Chapter 46

By the Window

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Everyone dreams, everyone. And everyone sleeps. But not everyone who sleeps dream.

 Sandara was barely conscious when they wheeled her inside the emergency room. Bright lights, hushed voices and the constant beeping sound of someone’s pulse. She is alive. How many times had she wished she was not? Many times, so many times that everyone is on edge whenever she cries.  But she isn’t crying now. No she isn’t but somebody is.  Who? It doesn’t matter. It shouldn’t matter, no nothing matters.  Nothing should.

“Sandara, baby.” A sob follows then a sound of a chair moving. Footsteps.  Two set of steps then one.  It must have been her mother who left.

“Honey…” Sandara stirred. Only her father calls her honey. When she was a child, her father would sit her on his lap and tell her stories.  Stories about the great warriors of old, the monsters in the forest, folklores of his youth and of his one great love.  Her father is never ashamed of his love for her mother.  How he as a young man working as a draftsman for a local construction firm met her mother.  She was the new apprentice assigned at the reception.  How he would wait for her outside of the building everyday with a white magnolia bud in hand. How her mother’s father the general grilled him for days on end. How he won the general by bringing him a bottle of fresh milk every day for five years. How he proposed to her mother under the stars. How she said yes and how they found her.

Of all his stories, it was her favorite.  They decided to celebrate their first year together at the orphanage run by her mother’s sister, Martha. He found her sitting on the third rung of the stairs crying.  She was crying because somebody tore her doll. They sat together as he tried to mend her rag doll with missing eyes and hand sewn lips.  It was then that he fell in love again, for the third time when she smiled at him.

Benjamin Park is her hero, the big man with superhuman strength and enormous heart. Everything is going to be fine because her father is here.  He will chase the monsters away.

Sandara felt her father’s hand on hers“…let me tell you a story…”

“I am scared.” Mrs. Park confides to Sr. Martha.

“Don’t be…” the nun held her sister. “Sandara will survive this. “ She turned towards the door that says Neonatal ICU. She has to.

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Elizabeth Kang refuses to panic.  She has spent the last couple of hours trying to find her eldest son, look after her grandchildren and pay vigil at the chapel with Anna Park and  Sr. Martha.  Together they have covered over 15 miles of floor space pacing back and forth at the waiting area during Sandara’s ordeal.  Her son Daesung had coaxed her to go with Angela and Ryu when Bom arrived to bring them home.  Youngbae had volunteered to drive them to the Choi’s where Ama is waiting.  It broke her heart to watch the young girl cry for her Mama and begged to stay. 

She did her best to hold it in with sheer grandmother resolve as she stood with Daesung behind the glass window looking at the two fragile lives huddled together. She cried a few tears but refused to break down upon seeing the babies with feeding tubes and ventilators in their mouth and an attached IV on their legs.

Mrs. Elizabeth Kang refused to panic but panic she did. She watched the newsbreak at the waiting area. Kwon Jiyong was spotted at Gimpo International airport with the Japanese model and her sister.  They were seen getting on board a black sedan sometime early morning.

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“Talk to me.” Kiko reached out for his arm. Jiyong hasn’t spoken since he stormed out of the mansion after his argument with Sandara.  He drove in circles and stopped once for gas before finally driving to the airport.  There she found her sister was all ready waiting with her passport.

“Yuka is here to take you home.”  She watched her sister approach and hugged her.

“Let us go home oneesan.” She heard her sister say.

 Home.  It sounded so good.  But she isn’t going anywhere without him. She turned to speak to him only to see that he had moved ahead with his passport and ticket in hand. He had made a choice and he had chosen her! Kiko felt like crying. Vindicated.  That is what it was.  Nothing matters anymore.

Only Jiyong seemed distant.  He hasn’t spoken again since the last time at the airport in Incheon.  He also opted to sit three rows in front by the window. “Do you need anything” Yuka asked.  Her sister Yuka has remained attentive the entire flight.  She would hold her hand and smile at her. Her smile looked a little less strained and she had stopped fidgeting. “Why is Jiyong seated so far in front?”

Her sister smiled. “We will see him in Tokyo onee. You need to rest.”

With silent reluctance, Kiko closed her eyes and sleep.

It might have been a great idea had she kept sleeping. Jiyong had called for a car to pick them up but the quiet animosity has prevailed. He would not even look at her the entire time.  And now, he stood before her with blazing heat in his eyes that cannot be misinterpreted as anything but anger.  Jiyong is angry at her.  But Jiyong is never angry at her.  Never.

“You can’t go!” She flung herself at him and held on. “You can’t go. You can’t leave me.”

“My wife and children are in Seoul.  I have to go.”

“Those are my children. I gave birth to them.  We can take them and start anew.” She was frantic, she can’t lose him now. Not after all she had sacrificed.

“Kiks.” He held her face and stared at her. “Look at me.” He brushed her hair out of the way and said. “Those children aren’t yours.”He closed his eyes and breathes.  “They never were and never will be.”  He looked over to Yuka and gave her a nod.

“But you are here.  You chose me.” Kiko felt her sister’s hand on her shoulder.

“To keep you safe. You are my friend and I care for you.  Sandara will kill you the next time she sees you so please, stay away.”

“Do not let her come between us please.”

“There is no us Kiko.” He answered gravely. “After what you have done to me and my family simply proves that I do not know you. The Kiko I know will never give my children away.” And with that he stepped backed and left.

He was barely out the door when he felt his phone shake.  “Dae..”

“Get yourself back in Seoul now or I swear I will castrate you.”

A/N:  Thank you again for reading .  This isn't much but I wanted to post something.  Again, comments are welcome.  Please do leave them below.  I finish this with half a mind due to lack of sleep so yes,  I hope I made sense.  If I don't then maybe I can edit, hide, delete and what not later.  Off to sleep..