@โงห p. seonghwa Rosé let out a soft chuckle but it felt hollow, masking the heaviness in her chest as she took another sip from her beer bottle. The bitterness lingered on her lips as she smacked them and let the taste settle, nodding at Seonghwa's words. She admired his kindness in supporting their mother, who was surviving on her own with little help or comfort. It made her heart ache, knowing her connection with her mother had been reduced to updates Seonghwa shared during these rare moments. She hated it—hated feeling like a stranger to the one person who would understand her pain, her isolation.
Hearing Seonghwa suggesting a visits to their mother made her feel a pang of longing and helplessness. Leaning more heavily against the rail, she brought the bottle back to her lips, savoring the drink as a temporary escape. "Mmm, I wish we could too…" she paise for a moment, eyes shift down. "... but Father has me chained to this house, always a bodyguard nearby to remind me just how little he trusts me," she murmured, her voice laced with sadness and resentment. She felt like a prisoner. Her father seeing her only as a troublesome daughter. The one that will tarnish on the family's pristine reputation.
It hurt that only Seonghwa believed her about what happened back in Seoul. He had stayed by her side, a rare ally when everyone else—including her father—had looked at her with disappointment or suspicion. She clung to that small comfort, knowing he had chosen to believe her despite everything. Yet, even now, hearing Seonghwa's voice crack as he spoke about their mother filled her with guilt. She knew he felt powerless. Witnessing her own sister arrangements as well. His hands tied by their father's strict rules. He'd had no choice in her forced engagement, just as she hadn't and it pained her to see him struggle with his own guilt.
Without thinking, she moved closer, pressing her side against his in silent support. After a hesitant pause, she laid her head on his arm, hoping he could feel her gratitude and affection through that small gesture. "It's fine, Hwa. You know we can't win against Father… not with this." She let out a long, weary sigh, her hand moving in slow circles on his back, both of them carrying the weight of their family's expectations. "Mom is stronger than anyone realizes, fighting her own battles alone. I'm grateful she didn't run far… grateful she's still somewhere within reach."
Her gaze then drifted to the sparkling lights dancing on the dark sky, blinking like distant stars, a reminder of a world beyond this open balcony, beyond her life's narrow confines. She traced absent minded patterns on her bottle, her mind filled with dreams she could barely dare to voice. "Sometimes," she begin, her tone wistful, "I imagine us with mother... Living somewhere far away… just us, without all these chains and expectations."
Rosé turn her head to study his face for a moment, feeling a pang of dread rise within her. "Did you… did you tell her about my engagement?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper as if saying it aloud might solidify her fate.
@โงห p. chaeyoung He took the bottle with a small thanks cracking it open before taking a long sip. It does feels like ages since the two had a moment like this, and he'll take this time to just enjoy it. "I can't wait until he either gives up or just kick the bucket the darn bastard." Seonghwa sighed wondering just how long before it will be. He just want the Park family to live in peace like the innocent days before their father changed for the worst. He want for Chaeyoung to freely see their mother and for their mother to see them more often in person. He was sick and tired of having to find different ways to talk to his mother. The one thing he knows for sure is he will never ever throw in the towel not when he was the only bridge between the two most important people in his life.
"Mother is feeling better I already send her this month payment." The payment in question was really just photos and updates mainly on Chaeyoung. "She misses you a lot and wishes to see us in person somehow soon. If you want to I'll make it happen even if it's only for a short time." He whispered towards the end trying to hold it all together. He felt his heart breaking when his sister confessed to missing mother. "Just let me know when you're free and I'll make it happen."
He doesn't care how much of a toll it takes on him or how many times he breaks down in the middle of the night when no one could see him. He knew since the day he learned the truth that he will do whatever it takes to protect both his mother and sister. It doesn't matter how big or small it is as long as he can make their life even the tiniest easier. The thought of what will happen if he didn't just make him go into a dark place so he tries not to think about it.
"Sometimes I wonder what happen if father didn't have custody of us. How mother, you, and myself would be as a family. How much more freedom you would have the choices you could have pick from. I-" He paused feeling his voice starting to creak. "I wish I could have done more for you-for mother for all of our happiness. Sometimes I want to just take you away try to escape from father." He confessed before closing his eyes taking another long sip of his beer.
@โงห p. seonghwa Rosé's fingers tightened around the cool neck of the beer bottle as she leaned against the balcony railing, listening to the faint hum of night settling over the estate. As she turned her head to take a peek of his visage, she saw how the argument had drained him. Seonghwa face seems tense, jaw set with the exhaustion of someone fighting battles that never seemed to end.
Hearing her real name— Chaeyoung slipping from his mouth, she felt a warmth she didn't know she still had and immediately soften. It had been so long since anyone called her that, the name like a relic of a softer, more innocent time. She felt her guarded expression slip for just a second, a faint, involuntary smile tugging at her pair of plush.
She moved closer, nudging a bottle of beer near his hand and shook her head. "Not in detail, but who cares hm?" she murmured, cracking open her own bottle, tossing the cap over the edge and watching it drop until it splashed into the pool below. She took a sip, savoring the bitterness as it hit her, grounding her.
"Don't sweat it. You know how father is. We're all tired of his ." A quiet sigh escaped her, blending with the night air as she kept her gaze on him from the corner of her eyes, knowing Seonghwa bore the brunt of their father's expectations. She hated the toll it took on him, the way it slowly chipped at his spirit, and though she wanted to shield him, she knew he'd never let her. Not when he witnessed their father took control over Rosé life and decision.
But at the mention of their mother, Rosé felt herself drift, her gaze lifting toward the stars that was sparkling the dark sky. "Is she… feeling better?" she asked softly, her voice carrying a quiet ache. She missed her mother dearly, the memory of her warmth and laughter barely more than a distant echo. Her absence had left an emptiness that she never truly understood until she was old enough to grasp what her mother had been forced to leave behind. "I miss our mother, Hwa..."
@โงห p. chaeyoung It was always maddening to Seonghwa how his father always acted, and try to control everything in his children lives. It never once fail to lead to an argument after argument even when he was a little kid. A few hours ago was no different as he was called into his father office. He let out a sighed as he went to see what that bastard wanted this time. He really shouldn't had been surprised it was about when he was going to get marry and quit his job.
He never meant to get that heated; however as time went on the more he lose control of his emotions. It was honestly like talking to a wall whenever the two tried to talk. There was no way he was ever going to quit a job that he loves so much just to as his dad always like to said "To follow in my most respectable footsteps." It was complete and utter nonsense to even think about since that's false.
The two had no idea that they gotten so loud that nearly the whole mansion could hear; however those who heard ignored it as it was a common thing. The two went back and forth for about an hour before he just went to his bedroom in order to cool off. It was a couple hours later he decided to go to the balcony using the fresh air to really clear his head. He would never understand why his dad can't see that Seonghwa is his own person not a mini me to be use to fill in his dad fail dream. The same goes for his sister-she's also her own person and he hates that their dad also pushes her to do what he wants.
He knew the two are not that close, but it doesn't mean they dislike each other at least in his mind. He honestly wishes they could be closer. He does try to chip away at the wall between them and hopefully one day that wall will fall. "Chaeyoung." He greeted back surprised to see or hear from her. He doesn't glance her way keeping his eyes on the night sky. " I'm guessing you heard what happen earlier?" He asked in almost in a whisper not wanting to break the peace.
It was a few moments before he dare to take a glanced at his sister. He had to wonder where did they stop being so close. What was the starting point of their fall out? How can they become close again? "By the way mother said hi, and she misses you. She hopes you're doing well." He added as a small ice breaker knowing the one person the two still loves will forever be their mother. It was to bad he was the only one that had the freedom to see and talk to her even if it's secretly.
@โงห p. seonghwa It was late at night, and the mansion lay in a complete darkness, the silence heavy and unbroken. Rosé stood in the kitchen, her hand lingering on the fridge door as she carefully retrieved two bottles of beer, one for herself and one for Seonghwa. She wasn't even sure if he'd want it, but it felt like the only thing she could bring, an unspoken offering of solidarity. Holding the cold bottles close to her chest, she paused, taking a deep breath before peeking cautiously out into the hallway.
She moved through the shadowed corridors on light feet, the cool glass pressing into her palms as she made her way toward the balcony. Earlier that evening, she had heard the argument— her father's raised voice cutting sharply through the mansion, followed by Seonghwa’s frustrated shouts. Though she hadn't caught the details, she knew her brother well enough to understand he was likely standing up against their father's latest expectations or demands, just as he always did.
Normally, she wouldn't get involved; it wasn't in her nature to interfere. She and Seonghwa hadn't shared a close bond for years, and their interactions were polite but distant, reduced to passing greetings and nods. But tonight, something had tugged at her. The urge to be there for him even if she couldn't find the right words was strong and hard for her to ignore. It was unusual for her to want to comfort someone, especially Seonghwa, yet she found herself standing outside the balcony door, clutching the bottles like they were some fragile, unspoken expression of her care.
Through the small gap in the curtain, she could see him. He stood alone, huncing over the balcony railing as he stared into the dark night, his shoulders seems tense with a weight she could feel from where she stood. She watched him for a moment, her heart heavy with an emotion she couldn't fully understand. He looked so solitary, so wrapped in his own world, that she almost turned back, the usual walls of hesitation rising in her mind.
But she shook off the thought and stepped forward, nudging the curtain aside as she slipped onto the balcony, the night air cool against her skin. She didn’t look at him directly, keeping her gaze focused somewhere over the railing as she took a few steps closer, her presence hesitant, almost reluctant. "Seonghwa," she said quietly once she finally reach beside him. She didn’t touch him, didn't try to offer physical comfort, staying just close enough to let him know she was there until her brother can acknowledge her presence.
