"Jennie..." Taehyung wanted to stop her; Jimin was already feeling crappy, so Jennie's question was obviously adding insult to injury.
"Don't butt in, let Jimin answer. He's a man, you shouldn't protect him like a woman," Jennie said, word for word.
"Ahem... sister-in-law, you sure are domineering." Bang Chan gave her a thumbs up.
Jimin looked up and said slowly, "Of course I get tired. I'm not Jesus, for not crying out loud, I'm still human. Sometimes I also feel like a fool, knowing that my feelings for her aren't reciprocated. I want Lisa to be by my side, but... things aren't that easy... I like her, and that's my problem. I didn't trouble her, nor did I purposely try to break them up, so I feel like my feelings for her are somewhat justified. Plus, to tell you the truth, when I fell for her, I didn't know she was married. No one wants to become the 'other man' on purpose, and I'm not a man who's short on women, so why would I target a married woman? I get all that, but my heart doesn't... I told myself to give up more than once, and that I will never get a chance with her, but every time I do, my heart begins to throb... In the end, I decided to push all those thoughts away and just like her. You guys all know I like Lisa, the entire world knows I like Lisa, even Lisa knows I like her. I think it's for the best. She's not mine, but my love for her isn't cheap or twisted... At least I won't hit Jungkook when he's down, and at least I didn't look for ways to break them up, right?"
The three of them fell silent upon hearing this...
Jimin was speaking the truth. He then added, "Honestly, you guys don't have to feel bad for me at all. I think it's rare for a person to meet someone he's willing to do anything for, it really is. Not everyone is as lucky as I am, so even if Lisa doesn't end up dating me, I still think it's for the best... I'm just letting things be, really... I don't want more from her... I'm satisfied as is."
Jimin knew that he couldn't be too greedy; it was good enough that he could occasionally see her, read her instagram updates, and listen to friends talk about her...
If she was meant to be his, she would be his one day. If she wasn't, then he was not going to force her...
So, he had decided to admit defeat and let things be... He was speechless that God purposely toyed him like this and arranged such a deadly encounter...
"My boy Jim..." Tears circled in Bang Chan's eyes, the grown ass man was so touched by Jimin's words.
"Don't cry, dude, I'm not dying. Let's drink."
Jimin smiled bitterly. Then, he picked up his beer bottle and went back to drink with Bang Chan and Taehyung.
Jennie calmed down and fell silent...
Truth be told, she was going to convince Jimin to give up; but after what he said, she thought he had a point.
He didn't hurt Lisa or put her in danger, so why shouldn't he be allowed to like her?
Forcing Jimin to forget about Lisa was a little cruel...
Jennie looked at Lisa and Jungkook's happy smiles on her phone and suddenly felt like it was a gift from God for Jungkook to still be able to get Lisa back, after 7 years.
*
After Bambam and Chaeyoung watched a movie, they shopped around.
Chaeyoung was your typical shopaholic and never left empty-handed.
Sometimes, she would force herself to buy some bras or panties if she really didn't know what to buy.
It had become a vicious cycle, so she didn't have a lot saved up over the years.
At super market, they walked around the shops.
"Huh, is that new? It's pretty..." Chaeyoung went inside a luxury-brand shop and looked at the wallet before her.
Although it was just a wallet, it was expensive.
She had even more bags than Lisa did, but she kept buying more and more.
However, she only bought what she could afford, and Lisa labeled her as a 'bag fan'.
"Miss, I'd like that wallet," Bambam said as he reached for his wallet.
"No, it's okay, I'll pay for it myself," Chaeyoung took out her wallet as well; truth be told, she had no intention of asking Bambam to pay.
"No, use mine," Bambam insisted.
The two of them stood there at an impasse until a sensible female employee took Bambam's bank card; that was his salary card.
"I'll take yours, sir." The female employee smiled and took Bambam's card from him.
Damn it... Chaeyoung felt incredibly awkward.
"Ahem... stupid cop, I really didn't want you to pay. You already spent so much during lunch today, those two rich assholes left right after lunch. I'm speechless... I feel bad for us normal folks," Chaeyoung complained about Lisa and Jungkook in a comical way.
Bambam looked down and laughed, "It's okay, I'll make sure to visit his mansion some time and steal a bottle of his wine. A bottle of his wine is worth my year's salary."
"I know how little you earn, can you not pretend to be rich?"
"It's okay. Ahem... although it costs two months of my salary." Bambam was embarrassed to tell her how little he earned.
He was the captain of the criminal police unit, but earned very little each month... public servants seemed to have it all, but their salaries were truly pathetic.
If Chaeyoung flew long-distance flights, she made more than triple the amount of Bambam's single month's salary.
All in all, the flight attendant made much more than the public servant.
"Gosh, I feel bad for you. You can't pay for this... all it's going to cost is half a month of my salary, I can afford it." Then, Chaeyoung turned around to head towards the cashier.
However, Bambam pulled her back by her collar.
"Chill, I never get to buy you anything, just take it, okay? I'm cheap, so who knows when I'll buy you another gift?"
Chaeyoung felt like she was walking on air upon hearing what Bambam said...
The truth was Bambam wasn't cheap, and he came from an extremely wealthy family.
However, he lived very stringently, and since most of his colleagues were from modest backgrounds, he never pretended to be above them all.
He could easily live off his salary since he lived and ate at home. Plus, the bureau offered allowances.
Therefore, he barely ever spent his own money and had plenty left to buy Chaeyoung a wallet.
Afterward, they walked out from the shop and got onto Bambam's Jaguar.
"You have work tomorrow, right? I'll drive you home," Bambam said.
"It's so early..." Chaeyoung was a little disappointed.
"What else do you want to do? Go to an inn with me?" Bambam teased her as he laughed.
"Screw you... I wasn't actually going to go with you, I was trying to piss them off on purpose."
"But Jungkook ended up playing us dead..." Bambam exclaimed.
"Yup, not only is her arrogant, but he's also secretly a pervert. Only someone as smart as Lisa can deal with him. I would never be able to catch up with his brain."
"Yeah, for some reason those weirdos ended up together." Bambam vented out his anger at them.
"Hahaha..." chaeyy burst out in laughter.
When Bambam started his car, he casually put his hand on the gear, accidentally brushing Chaeyoung's hand...
Sparks flew all over the place as their skin made contact...
Chaeyoung felt like something burned her, making her so nervous that she immediately shirked her hand.
Bambam, feeling awkward, immediately put his hand on the steering wheel.
The atmosphere immediately turned awkward; Chaeyoung looked out the car window and changed the topic, just like Lisa usually did. "It's snowing, the snowflakes are really pretty."
Bambam quietly nodded. "Yup, there are many kinds of snowflakes."
"Yeah?" Chaeyoung asked.
"Yeah, hard snowflakes, soft snowflakes, big snowflakes, little snowflakes... and don't forget, the snowflakes that fall off your hair after a few days without washing it."
"Bambam, you douchebag!" Chaeyoung cursed out furiously.
It could've been a romantic moment, but Bambam completely ruined things with his stupid humor...
"I can't believe you're the captain of the criminal police unit. I'd rather believe that monkeys sent you here to make a fool out of yourself." Chaeyoung poked fun at him.
*
Late night...
Inside an abandoned factory by the city outskirts, a middle-aged man with a knife scar on his face stared at a photo of a beautiful woman wearing a white lab coat and black-rimmed glasses.
"You're pretty and you're young. Too bad... too many people want you dead," he sneered.
The next morning –
After two relaxing days off, Lisa finally resumed her normal work schedule.
As soon as she arrived at South Side, Lisa went to the VIP room to check up on Soobin, since he recently underwent liver transplant surgery.
His mother, who donated a part of her liver to Soobin, was also in recovery. Lisa hired a maid in advance to take care of Soobin's younger brother.
"How's he doing?" Lisa asked Soobin's agent, who was guarding outside Soobin's door.
"Young Madam... Soobin's operation was successful, and the lead surgeon said that he'll be kept under observation for a while after he wakes up. Barring any complications, he'll be discharged in two weeks."
"After he's discharged, I'll make sure that the company doesn't sign him onto any movies or TV shows. He can occasionally do some magazine photo shoots or exclusive interviews, so let's allow Soobin to recover for 3 months. We don't have to worry about his popularity decreasing, JC will make sure he attends a lot of events."
"Thank you for being so considerate, madam." His agent smiled.
Lisa didn't want to interfere with JC Film and Television, but she always made sure to take care of Soobin.
She treated him like she did Haruto; she also sympathized with Soobin's childhood.
It wasn't easy for him, going from a homeless young man to a celebrity...
Soobin was still unconscious, so after Lisa reminded the nurses what to watch out for, she went into his mother's room located right next to Soobin's.
She looked fine; she had just woken up and looked a little pale. The nurse was injecting her with anti-inflammatory medication.
"Dr. Lisa," Soobin's mother opened her mouth weakly.
"How are you feeling? Are you experiencing any discomfort?"
Soobin's mtoher shook her head slightly. "No, I'm doing well."
"I'm glad."
"How is... Soobin doing?" worried, she asked.
"He's doing good, the surgery was successful. Don't worry."
"Good... that's good." Soobin's mother felt like a rock had been lifted from her chest upon hearing what Lisa said.
"Don't worry about your younger son either, I already asked the maid I hired to take care of him. Get better soon, and he'll come and visit you as soon as classes end."
"Okay."
"Get some rest. If you need me, just ask one of the nurses to come to find me."
"Okay."
Lisa paid for Soobin's younger brother's kidney transplant, as well as Soobin's liver transplant.
She didn't use the Oh Foundation's money, nor JC's. She spent over a million of her own money.
It was because she felt like it was worth it; she wasn't one to interfere with others' business, but if she did, she would hold herself accountable until the very end.
Chaeyoung once asked her, "Since Soobin is rich, why not ask him to pay for his own surgery?"
Lisa, however, answered, "He treats me like his sister, so I want to treat him like my brother."
They were sworn siblings... most of the time, people had to live in consideration for others.
If you treated me well, I will treat you even better.
Soobin once stubbornly gave up on signing with BigHit to cooperate with JC, causing an uproar in the industry.
Something like this was rarely seen in the entertainment world, and since Soobin was at the peak of his popularity, he had every reason to refuse Lisa.
But, he didn't. He stood out at a crucial moment and helped Lisa resolve JC's crisis.
Lisa will remember that for the rest of her life...
After returning to her office, her assistant came in, "Dr. Lisa, someone booked an appointment with you. He specifically asked for you."
"Sure, tell him to come in."
Lisa sat in her office, turned on her computer, and got ready to see the patient.
Just then, a 30-something man came in. He was wearing a black down jacket and had a horrific knife scar down his left cheek.
"Hi, where are you feeling discomfort?" Lisa asked formally.
"Are you Dr. Lisa?" The man stared at her face and asked.
"I am." Lisa looked up at the man with a weird expression on her face.
Before she could say anything else, the man covered her nose and mouth with a white handkerchief...
Everything happened so fast that Lisa didn't even have the time to think before she passed out...
Five minutes later, a middle-aged man wearing a white lab coat with a scar down his face put on a mask and hat and left South Side Recuperation Center with a massive woven bag in his hand.
"Dr. Lisa, another patient just booked an appointment with you, but lunch is in ten minutes. Do you want to see him right now or after lunch?" The assistant asked as she stood outside Lisa's office door.
"Dr. Lisa?" The nurse asked louder, but still, no one replied.
Curious, she pushed open the door and walked in, but there was no one in the office.
"Huh, that's weird... Dr. Lisa never left her office."
The nurse was confused; she had been greeting patients outside by the reception area this whole time, so wherever Lisa went, she should've seen her.
However, she didn't see Lisa go up or downstairs. Plus, when the last patient went in to see Dr. Lisa, she was still in her office.
It had only been less than 10 minutes, where did she disappear off to?
Weirded out, the nurse picked up her phone and called Lisa.
"I'm sorry, the phone of the subscriber you dialed is powered off. Please call again later." Lisa's phone was turned off.
"Huh, it's off? Did her phone... run out of battery?"
Puzzled, the nurse walked up to reception and asked the others, "Have any of you seen Dr. Lisa?"
"No."
"Nope, why?"
"She's missing."
"Missing? Are you sure? Did she go down to lunch at the cafeteria?"
"No, if she did, I would've seen her." The assistant nurse shook her head.
"Did she go out to have lunch with friends, and you didn't recognize her because she was wearing her own clothes?"
"I don't think so, if Dr. Lisa left, she would've told me. She didn't even finish seeing patients yet, and Dr. Lisa is a responsible person. She would never leave the patient waiting for her and head out to lunch." She had been working under Lisa for over a month, so she was familiar with her work ethics.
"She was alive and right there, I don't think she would've disappeared... Haha, don't worry, make an announcement on the intercom, if Dr. Lisa hears you she'll come back immediately."
"Okay."
Then, the assistant nurse ran up to the hospital's broadcasting room and made three consecutive announcements.
"Dr. Lisa of the Neurology Department, please head to your office now."
"Dr. Lisa of the Neurology Department, please head to your office now, your assistant is looking for you."
"Colleagues, please tell Dr. Lisa to go to her office if you see her."
After calling out for her three times, Lisa was still nowhere to be found.
After an hour, the afternoon began, and people began lining up for appointments.
However, the nurse still couldn't find Lisa and was anxious as ever.
"Director Li... you're finally here." Upon seeing the chief of the neurology department, the assistant nurse immediately ran up to her.
"What's wrong?" Chief Li frowned slightly.
"Dr. Lisa's gone," the nurse said as she ran around in circles.
"Gone? How? Tell me." Chief Li knew that Lisa was a responsible doctor and would definitely notify her before leaving.
Then, the nurse told director Li what happened...
The latter was well-informed and immediately felt like something was wrong. Therefore, she turned around to say to her own assistant, "Pull up the surveillance for the hallway outside Dr. Lisa's office, and find out if she ever left her office. People don't disappear into thin air, I have a bad feeling about this."
"Will do, Director Li."
20 minutes later, Director Li's assistant ran back.
"So?" Director Li asked.
"Director... Something's wrong, I couldn't find the surveillance you were looking for."
"You couldn't? Why not?" Director Li froze for a second.
"I don't know why, but the cameras have been broken since 10 AM this morning, so we don't have a recording of Dr. Lisa's office during that period of time."
"Is it a coincidence?" Director Li was now almost certain that something was wrong.
"What should we do now, director? Did something happen to Dr. Lisa?" Lisa's assistant was so worried that she was about to burst out in tears.
She had been a nurse for so long but never saw a doctor disappear. It was too weird.
"Call the police, I have a feeling that... something's off," Director Li pushed her glasses up and said in all seriousness.
"Usually, the police won't do anything... unless a person's been missing for at least 24 hours," Director Li's assistant reminded her.
"That's not the same. Dr. Lisa is someone of special status. The police won't sit there and do nothing. You, call 911," then, Director Li looked at Lisa's assistant and asked, "You, go to JC and let Lisa's husband, Jungkook know."
"Will do, Director Li."
– At JC Headquarters –
JC had been going over 3D setting photos for the corporation's New Year Gala. Since JC was a conglomerate, the entire city watched over every single move they made. Every year, other competing companies would fight to imitate the incentives, guests, and theme of his company's New Year Gala.
Therefore, no mistakes could be made...
Jungkook's right eyelid began twitching an hour ago...
Folklore has it that good things happen when the left eye twitches, while bad things happen when the right eye twitches.
He felt like something bad was coming his way...
He wasn't a superstitious man, but for some reason, he felt anxious.
Therefore, his fingers moved away from his mouse and he proceeded to send Lisa a WeChat message.
"Doll, are you busy? Have you had lunch yet?"
Upon seeing no reply, he called her anxiously.
"I'm sorry, the phone of the subscriber you dialed is powered off, please call again later."
"Her phone's off?" Jungkook raised an eyebrow as his expression became grim.
Lisa rarely turned off her phone during the day, and her assistant would help her charge it if it ran out of battery.
Unless something out of the blue happened. Therefore, he picked up his phone again and called the landline in Lisa's office, but still, no one picked up.
"Is she at lunch? Is she charging her phone?" Jungkook tried to console himself.
Just then, a series of rushed knocking sounds came from his office door...
"Come in."
"President Jeon, Young Madam's assistant from South Side is here to see you. She said it's an emergency," Lee opened the door and said.
"Tell her to come in."
The sinking feeling in Jungkook's gut was now more obvious than ever; Lisa's assistant at South Side was here – did that mean something happened to her?
The more he thought about it, the more unsettled he became...
"Hi, President Jeon, I'm, Dr. Lisa's assistant. Director Li told me to tell you that Dr. Lisa... is missing."
"Missing? What's that mean?" Jungkook's brain went into overdrive; as expected, something bad happened.
"Dr. Lisa disappeared from the hospital, we looked everywhere but couldn't find her. The surveillance cameras broke as well, and Director Li said that something must've happened to her. The hospital already called 911, and Director Li told me to come to tell you."
"When did this happen?" Lisa asked with a stern expression on his face.
"A little over an hour ago."
"Did she see anyone suspicious before she disappeared?" Jungkook asked calmly.
"Here's what happened, President Jeon... Dr. Lisa was seeing a male patient at the time..." Then, the assistant told Jungkook what happened...
Upon hearing everything, Jungkook was silent for a while, deep in thought...
He tried to find clues in what happened. Finally, he slowly looked up and asked her, "Do you remember what the last patient Dr. Lisa saw looked like?"
"Um... I can't remember. All I remember is that it was a man, and because he had his head down when he walked, I couldn't see his face." The assistant thought back long and hard but really couldn't provide him with more information. There were a lot of patients in the morning, so she had been busy that entire time.
"Okay, I got it, you should go back to the hospital."
"President Jeon... do you think something will happen to Dr. Lisa?" The assistant asked, incredibly worried.
"I won't let anything happen to her," Jungkook said, word for word.
After Lisa's assistant left, Jungkook's heart sank into the abyss...
He was sure that Lisa had been kidnapped, and the kidnapper was the male patient she saw before she disappeared.
However, what sucked was that someone tampered with hospital surveillance, and no one paid attention to what the suspect looked like.
He was certain that those people came prepared; they were there to kidnap, and she was their target.
"Lee."
"Sir, what can I do for you?"
"Clear my afternoon schedule, I'm heading out."
"Will do."
As soon as he left JC, Jungkook called Bambam.
"Locate Lisa's phone, as fast as you can."
"Ha, what's wrong? Are you trying to catch her in the act...?" Bambam jokingly retorted.
"Lisa was kidnapped." Jungkook was in an incredibly foul mood, and even his voice sounded deeper than usual.
"What? Kidnapped?" Bambam was flabbergasted by what he just heard.
Jungkook didn't respond...
"Kook, you're not joking, are you?" Bambam was in disbelief; why on earth would Lisa be kidnapped?
"I would never joke about something like this," Jungkook replied sternly.
True, Jungkook may joke inappropriately at times, but he never joked about Lisa's safety.
Her safety was his bottom line...
"Don't panic, I'll locate her for you right now." Then, Bambam immediately hung up.
For the first time in his life, Jungkook felt anxious and unsettled... he didn't know who kidnapped Lisa, nor where her kidnappers were holding her.
Would they hurt her? Would they beat her up? Ever since he found out that Lisa was missing... He felt like his heart was being torn apart, piece by piece...
Jungkook sat in his Maybach, smoking one cigarette after another.
He never believed in God and only believed in himself. However, this time he was scared; he was completely terrified.
He was already thinking about the worst-case scenario and he didn't want to even think about what his life would be like if he lost Lisa.
He ruthlessly smeared the cigarette butt in his hand and looked out his car window in despair...
"God, if you really do exist in this world... then I hope you can hear me. Please don't let anything happen to Lisa, or else I will go look for her, even if I end up in hell."
All of Jungkook's calmness, wisdom, and arrogance collapsed at that very moment...
All that was left of him was a husband who lost his loving wife; he felt helpless and hopeless.
*
When Lisa woke up, she realized that someone had put a blindfold over her eyes.
Her hands and feet were tied by ropes.
"Where am I, is anyone there?" she asked.
"You're awake..." A man's voice sounded.
She immediately recognized that voice; it was the man who she was seeing right before she passed out. He had a weird voice, so it was highly recognizable.
"It's you...? Weren't you a patient?"
"Dr. Lisa sure has a good memory." The man chuckled.
"Who are you, and why did you kidnap me? Do you want a ransom? How much do you want?" After realizing that she had been kidnapped, she stopped panicking. If this person wanted money, she was willing to strike a deal.
"Ransom? Haha... no, thanks, we already accepted someone else's money. The mission today is... to kill you."
Lisa's heart sank upon hearing this...
The scariest kind of kidnappers were ones who weren't interested in money.
"However, I'm not going to kill you just yet. Our mission isn't finished."
Then, the kidnapper took out his phone, punched in a number, and placed it by Lisa's ear.
"Tell your husband not to call the cops. If he wants you to live, he'll have to come alone," the scar-faced man said viciously.