For the first time in her life, Hyewon experienced such a rough journey. She did embark on her target time, but as the distance from the city widens, she found herself getting nearer the center of the storm - what started from drizzles on the outskirt of the city turned to aggressive raindrops as she nears the province. What she thought to be a smooth ride became almost hell as she rode throughout the night battling the raging rain, only occasionally stopping at convenience stores or gasoline stations for some coffee breaks and some food or when the wind and rain were unbearable. Still, Hyewon managed to arrive safely at the inn she will stay in for a day or so. Her calculations were right - she reached the inn around 5:13 in the morning, she still has ample time to fix her things at the inn and prepare for the morning live broadcast she has to report in.

A familiar figure, a man in his early 20s, was waiting for her at the entrance of the five-story building, wearing a blinding smile. Hyewon smiled back when she saw the person, who immediately ran at her aid amidst the terrible rain. "Seungmin! You didn't have to. I can handle it myself," Hyewon berated the younger guy, who only laughed back at her as he took her duffle bag with a bit of a struggle.

"Oof, your bag is heavy, though! I can barely carry it," Seungmin retorted. "I have your room readied already; I chose the room myself. I picked the best." The lad continued to say, being proud and all, to which Hyewon could only smile with the same proudness. How can she not be proud of the younger guy when she grew up with him and acted as a big sister to Seungmin, not until they had to move to another town. With both of their parents working long hours, Hyewon basically raised him. Seeing the younger grow up to be the man he is now, Hyewon is utterly proud of him.

"So, breakfast first?" Seungmin stopped at the front desk while gesturing to some workers to get Hyewon's bag to her respective room. Hyewon nodded and followed the younger to the dining hall.

After getting some pancakes and hot coffee, the two settled on a table near a window, and Hyewon could see just how the rain is getting more aggressive by the hour. Not minding it much, she decided to just focus on eating and catching up with her younger 'brother.' Hyewon learned that Seungmin was now the manager of this inn that was managed before by his parents. She also explained how she landed the coverage in that province without getting into some details that might upset Seungmin. She remembered one time when Seungmin visited her in her office and how she nonchalantly told the younger about a co-worker hitting on her nonstop, and the younger was immediately fired up to the point where she dragged Seungmin into a nearby cafe to let him cool down or else he might actually punch that guy. So Hyewon spared those details.

Hyewon then elaborated her plans to the younger, and the two discussed her stay in the province. Just as the two were starting to keep up with each other, a crew approached Seungmin and whispered something to him. The younger's aura went from being the bubbly kid he was to an authoritative figure. The air suddenly was filled with dignified respect, and Hyewon was so proud to see this side of him. Only nine months into his manager job and he already exerted such aura and a great leader's manner.

But as much as she was proud of him, Hyewon could not help but think of herself, how one year into her job, she was still a staff reporter, a pushover, a prey to the world of men. These thoughts filled Hyewon's mind like an hourglass, and she's at the bottom of it, both hands and feet tied, and sand slowly filling in, suffocating her bit by bit. Suddenly, everything she has done felt useless. What can a girl in a world dominated by man do by herself anyway? Hyewon stared out at the window, looking forlornly at the gloomy sight, the voices around her getting tuned out. Right, she forgot she has to go out to god knows where for her live coverage. Another sigh left her lips, and that's when she noticed Seungmin stood up and cleared his throat to get her attention.

"Hey, I'm sorry. There's something up I need to check. It may take a while so-"

"I understand, Seung. No need to say sorry," Hyewon interjected before Seungmin could finish what he was saying. "I'm about to go out anyway." She gestured at her wristwatch, and both just understood that they have responsibilities to take care of. But Seugmin had a much more important job though, a voice in Hyewon's mind resonated. I know.

After bidding their goodbyes, Seungmin went with his staff but not without giving her room keys.

"End of the left hall, just as you always wanted because you hated interacting with people you want to isolate yourself," Seugmin said with a childish grin, and Hyewon could not help but ruffle his hair just like good old times. With that, Hyewon went to her room.

Her room was located on the third floor. As instructed by the lad, her room was at the farthest left of the hall. The moment she opened the door, she was met with a  familiar setup of a room. Hyewon could not hide her smile, for Seungmin did choose the perfect room for her. It was just a normal inn room with a full-sized bed and regular bathroom, but what made the difference was the mini refrigerator at the corner of the room. Hyewon headed straight to it, and as she opened it, she was surprised with the amount of food and goods inside. Hyewon closed it and noticed a note, probably left by Seungmin himself.

"I made sure to stock the fridge completely because I know you won't go out of your room. I also left an electric stove and some cooking utensils for you only. But that's a secret! That's supposedly prohibited in my inn >:( but I did for you because I love you :ppppp - seungminnie p.s. don't tell mom and dad"

Hyewon could not help but laugh at the younger's antics. All of a sudden, the room was filled with warmth that made her feel safe as if she has stayed her all her life. She wondered how a simple note from Seungmin painted the room's walls with bright colors, resonating their bond. She never thought something temporary could feel like home.

After gathering and securing all the things she needed for her work, Hyewon proceeded to leave the building. As she was about to exit the building, she overheard the guard and staff talking about the storm and how it was getting stronger and stronger. Hyewon looked around and saw a morning news channel on, updating about the weather but no specific storm updates for the province she was in. She sighed, seeing how city news filled the television broadcast but little to no news about far-flung provinces. She could hear the guard saying something about the 'bridge too old for this mad furious rain' and the staff agreeing but she paid no attention. She was on a mission. Getting out of the building, lashing winds slapped her whole body, almost causing her to lose her balance; even the main entrance's roof could not shield her away from the harsh rain. Hyewon quickly ran into her car just a few meters away from the entrance, entering her car with already wet clothes.

"Great, just great," she said to herself. The start of her day was already a roller coaster, from meeting Seungmin again in the province to facing the reality of why she was here in the first place. With no sleep at all, she was about to start working in a literal cold and unknown environment. "Damn it. I forget to bring coffee."

This was the real start of her day. With soaked clothes, no sleep, and no coffee, Hyewon was about to deal with a hell of a day.

-----

The road was almost impassable due to the continuous pouring of heavy rains and torrent winds, and Hyewon was thankful she was able to drive through all it. Stopping her car near a bridge that connects the city and the province, she witnessed how high the waters were dangerously running, and it made her think twice if she chose a good location. But to hell with it, she was already there with all her stuff, with only ten minutes to spare before she covers the storm being broadcasted live throughout.

Quickly setting up her laptop and camera and intricately positioning it inside the car without compromising the video's quality, Hyewon managed to finish it all with two more minutes to spare. She contacted the staff at the station immediately and was now on standby. Amidst the terrifying lashes of rain literally slapping her body, Hyewon stood outside of her car with the bridge and its rising waters as the background. She backtracked what she prepared, mentally checking if she missed anything. Camera connected to the laptop for video coverage? Check. Earpiece working well and clear? Check. The view of the bridge while someone was bravely crossing it? Check. The view of the what?!!

Hyewon whipped her head towards the almost not visible bridge to see if she indeed saw a person crossing it. The first thought that came into her mind was maybe it was just a figment of her imagination due to lack of sleep, but she can slowly form a figure of some sort slowly moving. Since she could not confirm it with what blurry vision she has that moment due to the rain and wind and all, her brain was working overtime. She could either charge towards the bridge to confirm what she saw and help the person or she could just turn a blind eye and continue with her coverage, which is starting in less than 60 seconds. A thousand thoughts were swirling in her head, it was as if time stopped for her until she made a decision. At that moment where the rain was ravaging, the reporter started sweating, her hands got cold, and she was frozen in her spot, still looking at the blurry sight before her. She could hear something being said from her earpiece, but her mind was ... a mess. Is it the fear of abandoning a human in need or the fear of being embarrassed on national television? All these internal conflicts continued to arise in her and with every second ticking like a time bomb, Hyewon just—

"Kang, you're going live in 10...9...8..."

Hyewon never heard the end of it for she was already running like being chased by a crazy madman, against the wind and rain, against her own will, maybe. Sludges of mud tried to slow her down but her adrenaline was working at its optimum capacity and in no time she was nearing the figure of a person. So it was real and not her imagination. But what trickled her mind and made her panic ten more times was the bridge. The bridge was slowly crumbling from the other end, and she could feel that any time the whole bridge may completely collapse. With the last spurt of energy she has, Hyewon sprinted at the person only to see a girl almost freezing to death, and when she held her hands it was cold as metal, and when she looked at her eyes — pain.

All Hyewon saw was pain reflected in the girl's eyes, a deep kind of hurt that she could never fathom. She did all her best to break the tantalizing gaze and to haul both of them out of the dangerously crumbling bridge, so Hyewon led the girl's hand around her neck and carried the girl in her back since the latter could not even move on her own and tried to run as fast as she can even with the extra weight because she was afraid they might die. Unbeknownst to her, the girl was whispering something. Her voice rasped and cracked, the girl tried blurting out a word. A cry for help. A desperate prayer. All unheard.

Perhaps, Hyewon was thinking she was a hero of some sort, something to feed her ego after ditching her work at the very last minute, but whatever she was thinking, the girl she was carrying was trying to look back at the collapsing bridge, its debris slowly falling just as the girl's eyes were slowly drooping. Before fully submitting into unconsciousness, a word came out of , and although almost inaudible, Hyewon could not forget the pain in her strained voice. Amidst her running against the rain and wind, amidst the danger of crossing the bridge, amidst the fear of abandoning her job, all she felt was agony; and how her heart goes out to the girl in her back for she knows that whatever reason it was, it was gravely important. For her last word was not herself but to someone else. For her word bore any greater emotions than Hyewon has ever expressed before, how it felt like a stab in the chest, pouring over all repressed feelings.

"Sorry..."