“Tears are words the mouth can't say nor can the heart bear.” 

-Joshua Wisenbaker

He was speechless—stunned for a lack of a better word. All he felt at that point was her soft lips that coaxed him gently to mimic her. He didn't feel his racing heart nor did he notice his temperature rising dramatically. All he felt was her and only her. 

Without his knowledge, his hand rose on its own, debating between the opposite extremes. Should he hold her or push her away? In the end, his indecisive hand remained stuck in the air, only grasping the subtle tension that surrounded them. 

His back hit the bed's headboard when her pace grew slightly rougher. Still, he didn't move—he barely even breathed. The shock was too much for him to handle and he unknowingly let her have his way with him. Dara took this as a sign to continue. Jiyong wasn't pushing him away but he wasn't responding either. So with a hopeful heart, she kissed him.

However, after her long one-sided attempts to get him to respond, Dara was soon losing herself and her conviction. soon tasted bitter and she gradually slowed down. The kiss soon became tentative and unsure. Loosening her grip on his sleeves, she made soft mewling sound, telling him that she was going to give up. 

But just as she was about to break it, he leaned closer and kissed her back. Careful and unhurried was the best she could describe his reply. Yet it all ended to soon. Before she could open her eyes, he had already pulled away. The absence of his warm lips made her shudder and grow slightly agape. 

The first thing she saw were his piercing brown eyes. Dara didn't know if he was angry or confused but the look made her conscious either way. In the light of it all, she finally realized what she has done and an instant look of horror adorned her face. Her heart thudded erratically just as his somewhat inquisitive gaze finally sunk in. She quickly removed her hands from him and before he could react, Dara was already heading straight out the door. 

Acting on instinct, he shot up and ran after her. Dara's mother was currently out of the house and tending her food stall so their little chase didn't really disturb anyone else. He thought he was about to get her when she tripped over a stray shoe but the woman was too fast and too adamant about getting away from him.

"Dara!" he shrilled, cursing when she changed courses to throw him off. 

Jiyong saw that she was heading for the front door and he took that chance to reroute. Dara was panting—practically heaving—from all this running. She hasn't done so much physical activity since high school! But the adrenaline she was feeling after the kiss told her that a quick run was her only answer.

Targeting her eye on the prize she reached for the sliding door, only to be left shrieking in surprise when Kwon Jiyong suddenly opened the door from the other side. She was about to scamper off to the opposite direction when a firm arm encircled her waist and pulled her back. 

She thrashed against him—even biting his arm in the midst of desperation. Jiyong hissed in pain but didn't let go. In fact, he only held her tighter and even gave her a smack upside the head to stop her stupidity. He heard her whimper in objection. He tried to look at her but the older woman hid herself behind her hair and turned her head away. 

"Dara." he repeated softly, although there was still a hint of exasperation. "Stop this." 

"Just let me go." she muffled stubbornly. 

"No."

"Why nooooottttttttttt?"

He pulled her closer and whispered in her ear. "Why did you kiss me?" 

She weakly pushed his face away and hid further beneath her hair. "Isn't it already obvious?" 

Jiyong groaned while the latter jolted when she felt his head rest on the back of hers. She wanted to peek at him but whenever she tried, the man would lightly bump his head to hers to stop her. 

"Why do you have to make things so weird?" she heard him mutter

"I'm not making anything weird." She whispered stubbornly. "I'm making things right..."

"Dara--"

"Stop saying it."

He was undoubtedly confused. "Stop saying what?"

"My name." She frowned childishly, turning her head away for the nth time.

Jiyong sputtered incredulously. "What am I gonna call you then?"

She shrugged. "Your wife..." she murmured dreamily. 

Clenching his jaw, he gave her another light knuckle on the head to try and make her same again. "You're seriously insane." He jeered.

"But why did you kiss me back?" 

He froze but he didn't let go of her. This gave Dara the chance to rearrange herself and face him head on. Determination was in her eyes while Jiyong had a crisis. 

"Why did you kiss me back?" she repeated, raising a challenging brow. 

Jiyong blinked. "I... didn't..." 

Dara merely gave him a blank look. 

"W-What?" 

She sighed and shook her head. "Let go of me, Jiyong." 

He blinked again. "What? Why?" 

She gave him a look as if she way saying 'do you even have the balls to ask that?'. Clearly irritated, the woman forcibly removed herself from him and started pushing him out the door. Initially, he flinched at her coldness but then he planted his feet to the ground and held on to the doorway with his life. 

"Get out of here!" she barked. 

And like always he had the audacity to ask, "What the is going on with you?!" 

"Just get out!" she screamed. "I can't handle your... you-ness!!!"

"DARA—"

"Look, Kwon Jiyong. I don't know if you're in denial or just incredibly dense." she finally blurted out in a resigned tone. "You kissed me. It may not be as real as mine but you still kissed me! I don't know what's going on in that head of yours but your denial..." she paused, looking pained. "I don't know how I can still handle you rejecting my proposals but this... no..." She shook her head, "You have to go, Jiyong." 

He grabbed her wrist but she readily snatched it off and evaded his reaching hands. That desperate gnawing feeling was creeping up on him again when the girl couldn't even meet his eyes.

"H-Hey, let's talk about this." he pleaded hurriedly but she had already pushed him out the door. Jiyong was trying to open the door again but she was counteracting it from the other side. He could very well see her silhouette from the other side struggling and he had to stop before the woman could pop something in her body. Dara leaned over the door, already both physically and emotionally exhausted. 

"I'll see you tomorrow, Jiyong." 

And just like that, her silhouette disappeared and he was left in her doorstep, disoriented and conflicted. His hands clenched into tight balls while his gaze dropped down to his feet. Why did it have to be like this? Why can't things just stay the same? 

But it was all his fault. He knew that. If he hadn't done what he did in the past, then all of this wouldn't happen... all of this shouldn't happen. Even back then he knew that he had hurt her. She thought that she was good at hiding her feelings but he always knew. His heart hurt every time he saw that expression on her face. She yearned for more but he took advantage of her and he couldn't live with that.

This wouldn't have happened if he hadn't slept with her.

He found himself crouching to the ground, head bowed down in between his bent legs as despair started to creep in his system.

This wouldn't happen if he hadn't left her alone that night. 

"Oh! Good morning, Yongie~" 

Jiyong forced a smile, walking over to place a gentle peck on Mrs. Park's cheek. Her mother patted his shoulder knowingly and silently urged him to take a seat next to Dara's empty seat. Glancing at his absent seatmate, he pursed his lips guiltily and just waited patiently to be served. 

"Our Dara just finished showering." the aging woman chirped, filling in the silence. "She should be out in a few minutes." 

He just hummed in response, not trusting his voice. A kind smile graced his lips when she handed him a big bowl of rice and a pushed the dishes closer to him. He was about to start digging in when the sound of clanking heels reverberated around the halls. 

There was a flash of surprise on Dara's face when she saw him but it was quickly replaced by her a faint smile. Much to his own surprise, Dara still sat beside him, not even moving her chair away like she'd normally do when they have a fight. 

Were they fighting though?

"So, Jiyong! I heard your parents are coming back from the States this weekend?" Dara's mother chimed in again. 

The suited man nodded. "They were able to resolve what happened in the American branch." he explained briefly, side-glancing the girl beside him. "Omma told me that noona's gonna come home a few days after them because she has to finalize some things there." 

Sunmi clapped, "Great! I'll be cooking a feast then. I was getting worried that these old bones were going to get rusty from being idle too much!" she chuckled. 

"What are you talking about?" Dara snorted and Jiyong immediately turned to her but the latter didn't even bother with him. "You work almost everyday, omma." 

The older Park rolled her eyes. "But I don't work straight. Sometimes I close the shop too early and sometimes I close late."

"Alright, alright." she sighed. "You're the boss after all." 

"Hey, it doesn't hurt to be your own CEO right?" Jiyong winked at her mom, earning him a giggle. Grinning, he turned expectantly to Dara but only found her eating quietly. The smile on his face immediately vanished. He turned back to his food and ate in silence with her. 

Mrs. Park would always find her way to fill in the quiet gaps and either one would answer but they never answered each other. It doesn't take an idiot to notice that Dara was refusing to acknowledge him. He would've thought that they would be fine because she smiled at him but then again, he had always been an idiot for thinking too far ahead. 

They all finished but the tense and heavy air has yet to fade. Jiyong asked Dara if she wanted a lift and she just answered with a shrug and a nod. He was gonna take that as a yes. Dara hugged and kissed her mom goodbye before she said the three phrases that she always says before she goes out of the house. 

"Take care. I love you. Have fun." 

They were just simple words but to them, they hold a lot of meaning. Because Dara was already in that crucial stage of her life, she keeps finding herself saying those more frequently than she should have. She didn't know when it started but all she knew was that she's been doing it for a really long time. She felt that if—for some unforeseen circumstance—she passes away when she was out of the house, that her last words to her mother should be meaningful. 

'Take care' was self-explanatory. Dara wanted her mother to take care of herself as much as she can. She wants her to know that her father and her would always look after her from the other side when she's gone. She doesn't want to think too much about it but Dara was worried that her mother might lose herself even more if they take their daughter too. All she could hope now was that she could live past the curse. 

'I love you' it was something that the Parks say a lot to themselves but it was one of the words that held the most meaning out of everything. Even though their time was limited, they always let each other know that they were loved and cherished. Dara always reminded her mother that she loved her just like her father did back then. 

'Have fun' was a way of telling her to live life to the fullest even though times are tough. She wants her mother to enjoy the precious life that was left for her and to live without worries. In a sense,