You

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Jessica slowly scanned the white room, searching her memory for any clues as to why she was where she is.

A memory of the night of the incident flashed through her mind and the brunette frantically looked around in search of the businessman.

When her eyes finally settled upon the sleeping Donghae, her heart slowed to a calming pace and a relieved smile stretched across her face.

Thank God.

Thank God, you're safe and okay.

The heiress cautiously raised her free hand to reach for his face as she ever so lightly touched it.

She immediately frowned at the dried tear stains upon his cheeks; her heart ached just at the knowledge of him having previously cried.

It then took a plummet for the bottom of her stomach when she noted his bloodied and wounded hands.

Jessica gently traced over it as her eyebrows arched together in worry.

Am I the reason, Hae? For your tears and wounds?

A tear escaped her right eye and cascaded down her snowy white skin.

Carefullly sitting up, the sleeping beauty leaned down to press a soft kiss to his tear-stained cheek and wounded hand.

She then pressed the red button to request for the nurse and doctor.

The nurse was the first to come and Jessica couldn't be more grateful as she requested for a first aid kit to bandage up Donghae's wounds and asked for the doctor to be notified later when her love was awake.

It surprised the brunette that the businessman didn't once wake up throughout her bandaging of his wounds, so she concluded that he must have been very tired and fatigued.

The realization didn't help to ease her heavy heart.

He must have been suffering a lot. Because of me.

I'm sorry, Hae.

Glancing around the room, her eyes landed upon the book on her bedside table.

Beauty and the Beast.

"I never thought that I would someday get tired of hearing this story," she laughed softly.

Not wanting to wake up the fatigued man, she carefully laid down and positioned herself so that she could study his sleeping face.

It was some time before Donghae emerged from his slumber.

Slowly stirring awake, he looked to his sleeping beauty and drowsily smiled.

"I love you."

His first words since her wakening.

"I love you too, Pabo."

Her first words since his wakening.

"How I wish this dream could last forever," he mumbled sleepily.

"It can't because it's not a dream," she laughed brightly, finding the man before her to be adorably lovable.

She reached out to pinch his left cheek.

"Ah! That hurts!" he exclaimed, and his eyes slowly widened in realization.

Hastily pressing the red button, he showed no mercy for it as he urgently pressed at it multiple times.

Jessica's laugh filled the room like tiny tinkling bells as her love hauled her up to embrace her in what was one of the tightest embrace she had ever received in her life.

"Thank you. Thank you, God."

She embraced him back just as tightly while he planted a kiss to her head.

-

"Well, everything looks normal. We are very happy to have you back, Ms. Jung. Especially Mr. Lee" he winked.

"Ah, thank you, Doctor Kwon," Jessica replied with a grateful smile.

"I'll leave you two lovebirds to catch up then. You can be discharged out of here in about a week's time, Ms. Jung. Just to be sure," the doctor explained.

"I understand, thank you Doctor Kwon."

"Thank you, Doctor Kwon," Donghae echoed Jessica and added in a handshake.

Once the doctor and nurse left, Donghae crawled into bed next to Jessica as he snuggled his head into her hair.

"Tomorrow," Donghae uttered, "Tomorrow."

"Huh?" The brunette inquired with much confusion.

"Tomorrow. Tomorrow I'll notify our parents and everyone. Just for tonight though, I want to cherish this moment with you."

"Mmmm," Jessica hummed back in agreement.

There was a moment of silence as they took in each other's presence before a slow, soft chatter filled the room.

-

With her hand in his, he tenderly held it up to the bright moonlight that shone in at them through the white translucent curtains.

"Does it hurt?" he questioned her softly.

"Hmmm?"

"Does the bullet wound still hurt?" he clarified in a pained voice, his thumb tracing the spot of the wound.

She turned to face him and held his face sternly in place so that he was looking directly at her.

"It's not your fault, Hae. I chose to do what I did and given the same scenario, I'd do it all over again," she reassured him with a smile, "It doesn't hurt anymore. It had plenty of time to heal."

She beamed at him and he couldn't help but return her smile. Although, not with the same degree of happiness.

"Can-" he paused hesitantly, "Can I look at it?"

She consented with a nod of her head and urged him on gently as they sat up and she unknotted her hospital gown, sliding it down her shoulder to reveal the wound.

His thumb delicately brushed at it before his lips softly pressed a kiss unto it.

A kiss that sent butterflies to her stomach and made her heart skip a beat.

Carefully pulling her gown back over her shoulder, Donghae retied the knot and together, they snuggled into an embrace until the wee hours of the morning.

-

"Yah!" Taeyeon stormed into the room.

"This Lee Jerkhae! How could you not even inform us that Jessica is awake?!" the petite girl screeched and pulled the sleeping man up by his ear.

"Ah! Ah! Ah! That hurts Kim Fierceyeon! Let go!"

His retort in the form of a demand.

"Honey!" Wooyoung called out, hurrying into the room to pry Taeyeon out of her grasp.

He was followed by the Jung and Lee elders who could only chuckle in amusement.

"Now, I don't approve of what Donghae did, but I think I understand why and would have done the same," Mr. Jung said in his deep voice.

Everyone in the room broke into laughter as they each took turns to greet and hug Jessica.

-

It was finally the day of Jessica's discharge and Donghae had come bearing a large bouquet of flowers.

Everything had returned to normal by now.

The hype over her recovery had finally died down along with her long list of visitors.

Donghae couldn't help but notice though, that with each new visitor, his love had seemed to grow more and more troubled by a factor unbeknownst to him.

He had tried questioning the visitors but they all replied that nothing peculiar had taken place throughout their visit.

The businessman tried to brush it aside but he couldn't help but let the feeling gnaw at him.

He hoped that it was just his misperception and that there was really nothing to worry about.

"Ready to go, love?" Donghae asked the brunette upon his arrival whilst greeting her with a surprised back hug and bouquet of flowers.

She gasped.

"They're beautiful! Thanks, Hae."

She spun around and laced her fingers behind his neck as she gave him a peck on the lips.

"I'm all ready to go," Jessica announced as she grabbed her bag and interlaced her hand with his.

-

The ride home was silent but comfortable.

Both merely enjoyed being able to relish in the presence of the other.

It even felt all too short when the vehicle finally came to a halt.

This was when Donghae noticed the beginning of Jessica's nervousness as she fidgeted with the hem of her dress.

"Is something wrong, Jess?" he asked warily.

"Hae," she started out, "I'm leaving tomorrow."

Jessica turned to face him and watched his eyebrows knot together in confusion.

"I've booked a ticket to New York. I'm going to go visit my sister, Krystal. She's studying aboard there."

The businessman chuckled.

It was the brunette's turn to furrow her eyebrows in confusion.

"I thought you were leaving me!” he laughed, “If it's just a visit you'll be back soon, right?"

She shook her head grimly.

"I plan on staying there for a year. Maybe travel around, study, work, or find something to do."

Donghae's heart dropped.

"But why? Was it something I did?"

His voice was tinged with agony.

She shook her head gently and bit at her lips.

"I thought about it a lot, Hae," she took a deep breath, "I heard a lot, Hae. About how you were when I was in a coma. It really pained me to know everything, and I don't want to do that to you, Hae. I don't want to take away your life. I don't want you to center your life around me. I want you to live your life. Being you. Happily."

"But you're my happiness, Jess," he protested.

She shook her head again.

"If I were to stay now, you'd continue centering your life around me, worrying about me, trying to make me happy, and being guilty upon recollection of the incident. I want you to go back to your own life first, before we can truly be together."

Her heart broke at the sorrow in his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Hae. Maybe I'm being selfish, but please understand. I don't want to take away your life, with us being together at this moment."

He turned away from her gaze.

"I understand," he replied weakly.

But he didn't want to understand.

"Thank you, Hae. It means a lot to me. I hope you can get back on track, and to your own life," she hesitated, "And if you still want to be with me when I get back, I promise I'll stay with you then."

He cupped her face.

"Even if it's ten years, I'll still want to be with you."

She smiled through the tears that had started streaming down her face.

"I'm sorry, Hae."

He shook his head and smiled as a tear left his own eye, blurring his vision.

"Promise to write to me often and keep in contact."

She stuck out her pinky, "I promise."

He firmly wrapped his pinky around hers and with the lock of their thumb, their promise was sealed.

Gently pulling him to her, she pressed a final kiss to his lips as their tears merged.

They stayed like that for what felt to be too short of a time before she pulled away, whispered an 'I love you' to which he uttered right back, grabbed her belongings, and left.

-

8 months later.

"Seohyun-ah, prepare the documents to my next meeting. I'm on my way back right now," Donghae talked into the phone as he grabbed his coffee from the counter and headed towards the door of the cafe.

"Yes, Si-"

The businessman stopped dead in his tracks.

He could no longer hear what his secretary was uttering over the phone.

All of his concentration was put on the girl before him.

"J-Jess?" his voice managed to croak out.

The girl looked at him questioningly.

"I'm sorry, do I know you?"

Donghae felt his heart drop and shatter.

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