Unveiling beauty " Ambw"

All is well, when it isn't

Author's pov 2012

In the shadowy corner of their home, Jae-hwa huddled, trembling, her quiet sobbing and shaking like a small boat in a storm. Her fingertips were covered in dried oil from one of the parts she found behind the compound greenery, symbolizing the fuel of her inner turmoil. Thirty minutes prior she stood there shivering in the rain after a call received from Ki about the accident that killed Seong-heon. She threw the item in her hand onto the counter, as footsteps sounded closer to the door.

There is where Mr. Choi, observed his daughter from the doorway, concern etching itself onto his weathered features. He moved towards her with slow a paced walk.

"Jae-Hwa, what's the matter?" His voice held a tremor of innocence, the words softly blanketing the truth he so carefully hid.

She lifted her gaze to meet his, her eyes a glassy reflection of her inner ocean. "Appa, I... I saw something... something terrible," she managed, her words scarcely more than a whisper dancing on the edge of the room's silence. " I didn't say anything because I was so angry." She said as she pointed to the corner of her room where a piece of cable from Seong-heon's car sat on the table like an unspoken reminder of what had happened.

The shock on Mr. Choi's face was a carefully choreographed performance. He knelt beside her, enveloping her in his imposing yet comforting presence. He gestured for the house made to throw away the object on the desk as he returned his attention to his daughter.

"What did you see, Jae-hwa? Breathe, You're safe here with me." That wasn't necessarily true but in that moment it didn't matter.

Jae-hwa inhaled deeply, drawing strength from the air around her before her words took flight. "I... I saw some men. They were tampering with Seong-heon's car," she confessed, a symphony of fear and confusion playing in her voice. "But I didn't say anything. Because I knew he was going to go get Nani.."

His reaction was a masterpiece of pretense, a mix of shock and worry portrait of an unsuspecting father. "Tampering with Seong-heon's car? Are you certain, Jae-hwa?" he asked as if he cared.

With a nod, she affirmed her statement. "Yes, Appa. I'm sure. They were doing something... but on the news, it shows Seong-heon got in an accident Appa... what if... I get blamed?" Her voice wavered.

" Why would you get blamed dear?" Mr.Choi asked as he adjusted his daughter's face towards his direction.

" Because... I didn't say anything. I also saw them throw stuff in his car." She cried.

Internally wrestling with his knowledge, Mr. Choi reached out, his touch gentle yet filled with unsaid words. "Oh, Jae-hwa, this is deeply concerning. You may have misunderstood what they were doing. Let's not jump to conclusions...."

" But Appa..." she began. Seeing his daughter's distress he patted her awkwardly on the back.

" But rest assured, I will look into it," he vowed.

As Jae-hwa clung to her father, she sought refuge in his unfamiliar embrace.

The reality of Seong-heon's death remained a heavy storm over Jae-hwa. Her usually self-sufficient nature had given way to a vulnerability that was as rare as it was jarring. This was not the Jae-hwa that people knew. Her relationship with her father often mirrored a carefully maintained dance - respectful, yet distant. Today, however, was different.

All that being said, Mr. Choi was a figure of complexity, an enigma, navigating through life like a seasoned seaman riding tempestuous waves. His care for his daughter was only there in what she could do to bring him wealth as his company would be going to his son as it is. He made it a mission to make Jae-hwa pay for his love as a father, this only proving the limitations of his love and use for those he claimed to care for.