ᝰ. She's Dating The Gangster !?
╰┈➤ 07. red is your color ₍ᐢ. .ᐢ₎ ₊˚⊹♡
With your phone on speakerphone, you wait for your mother to speak. You grab the safely protected Clefairy card from your bedside table, only to idly examine it - an everyday action that slowly became as natural as breathing for the past couple of days after you had received it.
You sat up and stopped fidgeting with the card at the tone of her voice. You hadn't heard that tone since you were eight years old. It was the kind of tone she used whenever she had caught you red-handed, drawing on the walls of your tiny apartment.
"There's a boy outside the door. He said he's here to court you."
You were already out of your room, descending two stairs at a time.
Could it be Kuni? No, even you're aware enough to cancel that delusional thought out.
Could it be a prank? Maybe someone was just messing with you.
Or could it be - no. You didn't even want to think about him in that scenario.
"Ah, there you are [Name]."
And that scenario had just come true.
Standing outside your door was Lohen, looking as composed and as carefree as ever. At the sight of his grin, all thoughts of him letting your past actions slide flew right out of the window.
"It's nice to finally meet you, miss. Outside of the hospital, of course. I know we've already met, but I wanted to introduce myself properly if I wanted to be your daughter's suitor." He addressed your mother and handed her a simple yet elegant bouquet of tulips.
"Suitor?" Your mother asked, flabbergasted as she took the bouquet.
"Yes, with your permission."
You and your mother could only stare at each other. She didn't look happy about this, yet she also didn't look displeased. The gears were turning inside her head, and you didn't like it one bit.
He started to advance towards you with the most sadistic, shit-eating grin you have ever seen.
He was holding a bouquet of roses.
"Here," he hands you the bouquet, his fingers lingering as you make contact. "Red is definitely your color." He whispers into your ear.
You could feel your mother's eyes burning right into you. You wanted nothing more than to dissolve into your carpet.
"There's no need to be shy." He steps back. "I'm only here to introduce myself properly to your mother - and to get my binder back."
"No! You -" You couldn't understand what was happening, but you were fairly certain that whatever he was doing had to be some sort of act of retribution for playing him like a fool. "What are you doing!?" You take a step back, feeling the heat rising to your cheeks.
"I'm... giving you flowers?" He tilted his head in faux confusion.
"Why would you give me flowers!?"
"Because I want to court you?" He says that with utmost certainty, as if the question were already obvious.
Behind him, your mother spoke. "Lohen, would you like to join us for dinner?"
Lohen's grin only widened. "I would love to, ma'am, thank you so much."
Celestia truly had a funny way of punishing you for your sins.
You had already given him his binder and the plushie in hopes that he would just leave.
He stayed. And he was doing it. He was actually doing it. He was charming your mother, and she fell into his trap.
Nowadays, your mother always comes home exhausted. If she wasn't working, she was either sleeping or baking. Although lately, it had been more sleeping than baking. It honestly worried you at times.
And Lohen made her laugh three times tonight. You have to give him credit - he may be a threat to you, but you're thankful your mother was laughing even if it was only for tonight.
"He's such a polite young man, [Name]." Your mother whispers to you after Lohen excused himself to use the bathroom upstairs.
You groan. "I guess. But he's just being performative. And I won't accept him as a suitor." You proceed to stab your chicken with your fork. "How do you even know him?"
"Remember Doctor Zandik?" Your mother started.
"The doctor I used to be scared of whenever I had appointments?" You tilt your head, recalling hospital nights where you had thought he was going to dissect you based purely on how intimidating he looked. Now, as an adult, you have grown to admire him. Although a little crazy, Doctor Zandik was truly a remarkable doctor, and you aimed to be as successful as him.
You paused mid-chew into your food, "What?" The realization dawned on you only then. "Doctor Zandik is his father? You work for Lohen's father!?" You whisper-shout.
Your mother nodded. "And Lohen used to be hospitalized a lot during middle school because he got into a lot of fights, from what I've heard." She pours soup into a bowl and pushes it towards you. "I was one of the nurses who tended to him a few times."
Your mind went absolutely static at the recent revelations. It was certainly clear that the cheshire cat grin, those blood-red eyes, and the minty green hair were all passed down genetically. No wonder you felt threatened by Lohen - his father was the very doctor who injected you with no comfort or reassuring words whatsoever when you were younger!
Lohen had come back down, ceasing your mind from processing further.
"Dinner was amazing, ma'am. Thank you so much for having me." He sits back down, sporting this unsettling smile as if he had just accomplished something. "But I have somewhere to be in a bit. So..." He pauses, his eyes briefly glancing over at you. "May I court your daughter?"
"No!" You exclaim a little too fast, slamming your hands against the table and rattling whatever was on it.
"As long as you can wait until graduation." Your mother replies with a smile.
"I promise." Lohen's eyes never left yours. You felt like you were on fire. "I'll wait for her even if it kills me."
Talk about cheesy and dramatic. There was no way your mother would -
"Then you may court her."
Time seemed to pause. Your mother, who would give you lectures about the dangers of young love that lasted hours. Your mother, who engraved the idea that one diploma is worth a thousand men into your brain. She had just allowed someone to pursue you. With romantic intentions. And she dared to smile!
"But I don't want him to court me!" You exclaim in desperation.
Lohen tilted his head. "You do realize the point of courting someone is to get them to like you back, right? That's literally what I'm doing right now."
"No!" You slam your fist on the table. "Courtship has rules. You can't just waltz in here, bring flowers, and expect me to agree. That's not how it works!"
"Oh yeah?" He grins. "Then how does it work, [Name]? Please, do educate me." He leans forward, resting his chin on his palm.
He wasn't taking you seriously. There was nothing you hated more in the world than feeling as if what you had to say was irrelevant. "It's supposed to be consensual, Lohen. You build a connection, and then you ask like a normal person."
"So, I should ask like a normal person?"
"And you want us," he gestures between both of you, "to build a connection."
"That's not what I said!"
Your mother sighs, pinching the bridge of her nose. "[Name], could you please bring out dessert from the fridge?"
Your head snapped towards her. "We're not done yet." Despite protesting, you stood up to grab the leftover cake from the fridge.
Just as Lohen was about to speak up, his phone started ringing, the sound cutting through the tension like a knife. His expression shifts slightly as he looks down.
"I have to answer this." He stood up. "Dinner was really good, ma'am. Thank you for having me, but I really need to go." Before heading towards the door, he took a step forward, invading your personal space and looking down at you.
You gripped the boxed cake and held his gaze, refusing to wither under it. Although you felt a bit embarrassed due to the fact that you were only in a tank top and rabbit-printed pajama pants.
"I'm going to have so much fun with you, [Name]." His voice was low, breath brushing against your ear. It was low enough that you could've mistaken it for your brain and paranoia playing tricks on you.
"Whatever you're doing, just stop it." You match his tone, never breaking eye contact. You could hear your own heart beating erratically, yet you made no move to step away from where you stood.
His response was a mere, amused chuckle as he took a step back, turning his head towards your mother. He gave her a nod before making his way to your door, a polite, performative smile making its way to his face. He briefly pauses as he collects the plushie and his binder. "I'm also thankful for you allowing me to court [Name]. I promise, I'll take good care of her."
"She didn't even allow anything!" You cut in.
"Diploma first." Your mother reminded as she started to collect the dirty plates, completely ignoring your objections.
"Of course." Lohen chuckles, his gaze landing on you. You were seething and glaring at him from across the room, which he had found amusing.
"I'll see you in class, [Name]. Call me later!" And he dares to wink at you.
Never in your life have you ever felt as compelled to throw a cake at someone's face as this.
The door clicked shut, his footsteps fading outside your door. What soon followed was silence, the fridge humming, and the plates clattering in the background.
You put the cake back into the fridge and sat down.
You cannot believe this. This has got to be the worst possible way he was punishing you.
"He seems nice." Your mother broke through the silence as she wiped a cloth on the plates. "He brought flowers, complimented my cooking, and he even asked for my permission to court you." She paused to look at you, her expression softening. "Don't you know how rare it is to find someone like that these days, [Name]?"
Your eyes were glued to the floor. "I know, Mom. I just don't like him. I can't believe you agreed." You slump into the chair. "Not like I would allow him to court me just like that. I bet he has ulterior motives."
Your mother sighs. "Hush now, [Name]. I just don't want you growing up alone."
Finally, your eyes snapped towards her. "What are you talking about?" Your posture straightens. "I have my friends, you know. There's also Kuni. And you."
"And what happens if I die?"
The world seemed to tilt at that one simple sentence.
She pauses, neatly folding the cloth and taking a moment to plan what she'll say next. "I won't be with you forever, [Name]. You'll be a doctor, you'll have friends, but who will be there to take care of you?"
You stood up so fast, the chair scraping against the floor loudly "Where -" your voice trembles. "Where is this even coming from?"
"I feel like you've become too independent." She started. "I worry that when I'm no longer here, you'll feel lonely. I just want to make sure you have someone -"
"It's not like you're going to die, Mom. Just drop it!" Your voice cracked as you felt your hands tremble and your eyes burn.
You fear that if you stayed a little longer, you would cry. You can't cry in front of your mother. You can't let her see that side of you.
"I'm going to bed." Your voice was barely above a whisper.
You couldn't hear what else she was saying as you walked away, vigorously grabbing the bouquet of roses from the coffee table as you do.
You collapse into your bed the moment you get into your room.
Those words clung to you like a prophecy you knew was bound to come true. You press your hands into your eyes, looking up and blinking your tears away.
You reach towards your bedside table, reaching for the familiar feeling of content whenever you examine that card.
Your hand reached for nothing.
You sat up so fast and started to pat the mattress, your pillows, checking under your blankets, and even seeing if it fell, but to no avail - the card that Kuni gave to you has gone missing.
Or in this case, stolen. And you knew damn well whose possession it was in.
Your eyes burn holes into the bouquet of roses perched up against your desk as if it were mocking you. You let out a frustrated scream into your pillow.
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₍ᐢ..ᐢ₎ ♡ SYNOPSIS // assuming he obtained the right number, lohen begs for his ex to come back to him and you find yourself on the other end of the line listening to the pleas of the guy who stole the position of student body vice president from you. he was none the wiser, and you found it so entertaining to watch as he poured his heart out to the wrong girl. so much so that you forgot how unpredictably cunning he was. he then stole something of value from you and dangled it over your head, using it as leverage to rope you into a deal.
as payback for playing the role of his ex, you'll now be playing the role of his new, loving girlfriend to make his actual ex so jealous that she gets back together with him.
should be simple enough, right?
a/n: holy yap bro💔 this'll be the last part i'll post before my updates will start becoming irregular since i'll be in another country for the rest of summer vacation, hence why it's a bit too long
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