Minseok searched for Joohyun. He tried researching about her hometown be he didn’t get any details about the woman’s whereabouts. Her phone couldn’t be reached since that night. 

3 months have passed yet Minseok hadn’t heard from Joohyun. He couldn’t sleep well. He couldn’t eat enough. The bags under his eyes started to become darker. He was lifeless. He kept hiding in his room crying and ignored his parents. He was becoming thin and pale. Minseok’s parents showed concern and promised to offer help in finding Joohyun. However, they insisted Minseok would cut ties with her should they find her; and would only arrange visiting rights and child support. They also persisted for Minseok to face his arranged marriage that has been delayed for months now. All Minseok wanted is to find Joohyun as soon as possible so he didn’t have a choice. 

One day while he is about to go downstairs, he heard someone talking from the kitchen. 

“Are you sure about that? Was it really her?” The woman spoke. 

“Yes, Mrs Kim. It’s confirmed. It is indeed Ms Bae.” The man replied.

Minseok immediately went to the kitchen and interrupted their conversation.

”Who are you talking about? Is it Joohyun? Where is she?”. He hurriedly asked. 

“Ah, son. This is Mr Park Chanyeol. The private investigator I hired. He had a lead about Ms Bae”.

Chanyeol handed over an envelope and Minseok couldn’t believe what he saw. 

Tabloids from a certain place somewhere north were seen. Minseok’s attention focused on a certain article dated a month ago:

”A woman ended her life by jumping off a building around midnight. The woman reportedly died on the spot and didn’t make it to the hospital. The woman was identified to be Bae Joohyun, 25 years old and originally from the northeast area. Investigators are still checking for possible reasons regarding the suicide”. 

Minseok felt horror after reading the article. He couldn’t just believe what he read. Anyone can fake news. Anyone can just write articles. He took the rest of the papers inside the envelope and found a death certificate confirming Joohyun’s death. 

“No.. No. This isn’t real.” Minseok broke down into tears. 

“I am so sorry Mr Kim. We found all the evidence confirming her death. Her ashes were kept by her family to avoid intrusions.” Chanyeol added. 

Byul, devastated to see her son crying too much, hugged him tightly. 

“Hush baby. Everything will be alright soon”. She whispered. 

“Mr Park, thank you for your help. We appreciate the information you’ve provided us. You may leave now”. 

Minseok just cried harder until he has no strength to do so. He can no longer breathe for how hurt he was. He hadn’t even bid a proper goodbye to his lover and his child. He blamed himself for everything. He shouldn’t had fallen in love with her in the first place. If he just listened to his parents from the start, Joohyun might still be alive and happy today. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

Minseok was given by his parents a few more months to weep but still insisted to focus on the plans they already made. He agreed but asked if his parents would let him live his life after he gets married. 

One Saturday, Minseok and his parents finally visited the family of the woman he is about to marry. 

“This is my daughter Miyoung. She’s a cheerful woman and is easy to be with. You two could get along well easily” Mr Hwang announced. 

Miyoung is a gorgeous woman. When she smiles, her eyes smile too. She knows how to dress herself and is very warm. 

“Hi Minseok. Nice to finally meet you”. She offered her hand to shake Minseok’s. 

“H.. Hi. Nice to meet you too”. Minseok shook her hands. 

Miyoung and Minseok got close easily. It was maybe since Miyoung always listened to whatever Minseok had to say. She easily became Minseok’s confidante in a span of weeks.

After 2 months, the grand wedding happened. Minseok was still 23 years old when he married the 24-year old Miyoung. As Miyoung had known Minseok’s history, she offered if they  could be friends and not act as a married couple while they are not ready yet. They didn’t share the same room. They did this setup for a whole year. 

Some businesses of The Hwang’s got merged to the Kim’s companies. Minseok tried to handle one of the businesses but deep inside he really wanted to pursue another career path in marketing. 

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ 

When he went home one night, he found Miyoung lying on the hallway, unconscious. 

He rushed her to the hospital and was confined in the emergency room for 3 days. Miyoung didn’t wake up yet. 

Minseok and her parents waited patiently outside on the 4th day when the doctor finally came out of the emergency room. 

“She is sleeping soundly right now. Finally her body responded to some of our medication.” The doctor announed. 

“Ah.. I want to tell you all something. We conducted several tests from her blood, tissues, body organs and we found out something”. The doctor explained.

”What is it doctor? Tell us so we can have her treated immediately”. Mrs Hwang exclaimed.

“I am so sorry to break this to you but upon checking her results, we discovered she has cancer. She might be fighting the pain on her own for months now. And..” the doctor stopped. 

“And what doctor?” Mr Hwang frowned. 

“We can’t do anything to get rid of the tumors. They’ve already multiplied fast and her body is too weak to respond to more chemotherapy. 3 months, 3 months is just the life she can live in our calculations. Again, I am so sorry”. The doctor looked down, patted the three then left. 

Miyoung’s parents broke down in tears. Her dad just wanted to break the hospital seat but Minseok stopped him. 

And truly after 3 months and a half, Miyoung bid goodbye. 

Minseok was so down. Miyoung became a real friend towards him and was a good companion. He treasured her in any way. Thoughts of Joohyun still boggled his mind and with Miyoung’s death, he just couldn’t bear any more loss right now. 

———————————

(Aahhhh. Guys!!!  Minseok’s history was full of pain :( Hopefully he will be happier on the next chapters. Aaaand Kheyo, who might he be in Minseok’s life?)