Come Rain or Shine

On thin ice

Chan takes a deep breath and closes his eyes.

"I asked PD-nim to cover it up for me. I was the one asking him to hide my marriage and my kid, Jihyo. Not the other way around. I made Mina and Sujin live in the shadows. But she really understood my situation, she supported the decision as long as she could keep the baby she said. Mina could have a career in a big musical production but she turned down everything to get pregnant. For 5 years, I could see that Mina was so happy. She was busy with teaching, but she was so happy that she could come home to her kid. I realized that I was never in the picture no matter how hard I tried"

Jihyo could only hear what he tried to say. Chan rarely talked about his family to Jihyo.

"When I decided to be there for my family, I knew that she wasn't thrilled. But our family supported the decision, I wanted to be there for Sujin and Mina. I am a father and I should take care of my family. Felt so right at that time. But turns out, my music and my work are also more important than anyone else. We became a family in the public eyes, but we don't feel like a family"

"Do you even care for your daughter Chan?" Jihyo asked out of curiosity.

"When she was born to this world I thought I wouldn't care, but when I held her. I cried, Jihyo. You know I rarely cry. I really love her and I want the best for her"

"Then why are you pushing your daughter away?"

"I am not pushing her away, I do want her to get the best education. Mina and I were away from home since we were young and look at us now, we're a good example for Sujin"

Jihyo is confused, "You mean, lonely?"

Chan then looks at Jihyo in disbelief.

"I don't get you, Chris. You know how lonely you were when you first arrived in this country at the age of 15 alone, how hard it was and how terrified it was, and now you did that to your daughter"

Chan can't say a word.

"Do you even love Mina, Chan?"

"I sometimes question that to myself as well. Do I love her? Does she love me?"

Jihyo look Chan in the eye, "She loves you, otherwise, she wouldn't stay in this marriage with a guy like you for 13 years"

Chan shook his head and smiled to himself.

"You're wrong, Jihyo. For me, yeah Mina helped me overcome my darkest phase, getting me out from my slumps. But to her...........she never really gets out from her past. The past that I never know because she never trusted me with that information because she didn't believe in me. When you love someone, you know that you could tell each other things, you should be there in a good and bad situation, but Mina never opens up to me"

Jihyo knows that. Mina never tells a soul about what she felt inside. About her greatest lump, she buried that feeling inside her heart and she never let someone access that pandora box. She held it to herself and no one knows whether she already forgot about that or not. But that thing changed Mina a lot.

Jihyo could only look at Bang Chan without saying anything.

"When I think about it, about my life. I sometimes blame you, Jihyo. I really wish that you never introduced me to your friend, to Mina. Would my life be totally different if I didn't cheat on you? I regret that Jihyo-ya, I regret that I cheated on you..................."

"Stop right there, don't continue"

Chan smirking again give her a sarcastically look once again, "Yes I am gonna stop because the next question would be, what if I asked you to choose between me and Mina, and you will always choose your friendship to her"

Jihyo smirks and looks at Bang Chan in the eyes, "You don't love me, Chan, you only want security, you kept Mina for your own good cause you aren't confident without her, you love yourself more than anyone else. You aren't capable of loving someone"

"That's not true, I.................." Chan got a little offended by her words.

"Now I really feel bad for Mina, and to myself for loving you"

Jihyo then leaves her seat and storms off leaving Bang Chan alone.

"YA, PARK JIHYO!"

Chan calls her name thrice but Jihyo just walks away and leaves him. Jihyo goes to her room and looks at herself from the mirror. Her heart is beating so fast.

She's mumbling bad words too many times as she is just shocked by what happened.

Jihyo never knew that all this time that she's still in love with Bang Chan, she never realized that. Jihyo becomes so harsh tonight to him, to push him away because Chan is right, Jihyo will always choose her friendship over a man. Jihyo can't believe that she said something harsh to Chan about him being incapable of loving someone, Jihyo was just mad. Jihyo gave this man up for her best friend because Jihyo knew that only Mina could make Chan's out of his pit hole, vice versa. Jihyo felt that because of Chan, Mina found herself again. That was the basic reason why Jihyo gave up on Chan. Jihyo cares about these two and it would be great if they could help each other.

But tonight Jihyo also finds out that both are living in a miserable life. But, for what it's worth, they endured and they overcame their past and lived their life.

Jihyo just wanted them to be happy. Just like when Jihyo believed when she gave Chan up for Mina.