Jiyong bawled and cried into Youngbae’s shoulder for nearly an hour in the ward. But Youngbae didn’t mind. If anything, he was thankful and relieved that his best friend had finally stopped bottling up his feelings. Youngbae could not and did not say anything but just let Jiyong cry until his tears ran dry. When Jiyong finally exhausted himself with all the crying, Youngbae helped him back on the bed where Jiyong slept off his fatigue.

“Did he say anything?” asked Bom, as she watched Jiyong sleep.

“No,” replied Youngbae. “I didn’t want to push him to say anything either. Him crying it out is the first step. I think we can try talking to him about Dara from now on without him clamming up.”

“I certainly hope so. We really need to find out the real reason why he’s treating her like that. I really don’t believe it’s because she rejected him,” said Bom.

“Well, I guess we’ll find out soon,” commented Youngbae.

“But I’m really amazed by that Park Yejun. He didn’t even flinch when Jiyong shouted at him,” said Bom in awe.

“Let’s hope Jiyong will say what he’s really thinking now,” said Youngbae.

…

Jiyong woke up with a splitting headache, though this time he was certain it was due to his dehydration from all his tears. He saw Youngbae dozing off next to him and called him, “Yah, Youngbae-ah. You’re going to twist your neck soon.”

Youngbae awoke with a start and looked at him. “Oh, you’re awake. How are you feeling?”

“My head’s splitting apart after all that crying. Can you get me some water?” requested Jiyong.

Youngbae reached out for the small tumbler on the bedside table and poured out a glass of water for Jiyong. As he passed it to Jiyong, Youngbae asked, “So will you now finally tell me why you’ve been treating Dara this way?”

Jiyong took another gulp of water before looking at Youngbae and saying, “Before I say anything, can you tell me what made Yejun say all those things to me?”

“It was Mrs. Kim’s idea. Bom and I were worried that you were never going to tear down your wall regarding Dara. So we went to her for advice and she suggested asking Yejun to talk to you because you seem to have no resistance against him,” replied Youngbae with a grin.

“Yah! How could you guys do that? What if he had a meltdown or threw a tantrum again?” said Jiyong half in worry and half in anger.

“We were initially worried about that but Yejun was remarkably loving and brave. In fact, from what we could see outside, he didn’t even bat an eyelid. Maybe you should adopt him, given how attached he is to you and Dara,” said Youngbae half-jokingly.

Jiyong’s heart clenched at the mention of Dara’s name but this time round he did not clam up. He knew that Youngbae was concerned about his attitude towards Dara and, thanks to Yejun, he felt that he was finally ready to face the issue.

“Even if I adopt him, he wouldn’t be happy without his eomma,” replied Jiyong.

“So why are you pushing his eomma away?” asked Youngbae.

Jiyong stared into space for a long while. “I…” began Jiyong, as he held the cup of water to his lips again. But, to his surprise, Youngbae reached out and took the cup from him.

“No, you’re not drinking anything until you tell me everything that you’ve been bottling up,” stated Youngbae. “I know once you drink something, you’ll swallow whatever you want to say along with the water.”

Jiyong did not protest but continued staring blankly ahead. Youngbae knew not to break the silence, as Jiyong’s walls regarding his feelings towards Dara had clearly collapsed and he would make progress today.

“I still love my baby girl,” said Jiyong quaveringly. “So much.”

Youngbae made no response but continued to look at him.

“But when she was around me after I woke up, all I felt from her was pity and regret. I really don’t want her pity and regret, Youngbae-ah. I don’t want her to love me because she pities me or feels regretful because she thinks that she somehow caused my brain aneurysm to rupture. I don’t want that kind of love, Youngbae,” said Jiyong.

“How can you be sure it was just pity and regret? Pity and regret doesn’t drive people to stay by your bedside for 14 hours a day, talking and looking at you, hoping without faltering for a single second for you to wake up. Love does. She loves you so much, Ji. The kind of tears one sheds when a person feels pity is totally different from the kind of tears shed when one feels love. A person feeling pity could never cry the way she did outside the operation theatre that day. I know she did you wrong when she tried to push you away for Chaerin’s sake. But the way I see it, she’s more than made up for it. She’s realised her mistake, Ji. Stop being stubborn and stop pushing her away. Give her the happiness she deserves,” ranted Youngbae.

“How can I give her the happiness she deserves? I can’t even walk! It’s better for me to drive her away. I’d rather she hate me and eventually forget about me. She doesn’t need me to burden her in her life. Youngbae-ah, can you help me convince her not to break up with Donghae? Or ask Bom to help convince her. If he loves her, I’m sure she will grow to accept and love him too. I never should have confessed to her,” ranted Jiyong.

“Kwon Jiyong, if you weren’t a patient I would punch the living daylights out of you this very moment!” said Youngbae, trying to control his anger as he clenched his fists. “You actually thought Dara can just hate you and leave your life? You honestly thought it would be that simple? Do you have ANY idea what you’ve put her through since you had that conversation with her? You claim that you don’t want to be a burden on her. What makes you think that you’re a burden to Dara? Did you honestly think that by pushing her away, you’re setting her free?”

Jiyong listened to Youngbae rant in silence. He didn’t even know what he was feeling. Guilt? Anger? Sadness? Pain? A mixture of all?

“She’s better off without me, Youngbae,” repeated Jiyong stubbornly.

Youngbae couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “She’s like a living corpse now, Jiyong. Ever since that conversation you had with her, she hasn’t been living. She’s merely been existing. Her mother, Bom and I are all worried sick that she might sink into depression. She ran home that day after that conversation and has been locking herself in her room since. Nobody can get her to talk. I never thought I’d hear myself saying this but she’s apparently even more stubborn than you are. Can’t you see how much you mean to her, Jiyong?” asked Youngbae in frustration. “Even if you don’t care about her, spare a thought for Yejun! How do you think he’s going to feel when he sees Dara in that state?”

“I’m sure Yejun will make her see sense,” said Jiyong feebly.

“So you’re going to let a 6-year old do your dirty work for you?” asked Youngbae disbelievingly.

“Anni~” protested Jiyong.

“Even if Yejun could get Dara to open up, you know you still hold the key to her emotional recovery, Kwon Jiyong. Stop trying to deny it. Bring out that dragon in you and help her get back on her feet. I don’t know why you guys like causing such pain to yourselves and to each other. She rejected you but tried to make up for it when you were in a coma. Now’s your turn to repair the damage you’ve caused her,” ranted Youngbae, as he fished a ball of paper out of his pocket. “This is the poem that you wrote for Dara. I saw it on the floor and figured you might regret it if it really got thrown away. I’ll leave this with you. You decide on what you should do with it.”

Youngbae stuffed the paper ball into Jiyong’s right hand and walked out of the ward. Jiyong held up the paper ball and tried to smooth it out with one hand. Although the words were his own, they still wrenched at his heart. Guilt coursed through him as he recalled the words he had used on Dara in their last conversation and what Youngbae had just told him.

Are you sure you love Dara? Look at the amount of pain you’ve caused her.

Yes. I should make it up to her.

…

Bom, Youngbae, Mrs. Kim and Yejun found themselves outside of Dara’s house on the following Saturday morning, all of them feeling apprehensive. Jiyong had been functional before Yejun tried making Jiyong open up about his feelings. But they were worried about how Dara would react, if she would react at all. Dara had pretty much shut down after that fateful conversation with Jiyong. Youngbae knocked tentatively and waited. Mrs. Park answered the door a few moments later and looked slightly surprised.

“Omo! What are you all doing here?” asked Mrs. Park.

“So sorry to disturb you, Mrs. Park. But we brought Yejun here today to try to talk to Dara. Is she home?” asked Youngbae.

“Yejun? The kid she used to take care of at the orphanage?” asked Mrs. Park, as she turned to look at Yejun.

“Annyeonghasaeyo! Park Yejun-imnida,” greeted Yejun politely