[kyle's notes]: nothing... what do you want to hear from me anyway?

(sc):
The Fray
Paul Simon

 

warning: LOTS of ERRORS ahead

 

 

 

 

 

Jung Min arranged the blanket over Il Woo’s still form the moment the latter closed his eyes to sleep. His brother had been complaining of dizziness since Thursday evening. And his color hadn’t been any better.

 

 

 

Stress.

 

 

 

 

Forcing himself to do so, Jung Min whirled around so he could turn off the lights. The digital clock illuminated its indication as it got dark.

 

 

 

Saturday

11:55 PM

 

 

 

Two days.

 

 

 

And still no hope for a flawless donor.

 

 

 

Il Woo was functioning, thankfully, but the additional paleness each day was pure torture. The health team assigned to him was trying their best to help. There were times when they were able to find a suitable match, but they all had health conditions – hypertensive, hypotensive, anemic, alcoholic, with tattoos, and worst, HIV-positive. These people’s bloods were unsafe for transfusion.

 

 

 

Jung Min was losing hope. What should he do?

 

 

 

Scratch that. He knew exactly what to do. He just wasn’t sure of how. But this was for Il Woo – the same boy his father risked his life for despite the fact that he wasn’t his biological son; and the same boy he swore to protect after his father’s death.

 

 

 

So what’s the point of letting your pride rule you when it’s your brother’s life that’s at stake?

 

 

 

Offering a last glance at the sleeping man on the bed, Jung Min walked out and closed the door gently. He collected his phone and spent some seconds staring at it. Must he really do this?

 

 

 

♫♪ And all at once, the crowd begins to sing

Sometimes… We’ll never know what’s wrong without the pain

Sometimes, the hardest thing and the right thing are the same ♫♪

 

 

 

***************************************

 

 

 

Hyun Joong used his left arm to pull So Min closer to his body while his right stretched to reach for his phone. How it ended up on his wife’s bedside table – he had a clue, but he hadn’t planned on detailing that to us. And who the hell was daring to call him at this ungodly hour of the day? He practically needed to put his self on top of her before successfully picking up the annoying gadget. Not that he didn’t like the idea of being on top of her, but…

“Yes?” Sleepy eyes opened broader, “Hold on, just a sec.”

 

 

 

He gently pulled his arm that was being pillowed by the beauty beside him. Carefully placing her head on a real pillow, the next he fixed was the blanket, placing it higher until it covered her bare shoulders. He schooled her peacefulness for a moment, trying to imprint it in his core as much as his brain cells could allow.

 

 

 

Improper Acts. Low-class bride.

 

 

 

He had said some harsh words to her in the past and he bore in mind to apologize for it – although he was certain she’d wave them off and say it didn’t matter anymore. For him, it did because he couldn’t accept the fact that he had just eaten those things he said. But better than bringing them back was making up for them. Yes, he needed to make up to her – all those times he treated her like sh*t, like she wasn’t his wife at all. If it weren’t for his honest heart, he wouldn’t be able to realize her worth in his life. “I was—” he murmured, making sure the person on the other line of his phone wasn’t hearing this private monologue he had for his beloved. “—born to love you.”

 

 

 

He chortled at his own cheesiness and then giving her forehead a soft kiss before dangling his legs off the bed to look for his clothes – which he couldn’t remember where he discarded. This was the price of giving in to the call of rampant hormones.

 

 

 

Hormones, hormones, what are you made of?

 

 

 

Hyun Joong closed the bedroom door behind him and resumed the conversation with the said person. His wife was going to have a field day.

 

 

 

***************************************

 

 

 

Sunday…

 

 

 

So Min looked around her old room, spotting no changes except the closet’s contents and the paintings piled in a corner. The room’s orderliness reflected how OC Wang Hee could be – just like her when it came to the task. She took a longer look on the said paintings, scrutinizing each with assessing eyes. Her brother was good. Very good. Fine Arts was indeed the suitable course for him. She then sat on her – and now her brother’s – bed and extended her neck upwards. Her muscles were aching – thanks to her husband who seemed really energetic at night.

 

 

 

“So Min?”

 

 

 

Sitting up straight, “Yeah?”

 

 

 

“Can I come in, honey?”

 

 

 

“’Course, dad.”

 

 

 

So Min watched as her father invited himself in and trod towards where she was sitting. She persuaded Hyun Joong to visit her parents, considering that they were able to visit his parents two days ago. He agreed like he always did– always not being able to resist her. He dropped her off first before heading to where he would meet Jung Min and promised to come by after.

 

So Min wanted to see Wang Hee as well – too bad he was assigned to do the groceries. Her mother was busy preparing a snack for them, while she decided to look around her old room first, leaving her father in the living room. And now, he was in the same room with her.

 

 

 

“I do believe I haven’t talked to my baby girl since we came back.”

 

 

 

Alvin reached out, but So Min backed away, her face wrinkled as if anticipating pain. This caused the man to place his hands back to his sides. So Min stared at him, shocked at her own reaction. It wasn’t like she didn’t want him to come near her, but a part of her responded involuntarily. “Daddy, I’m—”

 

 

 

“It’s okay,” he spluttered. “I understand. I—you—we really didn’t have a good way of parting back then." But he was curious, “Does it—” Moving towards his daughter, Alvin slowly lifted a hand to her left cheek, “—still hurt?”

 

 

 

She still flinched, but not as strongly as earlier. “No.”

 

 

 

“I’m sorry,” dropping his arm again.

 

 

 

So Min gazed at the man she looked up to as a standard in finding her own ideal guy. Looking at his pained eyes almost brought her tears. She didn’t mean to react so strongly. It just came out and like what he said, because her brain’s memory of their last time together wasn’t very good. “It’s okay, daddy,” she said and really meant it. “I love you.”

 

 

 

He smiled although a wistful one. He wished he could turn back time and be honest with her then. “I love you, too, baby.” Finally sitting beside her, “Very, very much. I’m so sorry.”

 

 

 

So Min allowed herself to be squeezed by her father. How she missed similar moments in the past.

 

 

 

“I’ve been a bad father, huh?”

 

 

 

Shaking her head, “But you’re here now. You found my brother so you could perform the role of being his father. You’re not bad, daddy. You did it for the family.”

 

 

 

Alvin tightened their embrace, feeling his manly tears starting to make their grand entrance. His little girl had grown so much into a lady with undeniable wisdom and broad view of things. If this were some bratty daughter, she would have thrown tantrums at him for giving her away in marriage.

 

 

 

“But there’s something I don’t understand.”

 

 

 

“Yes?” pushing her a bit so he could look at her inquisitive eyes.

 

 

 

“You told me it’s because we have a debt we needed to pay thus, you sold the company. How come you still seem to have control over the stocks of the items?”

 

 

 

“So Min, darling…” This was the topic he was trying to avoid. He didn’t want her to know the truth from him – this was her husband’s responsibility. But there was no harm in providing her some of it. “Sorexelle wasn’t sold; it just merged with that of Andrew’s.”  He paused a bit then continued at her knitted brows, “Through your marriage.”

 

 

 

Sorexelle was the name Alvin’s father invented for his store. Eventually, what started as a small convenience store on the first floor of their humble abode became a hit with increased sales. Andrew Kim then decided to adopt the name, changing their original supermarket’s name to it after Hyun Joong and So Min’s wedding – this made it believable that it was indeed sold. According to him, Sorexelle seemed more unique than Central City’s Supermarket.

 

 

 

“I thought I was used to pay for that debt.”

 

 

 

“No, darling.” He wiped a single tear that fell out of the corner of her eyes. Damn this! He hated seeing his precious daughter sad. She was his treasure. “We only made it appear that way. We knew you’d beg us to the extreme if we told you the truth and being your parents, we’d surely give in. And if that happened, we couldn’t utilize Andrew’s help, so we thought of a way where you’d be forced to marry their son without knowing about the brother you thought you never had. We were already looking for your brother, but our lack of connections made it difficult. Andrew – I met him two years ago when your grandfather tasked me to attend a business deal as his replacement. My store wasn’t as huge as his – theirs was already a supermarket, while ours was just a convenience store. Yet he was humble enough to be a friend. When I received the letter from Edward’s ex-girlfriend, Andrew was with me – he was the first on my friend list to know about your twin. He knew it even before your mother did. Andrew has the money, the fame and lots of connections in the business world and he said he met Victor in Georgia with a baby boy few weeks after you were born. I told him I was determined to search for my son and he willingly offered to help – in exchange of…” He trailed off, glancing down at his waiting girl to continue. But this was the part he wasn’t sure if he had the right to tell.

 

 

 

“Me?”

 

 

 

He slightly nodded, “Being wed to his son.”

 

 

 

“I don’t understand,” shaking her head, “Why would he offer such great help just so his son could get married? What benefit could they have from that?”

 

 

 

“That I’m not sure of,” he lied, hugging her to him again so he wouldn’t see the desperateness in her orbs. One look at them would definitely have him spill the beans. “All I know is that I’m glad my little girl forgave her father.”

 

 

 

“Says who?” she laughed, encircling his waist. It felt good to be able to hug him again. “Oh! I have a favor to ask, daddy.”

 

 

 

“Anything for my princess.” He let her go and pinched her cheeks shortly. “I do hope it’s not food you’re going to ask me to buy. I bet Dina Park is spoiling you with delicious food every day. Hyun Joong won’t be able to carr