1865 ; jungwon

CHAPTER 45 (FINAL)

"Jungwon... "

It's none other than her lover, Yang Jungwon.

And so Jiyeon ran towards him, kneeling down next to him all the while endless tears streaming down her cheeks.

"J-jungwon, love, I'm here. I-i'm here to take you. " she said in between of her sobs, her hands attempting to dry her cheeks from her tears.

She's happy, she's relieved that she finally saw him. To finally be with his presence...

"Jungwon." She whispered too softly that it sounds like a lullaby. "Wake up, love. I-i'm here. "

Her voice cracked, her body's shaking from the overwhelming feelings. She wanted to touch him and hug him real tight, but she refrain herself. Jungwon's figure already look bad, and she doesn't want to hurt him. So she held herself.

Jiyeon stared at her lover's sleeping figure. He looked so helpless but at the same time, he looks so peaceful. And it made Jiyeon smile despite the tears in her cheeks.

"Wake up love. I'm already here. " She lifted her hand and slowly touch Jungwon's cheek. Though once her hand made a contact with his skin, she immediately pulled it.

Her heart dropped as her breathing stopped. Her wide eyes stared at Jungwon's figure, shocked.

Why is he so cold?

Jiyeon swallowed the forming lump in her throat with her mind going blank. But still, she slowly put her shaking hand back to the other's cheek.

He is so cold. Why is he so cold?

Jiyeon couldn't wrap what's happening. She couldn't think of anything as she stared at the other alone, eyes full of tears.

He's hard. Why is he so hard like a stone and cold as ice?

He is not...he is alright, right? He's just sleeping...

Still in her confused state, Jiyeon manages to move her hand to his cold skin and touched his neck to find his pulse.

And that's when it dawned to her. It dawned to her what's happening, why Jungwon is cold and so hard.

No no no no!

Where is his pulse, I can't find it! No no no, pls no!

"Jungwon, no please no. You're awake, I know you're awake! "

She's crying. So hard. She didn't know what to do, where to touch him and what to feel.

All she knew is that she's breaking. With Jungwon unresponsive, cold and doesn't have pulse right before her.

"Yang Jungwon! " she screamed, hands finding it's way to his body as she started shaking him. Which she could not do successfully as he is frozen on his spot. She could not even lift his hand alone.

"You can't be gone, I-i planned everything for us. Please, you can't leave me, wake up now love. "

Jiyeon doesn't know what to do. She wanted to scream, to break down and blame everyone. She wanted Jungwon to open her eyes and smile to her, tell her that he's alive and okay, that he's just teasing her...

She want to hear his voice, telling her everything's alright, that everything's fine....

But while staring at his figure, it breaks her even more.

It's overwhelming in a way that it's suffocating her. She's mad at herself, disappointed of herself.

She's full of regret.

Regret that she should have done something that day when she last saw him...

That she should have wasted no time and just took him away from her family. By then, this won't happen.

They beat him to death, let him froze in the farmhouse while her? She's there, letting her family control her. She's doing what her family wants, doing this, that with Riki.

While he's here, dying in pain...

Her cries are painful to hear but Jiyeon did not care. "I'm so sorry, it took me so long. "

I'm so sorry if I made you wait for so long. I'm so sorry I failed to save you, love.

Jiyeon closed her eyes, the image of Jungwon smiling at her flashes through her mind. It hurts, so damn much. It's killing her.

She opened her eyes, expecting to see him smiling like the flashes in her mind... But seeing him peacefully sleeping there, made her cry.

He looks so peaceful. He endured a lot.

Jiyeon shook her head, still crying so hard as she pulled Jungwon's frozen body in her embrace as she hugged him so tight.

She doesn't care if he is cold and as hard as ice. All she cares is him, in her arms..

The time where their first encounter in front of the mansion where she told him she's working in the Min family, the time where he saved her from those drunkards, the time where they dance under the night sky with the moon and stars being the witnesses, the time where Jungwon finally accepts his feelings....

All the moments are playing in Jiyeon's head. And she couldn't help but to scream while rocking her body with Jungwon in her arms.

Why is the world so unfair? Why is everyone so unfair?

Jiyeon looked up. "Why do you have to take him away from me? Why are you hurting me? "

She questioned with cracking voice. She then looked to the man in her arms and smile despite her breaking down.

"I love you. " she spoke softly, tears dropping to Jungwon's frozen skin. "And I'm so proud of you. "

And with that, she leaned down where her lips meets his cold skin. She kissed his forehead and let it linger there for a couple of minutes before she hugged him once again.

In another life, love. In another life, I will love you again. We will find each other again and continue our story, in another life.

Jiyeon closed her eyes.

"It's year 1865, our story is different from what is written in the future. But still, I love you from before, now and in the future, Yang Jungwon. I will love you always and forever, my dearest. "

And Jiyeon continues her life alone in Gwangju where she and Jungwon lived before. Her family tried to find her countless of times but she would stay in the forest, under that tree where she sang him a song.

And so the Min family gave up on her and made up a story where in she lived happily somewhere far away from the city with the man she loved, Yang Jungwon. And that story is the one that is well known in the future.

Min Jiyeon lived her life peacefully, believing that her dearest's soul are with her, till her last breath.

Minjoo eventually came back in the future after that night. Now that the universe let her witness the real story of Jiyeon and Jungwon, she understood that not everything written in history is true. And Jiyeon and Jungwon's story is one of them,

Their story from the year, 1865.

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THE END.