The hospital corridor was stuffy and the air had an undertone of bleach. The walls were plain and scraped in places from the hundreds of trolleys that have bumped into them. However, in the private ward, the atmosphere was completely different. The air had a perfumed scent and the seats were plush. Every surface was dustless, while the nurses were unhurried and they moved with a serene purposefulness from room to room on their rounds. The rays of the afternoon sun fell slanting through the windows and landed on the back of a girl sitting next to a pallid man whose face was reflecting the suffering he had endured.

“Are you sure about this?” the old man spoke with concern as he took the hands of the girl.

“Of course, I wouldn’t have said yes if I wasn’t sure,” the girl gave a light squeeze on the man ’s hands to reassure him.

“Are you sure you’re not doing this because of my health?”

The girl paused. She knew that he would ask and had already prepared an answer beforehand. However, his question still triggered a memory that was still too painful for her to relive this soon. But her mind could not stop the memory that flooded in.

Her breath began rasping in her lungs as her family began to cry. The pale light in the room cast a deathly pallor on her features as her chest struggle to rise beneath the covers. She tried to reach the hands of her daughter as she slowly lifted her tired arms. The girl next to her quickly took her rough hands and held it tight as if she could keep her forever just by holding onto her hand. The woman smiled, trying to ease her daughter’s pain, and struggled to say few more words before she never gets the chance again.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered, “ Sorry that I can’t be there to meet your boyfriend… and attend your wedding and see my grandchildren… I’m sorry to leave you so soon…”

“Please,” the girl begged as tears fell uncontrollably down her cheeks, “it’s okay… save your breath… please just don't leave me... I need you.”

“I’m sorry….” the woman smiles one last time, unwilling to leave a painful expression as her last image on earth. As soon as she told her last words, her hands glided down her daughter’s arms to hang on the side of her bed.

“NOO! MOM!” A painful scream filled the hospital room as her father pulled her away from the bed, allowing the doctor and nurses to pass through.

“Jimin?” As the girl zoned out, the man tried to bring her back to reality.

“Oh yea…” the girl snaps out of her flashback and gives a warm smile, “of course it’s not because of your health, Dad. I know this is a pretty big deal, I’m not stupid enough to make this decision rashly.”

The man says nothing as he just stares at his daughter quietly, knowing that the silence is enough to make his daughter say the truth. Sensing his skepticism, Jimin tries to reassure once again, “okay… It would be a lie if I said your health wasn’t one of the reason but trust me… I’ve dated him for a while and I actually thought about doing this a while ago… I was gonna introduce him to you guys but mom suddenly collapsed and I didn’t want to do this while you were still mourning…”

He takes her hands and gives her a comforting squeeze. He knows how much his daughter had gone through the past year. It wasn’t easy. They all had suffered greatly from her mother’s sudden death. Jimin had to take a few months off from work to take care of him, who was in depression. He was able to overcome with the help of his daughter but the physical abuse he caused himself during that time has taken a toll on him, and now he is in the same situation as his late wife was few months before she passed away.

“Okay… I trust you… I just didn’t want you to go into something you wasn’t sure of because of me… I know how good of a daughter you are,” he grins to make her smile, “ did you bring him here today?”

“Of course! I’ll bring him in, just wait a minute.”

Jamie stands up and walks to the door. As she leans out into the hallway, she gestures for someone to come in. Soon, a young man walked into the room. Despite the crispness of the suit and the perfect tailoring, the man inside was only in his late 20s. He had the type of face that stopped you in your tracks. It wasn’t so much of his physical features but rather his presence that made him outshine the rest. He always carried confidence and an undeniable charisma that everyone couldn’t help but look his way.

He slowly walked toward the bed with flowers in his hand and gave a polite bow, “nice to finally meet you, sir. I’m called Min Yoongi.”

The man gives him a slight nod as Jamie takes the flowers from his hands and place it on the desk.

“So Dad, this is my fiance. Isn’t he good looking?” Jamie teases, making Yoongi blush. It didn't help that he was so modest with his looks, it made the girls fall for him all the more.

“Yea, he sure is,” her father acknowledges, “ how about I talk to him alone, Jimin-ah. Is that okay?”

Jamie hesitates and looks at Yoongi for approval. Sensing her concern, he gives her a smile and a slight nod to ease her worries. Jamie, getting Yoongi’s approval, slowly walks out of the room, afraid that her father will catch onto their lie. She lingers in hallway one last time before she closes the door and head to the cafeteria to grab something to drink.

As soon as Jamie left, Yoongi felt the atmosphere in the room change. He knew what was coming and felt nervous despite his usual calm demeanor. He pondered whether he should initiate the conversation for this was a first for all of them. However, before Yoongi found a good conversation starter, Jamie’s father spoke first.

“How long have you been dating my daughter?”

“For 4 years, sir,” Yoongi replies without hesitation. After all, he came prepared.

“And you’ve never bothered to meet the parents of your girlfriend?”

The man’s cold tone took Yoongi by surprise. He expected some hostility but his frigid stare and manner were nowhere to be found when Jamie was still in the room. However, Yoongi understood his behavior for it is natural for every father to feel some skepticism toward the man who is about to take care of his daughter for the rest of her lives.

“I apologize for that, sir. It’s my fault. I should’ve come to formally introduce myself to you and your wife earlier. I’m sorry.”

The man seemed pleased with his response for he relaxed his tense shoulders a little bit and leaned in a little more toward the bed, “have my daughter meet your parents yet?”

“No,” Yoongi hesitates, “I’m an orphan.”

The father’s eyes seem to soften a little bit at his words, “ I’m sorry for your lost.”

“It’s fine… It’s been a while so…”

“If you don’t mind me asking, when did you become an orphan?” the man carefully asks the question. He was afraid to trigger any unpleasant memories for the young man; however, he wants the best for his daughter so he decides to ask anyway.

Yoongi calmly responds for he has gotten used to such questions, “they passed away 10 years ago when I was just beginning high school.”

“ I see… It must’ve been tough for you,” the man gives him an acknowledging nod, “so did you grow up with relatives?”

“No, I’ve been living alone since then… my parents left a house and enough money for me to live till I graduate college so…”

“You must’ve felt very lonely while growing up…”

Lonely? The word, as if it was some type of spell, struck Yoongi and triggered him to remember the childhood memories that he had put behind him.

Lonely was not enough to describe the pain and the emptiness he felt after that incident. He remembers running down the hospital hallway after receiving the call at the school. He barged into