"Sometimes the deepest wounds aren't from enemies, but from the ones we'd die protecting."
⚔️
Leo took a step forward, his fists tightening so hard at his sides that his knuckles whitened, veins bulging across the back of his hands. His voice thundered through the office, sharp and merciless, every syllable vibrating with betrayal.
"What the hell are you doing here?" His glare burned through his sister, as though his eyes alone could drag her out of the chair. "Don't tell me you're working… in her company?" The way he spat her made it sound like venom, like Mira was something filthy that had tainted Jiwon just by existing.
The room had been quiet a heartbeat earlier, filled only with the low hum of machines and the faint ticking of the clock. But now it felt suffocating, every sound drowned by the storm Leo had brought in with him.
Jiwon's lips parted, her throat bobbing as she swallowed hard. Her hands trembled over the laptop keyboard, frozen mid-motion, like a child caught red-handed. Her eyes darted helplessly between the man who had raised her like a father and the woman who had given her an opportunity she had secretly longed for. "I… Oppa," her voice cracked, a mixture of fear and guilt, "I was going to tell you, I swear—"
"Tell me?" The words lashed out like a whip, cutting her off before she could take another breath. His voice cracked under the weight of fury and hurt, veins straining in his neck as though every bit of restraint was tearing apart. "You were going to tell me after hiding this for how long?! After sneaking behind my back—living in my house—eating at my table—and lying to my face every damn day?!"
Jiwon flinched, her head bowing as if the ground itself could swallow her. The color drained from her cheeks, leaving her pale, her fingers curling into her palms in shame.
But Leo wasn't done. His rage needed an outlet, and when his gaze shifted, it landed squarely on Mira.
"You," he spat, pointing a rigid finger at her like she was the executioner. His words came out like fire, each one scorching. "You knew. You knew she was my sister and you let this happen. You put her into this world without once asking me?"
Mira, who had quietly risen from her chair when Leo stormed in, didn't so much as flinch at his accusations. Her eyes, steady and unblinking, locked on him with a calmness that only deepened his fury. She stood like a pillar in the storm, refusing to bend, her arms folded across her chest.
"Leo," she said firmly, her tone a stark contrast to his explosive anger. One word, but laced with warning.
But hearing his name from her lips only twisted the knife in his chest. His head snapped toward her, eyes blazing with a fire that could burn down the entire building. "Don't. Don't you dare say my name like you have any right to. Not after this." His voice broke on the edge of rage and betrayal, and for the briefest moment, pain flickered behind his anger — pain only Mira could recognize.
The air grew heavier. Even the office walls seemed to shrink in on them. Every second stretched unbearably, like a rope pulled to its breaking point, one tug away from snapping.
Jiwon's breathing came shallow and shaky, her hands pressed together as if silently begging for the fight to end. Her heart pounded loud in her ears, shame and fear battling inside her chest.
But Mira's gaze didn't waver. If anything, she stepped closer, her heels clicking softly against the polished floor. Her calmness wasn't softness — it was defiance, her silence screaming louder than any words.
Leo's fury only deepened at her composure. He wanted her to break, to defend herself, to say something that would justify his anger. But she stood there like stone, and it infuriated him more.
"You think this is a game?" he barked, his voice booming across the room. "You think you can just lure her into your world with pretty promises and expensive toys, and I'll just sit back and watch while you drag her into the same toxic life I swore to keep her away from?" His chest heaved as his voice cracked with raw emotion. "She's my sister, Mira. My only family. And you went behind my back like a coward."
Jiwon's eyes welled with tears, her lips trembling as she whispered, "Oppa, please—"
But Leo's raised hand silenced her instantly. Not to strike, but to command — his palm trembling with restraint. His eyes, still locked on Mira, glistened with fury, but deep inside, there was a raw wound he couldn't hide.
And Mira saw it. She saw that his rage wasn't just about Jiwon. It was about her. About the years of distance, the words unsaid, the feelings buried under resentment and pride.
But Leo wasn't ready to admit that. Not yet.
Leo's chest heaved as if every breath was fueled by fire. His glare, sharp and merciless, pinned Mira in place. "I should've known," he muttered, voice low but venom-laced, "that you'd find another way to crawl into my life, even if it meant using her."
Mira flinched at the accusation, her lips parting, eyes shimmering with a plea he refused to acknowledge. "Leo… it's not what you think. She wanted to—"
"Don't you dare," he cut her off, his voice cracking through the room like thunder. His fists trembled at his sides, his knuckles pale from the force of restraint. "Don't you dare twist this into something noble. I trusted you for one second, and look what you did. You dragged my sister into this mess—into your world." His words spat out like shards of glass.
Jiwon tried to interject, her voice small and desperate. "Oppa, please—don't blame her. I wanted this. I chose—"
"You chose?" Leo's laugh was bitter, broken. He shook his head slowly, his eyes dark with hurt. "No, Jiwon. You don't understand what she's doing. You can't see it yet, but I do. I see it clearly now."
He turned his full fury back on Mira, his voice shaking from the weight of everything he held back for years. "I'm done, Mira. Do you hear me? Done. Whatever this was—this twisted game between us—it ends tonight." His words echoed in the vast, silent office, heavy enough to crush the air from the room.
Mira's breath hitched, her fingers twitching at her sides as though reaching for him, though she never moved. Her chest tightened, suffocated by the finality in his tone. "Leo… please—"
But he didn't stay to hear her.
Leo reached for Jiwon, gripping her hand tightly, almost possessively, as if he were afraid Mira would snatch her away if he let go. "We're leaving. Now."
Jiwon's eyes brimmed with tears, caught between the two people she loved, but Leo's pull was firm, unrelenting.
Without another glance, without sparing Mira even the mercy of a softened look, Leo stormed out of the office, dragging his sister with him. The echo of his footsteps and the sharp slam of the glass door left Mira standing frozen in the empty space, her heart splintering into a silence more painful than his shouting had ever been.
Jiwon stumbled beside him as Leo dragged her down the stairs, his grip tight around her wrist.
"Oppa, wait—listen to me, it's not what you think," Jiwon pleaded, her voice trembling as the stairwell echoed with their hurried footsteps.
But Leo didn't stop, didn't even glance at her. His jaw was locked, his eyes burning with fury. "Not what I think? You hid this from me, Jiwon! Do you have any idea what kind of mess you've walked into?"
Her eyes welled with tears, her words rushed out in a desperate whisper. "I only wanted to help her… and myself. It wasn't supposed to be like this, I swear."
Leo stopped for half a second on the landing, spinning on her with a glare so sharp it froze her in place. "Help her? You think working for her is helping? You think betraying me is helping?" His voice thundered in the stairwell, raw and furious.
Jiwon flinched, shrinking back, but still tried again. "No, Oppa… I didn't mean to hurt you. I just—"
"Enough!" he cut her off, shaking his head violently as if the words themselves were poison. "I don't want to hear another word. Not from you, not from her. This ends now."
He yanked her forward again, ignoring her protests, his fury leaving no space for her explanations. Behind them, Mira's voice echoed faintly from the top of the stairs, but Leo refused to turn back.
The night air was sharp, cutting against Jiwon's face as Leo dragged her through the parking lot. His grip was so tight around her wrist that she winced, but she dared not resist. His jaw was locked, eyes blazing with a fury she hadn't seen in years.
"Oppa, please—" she tried again, her voice trembling as they neared his bike.
"Not. A. Word." His tone was final, cold enough to freeze her into silence.
They reached the black motorcycle, its chrome glinting beneath the dim streetlights. Leo yanked the helmet from the handle, shoved it into her hands. "Put it on."
She hesitated, her lips parting as though to protest. "But, Oppa—"
"Now!" he barked, the sound so sharp that she flinched, scrambling to pull it over her head. Her brother had always been protective, but this wasn't protection—it was wrath barely contained, a storm raging behind his eyes.
With a rough motion, he swung his leg over the bike and jerked his chin toward the seat. "Get on. Don't make me repeat myself."
Jiwon climbed on, her heart hammering against her ribs. The moment her hands touched his jacket, the engine roared to life with a deafening growl. Leo twisted the throttle hard—too hard—and the tires screeched against the pavement.
They shot forward like a bullet.
The city blurred into streaks of neon and shadow as he pushed the bike to speeds he never allowed himself. The speedometer climbed past 120, then 140 km/h, the wind slicing their skin, making Jiwon squeeze him tighter out of fear.
"Oppa! Slow down!" she shouted over the deafening rush of air, but he didn't listen. His voice came back like a whip, harsh and unrelenting.
"Do you have any idea what you've done? Do you even understand what you've put yourself into?" His words cracked like thunder, each syllable trembling with rage.
Jiwon's eyes watered inside the helmet. "I just wanted to help her… to help you! Mira-unnie isn't what you think, she—"
"Enough!" he cut her off, his voice raw. "Don't you dare defend her right now. Not after this."
And still, he drove faster.
Meanwhile, not far behind, Mira's car tore through the empty road like a beast unleashed. Tears blurred her vision as she gripped the steering wheel so tightly her knuckles whitened. Her heart screamed louder than the engine, each sob drowned out by the roar of her tires skimming dangerously close to 180 km/h.
Her mind replayed Leo's words, his finger stabbing toward her, his voice filled with venom.
"You think I'd ever trust you with her? With my sister?!"
The sentence echoed like a curse, cutting into her chest deeper than any knife. She shook her head violently, her tears spilling as she pressed harder on the accelerator, chasing the blur of Leo's bike far ahead.
Two broken hearts, running wild through the night—one in anger, the other in desperation.
The bike screeched to a halt in front of their neighborhood, the tires still trembling from the speed he had forced them through. Jiwon's hands were shaking as she held onto her brother's jacket, her cheeks still wet from crying. Leo didn't say a word as he parked the bike in silence. He didn't even look at her. His jaw was tight, his breaths sharp.
Instead of taking Jiwon straight home, he steered her toward the house next door. He raised his fist and knocked. The door opened, revealing his close friend, half-asleep and confused, with his sister peeking from behind him.
"What happened?" his friend asked, eyes darting between Leo's cold face and Jiwon's swollen eyes.
Leo didn't waste time. His voice was firm, flat, almost mechanical."Take care of my sister for one night. She'll sleep here."
The friend frowned. "Why? Did something—"
Leo cut him off with a glare. "Just do it. Don't ask."
Before anyone could respond, he turned his back and walked up the narrow staircase leading to the upper floor of his own home. The sound of his heavy boots hitting the steps echoed like thunder.
Inside, Jiwon stepped in hesitantly, wiping her face with the back of her hand. She looked so small, so fragile. His friend's mother came forward quickly, pulling her into the warm light of the living room.
"Sit down, child," she said softly, guiding Jiwon to the couch. "Breathe first. Just breathe."
His friend hesitated before speaking, voice low so his mother wouldn't worry too much. "Jiwon… can you tell me what happened? Why was hyung so mad?"
Jiwon lifted her head, her eyes swollen, lips trembling as she tried to steady her breath. At first, words tangled in her throat, but then they spilled out in broken fragments.
"He… he shouted at me for the first time. I only… I only wanted to help Claire unnie. She was walking alone, she looked so lost… so I followed her. I thought if I stayed with her, she wouldn't feel lonely. But then oppa came, and he—he yelled. He said I should never do that again. That I shouldn't trust people so easily. That… that Claire is dangerous for me."
Her friend blinked, startled. "Claire noona? Dangerous? Why would he say that?"
Jiwon shook her head furiously, wiping her tears with her sleeves. "I don't know… I don't know! But oppa's eyes—he wasn't himself. He was so angry, like… like I betrayed him. He never talked to me like that before. Never."
Her friend glanced at his mother, who gave him a subtle nod, encouraging him to stay close to Jiwon. He gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "Jiwon, I've known your brother for years. He loves you more than anything in this world. If he got that angry… it must mean he's scared of something. Maybe he's hiding something from you."
But Jiwon shook her head stubbornly, her voice breaking. "No… he doesn't tell me anything anymore. He just decides for me, like I'm still a child. But I'm not. I want to choose who I trust. I want to choose… who I want to be around."
Her friend's mother finally spoke again, softly but firmly, "Then tomorrow, let me speak to Leo. I'll remind him that even protecting someone can't mean breaking their heart. For tonight, rest. You need strength for what's coming."
And though Jiwon nodded faintly, her tears didn't stop, because deep inside, the image of Leo's furious face still haunted her—a face of an older brother she barely recognized.
Leo's POV
The silence of his room was suffocating. Leo sat on the edge of his bed, elbows on his knees, his head buried in his hands. The moment his voice had broken, the way Jiwon's tears had fallen—it replayed in his mind like a cruel loop. He had never raised his voice at her, not once, not even in the darkest times after their parents were gone. Yet tonight, his control snapped.
His chest ached, as if the words he had thrown were knives that had lodged inside him instead of her."What have I done…" he whispered under his breath, voice trembling in the empty dark.
But he couldn't take it back. Not yet. If he faced her now, she would only see the cracks—the desperation he tried to hide. Because the truth was, it wasn't Jiwon he was angry at. It was himself. For being weak. For letting Mira get too close. For feeling something he shouldn't.
He had pushed his sister into Mira's world, and when he saw her smiling too freely, too brightly, it scared him. Because Mira wasn't safe. Mira wasn't… ordinary. She was a storm that could shatter the fragile walls he had built around his and Jiwon's life.
So he shouted.And now he sat in silence, feeling more broken than before.
When dawn's pale light began to seep through his curtains, Leo hadn't slept a second. His eyes burned, his jaw ached from clenching, and yet he knew he couldn't hide from the morning. He had to face Jiwon… and Mira. Both terrified him in different ways.
Mira's POV
On the other side of the city, Mira paced her living room barefoot, glass of untouched water in her hand. Sleep refused to touch her. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw the look on Leo's face—the way his voice had thundered, the raw pain buried beneath his anger.
She wasn't afraid of his temper. No, what unsettled her was the way it revealed the storm inside him, the cracks he tried so hard to keep hidden. For the first time, Mira had seen a part of Leo that even his sister didn't understand—a man torn apart between protecting and destroying, between pushing her away and being unable to let go.
She set the glass down with a sharp clink, pressing her palms to her face."Why does it hurt…? Why does it feel like I'm the reason?"
The thought gnawed at her. She replayed every word she had said, every step she had taken closer to Jiwon. Was she being selfish? Was she forcing herself into his life too fast, too deep? Or was Leo just too blinded by his fear to see what she truly wanted—to protect Jiwon too, not take her away?
By 3 a.m., Mira finally collapsed on the couch, curling into herself beneath the dim glow of the lamp. She hated that she missed him, hated that even in his anger, even in his silence, Leo's presence lingered in her like a shadow.
Her chest tightened, and she whispered into the dark:"You can shout all you want, Leo… but I'm not leaving you. Not you. Not her."
And with that vow, her eyes finally closed, though her heart stayed restless, waiting for the morning that promised another confrontation.
To Be Continued.....