A figure, hidden from the crowd, observes by the sidelines, taking in every detail of this day.

She makes note of how the ringing bells match harmoniously with the choir as they sing along with the music of the grand piano…

How the velvet burgundy carpet complements and highlights each white rose petal sitting nicely on top of it…

How the candles on each side of the altar glow so brightly, it adds on to the magnificent lighting of the chapel…

How the people settle in their seats waiting patiently for the ceremony to begin…

At that point, the day seemed flawless and complete.

It was perfect.

But as time continued to tick…

The bells lost its ring and settled into silence,

The choir stopped singing and their voice faded into the air,

The piano stopped playing and left the room mute,

The roses began to rot slowly, invisibly staining the carpet and leaving their stench,

The candles quickly melted into nothing, killing off its once lively flare,

The chapel lights gradually dimmed down, making the place appear gloomier than ever before,

And without muttering a sound, one by one, each guest, each relative, each family stood up from their seats and exited the house of God…

Leaving the place empty and desolate.

The figure watches as the bride, in her ivory wedding dress, falls to her knees as tears run down her cheeks along with her black mascara.

The once cheerful girl fell and she kept on falling…deeper and deeper with every second to a pitless place of curiosity, anger, heartache, and shock…losing herself in her own sympathy and filling her heart with hatred.

………………..

The once miserable bride now sits across from her runaway groom as she listens to his wedding planner explain the details of his upcoming wedding.

She stares at the couple with unnoticeable envy wishing that it was her…that it was still her.

As the wedding planner leaves, Krystal picks up her glass of wine and takes a small sip, gulping down the lump of pain in . She crosses her legs and eyes them, then focuses her gaze directly at the bride whose arm is wrapped securely around her man.

She clenches her jaws and fakes a smile. “You’re big day is almost here,” she tells the woman, “You must be extremely excited.”

The woman happily smiles and innocently nods, “Very.”

Krystal lets out a small laugh to hide her frustration. “Who wouldn’t be?” she asks in a sarcastic tone. Taking another sip, she casually goes on, “Just make sure he lives up to his promises.”

She glares at Taecyeon, meeting him in the eye before switching her glance over to the glass of wine sitting lightly in her hand. “He tends to be a disappointment during such significant events. I mean we wouldn’t want you to wait at the altar, would we now?” she continues, changing the direction of her cold gaze towards the floor.

Unwillingly reminiscing the past she goes on, “Apologizing on his behalf, trying to hide the embarrassment and heartache, making lame excuses as to why he failed to show, lying to yourself that he still loves you, convincing yourself that he wouldn’t do anything to hurt you, and continuously hoping he’ll arrive in his tailored tuxedo with an explanation ready to sweep you off your feet…”

She forces a smile as she finishes, completely satisfied with the guilty feeling she had imprinted on him.

The bride remains silent and looks off to the side, slowly unwrapping her arm from his.

Taecyeon sits there, tightly squeezing the table napkin in his hand and trying deperately to control his anger. When he couldn’t bare it in any longer, he bolts up and grabs Krystal by the arm, forcefully dragging her outside.

Once away from view, she yanks off herself from his grasp and tends to her reddened flesh. “What the hell was that for?” she asks with furrowed brows. 

Taecyeon paces around with his right hand on his head. He runs his fingers along the strands of his hair in frustration. “You…Why are you even here?” he questions through clenched teeth, continuing to pace, “What exactly do you want from me? An explanation? An apology?” He pauses and charges at her, placing both hands firmly on her shoulder. He stares directly into her eyes. “I’m sorry, okay? I’m sorry for failing to show up. I’m sorry for realizing I wasn’t ready for that type of commitment. I’m sorry for leading you on and letting you believe that I loved you as much as you loved me...” he explains, his voice fading off as the cold fall wind hollers, freezing their emotions for a slight second.

With a heavy sigh, he finally lets go of her and turns his back. “But why can’t you understand?” he asks with an exhausted voice, “Why can’t you just move on?”

He faces her once more with a tired expression. "Just because it didn’t work out with you, doesn’t mean it won’t work out anybody else," he continues before heading back inside.

Failing to respond, Krystal stands there in silence, trying to stop the tears from falling…trying once again to forget the past, to forget their past.

His words ring through her ears, bringing her back to reality. It brought her back to the bitter reality that he is no longer hers and she no longer means anything to him.

A tear drop falls slowly down her face as hatred once again engulfs her already ice cold heart. She stares blankly at the dark surrounding her and clenches her fist tightly, letting her nails dig painfully through her skin. It can't work out with anybody else...

That night, just as Taecyeon and his bride settle into bed, their hotel phone rings.

He reaches over and answers tiredly, “Hello?”

“Ah, yes, hello,” a man on the other line starts, “I apologize for the interruption sir, but we have a young lady here and she’s quite drunk. She told us to call you.”

Taecyeon remains silent, already aware of who the person is referring to.

“Sir? Are you still there?” the bartender continues.

Taecyeon lets out a small sigh, “Yeah, I’m still here.”

“I’m sorry sir, but we’re closing soon. Please come as soon as possible,” the guy apologizes.

“I understand. I'll be right there,” he replies, with a deeper sigh.

Taecyeon hangs up the phone and re-dresses himself. He leans over and plants a light kiss on his bride's forehead. "I love you," he whispers lovingly in her ear.

As he closes the door behind him, the woman laying peacefully on the bed opens her eyes and touches her forehead, "I love you too,” she replies quietly and as she closes her eyes once more, letting a tear fall and mark her pillow.

Taecyeon crosses the street and heads over to the restaurant across the hotel they’re staying at. He finds Krystal sitting at the bar with her head on the counter and an empty glass in her hand.

He taps her shoulder repeatedly. “Krystal, let’s go," he orders, but she waves her hand in the air and shoos him away with a grunt.

Taecyeon scratches his head in frustration and curses out, “Aish!”

While ignoring her childish complaints and faint struggles, he helps her up and throws her over his shoulder, carrying her back to her room. He lays her down gently on the bed, removing her shoes and placing a blanket securely over her fragile body.

As he turns to leave, a light hold on his wrist stops him from taking another step.

Taken aback, he looks down and sees tears running down her delicate pale face.

“Why?” she murmurs between her silent cries.

Taecyeon sits down on the side of the bed and tries to unsuccessfully wake her up, “Krystal. Krystal.”

 “Unni,” she calls.

He stares at her in question, “Unni? Have you gone crazy? You don’t have an older sister.”

Between her small twists and turns, she settles into a fetal position with her body facing him. “Unni,” she calls to her sister once more. “it hurts.”

Worried, he shakes her lightly, “What hurts? Krystal, are you okay? Tell me what hurts.”

She pounds on the left side of her chest and cries out quietly, “Unni…it hurts…it hurts so much…”

Getting somewhat impatient, Taecyeon lets out a sigh and listens to Krystal as she continues her nonsense. “Unni, what did I do to deserve this? I loved him so much…I loved him more than I loved myself…more than anything…I’ll give him anything…I’ve given him everything...” she whimpers between sobs as tears continuously stream down her face.

Dismayed, he tries to get up from the bed, but her grip tightens on his wrist as if every word that escapes her lips leaves her with excruciating pain.

“Unni…” she continues, “why did he leave me? Was I not good enough? Will I ever be good enough for him? Unni, please help me. You promised to make it better…Please…Please make it go away…make it stop…make this pain stop.”

Taecyeon keeps his eyes on his fragile ex-girlfriend as guilt silently creeps up on and overtakes a part of him. Without realizing it, tears begin to line his eyes and he finds himself asking, what the hell have I done to you?

Later that night, Krystal wakes up and finds herself in her room. She sits up and places a hand on her head, wincing in pain from the excessive alcohol she had just a few hours earlier.

Hearing some noise, she looks to the left and sees Taecyeon coming with medicine in one hand and a bottle of water on the other.

He hands it to her carefully as he stares at her swollen eyes and messed up hair.

She takes it from him and drinks it obediently, without a word.

They sit there in quietly, listening to nothing.

Krystal lowers the bottle to her lap and breaks the unbearable silence, “I'm sorry oppa. I’m really sorry for making you deal with me while I was drunk. I didn’t mean to be such a bother. Thank you, though.”

“Don’t mention it,” he answers emotionlessly and stands up to leave.

As he reaches for the knob, he hears her soft call, “Taecyeon oppa.”

Turning his head slightly, he stops to listen.

“I’m sorry for acting the way I do. I really am truly very sorry…” she manages to say.

All at once, things run through his mind. So many words dying to escape. His conscience crying for forgiveness...But instead of letting a single sound escape, he replies with a nod and heads out the door.

Finally alone, Krystal stares at the exit he took. “I'm sorry for the things I've done," she continues, "And I'm sorry for the things I will do."

………………..

The big day finally arrives and everything seems picture-perfect.

Inside the chapel, familiar faces take their seats just as the piano begins to fill the room with its melodious sound.

Once again, the candles light up the church while the scent of roses fills the air.

Back in the room, the eager groom paces back and forth, checking his watch from time to time.

He stops in front of the mirror and examines himself thoroughly. He smiles and confidently practices his vows, “I, Ok Taecyeon, take Jessica Jung to be my lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, from this day forward, in sickness and in health —”

“Till death do us part,” a cold voice finishes from behind.

Taecyeon turns around and sees Krystal leaning against the wall with her arms crossed in front of her, her dark hair slightly covering her eye.

She brushes the strands away from her face and walks toward him. “Congratulations,” she tells him, reaching for his bow tie and fixing it with her delicate hands while Taecyeon stands there motionlessly.

Krystal smiles at him and looks directly in his eyes. Caught in the moment, she feels her body drawing closer to his, her head slowly tilting as she leans up to kiss him.

Before her lips can touch his, Taecyeon gently her aside and heads for the door.

“How much do love her?” she questions, stopping him from taking another step.

He takes a moment as he searches for the perfect words to describe the woman that now owns his heart. “So impossibly much,” he answers happily.

“What will you do if you lose her?” she boldly asks.

Without turning around, he answers confidently, “I won’t let that happen.”

“But what if she leaves you?”

“She won’t,” Taecyeon responds almost immediately.

Krystal pushes on, “But what if she does?”

“I’ll die.” 

Unprepared for his unexpected answer, she stands there in disbelief, “Oppa…”

“I'm sorry Krystal,” he says below a whisper. “She’s different from you,” Taecyeon breathes out and exits the room.

Her eyes widen as jealousy devours her whole body. She wipes away the tears forming in her eyes and grits her teeth tightly, “And till death you will part…”

Taecyeon arrives at the chapel wearing the brightest smile he can. As he reaches the altar, he settles himself near the best man and waits anxiously for his beautiful bride to walk down the aisle.

But like the previous years, time does not stop for anyone.

It keeps on ticking, continuously going, stopping for no one…not even for the happiest man of the moment.

And as it passes by…

Each seat becomes empty,

The music discontinues,

The candles die out and,

The rose petals turn scentless,

While the groom’s smile is washed away by tears flowing down his face, accompanied by confusion and disbelief.

Soon, the place becomes empty, except for two people with the same past and present…

Taecyeon sits on the cold steps of the altar with his head in his hands trying to comprehend what happened.

Without saying a word, Krystal takes a seat next to him.

The silence speaks for both of them.

Every form of confusion, anger, and betrayal she felt, he is feeling.

Moments later, from the entrance of the church, a figure stands still in her wedding dress — the perfect silhouette of the runaway bride created by the light passing through the chapel's mahogany doors.

Taecyeon slowly looks up from his tear damped hands. He stands up in disbelief as the bride remains motionless with both hands frozen by her side.

“Jessica,” he whispers, walking towards her one heavy step at a time.

When he finally nears her, he takes her into his arms and embraces her tightly.

The woman in her wedding dress remains unresponsive as her groom twirls her around and nestles his head on the crook of her neck, “I knew you’d come…”

From behind, Krystal's eyes widen at the sight. She watches the two figures while the desire for revenge gradually consumes her once more. Her pupils become darker and seem to have lost all emotions. It's as if the windows to her soul have been forced shut. Her unrestrained feet drag her slowly towards the only man she has ever loved while her hand unconsciously reaches into her purse and pulls out a knife.

As Taecyeon raises his head to meet his bride’s teary eyes, he sees Krystal with a weapon in hand, ready to stab the woman in his arms. Instinctively, he spins his bride and blocks the striking blade with his back.

The knife pierces through him within seconds and shock takes over his whole body. Both him and his bride collapse to the floor as his blood quickly seeps through his tux, staining the ivory wedding dress.

 “Taecyeon…” Jessica begins in a soft voice while tears stream down her flushed cheeks. She cradles his temporary paralyzed body and whispers, “I'm sorry…”

Krystal stands still, observing them silently. Tears uncontrollably pour down her own face as a wave of contentment rushes through her. The knife in her hand falls to the floor, creating a loud thud that echoes throughout the mute chapel — a defeaning sound that brings her back to reality. She sets the direction of her gaze towards the door and makes her way towards it slolwy, stopping for a moment in front of the tear filled bride and her wounded lover.

She drops down to her knees and stares Jessica directly in the eyes while Taecyeon watches helplessly.

Krystal brushes away the strand of hair covering the face of the blood covered woman and gives her a light kiss on the cheek.

And as she stands up to leave, she smiles sweetly to the bride, “Thank you for everything. The pain is gone, unni.”