The villa had the best garden. It was simply amazing. It felt endless.

I was standing at the small bridge over the huge pond filled with fishes and other natural plants. My arms rested on the railings of the bridge as I stared at the moving trees on the other side of the pond, blown by the wind.

There was another rush of wind and my hands quickly went up to my shoulders, hugging the thin jacket closer to myself. The night was beautiful. It wasn’t a clear sky but it was quiet. And there was a lot of wind.

I was alone but not lonely—well, maybe a little, but not entirely.

It was one of those nights where I find myself reflecting. That night, my main focus was my life in Seoul.

How exactly was it? I truly didn't know how to feel about it all yet. Some days, I thought that maybe it was worth it, because I had met some great people. Most other days, it was pure and everything added up to remind me again and again that it was all a mistake to have ever given in to my father.

So I had moved in. The family hadn’t been so welcoming so far; the most they have been had been today. I’ve had complications here and there and I can feel myself getting tired of it as the days passed. There hadn’t been improvement on that part. But I did make a friend. It was, in fact, a very special friend that I treasured greatly, even if it hadn’t been too long. It was almost like I could see the future with him. I also learnt to cope with the family better. But, lately, while things were escalating so well, it proved not to be a lasting thing, just like everything else I had ever loved.

Yoongi was disappearing more often. It didn’t help that our meetings after school were completely gone because of me being grounded. While I haven’t completely absorbed and believed it, I knew things were going bad. But I chose to believe it was only temporary.

My silly, naïve mind decided that.

So I am lonely. My fickle mind was only lying to myself earlier.

I am both alone and lonely.

Suddenly, the air didn’t feel so good anymore. The cool breeze, it was too cold for my icy heart. The quiet night, it was too silent for my ears. It was way too silent for the ears that yearned to listen to laughter, even if it was from my own mouth. And the isolated area, it didn’t help. It was adding to the loneliness that I felt, because I, and anyone else, could see how I was suffocating in that solitude.

If there were any tears left, they would be falling.

It would wet my frozen cheeks that long didn’t move. Maybe it would melt it. And a smile could be seen again. But even then, who would see it?

There was not one soul, at that very moment, in the lonesome night, that I could think of, would want to even look at me. I was nobody’s priority. I literally had no one.

Before my heart was able to break further, a voice called from behind.

Even if I hadn’t cried, my eyes were wet. And there was no way that the person who was calling me, whoever it was, would miss the sad, tearing eyes.

I was dead wrong.

“Haesoo. Come in for dinner,” my father said.

I turned around before he was able to complete his sentence. But he didn’t see it. He merely gazed at my face and turned back into the house, shutting the door behind him.

Was it not obvious enough? I knew it was. I was sure it was.

Maybe I wanted him to see my tears. Maybe I wanted him to notice. Maybe, just maybe, I wanted him to at least acknowledge it, even if he wasn’t going to pry and pretend to care.

I was just hoping.

But he killed all that hope.

I guess no one really cared anyone in this world.

It didn’t matter how much trouble you’re going to be in or how much fortune you’re going to receive. People only care about themselves. People were made to be loved, yes, but in this society, it means to be loved by themselves. Loving others came second to never.

***

3 families, I learnt of. It started with the Kwon family.

Kwon Minjoo was the only daughter of the rich and prestigious Kwon family. At the rightful age, she inherited her parents’ wealth and was forced to run a company. Kwon Minjoo wasn’t a simple girl, however. She objected and ran away multiple times but the police have always managed to find her and bring her back. Knowing forcing h