Today was a good day, Minhyuk concluded as he watched the younger girl slowly drift to sleep on the sofa by the bay window. She was beautiful, especially with the way the setting sun’s light outlined her face, tracing the soft contours. He was mesmerized by her eyes as they slowly flutter down close, her eyelashes casting faint shadows on her porcelain cheeks.

If only things weren’t the way they were, he knew that falling in love with her would be so much easier. But, as with everything in the world, there were things that they could not control so, he satisfied himself with the fact that he was the only one that can comfort her.

She was the most fragile thing that he had ever encountered. There were moments that he was afraid to touch her, so much like crystal, she was very easy to break. However, he was thankful that she trusted him so much to cry out for him when she felt like she can’t go on. And in exchange of that trust, he gave his love to her.

“Did she cause too much trouble today?” He turned towards the soft voice that called out to him after giving one last smile to the sleeping figure, happy with the outcome of the day’s work.

Minhyuk gave a wry smile, “Seohyun-ah, you know that she does not cause trouble, it’s just how it is,” he leaned down to brush a piece of hair that fell down on her face away, “You should know that better than I do, you’re her doctor.”

Seohyun let out a light laugh, “Aigoo, my twin brother is fussing too much again. I was just checking up on you, I don’t want you getting too tired.”

He stood up finally and slipped his arms around the girl, carrying her. It was the part of the day that he loved the most, when he could hold very close to his heart. “You know that I won’t ever get tired taking care of her.” His eyes disappeared into a smile as he walked towards the open door of the bedroom.

After he has tucked her into the bed, he turned towards his sibling, noting that she has already taken off her white doctor’s coat. It was time to go home for them. “I sometimes wish that I can stay here with her,” his body slumped against Seohyun, “I wish that I can do something for her.”

“You’re doing more than enough already, Minhyuk-ah. No one can take care of her as much as you do. Now, go and tell her to have sweet dreams before we go,” Seohyun gently pushed him towards the bed.

He paused for a moment before deciding to give her a lingering kiss on the forehead, “I’ll see you tomorrow, dream of nothing but sweet dreams, Soojung-ah.” He then walked towards his sister, finally closing the door behind him.

__

It’s been three days since Minhyuk had seen Soojung. He had caught a bad cold the other day and could not move from his bed but, his thoughts have always drifted to her, wondering how she was doing. Although Seohyun has said nothing bad about how Soojung was doing, he knew that she was probably looking for him and it made him want to recover faster than ever.

That afternoon, he found her on her bed, her face turned towards the window but he could see that she was a bit paler than usual. He felt his heart squeeze painfully for a second, feeling angry at what the fates have given her.

“Soojung-ah,” he whispered out to her.

He saw her jolt out of her thoughts and turn to him with the warmest of smiles, “I thought you wouldn’t come today too, but I’m glad you’re here.”

“I’m happy that you are,” he sat down beside her and held her hand, “but why are you cooped up in here? You should go outside to the garden and breathe some fresh air.”

Soojung the back of his hand that was holding hers, “Oppa,” she started and Minhyuk felt his heart drop to his stomach, he knew what she was about to say next, “I was scared that they’ll take me away from here. I didn’t see you and I was really scared. What would I do? They would probably come and take me away and you weren’t here. There’s nobody to protect me and they will take me away.”

Minhyuk held her chin and turned her face to make her look at him, “Ya, I already told you before that nobody will take you away. Even if I’m not here, I will not allow anyone to take you away.”

“But we don’t know that,” her eyes were pools of sadness that he has always wished he could change.

“Of course we do. Have you forgotten what I promised you? I would think that you’ve forgotten, the way you’re acting all scared now.”

Soojung gripped his hand tighter, “Of course, I didn’t forget! I would not forget it ever.”

“Then what was it?” His eyes softened, she was stronger than she thinks she is and how he wished that she’d realize it sooner.

“You said that as long as you’re alive, you will not let anybody hurt me,” she smiled finally, looking satisfied with herself.

“I’m still alive, am I not?” He stood up, pulling her with him, “now, let’s get you to the garden so you can stop thinking too much about things.”

He was pleasantly surprised when she pulled him into a hug. He reveled in her warmth, wanting time to stop and let her feel the love that was coursing through him.

“Oppa, I’m so happy that you’re here,” her voice barely above a whisper.

He embraced her, the tightest he might’ve done from all the times that he allowed himself to hug her, “I’m happy that you’re here, too.”

I’m happy that I can love you.

__

Minhyuk spent all of his free time with Soojung. When he wasn’t working on his drawings, he made sure that he was always by her side, trying his best to keep her demons at bay. It was the same feeling he felt when he first laid his eyes on her, it was a very tall order but, god help him, he will be her knight in shining armor.

He can still remember the afternoon when he first set his eyes on her. Fresh from an accident, his twin sister recommended that he recuperate and volunteer at the asylum she was running. Although he was reluctant that it would do him any good, he went ahead with the plan, thinking that there wasn’t anything wrong with it and he might just as well give it a shot. After all, all he lost then was a few pints of blood and some of his memories, and the asylum feels more like a home than anything else with its very cozy interiors and sprawling gardens. The worst he can get, he decided, was to be bored and speed up his recovery process.

But, that all changed when he saw her, sitting down at that sofa by the bay window, crying all by herself. He could still hear her in his mind, murmuring pleas of ‘please don’t let them take me away; I don’t want to go with them’. It bewildered him, that someone as beautiful as her would be carrying so much sadness within herself that her mind has already detached itself from this world.

He watched her that afternoon, his heart breaking minute after minute that he saw her living in a nightmare. No matter how much he wanted to reach out to her, he’d see Seohyun by the corner of his eyes with the saddest look on her face, shaking her head ‘no’. Soojung was probably the worst case that that place ever had, from his visits before, he only saw recovering alcoholics, drug addicts and, depressed people roaming around. Never someone who was just a shell of a person they once were.

For him, Soojung was different. His heart bound itself to her almost immediately and he wanted to prove everyone else wrong, he vowed to take her back to reality and make her realize that there are still things that were worth living for.

So, he worked to win her trust, visiting her every day, spending quiet moments just sitting down near her until such time that she was the one who first approached him. It was the most beautiful day ever when he finally heard her voice. To him, it sounded like sparkling waters, crystalline.

It took them years to get where they were now, Soojung still drifts away from reality but, he was hopeful. The fact that she allowed him to be part of whatever world she was in was a big step forward for him. And, even if it will take forever to finally make her his, he was already determined to take it. She was love and he promised to himself to never ever let go of it.

__

His musings on a bright June afternoon was broken when he heard cries as he was walking towards the bungalow that housed Soojung. Whatever he was planning for his birthday the following week was thrown to the wind as he rushed inside, wanting to see what happened to make his Soojung cry out like that.

Her cries was almost hysterical, the most melancholic he has ever heard from her. Once he stepped inside the large living area, his eyes widened as he found her struggling against a couple of men he didn’t know. She was crying out to him to save him and to not let them take him away.

“Do not touch her!” He heard himself scream repeatedly as he rushed to her side, wanting to scoop her up in his arms. But just as he neared her, he felt himself restrained by the arm, unknown voices asking him to calm down and it’s going to be alright, nothing’s going to happen.

Minhyuk scanned the room in panic, looking for his sister, pleading out over and over again to the men he didn’t know to not touch Soojung. He felt a prick in his arm then felt that the hand that was holding him back loosened and, without losing a beat, he launched himself forward and snatched his heart away, ignoring Seohyun’s cries of his name.

He clutched Soojung to his chest and sat them both down on her favorite sofa near the bay window. Her cries has already died down to whimpers of relief, telling him that she knew he would come for her and to please, please not let them take her away from him. He rocked her back and forth, willing to transfer some of his strength to her.

As soon as he raised his head, his eyes landed on a familiar figure talking to Seohyun and he could already feel his anger boiling up to unbearable levels and he could not do anything else but to lash out on him.

“You should’ve protected her!” His eyes were trained on Lee Jonghyun, whose already pale face turned ashen at his exclamation, “what kind of brother in law would let unknown people like that touch her? You know how delicate she is!”

He tried to calm down as soon as he remembered that he still had Soojung in his arms. Lee Jonghyun was the husband of Sooyeon, Soojung’s older sister. No matter how much he resented that Sooyeon never went to visit Soojung, he never blamed her. He understood how heartbreaking it must’ve been for her to see her little sister like this. The presence of Jonghyun assured him that they still cared for Soojung and it was enough for him. He believed that she’ll come around eventually.

“Minhyuk-ah,” he heard Jonghyun’s voice, “we’re sorry about that. There were just some inspectors that came and didn’t know about Soojung’s predicament.”

He didn’t even spare the older man a glance, all he wanted to do was to comfort the still crying girl in his arms, “You still should’ve known better,” his voice was now quiet as a whisper, “Soojung didn’t know who they were. Can’t you see how terrified she is? And, you were just standing there.”

He heard Jonghyun release a breath, “I know and I’m sorry about that. I should’ve taken her away before she saw them. I’m really sorry.” Then he felt the older man’s hand squeeze his shoulder before walking away. He did not say anything more, not wanting to prolong the fight. There was nothing else they can do anyway, things already happened and it was best that he made sure that Soojung would get through the day fine.

“Oppa, are they going to take me away?” Soojung whispered, her eyes full of tears waiting to be still shed, “I don’t want to go with them, I’m scared, they will hurt me.”

Minhyuk brushed her hair away from his face, his heart squeezing, “No one’s going to take you away. I’m here. Don’t worry now, I’m here.” He hummed an unknown tune as he pressed his lips by her temple.

__

Seohyun watched her brother rock himself back and forth on the sofa, her face mirroring the sadness that was coursing inside her body. She dropped the syringe in the trash can before she dropped herself on the chair behind the counter, feeling her energy leave her bit by bit.

“Jonghyun oppa,” she turned her eyes towards the door when Jonghyun emerged after offering apologies to the startled inspectors, “do you think there’s still hope?”

His lips stretched into a thin line as he observed the situation at the living area, “Do you want me to comfort you, Seohyun-ie, or do you want me to tell the truth?”

The young woman’s face crumpled in distraught as she tried her best to calm herself down. Every moment she saw her twin brother hurting, she felt like her heart was being stabbed. They had shared everything and the pain that he was dealing with right now, it’s taking a toll on her. It was like watching her other half crumble down bit by bit before her and there was nothing much she can do.

“But it’s been three years since the incident,” Seohyun looked straight ahead, “and there’s been no improvement whatsoever. He still believes that Soojung is alive.”

Jonghyun sat himself down beside her, “Soojung is still alive inside him and that is enough for him.”

“I can never stop blaming myself. It was so stupid, thinking that something from Soojung’s things would help him recover. I never expected that it would turn out like this,” she saw the drops of her tears on the table before she felt them coursing down her face, “why did it have to happen? Why does it hurt so badly?”

Jonghyun looked at the scene before him, his face grim, he saw not a young man clutching a medium-sized doll to his chest but, a young man fighting to keep his love alive. He can hear the strained sobs Seohyun was making beside him and he wondered how she can make it every single day watching her sibling when his Sooyeon could not even take up the courage to drop by for a visit.

Memories swirled inside Jonghyun’s mind, it has been 3 long years since they found Soojung dead by a lonely creek at the outskirts of the city after a week of searching, her body battered and bruised beyond recognition. That kidnapping incident changed every single one of them but not as badly as it changed Minhyuk. It was devastating to watch him deteriorate right before their eyes as his mind shut away every memory it had of Soojung.

Minhyuk and Soojung were already planning their wedding by the time Soojung disappeared. One night, suddenly, she just didn't come home after work. They searched and searched for her, thinking that she only ran away because of cold feet. They had badly prayed that it was only for cold feet. But fate had decided to throw them the worst thing ever – she was preyed on by bad men, feasted upon and thrown mercilessly into a creek.

It broke all of them apart but, eventually, everyone started healing and learned how to move on.

Except for Minhyuk.

He had never seen anyone so broken.

They weren’t expecting Minhyuk to come by so early that day and, to make matters worse, he came in just in time to see one inspector hold Soojung’s doll up. It was the first time they saw Minhyuk react so violently like and both he and Seohyun scrambled to inject a sedative in him to manage the situation.

He reached out and gave Seohyun’s hand a comforting squeeze, there was nothing else for them to do but hope.

“He will be alright, just trust him,” he felt his eyes warm with unshed tears. He put his faith on that though he knew that it might never happen. But, he’d rather choose things to be this way than see Minhyuk walking around like an empty shell or worse, die by his own hands.

In Jonghyun’s mind, Minhyuk was in a beautiful place, together finally with his love who he can keep safe in his heart.