Min Yoongi POV,
Two weeks later,
I turned on my radio when the traffic light turns red in front of me, I smiled and sing along as my favorite hip-hop song plays. I was on my way to Sofia's campus to pick her up home.
Since 4 days ago we have returned to Seoul. While in Daegu, Sofia spent 4 days in the hospital, then 3 days resting at my parents' house. My mom and dad haven't let us go back because they're still worried about Sofia.
However, on the second day, the university contacted Sofia to inform her of the schedule for her final assignment which would be held at the end of this month. Therefore, Sofia and I had to return to Seoul as soon as possible, so that Sofia would have enough time to prepare for her presentation.
Two days in a row I took her home and picked her up. Honestly, she had assured me several times that she was fine and could drive her own car, but I still couldn't let her go alone.
Ever since I said that I love her, I want to always be near her. It's nice to know that she loves me too.
I drove my car when the traffic light in front of me turned green. I glanced at the GPS on the screen as my car entered the Seoul National University area.
When I first entered this campus two days ago, I was constantly amazed. This university is one of the top three Universities in Korea. SNU is located in a large area, —well, this campus occupies a wide hill —, I'm sure I'll get lost if I don't use GPS while in the SNU area.
I glanced back at the GPS on the screen, Sofia said that she was currently in the Kwanjeong Library which was adjacent to the main building of the SNU Library. I turned left and continued to drive, a magnificent 8-story building immediately visible in the distance.
"Daebak", I mumbled in awe
I parked my car not far from the entrance and typed a message to Sofia.
"I've arrived", I wrote briefly
While waiting for Sofia, I looked around, observing the students passing in and out of the library building. Some were seen walking alone, but some were seen in groups chatting and laughing.
There is a feeling of envy in me, I have never felt like going to college while joking with my friends like that. Since I was a teenager, my family life was quite difficult, I had to work part-time to help my family's economy. Even after I decided to join Bighit, I still had to work hard to pay for my studies.
Yes, I did go to college and have finished my bachelor's degree, but my college life is very much different from most other students. I study online, I have no friends during college other than the members. Yeah, we studied together while living our lives as idols.
Even last March, I, RM, and Jhope registered to take part in the MBA program (Masters in Business Administrations) majoring in advertising media at the Hanyang Cyber University. Even now, I'm still learning even though I have to steal my free time.
"Ah, that's her!", I said when I saw Sofia walking slowly out of the library building
I put on my mask and got out of the car.
"Sobi!", I called while waving
She looked up and looked at me with a smile on her pretty face.
"Yeobo", she called, while jogging towards me
"Take it easy, don't be in a hurry", I said when she had arrived in front of me
"Gwaenchana", she replied with a smile
"Let me help you", I said as I took a large bag of books from her hand
"Gomawo. Yeobo, Grandma said that she would come after having dinner with her business partner. So I think we should just have dinner out on the way home", Sofia said with sparkling eyes
"Is this a date?", I looked at her with a chuckle
"Huh?....", she mumbled blushing
"Okay, Kaja!", I said while holding her hand
"Sofia ssi!! Wait, Sofia!!", a voice called from the library
We turned around and found two students, a young man with glasses and a young woman with long brown hair, running towards us.
"Hyuna? Jiwoo?", Sofia asked confusedly
"You left this, Sofia", said the young man while holding up a rather thick report
"Omo!", the brown-haired woman shrieked, stopping running while covering her mouth in surprise
Sofia and I looked at each other in bewilderment, before Sofia nervously let go of my hand.
"Here, you left this", said the man, handing the report into Sofia's hands while panting
While the woman walked slowly towards us while looking at me and Sofia alternately.
Damn!, I thought. Luckily I'm still wearing my mask at the moment.
"Gomawo, Jiwoo~aah", Sofia said, awkwardly accepting the report
"Is he your boyfriend?", asked the woman without further ado
"Huh??", mumbled Sofia
I looked at Sofia and the two students in turn.
"Ani. Aniya..", Sofia's words were cut off by the woman earlier
"I saw you holding her hand. Are you Sofia's boyfriend?", this time she asked me
"Hyuna~aah, what do you mean?!", Sofia said nervously while standing between me and her friend
"Ye, who are you? I saw it too", asked the bespectacled man
I sighed and shifted Sofia to the side, then bowed.
"Annyeong, I'm Yoongi, Sofia's hus - ouch! .... boyfriend", I said while grinning in pain
I almost said I was her husband, so Sofia quickly stepped on one of my feet.
"Jinjja??", the woman screamed while widening her eyes
"Ya!! Sofia ssi, why didn't you ever tell us", the man with glasses chuckled while embracing Sofia's shoulder
"Yeah, I'm his boyfriend. nice to meet you," I said as I pulled Sofia towards me
The bespectacled man looked awkward, he removed his hand from Sofia's shoulder and reached out his hand to me.
"Nice to meet you, I'm Park Jiwoo, Sofia's best friend", he said with a smile while shaking hands with me
"Annyeong, I'm Kim Hyuna", said the brown-haired woman while bowing
"Since when are you guys dating? Why didn't you ever tell us?", Hyuna asked Sofia
"Mianhae, I...", Sofia said nervously
"We just started dating. We worked together", I replied
"You guys met while working at Bighit? Daebak! Are you also a stylish staff?", Jiwoo asked excitedly
"Uh, ani", I answered briefly
"Then what is your job? Concert staff? Music player? Film crew? I feel like I've seen you somewhere ...", Hyuna asked curiously
"He's a dancer. Yeah … sometimes he dances with the members. That's why he looks familiar, doesn't he?", Sofia replied, chuckling as she looked at me
"Oh, so you're a backup dancer huh? That's Cool!", said Jiwoo while nodding his head
"Really?", Hyuna asked while frowning
"Yes", I answered quickly
"Hyuna, Jiwoo, we have to go now. My grandma is coming home tonight, so I have to get home soon", Sofia said to her two friends
"Arasso. Yoongi ssi, we have to drink together sometime, okay?", Jiwoo said friendly
"Ye, sure. Sorry we have to go now", I said with a smile
"Sofia, can we visit your house this weekend?", Hyuna asked smiling at Sofia
"Huh? Visit my house? Ummm … sorry, I think my grandma will be living with me for a while...", answered Sofia stuttering looking at me
"Is that so? Arasso ...", answered Hyuna a little disappointed
"Mianhae Hyuna~aah", Sofia said feeling bad
"Gwaenchana", replied Hyuna shaking her head and smiling
"Okay, I'm going home... see you the day after tomorrow", Sofia said waving to her best friend
"Nice to meet you", I said bowing and getting in the car with Sofia
"Mianhae", she said as I drove my car out of the SNU area
"Gwaenchana", I answered slowly
"Huft, surely soon they'll be bombarding me with questions about you through the chat group", Sofia said while shaking her head
I didn't say anything, just smiled back at her.
"Sobi, if you want to invite your friends to our house, I think I don't mind," I said while still looking at the road in front of me
"Huh? Jinjja?? Didn't you say I can't invite anyone to your house?", she asked surprised
"That was then, I guess I don't mind now", I replied looking at her
"Jinjja? .... Ani, ani. I'm afraid they will recognize you. After all, there are a lot of photos of our wedding at home, it's too troublesome to move them all," she said again
"It's up to you then", I said shrugging my shoulders
"Yeobo, let's eat grilled galbi (ribs)", Sofia suddenly asked
"Galbi? In Haenam??", I asked
"Ye. I like the galbi at that restaurant," she said while tying her hair into a simple bun
"Arasso", I said
Along the way to the restaurant, Sofia told about the preparation of her final presentation. She said that she was a little depressed because this presentation was the final test for her bachelor's degree.
"You can do it, believe in yourself", I said while holding her hand to calm her down
I guess she's not only depressed by this presentation, but she's also still thinking about the accident too. Sometimes she would stand still, lost in her thoughts. So I feel that I should always accompany her.
"Yeobo, thank you", Sofia said beaming when we got to our favorite galbi restaurant
We went to our usual place on the second floor and ordered two portions of grilled galbi and a portion of kimchi jigae to eat together.
"How long will your grandmother stay in Seoul? Is it really until the weekend?", I asked after finishing the food in front of us
"Ani. Only until tomorrow", replied Sofia while wiping her mouth with a tissue
"You said earlier...", I didn't have time to finish my question, because Sofia interrupted her right away
"I lied earlier. I told Hyuna to refuse her arrival. Oh, I'm a bad friend," said Sofia with a pitiful face
"Invite them to come, I don't mind, jinjja", I said again with a chuckle
"I'll think about it first," she replied. "Btw, Yeobo, there's something I want to talk about. Umm I've thought about it many times...", she said looking at me intently
"Wae?", I asked curiously
"I'm thinking of accepting my grandmother's offer to be the heir", she said quietly
"Huh??", I asked surprised while leaning towards her
"Are you sure?", I asked raising my eyebrows
"Ne, she said I don't have to take over the company right now, right? She told you that, right, yeobo?", she asked looking at me
"Yes", I answered simply
Well, I've been telling Sofia about the conversation I had with grandma Han at the Bighit office. She told me to make Sofia be the heirs so that the Han family's company doesn't fall into other people's hands. At that time, Sofia didn't say anything, because I think she was still mad at her grandmother. And now that she's talking about it again, I'm frankly quite surprised by her decision.
"You said you wanted to pursue your dream, Sobi. Think about it again...", I said seriously
"I've been thinking about it, of course ... I'll keep pursuing my dream. Maybe I can even do both at the same time", she said while shrugging her shoulders
I sighed slowly.
"Sobi, you don't have to do this … don't do it just because of your guilt", I said softly
"I... I just felt that I had to do something. My grandma lost her son because of me, so...", she stuttered
"Sobi... I know you feel guilty about the accident, but you don't have to do this, jinjja....", I reassured her
"Yeobo, maybe what I'm doing is nothing compared to what my grandmother felt when she lost her son. I'll just let my grandmother write my name in her will, that's all... Grandma said she would help me study about the business, right? I think it's the right thing to do this time", she said with wet eyes
"Then what about your dream? Don't you want to be a designer? Want to build your brand?", I asked
"I can still do it, I guess..", she answered while lowering her face
"I don't have to be directly involved in managing grandma's company. I will study how the business process is and ask the directors for help to manage it. I think I can do it", she said again looking at me intently
I sighed again.
"Arasso... If you believe you can do it, then do it… I will support you", I finally answered
"Gomawo, yeobo. Please support me, okay?", she asked
"Ne, definitely", I replied while squeezing her hand
After that conversation, we decided to go home and wait for Grandma Han to come. I was changing the sheets in the guest room while Sofia was taking a shower in the master bedroom when my uncle called me.
"Yeobosseyo, uncle?", I answered
"Yoongi~aah, am I disturbing you?", he asked
"Ani. What's wrong uncle?", I asked again
"Detective Jaehyun has found the CCTV footage in the Daegu mall parking lot from the evidence box. I will see it tomorrow morning and after that, I will send a copy to you", said my uncle
"He found it? Arasso … ye, ahjussi, thank you", I replied
"Do you suspect something, Yoongi~aah?", asked uncle curiously
"Ani. I just want to confirm something uncle", I replied while biting my nail
"Arasso. But Yoongi~aah, the accident happened a long time ago and the case has been solved. I'm not sure reopening the case will make much difference", said my uncle, sounding worried
"Ye, ahjussi. I understand. Thank you for your help", I assured him
Then I hung up the phone and continued tidying up the room that grandma Han would use.
Before returning to Seoul, I asked detective Choi and my uncle to find CCTV footage in the Daegu mall parking lot. My intuition told me that there was something about the man and I wanted to confirm it.
Well, indeed the accident happened a long time ago and has been considered closed, but I've promised Sofia to find out the truth that happened from that incident. Every night, I reread reports about the pieces of evidence, forensic results, and case reports written by the police. And it was the forensic team's report that made me feel that something was wrong with uncle Han's car.
"Yeobo... halmoeni is coming!", Sofia's voice was heard from downstairs
I rushed to tidy up the pillows and blankets before finally walking quickly down the stairs to the first floor.
"Are you alone? Where is Uncle Lee, halmoeni?", asked Sofia when welcoming her grandmother
"Lee isn't coming, he has to take care of my work in Busan," said grandma to Sofia. "Don't worry, my business partner provides a personal driver for me while I'm in Seoul," said grandma when she saw Sofia's worried face
"Jinjja? Thank goodness", she replied smiling
"Halmoeni, annyeong! How are you grandma?", I greeted them
"Yoongi~aah annyeong, I'm fine. How about you?", replied grandma hugging me
"I'm fine too Grandma, here, let me bring it", I said as I took grandma's bag from Sofia's hand
"Gomawo. I'm sorry to bother you", said grandma after we all sat in the family room
"Ani, you aren't a bother at all. I'm glad Grandma is staying here", Sofia replied
Granny Han smiled and placed the brown paper bag she had been carrying on the table.
"I brought you something, Sofia. This is herbal medicine. My friend's daughter is a famous healer, she studied Korean traditional medicine. According to her, this medicine will help increase your stamina and strengthen your brain function", said Grandma as she took out 2 clear glass bottles filled with white capsules from a paper bag
"You don't need to bring this. I'm in pretty good shape", Sofia said while frowning
"I know that modern medicine has developed in a good way but traditional medicine is also quite effective. I understand that it will be very difficult if you have to boil wild plants, that's why I asked her to make capsules like this", said grandma
"Thank you, granny, I don't know what to say", replied Sofia looking at her grandmother
"Wow, daebak! So Sofia just have to take the capsules two times per day? ", I asked while reading the instructions on the bottle
"Yes", replied the grandma briefly
"Is this herbal medicine like the one that Grandma gave to Oemma before?", Sofia asked smiling
"Huh? Your mother's herbal medicine? I've never given her a herbal medicine...", replied Granny Han while frowning
"Huh?? Jinjja? But...", Sofia's words stopped midway
Then she furrowed her brows in confusion as she looked at the glass bottle and her grandma alternately.
"Wae?", I asked worriedly
"Ani... I just... Ani, I think I was wrong...", Sofia answered smiling awkwardly at me
We stared at each other for a while, Sofia looked confused and I think she was thinking about something right now.
"Ah, Halmoeni, I want to say something...", continued Sofia
"What is it?", asked Grandma Han
Then Sofia expressed her desire to become the heir to the Han family. Grandma looked surprised and touched. I know that she is a good person, and what she has done all this time is only for the Han family's happiness.
"Are you sure, Sofia? Really? Oh my God, I didn't expect that this day would come sooner than I thought... gomawo", said grandma, smiling and shedding tears
"Ye, halmoeni. I've been considering it for a long time", Sofia replied hugging her grandma
"But Sofia, I don't want you to do it out of guilt for what happened to your father... I have forgiven you, dear. I don't want you to do this out of necessity. What has happened to my son is part of destiny. Your happiness is now my top priority", said Granny Han while stroking Sofia's face affectionately
"I didn't do this out of necessity, Grandma. I realized that there was no reason for me to refuse to be your heir. This is the only thing I can do for this family, Grandma," Sofia replied
"Thank God ... I feel relieved now. Don't worry, Sofia, you can still do what you dream of, you don't have to take over this company right away. We will do it slowly, I promise ..", said grandma hugging her again
"Ye, halmoeni", said Sofia
I smiled at them, I was happy to see them like this. Then they agreed to discuss this again in the morning because it was quite late by now.
"Halmoeni, I have prepared a room for you. Do you want to rest now?", I asked
"Yeah, I'm also feeling tired. I'm sorry," replied Grandma Han with a sorry face
"Gwaenchana halmoeni... get some rest", Sofia said reaching out her hand to help her stand up
"Thank you", Grandma Han replied smiling
Then I took Grandma to the guest room, while Sofia made hot chocolate in the kitchen.
I went back down to the first floor and found Sofia sitting pensively at the kitchen table staring blankly at bottles of white capsules. I feel something strange about Sofia right now.
"Sobi, gwaenchana?", I asked while sitting next to her
"Huh?? Ye … yeah, I'm fine", she replied smiling at me
"What are you thinking, Sobi? Are you remembering something?", I asked while rubbing her arm
"Ani. I... Yes, I'm trying to remember something... I think I'm having a little trouble with my memory. Sometimes I still feel confused, whether my memory has fully returned or is there a memory that I still don't remember ...", she said uncertainly, her eyes are still glued to the glass bottles in front of her
"What's wrong? ...", I said worried
"That ... well, as I remember my mother also had a bottle of medicine like this, she used to drink it every day when her digestive pain got worse. And I think my mother also told Aunt Mia in one of her letters... but, I don't know, I'm not sure. Maybe I forgot something...", she said, the wrinkles on her forehead getting deeper and deeper
"Hey, calm down... maybe your head is a little overwhelmed with the sudden flood of information and memories. Gwaenchana...", I said calming her down
"Ye... I think so...", she chuckled while sipping the glass of hot chocolate in front of her
"Let's go back to the room, you need to sleep. You must be tired after a long day on campus. Besides I have to check something too", I said as I got up from the kitchen chair
"You want to read the report again? You've read it many times, haven't you...", Sofia said smiling and stood up
"Yes. I feel something is odd. I hope that the more I read it, the more I will find the answer," I chuckled, holding her hand up the stairs to the second floor
"Yeobo, gomawo", she said while looking at me
"Yeah..", I replied smiling at her
After we returned to our room, Sofia fell asleep immediately while I reread the accident investigation report. I kept looking at the black and white photo of the man in black in front of me.
Who is this person? Do I know him? Is he the same person I met at the hospital??. I tried to remember the man in black who passed me at the hospital.
"Ah, shit!", I swear when I can't remember him well
I don't know how tall he is, what color his skin is, what his facial features are because what I remember is that the man was wearing all black from head to toe. He was wearing a black hat, a black face mask too, I couldn't even see his eyes because he was trying to cover them with his hat. Wait!! ....
The scene when the man passed me seemed to slowly repeat itself in my head. He walked with his face down, raised his right hand, and lowered his hat to cover his face. That tattoo...
I turned my face to stare out the window. He has a tattoo on his right wrist. My eyes move rapidly through the darkness, trying to remember the shape of the tattoo. Number eight??, I thought, frowning.
I immediately wrote it down on the report paper in my lap. I'm not sure that this will help, but ... no matter how little evidence I find, I'll keep a record of it.
Well, who knows it could lead me to the truth .....
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Sorry for the late update,
stay safe and stay gold,
Borahae 💜💜💜