”Parting is such sweet sorrow,
That I shall say good night till it be morrow”
- Shakespeare

“TaeTae, look another shooting star” Tiffany squealed as she propped her head out of the basket to get a clearer view of the trailing light.

So maybe this is what we really ever are: a shooting star. Like burning debris, we make our presence known in a small space allotted for us. We light up the sky but for a second and then vanish. Each and every waking minute, the world takes away a small of piece of ourselves until we are left with nothing. Big chunks or small fragments, deep loss or minor deprivations, whatever it is, no matter how important, we all still fall in silent acceptance. The trail we leave behind is the trail of insurmountable emptiness where all our loss has compacted itself together, merged, and melted into one blazing path of light.

Taeyeon, like everyone else, has seen her own trail; the beautiful things she had lost. And from there, she reaches out into the blinding light, to capture it, hold on to it, and protect it. All the while, knowing that it is fleeting.

I'm sorry about your loss – was what the woman said.

“Thank you” Taeyeon robotically replied. Her weary eyes blankly staring ahead to this Kim Hyoyeon who wore a look of sincerity.

“This might be a bad time for me to talk about this,” Hyoyeon started again, “but I'm a lawyer in charge of Mr.Lee's will”

It felt like someone had just poured cold water all over her. “Will? Mr.Lee?”

“Yes,” the girl said, “I'm sorry to say this, but Mr.Lee died a couple of weeks ago. The only thing he left on his deathbed was his will for his property. Ms.Kim, Mr.Lee specifically wanted to transfer his estate to you and Ms.Hwang.”

Taeyeon stood there speechless, and not because of how shocking the new revelation was, but that she was physically, mentally, and emotionally too worn out to think, let alone produce an intelligent reply.

“Excuse me, miss” Sooyoung started in behest of her friend. “But I think that now isn't the time to talk about these matters.”

Hyoyeon nodded. “You're right, I'm sorry Ms.Kim. I'm sure we can talk about this later.”

“Thank you” Taeyeon muttered dryly.

“So what now?” Yoona asked to no one in particular. She kept her eyes glued to Taeyeon, treating her like fragile glass as she chose her next words carefully. “Taeyeon-unnie, do you have a place to stay here in Gyeonju?”

Taeyeon gingerly shook her head. “No Yoona, but I'll find somewhere to stay.”

“My house!” Yuri chimed in, raising her right arm to gain the attention of the others. 

Jessica quickly brought her arm down. In a disciplining manner, she said “Yuri, you didn't ask your parents first.”

“Oh, yeah....” the raven haired muttered softly.

“There are rooms available at the hotel I'm staying at” Hyoyeon interjected. “It's relatively cheap, and I won't need to search the whole of Gyeonju again to look for you, Ms.Kim”

“Alright, well I guess it's set” Sunny said as she placed a light touch on Taeyeon's shoulder. She smiled softly to the girl before saying, “Taeyeon, it's going to be okay. You're going to be okay.”

Taeyeon doubted it.


 

♦♦ ♦♦ ♦♦

Seven days have passed since Tiffany's burial service. Sooyoung, Sunny, Yoona and Seohyun kept her company inside the rented hotel room while Yuri and Jessica would occasionally stop by. For meals, Sunny would cook for them but every time she did, Taeyeon would decline the food made for her and instead resort to consuming coffee and crackers. Her appetite was just simply non-existent.

Yoona with the help of Sooyoung, would try and make Taeyeon feel better by including her in their light conversations. Every time someone would crack a joke, they would all shift their eyes to her and check for any reaction. There was none. 

Yuri and Jessica chose the materialistic road to try and help her cope; bringing in toys and various nicknacks for Taeyeon to play with. Yuri told Seohyun that it was to distract her from her loss.

Hyoyeon checked on the group from time to time. And every time she did so, she would talk about anything and everything under the sun except for the topic of Mr.Lee and his will. Somehow, she and Taeyeon had a deep silent connection with each other, like Hyoyeon by some means knew exactly what she was feeling right now. The woman looked young, but Taeyeon knew well from the way her eyes spoke that she saw much more summers than any of the seven of them.

Taeyeon let out a heavy sigh as she lifted her cup of coffee to her lips. It was late in the afternoon and Sunny along with Sooyoung went out to get some groceries.

A light knock sounded from behind the room's door.

“I'll get it” Yoona said from inside the hallway. 

Taeyeon could hear the knob click open and the door creak.

“Hyoyeon-unnie!” Yoona voiced in a delighted tone. “What brings you over?”

“I'm leaving to go to Seoul tomorrow morning, so I think it's about time that me and Taeyeon should talk about Mr.Lee's will”

The younger girl was a bit hesitant to reply but nevertheless said, “Ummm alright I guess, but only if Taeyeon-unnie agrees”

“It's alright Yoona” Taeyeon voiced from the kitchen as she dropped down her coffee mug, placing her hands on top of the wooden table and preparing herself for their talk. 

Hyoyeon and Yoona headed towards the kitchen and to where Taeyeon sat. Just as the lawyer pulled a chair out and sat, the younger girl dismissed herself and headed towards the other room where Seohyun was currently at.

“I know that this isn't the best time to talk about this,” Hyoyeon said as she started placing various folders and forms out on the table, “but thank you Ms.Kim”

“When did he die?” Taeyeon asked in a stoic manner.

“A couple of weeks ago. Inside his hospital room in Seoul” Hyoyeon said while reorganizing the files and handing out a pen to the girl.

“D