Silent Echoes

The whirring of the helicopter faded into the distance, leaving the helipad shrouded in silence under the night sky. Hye-su remained on her knees, her shoulders trembling. The harsh reality of Jin-ho's departure hit her with every breath she took. It felt as ifall the warmth had drained from the world, replaced by a bone-chilling emptiness. She didn't have the strength to look up, not even when the sound of approaching footsteps echoed against the concrete.

Prince Tarif, Matthieu, Evie, Daniel, and Hae-won rushed overto the scene. They stood there, their gazes shifting from Hye-su's hunched figure to the spot where the helicopter had disappeared. Matthieu's face showed something more than confusion—something heavier, like a flicker of realization and guilt. He opened his mouth, his voice hushed as he spoke.

"I think... this might be my fault."

The others turned to Matthieu, eyes widening in shock. Prince Tarif, his brows furrowing, began to speak, but the words seemed lost in the swirl of confusion surrounding them. Hye-su, feeling their voices and theireyes on her, couldn't bear it any longer. She refused to let them see her like this—broken, vulnerable. Slowly, she pushed herself up, her body shaking but resolute.

Ignoring their questions, she cupped her ears and brushed past them, her eyes fixed on the ground. She heard Hae-won's voice among the others, worried and pleading, but Hye-su just kept moving, her footsteps echoing in the empty corridor. She knew if she stayed any longer, her façade would shatter completely.

As she walked away, Hae-won exchanged a concerned glance with the others before deciding to follow Hye-su, her calls echoing down the narrow hall.

"Hye-su! What happened? Please, talk to me!"

Hye-su continued her slow, unsteady march. Her eyes were stinging, her chest felt tight, and she couldn't muster the energy to answer, not now.Every question directed at her only made the gnawing emptiness inside more unbearable. She had to escape—to find a place where no one could see her like this.

Hye-su's bare feet thudded against the polished floor as she reached a room—a place that Jin-ho had called his temporary haven before his abrupt departure. Her chest tightened as she grasped the handle and turned it, stepping inside. Once she was through, she locked the door behind her, the click echoing louder than her breaths.

She didn't have a moment to settle before she heard the sound of the handle being twistedand a barrage of knocking that followed. Hae-won's desperate voice filtered through the wood, pleading,

"Hye-su! Open the door, please! Tell me what's happening!"

But Hye-su wasn't listening. She wasn't in the state of mind to hear anyone. Instead, she began searching the room, her eyes darting across the bed, the nightstand, the small desk in the corner—looking for any remnant of him, anything that hemight've left behind. Her heart pounded louder as she scanned the room, desperate to find a clue.

Then, she saw it. There, laid outalmost as if it were meantto be found—a smartphone resting on the neatly made bed,alongside a small handwritten note. Her throat tightened as she reached out, snatchingthe note between her fingers.

Unfolding the paper, she read Jin-ho's familiar scrawl: "Hey, I knew you'd end up here, Hye-su. Call it a hunch or just knowing you too well. So, I've left something for you—a voice note on the phone. Give it a listen."

The note crumpled within her fist, her emotions finally boiling over. She clenched her jaw, rage surging alongside the heartbreak. Without a moment'sdelay, she grabbed the smartphone and thumbed the screen to play the note.

Jin-ho's voice echoed in the room, casual, unhinged in the most infuriatingly characteristic way:

"Hey, Hye-su. Guessif you're hearing this, then...yeah, things probably didn't go as smoothly as we hoped. First off, let me justsay—sorry. I know, I know. Typical me, right? Running away without a word.But I need you to understand something. After the vote...I just felt it. The direction that NexaRealm was headed—it wasn't my path anymore. Notsomething I could stand behind without feeling like I was betraying myself.

You see, NexaRealm is going big, competitive, and I know—it's great, and it'swhat people want.It's going to be incredible. But for me, it doesn't align with what I value. The wayI want to live my life...and honestly, pretending otherwise justisn't in my nature. So yeah, I decided to quit. I know it's selfish, irresponsible even, to do it like this without any proper notice, but I had to, or I'd be lying to myself.And lying to myself would hurt even more in the long run.

You can do this, Hye-su. I believe in you—more than you know. The success of this company doesn't need me, notanymore. You, Hae-won...all of you, you're more than capable of taking it to places I could never imagine. So, please, don't think this was anyone's fault. It's on me. Entirely on me.And I'm sorry. Again, I truly am.

Take care, Hye-su."

The note ended with a click, and the phone slipped from Hye-su's fingers, hitting the floor with a soft thud. Tears brimmed in her eyes before spilling over, running down her cheeks unchecked. A single, choked sob escaped her lips, and then another, until the dam broke completely. She wailed, her cries echoing around the empty room—laced with grief, anger, and the sense of a profound loss.

Just outside the door, Hae-won had heard it all. She could feel her tears streaming down her face, listening to her friend's pain, powerless to help. A sense of helplessness gnawed at her as she pressed her forehead against the cold door, wishing she could break through the wall Hye-su had put up.

Down the corridor,Prince Tarif, Matthieu, Evie, and Daniel stood, their expressions clouded with concern.The tension among them only grew. Prince Tarif's eyes narrowed as his gaze fixed on Matthieu. He stepped forward, cornering him, his voice cutting through the uneasy quiet, anger lacing his words.

"You knew what Jin-ho wanted, Matthieu. You knew. And still, you pushed for that vote. Under our agreement, we were supposed to respect what he, Hye-su, and Hae-won decided. This—this wasn't it."

Matthieu's face tightened, regret flickering in his eyes, but he tried to defend himself.

"I thought it was time, Tarif. We needed to move forward—"

"And look at where it's gotten us," Prince Tarif snapped, his usual composure shattered. His frustration spilt over as he stepped closer, face-to-face with Matthieu. "You twisted the agreement, and now...now we've lost him."

Evie and Daniel, their eyes wide, quickly stepped between the two men, pushing them apart before it could escalate further.

"Now's not the time for this," Evie said, her voice firm, trying to bring a semblance of control to the situation. "We need to figure out how to handle this without tearing each other apart."

The tension in the corridor was palpable, the unspoken weight of Jin-ho's departure hanging over them all, leaving everyone grasping for a way forward.

In short, the helicopter's whirring faded into the distance, but the unease it brought lingered over the helipad and beyond. Hye-su, inside the locked room, slumped to the floor, hercries gradually quieting to soft whimpers. Jin-ho's departure wasn't something she could simplyrationalize away—not the suddenness, not the reasons, and certainly not the way he'd left without allowing her the chance to respond, to talk him out of it, or even to say goodbye properly.

Outside the room, Hae-won slid down against the door, her head bowed, tears soaking the knees of her dress. Her heart ached for Hye-su, her friend who was too proud to show her vulnerability in front ofothers but had reached her breaking point tonight. Hae-won could only sit,helpless, silently keeping vigil while her friend grieved alone behind a locked door.

Prince Tarif and Matthieu stood apart from each other, their earlier confrontation cooling into an uncomfortable silence. Daniel and Evie exchanged uncertain glances, both trying to suppress their worry while simultaneously playing the role of peacekeeper. There was nothing to be done, noeasy fix to bridge the gap left by Jin-ho's sudden departure.

Meanwhile, downstairs in the grand venue, the other attendees were blissfully unaware of the turmoil unfoldingabove them. Laughter echoed through the hall as glasses clinked, food was enjoyed, and camaraderie blossomed among colleagues—employees from different branches of NexaCorp celebrating their achievements in unison. It was supposed to be a night marking their collective triumph, the first anniversary of the company that had risen to success so rapidly.

But for those at the top—the core of NexaCorp—this night would forever be etched as the company's darkest moment. A nightthat stripped away their illusion of unity, leaving behind a stark reality: the departure of Jin-ho had changed everything. No matter how much they wanted to deny it, the cracks left by his absence would have consequences that might reverberate far into the future. It was bitter—something they would have to accept,despite the unyielding resistance of their hearts.

The celebrations continued, the music and laughter masking the cracks that werebeginning to form beneath the surface. And those standing on the helipad, those clustered outside the locked room, were left with the cold reality that theywould have to face. The image of Jin-ho,leavingwithout a glance back,would haunt them as the moment their carefully laid plans began to unravel—leaving them to wonder what the future of NexaCorp would look like now, without one of its foundational pillars.