It was the next day. Throughout the whole night, Jiwon couldn't stop thinking about what Ryujin told them. She thought that once she gave them a clean slate and moved on, her and her family would finally live in peace, but oh boy she thought wrong.
She was currently in the kitchen, boiling some water to make coffee. When Ms. Lee entered, she saw Jiwon deep in her thoughts and quickly sensed that maybe she was thinking about the other night.
"Don't think too much, sweetheart. We'll figure something out. Like what old times say, 'good always wins'." Ms. Lee said, trying to comfort her as Jiwon gave her a small smile.
"I just never thought that someone like Jennie could be this messed up just because of her wrong-doings. I guess sometimes people are just stupid." Jiwon said, making Ms. Lee nod.
Once Jiwon was done making the coffee, she passed the cup to her mother as they both enjoyed it in silence.
"So, where are we all going to meet up?" Ms. Lee asked as Jiwon checked her phone.
"At Jungkook's house. He already sent me his address." Jiwon said.
"Is Soojin's parents going to be there too?" Ms. Lee asked as Jiwon silently nodded her head, without making eye contact.
Ms. Lee felt the pressure and an uncomfortable feeling radiating from her. She could see through her daughter's expression and eyes. Ms. Lee then placed the coffee mug on the counter and walked up to her.
"Sweetheart, you don't need to act tough. It's okay to feel vulnerable." Ms. Lee said as she caressed Jiwon's arm, making her sigh.
"After what's been happening to us and finding out who my father is, finding out that he has another family. It's a lot to take in and I don't think I'll ever be ready to face him." Jiwon said while looking down at her coffee mug.
"What happened between me and him, it's all in the past. You don't need to worry about that and if you're not ready to face him and talk to him you don't have to; no one is forcing you. You do what you think is right." Ms. Lee said as Jiwon nodded her head.
"But if you were to ask me what you should do when you meet up with him. I would say for you to get closure from him. For me, I don't really care because what we had is all in the past and we both moved on. It's only you now for you to decide if you want that closure or not." Ms. Lee said while they both exchanged smiles and hugged it out.
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Everyone was in the living room (at Jungkook's house) trying to figure out how to stop Jennie and to put her in jail, but first they needed evidence. While everyone was trying their best to come up with something, Jiwon was the only one that was distracted and having a hard time to concentrate. Jungkook was the first one to notice Jiwon's odd behavior.
"Jiwon, are you okay?" Jungkook asked as everyone turned their attention to her.
Jiwon took a deep breath and shook her head.
"I need some fresh air." Jiwon said while getting up and walking towards the backyard.
Jiwon was breathing in and out trying to calm herself down, while back inside the house everyone was worried and confused.
"Ms. Lee, do you know what's wrong with her?" Jungkook asked as Ms. Lee kept quiet.
Everyone wanted to know so they can help her, but once Ms. Lee's eyes landed on Mr. Seo they all nodded in understanding.
"I'll go talk to her." Mr. Seo said as Mrs. Seo and Soojin nodded her head in agreement, while everyone hesitated and wanted to stop him.
"If I don't talk to her now, it'll be even more suffocating for her." Mr. Seo said, convincing the rest of them as he made his way to her.
Jiwon was looking down at her hands not noticing Mr. Seo had walked up from behind her. She only turned around when she heard him clear his throat.
"What are you doing here?" Jiwon asked with a little bit of an attitude.
"I came to check on you if you were okay." Mr. Seo said, making Jiwon scoff.
"Why do you care now? When I wasn't born yet, you didn't care at all or when my mother was taking care of me, you didn't bother to show up and visit me, not even once." Jiwon said as Mr. Seo sighs understanding her feelings and emotions at the moment.
"You have every right to be mad at me. What I did to you and your mother can never be forgiven and I've learned my mistake now. Right now, I want to make things right, by you and your mother. I can make it up to you for all the years that you grew up without a father and I'm willingly to be a father figure to you from now on." Mr. Seo said as Jiwon looked away from him.
"I know that you may not want me as your father but that's the least I can do to make up for my mistake that I made 24 years ago. Just please give me a chance to be a father figure to you." Mr. Seo said as a tear streamed down Jiwon's face.
"Do you know how much my mother and I have suffered because of you?! She could barely put food on the table for the two of us even when she was working overtime. I had to watch my mother silently cry to herself at night because of all the stress and I couldn't do anything about it because I was too little then to understand, but I understood enough to know that my own father left us. When I was a little kid, the children at school would always bully me for not having a father, but I didn't care about that. What hurts me the most is that you left us with a deep wound that will take time to heal and make us go through so much hell for you to come walking back into our lives 24 years later and act like nothing has happened and wanting to be a father figure to me." Jiwon said venting out all of her anger that she was feeling at the moment.
"I'm sorry that you and your mother had to go through all of that and I truly am sorry. I'm going to admit that I was a coward back then. When your mother told me that she was pregnant, I panicked; I didn't know what to do so I thought of an easy way out for me and that was to leave your mother before you were born and get married to the woman that I love. And I know that me messing around with your mother when I'm already engaged was stupid and irresponsible of me and I regret to this day because not only I hurt your mother but I also hurt an innocent life that didn't know anything at all." Mr. Seo said as Jiwon wiped her tears away not wanting to be weak in front of him.
Mr. Seo then walked up to her and held onto her arms.
"When Soojin was just newly born, I looked at her and held onto her and that situation reminded me of the woman and a child that I left behind because of my stupid actions; but I won't make that same mistake twice." Mr. Seo said, making Jiwon look up at him.
"I may not be there for you when you were born or when you were growing up, but I can be here for you from now on. I'm not trying to walk back into your life to be a father figure because I needed to, it's because I wanted to. I want to be a father to you and I want to be there for you because you are also my daughter." Mr. Seo said as Jiwon looked down and continued to shed tears. Mr. Seo's eyes start to get watery as he wipes away Jiwon's tears and gently makes her look up at him.
"You are my daughter and I love you. I regret my decisions for leaving when your mother told me she was pregnant. Even if your mother and I live separately and have our own lives, I should've visited you and watch you grow up and be a father figure to you. But from now on, I won't go anywhere anymore. I won't leave you ever again. I will be here for you when you need me and I will be doing my best to make up for my mistakes and be a father figure that you always wanted, okay." Mr. Seo said as Jiwon nodded her head.
Jiwon continued to cry as Mr. Seo pulled her into his arms and landed his shoulder for her to cry on. Jiwon and Mr. Seo was enjoying their first ever father and daughter time as everyone was inside watching the scene unfold. Ms. Lee has tears streaming down her cheeks as she wipes them away and a small smile displayed on her face, seeing Jiwon opening up to her father and finding closure with him.
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To Be Continued
July 2, 2020
I am very sorry, guys. I said that I was going to update a lot more in June but life has been bitting me in the ass (about my family issues) and have been stressing my life out especially since I'll also be going to college this fall semester; but I'll try my best and update you guys very often as I can and I will finish this book this year.
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