When I Loved You

Muyeol unconsciously lifted his hand and pressed on his heart. He was torn inside, and his heart could physically feel the pain, almost as if his nervous system was failing. But there was no time for him to be in pain. His lips automatically curled bitterly.

In his eyes, his life was different than Yiyoung’s life. He didn’t have emotions, and his everyday life didn’t affect his feelings. But when it came to Yiyoung, he became a completely different person.

Muyeol frowned, now deeming that he was thinking unnecessary things these days. It was all because of the incident Yiyoung had gone through. Because of that psycho, Yiyoung’s personality changed, and so did his.

Muyeol reminded himself that Yiyoung was just like a bird flying by. He considered himself to be a nest for her to rest in during her journey. Once she healed from the trauma, she would probably want to fly away after realizing how insufficient he was.

Then, the clock caught his attention. His face grew stiff all of a sudden. It was 5 minutes past the time Yiyoung was supposed to be back. The clock kept ticking, there was no end to the movement of the second hand. Muyeol’s mouth became dry. Yiyoung was not back on time.

Muyeol dialed Yiyoung’s number, but her phone was turned off. He tugged at his hair harshly, not knowing what he was supposed to do. His mind went blank, he couldn’t think of anything. He called her repeatedly, but the robotic voice kept telling him that the phone was switched off.

Muyeol blindly rushed to the lobby, calling Mr. Hong on his way.

“Yes, sir,” answwered Mr. Hong.

“Please call the Korean embassy and check if there’s any missing tourist case reported. My wife should’ve been back by now, but she still hasn’t arrived. Her phone is switched off as well.”

“Okay, sir.”

Muyeol pushed the heavy door, not even giving the doorman enough time to open it for him. Anxiety surrounded him like a storm. He could feel the goosebumps as his body began to ache, as if he was experiencing chills. But the only thing on his mind was Yiyoung’s whereabouts.

‘I thought she got on the tram, so why is she late? Did she have an attack inside it? Or was she robbed? Could it be that Jaeho didn’t get on the plane and… Or was she kidnapped?’ Muyeol’s heart immediately dropped. His face turned so pale that it looked like it had been bleached. The strong wind blowing outside slapped his body. He was drowning in confusion, and lost his sense of direction when he got outside,

‘Where do I have to go? Where do I find her?’

His heart thudded, its throbs loudly echoing within him. His peace was broken, and the deep ocean invisible inside him trembled because of his confusion. His heart was beating too fast and felt like it would drop to the ground, his gaze was wandering aimlessly, and his lips were all dried up.

Then, he paused, eyes focused on a spot ahead of him. He thought he was hallucinating when he spotted a figure that resembled Yiyoung.

“Oh, you came out to wait for me?” Yiyoung asked. She shook the plastic bag in her hand in front of him. “I bought kebabs for you. It’s chicken, your favorite meat. After I bought it, people told me that it was actually a famous place around here.”

She came to a stop in front of him, and Muyeol hugged her. Because of the way he rushed forward, the plastic bag and the shopping bags filled with goods fell to the ground.

Yiyoung was startled. She could sense there was something different about Muyeol. He seemed nervous, as if he was standing on a bridge made out of a single log. It was hard to believe that he was nervous, and she didn’t even know why, but she could tell he was feeling desperate.

She wanted to calm him down. Yiyoung caught her breath and then jokingly asked, “What happened? Did you miss me that much?”