Boring preview below ^_^ 

"Minji?" Yuri called softly, still staring down at her younger sister in shock, wondering what she was doing standing right in front of her doorstep. Minji nodded her head and replied nervously, "Hi Unnie." 

"What are you doing here?" Yuri questioned, wanting to ask her over a thousand questions. "Who are you here with? How'd you get here? Is Omma with you? Why do you have a suitcase with you?" 

"Unnie, can I come in?" Minji asked, ignoring all of her questions because she was waiting to explain the entire situation to her right when she got in. Yuri felt uneasy so she poked her head out to see Dara by the side of the house, widening her eyes to see her now. "Dara?!" She exclaimed, making her stand there even more frozen, holding onto the handles of her suitcase tightly. 

"Mommy," the three of them heard from a far distant in the house. "Who came to see us Mommy?" Minji knew that it was Young Joon, immediately having a tint of excitement to see her beloved nephew. Yuri turned around and saw Young Joon poking his head from behind the wall, so she stepped backward to let Minji appear for him to see.

"Mingkki?!" Young Joon shouted excitedly, immediately running his short little body over towards her. Minji took her backpack off and started to bend down as she saw him run, then he embraced himself into Minji's arms, giving her the biggest hug that she's ever received from him. Minji wrapped her arms around his small waist, almost tearing up from happiness after not seeing her nephew for so long. She only saw him when he was an infant, but after that, she's only seen him on video calls and hearing his voice through the phone. She looked up at Yuri and slightly chuckled, saying, "I'm surprised he remembers my name." 

Yuri crossed her arms and responded, "I show him your picture almost everyday. He has to know who is auntie is, I want you guys to be close whenever I visit Korea." Minji continuously hugged him while Yuri went on, "But I don't know if that's happening anymore, since you're obviously here." Minji finally let go of him while Young Joon just held onto her hand, wanting to stay next to his aunt at the moment. Dara met eyes with him which made her wave, and he excitedly waved back to her, not knowing who she particularly was. 

"It's a long story," Minji started to say, standing up and holding onto his soft hand's tightly. "It might take a while to explain. Do you have time? Do you have to work at all?"

She felt highly stressed, not knowing what to do about the entire situation about Minji being here with Dara. She felt uneasy but she also wasn't going to let her leave easily. She stayed very still and remained standing there with a stressed out sigh, but she only nodded her head and grabbed one of her suitcases to bring into her house. 

"Young Joon," Yuri said to her four-year-old son, making him turn around to look at her. Yuri nudged her head towards Dara's direction and commanded, "Go to Auntie Dara and bring her into the house. Also, take her into your room and show her the new toys that Daddy and I bought you, okay?" Young Joon nodded his head and ran to Dara, immediately grabbing her hand and dragged her into the house. When they went inside, Yuri and Minji looked at each other very seriously, still experiencing awkward silence with one another because they weren't really that close. 

Yuri sighed and went on, "I just got back from work. Young Bae is gonna come back a little late today because his boss is holding him until later. But just tell me one thing." Minji looked at her vigorously, waiting for her request. Yuri bit down on her teeth and said stressfully, "Does Omma know you're here?" 

Minji slowly shook her head in shame, making Yuri close her eyes very distressed, worried that something similar to her situation finally happened to Minji. 

"Jong In did what to you?!" Yuri shouted in shock, completely losing it and standing up from where she was sitting. They had been sitting on the same couch where Minji had been telling her sister everything, but

once she passed the explanation of Ha Yi's funeral to the part where Jong In had tricked her to go to the hotel and her, Yuri completely lost her temper. "What right does he have to ing do that you?! That's against the freaking law and he needs to be reported for that! Minji, why the hell did you run away like that if he did that to you? You're just giving him what he wants now!" 

"Unnie, Unnie, Unnie," Minji called, seeing her face turn red from the anger. She pulled her arms back down to sit her down on the couch and looked at her sadly, "Please listen to me until the end. He didn't do it so I could run away, he did it so I could feel the pain that he felt when Ha Yi died." 

"The pain when Ha Yi died?" Yuri rhetorically asked, shaking her head. She sat back down on the couch and said loudly, "He's ing stupid then. Does he not know how much you love Ha Yi? She's one of your best friends, did he think you were going to sit around like a pole and not feel anything? You probably felt more pain than him considering how he was acting before everything led up to her death!" 

"Yuri Unnie, can you please calm down? Can you please just listen to the entire story now?" 

Yuri started to calm down and adjusted herself on the cushioned couch, feeling hot tempered and angry from the story already. Minji bit down on her lip nervously and began to tell, "After he me, he put me in a taxi. After that, I fainted and I ended up being in the hospital. Apparently, the taxi driver that Jong In Oppa put me in dropped me off in the emergency room and stayed until I woke up." 

"Don't even call him Oppa, Minji. If a guy like that treated you that horribly, you shouldn't even call him something respectful like that." 

Minji stayed silent, seeing how scorning Yuri was. She slightly looked down and continued on with the story, "You might be able to guess what happened next."

"Wait, wait, wait. Does Omma or Appa know about what Jong In did to you? Did you at least tell them what happened?" 

Minji shook her head and responded, "They don't know at all." 

"God Minji, why are you so weak?" Yuri questioned, feeling like Minji made the worst mistake ever from how weak she was. "You're that afraid of Jong In that you couldn't even bring the courage up to tell Omma and Appa? Help was all around you, you could've done it so easily. You let Jong In control your entire life Minji, you realize that right?"

"I know Unnie, and I feel stupid for it."

"What happened next?" Yuri asked, changing the topic again. Minji let out a sigh, hoping that she would stay calm for the next explanation that was going to come next. She lifted her head up to look at Minji, making them meet eye contact with each other very seriously. She began to scratch her head and told her, "I'm pregnant. That's the only part Omma and Appa know about the entire situation." 

"Pregnant?!" Yuri shouted so loud, making Minji become pale again. "You're pregnant? So that bastard  you and made you pregnant? Do they know that Jong In's the father?"

Minji shook her head negatively which made Yuri slap her palm against her forehead, immediately feelingbad for their mother. She wanted to cry that Minji was so weak, but she also knew that she had to tell her the true story about her and Young Bae right after this. She shook her head in disbelief and went on, "Minji, if it was that serious how can you run away like that? Don't you feel bad for Omma and Appa at all? If they don't know where you are, they might be on a frantic search for you right now." 

"I don't know either," Minji replied with a tasteless sound, shaking her head in worry that Yuri was going to call their parents. "I just know I couldn't stay there anymore. Omma yelled at me so badly, that I felt so ashamed of myself. She even told me that she didn't have a daughter like me because she didn't raise me to be pregnant with a guy at this age. She basically said that she was disappointed in me. Appa said that he felt disappointed that he trusted me for so long and I just crushed everything." 

Yuri crossed her arms and snickered, "Let me guess. You didn't even bring up the topic that Jong In you and that he's the father of that baby in your stomach right now." Minji didn't say anything which made Yuri know that she was correct about her statement. "I'm not trying to blame you Minji, but you really did break their hearts. I did it one time, I didn't expect that she was gonna have to go through it again. I mean, I was hoping it wouldn't happen, but I didn't know what to expect since Omma is so controlling and you're the weakest soul I know. I wasn't sure how it would end up turning out because you and I are obviously so different." 

"What do you mean you broke their hearts one time? You're like their angel, I can't expect you doing that to them." 

"My situation before wasn't any shorter or better than yours," Yuri stated, feeling sad and upset about what Minji had told her. Her little sister basically had to go through that pain and suffering, without anyone being by her side to help her become strong. The problem was she surrounded herself with people who made her weak, which made Yuri even more angry with herself that she didn't stay. "There's a reason why I live in China and there's a reason why my relationship with Omma is kinda broken. You probably never knew because you were so young when it happened, and I'm pretty sure Omma never told you." 

"What happened Unnie?" Minji questioned her, turning the entire conversation back to her now. Minji looked at her very curiously, wondering what went down between her, since she obviously had no clue.

Yuri sighed and began to confess, "You know Omma had all these plans for me. Before I even went to college, she was giving me a list of where I needed to go to school, what I had to study, where I had to work and how I should be involved with church because we were a Catholic family. She never asked me what I wanted and what I wanted to do with my life. All she cared about was getting me into a Catholic school so I could be religious and try to understand why she raises us the way she does." 

Minji remained silent, imagining that it was the exact same situation that she went through when she was searching for schools. "That sounds like what happened to me," Minji said softly, still having a regret of leaving her parents behind. "We argued so much about that until she let me go to the school that I wanted, but she made me go to a Catholic school every Sunday." 

"At least you gave her something she wanted Minji, I gave her nothing. I wasn't the obedient, polite and smart child like you you were. I didn't let her control my life." As Minji stayed still, Yuri went on, "I always knew she was gonna control you when you grew up. It's because I gave her a reason to worry about you from everything I did. I'm just really sorry I never stayed to help you out. All of this probably wouldn't have happened to you if I was there to teach you a different lesson than what she taught you." 

Minji became slightly confused to why she was putting the blame on herself, but she replied, "It's not your fault at all. All of this was bound to happen to me anyway. I guess it's karma." 

"It's not because you're a bad person," Yuri assured, looking carefully at Minji. "It's because you're weak. I saw how you were as a kid, you were afraid of everything. You never fought with Omma because you were afraid of her. Minji, family fight all the time because we all have different mindsets. We can't all agree on one thing. The reason all of this happened to you was because you didn't stand up to fight for yourself."

"I know." 

"You do realize you're running away from your problems, right?" 

"What else can I do Unnie?" Minji asked, feeling like her sister was going to make her leave. "You can't expect me to go back there, do you? After all of this, you can't expect me to actually go back and face everyone there. I'd be facing Omma and Appa ignoring me. I'd be facing embarrassment at school. The most important one, I see Jong In Oppa all the freaking time at school, do you really think I can go through that?"

"Well, if you weren't so weak, then those things wouldn't bother you. You wouldn't be running away like this. If you stood up for yourself, Jong In wouldn't even stand up seeing daylight right now. He'd probably be lying in jail and suffering as much as you are if you actually stood up for yourself." 

"You still didn't see the look Omma gave me. I've never seen her so disappointed in me. And Appa, he's always been the easy-going and the parent who trusts me the most, but that completely changed when he knew I was pregnant."

"If you told him whose the real father and what actually happened, things could've ended differently as well." 

As awkward silence fell in between them, Minji linked her hands together, trying to accept that she did make a mistake after all. After staying quiet for an awkward minute, Minji finally said, "I know I'm weak, but I also know that I couldn't deal with Omma ignoring me. I would have just killed myself if I stayed in Korea. I don't know how much more I have to stay for you to understand that I didn't wanna suffer being there anymore." 

Yuri let out a big sigh and spoke up again, feeling very hesitant to tell her, "I know why Omma was mad at you when she found out you were pregnant." 

"Yeah, her life and her thoughs are all based from the bible. I know that too Unnie." 

"No, it's not just because she's highly religious. There's a lot more to it than you think, Minji." 

"What does that mean?" 

Yuri looked extremely serious, like she was about to cry while she replied, "I got pregnant before I even married Young Bae." 

"What?" Minji asked in shock, thinking that her ears went deaf. Minji remembered Yuri getting married right after she finished college, how could she have gotten pregnant before she was even married? "Are you being serious?" Yuri nodded her head and felt excessively abashed that her little sister actually knew the truth. Yuri sighed, beginning to explain, "I started dating Young Bae my freshman year. I think you were around eight years old during that time. Omme didn't really like him so that's why I didn't bring him to the house often."

"So what happened?" 

With a shrug, she answered, "Young Bae and I were such arrogant, rebellious kids. You know how Omma has time restrictions?" Minji nodded her head in agreement as Yuri continued, "I never made it on time. Sometimes, I never even came home at all. Young Bae's parents weren't as strict as Omma, so I stayed over his house a lot. We didn't do anything though. I even stayed in the guest room since we didn't want his parents to feel uncomfortable. But I'm guessing you know that a person like Omma wouldn't like that." 

Minji was speechless for words when she heard Yuri confessing everything from her own mouth. She didn't want to believe that her mother always praised Yuri for being a good kid, when she was telling something entirely different. 

"Surprised?" Yuri questioned after seeing Minji not saying anything. When Minji nodded her head, she snickered and continued, "I knew Omma wouldn't tell you. I mean, Appa wouldn't tell you either because he's too busy blocking out Omma's complaints." 

"So when did you get pregnant?" 

"Hmm, it was February. I was entering my last semester at Korea University," she replied, starting to laugh. "The ironic part was the I got mad at her. She was so angry when she found out I was pregnant that she asked me who the father was. I only had one boyfriend throughout my college years, who else could the father be? I really had enough of her that day. I knew I wasn't gonna be home after I graduated. I couldn't deal with the fact that she manipulated every single part of my life. I couldn't deal with the fact that she had the nerve to to ask me who the father was. She acted like I was some easy girl who went around with different guys when I dated one guy for three years, how could she think that? I even asked her if I was even her daughter. Out of all the people she knew, she should've known how I was like."

"She was probably mad that you got pregnant before you were married to him. You know her and her religious beliefs." 

"At that point, I didn't give a damn about religion. She was controlling my life too much. She didn't like Young Bae because he was studying computer science and software engineering. Apparently, the career he was pursuing was... in her terms, useless." 

"Isn't Young Bae Oppa a software developer? That's a pretty good career." 

"Not in Omma's eyes. She expected me to get a rich businessman or someone who worked in the medical field. She was so caught into what she wanted for me without turning to see if it was something I wanted."

"Well, you and Young Bae Oppa got married in July. It didn't seem like she disliked him at the wedding."

"Oh trust me, you were pretty young to actually know how many times we yelled at each other before the wedding. I remember you were twelve that time, right? The day of the wedding?" Yuri recalled, making Minji nod her head. She was actually fourteen, but Yuri probably couldn't even remember since it was quite some time ago. She sighed and went on, "It wasn't really the wedding that I dreamed of but it was the only way I had to move out of the house. I'm telling you this now because you're clearly old enough and you were bound to know sooner or later. Well, since you're here and under a situation that's slightly similar to mine, I feel like you should understand the real reason why I couldn't stay in Korea." 

"I don't get what Omma wants from us. I never understood it. I understand her concern, but she took it really far sometimes." 

"Perfection," Yuri answered shortly, feeling sad and upset. "She couldn't get it from me so she obviously wanted it from you even more."

"Does she realize that no one can be perfect? No matter how much she controlled me, I was never perfect either." 

"I don't know when she'll realize it, but I already got myself out. I didn't want my life to be controlled by her. That's why our departure ended badly." 

"Why? What happened?"

"Ever seen a nuclear explosion?" Yuri asked, making Minji have a questioned face. "That's the best I can say about how it went down. I screamed at her, I knocked everything off the table, I threw my clothes everywhere. It was just a complete mess. Then I just left. Young Bae got a great job offer at a computer programming company here so we both left Korea to start out life together. If you remember, Omma didn't drop me off at the airport that day. It was just you, Dara, Appa and Young Bae's parents. Even Auntie Eun Hee and Taecyeon dropped me off, but not Omma. Our relationship went down the drain after that. It all started because I stood up for what I wanted. I wasn't going to stay and have her insult me everyday because she didn't get what she wanted." 

As Minji was listening to all of Yuri's explanation. She wondered how it would've been like if she had actually stayed in Korea. Minji may have reacted differently if her mother had yelled at her and insulted her, since she was more used to that than getting the silent treatment. She now had second thoughts about running away since Yuri was explaining her entire situation. First Yuri left badly, and now Minji. 

Minji had no idea that their relationship had been broken ever since she left Korea. It makes sense why Yuri didn't really visit home or call often. She felt even worse that she was another daughter to have disappointed her, even though she had been obedient throughout her life. Yuri was absolutely right though; if Minji wasn't so weak, she wouldn't even be in this situation. 

She wouldn't have liked Jong In.

She wouldn't have got caught up in a bad situation with Krystal.

She wouldn't have let Ha Yi died.

She wouldn't have gotten . 

She wouldn't have gotten pregnant.

She wouldn't have run away.

She could have avoided all of those things if she just fought for herself from all the bad things and people who came through her life. She wanted to turn back time and a completely different person. Why did she make herself so weak? 

At this point, she had regretted not standing up for herself, which made her morally upset. 

Yuri laid a hand on Minji's shoulders and said, "I'm sorry for being so selfish."

"Why are you saying sorry for?" 

"I knew she was gonna control your life. I knew how she was gonna treat you when you grow up, but I still left. I wasn't able to take care of you." 

"Don't be sorry about that. I understand where you're coming from. It's not something you could control. It's like how I can't control being weak." 

She forced a grin and replied, "Being weak was something I couldn't do. With a mother like ours, there's just no way I could be weak." Minji nodded her head in reply and Yuri continued talking, "I'm not saying she's a bad mother though. Trust me, her lessons and her lecturing went through my ears and absored through my brain. I probably would've been a criminal by now seeing how bad I was as a kid." 

"You weren't bad Unnie, you just stood up for what you wanted." 

She shrugged and snickered, "That's what you get for being too strong and hardheaded like me."

"I'd rather have been strong and left than being weak and running away like this." 

"I'll tell you one thing," Yuri said while taking her hands off Minji's shoulders. "The only person that I thought I left behind was you. There was never a minute where I didn't worry about you. When I left, I asked myself if it was wrong to leave you... How Omma was going to treat you when you grow up... How you were gonna be when you got older. I mean, I know I didn't show it, but the only worry I had was not being there for you." 

Minji had a warm tingle in her stomach, feeling happier when she heard those words coming from her sister that she loved and looked up to. They weren't ever close so hearing that Yuri cared for her really warmed her heart up since she always loved her sister. "Really?" Minji wondered, still feeling questioned towards Yuri. She grinned and nodded her head, "I'm just sorry I left you so quickly. It was my fault that I left so fast, I wasn't able to teach you."

"Stop being sorry, I guess everything just happened for a reason." 

"It's ironic, huh? You and I were so different, but we ended up in the same place. I guess it doesn't matter how hardheaded I am or how fragile you are, our fate wasn't meant to be with Omma." 

"I can't say I don't feel bad about running away like this. You're right about me being weak though, it wouldn't have happened to me if I wasn't weak." 

"I hope my lecture on being weak didn't stress you out too much. I just wanted you to realize something about yourself that you might have not known, or no one had the courage to tell you." 

"I'm way passed stress already Unnie. I know I'm running away from my problems though, you don't have to remind me of that. I just didn't know what else to do. I just know that I can't go back anymore, I'll do anything just to get away from there." 

Yuri stayed very still for a while, making Minji starting to worry that she wasn't going to agree with this. After a few moments of silence, Minji saw Yuri's rejecting face, making her positive that she was going to go against the entire idea. Minji sighed and assured, "I know it wasn't smart of me to run away like that, but I didn't know what else to do Unnie. I promise I won't bother you for long, but can I just stay with you for time being? Just please don't tell Omma or Appa that I'm here. I promise I'll find a place to stay after I look for something. I'll even get a job to pay you back for my stay here. Just please let me stay in the meantime."

"Minji, you're not staying here for time being," Yuri answered, making Minji stuck on her words while her stomach twisted. Yuri laid her hand on Minji's legs and went on, "If you're gonna say in China, I'm not letting you stay anywhere else. You're staying with me for good until you're actually settled down. You and Dara both, you guys aren't wandering China to try to find a living for yourselves when you clearly don't know what you're doing."

Minji looked at her extremely confused and puzzled, wondering if she heard the right thing. "Huh?" 

"I promise that I won't tell anyone that you're here... Even Omma and Appa. But you have to promise me one thing." 

"What's that?" 

"From now on, stop being weak and start standing up for yourself."

She bit down on her lip and nodded, "I'll try." 

"No, you won't just try. You didn't fly all the way to China just do you could continue being weak. I didn't give you an entire lecture and explain my story just for you to listen."

"But -"

"No buts," Yuri demanded, becoming serious again. "I'm not making you go back to Korea, Minji. I told you all of this so you can grow up as a person. You can't be the weak, fragile, sensitive girl that you always were. I know that you can't rewind time, so all you can do it move forward. But you're not moving on as the same person, you need to change Minji. Don't think I'm letting you live here like how Omma made you live."

Minji gulped nervously and wondered how she was even going to start that. 

Jong In was in Taecyeon’s room for the past hour, not being able to believe that he was never going to see his brother ever again. He could still feel the presence of him being in this room; sleeping in the bed, working on documents at his desk, playing video games on the floor in front of the television, eating at his small food table by the corner of the window and just everything he ever did in his bedroom.

Jong In could just picture everything he ever did in his room, still being able to visualize him being here. He could literally feel Taecyeon still being in the room with him, but he knew that was just in his mind by now. He felt hurt and in pain, even though it wasn’t him who went through that car accident. At this point, he wanted to be the one in that car accident. He wished it didn’t have to happen to his own brother, because the guilt he felt, made him want to take his own life to what he did to his brother.

Tears were formed around his eyes as he sat on the bed staring down at a picture of him and Taecyeon, seeing that it was placed right on his nightstand, right near the bed. As tears went down his eyes, he bit down on his lip and cried, “Taecyeon Hyung… Why didn’t you come back to me that day? Why did you leave Omma and I?” Tears rushed down his face as he sobbed even more by himself, seeing the teardrops fall down on the photo frame of their smiling faces as they wrapped their arms around each other’s shoulders. He took short breaths because of his crying, which made him feeling like he was able to breath. He continued crying and talked to the picture, “I miss you Hyung. Whose gonna lecture me everyday when I wake up? How am I gonna wake up and not see you at the dining table eating breakfast?”

“I grew up because of you,” Jong In said to him, wishing that he could hear his voice right now. “I wouldn’t be able to do anything if I didn’t have you. How could you leave so easily Hyung? That’s not fair.”

His entire face was drenched with his tears but he didn’t care, since he only grabbed onto the top of his head and pulled his hair up, feeling completely stressed and worn out from everything. He couldn’t stop crying to himself, since he felt like Taecyeon was still right beside him. Or at least, he wanted to make himself feel like Taecyeon was still there.

Every memory that he had with Taecyeon replayed in his head, still staring down at the picture when they were just young kids; Jong In was only nine while Taecyeon had just turned eighteen years old, remembering it was taken just a day after his birthday on December 27th. It was also a day where they had a boys’ day, where their father had taken them out for Taecyeon’s birthday to the indoor amusement park. Jong In had been tall enough to ride everything at that age, so they spent a wonderful day together.

“Jong In,” Taecyeon said to him loudly, raising his voice up as Jong In barged into his room hovering pillows and blankets with him. “What the heck are you doing in my room? I have a research assignment to do, why are you bothering this late at night?”

Jong In shut the door behind him and walked in without a care in the world, going over to his bed to throw the blankets and pillows that he brought with him on there. He smiled and replied to him, “You can do your assignment Hyung, I’ll just sleep here.”

“Why aren’t you sleeping in your own room?”

“The heat is being weird,” Jong In lied, and jumped onto the soft cushioned bed, ready to sleep in his pajamas. “It gets really hot and cold out of nowhere, I had a headache from the heat fluctuation.”

Taecyeon raised an eyebrow at him, seeing Jong In getting huddled up on the left side of his bed, looking around the room in worry. He began to think back to what they did today, remembering that he took Jong In through a haunted house when they went to the indoor amusement park earlier today. He did recall that Jong In came out more pale than usual, also being stubborn and not admitting that he was scared after he got silent for a good hour. He slightly chuckled and shook his head, questioning, “You scared bro?”

“No!” Jong In exclaimed with his high-pitched voice, making Taecyeon laugh hard. “I’m not scared, Hyung! I don’t like the temperature of my room right now!”

He saw Jong In have the entire covers over his head so he kept asking, “Then why the heck are you covering your entire face with the damn blanket?” Jong In quickly pulled the blankets off his head, trying his best to prove that he wasn’t scared of anything. He pouted his mouth and answered, “I told you Hyung, I’m cold.”

Taecyeon sighed, learning that his brother was already a stubborn child at such a young age. Jong In covered the blankets over his neck, poking his head out to prove to Taecyeon that he wasn’t afraid of anything. He slapped his ankles and questioned, “What are you so scared of, huh? The entire haunted house was fake. All the ghosts that came out to target you, they were all fake, Jong In. I thought you said you were a big boy, why are you hiding yourself under the covers?”

“I’m not scared.”

“Okay, go back to your room then. I’ll fix the heat for you.”

“NO!”

Taecyeon laughed and continued, “Jong In… You’re able to ride roller coasters that take you way up to the sky. You can watch a movie that has violence and gore without even flinching. You always watch surgery videos with me ever since I wanted to get into the career of being a doctor, and you’ve always been intrigued by them. You enjoy playing video games with me that involves fighting, blood and stabbing the characters. Why are you so afraid of something that doesn’t even exist?”

“Hyung, I’m sleepy. Can you let me sleep?”

“No, not until you accept that you’re afraid of it.”

“Why do I have to accept it?” Jong In asked, sitting up while he covered his legs with the blankets. He looked at Taecyeon and frowned like the little boy he was, “I don’t wanna be a weak person, Hyung. I don’t wanna accept that I’m afraid of anything.”

“You know? If you accept something you’re afraid of, it’ll actually make you stronger. It’s fine, you’re afraid of ghosts, there’s nothing wrong with that. But if you admit it, then I’ll tell you something even more in depth than that.”

“Oh god Hyung, what lecture is this now?”

Taecyeon slapped his shoulders hardly once and asked once more, “Why are you so afraid of ghosts, huh? Tell me now. You’re one of the strongest young boys I know, but you’re so fragile when it comes to these things. They don’t even exist. Even if they do exist, you’re not able to see them anyways. They’re in a different dimension than us.”

“Promise you won’t tell Yi?” Jong In asked, making Taecyeon laugh more, but nodding his head. Jong In sighed and started answering, “That’s the reason I don’t like ghosts. I don’t like knowing that there’s something there and not being able to see it. That’s what scares me the most.”

Taecyeon tried to observe Jong In’s personality from his answers, realizing that he was a strong boy but also with a weak point in some parts of himself. The things he was afraid of and by the way he had expressed his fears, made him know that he was going to grow up strong, hardheaded and stubborn. Taecyeon linked his hands together and nodded his head, “That means you’re afraid of something you’re not able to see.”

“Basically.”

“You know, if you keep being afraid of something you can’t see, then you’re gonna grow up to be a close-minded person when you're older. The reason you’re afraid is because you’re not accepting it. If you can’t see anything, but you still fear something is there, that would just mean you’re only gonna be content with certain things. You have to open your heart and mind, and not be scared of an empty space. Just because you hear things, doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a ghost. I don’t think Omma would want a son that’s so afraid of such minor things.”

“I don’t know how to control that, I don’t like it. And that haunted house today didn’t help when a hologram appeared in front of me. It scared me a lot.”

“Jong In, Jong In, Jong In,” Taecyeon repeated his name with a sigh, lightly punching his arms again. “The ghost didn’t follow you back home bro. It was a hologram that popped out to try and scare you. You see? You’re not thinking. You ran into my room and asked me to sleep in here, thinking that it followed you home. Close-minded brother of mine... And you're a scaredy cat.”

“Yah Hyung, stop insulting me already. I know I’m scared, but it’s just for time being. Give me a few days, I’ll be fine and I’ll go back to my room. Just let me sleep in your room for time being. Do you want to remember your birthday as the day you gave your little brother a big lecture?”

“My birthday was yesterday,” Taecyeon said with a confused tone, also correcting himself. “Wait no, it’s past midnight already. Technically speaking, my birthday was two days ago, so I didn’t lecture you on my actual birthday.”

“Alright! Let me sleep Hyung!

“The only reason I would have for not letting you sleep here isn’t because you’re afraid of that ghost from the haunted house.”

“What would the reason be then?”

“You snore so freaking loud for a nine-year-old. What kind of little boy snores that loud? My lord.”

“Hyung, I hate you!” He yelled, pulling the covers over his face again.

As Jong In reminisced everything that happened, he couldn’t help but think about how he brought Taecyeon towards his death. He always imagined them growing old together and always had scenarios in his head about how all three of them were going to take care of each other when they were at a high age in their lives.

But now Jong In was left all alone.

With no little sister, and no older brother.

He felt like half of his life was taken away from him, and he had to deal with the guilt from everything that had happened to him. He finally looked down to see his outfit, seeing that was wearing all black from head to toe, not wanting to believe that he was about to go out and step foot to send his brother off. Every word and every lecture that Taecyeon had ever taught him stuck through his head, making him feel that life was being unfair by taking such a kind person away from everyone in this world. 

But the sad part about Taecyeon leaving was that it was all Jong In's fault. It was all because of him.

When Jong In stared down at Taecyeon's smiling face in the picture, all he could do was cry and tell him the best he could, "I'm so sorry Hyung." 

As Jong In walked down the stairs, buttoning up his black suit jacket, he reached the bottom of the stairs to see his mother standing in front of the table filled with photo frames. He stopped himself a little, still holding onto the buttons of his jacket quite tightly, seeing Eun Hee sobbing quietly by herself.

He walked slowly up from behind her, hesitating to tap her on the shoulders at the moment. However, the funeral was starting in two hours and they had to go to the church to prepare for the funeral ceremony before everyone got there. He let out a deep breath and laid a hand on her shoulders, "Omma." 

Jong In could hear her sobbing very clearly now, taking short breaths and holding onto Taecyeon's picture the day he officially became a doctor. She didn't speak for a few seconds because she was too consumed on looking at Taecyeon's picture, crying to the fact that she lost another beloved child. Jong In began to squeeze her shoulders and went on, "Omma, we should go to the church now." 

Without turning around, she began to speak with a trembling voice, "You know what I always wanted to know." He was slightly concerned that she completely changed the topic without acknowledging what he said, but he pulled his hands off and closed his eyes, trying his best not to cry along with her. She turned around to look at the last son she actually had left, looking at him with such sorrow tears, knowing that she had to take care of him the best she could.

"Jong In." 

"Yes Omma?" 

She wiped a few tears from her eyes and said slowly, "I always wondered if I ever did anything bad during my younger days. My life was always so happy, so easy and everything had been handed to me. But there always one little thing that came to block my happiness, always that one little thing and it always came. I was never fully happy because of a little thing that came to block it. I was so happy when I was able to marry your father, because he was the love of my life. But in the end, he got taken away from me. Then I only had you, Ha Yi and Taecyeon left. I promised myself that I would raise you myself with the best ability because you guys were the only things I had left in my life. But then Ha Yi left, and now Taecyeon is completely gone. The two of them were taken away from me within a blink of an eye, and I can't believe I won't be able to see them again." 

Jong In continuously in his tears, feeling his face become hot from the determination of holding them back. Jong In nodded his head and replied, "You never did anything bad Omma. You were the best thing they ever had in their life as well."

"Then why did they get taken away so easily?" She cried more, finally hitting a peak point in her hurting heart. "How can life play such a cruel joke from us? I always told your father that I was able to die for you guys if anything were to happen. Now I don't even get that chance to even try."

"Omma," Jong In said, starting to feel shaky from the sadness. "Don't even think like that. You still have me left Omma, I'll try to be the best son I can be for you. I know I wasn't like Taecyeon Hyung, but I'll be the best son for you right now." Eun Hee cried and placed her hands on Jong In's face, feeling lightened in the littlest way that she still had him. She said in a shaky voice, "I have three angles Jong In. It's you, Ha Yi and Taecyeon. I never lived for anyone else other than you three. But now two of my angels are gone, and I'm not getting them back. What did I ever do to deserve this kind of pain? How can I have lost both of them within the same time? It's just too much to handle." 

Jong In began to cry in front of her, grabbing onto her hands that were on his face and kept them there, "You didn't do anything to deserve this Omma. If I deserve anything bad, it's me right now. I'm sorry that I did this to Taecyeon Hyung. It's all my fault that I called him out to pick me up. You don't deserve any pain Omma, I do." 

Eun Hee cried more, but she reached up to wipe the tears from Jong In's crying eyes. She shook her head and replied, "Nothing's your fault Jong In. If I were to blame someone, I would blame the skies. I would blame fate. I would blame God. I would blame anybody but you, because you weren't wrong. Accidents happen for a reason sweetie, but it's not because of fault. I would never blame you for such a thing because I know you loved your brother and I know you would never want anything to happen to him."

At the same time she said those entire words, Jong In couldn't help but think back to how he blamed Minji. He was the only one who ever blamed Minji while everyone else was supporting her and trying to make her feel the least guilty as possible. Looking back now, he was the only one who was being a jerk to her, but now he had his own mother supporting him and trying to make him feel the least guilty. Jong In was the person to make Minji feel even worse about herself which made him feel even more guilty because no one was making him feel that way right now. 

"I blamed Ji Ji for Ha Yi's death," Jong In finally said, beginning to break down in tears. "Omma, how could I blame her like that when the same exact thing happened to me? How could I do that to her?" 

"It's okay sweetie, now you know how she felt when Ha Yi passed away. Now you can forgive her and move on with your life."

"Omma, you don't know what I did to her," Jong In regretfully said, placing a palm against his head to ease out his headache. "I treated her horribly because I wanted her to feel the pain that I was suffering. But now I know, she was already going through enough pain even before I added onto it. What's wrong with me Omma? What the hell is wrong me?" 

Eun Hee switched roles to consoling Jong In now, moving her hands from his face to his shoulders. She squeezed them hardly and continued, "Listen to me sweetie. I want you to know that both you and Minji weren't wrong in this situation. Everyone knew you both loved them, and everyone knew it was just an accident. No one