The Cutting Edge

002

Hyunwon took another deep breath and let it out slowly. He's right, it's raining so heavily there's probably a jam on the roads. She'll be here soon.

By half seven, he was beginning to get worried. It took approximately forty-five minutes to get from the broadcasting station where she had her last schedule to the church in the suburbs and although there were a couple of potential bottlenecks along the way, it was unlikely that it would cause a delay of more than half an hour. Taking out his phone, he quickly dialled her number.

"Come on... Pick up..."

No one answered the phone.

Walking straight towards the main doors, Hyunwon stood at the foyer and peered down the road through the pouring rain. There were cars shuttling to and fro, kicking up waves of water upon unsuspecting passers-by along the pavements, but none of the cars pulled to a stop in front of the church.

He dialled Seorin's number one more time.

"Pick up the phone..." he murmured to himself. Right now, he was beyond himself with worry. Given the torrential rain, he couldn't help but wonder about the worst. If he were to receive a phone call from the hospital right now, he would likely go insane. The dial tone went on for a couple of minutes, but still no one picked up on the other end.

Sighing, Hyunwon ended the call and was about to dial for Seorin's manager instead when an incoming call got in the way. Without even stopping to think for a second, he immediately hit the "answer" button and placed the phone against his ear. "Seorin? Is that you? Are you alright?" he burst out.

"It's me," Remington's voice came echoing from the other end.

When he recognised the voice, Hyunwon's shoulders sagged downwards in disappointment. "What is it, Remy? If it isn't important then I'll talk to you later. I need to make some calls now alright?" he said irately.

Before he could end the call, Remy's voice quickly called out again, "Don't hang up on me! I think you need to hear this. It's about Seorin."

The mention of Seorin's name managed to grab his attention. He gripped his phone tightly in his hand, keeping the receiver pressed against his ear.

"Are you near a television at the moment? If you are, you should quickly turn on MBC news," Remy continued.

"How is this relevant right now, Remy!" Hyunwon shouted. Seorin could be involved in an accident, yet his friend was telling him to watch the news. It was ridiculous. "You said it was about Seorin. What is it exactly?"

"Trust me, you'll want to see this."

Sighing in exasperation, Hyunwon looked around. Across the road from the church was a row of shops, one of which appeared to sell electrical appliances including television sets. There were several television screens showing music videos and other programmes in the shop window. Since there wasn't time to look for an umbrella, Hyunwon decided to brave the rain and dash across the road.

Running into the shop quickly, he parked himself in front of one of the television sets and flicked the channel to MBC, ignoring the cheerful greeting of the shop assistant.

"—spokesperson for MX Entertainment announced that rising star Kara Jung will be making her debut on the international movie scene through the romance film 'The Last Goodbye', starring alongside the likes of international stars Chris James and Keira Grey. According to the agency, Kara will be flying to Los Angeles tonight for the signing of the contract and filming will begin in a few weeks' time. MBC News reporter Im Hansuk reports from Incheon International Airport."

The studio footage of the news anchors gave way in exchange for a live report from the airport, with which an all-too-familiar face entered the screen.