Long chapter ahead! And this is actually after 7 years.. so enjoy!

“So you just left him on the floor?” a young boy asked Jinhee as he was peacefully lying on the hospital bed. Jinhee was seated beside the bed, who was basically telling him a story. “What kind of a girl just leave a man on the floor? Is he some kind of a shoe?”

Jinhee couldn’t help but laugh at the boy’s cuteness as he was lecturing her.

“You know, when you grow up, you’ll understand every single thing about this world.” she ruffled his hair, and the boy pouted.

“Dad~ she’s messing again with my hair!” he pouted, and crossed his arm cutely.

His dad just laughed who was leaning against a table just infront of his bed. “Why are you so stubborn, my dearest son” and they started to bicker around like children.

Jinhee was just laughing throughout the whole bickering between the son, and the dad who were obviously very childish. Not to mention the dad was more childish than his son.

“Now now, you two stop” Jinhee said while smiling. “I don’t even know why I became a story teller here, when obviously I’m a doctor in this hospital..” she stood up then she looked at the two boys who stopped bickering, “and just seeing you two boys..” she glared at them, but in a playful manner, “I need to become a psychiatrist for the both of you”

“Yah! That’s mean Park Jinhee!” the dad yelped, and then pouted.

“Your aegyo won’t work this time, my dear cousin.” she gave him a teasing smile, and returned to the patient. “And you, Mr. Naughty Boy-“

“Naughty, aaand cute!” he corrected as he smiled brightly just like his father always did

“Wow.. conceited aren’t you, my dear nephew?” she teased

“Dad always told me to MAN UP” as he mocked a very manly voice, “and always praise myself—" the little boy broke down in giggles as Jinhee reached for his stomach, and tickled him. He hunched, squirmed but making a nice recovery. “Aun—“ he laughed louder, “--tie! Stop it please!  It tickles!” he pleaded as tears from laughing escaped his eyes.

Jinhee stopped tickling, and had a satisfied expression on her face, “You know,” Jinhee said, as the little boy tried to catch his breath. “..I won’t be surprised if people might think you’re the son of Mr. Park Chanyeol”

“Because he is my son!” Chanyeol gasped, and acted like he was hurt for no apparent reason

“O..kay. I really don’t know why you’re acting like you’re hurt” she said, and laughed. But she suddenly felt someone tugging the hem of her white coat, and she looked down. The little boy, Park Daeyeol, was tugging her uniform, and was about to ask a question

“But, auntie. May I ask a question?” he asked

“What is it, yeol?” she said as she said his nickname

“After everything that happened, why did you forgive daddy?”

And with that outburst, both Jinhee and Chanyeol looked at each other, and seemed like there was something with the way they stared at each other.  Jinhee then smiled at her cousin, and Chanyeol too smiled, and nodded his head, and winked at her, mainly telling a message, “I got this. Don’t worry”

“My dear son” Chanyeol said, and went to the other side of the bed, and sat down beside his son, “Listen. You’re just 7 years old, and there’s a lot, lot.. I mean by a lot, like this” and Chanyeol opened his arms so wide, taking advantage of his long, and masculine arms, and put it down after, “You’ll understand these adult things when you are matured enough to think. You’ll grow up, and realize that..” he stopped, and looked at Jinhee who was looking at the scene intimately, and back to his son, and grinned, “realize how y, and handsome you’ll be when you grow up!” he exclaimed, and they both high fived each other, and they were both grinning from ear-to-ear, and Chanyeol was so proud of his son for being conceited just like him.

But Jinhee just smacked Chanyeol’s head, “Yah! You’re not really helping your son.” she scoffed, “What’s new. My ever so loving narcissistic cousin.”

“Oh c’mon! I’m just lighting up the mood” Chanyeol said, and scratched his neck when he felt embarrassed. Jinhee just glared at him.

She then reached out for Daeyeol’s hand, and smiled at him. “Just remember this, little yeol. We don't forgive people because they deserve it. We forgive them because they need it—because we need it.”

“Why do we need it?” he asked innocently,

“Yeah, why do we need it?” Chanyeol scoffed in a playful manner, raising his eyebrow, but Jinhee just glared at him

“Because forgiveness frees the forgiver. “ she said

“Huh?” Chanyeol, and Daeyeol said together. Jinhee just laughed at the scene

“Because if you’ll just hold a grudge against a person your whole life, then you wouldn’t find peace, and happiness.” she said, “You need to be happy in order for you to live. Forgiveness is happiness. If that person truly means to you, even if he have hurt you so bad, if you find that person very important to you, you have to forgive him.”

“Then how did you forgive daddy?” Daeyeol asked. Jinhee realized that she just spent an hour telling her nephew about her own story, when in fact she was just going to check up on him if he was feeling a lot better. Daeyeol just happened to have a breakbone fever for almost 2 weeks now, and thankfully, he was getting a lot better.

Jinhee smiled at him, and to Chanyeol, and sat down beside him, “Well I guess I’ll be staying here for another hour.”

Flashback

It was a rainy night, when Jinhee was just lying on the couch in the first floor of their house reading a book. No one else is inside her house except her being. Her parents were not yet home, and there were no maids literally because they already decided not to have one since the day Jinhee moved to America to study medicine. And now that she’s home in Korea, she’s all alone.

Mark went back to America to continue studying, and well for Jinhee, she wanted to continue her studies in Korea. It was very hard to say goodbye to Mark since he stayed for a month just to comfort her when she needed it the most. She was very grateful. But then she had to say goodbye saying she will visit him soon enough when there is time. And yes, she visited him once a year and it went pretty well.

Months have passed, 8 months to be exact, since the encounter, and the official break-up with Sehun. It’s been hard, yes. Months of crying, and it is still hurt