CHAPTER 11: Black Sun (Part 1) – Sleepless  

      Tiffany was woken up by the blasting of the storm’s intimidating fireworks. The sound of thunder and rain beating against the window did not sound pleasant to her at all, especially the ghastly howling of the wind seeping through the cracks. They were like trumpets warning her of danger and she feared it like a little child.

      Just as she was about to grumble under the bad weather, she caught a glimpse of TaeYeon hidden among the sheets. She slightly pulled down the blanket to get better view of him and she quickly bursts into giggles.  Last night, she imagined him sleeping like an angel, but reality was far from that. His face was deeply pressed against the pillow and his hair exploded in every direction. When he turned his head, his eyebrows crumpled and were followed by soft, uncomfortable groans. She found it cute and reminisced for a moment how he once spoke out clear words while asleep in the past. Even then, he had a lot of repressed stress. It made her wonder what bothered him this time. She caressed his hair hoping his mood would lighten up in his sleep. In no time, his features became more gentle and at peace.

      When Tiffany got up and decided to cook some breakfast, TaeYeon slowly woke up from his stressful dream. He lay there for a few seconds with his eyes still closed, trying his hardest to remember what reality was and what wasn’t. Did he have with Tiffany? No, the night ended without it happening… right? He immediately looked down under the sheets to see if the things he witnessed in his sleep were really all just a dream. He had full clothing on and there were absolutely no traces of alcohol anywhere. That was good. Maybe his brain just got way ahead of him because of last night’s sudden make-out session. That scene was not a memory of his past, no, no, no. It just can’t be…

        Soon, he smelled something being cooked up. He quickly got up, washed his face, and walked out of his bed room. As he groggily scratched his head and walked to the kitchen, he found Tiffany cooking up some scrambled eggs.

      “Sorry if eggs are the only option in to cook,” TaeYeon chuckled.

      “Oh, that’s alright. I’m used to having an empty fridge,” Tiffany laughed. “Now, it’s ready,” Tiffany said as she moved the eggs to a plate. “Let’s eat.”

      As they ate rice and scrambled eggs with some kimchi for breakfast, their phones vibrated beside them. Both looked at their phone and surprisingly, they received the same text. It was from YongHwa.

      “Guys, could you please go visit the hospital today? I’d love it if you would support SeoHyun. She’s on labor right now. She’ll probably pop our baby out anytime soon.”

      Since they were both close friends of SeoHyun, they couldn’t say no. So after eating breakfast, they both freshened up and went to the hospital. The rain still poured on, but that didn’t stop TaeYeon from driving them to the hospital.

 

***

      Eunji turned her head to the window as the skies started to rumble. She was seated on the far left side of her class near the windows. She could see the whole view outside clearly. Everything was gloomy and the trees were swinging from the wind’s pressure. She didn’t like what she was seeing. She was a girl who liked sunny days and got most of her energy from the bright and shining sunlight.

      “Hmm… the sun isn’t gonna show up, isn’t it?” she mumbled to herself and sighed.

      The bell loudly rang like a fire alarm on Eunji’s high school. It was lunch time. Eunji cheerfully packed up her notebooks and prepared to leave. All day, he had been looking forward to talk with Key. Yesterday night, Key insisted to stay in her home until she finally fell asleep. Key even tucked her in that night. It was the first time she ever felt her heart pump for Key. She wanted to get to know him more. She wanted to be a better friend, or even a better girl for him.

      With a big smile plastered on her face, she looked at Key who was just a few seats away to her right. However, her smile slowly went down when she saw him acting very depressed as he lazily dropped his notebooks into his bag. Where did the foolish, smiling boy go? Every time the bell rang, he would always greet her with such a bright aura, but now he barely lifted his head for anyone. What could possibly be wrong with him today?

      As Eunji stood up to from her seat to approach Key, two girls stopped her. Chorong, who was seated in front of Eunji, and Bomi, who was seated beside her took a glance at Key, then back to Eunji. The two were noticed that something was going on Eunji would never stare at Key for a minute, but now, they can’t even get Eunji’s attention. They’ve been calling Eunji for some time now, but there was no response.

      “Yah, Eunji-ah!” Chorong slammed a notebook onto Eunji’s arm. Eunji softly yelped in pain and glared at Chorong.

      “Aish! what was that?” Eunji grumbled as she rubbed the part that was hit.

      “What’s with you today? You were dosing off,” Chorong said.

      “Dosing off to Key’s direction,” Bomi added with a smirk.

      “Y-yah… I wasn’t,” Eunji stuttered, trying to hold her chin up high.

      “Tch… You’re suddenly easy to read,” Chorong mumbled, but loud enough for Eunji to hear. Eunji just snarled and scratched her head. She looked away and slightly blushed. She couldn’t help it. She knew her friends already somewhat knew how she was feeling towards Key. She didn’t have to say it.  She took one last glance at Key who was leaving the room. Key still looked depressed, and that made her heart feel a little heavy. Trying to brush it off, she said to Chorong and Bomi, “Come on, let’s go and eat lunch.”

 

***

      “Fany-ahh!!!” Jessica jumped in excitement and hugged Tiffany as soon as she entered the room.

     “Oh, you’re here,” Tiffany responded by giving her best friend a quick, tight squeeze. Then she warmly waved to SeoHyun who was lying on the hospital bed. When she withdrew from Jessica’s hug the two men YongHwa and Yuri stood up to take turns to greet her, too.

     “Oh, TaeYeon?” Jessica’s eyebrows shot up, startled that he was following behind. Tiffany turned her head to TaeYeon and clung to his arm just to boast about how close they were starting to become. TaeYeon blushed from Tiffany’s sudden gesture but he did not fight it. Jessica and Yuri exchanged smirks at each other. They liked what they were seeing.

      “Hi Sica, hi Yuri,” TaeYeon cheerfully greeted. “Where’s Yoona and SooJung?”

      “They’re in SooYoung and Sunny’s care. Waiting here in the hospital will just make those kids tired.”

      “Oh… okay,” TaeYeon nodded. Actually, he wanted to play with those two little girls, but it’s not going to happen today.

      “Oh, I’m glad you came,” YongHwa said with a smile on his face. He hugged Tiffany and then TaeYeon, softly patting the man’s back. He was feeling quite anxious about her wife and her about-to-be-born child the whole day. Seeing more of his friends show up took a bit of the pressure off him.

      “Did you both come here together?” Jessica asked.

      “Yeah… I slept in his apartment so I-” Tiffany stopped herself, realizing how she sounded just now. She knew the things coming out of were not right since Yuri and Jessica immediately got the wrong message with their jaws slowly gaping at her. “I mean, uh… He doesn’t have a car… so I went to his uh… he drove here.”

      “She slept in my apartment because of the storm last night,” TaeYeon explained, his words not stuttering. “She just slept so stop thinking weird things.”

***

      “So how is the baby? Are there any complications?” Tiffany asked as she touched SeoHyun’s belly.

     “So far, the doctor said everything’s going fine, so we’re okay Unnie,” SeoHyun smiled. “I’m still kind of nervous, though. The contractions started last night so I know this baby will be born today, but my heart won’t stop beating loudly just by thinking about when it will finally be out.”

      “Oh, I think that’s pretty natural for every expecting mother, don’t you think?” Tiffany said, turning to Jessica.

      “Oh yeah, it is,” Jessica nodded. “I’ve experienced it twice, so I know how it feels. You may be really scared and nervous right now, but I bet the moment the kid comes out, you’ll forget about everything that gave you a hard time.”

      “Wow, really? And to think you’ve felt it twice… I really admire you, Sica Unnie,” SeoHyun chuckled as her eyes sparkled in amazement. “You’re a strong woman.” Her eyes then turned to Tiffany who was right beside her. Tiffany noticed her gaze and felt SeoHyun had something to say.

      “What?” Tiffany asked.

      “Oh, nothing…” SeoHyun glanced at TaeYeon then back to Tiffany and sheepishly smiled. She also wanted to complement Tiffany for being a strong woman. Tiffany has also gone through this and was indeed the strongest out of the three of them. Just by looking at the couple, it was obvious to see how the truth has not been revealed yet.

      “Ah… I feel so old,” Jessica sighed. “First you, then me, and now our maknae, who we used to call Seobaby… Ahh, how time passes by.”

     Tiffany tried her hardest not to react to Jessica’s statement, but SeoHyun was startled since she tried so hard to be careful with her words. Yuri, too, was surprised by what she said and nudged his wife with a soft glare. Jessica became a bit confused by Yuri’s slight scolding but it suddenly hit her when she repeated her words in her head. Before she could correct them, TaeYeon had already processed what came out of .

      “Tiffany?” TaeYeon turned her head to Tiffany. “What do you mean Tiffany was first?” Tiffany stayed silent but she stared at Jessica hoping she had a good excuse to give. She knew the truth would come out someday but she didn’t want it to come from someone other than herself or from recalling his memories.

      “Ah… ahahaha,” Jessica awkwardly laughed. “Did I say that? It’s nothing. I’m just a bit tired. I haven’t slept last night…”

      “You’re lying, aren’t you?” TaeYeon glared at Jessica and everyone quietly anticipated how Jessica would reply.

      Jessica glared back and slightly raised her voice in an annoyed tone, “Hey, I stayed up until 3 am, and you should know how If I don’t get enough sleep, my brain does not function properly.”

      TaeYeon suspiciously eyed Jessica and everyone else in the room. Jessica’s words were very clear. “First you, then me, and now our maknae.” “You” was referred to as Tiffany, and he knew Jessica was not a person who stutters with her words. So does that mean Tiffany has a child or had a child? It left him something to wonder about. They’ve been separated for 15 years so it would make sense to him. It’s possible that he still has so much more to discover about her. It’s possible for her to already have a family. Whether she was married still or was divorced, somehow it is possible. However, his thoughts would lead him back to their intimacy last night. His thoughts would lead him back to his friends who tried so hard to put them back together. Tiffany was not the cheating type either. “I guess Tiffany is single and that is certain, but her with a child? What did Jessica exactly mean? Am I over thinking things? Aish, this is driving me crazy,” TaeYeon thought and sighed in frustration.

 

***

        It was already noon and the guests in the hospital had nothing to do. YongHwa insisted they should go home for now, but the four hesitated. If the rain subsides a little, then they would go home, but not now when the storm is pouring on. However, around this time, HyoYeon, TaeYeon’s sister, managed to arrive at the hospital. As SeoHyun’s closest friend, she would not want to miss this special day.

      After eating lunch with HyoYeon, the four got bored quickly. TaeYeon and Tiffany decided to wander in the halls of the hospital and found themselves on an open lounge where people hung out and waited. There was an unoccupied mini-grand piano and Tiffany dragged TaeYeon there.

      “Play something,” Tiffany said as she sat beside TaeYeon.

      “I don’t know… I’m not very good at piano.”

      “You’ve been learning piano from your student right? I want to know how well she has taught you.”

      “Oh, Eunji?” TaeYeon wondered. “Hmm… I guess she did teach me well, but I still , you know. People here might find my playing irritating.”

      “C’mon, you can play as softly as you can!” Tiffany she nudged him.

      “No,” TaeYeon he sighed feeling burdened and shy. He only learned one song, and that was the Chopin nocturne that had brought them together. Even though he learned it so that he could eventually play it for her again, there were people everywhere. As a musician, he did not want to humiliate himself by making a mistake if he ever did start playing.

      “TaeTae,” she cutely pouted like a pleading puppy and held his hand, “Please? For me.” TaeYeon’s mouth dropped as he was taken aback by her sudden aegyo. Even at thirty-four, somehow she still had an amazing ability to be cute. But since he really did not want to play, it had little effect on him and he just turned his head away and scoffed.

      Tiffany paid no attention to his hesitant expression and gently laid out his hand on the keys. She then forcibly stretched out each of his stubborn fingers and spread them properly on the piano.

      As soon as she finished fixing them into place, TaeYeon glanced back at her, but strangely, the scene changed. In front of him was Tiffany looking extremely down and depressed than how she was enthusiastically forcing him to play. He also noticed that he was back in the studio instead of the hospital. With the different paint of the wall and the different arrangement of furniture, that’s when he realized, he was witnessing a very vivid memory.

      He said, “I am not sure if we will end up being together forever… But when I finish this Chopin piece, when I can play it perfectly, when I can play it without my hands trembling, that’s when I’ll know, I’ll be with you forever…”

      With a few blinks, he came back to the present day and saw Tiffany cheerfully withdrawing her hands from his. He took a deep breath, relieved that she was smiling again rather than having her bangs darkly hovering over her eyes. He did not want to ever see her in that state and so, he calmed himself down and started taking it away gently.

(>>Play)

      “Oh!” Tiffany jumped in her seat at the first few notes, surprised and excited that he actually decided to play something. But not even five seconds in, she recognized the tune he played and was left breathless, unable to move a muscle. He played it so perfectly with a sweet and soothing flow that even the people who were around had bobbed their weary heads up to listen.

      Tiffany could not believe what she was hearing at this very moment. She knew that TaeYeon had been remembering his past lately, but she never thought he would actually play this song again for her. She could still remember the last time he played it which was just a few days before his accident fifteen years ago. When he played this song for her, his tempo always went off trying to find a certain note, he would slightly panic when he made a mistake, and he couldn’t even finish the song. But the most memorable part of that afternoon was his promise. Does he remember what that promise was?

      Her heart pounded faster and faster the closer he got to the end. There was a high chance of him finally completing this song due to the fact that he hasn’t made one mistake at all. Louder and louder, her heart pounded, until it froze right when he finished.

      Applause echoed throughout the huge room from the guests to the patients and even to the nurses and doctors. No doubt it soothed a large number of people. TaeYeon shyly bowed his head to everyone from his seat and he took a few deep breaths to calm himself. He himself couldn’t believe that he was able to play it so perfectly.

      “What do you think?” TaeYeon asked, snapping Tiffany out of her thoughts.

      “That was amazing!” Tiffany clapped with so much awe. “Now, who said you were bad? It was so perfect! You were so good!”

      “Really? I’m surprised myself!”

      “How were you able to play that?” she asked, still dazed that he was able to finish the piece.

      “My teacher taught me well,” he replied and Tiffany remembered that Eunji was the one who had been teaching him piano.

      “She taught you well, alright!” Tiffany chuckled, finding another reason to be extremely proud of her daughter.

      “By the way, I didn’t play this for nothing,” TaeYeon suddenly said. “Um… Fany-ah,” he timidly asked, “What do you think when you hear this song?”

      Tiffany blushed and replied, “Us.”

      “It’s the same for me, too.” He took a deep breath and continued, “Most of my life I knew so little about classical music, but when I heard this song again about a month ago, I was suddenly so overwhelmed and moved by it. A memory of us came back to me not long after that. And the more I heard it, the more I knew I had to play it for you again. I wasn’t fond at all of playing the piano, but I learned and practiced it every day just for you. I didn’t even know why I was so passionate to complete it, but I think I remember it now.” He stared at her and asked, “Do you remember?”

      Tiffany anxiously stared at him right back, unable to say a word. If he remembered the day he made his promise, he should also remember the things she confessed on the same day.

      “When I finish this Chopin piece, when I can play it perfectly, that’s when I’ll know I’ll be with you forever,’” TaeYeon said.

      “Like an assurance,” Tiffany softly added as she clearly remembered his words.

      “Yes, like an assurance,” TaeYeon smiled. “And even though there’s still so much about each other that we don’t know and we’re still standing on somewhat unstable grounds, I’m not worried it will fail anymore. We got forever on our side.”

      Tears brimmed Tiffany’s eyes. Even though she devotedly prayed so much about their relationship, she had been so doubtful and anxious since the very beginning. The longer she kept things from him and lied to him, the more she pictured his haunting and stressed demeanor, ready to leave her life again in an instant. However, hearing these very words from her gave her a new sense of hope.

      She hugged TaeYeon as tightly as she could and relied on his warmth to help her ease her worries. “Just a little bit longer,” she thought, “Then I will tell you everything.”

 

***

      It was already 4PM in the afternoon, and SeoHyun had not yet given birth. Her contractions are surely getting worse while YongHwa, Yuri, and Jessica, starting to lose their sanity from waiting. Good thing HyoYeon was there to keep up very interesting and entertaining conversations. If they focused on her, they wouldn’t get too bored and fall asleep unlike the two lovers outside the room. TaeYeon was too used to his own sister uttering complete nonsense that he would rather just drowse off without hearing any of it.

      Jessica peeked out the room and found TaeYeon and Tiffany sleeping on the bench and then withdrew her head back in the room. “So guys, when do you bet TaeYeon will find out about Eunji?”

      “How long have they been together now, anyway?” HyoYeon wondered.

      “I think about  week or something,” Jessica shrugged. “It hasn’t been that long, really.”

      “I feel the truth will come out very soon,” Yuri said. “Or maybe I just want it to happen soon…”

      “Ugh, why can’t we just tell it to him straight, anyway?” Jessica huffed in an annoyed tone. “I’m getting tired of not being able to blurt out whatever the hell I want in front of him. If this goes on for more than a month, I might explode and tell it to him myself. I don’t care anymore if he suffers to some extent since he has hurt Tiffany more.”

      “Why didn’t you guys tell him the truth before hiring him as his own daughter’s music teacher?” Yuri added as he pointed to SeoHyun and YongHwa.

      “Have I never told you guys yet?” HyoYeon replied. “There’s only one reason for it all. His brain is unstable.”

      “Unstable?” Yuri and Jessica’s eyebrows shot up in unison.

      “He may seem fine and a lot of him still functions normally, but ever since the accident fifteen years ago, parts of his brain were greatly affected. It gradually became even worse when he kept on having accidents throughout the years. He didn’t lose his memories just once, you know. And I think you guys, know this: Ever since the accident, he’s had a hard time dealing with his emotions and stress unlike his usual relaxed poise back in the day,” HyoYeon said and Jessica and Yuri slowly nodded their heads, remembering the events after he woke up from his coma. “When he is deeply and emotionally stressed, he becomes irritable and reckless, and then he forgets a large portion of the memory that caused it in the first place. The last time it happened, he forgot a really close family member—totally erased everything about her. That’s why we’ve been cautious towards him and his emotions. We don’t want that to ever happen again. Even when he enlisted for the army, they had to dismiss him when they checked his health. It was just too risky.”

      “But… eventually, he has to face the truth,” Jessica whimpered. “Would it really stress him so much to know that Eunji is his daughter? They are already pretty close.”

      “Rather than that, I think the fact that everyone around him kept it all from him will fuel most of his stress,” YongHwa said. “But he’s too much of an understanding guy, I won’t be surprised if he refuses to blame anyone and direct all fault to himself. Self-hatred is his worst enemy and if it comes to an extreme, no one is sure if he’ll remember his yesterday.”

      “That just can’t happen again!” Yuri sighed in frustration. “He wouldn’t really forget everyone, especially Fany and Eunji, all over again, would he?”

      “That’s why the only thing we can do now is wait—wait for him to remember it all by himself while Tiffany is assuring him that he is welcome to be a part of their lives again. It’s the safest option. Then we can help him fill in all the other pieces of his memory’s puzzle if he asks for it.” HyoYeon said. “I mean it’s actually very hard for him to remember anything so I’m actually very surprised that after he met Eunji, the next morning SeoHyun immediately called me to tell me that he told her that he had such a weird dream about meeting new teenagers in a studio, which turned out to be you guys. Actu