Kris #5

“Where are you staying right now?” This must have been the 20th call this week and maybe the 10th voicemail Kris left for Hwayoung, despite the receiver not answering. He was probably annoying her, coming off as clingy, maybe even obsess but he was. He wasn't ashamed to say that he was desperate in finding his wife. Even hearing her voice would sooth his aching heart. “Are you keeping warm? It's summer but the nights are still cold.” He scoured the whole city, hired a private investigator, and even teamed up with Luhan to try and find his wife, yet two weeks later, there were still no results. “I hope you're safe....Is the baby healthy? I'm sure it is....You wouldn't neglect the baby.” Kris sighed deeply and rubbed his large hands over his tired and ungroomed face. “I'm a total mess Hwayoung. I've been neglecting work for weeks now. All I do is search for you.” How far did his wife go to avoid him? And how was she doing? All he wanted was for things to go back to the way they once were and have her back by his side. “I miss you. Stay safe.” He ended the phone call, the heavy weight on his shoulder increasing.

From a distance, Kris heard the jingling of the front door and at once, knew who it was. There was only one other person, beside himself and his wife, that had keys to the house and that person was his mom. He sat on the bar stool and waited until she came in his line of sight to greet her. He wasn't up for her visit, not after the unveil of everything but he wasn't going to kick her out either.

“Mom.” Kris simply greeted once she appeared. “What are you doing here?”

“I came to check up on my missing son, of course.” She looked worried, which was understandable. “Why haven't you been answering your phone? And what's this I hear about you skipping out on your responsibilities.”

“I needed some time alone.” Kris really wasn't up for dealing with his mother today. All she was going to do was nag and his stressed out nature couldn't deal with that.

“For what?” His mother scoff mockingly before walking forward to stand in front of him, her dark irises pooling with disdain. “To mope over your missing wife?”

“Mom.” Kris gently warned, “She's my wife.” He was a jackass and a coward for not defending his wife. Only now that she was gone, did he realize how harsh his friends and family were to her.

Mrs. Wu sighed as if her son was thinking ridiculous thoughts. “She was never good for you, Kris. She weighed you down and you had to do every single thing for her. What was so special about that Hwayoung anyway?” Til this day, regardless of what the girl did, she just didn't like Hwayoung. Kris could do so much better than that poor girl. “I mean, look at what she did to you? Cheating on you and went and had a kid with