Predestination (운명)

제 29 회

Heels clicking through the white marble floor, Areum was met with Taehyung's figure, his right shoulder leaning on the wall as his hands were inside the pocket of his black coat, his feet tapping impatiently as his gaze was down. "Tae-" she paused, not sure about calling by his nickname, "Taehyung-ah," she corrected, "What did you want to talk about?" Nervousness was pretty much evident in her movements and Taehyung didn't fail to observe that.

He tilted his head to the side, scanning her, "It seems like you have something to say yourself." His voice held no emotion which was unusual and caught the female off-guard. "H-Huh?" Her eyes widened before looking everywhere besides him. "Shoot." He ordered.

"I made a mistake, I'm sorry." She confessed, her pools still not making an eye-contact with him.

- - - -

It took two more days for your condition to be finally stable and the effect of drugs to finally fade away, but the ache in your heart still remained vivid and painful. When your eyes fluttered open, the first person in front of you was Taehyung. If you hadn't known the truth, you'd have definitely, blindly hugged him and thank him for everything.

But now, all that remained was pure disgust, both on him and you. You couldn't imagine what his parents might've thought about you, a girl being close to the guy who already had a woman that he was supposedly getting engaged soon. All of Taehee's insults now made sense to you. Why she used to call you a homewrecker and what not.

Still, the way he smiled at the sight of you, made your heart flutter. Your own heart was betraying you, you didn't want it. So you denied his hug, his affection. You now knew that all he did was out of pity, it's just that he didn't want to admit it. Or that was what you thought.

When he motioned his hand in front of you, you slapped it away, "Don't touch me!" You spat and his face dropped, his smile faded and for some reason, it clenched your heart. He just nodded, "If that's what you want-"

"Then please get out of here too." Your tone was quite harsh, but you had to do it. Your mind was swirling between logic and feelings, you didn't know what to choose. Taehyung bit his lip and stood there for few seconds, "Fine. But promise me that you'll have your lunch at 1PM and dinner at 9-"

"And why the fuck should I listen to you?" You crossed your arms and he heaved out a huge sigh, his orbs facing the window, controlling his tears. He knew he deserved your scoldings for hiding the truth about his now-ex girlfriend but he didn't have enough strength to stay away from you. "Y/n," His voice wavered, giving him a clear indication that he might cry anytime soon, he gripped his hands on his thick coat trying to distract himself, "I k-know that I shouldn't have hidden about it but-"

"Leave." Your head was already throbbing at this point, looking at his weak state, you were seconds away from running into his embrace. But your ego, self-respect didn't want it. He stared at you for a moment, his eyes glassy, before stridding away and slamming the door loudly.

I hope I took the right decision.

No, was what you thought after few hours. You glanced at your untouched lunch one more time before walking towards the window, looking at the landscape of the city in the evening. You weren't too up, you noticed, probably the 5th or 6th floor. You could see the people in the hospital, and clueless kids playing around. You saw an old couple, walking together. The man probably had a fractured leg which restricted him from walking but his wife was helping him to move, their arms securely wrapped around each other. Your heart warmed up at the sight, the couple were a clear example of how everlasting love was.

And with that thought, your mind drifted back to Taehyung. You tried to shake it off your head but the next minute, you were already worrying. Did he reach back home safe? Did he eat something? How's Miso, is she doing fine? Is my mom worried about me? The only one who could answer all those questions was only Taehyung but you were too stubborn to dial him.

Detaching the IV off your body, you walked out of your ward, still unaware about your surroundings. After walking around in the same floor for ten minutes, you finally found the stairs. Not having other plans, you decided to just walk upstairs and then go back to your ward. Your stomach grumbled and you felt weak, but you wanted a change of environment so you decided to go anyway.

After what seemed like an eternity, you finally reached the rooftop, the cold wind hit your face and a sense of satisfaction rushed through your body. You stood there, inhaling the abundant air and looking at Namsan tower and was about to turn back but familiar sniffles made you stop on your tracks.

Indeed, it was your husband. His back was facing you and because of the darkness, you couldn't get a clear view of him. You were tired, so you leaned back on the wall, as he talked someone on his phone. At first, you couldn't understand his words, but slowly, you got a hang of it.

"H-Hyung, what do I do now, I don't think s-she'll ever want to see me again." He stuttered and you bit your lip, guilty for your earlier actions.

There was a minute of silence, "You're saying that because you don't know what she said to me hyung. She didn't even let me explain the situation and-" Taehyung cried again, his breathing getting unsteady. You slid down on the floor, your hand covering your mouth, trying not to make any sound as you sobbed.

"I love her so much, I can't afford to lose her. But I think it's pretty damaged now, I hurt her too." Taehyung laughed sadly, "I h-hurt her too, when all she did was love and trust me. I am so pathetic."

He was right, you both knew it. You still weren't sure about forgiving him and accepting him again even though you loved him. Your emotions were mixed at the moment. The pain, love, betrayal, trust, lies, it was a huge roller-coaster ride which you wished you never got onto. All you wanted was to be happy for once, was that selfish of you?

The male continued the conversation for few more minutes until he looked at the time on his watch, "Shit, sorry, I gotta go. Mom needs to have her food and medications."

Is he talking about my mother? You were confused. Was she alright? Did something happen?

You were too deep into thoughts that you didn't see Taehyung approaching you with a surprised, "Y/n, what are you doing here?" He bent down to your level, concern written all over his face."

"Mom...what happened to-" Before you could even finish your sentence, darkness took over your vision and your body fell limp.