I stepped out from the morning shower and instantly approached the desk. A few strands of my hair slipped out from the constraint of the towel as I looked down at my phone. Anticipation bloomed in my heart, hoping I would see something that I wanted to see.

Biting my lip out of nervousness, I clenched and unclenched my fingers before pressing the home button. The screen lit up, and...

There was no morning text from Taehyung.

No sweet endearments.

No winky emoji.

Nothing.

My heart free fall into my stomach with a painful force. The boys did not even reply to my messages. It was torturing. Were they really that mad at me for siding Kai when he did not deserve even an iota of their anger?

Then, here came the only text that I'd received, which only made my heart further sunk to the deepest pit of my stomach.

7:38 am

Jasper oppa wrote:

I'm sorry, lil sis. I've got a few clients to meet today. I promise I will give you a call once I'm done with the meetings.

I huffed out a sigh and a frown had successfully taken over my feature. For some reason, I just felt sad, being abandoned by everyone all at once like this.

"What's with the long face? Love problem?" Micha was quick to notice the gloomy state of mine.

More like, memory problems. I wanted to say that because the errors in my brain were the ones who brought me upon this ordeal, but then I could just look at Micha and let out a melancholy sigh.

"I think Taehyung's mad at me..."

Micha knitted her brows together, round shining eyes questioning. "What'd you do?"

I considered her for a minute because I didn't even know where to begin. Micha didn't know anything about my amnesia or whatever happened four years ago. She still called me Mia. And even if I told her, I didn't think she would believe in everything I said. Because apparently, my whole life story was a joke. I bet people would laugh and find it ridiculous.

"It's a long story, Micha..." I let out a long exhale, and Micha only frowned at this.

"Okay, but knowing Taehyung, he just doesn't get mad at nothing, so there must be something," she concluded while patting some skincare product onto her dewy skin. "Either way, don't worry, unnie. I'm sure he will come back around, it's you we are talking about."

I perked up a brow, noting her emphasis. "What about me?"

"Well, don't you notice how Taehyung always looked at you?" She glanced at me, and when she saw the blankness on my face, she sighed dramatically. "I guess people who are blindly in love usually don't get to see those things."

"What things exactly?"

"Whenever Taehyung looks at you, he really looks into you, no one else. His eyes sparkle whenever he's around you. That, unnie, is what people called love." Micha wiggled her fingers in the air as though telling a fairy-tale.

I found myself smiling at her words, my cheeks warmed with heat, and I could feel the pit of my stomach softened a little. I guess I can wait a little while until Taehyung's cooled down.

"But unnie, have you heard that Taehyung's ex-girlfriend died tragically in an explosion four years ago?" she suddenly asked, and the smile on my face withered nervously when I realized I was actually the mentioned ex-girlfriend.

"Y-yeah, I've heard of it," I said nonchalantly while trying to avoid eye contact as much as I could. So I unwound the towel on my head and patted my hair dry, hiding half of my face from Micha.

"Some staff said he's still waiting for that girl, hoping that somewhere on this earth she's still alive. I hope you don't put too much hope on him, unnie. If she's really alive and comes back one day, I don't want you to be heartbroken all over Taehyung."

It's too late, Micha. Unfortunately, the higher power had brought the two souls together, and now both of them were a little heartbroken by the unexpected twist of fate.

"I appreciate your concern, Micha. But I won't." I chuckled, finding the irony in this discussion a little amusing.

In the next few hours, I gallivanted around Seoul with Gayoung, Haejong, and Micha. We shopped in CoEx mall all day. Well, I'd like to call it retail therapy. On the other hand, Haejong unnie called it market research purposes as we swiped the company's card to purchase clothes and accessories for the boys' new comeback.

"Girls, listen. I don't want to scare you guys," Gayoung said just after we had our lunch. "I think we're being followed." She had this horrified look, and soon after, Micha and I joined along. Everyone froze like a stone, well, except for one.

"What? Are you serious? Don't joke around–"

"No, don't look!" Gayoung shout-whispered as she held onto Haejong's head whose about to turn, "They will notice, pabo-yah."

"Those two men at 4 o'clock," Gayoung fed us with more details, and I just checked the direction with the corner of my eyes. "They keep following us all day. They look like some bodyguards. Mia, do you notice them too?"

Bodyguards? Don't tell me...

"Yeah, I got this, unnie. Let me talk to them." I pursed my lips in knowingly and stood up, leaving the table.

"Mia, don't!" They tried to stop me, but I just assured them with a warm smile.

"Hey," I called as I approached those two suspicious bodyguards. They tensed up in front of me, looking sort of panic, probably because their cover was busted. "Did Kai send you guys to watch over me?"

They just stood still with a guarded stance and stern looks without honoring me with any answers. I'd guessed probably they were ordered not to disclose any information too. I mentally let out a sigh.

"I understand that you guys are doing your job, but where is Kai? I need to talk to him." I asked, cracking a little smile towards them.

Yet, they did not entertain me no matter how hard I had tried. Probably Kai knew that I'd be upset to have someone watching over me, thus, this was also his attempt to avoid any confrontation. What a smart man, as expected from Kim Jongin.

But why send some guys to watch over me? Is he occupied with something else? I had wondered as I stared skeptically at the two bodyguards.

K i m T a e h y u n g

"So, can somebody care to explain why the hell is this guy following us?" My voice rumbled with irritation as I glared at the said person. I had been grumpy since morning, and having to witness Kai in front of me definitely did not help my case at all.

"Let's just ignore him, Tae. He's just here as my family's bodyguard, nothing else." Chang Wook hyung groaned and slightly rolled his shoulder in pain. Then ever so subtly, he eyed Kai with hidden meaning and hissed.

I arched a brow and looked at Kai who was quietly standing with pride. He looked so calm, unbothered by the electrifying gaze beaming at him. I snickered mentally, it seemed like they had a little bicker before making their way here.

I intended to argue again but considered for a minute. If Kai was stronger than Chang Wook, then it would mean I wouldn't stand a chance against him. Given that I hadn't been training myself for the past years because of the hectic schedules, and fighting with Kai didn't make it to my to-do list today, so I decided to just disregard his presence here with us.

"But guys, is this the right thing to do? Going behind Jinhee's back and meet her brother?" Jimin asked with scrunched lips as we all stepped into the elevator. I pressed the tenth floor of the apartment building in Gangnam.

"Please allow me to interject for a moment," Chang Wook cleared his throat meaningfully. "Jinhee only has one brother, and that's me. The other one is just a mere stranger, non-related. Please get the fact right, Jimin."

"Fine, my bad." Jimin rolled his eyes and pouted, looking hurt when he was just worried if we were doing the right thing.

"We will be busy with the comeback, so this is the only chance that we have. Besides, Jinhee doesn't seem like she wants to share anything about her family of four years anytime soon," Namjoon emphasized and gave Chang Wook a look.

"Even she'd joined the concert tour with us for months, not even once did she mention about her family," Hoseok said with a frown.

"–of four years," Chang Wook just had to add and coughed. We all stared at him with a blank look.

"I think she's just afraid that the Kwon family will leave her once they learn of the truth. That's why it's hard to convince her to open up," Jin reasoned out, and we all listened in silence.

"Which I believe, they wouldn't do that to our little bunny. I'm sure they love her as much as we do," Yoongi said with a smile, and it surprised everyone a little to see a glint of adamancy in his eyes, "So, this is the right thing, and we will do this."

"Okay, so we all have decided, right?" I asked, leading the group out when the elevator's door had opened.

"Yeah."

"If Jinhee finds out, we will make Chang Wook hyung as the scapegoat."

"Yeah," everyone answered in unison, including Chang Wook hyung himself.

Target had agreed with consent. Perfect.

"W-what? You brats! How dare–"

Ding dong Ding dong Ding dong

I pressed the bell multiple times, muting out the profanities flying out aggressively from Chang Wook's mouth.

"Coming!" A voice shouted inside before the door swung open, revealing a handsome hyung that I hadn't met for so long.

"Jasper hyung, it's been a while." I smiled widely at the man standing before me.

"Taehyung, you and your bell pranks!" He grabbed my neck and ruffled my hair playfully because I just tortured his bell. Thankfully it wasn't broken.

Both of us laughed until Jasper hyung looked at the others. "Come in, kids! You guys have grown so tall and good-looking. Wow. I surely can't keep up with you guys." He chuckled and patted their backs while inviting them into his Bachelor pad.

"Oh, hyung, let me introduce you. This is Kim Chang Wook, Jinhee's brother." Jasper and Chang Wook shook hands and smiled at each other. One radiated with much warmth, while another just grimly nodded.

"I'm Kai, the Kim family's bodyguard." The uninvited guest introduced himself.

I scoffed and rolled my eyes, hating why he always exuded noble and graceful charisma. Jasper probably noticed the tension, because he looked at both of us, yet still accepting his handshake.

"Take a seat and make yourself comfortable. I'll bring some soda for you guys," Jasper smiled and went to the kitchen. Jungkook and Jin followed him, probably trying to find some food.

We all didn't take a seat, wandering around while checking out the framed arts hanging in the living room. Except for Chang Wook hyung and Kai who just stayed seated politely, suspicion and thousands of questions painted across their faces.

As I looked around, I saw a few family pictures being displayed on the hanging shelves. There were Mr. Kwon, Mama Kwon, Jasper, and... Mia. I could never forget her clear blue eyes. Then, there was another picture where everyone was hugging... Jinhee. They looked so happy. It had been so long since I last saw the whole Kwon family smiled like this. The family almost looked like they were completed again after six years.

"So it's true. Her real name is Kim Jinhee," Jasper began, walking into the living room and passing the soda to everyone. Chang Wook and Kai declined his offer as expected.

"I've heard you guys met her in New York," Jasper took a seat on the single sofa and perked up his brow, asking for confirmation. We all gathered around and nodded.

"What a small world it is. I tried to reach out to you guys but Mi–" he stopped and shook his head, "Jinhee, didn't seem to like the idea, so I was waiting for her to open up to me. I'm so sorry for causing all the troubles, Chang Wook-ssi," Jasper addressed courteously, his smile has long faded and now his expression looked remorseful, as though he understood how Chang Wook felt as a big brother.

Chang Wook looked caught off guard as if he didn't expect to hear an apology so soon, when he was so ready to blow his lid in frustration. So when Jasper was being so polite and manly, suddenly he looked like he didn't know what to do. He just stayed silent with jaw tightened and fingers intertwined.

"What happened, hyung? How'd you find Jinhee?" I decided to voice out when everyone was too suffocated by the heavy intensity in the room.

"I found her at our family's villa in Gwangju. She was unconscious in front of the porch. At first, I was surprised to see her because she looked exactly like my baby sister, Kwon Mia." With a drink on his hand, he stood up and reached out to the same picture I was looking at a moment ago. Then he brought the picture and placed it on the coffee table.

We all knew Mia, so it was clear Jasper tried to show Chang Wook and Kai how Mia looked like. He picked up the picture, and I saw how his mouth popped open, couldn't believe his eyes.

"But then, I noticed how she looked like she was physically hurt. There were some burn marks on her body. She had no ID card or any phone on her. At that time, I thought that maybe someone was after her, trying to hurt her... After all, Mia was murdered for no particular reason, and the killer is still roaming freely around the city."

Jasper's expression clouded with darkness, his grip on the can drink tightened, making the liquid threaten to spill out, but he managed to exhale and control his emotion.

"You'd have made a report of a missing person, Jasper-ssi. Not hiding my little sister under a different identity." Chang Wook did not hold back anymore, glaring at Jasper almost darkly as he was overpowered by repressed emotion.

"I'm sorry, Chang Wook-ssi, but I can't help it." Jasper dropped his head and sighed, once again feeling guilty for everything he'd done.

"I know the idea to name Jinhee as Mia was insane. My parents didn't approve of anything I did. I was just furious to see another victim just like my baby sister. I want to hunt down the killer and throw him into jail, so I thought using my sister's name can lure out the killer, and maybe when Jinhee regains consciousness, she will know who's the killer."

Jasper hyung sounded frustrated at this point, every strong emotion that he felt at that moment was coated in his crushed voice. He was exhausted by the years of agony, and now he's desperate for any revenge to bring justice for his sister's death. And I felt that, I savvied that. Because I was once in his position, searching for every corner of the universe for at least a reason that connected to Mia's death.

"But when Jinhee woke up, she couldn't remember anything. She looked unstable and traumatized, so I did everything that I could to heal her. But even after a year, she still couldn't speak. So I decided to bring her to the states, letting her rehabilitate under the care of my close friend there."

"Over the past years, the therapies have really helped her a lot. Jinhee's become better and happier, and without realizing it, we've been treating her like a part of our family. We started to become fond of her. She's so sweet and lovable. She did have sudden flashbacks occasionally, and when it hit her, it pains her severely. Then, one day, she just told me she didn't want to remember anything related to her past."

Upon hearing that, I smiled bitterly, recalling how Jinhee was so adamant to forget about us a few months ago. It scared me to remember how she looked like she'd moved on, and as I looked around the circle, everyone's expression literally mirrored mine, including Chang Wook. I could guess he's probably reminded of yesterday's event when Jinhee declared out that she has a new family.

"As much as I want to know about the killer, I didn't have a choice but to respect her for having things her way. If those flashbacks hurt her, then I'd rather not encourage her to remember. I love her as my sister. I care for her, and I had to admit, I'm scared to lose her again, but I also wish for her happiness and well being." Jasper stopped speaking for a minute. His chin quivered and shoulders quaked with sobs, and this made me feel like my stomach was punched with sudden pain.

I'm scared to lose her again. Those words hit me like a truck.

I was suddenly caught in a time warp back to a summer day when I was fifteen. After Mia's funeral, Jasper remained quiet all day in his black suit. He greeted the visitors with a robotic smile, his gaze darkened and empty. At the end of the day, we all stayed with him and cried. Mia's parents bawled out in tears. Jasper was the only one who didn't.

I remembered how much I admired him for keeping a tight rein on his feelings and emotion. I knew he wanted to be strong for the family. He was, after all, the oldest son, the eldest brother, our hyung that we looked up to. He just closed his eyes with so much calm and poised, and when his eyes flew open again, I saw how it ablaze with a sudden purpose and desire.

"I know my selfish decision had caused nothing but misery and pain to everyone for years, especially to Jinhee's family. I truly apologize from the bottom of my heart," he finally uttered out his heartfelt apologies with head down. But his eyes looked up at Chang Wook sincerely, owning up to his wrongdoing like a man.

"Hyung..."

I didn't know why, but I began to cry with him. I shut my eyes. There was a certain heaviness in my chest or stomach. I don't know. I just felt sorry for him. I looked at Chang Wook hyung and saw how his face slowly altered from anger to tenderness, then it crushed with regret.

Our breakdown was interrupted by a phone call. It was Jasper's. Gathering his composure, he excused himself to the balcony and picked up the call. We all stayed silent, and I still felt the same heaviness pressing me down, until I heard a familiar name from Jasper's conversation.

"I told you not to call me again, Ray."

"What? You're here?"

"Fine, but I'm busy right now. I'll call you back."

What's that bastard doing in Korea? Don't tell me he's trying to reach out to Jinhee again. For the whole time, I had forgotten that he even existed because Jinhee had never mentioned his name ever since she came back to Korea. I just assumed that he's completely out of the equation and never pondered much. Now that he's here, I suddenly can't sit still. It felt like he's posing a threat to my position in Jinhee's life.

"What you assumed about Jinhee, it was right, Jasper-ssi. We were all there the night when the killer kidnapped Jinhee four years ago," Chang Wook revealed without warning when Jasper entered the living room again. His movement stopped mid-way as he was placing his phone down on the coffee table.

"W-what?" His eyes widened in appall, a shadow of alarm touched his face. "You guys have met the killer?"

"Yeah, his name is Ki Joon," Chang Wook continued the tale while exchanging a meaningful look with me, and I shuddered to the fear that was consuming inside me. "He planted bombs everywhere. We managed to escape, but our dear Jinhee... She sacrificed herself so that she could save us, so we thought she didn't survive from the explosion."

"She survived," Jasper said, his eyes brightened as he tried to solve the puzzles, "and that means, the killer is still alive." Suddenly, he recoiled back in panic and looked at us. "Wait. Where's Jinhee? Is she safe?"

"She's safe, don't worry," Kai intervened, making everyone whip their heads at him in slight surprise. "I've assigned others to look after her and keep me updated," he assured us firmly with his royal smile.

I felt another pang in my heart. Ki Joon was still hiding out there, stalking Jinhee, and Kai had done everything to protect her. While as her boyfriend, I did fucking nothing but being so absorbed in sulking over the fact that Jinhee only remembered Kai. Where the fuck is my common sense?

"Jasper-ssi, there's something that you should know..."

That solemn tone brought me back to reality as I looked at Chang Wook in disbelief. I stood up instinctively, running fingers through my hair when I couldn't handle the heaviness growing inside of me. Fuck, I can't do this anymore.

He's gonna tell that one ugly truth. The one that I had been keeping away from Jinhee. The one memory that I'd hoped Jinhee would not remember. The one that I didn't want her to relearn for the second time.

"I should be the one who's sorry towards you, Jasper-ssi..." Chang Wook shut his eyes, pain and sadness evident in his demeanor, making Jasper furrow his brows in confusion.

"Because six years ago, the killer had mistaken your sister as Jinhee...and murdered her."

Silence followed Chang Wook's declaration. I didn't have the heart to look up because I was positive Jasper would show us a crestfallen face that would make every woman go weak in knees, and it would even break every tiny bit of a man's heart and ego.

"I'm so sorry for your family's loss, Jasper-ssi." The table had turned now as Chang Wook poured out his apologies to Jasper, tears evident in the corner of his eyes as he hung his head low.

"I'm so sorry, hyung..." I found myself saying as I held him by the shoulder, trying to give any kind of comfort to him.

The other boys were crying and sobbing silently as we watched how Jasper hyung slowly settled down on the sofa. His eyes looked dazed, as though trying to connect the dots and slowly soak everything in. The pained look on his kind face was something that I couldn't forget. It was almost palpable, making the tears keep gushing out endlessly.

"I've figured it out, more or less..." Jasper muttered quietly, a weak smile tugged on his lips, "And I have accepted that it happened to my baby sister. My dear Mia..." He huffed out a long exhale, taking a moment to relax and channeled his strength all together in silence.

"Taehyung, if you don't mind me asking, who's Jinhee to you?"

I was taken aback to hear such an inquiry from Jasper. He held onto this meaningful expression that seemed all too familiar to me.

"She's the love of my life, hyung," I said in all seriousness, and this made Jasper smirk proudly and stood up, reaching for his coat.

"Great. Because what's more important right now is to protect Jinhee and catch the killer," He turned around to face us and tilted his head towards the door, "no matter what it takes."

In that second, I noticed the solemn glow in Jasper's black eyes...

And it was the same glow that I saw in him six years ago.

A u t h o r ' s  N o t e

I was so pumped up while writing the second scene while listening to Agust D ft RM - Strange.
I hope you guys felt the same adrenaline too.

I'm so nervous to post the next chapter,
because someone will appear and fuck things up.
By all means, take a guess.
The angst will continue for the next two chapters,
then we will escape to some demesne of sweet nostalgia ;)

quick question, which day & time do you prefer for a new update? I noticed it's usually Tuesday night (GMT+8) that I posted and received many responses from you guys. do tell and I'll try to post every new update on the most voted day & time. thank you!

also, I was looking through the demographics of this book, and most readers that I have are from...

Philippines with 20% readers,

US 16% readers,

India and Malaysia same stats with 13% readers.

Is it true though?
If yes, can you guys comment on respective countries? I'm just really curious.
A simple 💜 will do, especially for my shy readers.
but if you feel uncomfortable, then it's okay :)

Tap the star and leave feedback as always.
Thank you for reading, lovelies
🌹

Much love,
ℓynie

»»———— ♡ ————««

T E A S E R

"Mia... Please, just come back to me.
You will only get hurt by staying here."