After such wonderful time with her, Dara kicked me out of her apartment. I laughed on how adorable she could be. I’ve arrived home. I stood momentarily at the front door and sighed heavily. I opened the knob and entered. “Jiyong...” I heard my mom call out my name. I turned to her and bowed. “Mianhe for not coming home.” “Didn’t you know we are worried sick, Jiyong? You’ve not come home for four days!” My aunt exclaimed. “Mianhe, Aunt. I was just having a vacation out of town.” I explained. Dad was not around. “Omma. Where is Appa?” I thought of getting this over with. “Your dad has been in the hospital, Jiyong. We’ve tried to contact you many times but you were just unreachable.” My mother said. I could see how her face looked so tired. She hasn’t gotten any rest. “What happened to him?” I demanded. “After you walked of the out of the house and had not returned from the fort night, he suddenly had a mild heart attack. He stayed up all night and waited for you to come back. I told him to rest but he wouldn’t and in that night he suddenly got a heart attack.” Tears were starting to fall from my mother’s eyes. I hugged her tight. “How...” I was baffled. Speechless, to be exact. My father was a strong and lean man. You could never see any signs of illness mark his body.

We hurried and went to the hospital. My dad as sound as sleep because of the medicine. My cousin was looking after him for the day. We advised him to head home and rest. My mother was peeling an apple. I sat on a couch across his hospital bed. My father woke up. I heard him groan in pain. He caught a glimpse of me. He looked away and asked my mother for a glass of water. I hurriedly took a empty glass and filled it with water and handed it to him. He nodded and said thanks. We were quiet for a moment. He has gotten thinner. “I’m glad your back.” He said bluntly. “I’m sorry to make you worry.” I said and bowed in front of him. “You don’t have to. At least, when I’m dead you won’t be troubled anymore.” He bitterly rebutted. I bit my lips trying to control myself. Every word that comes out of his mouth is full of bitterness. Could it be because of me? I clenched my fist. I made a sigh trying to gather my composure. I promised Dara that I will make things better between my father and I. I stood straight and replied, “I never wished for you to be ill.” He made a short sarcastic laugh. “I only wanted to have a father that would support my aspiration in life.” He looked away and hissed. “Since, I was a child, I have been wishing every Christmas eve for my father to come home and visit me. Hoping and wishing that every football game, he would be there to cheer for me. And that every stage performance, he would be in the crowed cheering and rooting for me.” An indescribable pain started to dig in my heart. “However, every year I would only get a phone call saying ‘Mianhe son, Appa’s busy. I will call again later.’ In the end, he never did. Omma have been telling me that Appa is a hard working man. So I worked hard to earn my keeps and saved money for him to come home. Then, I fell in love with