HIRAETH

23. Moonlight confession

After returning from the cafe, Ahru retreated into the solitude of her room, the weight of her discoveries pressing heavily upon her.

She spent the entire day immersed in articles and reports about Kim Jong In and the circumstances surrounding his tragic death. Each word she read seemed to carry a profound heaviness, painting a bleak picture of a young man's life cut short under mysterious and violent circumstances.

The details about Kim Jong In's younger brother only deepened Ahru's sense of sorrow and understanding. Tied up, unconscious, covered in bruises, and hospitalized for mental trauma-such horrific details painted a haunting image of the trauma that had befallen the Kim family.

Ahru couldn't shake the realization that Taehyung, at the tender age of fourteen, had endured a period of absence from school during this tumultuous time.

As she processed these revelations, Ahru's thoughts drifted inexorably towards Taehyung. She now understood why he might have harbored such intense emotions, possibly even resentment or hatred towards her. The weight of her own assumptions and prejudices weighed heavily on her heart.

She had been so quick to judge him, to attribute his distant and cold demeanor to personal animosity towards her,
But now, confronted with the reality of Taehyung's past, she realized her perspective had been narrow and self-centered.

Maybe he knew her relationship with him? ? But she forgot he had always been odd with her ever since their friendship in school

She remembered all the times Taehyung had ignored her, treated her with indifference or outright hostility. Her mind replayed scenes of their encounters, especially that fateful day when she had witnessed him at the scene of Chanyeol's death. At the time, she had hastily jumped to conclusions, allowing her anger and grief to cloud her judgment. Now, faced with the possibility that Taehyung's behavior had deeper, more complex roots, she felt a deep sense of remorse.

Closing the laptop borrowed from Sehun, Ahru felt overwhelmed with conflicting emotions-guilt, confusion, and a profound sadness for the misunderstandings that had clouded her relationship with Taehyung. She couldn't bear to dwell on the possibility that she had unjustly despised someone who had suffered so greatly, someone who may not have deserved her scorn at all.

Feeling emotionally drained and unable to face Taehyung just yet, Ahru left the room with a heavy heart. She needed time to process everything she had learned, to come to terms with her own misjudgments,

...........

She strolled in the garden thinking what ifs and all possibilities. Some of the bodyguard in house were sleeping and some were on the guard on the verge of dozing off and knocking themselve on ground.

The night air was chilly and strangely it gave comfort to her cold heart. She stared at moon with so many questions swirling in head waiting for him to answer until a sudden rustling in distance caught her attention and she walked towards the living room, Only to found nothing .

"Aniyaaaaa ~~~~~you can do it 4~~~~~~~~~."

She found out where the sound came from. It was from Taehyung's study room . She rushed over and found Taehyung squatting near something. All the lights were off so she couldn't see what it was and what Taehyung's expressions was.

"I'm sorry I was busy today and i didn't pay attention to you, but you can't just sulk at me and ignore me just like that." he whined.

Confused, Ahru step forward slowly not disturbing him unable to control her rising curiosity.

"What are you doing???." she spoke in low voice startling Taehyung who whipped his head looking at her with big doe eyes, and without answering( really bad habit of his )he asked Ahru to crouch down with him.