magnanimitty

[magnanimitty]

magnanimitty , an ind + private selective multi muse , moderate activity , pinned by libby , EST , elder gen z , cat lover , 21+ , revamp nov 2025

muses 𐙚 rules 𐙚 wanted

[deerhunteer]

he  took  his  phone  back  and  slipped  it  into  his  pocket  without  even  checking  the  contact  she’d  entered.  there  would  be  time  for  that  later,  once  he  got  home.  “well,  it’s  fine  even  if  you  don’t  post  that  often.”    truthfully,  he  was  curious.  what  did  she  post?  his  own  profile  was  a  chaotic  mix  of  viral  dance  videos,  clips  of  him  riding  his  bike  and  photos  showing  off  outfits  he  thought  looked  particularly  good.  recently,  though,  he’d  developed  a  habit  of  posting  sunsets—-  snapshots  taken  from  different  places,  different  corners  of  the  city,  each  one  somehow  unique  despite  being  the  same  sun  at  the  end  of  the  day.  she  was  definitely  in  for  an  experience  if  she  ever  decided  to  scroll  through  his  account.  “i’ll  follow  you  later,”  he  promised.  “and  i’ll  definitely  call.”  smiling,  river  wrapped  his  arms  around  her  one  last  time  and  pulled  her  into  a  gentle  hug.  he  gave  her  a  light  squeeze  before  finally  letting  go.  “you  can  trust  me.  pinky  promise.”  holding  up  his  hand,  he  extended  his  pinky  toward  her.  once  she  linked  hers  with  his,  he  gave  it  a  small  shake,  sealing  the  promise  in  the  most  childish  way  possible.  “now  go  get  some  rest,”  he  said  softly.  “i’ll  see  you  soon.”

river  stayed  where  he  was,  watching  until  she  disappeared  through  the  building  entrance.  only  once  he  was  certain  she’d  made  it  inside  safely  did  he  pull  his  helmet  back  on  and  start  the  bike.  the  ride  home  was  uneventful  at  first.  until  it  wasn’t.  somewhere  along  the  way,  he  ran  into  the  last  person  he’d  expected  to  see  that  night—-  everest  himself.  with  neither  of  them  seeming  particularly  eager  to  head  home  just  yet,  they  somehow  ended  up  sitting  on  the  rooftop  of  everest’s  building.  river  nursed  a  can  of  soda  while  his  best  friend  cracked  open  a  beer.  they  talked  for  a  while.  nothing  overly  emotional,  nothing  dramatic.  just  the  strange  way  the  two  of  them  had  always  supported  each  other—-  through  teasing  remarks,  half-serious  conversations  and  the  kind  of  understanding  that  came  from  years  of  friendship.  eventually,  the  conversation  ended  and  river  found  himself  back  on  his  bike,  heading  home  beneath  the  city  lights.  the  moment  he  pulled  into  his  parking  spot  and  killed  the  engine,  his  hand  was  already  reaching  for  his  phone.  helmet  tucked  under  one  arm,  he  unlocked  the  screen  and  immediately  opened  his  messages.  despite  the  late  hour,  despite  knowing  she  was  probably  asleep  by  now,  he  couldn’t  help  the  small  smile  tugging  at  his  lips  as  he  started  typing  a  message  to  sunhee.

📱: sorry i didn't call, i ran into your brother 😆 📱: oh right, it's river by the way... 📱: anyway, he kind of gave me (us) his blessing... kind of 📱: it wasn't as bad as i imagined, so you shouldn't worry 📱: i followed you on insta too, my handle is kai.wang 📱: in case you wondered, yes— kaien is my given name 😎

[magnanimitty]

she had been asleep . the continual dinging of the notifications had sunhee groggily opening her eyes to see who could possibly be messaging her this late , then seeing river's name appear on her screen had her jolting upright in bed and pulling her phone to her chest with the biggest smile on her face .

[ sms : kaien ] it's you ! you spoke to everest ? did he hurt you ?

[ sms : kaien ] i like your name 😍it's so unique ! i love it . what do you prefer to go by ?

she didn't ask the extent of what he'd told her brother , chewing her lip as she thought about how that conversation could have gone down without river getting punched at least once .

sunhee was already finding his instagram and liking pretty much every picture she scrolled past , heart eyes so wide she barely registered how tired she really was . did he want a picture of her too ? she was already too blinded by her infatuation with him to really process how tired she looked , snapping a quick picture of herself with her palm under her chin and grinning , just the top half of her form with her way too large shirt and messy hair , and sent it off .

[ sms : kaien ] what your insta is making me do rn

[ sms : kaien ] it's everest's shirt i'm wearing . promise it isn't another boyfriend's or anything !

he hadn't asked . sunhee felt the need to explain herself beforehand just in case river had any idea that she was seeing someone else -- she wasn't . that little pinkie promise was still blurring the edges of her brain from the caution she'd told herself to use when approaching another relationship , completely tossed aside , now her excitement intensified with her brother's approval .

[snug-gyu]

not the kind of mic drop i was expecting

[sovrumana]

toshiaki drank from his bottle, making sure he gets enough water for his throat so it wouldn't crack on him and set it on the floor away from the camera stand. "it actually depends on the day." he answered and grabbed his towel so he can wipe down his face, running his fingers through his damp hair to slick it back away from his eyes. "and what parts of the body i am targeting that day. each muscle require different kind of weights and movements." he explained with a soft smile and looked over to doyun.

"if you really want, i can put together a set of workouts you can do to maintain your energy especially when you're doing your camera work."

[magnanimitty]

doyun was doing that stare again when his hair was pushed back . then , a slow look , down his frame and settling back on his arms so intensely she didn't hear him right away and had to reprocess his words .

" oh , i don't know , " she started , not really the type of person to exercise unless the situation called for it , though paused mid sentence when she realized that he was the one offering it . doyun cleared her throat . " will you be like ... my personal trainer ? " she asked , glancing back at the camera that she hadn't turned on yet . a little harmless flirting wouldn't hurt anyone , would it ? if she was going to embarrass herself in front of him , she may as well try to get a date out of it . " i don't know if i could ever get my arms the same size as yours , " she said as she reached out to pinch his bicep , about to laugh at her joke when her face flushed again when she actually felt the thickness of the muscle . " oh , damn . i'll never get my arms like that . "

[sovrumana]

dowon coughed and winced when a particular movement pulled at his wound, his fingers curling around ari's wrist to keep her close even when the guards showed up to 'rescue' them, the audacity of them to being late. his fingers tightened around ari's wrist when the guards was pulling her away from him and shook his head. "she's coming with me. i want her to be checked over." he said in his most serious voice, staring down one of the guards, a trick he had picked up from his older brother.

"don't leave me."

[magnanimitty]

as her guards started to move dowon's bloody body , ari didn't leave his side once . it was difficult for her to keep her grasp on his hand with how soaked her palm was with his own blood , trying to calm her frantic breathing as he was not so gently laid in the back of the vehicle . the larger men were surprised to see how panicked the usually calm woman was as she crouched down beside dowon as the car weaved in and out of traffic , sometimes jostling her , though refused to leave his side .

" can't you drive any faster ? " she snapped to her drivers . tear stained cheeks left a clear track through the speckled blood across . attention was back on dowon as she kept pressure on the stab wound to his side . " sorry for hurting you , baby , just hold on a little longer ? we'll get there real soon and get you all fixed up . it will be better in just a little bit ... " she bent down and kissed his forehead , ignoring the stain it left on his skin .

[komposisi]

"i guess it was, i apologise for that" there was a soft sight from his end. he didn't mind that he might sound slightly absurd, but pardon him, truly. "he does, now does he? i was scared that he might be scared that a man like me is taking his only daughter away" he tried to make light of the situation with given circumstances.

"are you free time any soon then? I still have unused leaves... maybe we can fly out to see him? i have been thinking of having a proper talk to him" sure, he won't lie that marriage was still far at the end in his mind but he believes he still has sense of decorum to talk, to get to know the man that has brought harper to him. "i think the firm can survive without me for few weeks."

[magnanimitty]

" i can take some time off to visit my parents with you . " if it meant taking another step closer to their future , and a potential proposal , harper would quit her job entirely to spend it with him . she didn't push the topic any further as to not frighten her easily startled boyfriend again , dipping under the water to rinse out the last of the product from her hair , and came out whipping her head to the side so all the drops splattered all over him .

harper made up for it by gently dapping him with a dry cloth and was the first to stand out of the bath and wrap herself in a towel . then back to the familiar nighttime routine of applying moisturizer and braiding her hair so she didn't wake up with her ends all frizzy . her silky pajama set felt all soft and warm against her freshly washed skin , and she'd been halfway to the bed when she realized jaejin wasn't there with her . harper turned to grab her boyfriend's wrist and pull him away from the sink to join her in bed , whether or not he was finished with his own routine .

[pillowxtalk]

Yeonwoo nodded before chucking as he got playfully pushed. This sure was a refreshing interaction and the young woman caught his interest naturally. "I could have called you pretty instead. It's as much the truth as calling you cute," he replied, and his lips curled up into another smile. He may be used to giving out compliments, but that didn't mean he didn't actually mean them.

For a moment his face showed genuine surprise, but just a moment later he chuckled again. "You're the first one to guess one of my jobs on the first try," Yeonwoo said, having no problem admitting that is how he earned money. "And complimenting people is something I often do, yes, but I also mean what I say."

[magnanimitty]

" wait ? you're kidding . damn , you're not kidding . " hana had started to laugh at what she thought was a joke , but when his expression didn't change , she realized he wasn't and her face dropped .

no wonder he was so good at acting comfortable in situations that would have been mortifying to anyone else . she paused for a little bit to look around her to make sure no one else was listening in on their conversation , and her shoulders dropped a little bit . " i didn't mean that in a bad way . i've just never knew someone who did the whole professional dating thing before . i bet you're ... busy all the time with a face like that . "

[fvrmeden]

even despite being pretty tall, he tries to curl himself as good as he possibly can on the couch, resting against sorom. honestly, everything already feels slightly better just because he can rest for a few moments like that. it makes him feel like the world is a little bit easier after all. " it's just been so hard at work. i feel like i have been having just the worst luck ever and everything is just piling up but i cannot even look at it before i solve the first thing, you know? and we still don't know if we will get the financing... they already rejected my proposal from one place, " he sighs, the things starting to basically jump out of him as he enjoys the touches from her. " and there is also some stuff with my brother. "

[magnanimitty]

the news of his brother had sorom sighing , her arms going to wrap around mingyu's larger frame and pulling him into her more . the position was a little awkward with his height making him curl on the couch more , but to her , it was comfortable . a gentle kiss pressed to the crown of his head . " i'm sorry about the proposal . i know how hard you've worked on everything , and it feels like things aren't working out for you right now , but things will fall in to place , i promise , " she assured him . a soft pat to his back followed . " do you want to talk about your brother ? "

[deerhunteer]

he  watched  her  with  something  dangerously  close  to  adoration  in  his  gaze.  the  way  her  hair  swayed  when  she  shook  her  head,  the  soft  giggle  that  escaped  her  over  something  as  simple  as  him  booping  her  nose.  it  was  endearing  in  a  way  he  hadn't  expected.  as  she  stood  there  smiling,  he  caught  a  faint  trace  of  her  scent—-  perfume,  maybe  or  shampoo.  either  way,  it  was  familiar,  lingering  somewhere  in  the  back  of  his  mind  from  that  night  they'd  spent  together.  “i  would  do  all  of  that  for  you,  yeah,”  he  said  quietly.  “too  hard  to  believe?”

maybe  that  was  what  had  drawn  him  in  from  the  start.  her  innocence.  her  charm.  the  way  she  could  make  the  simplest  moments  feel  effortless.  standing  there  now,  river  found  himself  wanting  to  pull  her  back  into  his  arms  and  take  her  home  with  him.  not  for  anything  complicated—-  just  to  spend  time  together.  to  have  her  curled  up  against  him  on  the  couch  while  she  talked  about  her  day,  rambled  about  things  she  liked,  asked  him  questions  about  himself  or  told  stories  he'd  never  heard  before.  honestly,  he'd  take  anything  she  was  willing  to  give  him.  “i'll  tell  you  when  i  talk  to  him,”  he  reassured  her.  then  a  realization  hit  him.  he  blinked.  he  didn't  actually  have  her  number.  nor  was  she  added  anywhere  on  social  media.  letting  his  arms  fall  back  to  his  sides  completely,  river  reached  for  the  zippered  pocket  of  his  jacket.  after  a  brief  struggle  with  the  stubborn  zipper,  he  finally  got  it  open  and  pulled  out  his  phone.  unlocking  it,  he  held  it  out  to  her.  “your  number,”  he  said.  “i  don't  actually  have  it.”  a  sheepish  smile  tugged  at  the  corner  of  his  mouth.  “social  media  too,  if  you  want.  then  i'll  send  you  the  location  of  where  i  work.”

[magnanimitty]

too hard to believe ? sunhee's hands were still covering her face , mustering a little nod when her fingers dropped to peek at him as he pulled out his phone and asked for her number , briefly hesitating before she took it and typed her number in way too quickly with a heart emoji next to her name . her feet patted the pavement tapping happily when it was handed back over to him , any worry she had about being cautious already thrown to the wind and toppling headfirst into another crush despite her attempts to distance herself from relationships for a while .

" i put my instagram on there , too , " she said . " i don't post on it very often . " mostly of her occasional meal , some with everest with her brother reluctantly forced to pose , and a few with her posing with her outfit of the day . she'd have to try a little harder now that she knew river would be watching . " i'll come by your work as often as i can and bring you treats ... " sunhee stepped closer again , going in for another hug that lingered a little bit longer this time , part of her opening up just a little , as her voice dropped into something more vulnerable . " i can trust you , right ? " she asked , the hesitation returning and baring herself as someone who had been hurt too many times by the wrong men . " promise me you'll actually call ? "

[yum-nyang]

(credit)

[deerhunteer]

he  hadn't  expected  her  to  be  quite  so  surprised.  if  he  was  serious  about  getting  to  know  her,  then  talking  to  her  brother  was  simply  part  of  the  deal.  it  was  the  clearest  way  he  could  show  that  his  intentions  were  genuine.  “yeah,”  he  said  with  a  small  shrug.  “i  told  you  i'm  close  with  everest.  i  don't  think  it'll  go  that  badly.”  or  at  least,  he  hoped  it  wouldn't.

when  she  suddenly  threw  her  arms  around  him,  river  barely  had  time  to  react  before  instinct  kicked  in.  his  arms  wrapped  around  her  waist,  pulling  her  closer  as  he  returned  the  hug.  one  hand  rubbed  soothing  circles  along  her  back,  a  quiet  laugh  escaping  him.  “not  so  fast,”  he  teased.  “you  can  thank  me  later.”  he  nearly  followed  it  up  with  a  flirtatious  comment,  something  that  would've  probably  earned  him  a  look  but  managed  to  bite  it  back  at  the  last  second.  “hey,”  he  continued,  pulling  back  just  enough  to  look  at  her.  “if  i'm  willing  to  risk  my  life  by  telling  your  brother  about  us,  then  you  can  be  pretty  sure  i'm  serious.”  with  that,  he  reached  up  and  gently  booped  her  nose,  a  boyish  grin  spreading  across  his  face.  “that's  not  exactly  something  i'd  do  for  just  anyone.”

[magnanimitty]

" you'd do all of that for me ? " she asked . there it was ; sunhee turning into a giggling little girl at the nose boop and covering her face to giggle at how precious it made her feel with a shake of her head with her hair loosely whipping around her face . it was hard to believe river was the same guy who had taken her to his home and fucked her until she'd forgotten the fact he was her brothers best friend , now someone with a sweet boyish charm .

sunhee could've easily seen how this could break her heart later if she wasn't careful . her guard should have been up , really stepped back to take a thorough look in all the places it could go wrong and the implications of her relationship with her brother , but she was also a weak woman blinded by love . her gullible nature was easy to pick through . " can you tell me when you talk to him ? " she asked , now all hopeful and wondering if river would tell everest everything that happened between them or if he'd only ask permission , rather than ask for forgiveness . " um . " she hesitated . " can i come visit you at work anyways sometime ? i don't care if it's on the outskirts of the city . i'd like to see you again , just not when you're bringing me ... here , " she said , the obvious distaste for her home visible by the way she glanced back at it .

[gcholdtrops]

~   ♡   —-   story  started  for @magnanimitty

       always  on  a  high  alert  when  on  job,  any  sudden  noises  could  result  in  a  group  of  people  storming  toward  the  family  he  was  paid  to  protect,  so  gunwoo  couldn't  afford  distractions   ;   simply  weren't  allowed.   “ woah  woah,  slow  down,  ma'am. ”   hands  push  forward  and  stops  the  woman  attempting  to  walk  past  him,  polite  palms  on  her  shoulders  guiding  her  to  be  away  from  the  door.   “ state  your  purpose. ”   expression  cold  and  unreadable,  definitely  not  the  type  of  guy  to  easily  get  wavered  or  persuaded,  well  aware  of  the  consequences  that  would  follow.

[magnanimitty]

ari didn't stumble at the unexpected pause , and stood firm with her gaze falling to the hands on her shoulder that preventing her from moving forward . then , up to the man whose they belonged to as if he had the audacity to touch her at all , and stifled her grin . " choi ari . you can check me if you want . " she took the first step back , arms raised to her sides as if to show her dress and willing to take the extra security check if that's what it required . her purse hung from her hand . " i believe i was invited . special guest , if i remember correctly . you're welcome to check with your boss , if you'd like . i don't mind , " she said , tone laced with mild amusement .

[fvrmeden]

lately, it has seemed to mingyu as if his life is falling apart. his grant application is getting rejected, one of his brightest students is failing on the latest exam, and now the thing with his brother.... it seems like he really cannot get any break at all. and now even sorom managed to notice even though he didn't want to drag her into it in the first place. "i'm sorry... i didn't want to worry you," he says softly as he takes off jhis jacket and joins her on the couch. "everything is okay. i mean, not everything is okay, actually, but i don't want to stress you out too much. you have your own problems to worry about," he continues, resting his head against her shoulder.

[magnanimitty]

sorom adjusted herself on the couch to make room for his taller frame , remaining still in her posture until she softened at his touch . " you're the only person i have to worry about , " she mused as he reached a hand to pat the top of his head soothingly . " do you want to talk about it ? i'm here to listen , you know . i might not have all the answers but it's better to tell me than keep me in the dark so i don't have to worry so much . something is stressing you out and i want to help in any way i can . " another soft pat to his hair . " open up to me , mingyu . "

[pillowxtalk]

"So does that make me special?"

Yeonwoo simply can't help himself even though the question is simply meant as a tease. He can't remember having met anyone before that was muttering under their breath like this. The young male had to laugh, and his lips curled up into a smile while he nodded. "Yes, I took it as a compliment. Calling someone cute isn't an insult," he replied, reassuring her that he wasn't offended by her mutter. "I guess I'm just a good listener, have to be for my job in some way." Yeonwoo's lips formed another smile. "People call me handsome or good-looking, but I can't remember the last time someone called me cute. You surely get called cute more often because you are."

[magnanimitty]

" me ? cute ? " hana lingered on his choice of words , then bashfully reached out to playfully push him on his shoulder since it was amusing . she didn't believe it , but did find it funny how easy it was for him to deliver the compliments without blinking . she wasn't capable of flirting .

" your job ? i bet you're one of those professional boyfriends people hire to take out on dates . with that face -- " she said , and gestured towards his body . " great to show off . you're probably used to complimenting people all the time . i'm just someone who whispers things under her breath all the time . they usually don't hear them , though . "

[deerhunteer]

“did  i  stutter?”  he  asked,  the  words  carrying  more  amusement  than  challenge.  honestly,  her  reaction  was  almost  cute.  river  couldn't  tell  if  she'd  expected  him  to  say  something  different  or  avoid  answering  altogether.  maybe  she  had.  either  way,  seeing  her  suddenly  turn  shy  caught  him  off  guard.  considering  everything  that  had  already  happened  between  them,  he  nearly  made  a  joke  that  would've  made  things  ten  times  more  awkward.  thankfully,  he  stopped  himself  in  time.  the  last  thing  he  wanted  was  to  make  her  uncomfortable.

when  she  finally  explained  herself,  river  couldn't  really  argue  with  her  reasoning.  he  understood  it.  not  wanting  to  disappoint  her  brother  was  a  feeling  he  knew  all  too  well.  the  last  thing  he  wanted  was  a  confrontation  with  everest,  either.  they'd  been  through  too  much  together  for  that.

his  gaze  dropped  briefly  as  her  fingertip  brushed  against  his  hand  resting  on  the  handlebar.  closing  his  eyes  for  a  second,  he  ran  his  free  hand  through  his  already-messy  dark  hair.  “then  i'll  tell  him.”  the  words  came  easily,  though  they  were  spoken  more  to  gauge  her  reaction  than  because  he'd  already  made  up  his  mind.  it  wouldn't  be  an  easy  conversation,  that  much  was  certain.  there  were  details  he'd  be  keeping  to  himself  but  river  had  always  been  good  with  words.  if  anyone  could  talk  everest  down  before  things  got  out  of  hand,  it  was  probably  him.  one  corner  of  his  mouth  lifted  into  a  faint  smile.  “otherwise,  i  don't  think  this  works.”

[magnanimitty]

sunhee didn't expect him to agree with her so quickly . she'd expected him to disagree entirely and somehow coax her into going out with him again , maybe drag her along until she caught real feelings , then toss her aside when she wasn't fun anymore and leaving her behind with a broken heart and a guilty conscious . she'd been ready to put on a front and strike it down immediately , something she should have done with her past boyfriends honestly , though it came crashing down at the unexpected response that had her a little confused .

" really ? you'll tell him ? " her shocked voice gave away her surprise . " you'll -- you'll really explain it to him ? " then she smiled , that spark of hope coming back she'd experienced too many times that it should have raised a red flag in her , but this time it didn't . she barely knew river ; there were so many ways this could have gone wrong and yet he didn't seem like the type to break her apart for his own amusement .

sunhee should have been cautious . it was her fatal flaw ; she trusted way too easily , which was why she believed everest was a little more protective of her than most brothers were . she launched herself into river and wrapped her arms around him tight in a quick hug , and a tight squeeze . " you have no idea what that means to me , river . thank you ... " she pulled back beaming , and didn't entirely release her hold yet . " then i'd love to get to know you better . only if you promise me you really aren't some jerk who will get rid of me later . "

[pillowxtalk]

Yeonwoo had been on his way home from a meeting with a client as those words had reached his ears while he waited to cross the street. Cute was a word people rarely used for him and that’s why it caught his interest. The young male’s gaze wandered over to the young woman that had said them and his lips curled up into a smile after letting out a small chuckle. They made eye contact and he realised she hadn’t meant for him to hear it, her panic was visible. Or maybe he could tell because of his job. “Certainly not the word I would use for myself, but thank you. It suits you better though.” Yeonwoo said, his voice warm, the comment had brightened his day and he was now in a playful mood. “You compliment every stranger you meet under your breath?” He asked his gaze meant to hopefully make her stay instead of walking away. Yeonwoo found people like her fascinating and a breath of fresh air.

@magnanimitty

[magnanimitty]

" um . only the cute ones . "

no point in denying it when she'd already been caught saying it outright . perhaps not so directly , but he'd heard it , and she was tempted to run if she wasn't convinced he would catch up to her so easily . " you took it as a compliment , right ? because i'm still sleep deprived from last night and my boss didn't make it any easier for me today , so you heard it ... it was meant to be a compliment . promise , " she said ready with any excuse she could to prevent herself from looking more silly . " i also didn't expect anyone else to hear it . better yet , you hear it . i'm sure people say that to you all the time , though , right ? "

[deerhunteer]

he  nodded  in  understanding.  bringing  a  guy  home  while  your  mother  was  there  was  bound  to  be  awkward,  especially  when  they  weren’t  exactly  close.  aside  from  that  one  night  they’d  shared,  most  of  what  river  knew  about  sunhee  came  through  everest.  their  lives  had  rarely  crossed  paths  before  now.  “okay,  good.  i’m  glad  you’re  not  alone…”  the  words  slipped  out  before  he  could  stop  them.  river  immediately  regretted  how  that  sounded  and  mentally  groaned  at  himself.  “i  seem  nice?”  he  echoed  with  a  small  snort.  “well,  your  brother  has  good  taste  in  men.”  the  joke  came  easily.  he  and  everest  had  been  best  friends  for  years,  after  all.

then  came  a  brief  silence  before  sunhee  spoke  again  and  river’s  brows  lifted  in  genuine  surprise.  he  hadn’t  expected  that  confession  but  he  couldn't  deny  it  was  nice  to  hear.  “there’s  one  thing  you  should  know  about  me,”  he  said,  a  faint  smirk  tugging  at  his  lips.  “i’m  a  pacifist.  i  don’t  go  around  creating  drama  for  no  reason.”  he  shrugged  lightly.  “all  i  told  him  was  that  i  got  you  home  safely.  i  never  mentioned  which  home.”  keeping  that  particular  detail  from  everest  didn’t  bother  him.  his  best  friend  had  a  temper  when  it  came  to  people  he  cared  about.  “i’m  definitely  not  volunteering  to  be  his  punching  bag,”  he  added  with  a  quiet  laugh.  his  expression  softened  after  a  moment.  

“i  like  you  too,  sunhee.”  the  words  came  easily,  honest  and  uncomplicated.  “i’d  like  to  get  to  know  you  better  but  only  if  that’s  something  you  want  too.”  river  paused,  studying  her  for  a  moment.  “and  i  get  it.  you’re  worried  about  your  brother.  probably  worried  i’ll  end  up  being  just  another  asshole,  too.”  there  was  no  judgment  in  his  voice,  only  understanding.  “honestly?  that’s  fair.  i  don’t  know  what  you’ve  been  through  but  people  usually  don’t  get  this  guarded  without  a  reason.”  he  offered  a  small  smile.  “i’m  not  asking  you  to  trust  me  right  away.  just...  give  me  a  chance  to  prove  i’m  worth  it.”

[magnanimitty]

" you like me ? "

he may as well haven't said anything else . blushing immediately , she looked down at her feet and how her shoes kicked at the ground so she didn't have to look up and see how shy she was at his choice of words . there were dozens of reasons why going out with him was such a bad idea , but any compliment thrown her way was what had her making the same mistake with different guys .

and she almost gave in . almost . her bitten back smile fell as she remembered all her other previous boyfriends who had convinced her to spend time with them and prove how much better they were from the other guys , just to have her heart broken . only this time , it would be her own emotions caught up in it , but her brother's , too . everest had finally shown her what it meant to have a family and the last thing she could do was betray him by sneaking around with his best friend .

" but everest , " she started as she kicked the ground again . " he's my brother . it's only been a little under a year since we met , but he's such an important part of my life now just as he is yours . how could we do that to him ? " sunhee took a step closer to the bike , too weak , too gullible , to keep her distance and reached a finger to graze on the top of his hand still holding the handles of the bike . " i like you a lot . but i love my brother , too . "