AAE -- Wishes Of The Heart

Chapter 48

written by LoveCR2 -- 2005

edited by All-About-AAE -- 2017

 

"Isn't that what good friends are for, being there to provide comfort?" -- Yoo Joo-Hee

 

 

NEAR HYUNG-CHUL'S VILLA, THE NEXT NIGHT...

 

"... Being loved by someone you love. How would that feel? People who are eager to answer this question quickly, you've got to know how blessed you are..."

 

His car mobile buzzes, and Hyung-Chul pauses the CD of Sun-Mi's radio program 'Musical Postcards' to answer it.

 

"Yes?"

 

"It's me..."

 

"Joo-Hee, what's on your mind?"

 

"What's all this in the papers about?" she asks.

 

He laughs. "Since when did you start following rumors?"

 

"Is it only rumors?" she doubts his assertion. "Hubby told me about your off-the-record meeting with the paparazzi."

 

"That was supposed to be confidential," Hyung-Chul grumbles. "At the time, I'd intended to propose to Sun-Mi. How could I know she'd go off to London, and that Park So-Won would appear again?"

 

"You never let circumstances force your hand before..."

 

"Right now Director Park is calling the shots," he justifies his actions. "You know my father and I need his support."

 

"I never thought I'd see you put business before love," she scoffs.

 

"What do you getting at?"

 

"What's different now from before?" she questions him sharply, "When it was me?"

 

"Joo-Hee, let's not get into that," he tries to steer the conversation away from the sensitive subject. "Besides, you're better off with Sun-Dal."

 

"Let me be the judge of that!" she angrily rejects his contention. "When Jin Sun-Mi appeared and took my place, you said it was love, and I believed you. I backed off, because I couldn't deny for another woman what I desired for myself. But if she was only just a fling, I'll never forgive you!"

 

"Believe me, I'm sincere about Sun-Mi, but I can't stand in her way, either. She wanted to further her career, so I had to let her go."

 

"So she's calling the shots, too?"

 

"Yes," he admits. "It seems whether business or love, my life is not my own. "

 

"If that's the truth, then you have my sympathy. But I'll be watching you..." she warns, her attitude softening.

 

"Keep watching, then," he agrees, "and cheer me up when I need encouragement."

 

"Isn't that what good friends are for, being there to provide comfort?" Joo-Hee replies. "But I have to run. Bye..."

 

 

Hyung-Chul ends the call, then resumes the CD to continue listening to the 'Musical Postcards' recording. Hearing Sun-Mi's warm, melodic voice helps ease his longing to have her here with him, instead of almost 9,000 kilometers away.

 

"... No matter how much people say that a one-sided crush is still love, you can't clap with only one hand..."

 

Slowing to turn into his villa complex drive, Hyung-Chul briefly notices a figure loitering near the stairwell to his apartment. After he parks the car he looks again to see who it is, but the man has gone. Hyung-Chul stays in the car, listening to the end of the CD...

 

"... The last song for tonight is …"  Sun-Mi's voice abruptly cuts off, although the recording continues in silence for another minute.

 

Hyung-Chul recalls the day he'd been driving home after work, listening to the live broadcast when it cut off, first wondering if the signal was interrupted, then worrying that something had happened to Sun-Mi as he sped back to the station.

 

Preoccupied with these thoughts, he gets out of the car and walks toward the stairwell, remembering the fear and regret that had filled his heart as he saw Sun-Mi lying unconscious in the studio.

 

As he enters the stairwell, Hyung-Chul wonders about the man he'd seen earlier, and Sun-Dal's warning comes to mind. Then he hears footsteps approaching quickly, from behind...

 

An ominous voice challenges him: "Director Yoon, we've something to settle between us, man to man..."

 

Hyung-Chul turns around to find a clenched fist in his face. A moment later, another hand roughly grabs his jacket lapel.

 

"I warned that I'd punish you, big time," Jin Kui-Sung threatens lividly.

 

Surprised it is Sun-Mi's father accosting him, Hyung-Chul tries to find out why, "Um... Mr. Jin... for what?"

 

Kui-Sung ignores the questions and announces, "You have three seconds!" He counts them off, "3... 2... 1..."

 

"Now just a min...ugh..." Hyung-Chul starts to protest, but a solid punch to the gut knocks the wind out of him. Doubled over in pain, he gasps for a breath.

 

Kui-Sung hovers over Hyung-Chul, watching him. "I see you're not in shape, Director Yoon, so I pulled that punch a little," he remarks, patting him on the back sympathetically.

 

"Thanks..." Hyung-Chul grunts back, wincing.

 

"With that behind us, here..." Kui-Sung extends his hand.

 

Still dazed, Hyung-Chul accepts, and they shake hands.

 

"Now, how about a drink?" Kui-Sung suggests. "To talk things over."

 

"Sure, come on in," Hyung-Chul extends the invitation, still at a loss as to what this was all about.

 

 

Inside, the two men face off across the kitchen table, a bottle of whiskey and two shot glasses between them.

 

"Let me pour you a drink first." Kui-Sung fills the glasses, and they both empty their drinks in a single swig.

 

"When I gave permission to marry my daughter, you promised you'd never hurt her," Kui-Sung says. "So what's this?"

 

He shows Hyung-Chul the tabloid newspaper that Sun-Dal had warned him about.

 

"Don't believe it," Hyung-Chul dismisses the article. "Sun-Mi went to London for her career, not because of these rumors."

 

"I wanted to believe that," Kui-Sung tells him, "but then I found these in Sun-Mi's room, discarded in the waste bin..."

 

He dumps a pile of postcards and greeting cards onto the table from a large envelope. Hyung-Chul recognizes the cards he'd sent to Sun-Mi over the years.

 

"Sun-Mi is a very sentimental person. Mementos are important to her, probably because her mother passed on early and left her with few memories," Kui-Sung explains. "For her to do this, something very serious must have happened between you two, so that even the memories were too hurtful to hold on to. What do you think that might be?"

 

Looking over the cards, Hyung-Chul has to agree. "The night before Sun-Mi left for England, I tried to get her to tell me why she wanted to go, but she refused -- I don't know what to say," he answers.

 

"I'd say... you broke her heart," Kui-Sung levels the accusation with narrowed eyes, "I entrusted my precious daughter to you, because I thought you were a man of your word. Was I wrong about you?"

 

"I love Sun-Mi with all my heart," Hyung-Chul declares. "Saying I'm sorry isn't enough, I know..."

 

"I didn't come for your apology," Kui-Sung tells him.

 

"Then why?"

 

"I came to hear what you intend to do, if you really love my daughter as you claim," Kui-Sung declares, pointing a critical finger into Hyung-Chul's face. "I expect you not to be sorry, Director Yoon, but to make things right..."

 

"And if you don't..." He raises his fist ominously. "Next time I'm not gonna hold back..."

 

 

Hyung-Chul contemplates those intentions seriously, thinking of how best to avoid such a 'next time', when an idea strikes him...

 

"Mr. Jin, since we share something in common now, it would be to both our advantage to understand each other better," he recommends. "So I have a proposition for you to consider..."