CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR

Wedding Day

Mark and Jina stand at the altar, wearing their wedding clothes. The groom is wearing an all-white tuxedo with his now-brown-colored hair swept up.

The bride on the other hand, dons a strapless wedding dress embellished with pearls and a bridal train measuring three feet. Indeed, Jina looks like an angel but she would’ve looked lovelier if she were wearing a smile as well.

Outside, Jaebum tries to enter the church but is held off by the bodyguards of Heechul and Mark.

“Sorry, Sir, but per instructions, we cannot let you enter.”

“I am a friend of Jina!”

“Mr. Tuan said you can only enter after the ceremony. We’re very sorry.”

Frustrated, Jaebum leans on one of the church’s arches. He tries to come up with a plan but he knows there’s no way he could stop the wedding. ‘Please help me… I can’t let Jina marry Mark...’

As if the heavens answered his prayers, a police car arrives quietly – possibly to not alert anyone – and two policemen force their way inside. Their arrival creates a fuss and Jaebum takes this chance to slip into the cathedral.

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“Mr. Mark Tuan, you are under arrest.”

“I’m sorry?” Mark shakes his head in disbelief. “You’ve got to be kidding me, Sir. You are stopping my wedding to arrest me?”

Two police officers handcuff Mark and his parents intervene. “What are you doing? What did our son do?”

“You’ve probably got everything wrong, gentlemen.” Heechul tells the policemen.

“Mr. Tuan, you are being arrested for embezzling funds, for the attempted kidnapping of Mr. Im Jaebum’s son and for the murder of Choi Youngjae.”

“Murder?!” Raymond exclaims. “You’ve got to be kidding me!”

Dorine loses consciousness, shocked and stressed at everything that is happening. Her husband rushes to her. “Honey, please wake up!”

With wide eyes, Heechul turns to Mark. “Is this true?”

Mark bows his head and follows the police silently.

Humiliated, Heechul breaks down as well and his children rush to him.

“Dad, please get a hold of yourself…” Jina comforts him, making circles on his back with her hand.

“Dad, don’t stress yourself, please.”

The older male starts having difficulty breathing and before anyone could help him, he collapses on the floor.

“Dad!!!”

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Inside the police car, Mark sits at the back with one police officer while another drives the car.

“I… Can you please remove the handcuffs?” He tells the man beside him.

“Not a chance, Sir.”

Carefully, Mark surveys the surroundings and realizes that they are driving along a highway. He silently thanks his parents for choosing a church far from the city. ‘Who knew this would come handy?’

For the next five minutes, he remains still while planning his next course of action. ‘This is it… It’s now or never…’

He suddenly yells, pointing randomly at something. “Oh my god! What is that?! Please watch out; I think I saw something on the road!!!”

Surprised at his sudden outburst, the gullible policeman tries to evade the non-existent ‘something’ Mark was referring to. The officer crashes the car at a concrete barrier in haste but fails to activate the airbag; thus, leading to his immediate death.

Luckily, Mark, who was able to prepare for the impact, sustained only a few bruises while the other policeman falls on the floor, almost breaking his neck.

“P-Please help me…” the officer begs.

Mark smirks at him. “Sure, I will, but only after you’ve freed my hands.”

Knowing not to trust a criminal, the policeman hesitates. The other man sees this and tells him, “Do it or I won’t help you…”

“I can’t…”

“How can I help you with my hands handcuffed like this?”

“No… Please help me.”

Mark locks the policeman’s head between his legs. “Free me or I will snap your neck. I’m sure I’d still find a way once you’re dead.”

Hoping the younger male will spare his life, the police officer unlocks the handcuffs, freeing the former.

“Thanks.” Mark removes his feet away from the policeman’s head but snaps the latter’s neck with his hands anyway. “Next time, don’t make me wait.”

Mark quickly opens the police car door and exits like nothing happened.

Away from the area of the accident, Mark makes a quick call to Jackie. ‘Did she turn me in? No… I trusted her…’

A few more tries but no one answers. Thinking that she has finally abandoned him, Mark cleans himself and hails an unsuspecting motorist. He asks the driver to give him a lift and take him near his hideout.

‘Never knew a day would come that I will go to that place…’

“Thank you so much but I’m in a hurry. I’ll pay you a huge amount so you don’t have to worry.”

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‘I guess it’s clear...’

This was Jackie’s agreement with Yugyeom and Taekwoon. She will provide all the information and documents but they will not surrender her.

“If you get caught, you’re on your own,” Taekwoon told her.

Jackie loved Mark dearly and she was more than willing to help him with anything. However, each day, she realized that her lover is slowly turning into someone more evil… he wasn’t the same Mark she knew. ‘He’s changed,’ she thought and she’s afraid he’d end up hurting her as well.

“I’m so sorry, my dimsum…”

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“How is our Dad?” Yugyeom asks the doctor.

“Your father suffered a and…” he pauses with a sympathetic look on his face.

“Tell us, please!” Jina begs.

“He will survive this but he won’t live long… Another will definitely be fatal…”

Hearing this, Jina breaks down and Jaebum quickly catches her. He takes her into his arms, caressing her back to soothe her.

“Dad…”

“Shh… He will be okay…”

More than anyone, Jaebum knows just how painful it is to lose a loved one. Heechul may still be alive but the threat of sudden death is most painful to bear. ‘No one knows when; it will just take everyone by surprise. The person you love will leave you even without you having been able to say goodbye…’

“I’m here for you, Jina… I’m always here for you…” He tells his girlfriend as he kisses her forehead.

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Inside Taekwoon’s office, Hakyeon confronts his friend. He punches the former hard, “Are you happy now, huh?”

“Of course not.”

“You did this all because you’re bitter that Mark was going to marry Jina?!”

“If that’s the reason, then I should’ve killed Jaebum, too.”

Hakyeon stares at Taekwoon, his eyes full of pain. “I can’t believe you’re my friend…”

The latter holds him by his shoulders, “Hakyeon… You need to stop hoping Mark will love you back. You need to wake up. The real Mark is a broken man whose heart is filled with hatred and revenge. No matter how hard you try, no matter how you long you stand by his side, he will never be able to give back the same amount of love…”

Tears start falling from the other man’s eyes. He snickers, “You talk like this and yet you did all this for Jina. Talk about not wanting her to love you back…”

Taekwoon sighs, “I did this for her and for Mark but I’m not expecting anything in return. I’ve accepted my fate. She and I will always be just friends and seeing her genuinely happy with someone else is more than enough for me.”

A/N: The ending... how's that for a twist? Bet you didn't see that coming heehee ^^ This and the next chapter are my favorites so I hope you will stick around at least until Chapter 25. But here's what, there's 3 more chapters left so... will you please stay with me until the final chapter? ❤