Peripeteia.

Sooyoung has all of Jaejoong's features memorized. The endless onyx of his irises, the firm sinew of his shoulders. Her arms curl around his waist and she breathes in his scent. A laugh rumbles through his system, and Sooyoung can feel the vibrations against her cheek. Jaejoong dips his head down low to whisper against her collarbone. 

"I love you."

He presses a kiss there with his lips, just a moment of contact but it sends warmth that disseminates all over. A content sigh escapes Sooyoung and she rests her hands on his chest while he cradles her lower back. Glittering diamond winks back at her from her ring finger. The weight of the ring is unfamiliar, but Sooyoung knows that now, all the unfamiliars will be faced with Jaejoong at her side.

He is hers, and she is his, and to Sooyoung there is nothing more perfect in the world. She savors the aromatic perfume in the air and the shimmering sparks underneath her palms. It is her every fantasy, every dream. Jaejoong twirls her around in a slow circle with a gentle smile.

It is idyllic.

A single tiny explosion and her eyes fly open, open like the sudden hole in Jaejoong's chest, open like the arteries that sweep blood over her hands. The world starts to spin and the air becomes unbreathable. The only image that registers in her mind is the diamond ring, stained a deep, unforgiving crimson. Sooyoung can only stand and watch helplessly as the endless onyx fades into a dull black.

Perhaps, it was too idyllic.

Anagnorisis.

Her lips are cracked and chapped when she presses them together. The harsh fluorescent lights of the hospital cast eerie shadows on her pale face. Sooyoung sits quietly on the hard plastic chairs outside the ICU, and an investigator stands in front of her with a pen poised and a plethora of questions prepared.

"Sooyoung-shi. May I begin my interrogation? You do realize you are the only witness we have."

Her eyes travel listlessly up to the other's face, and she nods slowly.

The interview lasts for about half an hour, Sooyoung tiredly repeating her account of the story and answering meaningless questions with minimal answers. Her legs ache to walk back to Jaejoong's side and watch for any signs of waking up. He's in a critical condition, they say. I wouldn't have too much hope, they say. He may not wake up, they say. Sooyoung knows that they are trying to ease her into the thought that Jaejoong will die, but she refuses to believe it. 

"Excuse me?" The investigator waves his hand in front of her face. "You've been silent for five minutes now. Is there anything you want to tell me?"

She sighs, a quiet noise that lets out only a bit of her frustrations and stress. "No," Sooyoung says abruptly. Tilting her head against the wall, she closes her eyes and wills the investigator to leave her alone. She drifts into a fidgety sleep.

When she wakes up again, her head is on the shoulder of her younger brother, Minho. Seated next to him is a deli crossaint and a cup of coffee, which he passes into her cold hands. "It's about time you woke up, noona. I came here and found you sleeping like this." He tsks and smiles at her. 

Sooyoung can only give a faint twist at the corners of before she settles back onto his shoulder. A throbbing headache roars at her temples. "Not that I don't like you, but why are you here?"

"I... I have some news," Minho replies quietly. He sees his sister's pupils dilate. Sooyoung grips his arm tightly, a sign to continue.

"The investigator, the one the came by earlier," he begins, "called me a few minutes ago. He's in the police headquarters filling out the neccessary papers, but he and his team have come to a conclusion."

Minho's words are even and measured, each calibrated to maintain steadiness. He takes a deep breath. "Do you recall the case you were involved with two years ago?" The way the blood drains from her face is Sooyoung's answer.

"The police believe it has some correlation with the current situation. The forensic analysis showed that the bullet entered Jaejoong's body at an angle, as if the shooter fired as Jaejoong turned around. According to your account, he had turned you around just before he was shot. Do you know what this means?" His eyes are searching into hers but his mouth remains in a neutral line.

"... The bullet was meant for me."

"Yes. And who would target you?"

A wetness threatens to spill over her lashes. "...Jung Yunho."

Yunho, who was a wealthy CEO. Yunho, who had been Jaejoong's best friend. Yunho, who she had slept with once. Yunho, who was in the Seoul District Court for charges of fraud. Yunho, who she created a false witness statement against in order to save Jaejoong. 

Yunho, who kept his gaze locked with hers when the jury delcared him guilty and put in him handcuffs and led him away for two and a half years. 

Yunho, who was freed from prison six days ago.

Pathos.

Against all odds, Jaejoong suddenly inhales, a shuddering gasp that causes him to cough, eyelids fluttering. The doctor watching over him squeaks and drops her clipboard. The ensuing bang gets Sooyoung's attention, and she flies into the room, expecting the worst.

She is greeted with the opposite.

Jaejoong stares at her with widened eyes, the dark hues juxtaposing against his milky skin. His chest heaves up and down sporadically. He clenches and unclenches his right fist against the bedding, relaxing when Sooyoung takes his hand and presses it against her lips. "Jaejoong," is all she can choke out for now. His knuckles cause the steady flow of tears to split into several capillaries. 

Once she calms down, the doctors begin all the necessary tests and procedures. Jaejoong looks at her with the same gentle smile as the last needle is injected into his flesh. Sooyoung is softly massaging his free hand with both thumbs, drawing warmth back into it. 

It is only when everyone leaves them alone that Jaejoong parts his lips to speak. "I need you to listen carefully, Sooyoung." Each word is like the quiet hush of wind on the unbroken surface of water, small yet visible ripples. constricts unbearably tight, but she remains silent. Jaejoong lifts up his trembling hand to cup her cheek. She covers it with her own.

"I was in Tokyo when Yunho called me and confessed that he had slept with you. He felt immensely wrong about it, a heavy weight tugging on his conscience. Instead of directly confronting you, I waited and waited for you to call and admit that you were disloyal to me, but you never did."

"Yunho had explained to me that you were both drunk. However, I was angry that I was not receiving this confession from you. You, my girlfriend, who I was supposed to trust. I wasn't hurt that you slept with Yunho; I was hurt that you tried to hide it from me." The corners of Jaejoong's mouth curve down into a painful expression. 

"As I watched you lie on the witness stand that day, I realized that you did it for me. Because that was how much you loved me and didn't want to lose me. But Yunho didn't deserve the punishment. Every day I thought about how I betrayed my lifelong friend, Sooyoung. I should have been the one in prison," he states, his eyes still clear and bright. There are no waverings in his tone, as if he had been wanting to say this for a long time. "But we were both selfish. I had no desire to go to jail, and you had no desire to see me in jail, so I let you place an innocent man in."

"No, Jaejoong, no, that's not-"

"Stop," he shushes her, "listen to me."

"... I saw Yunho in the shadows, the glint of the gun. I took the shot because it was the only way I could repay him for all the trouble I'd caused. I knew all my past mistakes, and I knew it was time to make things right. But I didn't plan that you'd be the one to suffer the most. I'm sorry, Sooyoung."

A billion questions bloomed in her mind, but she managed to pick out one to ask. "You knew... everything?"

"Everything I was supposed to know." Jaejoong closed his eyes and breathed out. "I'm going to leave soon. Don't cry when I do, Sooyoung, because I'll always be here."

Sooyoung already has damp trails on her cheeks, trails that are flooded again when Jaejoong dies seven hours later, again when she attends his funeral five days later, again when she visits his grave one week later, again when she stumbles into her apartment drunk as hell two months later. 

Alcohol has always transformed her thoughts into hallucinations. She's learned that a few bottles of soju will conjure up Jaejoong with a slight frown on his face, intangible, but it's enough for Sooyoung. Her back slides down the wall as she eases herself onto the floor. Everything aches, which only intensifies when Jaejoong appears and cups her face with his hand. "Don't cry," he whispers. She can't tell the difference between her tears and alcohol on her skin. Picking up an empty glass bottle, she hurls it at Jaejoong. He doesn't say anything as it goes directly through him and smashes against the wall. "Sooyoung, stop."

"No!" she half-sobs, half-shouts. Jaejoong gently picks her hands away from the glittering shards and guides her to their bed. She slips under the covers soundlessly. As she stares at the broken bits of glass on the floor, he starts to sing softly, soothingly.

"Jaejoong, wait. Jaejoong. Don't leave," Sooyoung whispers despondently. He kneels and kisses her forehead. "I won't, but it's you that needs to leave. Remember me, Sooyoung, but don't linger over me either. I love you."

He nods and begins to fade in front of her eyes, and she knows that no amount of pleading and promises will bring him back. Just like the night he died, Sooyoung can only watch.

"I love you," Jaejoong repeats, before he's fully gone.

Sooyoung drinks more and more but there's no Jaejoong now, only his voice, singing whiskey lullabies as she falls into a dreamless sleep and tries to learn how to forgive the world. 

Nothing lasts forever.

[I placed third in the contest. ^^ Thank you to everyone who subscribed and commented and supported me throughout; it really  means a lot to me.]