I am sitting on the sand, alone, as I relish the breezing wind of the beach. Unsurprisingly, it’s quite warm here, not as chilly as Seoul. The sky is already dark but clear, allowing me to see the stars above. I watch the blue sea before me. It is strangely calm tonight. There’s almost no one here except for some locals that walk past me every now and then.

It’s very serene... and comfortable. Well, except for the fact that I can feel the eeriness of being stared at. I notice a silver sports car I’m getting so familiar with parked a few meters away behind me. The car has been there since I arrived here in the beach – which has been almost three hours – but the driver hasn’t come out yet, so it’s quite obvious who the driver is.

Jeez, Hyukjae Oppa just can’t let me be completely alone. He followed me. I know he’s watching me from afar, but I’m grateful enough that he still has the decency not to disturb the calming silence by approaching me.

I hug my knees closer to my chest and let the wind caress my face. The fresh air helps me clear the anger off my head. Wow it’s so good to be alone after getting those revelations shoved into my face.

The wonderful scent of sea fills my lungs as breathe in deeply.

Memories roll back into my mind like series of sequences in a movie. First, Hyukjae Oppa’s leaving, and then Kangsan’s bankruptcy, then my mother running away from her family, me getting into a break down, me getting rejected by universities, and finally Hyukjae Oppa coming back into my life and explaining about everything.

Whoa. It’s overwhelming. I’m amazed that I haven’t spilled the tears yet.

Hyukjae Oppa was leaving because he wanted to protect me. He wanted me to grasp my future the way I wanted it to be. So after all he wasn’t this egotistic person that went away because he was obsessed with his dream.

On one side, I’m relieved to find it out, and honestly, I’m flattered. But on the other side, I wish... I wish he didn’t leave. I really don’t understand. He could’ve stayed with me. He could’ve talked it out with me and stayed.

He said he knew how important my dream was for me? Gee, I want to make a face at this. He is supposed to be a bright guy.

Doesn’t he know that he’s been my dream all along? That he’s so important to me? God, his intentions were coming from a good place but they didn’t work the way he directed.

And he said he loved me...

I feel blood streaming to my cheeks, and suddenly the air feels so much warmer. Hyukjae Oppa said he loved me. Oh he loves me... That was the first time I heard that from him. The three words. Suddenly my chest constrict with longing. I miss him.

My phone vibrates in the pocket of Hyukjae Oppa’s suit jacket. I fish it out and see the caller ID, and almost roll my eyes if only my stomach isn’t fluttering from seeing the name.

“Hello,”

“Hi,” Hyukjae Oppa speaks nervously.

I sigh. “Aren’t you bored or tired watching me from there, Oppa?”

“What?” he asks, dumbfounded.

I turn my upper body and wave my hand to the direction of his car, and a momentary silence – a shocked silence from him – fills the line. Unfortunately the windows of the car are heavily tinted, so I can’t see his epic surprised expression.

“You knew?” he asks.

I laugh softly. “It’s kind of hard not to when your car looks so shiny from here.”

“Oh,” he mutters, embarrassed. “I’m sorry I followed you. I just want to make sure you’re safe.”

“It’s okay.”

“We’re just a few meters away,” he says, “And we’re talking on the phone, again.”

My lips curl up into a small smile, remembering our phone conversation at my balcony that night.

He pauses for a moment. “Are you okay, Nana?”

“Yes.”

“What I told you... That must have shocked you.” he sighs.

I nod, facing the water again. “Pretty much.”

He breathes, and I can tell he’s running his hand through his brown locks again. “Talk to me, Nana.”

“I’m talking to you.”

“Are you... angry with me?”

Am I angry with him?

“No.”

“Then why are you answering me with very limited words?”

“I’m not. I just feel a little blank here. It’s good to be here.” I smile unconsciously, fully aware that he can only see my back. “That was three sentences. Not very limited, right?”

He laughs softly.

“I just can’t really understand the reasons of your decisions.”

My words kill his laughter, and he sounds exasperated again, “Nana,”

“I’ve been thinking about it for the last few hours and it still doesn’t work for me.”

“Listen, Nana, I think we still need... to talk,” his tone is careful and he says it very gently. “Can I come there?”

No, don’t. Wait... Yes, please, come here... ugh, why am I conflicting with myself?

“I... don’t know.”

He tries and fails to keep the frustration from his tone. “You’ve been sitting there for nearly three hours.”

“...I know.”

“And you sound so tired, do you want to go back to the hotel now?”

“Oppa,”

“Yes, baby?” My insides melt at the endearing. I’m being so childish now yet he’s so... uncomplaining.

“Can you hum for me?”

Silence fills in the line. “I can hum beside you, if you allow me to.” he says quietly and slowly. “Nana, can I sit there with you?”

Do I want him to be here? Yes. No. Yes...

I tighten my arms around my knees, pulling them even closer to my chest and nod slowly. “Okay.”

“See you there.” He breathes with relief, hangs up, and I hear the car’s door closing. He strolls toward me, and in no time he reaches me. He sits beside me with a soft smile that contains so much emotions on his lips. He says hesitantly, “Hi, long time no see.”

I lift my wrist to check my watch. “It’s only been two hours and fifty minutes.”

“Away from you, it’s a really long time for me.”

For the first time after the last four hours, I feel myself relaxing and I giggle. “Gee, have I told you that you’re so cheesy?”

He grins widely at my welcome reaction. “Have I told you that your giggles are the loveliest sound I’ve ever heard?”

I punch his arm gently. “You’re here to hum for me.”

“Right.” he grins, “Why do you always want me to hum for you?”

“Because... I don’t know.” I say honestly. Thinking about it, I realize I’ve never wanted him to hum for me before. “It’s been sometime that I found hummings... calming.”

He smiles knowingly, a smile that doesn’t reach his eyes. “You know, Nana, I was... humming for you when you were in the coma.”

I blink up at him. “Really?”

He nods. “And when I finished, you woke up.”

I stare at him unblinkingly. Another revelation. Wow, did I wake up because my subconscious recognized his presence? It’s very... frightening. He has such effects on me even when I was unconscious.

“When my eyes were still blurred from waking up, I thought Kyuhyun was you.”

“Then you went mad and scared.” Hyukjae Oppa adds thoughtfully. I gape at him. He really stayed in the hospital...

“Why wouldn’t you let me see you?” I whisper. “Why did you say you were my cousin?”

His eyes widen. “Cho Kyuhyun told you this?”

“Yes, he saw you when you drove me home from that banquet few days ago. You looked familiar to him and he remembered meeting you once at the hospital.”

“Oh,” he looks at me. “Well... I just... I thought it would be hard for you to know that I was there when you were in coma, but I was gone when you woke up.”

“It wouldn’t be so hard if you’d stayed.” I murmur quietly.

He looks at me, as if intending to say a million words about it, but eventually he sums it all up into four words.

“I had... consequences, Nana.”

“What consequences?” he’s been talking about that.

He stretches out his legs and leans back on his palm, his arms supporting his upper body. “When I tried to save your Company, I had to leave you. When I flew here to see you, you had to lose your dream.” He glances at me. “That kind of consequences.”

I clench my dress into my fist. “What’s wrong with your grandfather?”

“He’s... greedy. That’s what’s wrong – very wrong – with him.”

“Kyuhyun mentioned that you had purple bruises... on your face,” I wince, I can’t even begin to imagine his face damaged like that. “Was that your grandfather’s doing? The consequence... for meeting me?”

Unexpectedly, he smirks. “No, it wasn’t him.”

“Oh?” I raise my eyebrows. “Who was it then?”

“Guess.” He smiles, and I bet it’s to lift up the mood.

“Donghae?”

“Why would he beat me up?”

“I don’t know.”

He smiles. “Who else?”

“I don’t know.”

“Guess.” He presses.

“You fell from the stairs?”

He snorts laughter. “I was going to make that as an excuse, but I thought you weren’t that gullible. But apparently, you are.”

“Well, just answer, then!”

He laughs, carefreely, amused with my reaction. “Would you believe me if I said it was your brother?”

I can almost hear my jaw dropping on the sand.

“Daeyoung Oppa?” I choke, horrified. I mean, his oh-so-forever-best-friend?

He nods.

“But he... you... I can’t imagine him...” I trail off.

He smiles softly. “He was only inches away from killing me, Nana.”

“Oh,” I stare at him with horror, suddenly losing my ability to talk.

“I deserved it.” He stares blankly at the darkness of the sea, and lets the silence join us once again. The humor between us is now disappearing with the wind. After a beat, he returns his eyes to me and tells me solemnly, “Daeyoung told me about your nightmares.”

My eyes widen. Taken off guard, I look away as I feel a lump rising in my throat. Oh the nightmares... I remember waking up almost every midnight, the images of him coming and leaving haunted my sleep in every frustrating way. I had always woken up to darkness, eyes wide, panting... but the worst thing is, I only missed him even more every time the dream was over. I squeeze my eyes shut at the memory.

“I was still in a shock after I saw you lie on the hospital bed – I could only hear your soft breathing and the beeping sounds of those medical devices. So many kinds of emotion rammed into me all at once. Exhaustion, frustration, anger, regret... But then Daeyoung came and told me how... how miserable you’d been.” He closes his eyes and shivers a little. “I was torn, Nana. I never wanted to leave you. But I knew I came with so many problems, with so many reasons that told me I had to let you go. You still had a long way to go for your future, while I... well, I didn’t know until how long I had to submit to my grandfather’s every word. It would be selfish of me if I kept you. You shouldn’t be with me. You deserved something – someone better.”

“But I wanted to be with you. I can endure whatever baggage you’re carrying. Was it so hard for you to understand that?” before I know it, tears of frustration have reached the tips of my eyelashes.

“I wanted the best for you, baby.” Hyukjae Oppa moves and slowly pulls me closer to him, wrapping his arms around me. “I could only understand that.”

“You are always the best for me.” God knows how desperate I am to get that sentence into his system. Why is he so stubborn?

He pulls away to see my face, pressing the tip of his index finger to the space between my furrowing eyebrows. “I wasn’t the best for you,” he leans forward, his nose touching mine gently. “But now, I promise, I’m trying to be.”

And then his lips are on mine, his arms around me in a protective manner. Everything disappears around me, and it’s just me and him, our lips connected firmly. I close my eyes feeling my stomach filled with butterflies, overflowed with this most emotional body language I’ve ever experienced.

It’s funny – I can’t quite decide whether I have to grin, laugh, cry, or continue arguing with him. He’s still so stupid in taking decisions, in my opinion, but then I love him. This guy has sacrificed so much for me.

The night carries on with us laying our backs on the sand, staring silently up at the stars above. I rest my head on his outstretched arm, our fingers tangled as I breathe in deeply. It’s wonderful. The view, the air, his presence.

The problems between us had been tangled for more than six years, but it only took less than a day for them to be cleared. I can’t believe he’s been keeping this to himself. He’s been so strong. He’s been protecting me, even though in the process he had to go a thousand miles away from me.

I stare up at him in amazement as Hyukjae Oppa shifts to peer down at me. Our eyes meet, and he smiles that comforting smile. He takes my hand with his free one, bringing it to his lips and placing a small kiss on my knuckles.

“Why are you frowning?” he asks softly.

“I’m just thinking that... you must be tired.” I say, wondering.

He chuckles. “It’s been quite a long day. Do you want to go back to the hotel now?”

He’s about to sit up but I hold him. “No, I mean, after everything. It must have been so tiring.”

He stares at me, but he says nothing.

“Thank you, Oppa... for everything.”

He shakes his head, but he understands what I mean. “Don’t thank me. I’m a little selfish, Nana.” He tucks my hair behind my ear, smiling. “I’m just protecting what’s precious for me.”

Helloooo :D

So I've just re-read this chapter, and one question popped in my head: is it just me or this chapter really looks like an ending? But anyway, as I said before, I'm not separating the couple, right? I think I've been torturing them too much, but then I don't know why I turned this story to be so angsty *shrugs*

And anyway, I have two different plots now. One plot will direct this story into a quick ending and fluff, maybe a few more chapters to go, while the other one will make this story a little or maybe so much longer, and it will have to introduce you a new character. I'm not planning on a sequel, so I'm still jammed between those two plots.

SO. Anyone have suggestions? :)