand.
When Yoonchae stands in front of Sophia's bedroom door, she knocks on it and awaits a response. She hears rustling and then light footsteps coming towards the door. The door opens, and Yoonchae isn't surprised when Manon is the one to stand in the opening.
"Yoonchae? What are you doing here?" Manon asks.
"Hi Yoonchae!" Yoonchae hears Sophia shout from somewhere behind Manon.
"Hi, I'm here to see you." Yoonchae points at Manon.
"Why?" Manon asks.
Yoonchae doesn't respond and just hands her the document. Manon opens it, and a confused expression takes over her face. She holds up the document.
"What is this?" She asks.
"Happy birthday. Let's go to my office; we have a lot to talk about."
Manon nods and tells Sophia where she's going before following Yoonchae to her office. When they're in the office, Yoonchae closes and locks the door.
She takes a seat behind her desk, folds her hands together on the table, and looks at the seated Manon, who only looks at her with a face of doubt. Manon throws the document on the table.
"What the hell is this?" She asks sternly. Even though Yoonchae is the leader, Manon is still older than her and practically raised her when she left home. Yoonchae sighs.
"This is related to what the girls and I were working on down the hallway." Manon tenses.
"A few months ago, before we chose Sophia as your bride, Daniela came up with a plan to kidnap the old man who we owe money to and wants to marry you and make him sign these documents.
These documents are a contract that states that he transfers all his assets and armies to Katseye and that the debt is forgiven. It'll be released tomorrow at 3 AM."
Yoonchae takes a deep breath and continues.
"We couldn't let you in the hallway because it would ruin the surprise as it's your birthday present."
Manon is shocked at the confession. They kidnapped someone. And not just someone but the most powerful boss in all of the United States. For months, he was locked up down the hallway, and somehow, they got away with it.
Manon is happy about the news that they no longer owe him but also worried. Now, she doesn't have a valid reason to keep Sophia close.
"Are you mad?" Yoonchae asks.
"Of course I am. You could have gotten in some real trouble if his people found out it was you. Next time you decide to do something so reckless, you better tell me right away."
Yoonchae nods. Manon sighs. She finally got her answer after so long, but there is still one thing bothering her.
"Yoonchae...did you know about Daniela? And her...feelings?"
Yoonchae chuckles. She was waiting for Manon to ask that question.
"Yes, we all know. When I told them about my idea to make you marry someone else to avoid marrying that old man in case the plan failed, she offered to do it. But I know you don't love her like that, and it would be cruel to make you marry her when you see her as a sister."
Manon smiles at Yoonchae's answer. Yoonchae knew about it but kept a safe distance and made sure to consider Manon's feelings.
During this moment Manon realized how mature Yoonchae truly is, and that she raised her well. Manon stands up and walks behind the desk to give Yoonchae a warm hug.
"Thank you, Yoonchip. Thank you for always taking care of us. Just don't forget that you are still the youngest and that you are allowed to rely on us more, okay?"
Yoonchae nods and returns the hug. Manon was always there for her during hard times, so she's very happy that she got to do something for her in return. After talking with Yoonchae some more, Manon leaves her office and heads back to Sophia's room.
When she stands outside the door, she hears voices. She opens the door and stands face-to-face with Daniela.
"Why are you here?!" Manon questions.
She quickly walks up to Sophia and checks if she's okay. Daniela is hurt by how Manon brushes past her, but quickly masks her hurt. Sophia reassures Manon that she's alright, and pats the spot next to her on the bed. Manon takes a seat and waits.
Sophia signals Daniela. She understands and leaves the room quietly. After she closes the door, an unspoken tension fills the air. Sophia breaks the silence.
"Daniela told me. About your...gift."
Manon takes a deep breath and prepares herself for the conversation.
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