HOLDING ON Part 11

The world isn't always fair. 

Sometimes he wondered if ever any of his efforts had count, if any of his perserverence had made a difference.

Barely.

Sometimes, he almost gave up. Not on her, but on life itself. He once thought that perhaps it could be easier for him to leave everything behind completely and travel the world endlessly like a nomad until the end of his days. Sometimes, life made him think that maybe all of it just wasn't meant to be. That perhaps he was destined to lead a lonely, painful existence just because he's the sole heir to Kim conglomerate.

Just the other day, another person appeared before him, with intentions same as any other. She was beautiful, fun, flirty, and somehow kind with her words. If it had been ten years ago, he would've jumped for joy at the opportunity to get to know such a lovely person. But these day, he wasn't going to let history repeat itself.

He was exhausted.

He wasn't going to be rude, though. She had been an important, corporate guest after all. But he kept his distance and maintained professionalism. And when she offered to treat him to lunch, he had politely refused. She had been annoyed to say the least.

She didn't give up, however. She began pursuing him outside of the office too. It wasn't anything JaeJoong wasn't used to. He had been through this numerous times in the past. And so far, not much has changed.

It wasn't until one day, that it all turned upside down all over again. 

It was the day when his beloved, out of nowhere, had appeared before his eyes once again.

***

He stubbornly wanted to count it as a blessing. It had been years and years since their separation. It had been years and years of heartbreak. Yet somehow, after all these years, Hyeoyeon's heart had softened enough to want to come all the way to New York to see him. It was the greatest miracle.

But the problem was, on that special moment, HyeoYeon had found him with her, at the wrong place and at the wrong time, under suspicious circumstances.

He wanted to cry.

He didn't need to think when his feet ran before him once he saw her retreating figure. All he could think of was that the love of his life was finally here, and he wasn't going to let her go again. He wasn't going to let this turn into a misunderstanding. 

"Yeonnie!" he shouted over the crowd. She was quick to slip in between the sea of people, and it became harder for him to catch her trail. His breathing was hard, his gaze were scattered, his heart erratic.

He couldn't believe the extent of his bad luck. It was only at a blink of an eye when he had lost sight of her brown locks. 

No. He wasn't going to let this go. With endless determination, he kept on running and running while his eyes roamed the streets for another glimpse of her baby pink sweater. HyeoYeon was in New York, and he will make sure they meet. He had a lot to say.

"Yeonnie!!" he almost screamed when he finally spotted her turning around a corner. "Yeonnie, wait!"

The crowd was subsiding and it made his pursuit easier. After a few long strides, she was finally coming into reach.

"Yeonnie!" he grabbed onto any part of her that was the closest. She stumbled and groaned. He forced her to turn and face him. "Yeonnie, why did you-"

His heart suddenly dropped. Right in front of him was the face he had longed to see all these years. She was still as beautiful as ever, but ugly tears had marred her reddened cheeks. She was sobbing hard. He had made her cry, again.

"Yeonnie, I... What you saw... It's not what you think," he told her quickly, desperate to clear this misunderstanding. On this precious day HyeoYeon finally came to see him, he couldn't bear watching everything crumble before it even started.

"Let go of me," she spoke bitterly, desperately pulling her arm from his tight grip.

"Yeonnie, it's really not what you think. Please believe me. I will explain."

"You don't owe me any explanation, Mr. Kim. Please let go of me."

"Kang HyeoYeon!" he exclaimed, not wanting to relent.

But HyeoYeon was way more determined to get away. She pulled away harshly and immediately ran across the road. JaeJoong lost his steps for a moment, but picked himself up fairly quickly. His eyes and mind were focusing on her and her alone.

He didn't even realise the sedan approaching at speed as he was desperately wanting to catch up to her.

His world turned upside down at the sudden impact. The force had knocked him over, hard. It happened in a split second. And by the time it was over, his whole world had already out.

***

When he opened his eyes again, his surroundings has changed. Gone was the pedestrian walks and the road where his HyeoYeon had crossed hurriedly. Instead, what greeted him was a hospital ward and a lone figure sleeping by his bed, and a series of aches all over his body. JaeJoong moved a little to get a better glimpse of the figure. The face of the person was turned away, but it didn't need a genius to figure out that the person was his precious HyeoYeon.

He sighed in relief.

"Yeonnie," he managed, eventhough his throat was sore. He wondered how long had he been out.

The figure stirred