Yongguk appears to be frozen stiff, as I'm still trying to digest in what has just happened. The silence lasts for a few seconds, until a female's scream from below is heard. Murmuring voices soon gather themselves together, and the curiosity in their tones, tells me that they want to know more. And as their questioning continues to blend all together, it's only then that a mortifying feeling begins to settle itself within me.

With shaky legs, my numb self now starts to wobble itself towards to the edge, where my wide eyes now stare into the vast blue sea.

"H-Himchan...?" I utter out.

And because there's no sign of his body, I can feel my breathing gradually increase with fear.

It's hard to explain, but while my arms and legs are frozen stiff, my lungs just can't seem to be getting enough oxygen.

"Yongguk," I eventually voice out, with a tremble—I feel as though the simple task of inhaling air is now becoming rather difficult. "Himchan...Himchan told me that he can't...that he can't swim, so I have to—" My hands now find themselves hastily peeling off my light cardigan jacket. "I have to help him, I have to—"

"No!" warns Yongguk’s voice, snapping me out of my stutter. "You can't swim either, so you'll drown as well!"

The realisation hits me hard, and an awful, awful, crumbling feeling now takes over my form, making me feel utterly useless. "Then what do I do?!" I yell, rather desperately. "Himchan is going—"

A low, exasperated sound is heard from the brunette's throat. I see him close his eyes for a brief second, which is then followed up by a slow inhale. "Look," says Yongguk, with his eyes now on me. "You're going to stay here, okay?"

I give him a look of disbelief. "And what use is that?!" I frantically retort.

With his mobile phone and wallet now in his hold, he then takes a hold of my hand, to gently place the two objects into my palm. "Because I need someone to hold onto these for a bit," he responds.

And before I can say anything else, all I can do, is helplessly watch, as Yongguk suddenly dives into the water, where the blue blanket soon conceals him away, as well.

There's another scream after Yongguk's jump, and the atmosphere only becomes more tensed.

And because the diving has been taking place up here, Jieun and Hyosung soon appear, to ask me if who they saw, was really who they saw.

Shock is clearly visible on their faces, once I reveal to them that their eyes were not deceiving them, and they're fast to act; Jieun immediately rushes off to speak to the person in charge of the boat, while Hyosung whips out her phone, and instantly starts ordering for an emergency rescue team. Everything after this seems to happen very quickly. I'm not sure if it's because I'm not focused enough to keep up, but right now, everything is just blurring into one giant motion. My mind is too busy anxiously pondering over Yongguk and Himchan's safety, so Hyosung's distress completely slips past my hearing.

And before I know it, I now find myself seated on a grey chair, that's situated against a white wall, of a long, tiled hallway.

My senses soon pick up that familiar antiseptic smell, as I begin to adapt my bearings in this quiet change of atmosphere. The sudden sound of footsteps coming from my right, instantly perk up my ears, and when I turn towards it, a woman in white shows me a polite smile. My reaction responds a tad bit too slow, so I don't get to return the friendly gesture towards the nurse, as she now disappears into one of the white doors, down at the end. I now gaze down towards my lap, to see that my hands have been tightly gripping onto a black leather wallet, and a smart phone.

How long had I been squeezing these two objects for?

And as my thoughts now circulate around the owner's wellbeing, I see a pair of shoes gradually come to a stop in front of me.  

I recognise them, and when my head steadily lifts up to meet their gaze, I feel an enormous surge of relief run through me, when I see their gentle eyes staring down at me.

"Oh thank goodness—" I abruptly stand up from my seat, to allow my eyes to have a closer inspection. "Y-You're okay," I breathe out, with relief. "You're okay, right? Are you supposed to be out here? Shouldn't you be lying down or something? I just—"

"Yejin," speaks up Yongguk. "I'm fine. The water wasn't too harsh, and Hyosung's rescue team found us before anything could happen."

I'm being overwhelmed by a whole range of emotions right now, and I guess it's showing through my tense posture, because I now feel my hands being held by another.

Yongguk's expression softens at me. "It's okay," he reassures. "We're both fine, so—"

Something inside me snaps, and it causes me to abruptly straighten up. "Where is he?" I worriedly question. "Where is Himchan?"

My hastiness makes Yongguk blink a little, before the corner of his lips fall by a fraction. "He's in there," responds the brunette, while gesturing his hand over to his left. "He passed out, but the doctor told me that it's nothing too serious."

The distress in me causes my eyebrows to crease together, as my frown deepens.

"You should go and see him..." adds in Yongguk, rather quietly.

I nod my head at him right away, agreeing with his soft suggestion.

Handing him back his belongings, I show him a weary (yet greatly appreciated) smile, just before quickly moving myself into the room that he had motioned towards a second ago.

Once inside, the silence of the place makes me carefully shut the door behind me, with a very miniature 'click'. It's so quiet in here, that I can practically hear the beat of my nervous heart, palpitating away, as I begin to scan the area for a certain male. The sight of Himchan sitting on the hospital's bed eases my mind, to know that he's well enough to be doing that. His attention is to his right, and away from where I'm standing, so I can't exactly see his face. Bit by bit, I then begin to approach him, and when I'm finally right next to the bed, it's when he at long last, turns his head over to look at me.

Himchan's downcast eyes lazily gaze up at me, but after blinking a bit, they then narrow themselves. An irked frown now appears on his face, as he lets out a small dissatisfied grunt, just before returning his attention back over to the window on his right. Why is he being like this, is he still angry about the misunderstanding, with Yongguk and I? Whatever the reason may be, I dismiss his vexed expression to the side, as I'm just immensely happy that he's alright. The relief that I'm feeling right now, is enough to make my eyes slightly water, but I blink the wetness away, with a small smile on my face.

"I'm really glad that you're—"

"What are you doing here?" interrupts Himchan.

His sudden question surprises me. "What do you mean...?" I say, after a moment. "What kind of question is that?"

Himchan doesn't say anything, except breathe out a slow, agitated sounding sigh. "Leave," he suddenly demands.

I raise an eyebrow up at him, feeling completely baffled. "Excuse me?" I utter, in confusion.

"You heard me," he mutters. "I said leave."

And when he finally decides to turn his face over to look at me, the amount of anger, burning within his dark orbs, stuns me.  

My astonishment makes me gape at him for a second. "I don't...understand..." I eventually say. "Why are you being like this? You can't still be angry about Yongguk and me, are you? If you must know, it really was a misunderstanding, because you're the only one that I—"   

With the intention of reaching my hand out towards his own, so that I can lace our fingers together, Himchan doesn't let this happen, because he viciously withdraws his hand away from me.

It's as though my touch repulses him, and the thought of that, makes me feel this abrupt stab.

"H-Himchan-ah—"

My stammer makes his sharp eyes turn into dangerous slits. "Don't say my name, like as though you know me!" he snarls, in a thunderous voice. "You must be a complete idiot, to think that I would never remember anything, huh?"

I can feel the colour from my face draining, as every part of my being, comes to a stop; my voice has disappeared, because I have absolutely no idea how to respond to this.

“That’s right, I now know everything.” A bitter scoff emits from Himchan, as he now diverts his hard glare down towards his lap. "I can't even begin to explain how...how unbelievably angry I am," he spits out. "This whole thing is so messed up, and I just—" Giving his head a slight shake, he then returns his unforgiving gaze back over to me. "You disgust me."

Himchan's words strike through me, making me feel as though he's just taken a very sharp object, and slashed it across my constricted chest.

"You're a very sick person, to think that it's okay to lie to someone like this," he hisses. Now crossing his arms together, he then tilts his head to the side a little, with a sneer. "So tell me; did you have fun, taking advantage of me?" he questions, oozing with sarcasm. "For just how long, were you going to hide this from me, huh? Actually, were you ever even going to tell me?" Himchan shakes his head at me, with a roll of his eyes. "With the amount of lies that you've fed me, I wouldn't be surprised if your name isn't actually Yejin," he mutters.

The amount of venom that he's just injected into my name, makes me slightly wince.

"I'm sorry..." I sincerely murmur, after a long pause.

Himchan raises a skeptical eyebrow at me. "'I'm sorry'?" he repeats, with mockery. "Well I hate to break it to you, but sorry isn't good enough, princess."

His snarky tone makes it a tad bit harder, to keep my composure together.

"You really are an idiot, if you think that a stupid apology like that, is capable of fixing everything," mutters the cold male.

I dejectedly swallow, although it doesn't seem to be easing up my dry throat. "I know that," I mumble, with remorse. "I know that an apology is not enough, but it's a start. And I honestly was going to tell you, but...I just couldn't do it."

Another thick, heavy, tension smothers the two of us, as I struggle to break the uncomfortable atmosphere.

Himchan's jaw tightens, and that furious sign, sinks me deeper into this pool of shame.

"I'm sorry," I quietly say, once more. "I am truly sorry, for lying to you, this whole time. You really do have every right to be mad at me, but I just want to let you know that I—"

"How do I know if you're not lying?" cuts through the dark haired male. "How do I know if you're not lying to my face about feeling this way, after knowing what you've been doing to me?" Himchan now shoots me another icy glare. "How do I know if I can trust you...?"   

It stings.

His words—they hurt, because I can understand why he's feeling this way.

My lips tremble a little, but I quickly bite it down, to keep my composure as calm as I can be. "Then...what should I do?" I murmur. "What do you want me to do, to show you just how regretful I feel?"

Another silence hangs itself in the air, but when Himchan finally breaks it, I feel a piece of myself crumble as well.

"Leave," I hear him order. "I want you to leave, and never show your face to me, ever again."

Another piercing stab is felt, and as Himchan continues on, I'm finding it really hard to keep my blank mask together.

"If there's one thing that I absolutely cannot tolerate, it’s people who lie and deceive," he spits out. "And since you've done all of the above, then you don't deserve to be a part of my life."

A shattering sound now echoes through my mind, and I'm completely numb. My inner self is now attempting to pick up these broken pieces that are surrounding me, but there are far too many, for me to cradle in my arms. So I forget about the others for the time being, and just resort to focusing on the shards that I currently have. My fingers feel cold, and they can't seem to stop shaking, as I now try to assemble the pieces together. I'm not sure if it's because I don't have the right sections lined up next to each other, but nothing appears to be connecting.

And because of that horrible realisation, of my broken heart, not being able to be mended together so easily, everything around begins to dim itself, as my inner self now sinks down in defeat.

I force myself to ignore the aching in my chest, as I return my attention back to Himchan. "I see..." answers my inaudible voice. "Then this will be the last time that we ever see each other."

Himchan doesn't say anything, except continue to glare at me, with his hard expression.

My nails are now digging into the palms of my hands, hoping that there could be another alternative to fix this, but nothing comes to mind.

And because Himchan is quite set on this decision, I can only force my stiff legs to start moving towards the door, where I feel as though each step just becomes heavier, and heavier.

But before my hand reaches out for the silver doorknob, I decide to turn myself around, to look at him one last time.

Himchan's gaze is back over towards the window, and I'm not quite sure how I should feel about that; sad, because something as simple as a window can hold his attention for so long, while relief, because his stare makes me flinch. They're so harsh, and the truth in his eyes pains me, to know that he wants absolutely nothing to do with me. It's as though every touch, and kiss, and smile, and laughter that we once shared together, is now meaningless to him...because the happy memories that we made together, don't seem to be enough for him, to even spare me a glimpse.

I take in a deep breath, before silently breathing out the shaky air. "Not everything was a lie though," I announce. "My feelings...my feelings for you are genuine. I sincerely do care about you, because...because I—"

The next few words appear to be caught up in my throat, and for some reason, I'm suddenly really scared to voice them out loud. It's strange, but I push myself to go on, and soon manage to choke them out into a soft murmur. With how quiet the whole room is, I'm sure Himchan's hearing must have picked up on my whispered confession. But whether or not he's heard it or not, his eyes are still on window, as there is no response from him. His lack of acknowledgement, on me pouring my heart out to him, makes me feel all the more smothered, as I can feel my tear ducts now starting up.

And because I refuse to let the wetness progress for any longer, I force—and practically yell at my inner self, to blink them away, as I finally, remove myself from that room.

———————————————

Now outside, my body is tempted to crumble down with my heart, but my mind strictly orders for me to stand up straight. I somehow manage to do that, and now that my legs have a mind of their own, they then robotically start to lead me down the hallway, and towards the exit. Himchan's hurtful words, echoing inside my head, continue to daze me with disbelief, as my entire senses feel dulled down. Everything is blurring past me again, and it's not long, before I'm out of the automatic glass doors. I'm not so sure where my legs are leading me, but that's probably the least of my worries, as my head continues to replay everything that has just happened.

It's only when I feel something suddenly grab a hold of my wrist, that I finally snap out of my trance, as my body is forced to spin over, to face them.

Yongguk's eyes are now searching my monotonous ones, and when he comes to the conclusion that I won't be talking so easily, he lets out a small, weary sigh. His expression eventually softens in concern, as he, still keeping our hands connected, now begins to lead me off into another direction. I soundlessly follow him, and it's not long, before I find us both standing in front of his parked car. He unlocks the vehicle with a click, and then opens the passenger's door, where he then motions for me to place myself in there. I stare at him for another second, before allowing his pleading eyes, to make me take the seat.

No words have yet to be spoken by either of us, as the car soon comes to life. Although, before the vehicle begins to take us anywhere, I can feel his eyes on me. Yongguk’s hand then reaches out for me, only to take a hold of the dark grey sash on the side, to secure it across my body. I blink at the seatbelt, wondering how such a simple task had managed to slip past my mind. My eyes then meet with his, and after a second or so, I then mumble out a soft "thanks", to which he responds with a small, (although worried) smile.

The car trip is filled with silence, because I'm too occupied with Himchan. Yongguk's gaze would sometimes fall on me, whenever we would be made to wait at a red light. But other than that, he's kept quiet. The car sooner or later, comes to a stop, and when I look outside, I see that we've arrived at my apartment complex. Neither of us says anything, and it resorts to Yongguk eventually turning off the car's engine, for us to just sit there. The silence progresses on, as the two of us find ourselves still rooted in our spots, with no signs of stepping outside any time soon.

Yongguk is the first to take charge, and finally speak. "Is it safe to now ask, if you're okay?" he cautiously questions. "I've...never seen you like this before..."

A tired sigh emits from me. "I will be..." I softly answer, not feeling so convinced. "Himchan...Himchan knows now, and I've agreed to never see him again, since he doesn't wish to be associated with me, any more." My lips quiver slightly, as I choke out a shaky laugh. "I...also told him that I love him, but...he didn't say anything," I quietly reveal. "It's expected, but the least he could do, was look at me, or...something." By now, I can feel my walls starting to weaken, but before I can allow for them to collapse, I quickly tell Yongguk my thanks, just before leaving.

He doesn't seem to have enough time to respond, because within a few swift strides, I'm inside the building, and am making my way up. The usual endless stairs feel quicker this time, and it's only a matter of time, for me to unlock my apartment door, to let myself inside. Closing the door behind me, I then find myself standing there for a bit, in the silence of the place. I take in a deep breath, as this feeling that I thought I had long forgotten, slowly starts to creep up through me. It makes my chest feel full and dense, and is really good at clogging up my throat, as my eyes are now becoming glazed, with heated moisture.

And before I know it, my knees buckle, as my back slowly slides itself down onto the floor, for the tears to slip out, along with my muffled crying.