#Case026 – 「Unexpected Meeting」

Eunhwa looked towards both Himchan and Jieun that were now sitting in front of her, back and forth, as if she still couldn’t believe her eyes. Meanwhile, Himchan couldn’t stop himself from keep smile widely as he finally met her.

The one that he had loved before.

The serene scenery of the café interior still couldn’t put Eunhwa’s heart in ease. She looked towards Himchan; and finally made a decision to break the still air between them.

“I never think that we could meet...once again, Himchan ahh.”

Himchan nodded. He never thought that he would finally meet his long best friend, after two years of that tragedy. “You’re right. I was – and I’m actually still – so surprise to see you here. It’s all thanks to Jieun,” Himchan shifted his gaze for a second to Jieun before turned back towards Eunhwa. “It’s all her idea that brought me here for today.”

Eunhwa slowly nodded. There were a lot of questions had lingering in her mind; but she didn’t want to blurt it out in once. She would ask them to Himchan, one by one. “I see. How are you then? I got to know that you’d already be Angel Air’s President.”

Himchan stunned. “You...know that?” He was surprised to see Eunhwa’s reaction which seemed so calm yet so unpredictable. “I thought you will be so surprise to know-“

“That you’re still alive?” Eunhwa quickly cut his sentences with her expressionless face – which was a side of her that Himchan never saw before. “There’s too much things that surprised me though. I know I’m lying if I say that I’m not surprised by that news; I do and yet I’m giving you your own time to explain to me all about it.”

Jieun seemed completely lost by their discussion when she finally spoke up between Himchan and Eunhwa’s conversation. “Why Eunhwa had to be so surprise to know that you’re still alive? Channie ahh...can you explain it to me?”

Eunhwa looked towards Jieun with a weird reaction. Channie ahh – that was the nickname that she used to call Himchan before which she pretty sure that Jieun had never used it once before.

But she didn’t care about it; she just cared about Himchan’s explanation about it.

Himchan took a deep breath. “Jieun ahh...” He slowly held Jieun’s hand. “I’m sorry for not telling you this but I’d once faced death; but as if I’d been given another chance to live my life – I’d stay alive, right until this second.” Then, he turned his gaze towards Eunhwa. “Eunhwa ahh... It’s indeed true that I’d been involved in the hit and run incident at that time. But, the one who killed in that bloody moment is not me. The police thought that he is me, as I’d given him my identification card as we’re supposed to be hanging out somewhere...”

Suddenly, Himchan muted himself for a moment. He lowered his head while both of his hands cupped his face. And right at that moment, Eunhwa asked Himchan another question according to his story just now. “Who was exactly he then? And why you gave your ID card to someone else?”

Himchan lifted his head and made his gaze meet Eunhwa’s. “He is a friend of mine; and I do bet you never know him before. I gave him my ID card in order for him to register my name in guard cottage along with him.” Then, Himchan slowly out up a weak smile on his face. “Now, it’s enough to talk about my past. This reunion...is indeed a miracle for me.”

Eunhwa nodded. She was thinking of the same thing as him too, deep inside of her heart. Slowly, she was also hoping that this miracle did happen to her once again the future.

“If miracle like this can truly exist; one thing that I could be wished for – please return my Youngjae back to me....”

Himchan smiled. His ‘second’ life was indeed a miracle; as he could look to his friend’s beautiful visage again, could talk to her and most importantly for him was...

He could rectify his mistake to her before.

“But...” Eunhwa then suddenly spoke up, which made both of Himchan and Jieun looked towards her in confusion. “Why you didn’t even tell me that you’re actually alive, Channie ahh?”

Himchan opened his mouth slightly to say something but there’s no even a word came out from his mouth. He then muted himself for a while thinking the best reason for him to give to Eunhwa about his condition at that time. “It’s hard for me to tell you. Our relationship at that time is not so well...and I’d get through so many hardships in order for me to obtain back my own identity as Kim Himchan.”

Jieun sent Himchan a concerned looks in her eyes. “You’d to obtain back your identity at the National Registration Office right? And I’d once heard that someone who had been identified as someone else and wanted to get back his own identity have to go through many trial in court. Oh my... I never knew that these happened to you at all...” Jieun shifted her gaze aside while held her chest – her heart’s hurts very much to know about it; and at the same time she felt disappointed as Himchan never bother to tell her before.

Himchan smiled. “That’s all already passed. I don’t think that I’d to finally say about it back as I really want to forget all that.” Then, Himchan looked towards Eunhwa. “And yet, I don’t want to scare you...and I want to be a different person right from that moment. As you finally will be with your fiancé after all – oh! How about Youngjae sshi? Had you guys married to each other?”

Eunhwa could feel her breath caught. She tried to swallow the lump in but it felt like it was totally paralyzed. “Himchan ahh...” She slowly arranged her sentences so that she wouldn’t ever broke her cries in front of Himchan and Jieun. “Youngjae had already passed away...2 months after your ‘death’.”

“Oh...I-I’m sorry. I really didn’t know-“

“It’s okay.” Eunhwa quickly answered Himchan with a feeble smile plastered on her face. “You don’t know that at all. I understand.”

But her smile didn’t even could hide her sadness as Himchan vividly saw it from her sparkles eyes. He kept looking towards Eunhwa with all of his feelings mixed up – as if he could feel all Eunhwa’s sadness along as he was also...in the same situation with Eunhwa once before.

Sooyeon’s death.

Jieun sighed. She felt like she was totally a stranger between Himchan and Eunhwa. She just about to lift her head to see Himchan when she realized that Himchan was looking to Eunhwa without even blinked his eyes even once, as if he was being intrigued by Eunhwa.

Just like years before.

And that stares did make Jieun felt uneasy. She could feel something would happen soon as her eyes looked to Eunhwa and Himchan back and forth once again, but she tried to completely deny her hunch.

‘Himchan would never go back to Eunhwa. Never.’

Soojung closed her eyes with a small smile formed on her visage. “Ahh~ It’s so refreshing – a lot refreshing than the air in the house. Is this how freedom feels like?”

Soojung smirked. It’s not she didn’t like to live there but the atmosphere in the house was so tense, especially when just she and Jieun were the only people left in the house.

Because there would be a mouth-fight; no matter how they would like to avoid each other.

“Ahh! Jung Soojung! Why you have to keep thinking about that? Stop it!” Soojung softly hit her head several times before she then saw a figure, which was standing under a bridge and cautiously looked for his surroundings as if he was being chased.

Soojung slowly stepped forward to the man’s stature to look for his image closely and more clear in her view. And second later, she gasped.

It was Moon Jongup.

“Jongup!” Soojung cheerfully yelled his name while her legs had already made her way to Jongup in a fast pace. She did think that Jongup would be happy to see her as she the one and only person had saw him, right after his disappearance.

But Jongup didn’t seem pleased at all.

Jongup took Soojung by her wrist until she been closer to his chest while his hand swiftly closed Soojung’s mouth with a panic reaction occupied his face. His eyes then prowling for anything unusual in the park; and thankfully, there doesn’t.

Jongup let out a relief sigh and his hand slowly been put back down. “Mianhae, Soojung sshi. (I’m sorry, Soojung.) I’d to do that as I don’t want to anybody knows that I’m here.”

Soojung then slowly pushed Jongup away from her so that she could examine Jongup’s face. “Why? What do you mean by that?” Soojung then closed as Jongup made a ‘silent’ cue to her.

“Can you please slow down your voice for a bit, Soojung sshi?”

“Why I had to? You’re not even the fugitive-“

“I beg you.” Jongup sternly looked towards Soojung. “Please.”

“Okay. I got that.” Soojung pouted. Then, she continued to unofficially interrogate Jongup; this time with much slower voice which almost considered as a whisper. “So, why you suddenly disappeared like this without even telling anybody? It’s not that you’re the one who killed Jaekyung unnie isn’t it?”

Jongup gave a death stare towards Soojung which just made Soojung felt a chill and trembled a little. Then, he softened up and gave her his usual angelic smile. “I’m not Jaekyung noona killer. It’s someone else. And because of that someone I’d to run away like this in order to save my life.”

“Why? I mean – how can someone make you feel so scared like this? It’s unless...” Soojung muted herself for a while. “Don’t tell me; you’d saw the killer? And...is that also mean that you do see Madman?”

Jongup let out a sigh – and this time it was a heavy sigh. “I’m actually didn’t scare of the killer or as known as the Madman at all but...right on that night when Jaekyung noona,” Jongup swallowed hard the lump formed in his throat as soon as he said Jaekyung’s name. “J-Jaekyung noona died...I’d saw his face. Clearly; with the help of the fluorescent lamp at that time. But I can’t do anything...to help her. I’m so useless... I don’t deserve to be stay alive at all.”

Soojung quickly patted Jongup’s back as soon as she hugged Jongup when she saw that Jongup was almost cried. “No. No... You’re not. There must be the solid reason why you can still breathe right until this second. I understand your feelings, Jongup sshi. It’s indeed hurtful when we could just see the one we loved been killed right in front of our eyes.” Soojung took a breath for a while as her mind thought about someone as similar as Jongup’s situation. “And I’m pretty sure that Himchan oppa did feel the same thing like you, Jongup sshi.”

Right after Soojung finished her sentences, tears beginning to roll down Jongup’s cheeks and left glistening trails mapping a full extent of his grieve upon Jaekyung’s death and scarification for him. While for Soojung, she just remain silent in her place and she could saw that Jongup’s shoulders were heaved up and down as he was letting out all his misery that he kept before.

It did take about several minutes for Jongup to have himself a space for him to let out all of his feelings. It did surprisingly was a great decision after all as he could felt like most of his pain was bearable and lessen. “Soojung sshi.” Jongup slowly called for Soojung’s name before he finally broke the hug and gave Soojung a sincere smile. “Gomawo for lending me your shoulder to cry on. Frankly speaking, I’d never cried out my heart with anybody before this – include my parents – but I feel so comfortable with you; I don’t know why but I do personally think that you’re sincere. I’m sorry as you’d to keep standing-”

“Now, don’t say that.” Soojung raised her hand to stop Jongup from kept speaking. She then turned up to give a smile to Jongup too as well. “I’m very glad that I can help you lessen your pain, even for a bit. It’s indeed my pleasure.”

Jongup nodded. Then, Soojung looked back to Jongup with a slight confusion arouse in her head. “By the way, Jongup sshi. Why you didn’t just go and make a report for the Madman to police officer? Plus, I bet that police can look after you better than you just went in hiding like this...”

Jongup quickly shook his head in disapproval. “I can’t. I just can’t do that.”

Soojung scratched her head in curiosity. “What do you mean? You can always tell them anytime about what you’d seen, am I right?”

“No, Soojung sshi. You couldn’t understand.” Jongup kept shook his head fervently which lead Soojung into a depth of perplexity. “You could never understand it.”

“So just tell me everything then for me to understand what kind of situation you are at now, Jongup sshi!” Soojung snapped a bit towards Jongup as her patience had gone off its limit.

“I can’t! I couldn’t say it to everyone, especially you, Soojung sshi!”

“Why? Why you can’t even tell about it to me??”

“It’s because...” Jongup’s voice shaken after he had kept been provoked by Soojung. He looked to Soojung while he slowly gained his courage to tell her about...

...who is exactly the Madman.

“It’s because...the Madman is actually-“

“Is actually?” Soojung couldn’t stop herself to ask for more as she had finally waited to know the real identity of Madman.

“The Madman is – oh no.” Jongup eyes widened as soon as he could saw Gunwoo from afar in his eyes. He quickly took a glance towards Soojung. “Soojung sshi. I’m sorry because I can’t tell you about it now.”

“What? Why? Yah! Moon Jongup!” Soojung almost screamed at the top of her voice when she remembered back that she couldn’t yell his name loudly as his life was at the edge of death if she was careless.

Jongup had already make his first step to ran away from the place before he turned around to face Soojung as he had forgot to tell her something. “Jung Soojung sshi. Be careful.” Then, he went away and dissipated form Soojung’s view without even gave her a chance to asked him more about his message just now.

“Be careful? What exactly that could be mean?”

Petite_Star's Corner : Feel free to give comments for this chapter. Thank you~ :)

I hope that this chapter isn't too short though xP