They didn't say anything as they rushed back to the car and sped through traffic to make it to the hospital. Jinhee held her head in her hands, sobbing and praying that everything was going to be okay. Jongin didn't know what to say as he caught glances at her and he was trying to process everything that was happening. He pulled into the parking lot and Jinhee jumped out before the car came to a complete stop and ran into the emergency waiting room.

 

"My name is doctor Lee Jinhee, I am looking for my father doctor Lee Jonghyun." Jinhee slammed her hand on the counter as she watched the nurse pull up papers trying to find her father among the other patients. Jongin came running in and the nurse became flustered as he stood in front of her. On the other side of the doors leading into the operating area Jinhee heard loud wailing and a woman crying out. Jinhee and Jongin stormed passed the doors, ignoring the nurses cries that it was against the rules for them to go back there. Standing there was Jinhee's mother who was clinging onto a man in scrubs and a saddened look on his face.

 

"DON'T LIE TO ME! MY HUSBAND IS ON THE BOARD! HE CAN'T DIE!" Her mother cried out as she shook the doctor who wanted to be as far away as he possibly could. Jinhee walked over and pulled her mother off of him and passed her into Jongin's arms and she melted into him as she sobbed. This was the first time meeting Jongin was meeting her mother and it was under the worst possible circumstances but wanted to be there for the both of them.

 

"Doctor Pak, is it true?" Jinhee choked out as she looked to her colleague who hung his head.

 

"I'm sorry Jinhee. He was non-responsive when he arrived and we weren't able to get a stable heart beat back. His arteries were blocked with so much plaque that I'm surprised it hadn't happened sooner. I'm sorry for your loss." The doctor gave a small bow and disappeared behind another set of doors. Jinhee leaned up against the wall, the world around her seemed to stand still and be rushing past her at the same time. It felt as if she would be living in this moment forever and when the crushing realization came that she was never going to get to give her father a proper good bye, her legs gave out and she slid to the ground, still holding onto the wall to try and make the world slow down. Jongin wanted to hold her but her mother was a mess as well and needed someone with her as well. After what felt like a life time, Jinhee stood up and wiped the tears from her eyes and scooped her mother from Jongin's arms.

 

"Come on, Jongin is going to take you home while I look over the paperwork." Jinhee guided her mother out into the waiting room area and gave Jongin a knowing glance before going back behind the doors. Waiting there was a nurse who had all of the paper work in regards to her fathers death. It had a million questions about what to do with the body and it was odd thinking of her father as nothing more than a human body and not the man who taught her how to tie her shoes. He was no longer the person who comforted her during storms or rushed her to the hospital when she had her first allergic reaction to shrimp. Now he was a reference number and an organ donor. Every future memory she was going to be making, he wasn't going to be a part of it. The tears wouldn't stop flowing out and the nurse was asking if there was anything she needed from them before they took her fathers body away.

 

"Who is going to walk me down the isle?" Jinhee lost all control and began sobbing uncontrollably and the nurse wrapped her in a tight hug. Although they didn't work together directly, they knew each other enough that the hug wasn't awkward but reassuring that everything was going to be alright eventually. Later than night, Jinhee took a cab home and walked into her apartment, a weird emptiness filled her as she stripped out of the dress and wiped her makeup off leaving her face streaked with mascara and lipstick. She laid on her bed and could think of only one person that she wanted to talk to so she pulled out her phone and scrolled through her contacts before finding the number she wanted.

 

"Chanyeol?" She cried out when he answered the phone. Her friend, who had been in a deep sleep, sat up straight in his bed in a panic.

 

"What's wrong? Are you okay?" Jinhee told him everything and promised to come right over to make sure she was okay. When Chanyeol reached her apartment there was a well dressed man standing outside her door and knocking on it.

 

"Please open up Jinhee, let's talk about it." Jongin begged as he could hear Jinhee crying on the other side of the door and he felt his soul reaching out for her. Chanyeol recognized him instantly as the man Jinhee pointed out as being her future husband and a jealousy burned in his chest. He wanted to storm away and leave them be, but the idea of Jinhee being alone with another man was stronger than his own selfishness. Chanyeol walked up to the door, pushing Jongin out of the way to knock on the door. "Hey, what do you think you're-"

 

"Jinhee, it's me." Chanyeol called out and the door flung open and standing there was Jinhee who was a complete mess. She threw herself into Chanyeol's arms.

 

"He's gone. I'm never going to see him again." Jinhee was shaking and Chanyeol struggled to hold her up as she crumpled up in his arms. Jongin stood off to the side and thought about throwing a punch at the man holding her and wondered if this is what she felt when she saw him with Krystal earlier that night. Jinhee let go of Chanyeol and looked to Jongin who was on the verge of storming away so he didn't have to feel like he was being cheated on again. "Jongin, this is my childhood friend Chanyeol. He's known my dad for....well forever." Jinhee introduced the two men and they reluctantly shook hands. Jongin stole a look at the way Chanyeol was around Jinhee and he could tell instantly that he was in love with her.

 

"Can I come in?" Jongin asked and Jinhee stepped aside to let the two men in, not caring that the apartment was a complete mess.

 

"Let me make you some tea. Jasmine tea, your favourite right?" Chanyeol glared at Jongin as if you prove that he knew more about her but Jongin distracted himself by exploring her apartment and looking over the piles of medical journals laying around everywhere. He noticed the picture of her and Chanyeol as children on the side table and flipped it down as Jinhee walked in.

 

"I'm sorry, I just didn't want to be alone and I figured that you would have been home by now-"

 

"It's okay. Just make sure I'm the first person you call when you need help." Jongin stepped towards Jinhee and lifted her chin with his finger to make her look him in the eyes. She forced a smile and agreed to call him next time. Chanyeol walked in and stalled for a moment when he noticed them having a moment and he cleared his throat to get their attention. Jongin rolled his eyes as Jinhee turned to Chanyeol and thanked him for the tea that he had made for her. The rest of the night was spent with Jinhee and Chanyeol talking about their best memories about her father while Jongin taking all of the information in but mostly be thought about how the night had been one of his highest highs and lowest lows. To think that their first kiss was tainted with this new memory was heart breaking for Jongin who wanted it to be nothing more than magical. Around four in the morning, Jinhee had fallen asleep on the couch with her head bobbing up and down as if she were trying to stay awake.

 

"I'll put her to bed." Chanyeol jumped up to grab her but Jongin reached her first.

 

"No, I will since she's going to be my wife." Jongin snapped at him. He didn't like the idea of Chanyeol touching her so he wanted to make sure he understood his place in the relationship. His ears turned bright red with anger but Chanyeol bit his tongue and stormed out of the apartment.  When he made it outside he kicked over a garbage can and slammed it through a random car window. He went completely blind when he was enraged and didn't feel an ounce of remorse as he thought about the two of them being alone. Jinhee was his and watching another man claim her drove him insane. Jongin scooped Jinhee up in his arms, amazed at how light she was and worried if she was eating enough with her busy schedule. He laid her down in her bed and pulled the covers over her and leaned down to kiss her forehead. As he turned to leave, Jinhee reached out and grabbed his sleeve.

 

"Don't...leave...me...alone." She mumbled in a groggy voice, clearly half awake. Jongin's heart beat uncontrollably fast as he took off his jacket and dress shirt and crawled into bed next to her. Even though he was half Jinhee rolled into him, resting her head on his well defined chest.

"Who gave you permission to mess with my heart." Jongin said when he was sure Jinhee was fast asleep next to him in the small bed. He wrapped his arms around her and made sure that she felt safe as the sun rose off in the distance.