It is another busy day in the streets of Seoul. Cars and buses were passing by endlessly and pedestrians were starting to pour on the busy sidewalks. The honking sounds of the automobiles reverberated in the early morning air. However, none of these had ever caught the attention of the lone lady standing at the corner of an intersection, staring blankly at the signs of life before her. Everything just seemed to be a whole blur. All of it was just black and white, void of any meaning.

Why has life been so harsh to her? Why? She lost her two sisters in an accident. She was left by her groom in front of the altar, the only loved one she had, the one whom she thought to be the right one for her. Why has everyone seemed to have forsaken her? A tear fell from her eye and ran down her face painted with misery.

What’s the use of living if she already had no more life to begin with? She might as well end all the suffering.

With a sigh, she took a step forward and walked steadily to the middle of the street. She saw the big truck coming but she dared not to stop, anticipating for that big impact that would hopefully bring her face to face with death, the endpoint of all her pain.

This shall be the end of Seo Joohyun. That was what she was thinking.

He is one of the youngest and promising businessmen in the country. He has the most beautiful girl as his fiancée.  What else could he ask for? He got everything a person could wish for in his lifetime.

“Mr. Cho, here is the special gift that you had us made for you.” The jewelry store owner said and she handed him the red velvet box. He opened it, revealing a golden locket the with the infinity symbol encrusted on it.

“Your fiancée must really be happy with your present. It’s so lovely.” The jeweler said.

“Thank you.” He replied smilingly at the store owner before sitting back to his car. He placed the box carefully on the passenger seat. He looked at the bright sky above and smiled.

“What a nice day… Three days more… just three days more, Victoria.” He glanced at his phone wallpaper picture of a pretty blonde woman when his phone rang. His smile widened upon hearing the voice of his beloved.

“So how is the day of my honey?”

“Forever, so cheesy…”

“Gonna get used to it, my future wife,” he chuckled over the line.

“Mom’s preparing a brunch here, wanna come?”

“How can I refuse my mother-in-law? Of course, I’ll go straight there.”

“Okay, take care. I love you…” she whispered.

“I lo-, Vic, sorry there’s an emergency! Bye, see you later”

“Kyu- Kyuhyun!”

From the corner of his eyes, he saw a truck fast approaching an anonymous lady.

The sound of danger from the upcoming truck, the growing shrieks of the unfortunate witnesses… she had heard them all but her mind drowned all the sounds. She was determined and convinced that this really was the ending of her life’s sad tale.

She shut her eyes waiting for her demise. In an instant, she felt a solid body hit her that had her pushed to the asphalt road. The events happened so fast she did not know what happened anymore. There was a shrill screeching sound that almost hurt her ears. She felt a bruise on her arm from her fall but aside from that, nothing hurts. She hoisted her body from the ground and turned around only to behold the shocking truth.

A body of a man, her supposedly savior, was now lying unconscious on the road on his own pool of blood. Her eyes widened with fright and guilt. Someone had been put in a peril because of her. Confused, she left the scene.

Victoria paced back and forth across the living room. Kyuhyun’s tone of voice on the phone worried her. What exactly was that emergency?

“Vic, it must just have been something really urgent. Something that you don’t need to worry about,” her mom told her.

But Victoria could not disregard the panic in his voice over the line. Her hands kept fidgeting until her arm accidentally knocked over something. She looked at the floor and saw the shattered pieces of their picture frame.

“Premonitions do not always come true, do they?” Victoria mumbled as she picked up the fragments of glass.

There was a sustained high-pitched sound and a flat line suddenly displayed on the cardiac monitor.

“Time of death: 9:10 AM”

The door to the intensive care unit suddenly opened and Victoria barged in, tagging along her the health personnels who were attempting to stop her.

“Sorry miss, but you cannot go inside,” one said while restraining her arm but Victoria successfully broke free from them. Tears instantly streamed down her face as she watched them cover his whole body with the green blanket. She ran to him and hugged his covered body.

“Kyuhyun, you cannot leave me. You promised that we’ll be together. You said we’ll get married and have a happy family. Why did you leave me?!” She screamed and tried to shake his body. “Wake up please!!! Kyuhyun!”

A tall, lanky guy approached her and placed a hand on her shoulder. “Victoria, that’s enough. He is gone.”

Victoria fell down to her knees and cried. She turned to the man and buried her face on his chest. “Kyuhyun can’t leave me, Zhou Mi. He can’t.” Victoria sobbed as she shook her head and clutched the front of his shirt. Zhou Mi hugged her and rubbed her back hoping that this small gesture could console her even for just a bit.

When Seohyun opened her eyes, she saw faces of unfamiliar people and she was in an unfamiliar place.

“Where am I?” she asked them.

“We saw you unconscious on the side of the road. We brought you here in the hospital. The doctor said that you probably have a stress breakdown.” The kind-looking woman told her. “Thank God, you’re already awake.”

“Don’t worry we cover all the expenses here. Just rest for a little bit,” said the other. “May I just ask what happened?”

Seohyun just looked at them and muttered, “Nothing… Just nothing. Anyway, thank you.”

But in the back of her mind, the image of her poor savior was still crystal clear to her.

She sauntered aimlessly outside the hospital, just following where her two feet would carry her until she reached the chapel where she saw a lady crying sorrowfully inside. Seohyun went inside and watched her. She reminded her of the time when she lost her two sisters. She felt so alone and it was like her whole world had fallen apart at once. She did not want to be prying but there was something in her that wanted to approach her. However, she did not know how to do it. Then she saw something glistening on the floor. She picked it up. It was a golden locket. She supposed it probably belonged to her.

“Excuse me, is this yours?” Seohyun asked. Victoria quickly wiped her tears with the back of her hand. She saw the small jewelry on Seohyun’s palm.

“Yes, it is mine. This is the last memory I have of him. Thank you for returning it to me,” she said while looking at Seohyun. “I don’t know what I will do if I lost it. I am such a clumsy person,” she began to sniffle again. She opened the locket and caressed the picture hidden inside it. Seohyun caught a glimpse of it and she immediately recognized the male there.

“Who is he?” Seohyun asked.

“He is my fiancé. We should be married in three days time but he was gone. They said that he died while saving someone.” Victoria replied in between the sobs.

They said that he died while saving someone. She can’t say that she was that someone, right? She cannot admit that in front of his fiancée. She cannot admit that she was the reason why he is dead right now. Her conscience once again haunted her. Why must he be there?

Her eyes welled up with tears as she utter her apology. “I’m sorry,” she breathed. “I’m really sorry.” She knew that a simple sorry was not enough no matter how many times she said it for the life that she took. 

Victoria knitted her eyebrows together. “Are you okay? Why are you so emotional suddenly?”

“Sorry… I have to go…  I’m sorry again.” Seohyun ran away crying while Victoria watched her strangely.

It was late at night at the park and it was dark with the exception of the lampposts around and the clock tower overlooking the park. Sitting on one of the empty benches, this was the only place where she can find solace on her own, where the moon and the stars can bear witness to her tears.

“It should have been me… It should have been me…” Seohyun repeatedly muttered under her breath. “Lord, why can’t it be me? Lord, I don’t want to live anymore. I don’t want to be in this miserable life any longer.”

The image of that guy was still etched in her mind. She should be the one lying there bathing in her own blood. Why can’t the Lord grant her request? What’s the use of living is she is already dead inside? She was simply like a living corpse.

She looked at the clock tower standing at the middle of the deserted park. “Can’t you just return to him the time that he sacrificed for saving me?!!! Please!” she cried out loud. “This is the only thing I can do to atone for what I did… I can give half of my time to him.” She lowered her head and let the cold tears trickle to her lap.

Cho Kyuhyun, you are lucky. You have been saved.