Dara woke the next morning and checked her phone immediately, hoping for a text from Jiyong. To her disappointment, her phone showed that she had no new messages.

 

Maybe I really hurt him too deeply. I guess he needs time to be alone.

 

She got up and went downstairs for breakfast.

 

“Good morning, eomma,” greeted Dara.

 

“Good morning, santokki,” replied her mother. “Come and have breakfast. I made your favourite fried bacon and mushrooms today.”

 

“Ahhhh thank you eomma! You’re the best!” squealed Dara, as she sat down.

 

As Dara began eating, Mrs. Park leant over from the opposite side of the table and looked closely at Dara.

 

“Dara, how are things for you now?” asked Mrs. Park.

 

“What do you mean, eomma?” asked Dara, as she attacked her bacon hungrily.

 

“How are things between you and Jiyong?” asked Mrs. Park directly.

 

“Eomma~~~ why are you talking about Jiyong?” whined Dara.

 

“Because I know for a fact that you are using Donghae to make Jiyong give up on you for some reason,” replied Mrs. Park baldly.

 

Dara choked on her bacon and had to wash it down with a glass of water.

 

“Eomma! What are you saying?” protested Dara.

 

“Don’t lie to me, Dara,” insisted Mrs. Park. “I’ve seen the difference between the way you look at Jiyong versus the way you look at Donghae. You can try to hide behind your words and actions all you want, santokki. But your eyes will never fail to betray you.”

 

“Eomma…” said Dara.

 

“That silly boy Jiyong loves you so much, Dara. I’m convinced that you mean the world to him. I knew from the day you two brought all the food back for the farewell party at the orphanage. I even told him that this was totally on him and that I would never step in to help him in any way,” rambled Mrs. Park. “But now, even I can’t stand the way you’re treating him. For some reason, you are trying to turn him away from you.”

 

“I admit that I’ve been trying to push him away, eomma,” replied Dara guiltily. “But I’ve been thinking a lot over the past few days and last night, Donghae and I broke up. He basically said whatever you just said and we parted on amicable terms. I’ve hurt so many people, eomma.”

 

“So how do you feel towards Jiyong?” asked Mrs. Park.

 

“I… I thought about it really carefully and I realised I love him too, eomma,” replied Dara. “I tried messaging him last night to ask if we could talk but he hasn’t replied.”

 

“Serves you right!” scolded Mrs. Park. “If I were him I wouldn’t want to reply either. After all that boy did for you, this is how you repay him. He’s not a pet, always ready at your disposal, Dara.”

 

Dara looked down at her plate to hide her guilty expression.

 

I’m sorry, Jiyong.

 

Her handphone rang, bringing her back to her senses. She picked it up eagerly, hoping that it was Jiyong who was calling her but was disappointed to see that it was Youngbae. She answered it and held it to her ear but before she could even say a greeting, Youngbae’s voice blasted over the earpiece, “Dara! Where are you?”

 

“I’m at home, Youngbae,” replied Dara. “Why do you sound so flustered?”

 

“Jiyong’s been hospitalised and is in critical condition!” shouted Youngbae in panic.

 

Dara’s heart stopped for a moment and her blood ran cold.

 

“I only just found out too. He’s undergoing an operation at the hospital near school. I’ll meet you there. Hurry!” Youngbae rattled off all this before hanging up.

 

Dara grabbed her wallet and phone before running out of the house and hailing a taxi, ignoring Mrs. Park’s calls of concern behind her.

 

Please wait for me, Jiyong. Please don’t punish me in this way.

 

…

 

Youngbae sat outside the operation theatre with Seunghyun, Daesung and Seungri. Youngbae held the blood-soaked sheet of paper that Jiyong still held in his hand when he had been found. None of them were talking nor did they look at each other. Each of them sat in their own seat, Seungri with his knees to his chest, Daesung with his head bent and his fingers interlocked and resting against his forehead, Seunghyun sat and leant against the wall, his eyes fixed on the ceiling, Youngbae staring at the sheet of paper he was still clutching.

 

The sound of pattering feet was heard from a distance and gradually became louder. Dara hurtled into the area where the three were waiting.

 

“Youngbae! How is he?” asked Dara in panic.

 

“Calm down, Dara,” said Youngbae. “Jiyong was sent into the operating theatre a few hours ago. They’re still trying to save him.”

 

Seunghyun came out of his trance and glared at Dara. “Why do you care?” asked Seunghyun sharply. “He wasn’t good enough for you anyway.”

 

These words cut straight through Dara and she had to will herself not to cry. She didn’t want to cry. It seemed that, after she became closer to Jiyong, whenever she felt down, she would cry easily. Jiyong was always there to offer her kind words and to be there for her.

 

“I care, Seunghyun,” replied Dara. “I care about Jiyong a lot. More than you can imagine.”

 

“Is that so?” mocked Seunghyun. “If my understanding is correct, you got together with Donghae almost right after Jiyong confessed to you. You refused to take any of Jiyong’s calls or reply to any of his messages. It’s fine if you didn't want to be his girlfriend but why did you have to detach yourself completely from his life? All this when you knew deep down that you meant the world to him! You didn’t care whether Jiyong could function or not or how he would feel. You acted completely on your own accord. Now tell me, Sandara Park, how is that caring for him? I’m all ears.”

 

Dara could not bring herself to feel angry at Seunghyun’s words. Every word he said was the stark truth, whether she liked it or not.

 

“Yah, Seunghyun. That’s enough!” barked Youngbae.

 

“It’s all right, Youngbae. He’s right,” replied Dara.

 

“If I were you, Sandara Park, I’d leave. I highly doubt the first person Jiyong wants to see when he wakes up is the person who has caused him so much pain and misery. It’ll probably just make his head hurt and cause him to collapse again,” continued Seunghyun.

 

“I said that’s enough!” said Youngbae sharply.

 

“What is it with Jiyong’s headaches, Youngbae?” asked Dara.

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