Loud sirens blaring, a white and red truck arriving, the sound pierced through his ears.
...
Ryujin was scrolling through her contacts, trying to find a person to talk to. A certain one suddenly appealed to her.
'밤규 Teddy Bear'
Ryujin tapped on the contact, instantly calling him. Her sweet memories flashed in her mind, warmth invading her.
"Beomgyu?"
The person on the other line, Beomgyu, was busy studying for an exam he was taking. The sudden ring in his phone made him look up from the pile of papers and books. He took off his glasses, as he got up to check who was calling him at this hour.
'류진 내 사랑'
He suddenly froze, seeing the caller ID. Nevertheless, he swallowed hard as he picked the phone up.
"Yeah, I'm here."
"How are you?"
"I'm...okay. Have you been good?"
"I'm fine, but I was just missing you. Can you come over to my house?" Ryujin asked with a pout, even though he couldn't see her. Beomgyu on the other line already understood what she was doing, he had known her way too much to predict her actions.
"I-I...can't come visit. At an event."
Beomgyu lied through his teeth, he was at home, studying for something he didn't even care about.
"Oh...can you come tomorrow? I wanna see you." She asked, believing his white lie. Beomgyu's hands curled into a fist. He felt like crying, more at the fact that he successfully lied to her when he promised her that he's someone she could trust.
"O-Okay. I'll come."
Beomgyu bit his lip, guilt rushing through him. He could sneak out, but knowing the guards at his house never supported him, it wasn't the best option.
"Why do you seem so sad? Just brighten up a little!" She said, a hypnotic laugh escaping her lips. Beomgyu's eyes suddenly started to sting with hot tears. He quickly wiped them away, trying his best to seem happier in front of her.
"I'm not sad, just bored. But not anymore."
"Oh well, I wanna keep talking to you forever, but I gotta go eat dinner now." Ryujin said, hearing a call from her mother.
"Oh...okay. How much have you remembered?"
"A lot actually, I remembered you too. Still cannot remember that asshole that pushed me into the road and made me get amnesia." She said with a laugh. Beomgyu furrowed his eyebrows at her comment, confused as that wasn't what happened. But decided to not ask any further questions.
"Okay, mom's getting annoyed, I'll get going."
"I love you, bye!"
The call disconnected after that, with Beomgyu completely breaking down.
Tears trickled down his face, his heart aching, feeling guilty for everything he did to her.
~Flashback~
"You're what?" The girl stood speechless. Beomgyu hung his head low, crying his eyes out.
"I did everything I could, my dad..." He cried harder, as Ryujin stood in silence. She fought back tears, but she understood that there was nothing they could do.
The cold December wind blew by them, standing in silence as they questioned if that was the end for them.
A girl suddenly appeared in the picture, and her expression said that she wasn't in a good mood either. The girl ran up to them, standing beside Beomgyu and interlocking their arms together.
"Gyu, why are you still here?" The girl eyed Ryujin from head to toe with a hint of disgust. "Your father fixed our marriage, remember. You cannot just go around hanging out with random girls now. Be more loyal!" The girl scolded, as Beomgyu pushed her off him.
"I know you wanna ruin my life but can you not ruin someone else's?" Beomgyu said, stepping back from the girl who he was supposed to spend his life with.
"Why did you tell him to make me marry you?" He raised his voice at her, to which the girl backed away a little.
"Because I...I love you. And even your father agrees that it's better for me to marry you." The girl protested, to which Ryujin remained silent while Beomgyu let out a ridiculed laugh.
"You love me or just love my money?" Beomgyu asked. "Seriously, you only like the fact that both our companies will merge, and you'll get more money. I think I didn't know that?"
Ryujin stood beside them both, unable to say anything. She knew they were in too deep to even get out right now. She despised the girl in front of her, but she couldn't do anything about it.
The girl suddenly turned to Ryujin, walking close to her.
"It's all your fault." She said, in an attempt to make Ryujin feel embarrassed.
"Tell me, how good are you at brainwashing? Because of you I can't be with the one I love!" She suddenly shook her by her shoulder, showing her true side.
"You're crazy." Was all that left Ryujin's mouth.
"You bitch! I can't do anything without you ruining it!" She yelled at her face. Beomgyu immediately tried to get her off Ryujin, but her hold on the girl was too strong.
"Gold Diggers like you disgust me." Ryujin whispered, loud enough for Hyerim to hear it.
"Now let me go. Me and Beomgyu are over." She spoke, a teardrop sliding down her cheek.
"You've had your way. I'm sorry for being such a nuisance to you, Hye-eonnie." She said, her voice filled with regret, betrayal and hurt.
They used to be friends, best friends actually. But everything suddenly...changed. Her motives changed. All she cared about was revenge, and having her way. Ryujin hadn't even called her that nickname for a long time. She felt guilty for betraying her friend and leaving her hanging, but now that regret turned into hatred.
"I've always hated you, Ryu." Hyerim stood in front of Ryujin. She pushed the girl slightly, making Ryujin back away a little.
Funny how Ryujin was just a silent witness, and now the situation has completely flipped.
"Why can't you just let me be with Beomgyu? You're a whore, can't you just get another guy?" She mocked her, taking a step closer, making Ryujin back away even more.
"Hey! STOP IT!" Beomgyu shouted, they were already dangerously close to the road, mainly Ryujin. He quickly ran up to them, trying to take Hyerim away, if only he had been on the right time. He tried to separate both of them.
"Stop it!"
"JUST DIE, SHIN RYUJIN!" Hyerim pushed her hard, making her fall on the road, when suddenly a car sped, Ryujin couldn't get up in time.
"RYUJIN!"
~End of Flashback~
---------------------------------------
Timeskip: 5 months
Ryujin stood by the water fountain. She just stood there, admiring it, even stopping to take a photo before entering the art gallery.
Art was always her thing, and what's better for her to unwind than going to an art gallery? That's what she did, walking inside the gallery to destress from all the studies and hectic schedule.
Her eyes traveled around numerous paintings, feeling at awe at what people with just paint and brushes.
By now, Ryujin had gotten almost all her memories back. But because of her amnesia, she had to repeat her year because she had skipped most of university and getting back on track for a degree in medical science was not an easy job.
And she also remembered what happened between her and Beomgyu.
Beomgyu never told her about what truly happened, and she played along. He always pretended that they were still a couple, even though Ryujin knew that they weren't. After a few days of getting her memories back, she stopped calling him, knowing it would only get him in trouble.
"Ryujin?"
She suddenly turned around, seeing Beomgyu standing behind her.
"You haven't been calling lately," He said, stepping forward.
"Ye-yeah, I was really busy..."
"Beomgyu..." She hesitated, even though she knew that there was no harm in telling him that she had already gotten all her memory back.
"Let's talk outside." She said, as Beomgyu followed her outside, to the fountain. It was a secluded area, not a lot of people were there.
"So what do you wanna say?" He asked.
"I...I-I...remembered everything." She said, as Beomgyu's eyes softened. His smile faded, replaced with guilt.
"Oh...so that's why you haven't been calling. I'm sorry." He apologized, making Ryujin look at him in confusion.
"Why are you apologizing?" Ryujin questioned.
"You almost died because of me. If you want to break it off with me, I wouldn't blame you."
Both of them suddenly went awkward. It was just silence, and it was loud.
"I still love you." Ryujin spoke out loud. It was true, she still loved him, even though she shouldn't.
"Do...you wanna start over?" He asked with a small voice. "Without Hyerim in the picture."
"My dad canceled the marriage, because he kinda lost his temper that Hyerim caused an accident." He answered, Ryujin's face showed no emotion.
"You mean...finish what we started?" Ryujin asked, stepping closer.
"I promise that no one's gonna be between us. This time, I'll keep my promise. I swear." He said, a smile creeping its way to his cheeks.
"I'd like that."