Yoona
We’re supposed to board the plane in twenty minutes or so and I am both excited and scared at the same time. I still can’t come to terms that I am lucky enough to be given this opportunity. I was close to giving up that I’d ever walk again, even if Hoseok wasn’t giving up. He had much more hope than I ever did. I guess, I was only seeing the bad side of it. Now I have a chance and Hoseok is coming with me which I am really grateful for.
I look over at Baekhyun who is silently standing beside me. ‘Baek, can you take me for a spin?’ I ask and he looks at me confused. ‘What? I’ll soon won’t be using this wheelchair so let’s have some fun while we can.’ I say as I wink at him, causing him to smile a little. I look at Hoseok who nods while Baekhyun comes from behind me and pushes the wheelchair.
‘What is noona?’ He asks as he continues to push me. I sigh and stay silent for a moment before we reach the aquarium. We stop there, both of us staring at the fish which are swimming around, oblivious to our presence. ‘Noona?’ He asks again.
‘Baekhyun… I know this whole thing has been traumatic for you just as much as it has been for me.’ I say and I hear him sighing. ‘It’s been awful and scary but I want you to know that I don’t blame you.’ I say and I see him turn to look at me. By now, he has tears threatening to spill. ‘You’re my little brother and I love you.’ I say.
‘Ohh noona.’ He says as his tears finally fall down. He wipes them away quickly, not wanting them to show. ‘I really am sorry for everything. I know I failed to keep my promises before but not this time. I’m going to man up.’ He says and I smile.
‘It’s not easy to let go of an addiction, I should have realized that before but you’re doing it right now. Mr. Kyung and the boys, they’re all good role models for you.’ I say and he nods.
‘Minji-noona kind of shook me to my core last time and her Appa is really helping me a lot.’ He says and I nod. Jungkook was talking to me last time about what happened. He had said that he had never seen her angry like that. ‘I’m going to miss you noona.’ He says, quietly, his voice cracking a bit.
‘I’ll miss you too dongsaeng but promise you’ll take care of yourself. I asked the boys and the girls to check on your sometimes but don’t let me worry about you.’ I say.
‘You don’t have to worry, really. I promise I won’t get into more trouble.’ He says as he lifts his hand, ready for a high five which I do. We return back to where the others are waiting, everyone chattering excitedly.
‘Ah you’re here. It’s time to go sweetie.’ Mrs. Kyung says as she gives me a warm smile. I nod at her, getting excited. I look over at Minji who comes to hug me.
‘I’ll miss you so much Unnie but don’t worry about us.’ She says and I nod. Yun comes to hug me as well and I see the boys exchanging hugs. We say our goodbyes before we leave towards the elevator. Now it’s just me, Hoseok, Eomma and Mrs. Kyung.
We get into the plane and I get to share a place with Hoseok while the two women sit together and continue to chat. Hoseok intertwines his fingers around mine as he brings my hand to his mouth and leaves a small kiss on it. ‘How are you feeling?’ He asks.
‘Excited, nervous, scared, hopeful.’ I say as I let out a little chuckle that shows just how nervous I am.
‘I know, I am too.’ He says with a slight smile. ‘But I have a good feeling about it. You know how they say that after the storm comes the rainbow?’ He asks and I nod. ‘Well, I think your storm has passed so now it’s time to enjoy your rainbow.’ He says.
Minji
Most of the boys and Yun go to the dorm but Jungkook, Jimin, Baekhyun and I head to Appa’s office. I’ve been waiting all day to get this USB to Appa and I can’t hide my excitement as I practically bounce in the backseat. ‘Is noona always like this?’ Baekhyun asks and I roll my eyes while Jimin lets out a chuckle.
‘Most of the time. She’s worse than Hoseok-hyung in terms of energy.’ Jungkook says as he continues to drive.
‘Why don’t you just drive.’ I say as I stick out my tongue at him which makes Jimin laugh loudly, his laughter echoing in the car while he tries to grab my hand in his.
It feels so good to hear him laughing like that. It feels so good to be able to just tease my brother and have him tease me back. Sometimes, I look back to the time where I didn’t know them. My life was pretty normal. Yun and I lived together, went to Uni, went to work and did our own version of fun stuff. I won’t say it was dull but it certainly was work orientated compared to now.
Now, it’s almost always more than just two people around. There is almost no sense of privacy but I wouldn’t change it for the world. There is always something going on – between Uni and their work and everything in between. We enjoy any free time we have together and I feel as if I have my second family with them.
We arrive at Appa’s office and I basically spring out of the car while I pull Jimin with me. ‘Someone’s excited.’ He says, still chuckling.
‘Are you kidding me? I’ve been waiting since this morning to check what Mr. Oh gave me but Appa said he didn’t want me to open it myself.’ I say, rolling my eyes as I push open the door. I practically run up the stairs, pulling Jimin with me while Jungkook and Baekhyun hurry after me. I don’t bother to knock and just enter Appa’s office where I see him sitting at his desk with Adam.
‘Ah you’re finally here. Did you say goodbye to your friend?’ He asks and I nod.
‘Yeah we did. It felt kind of bittersweet saying goodbye. I mean I know it’s a good thing but I’m still going to miss her.’ I admit and he nods.
‘Of course you will but don’t think of it as saying goodbye but rather a see you later.’ He says and I nod this time. ‘So, what do you have for me?’ He asks, smirking.
‘I don’t know exactly because someone didn’t let me check.’ I say, returning the smirk as I hand him the USB. My mind races to this morning as Mr. Oh came to give it to me.
*Flashback*
‘Is that Mr. Oh? What the hell is he doing here?’ Rei asks a little angrily, still not having forgotten what had happened in the past. It’s only been a few months but for me it feels so long ago. So many things have changed from that time.
We started out with him hating my guts and then I saved Byung and everything changed. He started to respect me and hold me in high regard and I… I started to understand him more. I can never justify his actions – the way he treated Byung or what he did to me but I can understand better. It was his response to everything that happened to him in his past. I don’t think people really let go of traumas. We move on from them but they still shape who we are and what we do. We either let it destroy us or we let it make us stronger but it does change us.
I look at Rei who is practically glaring at him and I can’t help but chuckle but wave off her response. ‘It’s okay Rei. He’s not as bad as he seemed and we’ve worked out our differences. I’ll be right back.’ I say as I stand up and walk up to him. She doesn’t look too convinced. ‘Good morning Mr. Oh. What brings you here?’ I ask.
‘Good morning Minji. I have something for you.’ He says as he takes out a USB from the inside pocket of his jacket.
‘What is this?’ I ask as I take the USB in my hand. He lets out a small chuckle as he puts his hands in his pockets. He shifts on his feet, showing he is actually quite nervous while he looks around.
‘That’s information you could use against Lee. He’s been really careful but he keeps everything in his office. I was there and he needed to walk out for a few minutes so I managed to get access to it.’ He explains.
‘Information? Like what?’ I ask getting excited. I can’t help it and I can’t contain it and he smiles.
‘You see, Lee keeps a camera in his office and records everything. You could say he uses it as a form of leverage. On that, there are the videos dating back from before the accident.’ He explains.
‘Daebak! This could really be the key to everything Mr. Oh. Why are you giving it to me and not my father?’ I ask, lowering my voice.
‘Mr. Kyung and I both believe that Lee is most likely having someone watch your father’s moves so I wanted to minimize the risk.’ He says and I nod.
‘What if I am being watched too? You took a big risk Mr. Oh? Why didn’t you hand it to Byung? It would look less suspicious.’ I ask, getting slightly worried.
‘I don’t want him to get involved. I knew the moment I wanted to help that I was putting myself at risk. You reminded me that I, of all people, should fight against people like Lee, not the other way around so if it means stopping him from hurting innocent people, the risk would be worth it.’ He says and I nod.
‘You reminded me not to be too quick to judge someone. I think we both learned something from each other.’ I say and he nods.
‘Maybe but you were right to judge me. The way I treated you was unforgivable.’ He says. ‘From the moment I saw you, I knew you had fighting spirit. There was something challenging about you and it reminded me…’ He says, taking a pause before he sighs. ‘It reminded me of my wife. She was exactly like you – someone who cared a lot about the people around her and someone who was not afraid of anything or anyone.’ He says.
‘I’m sorry you had to go through that. I know what it feels like losing someone you care about so much.’ I say, remembering Minho and how scared I was when Jimin was in danger. I shudder at the memory and he sees me.
‘Whatever you went through, it definitely made you stronger. I’m glad you’re Byung’s friend and I’m grateful you found it in your heart to forgive me.’ He says with a slight smile.
‘Of course. We all make mistakes after all. Besides, you came through. You chose to do the right thing, even if it’s risky.’ I say and he nods. ‘Thank you for this.’ I say, looking at the USB in my hand.
‘Sure. Make sure it gets to your father.’ He says and I nod. ‘I’ll see you around Minji and take care of yourself.’ He says and I nod once again as he begins to walk away.
I walk back next to Rei and Usagi who are looking at me curiously. ‘What was that all about?’ Usagi asks and I shrug as I put the USB away.
‘Nothing important. He just had something for me.’ I say with a smile. ‘Shall we go to the canteen? I’m starving and I ate everything already.’ I whine and they nod as we link arms and walk towards the canteen.
*Present Time*
We all stare at each other, unable to move as we process what we just saw. We managed to isolate the clips we needed – the one where he tried to rape her is key to putting him away already but there was also the clip of him hiring the hitman. 'I still can't believe you and your sister had to go through all of that.' Jimin comments, looking at Baekhyun who is quiet. Jungkook nods and I sigh as I also look at Baekhyun. The poor boy looks like he's either about to start crying or like he wants to kill someone or maybe both. It can't be easy for him to see all of this even if we all knew what had happened. Seeing it is always different.
‘I know this is hard to deal with but we got him. Oh pulled through. This will definitely put him behind bars.’ Appa says excitedly.
‘I’ll get the team ready. You can go to the judge and get the arrest warrant.’ Adam says and Appa nods.
‘What about us? What can we do?’ I ask but Appa shakes his head as he places his hand on my shoulder.
‘You already did enough sweetie. Let us handle it.’ He says and I nod. ‘We’re going to catch this * and put him away for good.’ He assures me.
‘I’m glad.’ I say. ‘We’ll get going then. I’ll see you later and be careful Appa.’ I say and he nods as I hug him. ‘You too Oppa. Don’t get too excited.’ I say, hugging Adam.
‘I’ll be very careful munchkin.’ He says as he ruffles my hair, causing me to roll my eyes at him. 'Baekhyun are you going with them or staying here?' Adam asks.
'I'm staying. Mr. Kyung will probably want me to see the rest of the clips and write a report on it.' Baekhyun says to which Appa nods. I smile as I motion the others as we go to leave.
‘Want to go and eat something before heading to the dorm?’ Jungkook asks as soon as walk out of the building and I nod. I’m actually starving so some food sounds amazing right about now.
‘How about we go to that ramen house?’ Jimin suggests and I nod. We intertwine our hands as we walk together, leaving the car here and go the ramen house close by.
Mr. Oh
I’m in my office, doing some work when I hear the doorbell ringing. I sigh as I get up, having to go and open the door myself since Mrs. Hun is not here. She asked me to leave for a few days because her brother is sick and doesn’t have anyone to take care of him. I reach the door and look through the screen. I let out a shaky breath as I realize it’s Lee. I open the door and force a smile.
‘Lee… what brings you here?’ I ask as I motion him inside. He doesn’t say anything but follows me to the living room. ‘Whiskey?’ I ask.
‘Sure.’ He replies as he settles down. I grab the whiskey bottle and pour two shots. I hand one to him and we cling them together as he downs it in one gulp. ‘Do you know why I am here?’ He asks as I sit down myself.
‘When has there been the need for something for you to visit me?’ I ask, trying to hide my nerves. The look in his eyes tells me he is angry…actually he is fuming He knows.
‘Don’t play games with me Oh.’ He says as he slams his hand on the desk. I close my eyes and take a deep breath. He’s trying to keep himself calm for some reason.
‘Calm down.’ I say even though I know it’s useless. It won’t work and I know he’s here to settle this.
‘Don’t tell me to calm down you *ing *. I know all about your little plot with Kyung Minji. What did you give her?’ He yells. I can see that he’s not just angry but he’s also … sad. I thought it was possible to see that kind of emotion from him.
‘Nothing important. I don’t know why you’re getting so worked up on it.’ I say. I know I’m probably making the situation worse but I don’t have a choice. The only thing I can do is try to buy time and think of something but the most likely scenario is going to be us ending up in a fist fight… or worse.
‘Stop lying to me. You’re the only one I always trusted Oh but I guess that was my mistake. Why? Why are you betraying me?’ He asks, his eyes not leaving mine. I keep quiet for a moment as I pour another shot for me before I look at him.
‘You know I never liked the way you treated women and you know I hated it when you killed someone, especially someone innocent. I tried to warn you. I tried to make you stop but you never listened and I had enough of that. Yoona, Hoseok, Jimin, Minji – they’re all innocent people who got mixed up in your *ty plans. Besides, you wanted to hurt someone who saved my son. I owed her a debt and she reminded me of my wife. She would be so disappointed to see who I had become.’ I say and he shakes his head.
‘Maybe what they say is true. Karma has a way of coming back to bite you in the ass.’ He says, sounding almost resigned.
‘What the hell are you talking about Lee?’ I ask, shaking my head in confusion, his words not making any sense to me. Karma? What does that have to do with anything? It’s not like Lee ever did something to me…
‘All these years we’ve been friends because you always believed me and trusted me but I’m the one who betrayed you first.’ He says.
‘I don’t understand Lee. What are you talking about? You’re not making any sense.’ I say.
‘Years ago, I begged you to join me in the business but you refused because of your wife and son.’ He says. My eyes go wide and my heart starts to pound faster.
‘No… no, please don’t tell me…’ I begin and he nods. I feel my throat closing in on me, making it hard to breathe. My mind starts to whirl as it connects the dots.
‘Yes, I’m the one who sent those people to your house. I’m the one who hired them to kill her. She was a distraction and she was keeping you back from reaching your full potential as my partner.’ He says.
‘You *!’ I shout as I stand up and grab him from the collar of his shirt, pulling him up as well. ‘All these years you’ve been *ing using me. You knew how much it destroyed me losing her and you pretended to help me to find out who it was but it was you.’ I say, fuming.
‘I guess it’s only fitting that you betray me now in her name. You’re betraying me because it reminded you of what happened with her.’ He says. My grip on his shirt grows tighter but my legs feel weak. ‘I’m sorry but I can’t let you get away with it, no matter how much our friendship means to me.’ He says as he pushes me off of him. He suddenly pulls out his knife as he goes to lunge at me.
I move backwards, almost tripping as I manage to block him. I know it’s not easy, considering both of us have belts in martial arts. He goes to attack me again and I grab his arm and slam it against the desk. He roars in anger but doesn’t let go of the knife so I slam it one more time as he drops it. He uses his other hand to punch me across the face, sending me to the floor. He gets on top of me as he hits me again.
I use my knee to hit him in the chest and I turn us around. I punch him across the face, drawing blood from his nose and mouth. ‘You’re a sick son of a *.’ I yell angrily as I pant.
‘And you’re a fool.’ He says as he manages to hit me in my face with his head, sending me recoiling backwards, making me see stars for a moment. He stands up and pulls me up as he slams into the bookshelves, causing books to fall down. I wince as I feel my back connect to the wood while he grabs me from my shirt and slams me again. ‘Don’t you realize that if I am dragged down, you will be too?’ He asks.
‘I don’t care if I go to prison or die as long as you go down and you will. They have enough evidence to put you away for life.’ I snap back as I use my elbow to hit him.
He goes back a few paces before he goes to kick me. I manage to block the first few hits but he’s always been quicker than me. One of his kick hits against my side and I can’t help but react. He’s quick to notice as he kicks again, forcing me down to my knee. He goes to kick me in the face but I grab his foot and pull him down, both of us tumbling around on the floor.
I use my leg to push him off of me and I go to hit him again. As I close up the distance, I feel something sharp sliding into my stomach. It forces me to a stop as I pull my body back while still on my knees. Lee stares at me as I look down. I see his hand holding onto the knife which has been driven into my stomach. I look back up at Lee as I cough out blood. Lee puts his hand on my shoulder as he pulls out the knife. He’s the only thing keeping me steady and stopping me from falling.
‘I’m sorry Oh.’ He says as he thrusts the knife again, in a different spot. I groan in pain but I feel like my body has stopped fighting. ‘I didn’t… I didn’t want it to come to this Oh.’ He says as he stabs me again. ‘I can’t go to prison. I won’t go to prison.’ He says as he stabs me again and again for the fifth time. I gurgle, the blood forming at my mouth. He lays me down gently, his hand around my head. ‘Rest easy old friend…’ He says as he stands up. He drops the knife as it makes a clattering sound. I can hear his receding footsteps as he walks away from me.
I feel more blood ooze out of the new five holes in my body. It seeps onto the floor, creating a pool under me. The pain starts to numb everything as my eyes feel heavy. I start to feel cold as my hand feels weak and falls to the floor, away from my wounds.
I feel the darkness approaching me as my vision gets blurry. Maybe it’s my imagination but I feel like I can someone approaching – a female but her face is unclear. All I can see is a barefoot figure with long hair and a white dress approaching.
‘Ye—obo.’ I whisper as I feel a small smile break on my face. Suddenly, I don’t feel scared of death anymore. Instead, I feel as if I am ready to embrace it – just to get to her – my beautiful wife – my one and only love.
