Desire - ATEEZ Mingi

40

Yeeun's POV

It took a lot of long lectures and a little bit of begging, but I'd finally convinced Mingi that he needed to come clean to both his mom, and to my mom.

To say he was a nervous wreck would be an understatement.

However, he put on a brave face and managed to make me proud. We talked to each of our moms individually, first Ms.Song, then my mom. I was surprised when Mingi started crying during both confessions. He cried like a baby to my mom, knowing that he put her daughter through the same terrible things that she'd experienced.

At first, both Ms.Song and my mom were speechless. They clearly weren't expecting to be told such awful news from a couple that always appeared to be so happy together.

But it was all a lie. I had created a camouflage to hide what Mingi would do to me when no one was looking.

When Ms.Song eventually processed the information her son had just shared with her, she flipped. She began screaming at him, saying that she raised him better than to hurt a girl. I'd never seen Ms.Song so worked up before. I had no idea she could even raise her voice to the level it reached.

My mom, on the other hand, reacted in a completely opposite manner. As I expected, she burst into tears and she and Mingi cried together. He apologized to her over and over again between sobs.

It broke my heart to see two people I loved in so much pain.

Once Ms.Song and my mom had calmed down, we explained to each of them that Mingi was going to get help. Mingi and I had sat down together and researched nearby treatment programs until we found the right one for him. We explained to our moms that he was going to be enrolled in a treatment program where he would spend six months getting the help he needed. This treatment would include group meetings and regular counseling. Then, he would spend another six months getting periodic follow-up treatment.

We agreed that this treatment wouldn't start until after we graduated. Until then, Mingi and I had to remain broken up and he had to stay away from me, just to be safe. Neither of us wanted to take any chances. Mingi knew and admitted that my safety with him wasn't guaranteed until he got help.

Our mothers seemed impressed with our plan and how we were handling the situation. It was clear that Mingi and I had both grown and matured a lot lately. So, it was easy for us to understand and accept what needed to be done for him to get better.

Once we had finished with Ms.Song, we left her to go talk to my mom. Ms.Song was still furious and busy trying to think up everything she was going to tell Mingi later on when he returned home.

However, my mom wasn't furious at all with Mingi. To my surprise, she embraced him in a hug once we were done explaining everything to her. Both of them still had tears in their eyes as they held each other.

When my mom pulled away, she grasped both of Mingi's arms and said, "You're a much better man than he was, Mingi."

She was right. Mingi was a much better man than my dad was. My dad never came clean to his parents about the abuse. He never wanted to seek help. He let things get worse and worse between he and my mom until finally, they put him behind bars.

But Mingi was braver than my dad. He came clean to our parents. He wanted to get help. He opened his eyes to what he was doing stopped things before things got as bad as they did with my parents.

And those are things I will always respect Mingi for.

After we finished talking to my mom, Mingi and I knew the time had come. It was time to say goodbye to each other.

We agreed that after we told our moms everything, we wouldn't see each other again until he was completely through with his treatment. That meant we were about to wait 12 months before we would be in each other's arms again.

But we both knew that we'd be better off this way. I'd be safer this way.

"So," Mingi spoke up as I walked him out to his car. "I guess I'll see you next year." I could tell he was trying not to seem heartbroken about the time we were about to spend apart, but I could hear the sadness in his voice and see it in his eyes.

"Don't worry," I assured him. "It'll go faster than you think." I wasn't sure if I truly believed what I'd just said, but I couldn't have a negative attitude about this. After all, it was for the best.

Mingi smiled sadly at me before wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling me into his chest. I returned his hug by tightly wrapping my arms around his neck.

I closed my eyes and inhaled his intoxicating scent one last time. He moved his hand up to stroke my hair and comb his fingers through it, like he loved to do.

We stayed like that for maybe a minute or two. Finally, when I was ready, I pulled back, but our arms remained around each other.

"You can call or text me any time you need to talk, alright? I'll always be ready to listen." He reminded me. I nodded, remembering our agreement to allow occasional texts and phone calls to each other. But we agreed that they couldn't occur too often. That would be too risky.

Mingi's left hand tucked a strand of hair behind my ear before moving to hold the back of my neck. Gently, he pushed my lips towards his until they connected for one final kiss.

The kiss was slow and gentle. It was calm and blissful. It was loving and passioMingi.

It was perfect.

As our lips parted ways, I opened my eyes to find Mingi already staring at me. He had managed to crack a smile.

"I love you, Yeeun," he said softly, the way I'd heard him say it so many times before. But it was different this time.

Because this time, I believed him.

"I love you too, Mingi." I returned, mustering a half smile.

His mocha colored eyes memorized my face one last time before he cupped both of my cheeks, took a small step towards me, and delicately kissed my forehead.

I closed my eyes, fighting back home as a lump materialized in my throat. I wasn't about to let Mingi make me cry in front of him yet again.

When he pulled away, he did it slowly, trying to make our final moment together last just a little bit longer. I felt strong enough to open my eyes again and let them flicker over his handsome features one more time.

His pads of his thumbs caressed my cheeks once more before slowly letting me go and turning around to get into his car.

I watched him drive away until his car disappeared around a corner. Then, I turned around, ran inside, and let my mother hold me as I cried for the rest of the night.