Soojin waved goodbye to her parents right before she entered the school building. Today’s just one of the rare moments that they brought her to school together on a weekday, since it would usually be just her mom or dad because they would go in separate cars and would only use one car on Fridays, when her mom would be off from her duty in the evening and they’d pick her up, then they will spend the rest of the night outside and do as she pleased.

As soon as her daughter was no longer in view, Seohyun sighed and turned around to cross the street ahead of the man who was just standing beside her, not until she decided to leave him.

He scoffed at her attitude and shook his head before following the woman and walked a bit slower than her. He already knew that she was irritated, but he decided to annoy her even more with making his steps slower.

“If you don’t hurry up, I’m going to be late!” She was already waiting by the car door at the passenger side, but she watched him and it seemed like it would still take him a few more seconds to reach the car. “Cho Kyuhyun, hurry up!”

He took a pause in his steps, looked at her unbelievably, then walked at his usual speed towards the car and unlocked the car door. They both got in and as soon as she was finished getting herself buckled up, he noticed that her arms were crossed. “Why are you in such a hurry, don’t you trust me that I’ll get you there on time?”

“No,” she answered coldly. “Just go drop me off at the subway station, it’ll be much faster.

“Really, did you forget that I’m a lawyer and I value time just as you do? And I’m not just gonna drop you off at the subway station, I’ll bring you to your meeting place or convention place, or whatever place. Why don’t you just tell me where it is?”

Her eyebrows were furrowed as she looked at him. She was about to press her seatbelt to free herself, but she was shocked that the car finally left its parking spot and moved. just dropped and she was about to scold him, but he managed to break the silence first.

“Don’t overreact, Juhyun. You haven’t even opened the car door, so that was not unsafe.” He decided to mock her just to annoy her even more. He smirked while he was driving and he wanted to smile when he heard her sigh in defeat, but he just suppressed it. “Why are you in such a hurry, you haven’t even told me where the venue’s going to be.”

“I’m a doctor, so obviously everything’s going to be held in a hospital.”

“When there are seminars, there are times when it is held at the hotel, right?” He looked at her with his eyebrows raised as he asked her.

She was honestly just trying to stop herself from whacking his head. She hated how he was just full of wit and she would sometimes find herself in a loophole. “Then just drive, I don’t wanna be late.”

“What time is it exactly? And don’t just tell me that it’s going to be this morning because that’s the only answer that you’ve been giving me.”

“You know when they say we need to be there at 8:00, but they just opened the registration during that time, so I don’t really know.”

“But you always liked being on time. In fact, you said that being 10 minutes early is much better and for you that would be the latest.”

“Okay, then whatever. Today’s a special case since we brought Soojin to school.”

He only chuckled lightly, kept his eyes on the road. Luckily, the light turned red and he was able to look at her and caught a glimpse of her thumb and index finger tightly clutching onto her skirt as she was looking at the window. “Whatever you say.”

“Just drop me off at the nearest station, mister lawyer.”

“Why, are you going to be late?”

“What if I tell you that I am just about to?”

“Then I still won’t drop you off some place else because it’s much safer if I bring you there myself.”

“You don’t have to keep an eye out for me because news flash, I’m not a kid.”

“I know, but there’s a little girl who is waiting for you every single day and I want to make sure that she’ll still have a mom.”

“Oh, right. You’re a lawyer. Sorry, Mr. Smartypants.” When the light turned green, she noticed that they were getting off tracked. “Kyuhyun, wha—“

“I know what I’m doing.” He quickly looked at her after cutting her off, then put his focus back on the road.

When she saw his eyes, it gave her a lot of reassurance. She could only slump on her seat and allow herself to relax. The whole car ride became quiet.

 

They’ve been arguing before they left their house, with Seohyun explaining that she can drive herself and that he should not bother himself to take her to the venue of the seminar, but thanks to their daughter, she was defeated and had no choice but to get in the car with Kyuhyun and Soojin. This made the little girl happy that her parents will bring her to school together this morning, but just as the two adults expected, they bickered a lot as soon as it was just them in the car.

The car finally stopped and Kyuhyun was the first one to get out. He didn’t have to look at the woman who was sitting on the passenger seat right before he got off the car because he could see her glaring at her from the corner of his eye. He went to the back of the car to get the flowers, then opened the car door for her.

She was just looking at him in disbelief as he opened her car door. She felt numb, but she couldn’t wait to unbuckle the seatbelt at the same time.

“What, we can’t just stay here the whole day.”

With the push of a button, her cold hands fixed the seatbelt back in place before she went out of the car and smoothed her clothes as she stood outside. The girl who kept arguing with him earlier has now became completely silent. She just felt him pull her aside before he closed the car door to avoid hitting her, then found herself being pulled as they walked towards their destination.

He let go of her wrist, then he dropped the huge bouquet on the ground, placing it on the center of the two graves. He looked at her and noticed that she was just looking down at the headstones, tears completely lining her eyes, making their appearance glassy. “I saw you.”

She raised her head, allowing her eyes to meet his. Her eyebrows furrowed, wanting to her more from the man beside him.

“I saw you here last year— and the year before that. I knew were coming today, so I insisted on driving you today.”

“You mean—“

“Yeah,” he nodded. “I knew.” He looked up at the sky and shut his eyes tight before looking at the two graves that were the purpose of their visit. “I was very much aware.”

“So if you caught me here every year since it happened, then that means you also never missed it.”

He shook his head in confirmation. “Never.”

She took one hand from her coat pocket to wipe her tears that suddenly fell. “I thought it no longer mattered to anyone, so I’d come f—“

“First thing in the morning,” he said in unison with her before managing to pull a sad smile and looking at her. “You weren’t the only one who lost a sister. I lost my brother, too.”

Seohyun could no longer hold her tears back. “I’m sorry for being so snappy at you today,” she put her head down and wiped her tears.

Kyuhyun puller her in for a hug and just allowed her to weep. “It’s okay, I understand. I know that your mood would always be off on this day.”

“But you held it so well, unlike me.” She scoffed at herself in disappointment.

“Everyone has their moments, too, Dr. Seo. I don’t take it against you.”

She was the first one to break their hug and she looked up at him before hitting his arm.

“Hey, what was that for?!”

“You mean you have been watching me and listening to me for two years and only decided to tell me now?!”

“What, no! Whenever I’d see you, I would drive away and park way over there,” he pointed to a  lot that was bit farther away. “And I‘d wait for you to leave.”

 “Oh,” she instantly felt bad, but she still wanted to win. “Then that was for arguing with me so early in the morning and even rerouting, even if you said that you wanted me to be safe, but that made me worried!”

“I’m not gonna be the person to take Soojin’s mom away from her, but all I know is I can’t let that happen. However, I can take that arguing reason valid, but you were the one who started the arguments, Juhyun.” He tilted his head to the side just to and ipon seeing her eye roll, he jist laughed knowing that she was defeated.

“What do you think are those two thinking that we’re actually standing here together?”

“That we obviously look good together.”

“Oh, shut up.” She punched him lightly on the arm, earning a playful protest and a laugh.

“What, didn’t they want that to happen, but now look at us.”

Seohyun could only laugh and shake her head as she remembered when her sister and his brother tried to set them up together, and would even try having double dates with them, but it clearly didn’t work because all they did was bicker and argue. 

He found his hand resting on her back when he noticed that there were tears forming in her eyes again. “They’re laughing at us right now, I know it.”

“I miss her laugh,” she said through tears that she was no longer able to hold back. Her head found its way on his shoulder and leaned on it for support while she cried.

“And I missed how he would make her laugh.” He smiled sadly as he recalled the memories he shared with the two other people who were no longer with them. “I also miss him just being an annoying and supportive brother.”

“I never had an older brother, but I always felt like he was my older brother, too. Until, you know, it actually became official.”

“It was annoying then, but now that they’re no longer here, I would do anything to have then tease us again just to hear them and spend time with them.”

She only sighed and nodded in agreement. “I guess you really don’t know what you have until it’s gone. We took those times, and every moment that we spent with them, for granted.”

“Every year on this day, I would come here and say ‘I wish I have the power to turn back time.’” He looked at her with sadness in his eyes before looking down at the grass.

“Looks like my purpose for coming here is not as different from yours.”

 

 

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Author's note: Nope, the updates don't even end here yet 😉