Minji's Voice - Bbangsaz

Chapter 35

Hanni's POV

The entire town gathered to honor Kim Minji.

The people of Pelion, young and old, came together to show their support for the woman who had been a quiet part of their community since the day she was born. Her silent hurt, her unnoticed isolation, now understood by all. Her big heart and her act of bravery had led to the closing of the stores and forced those who rarely left their homes to come out to join the rest of the citizens in the largest show of support ever seen in the history of the town. A small, silent star, which had always remained aloof, which had barely been perceived, was now shining with such intensity that everyone had stopped to contemplate its light to finally open their eyes and welcome it as part of their constellation.

I heard over and over again that our story, the one that was Minji's and mine, made people want to be better, to reach out to those no one saw, to be friendly to others and be closer to them, acknowledging their pain and trying to do something about it if they could.

That cold February day I walked in arm in arm with Maggie and Norm and we sat down while people smiled kindly at us, nodding at us. I returned the smiles; Now, that was also my community. I was part of the constellation.

Outside, it had started to rain, and thunder rumbled in the distance. I wasn't afraid though. 'When there is a storm I will think of you and only you,' I told Minji.

And I always did.

Always.

Minji had been gone once for four long months where I missed her desperately. This time she had been gone from me for three endless weeks before returning. She was in a deep coma, and the doctors couldn't tell me when they thought she would wake up, or if she would wake up. But I waited. I would always wait for her. And I prayed and whispered to the sky every night 'she comes back to me, she comes back to me, she comes back to me'.

On another rainy day in late January, just as thunder cracked and lightning flashed in her hospital room, she opened her eyes and looked at me. My own heart pounding in my ears, louder than the one outside the window, I jumped up from the chair I had been sitting in and ran to her side: "You're back."

I took her hands and brought them to my lips, kissing them again and again, my tears fell on her fingers, her knuckles, those beautiful hands that held an entire language, that allowed me to know what was on her mind and in her heart.

I loved those hands.

I love her.

My tears continued to fall.

She looked at me for several minutes before removing her hands from mine and signing slowly, moving her fingers stiffly, I'm back for you.

I laughed with a strangled cry, rested my head on her chest and held her tightly as the nurses rushed into the room.

And now, the entire town waited as Minji walked towards the podium, still stiff from the bandages surrounding her torso and the surgeries she had had to repair her internal organs.

I looked around once more.

Beomgyu was standing in the back of the room, still in uniform. I looked him in the eyes and nodded my head. He nodded and smiled slightly. I still wasn't sure how I felt about Beomgyu, but he deserved my respect for his own act of heroism that horrible day.

It had recently come to light that the man who had encountered me that day, Jeffrey Perkins, had become addicted to heroin and had been isolated from his family. He had shown up at our family store that night and needed money and a fix.