Chapter 4

I don't really know if I should post a warning about this or not, but I am. Warning: Mention of Character death and some smattering of angst.

It wasn't until after 10 o'clock when the guys returned.  Jin Mi had changed into her pajamas already and was laying in Taeyang's bed, watching television. Her eyes were glued to the drama she was watching, Stairway to Heaven. It reminded her of her own situation and she found herself crying as she followed the storyline. 
 

She felt herself cry harder as she tried to think of why these things were happening to the characters in the drama. Why they were happening to her. Why her umma had to suffer. Why she was being left alone all of a sudden. She barely noticed when the door opened.

Jiyong, Taeyang and Seunghyun crept quietly into the room, Taeyang flopping down next to her. Wiping her eyes quickly, she continued to watch the drama. Jiyong pulled the remote from her hand and sat down on the floor, leaning against the bed. Seunghyun found a spot on the bed beside her.

" Hey, I was watching Stairway to Heaven!" She whined, looking to Taeyang to do something. He wrenched the remote from Jiyong's hand but instead of returning it to Jin Mi, continued to channel surf until they landed on a sports channel.

" That's not fair! I was watching this first!" Jin Mi whined, hitting the bed with her hands. The episode was just getting good too. Taeyang gave a half shrug and Jiyong snorted from the floor.

"My room," Taeyang replied, simply and after a few moments changed the channel from sports to an action movie. It was a generic movie filled with fighting and exploding buildings that the guys immediately seemed to become engrossed in.

"Besides, you shouldn't even be watching Stairway to Heaven. Making yourself cry over silly dramas. You should try being positive. My dad's not around, never has been. But I make the best of the situation. I still have my mom and my friends. I still have a roof over my head. Optimism is the key," Taeyang continued.

Jin Mi pouted but she knew he was right. She had to keep thinking about the good things. Especially if she wanted good things to happen for her umma even if she was a little doubtful. Seunghyun rested his arm around her narrow shoulders.

"Think about all things you have to be grateful for," He suggested and she paused for a moment, eyebrows knitting together as she launched deep into thought.

" Uh, I have my Gomo Eun Young and my cousin Young Bae, my appa, Seunghyun-oppa, Jiyong-ssi though I don't know if I want to be grateful for him. I'm grateful that my family is still together and that my appa and umma still love each other." She said, after a few moments of silence. Taeyang smiled.

" You see? You have alot to be thankful for. So you should be concentrating on those things instead of making yourself hurt on the inside. And besides. Everything happens for a reason. " Seunghyun replied.

"Will you guys shut your mouths? I can't hear what they're saying," Jiyong demanded in a harsh whisper. Taeyang rolled his eyes, grabbing a pillow and smacking the younger boy across the head with it.

" Hey, what was that for?" Jiyong grumbled, making sure his hair was still in place. He turned and noticed the icy glare Seunghyun was sending him for the bed and shut his mouth. He could go without another slap to the head. Seunghyun had hard hands.

"Taeyang, can I see you in the kitchen?" Eun Young's voice carried into his room and the teenager visibly cringed. What had he done now? Did he forget to close the front door? Did she get his grades in the mail? Climbing out of bed, he stalked quietly out ofthe room, thinking of ways to get out of whatever punishment his mother thought he deserved. The lights in the kitchen were dimmed when he stepped into it and he made out the figure of his mother sitting at the table, elbows on the flat surface of the table, holding her head. He the lights.

"Umma?" He called, his voice raising in concern. His mother continued to cradle her head before lowering one of her hands.

"She died," His mother's voice came out in a cracked whisper and he could tell that she had been crying. Taeyang was immediately taken aback by her words. It couldn't be. How were they going to tell Jin Mi?

"When did she die?" He asked, slowly and made his way over to the table. He pulled a chair beside her and sat down.

" It was a few hours ago. She went into surgery. She. . .she passed away on the table." A series of sobs came from his mother's mouth and Taeyang instinctively wrapped his arms around her in a one-sided hug.

“What about Uncle? How is he?" He asked, running his hand soothingly on her arm.  She gave a small, bitter laugh.

" Distraught. He can barely function. When he called, I knew that he had already started drinking. What else can you be when you just lost your wife and the mother of your child?"

Sober. Taeyang decided to keep that thought to himself and only continued to hold  his mother as she sniffled. After a while, the noises ceased and only the sound of  her breathing and the occasional hiccup was heard in the kitchen.

"We should go to bed," She suggested, voice thick from having been crying. Taeyang nodded and went to release his hold on her. They both stood up and moved the chairs silently back into their places against the table. Looking at his umma, she was looking older than she was. At 34, she had bags under her eyes and her skin was pale and worn down.

" I have to go to work early tomorrow. Double shifts. So take care of Jin Mi, alright?" Eun Young pressed a kiss to her son's forehead and murmured a goodnight. He stood for a few moments after she had left and tried to think of what to do next. Sighing loudly, he crept quietly back down the hall and opened his door slowly.

A peek  into the room showed Jiyong was asleep on the floor, face down and backside up. Jin Mi was curled up along Seunghyun's side and the latter was drifting in and out of consciousness. Turning off the light, Taeyang tiptoed passed Seunghyun whose eyes flickered open when he stepped into the room. The older boy shot him a questioning look. Taeyang could only shake his head grimly, hoping the older boy would understand. Seunghyun apparently did and nodded back, lips pulled into a tight line.

"Taeyang. . .?" Jin Mi asked sleepily, rubbing her eyes. Taeyang froze as he watched his cousin sit up a little and look over at him. He didn't need the lights on to know that she was looking at him, large brown eyes open in question.

" Ne, Jin Mi, go back to sleep, alright?" He whispered to which to younger girl's head lulled a bit in a nod of some sort and she was back to sleeping almost immediately. Not wanting to wake up everyone else, he took a seat on the chair in his room, making himself as comfortable as one could get. In a chair. He gave one look to his cousin's innocent form, her face content. Tomorrow will be the worst day of her life. He thought grimly. That innocence won't last. With another sigh, he willed sleep to overcome him, to prepare him for when they could no longer hide the death from Jin Mi.