Try as he might, Minhyuk couldn't shake the feeling that there was someone following him. He turned around quickly, hoping to get a glimpse of his follower but he saw no one behind him. Was he just getting paranoid then? Minhyuk shrugged as he turned back around and continued to walk to his mother's room. His mother lay asleep in the dark room, with her roomie Sunny snoring contently next to her. A small smile appeared on Minhyuk's face as he his mother's grey hair and face gently. Tears appeared in his eyes as he noticed yet again, how small and shrunken her face had become. She was so much thinner than she was just a month ago and she looked sickly and weak. Minhyuk loved his mother a lot and never wanted to live without her, but sometimes, he felt that the best way of loving her was to let her go, to let her die in peace and never experience the pain of living anymore. He knew that his mother thought this way as well, but she never let herself go because she couldn't leave her children behind. He sat down beside her and held her hand as he observed her painful breathing. "Omma...if you find it difficult to stay alive, it's alright to just leave...Noona and I will be alright..." 

When Minhyuk finally decided to let his mother rest, he stepped out of the room and headed back home, oblivious to the stranger standing alone in the corridor. As it was late at night, the corridor lights were dimmed to let the patients have a better rest. Fewer nurses and doctors moved around the hospital as well, except for those on their night patrol. Jaesuk pretended to be using his phone while he observed the pattern of activity around him. When the doctors and nurses had exited from Jiyoung's hospital room after their nightly rounds, Jaesuk slipped in quietly. He took the vial out of his pocket and with trembling hands, injected the solution into Jiyoung's IV drip. He looked around furtively as he did it, and heaved a sigh when he was done. His eyes followed the solution as it travelled through the drip and eventually entered Jiyoung's body. He watched as her laborious breathing seemed to become even slower and more difficult, until it finally stopped. He looked around one more time, no one seemed to notice that anything was amiss. His hands still trembling, he bowed to Jiyoung respectfully 3 times. "I'm sorry." 

Jongsuk, Boyoung and Shin Hye sat in a heavy silence at Boyoung's office. They had just listened to the recording of Jiyoung one more time and Jongsuk seemed to be pondering something in silence. Shin Hye looked at him worriedly. They had had dinner earlier on but Jongsuk didn't want to eat. Even now, late into the night, he still wasn't hungry. Boyoung stared at Shin Hye instead, as she saw clearly the deep concern Shin Hye had for Jongsuk. She felt assured that Shin Hye was the right partner for Jongsuk, regardless of who her father was. When Shin Hye looked uncertainly at her, she gave her a comforting smile. "Don't worry, whenever he's lost in thought he doesn't eat. Give him a few more hours, he'll feel the pangs of hunger soon." 

"Noona." Jongsuk suddenly piped up, gathering all their attention immediately. "How will we win this case against Park Jisung? That bastard needs to go to jail and have justice, but I don't know how to do it." Boyoung looked at him thoughtfully. "With the evidence that Jiyoung sshi gave us, it's still not enough because it's only one person's testimony. Shin Hye can testify as well, but there's no proof that what she's saying is accurate. We need more evidence to defeat him." Shin Hye thought of all the action and detective movies that she used to watch and spoke up. "How about CCTVs? Were there any in the building where Mr Kang was held hostage? When the case was initially investigated, what evidence did they use?" Boyoung shook her head regretfully. "The reason why they were able to pin Appa down so easily was because of the lack of evidence at the time. Needless to say, Park Jisung probably bought them over as well." Jongsuk scratched his head in frustration. "Then is there really nothing we can do? We need a break, a lead, anything..." His phone rang abruptly, shocking everyone in the room. At this late hour it was rare that Jongsuk would receive any calls. When Jongsuk answered it though, his face paled instantly and his expression became grave. When he hung up, there was a crease in his forehead and his eyes were red. "What happened?" Shin Hye asked in fear. "Sora's mother...Jiyoung sshi...is dead..."  

Sora sat in the hospital corridor in disbelief. Never in her wildest dreams did she think that when she went back to check on her mother again, she would find her dead. Her mother was lying so normally and she even had a peaceful smile on her face that Sora didn't even realise that there was anything wrong. It was only when she realised that it was too quiet that she noticed that there was something amiss. She remembered how she shook her mother repeatedly, calling out her name and crying, until Sunny woke up. With tears running down her face Sunny had hugged Sora tightly, and helped to knock some sense into her. When she called her brother and Jongsuk to inform them of the news, she tried so hard to hold in her emotions, but when she heard her brother's earnest voice on the phone, she had to bite her lip to prevent herself from crying out loud. Sora absentmindedly the wound on her lip from her bite and winced in pain as it hurt again. The doctors and nurses were dealing with her mother's body now and she sat outside to gather her emotions before anyone else came. The sound of anxious running resounded through the hall and Sora looked up to see Minhyuk dashing over towards her. His hair was a mess as usual and he wore mismatched shoes. His face was streaked with tears and when he reached his sister he grabbed her tightly in a hug. Sora patted his back as he cried in her embrace. "Noona....noona what are we going to do..." Minhyuk was in a state of shock and inner turmoil. The words that he had whispered to his mother before he had left her replayed in his mind. He closed his eyes in anguish as he hoped with all his might that his mother was still alive. I didn't mean it...come back Omma.... He shouted this internally but stayed silent on the outside. He held onto his sister tightly as they waited for the nurses to be done. When they came out wheeling their mother's dead body, Minhyuk lunged to his mother and grabbed her hand. "Omma....omma...you're not dead...sit up and tell us that you're not dead...jebal..." The nurses felt bad for Minhyuk but continued wheeling her to the morgue. Sora couldn't help tearing when she looked at her young brother but forced herself to be strong and pull him back. "We'll get to see her again later, Minhyuk ah...don't be like that..." Minhyuk finally let go and collapsed on the ground weakly. 

Sunny watched them sadly from her hospital room. Her heart ached with regret when she thought about how she could have prevented Jiyoung's death. She was her roomie after all, and if Jiyoung was suffering she should have been the first to discover it. Tears welled up in her eyes and rolled down her face slowly as she looked at the now empty bed where Jiyoung was supposed to be. "I'll miss you, Jiyoung unnie." 

When Jongsuk, Shin Hye and Boyoung arrived at the hospital, they walked up to Sora in a somber silence. The siblings had already taken a final look at their mother and were now sitting at her bed packing her belongings. The normally cheerful Minhyuk looked like a changed person, as if he had grown up and matured overnight. Jongsuk and Shin Hye offered their condolences to Sora but when it came to Boyoung's turn, she asked a question instead. "Did the doctors say what was the cause of her death?" "She seems to have suffered a cardiac arrest before she died." Sora asked, startled by the sudden question. "I'm sorry to ask you this at your time of grief, Sora sshi, but did you ever consider the possibilty that she was murdered?" Boyoung asked, with a piercing look in her eyes. 

A/N: It just occurred to me that I have just written my first death, like ever, in my AFF history. It was so much more emotional when I was writing it then what it appears here because it's hard to express everything that I'm feeling/thinking about in words. I hope you enjoy this new development! And yes Boyoung is always the smart one isn't she xD Please do leave comments because I felt so lonely and ignored when no one commented on my previous chapt (sorry im feeling abit emo these days) :( once again, I may not be updating for a while, school is getting extremely busy. love y'all! :)