Jae boarded the bus headed to Handeumi Village and took the seat by the window on the middle row of the bus. The bus was relatively empty, with only a few people on it. There were still a few boarding, but that was about it. She plugged her ears with her earphones, put her hood up, and leaned back on her seat. She wasn't listening to anything in particular, just anything that she had. It provided some distraction and that was what she needed. What she didn't realise was what was going on outside of the bus. 

"Noona, take care, 'kay?" Jonghyun told his elder sister as she was about to board the bus.

"Don't worry about me. It's not the first time I'm visiting alone." his sister said with a smile on her face. "Noona's got to go now. I'll call you once I reach there."

"Mm okay. I'll talk to you later then." Jonghyun said  as he took a few steps back to get out of the way as the bus prepared to head towards its destination.

As the bus was moving, he caught a glimpse of a familiar face on the bus. It was Jae's. He wanted to have another look, but the bus had already passed by.

Jae?...What is she doing going to Handeumi?...I'll ask Kibum tomorrow.

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As the bus departed and was slowly getting closer to its destination, Jae couldn't help but stay awake. The others in the bus were all sleeping as it was only a few hours into the new day. 

...I can't keep running forever...

She looked out the window, thinking about what she was going to do once she reached the village. She hadn't returned in two years. Nothing much would've changed for it. But for her, it was a completely different place. It held good memories...but that wasn't all it held.

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The time for school came but Key couldn't find the energy to get up. He had stayed awake the whole night, thinking about what had happened. He didn't know what he'd do when he see her next. How he was supposed to act. At the nagging of his grandmother, he got up from his bed and got ready for school half-heartedly. 

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Key got to school and took his seat in class, waiting for Minho and Jae to arrive. Minho arrived a little later, and soon, the whole class was present. All but Jae Sun. Key was puzzled and worried, and he remained distracted for the whole two lessons until morning break came. 

"Kibum ah, is Jae sick?" Minho asked his friend.

"...I don't know..."Key answered, wondering about the reason why Jae was not present. 

"You don't know? So I'm guessing she didn't-"

"Guys!!" Onew interrupted Minho as he rushed into the room. Right behind him were Jonghyun and Taemin who had followed him. "Did any of you see Jae today?" he asked anxiously. 

"Ahh..no. She wasn't in class. Why? What's wrong?" Minho asked, sensing that something must be wrong. 

"Kibum, don't you know anything?" Onew asked Key who had remained silent.

"Ahh...no..." Key was confused at the frantic Onew. "Why? What happened?"

"...Jae Sun left."

"Left? What do you mean?" Key and Minho both asked.

"She's gone." Onew said sadly as he took out the envelope she had left behind. "She wasn't in her room and all her belongings were gone. We only found this letter which she left behind." He passed the letter to Key and Minho for them to read.

Key frantically opened the envelope and read the letter. 

Umma, Appa and Jinki-oppa,

Umm...there's many things I want to say, but I'll try and keep it short.

Firstly, I want to say thank you. Thank you for adopting me and my brother. Thank you for accepting us. I was rude when I avoided all of you. Trust me that it was not out of resentment. I was simply scared. Scared of...getting hurt. If there was no attachment, then nobody would get hurt. I was afraid that you'd turn me and my brother out, but you didn't. I was wrong. You accepted us despite the absence of a blood connection and I thank you for that. You gave us a home. Love. A family. You reminded me of what it feels like to have a family looking out for me. And there are no words that I can use to explain to you how grateful I am of that. Thank youfor all the memories, and thank you for all your love. I will never forget what you have done for me.

But I also want to say I'm sorry. I'm sorry for...many things. I'm sorry for my attitude at the beginning and also for the things I hid from you. But...most of all, I'm sorry for leaving without saying anything. Knowing that you are the kind people you are, I know you will be worried. But please, don't trouble yourselves because of me. I'm fine. You deserve more than just a letter, but for now, that's all I can give you. I...I'm sorry that I don't have much to offer. All I can say is...sorry.

I left Yoogeun with you because I cannot bring him down with me. I know this is selfish of me to ask of you, but please continue to look after him. He is a sweet kid, and he is all I have left. So please continue to love him. I leave him in your care.

Sorry...and thank you. For everything.

Jae Sun 

Key's hands shook as he read the letter and Minho's eyes widened. They looked up at the three watching, and they all had their faces down. 

"Wh-what happened?" Key asked, shaking.

"I don't know...so I thought I'd ask you..." Onew said softly, "I thought that maybe she'd have told you something. Did...did she really not say anything?"

"...I don't know..." Key could hear his voice cracking. "Yesterday...yesterday...we broke up..."

The rest of the guys looked at Key, surprised. He sat back down on his seat and looked down to the floor. 

"Then...then is noona really gone?" Taemin's voice was shaking. He was worried. But he wasn't the only one. They all were.

Jonghyun recalled what he had seen the night before. "I...I think she might be in Handeumi Village." The others turned to him, and he explained. "I was sending my noona off yesterday. I could only catch a glimpse, but I'm sure now. I saw Jae on the bus."

"Handeumi? That's where she's from." Onew said. "Wh-what's she doing back there?"

"...Did she really leave nothing else?" Minho asked, wanting to make sure that they hadn't missed anything in her room.

"I-I don't know...I'll check again when I get home. Umma and appa are talking to the police but it hasn't been 24 hours since she went missing, so they can't do anything."

"...Let us come with you. We might be able to spot something you might've missed." Key said, and the others nodded in acknowledgement.

"...Let's go now. I...I can't wait 'till after school." Onew nodded back. 

The rest agreed and took leave of school. 

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They started by searching all the rooms on the second floor but they had found nothing. They were in Jae's room and were about to leave to begin searching the first floor. Key stayed in the room a bit longer than everyone else, looking around. It was the first time he was in her room. He could hardly tell. She hadn't left a single trace of her in the room. He was about to leave to join the others when something on the floor, partially hidden by the bed, caught his eye. It was sparkling from the sunlight through the window and he bent down to pick it up. It was a key. Jae had dropped it as she was leaving the night before. He looked around, finding possible locks it would fit. Then, it came to him. Her desk. They had tried opening one of the drawers but it was locked, and they could not find the key. He tried the lock and it worked. He opened the drawer and looked through the blank pieces of music sheets until he found an envelope. It was addressed to him. He stared at it for a while and quickly hid it in his pocket when Taemin came up to find him.

"Hyung? Did you find anything?"

"...No. Nothing up here."

"...Okay...there's nothing down there too."

Key left the room with Taemin to join the others. He didn't know why he did it, but something told him to keep the envelope to himself.

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End of chapter~~ Thoughts?