0p2.

March 2010

It was the first time ever in his life to perform a first aid on someone – much less a CPR. And even though he had no experience of doing so, Doo Joon was determined to put whatever he has learnt into practice, because he wasn’t about to witness someone dying in front of him when he knew he could do something about it.

And that person was a she. A very, beautiful young woman whose face had turned pale and lips about to go blue from the cold if he’s even a little late.

Inhaling deeply, Doo Joon bent down and his lips met those of the stranger’s for the first time. The breath he took earlier was inserted into her – every breath he took then was for her. He pumped her chest for a few times, before repeating the process again.

The whole process only went on for 5 minutes tops, but he felt as though it was a decade long until her eyes finally fluttered open and she threw up the beach water she had swallowed earlier.

Doo Joon sighed in relief as he slowly helped her up into a sitting position. Behind him, Yoseob helped to disperse off the crowd that had gathered around them, giving her some room to breathe freely without feeling suffocated.

Another girl squatted down beside her and wrapped a towel around her shivering body. The former looked up at him and smiled gratefully.

“Thank you. If you hadn’t pulled her out in time, I don’t know what would have happened to my friend here.”

He returned her smile. “You’re welcome. Just make sure you keep that thing around her. She’s in a state of shock right now.”

At her nod, Doo Joon started to stand up and take his leave, but before he could do so, he felt someone grabbing hold of wrist.

He glanced down at the hand, which belonged to the damsel in distress he had saved earlier. Their eyes met.

“Thank you,” she managed through a hoarse whisper, but Doo Joon understood anyway.

; ;

Yoon Doo Joon has always understood Jung Nicole’s words – be it silent or aloud, spoken or muted. He is able to read her movements before she even takes a step and he’s better at sensing her emotions than anyone else.

She was like an open book to him – but why now, of all times, at the most crucial point, he hadn’t been able to gauge her plans?

Why, even now, after he had sent everyone home – every single guests in the list, the hoards of reporters whom he had stood before and called off his own wedding; he still couldn’t fathom what had caused Nicole to run away on her own special day.

The four of them were sitting in the spacious living room, thinking long and hard as to where Nicole might’ve gone to. Her phone had been turned off, hence he couldn’t even track her down her current location. The messages they left didn’t even go through and Jiyoung had even called up the orphanage home where Nicole had grown up in. They said the last time they had even saw her was about a year ago.

“How did she seem to you last night? Did she say anything to you?” Yoseob directed the question at Jiyoung, who had her face buried in her hands. “Anything suspicious at all?”

“No,” she shook her head weakly. “In fact, she was being her hyper self – blabbering about how everything’s going to be, worried about the food, the cake, the whole ceremony...she was genuinely happy.” Letting out a sigh, she continued regretfully, “I still should’ve sensed it then, right? That something wasn’t right...this is all my fault.”

“No,” Bomi was quick to jump to her defense, just as Yoseob settled himself on the space next to her and carefully slipped his arm into hers, intertwining their fingers together. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze as Bomi said, “It isn’t anyone’s fault. No one saw this coming, and we really do not know what triggered this.”

Jiyoung smiled feebly at him and mouthed the words ‘thank you’ as she patted the back of his hand lightly. 

“Someone should call Yixing,” she suggested, suddenly remembering Nicole’s twin brother who was due to return to Korea that morning, but hasn’t turn up yet. “Maybe he knows something.”

“I did,” Doo Joon, who had been keeping awfully quiet since just now, finally spoke up. “It went straight to his voicemail though. Maybe his flight got delayed.”

“Should we report this to the police?” Bomi asked worriedly. “You know, something could’ve happen to her. Perhaps, she didn’t run away. Maybe she was – “

“What?” Doo Joon asked tiredly. “Kidnapped? Someone took my fiancé away, is that what you’re trying to say?” he eyed his younger sister begrudgingly, as though that thought was too absurd to be brought up.

Bomi played with the hem of her dress uneasily. “Well, I don’t think unnie would run away and just leave without a word. She wouldn’t do that to us...to you - “

“Well, she did, okay?” Doo Joon blew up, causing Bomi and also Jiyoung to flinch at his sudden loud, angry voice. For as long as she has known him, the latter hasn’t once heard him ever raising his voice before. He was always so full of patience and tender. But of course, each person has their own limits – and right now, everyone is pretty tensed.

The distraught man stood up abruptly, towering over his sister in a daunting manner. “Maybe, it’s time to accept the fact that she probably doesn’t want this marriage. That she isn’t ready to settle down...at least not with me.”

Jiyoung wasn’t even sure if she had even heard the last part correctly, because he had said it so softly, passing off as a mere murmur – that it actually broke her heart. She could only imagine what Doo Joon was feeling right at that moment; hurt, betrayed, confused...

Just then, they heard the front door opening. A second later, the security guard walked in, closely followed by a tall, lean figure; a very familiar face to them all – pulling along his black suitcase with his pilot cap tucked underneath his arm.

Almost at once, Jiyoung jerked her hand out of Yoseob’s grasp with such sudden force, that it caused him to be taken aback too. But only when he lifted up his head and met the eyes of the guest who had just came in to join them – did he understand why.

“Did I miss the party?” Son Dong Woon, with his usual confident charm, flashed a playful grin as he neared the unchanged groom without a single knowledge as to what has happened. He slapped Doo Joon on the back before pulling him in for a hug.

“Congratulations! I couldn’t possibly miss your big day so I arranged for a flight back as soon as I could. I hope I’m not too late.”

The other three could only watch helplessly in silence, not knowing how they should fill him in. Dong Woon is a really close friend of Nicole since high-school, and the two of them went almost everywhere together. If he were to know the truth, he would be just as distressed.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Jiyoung standing there awkwardly, fidgeting with her fingers. He knew things have been strained between them these past weeks or so, but he had returned with hopes of making things better.

Hence, without wasting another second, he walked over towards her and pulled Jiyoung closer to him, before dropping a soft kiss on top of her head. He could feel her going rigid at the contact made, but he tried his best to ignore it.

“I’ve missed you,” he said quietly, only for her ears to hear but Yoseob still heard him anyway. Every time he’s in the same room as his step-brother, it makes his heart boil. Every little thing Dong Woon does, annoy him and he knows it’s the same for the other guy too.

And as fate has it, they just had to be in love with the same girl.

“I thought you weren’t coming back until next week,” Jiyoung said instead, sounding pretty much uncomfortable yet she gave her best smile.

“It’s Nicole’s wedding! How could I miss it?” Dong Woon replied brightly, eyes wandering around the huge house curiously. “Speaking of which, where is she? I have a present for her.”

“She isn’t here,” it was Doo Joon who answered, while Jiyoung could only bit her lip anxiously. “And the wedding was called off.”

Dong Woon whirled around in surprise. “What do you mean called off? What happened?”

“Yes,” a new voice suddenly interrupted them from behind. A small thud followed soon after, before he continued, “What do you mean called off? Where is my sister?”