Mrs Kim placed a plate of kimchi on the table and looked towards the hallway.
"Is jang Ha-ru coming to eat? He has been in his room all day?" She asked Mae-rin who was laying on the sofa scrolling through her phone with a smile on her face.
Her favourite group, Re-draft had announced a fanmeeting and she was interacting with some fans about how excited she was. She was so engrossed in her phone she didn't hear Mrs Kim talking. That was until her phone was snatched from her. She sat up angrily until she saw Mrs Kim glaring at her. Her anger lessened as she laid back on the chair.
"Mom!!" She complained as she tried to grab the phone back.
"Go call your brother to eat!" She said throwing the phone on the sofa before going back to the kitchen.
With a sigh she stood up and walked towards the hallway after snatching her phone from the sofa. She knocked on his door but she didn't hear anything on the other side.
She banged once again this time louder as she called his name. Finally feeling frustrated she opened the door. She looked around the room in question.
She walked into the room and turned on the main lights. She walked to the other side of the bed thinking maybe he was there but he wasn't. Her eyebrows rose in question as she walked out of the room.
"He isn't in his room." She said sitting at the dining table just as Mrs Kim placed the last plate of food on the table.
"Mhmm....I didn't see him leave." She said in wonder as she untied her apron. She hung it on a knob and sat down on one of the chairs.
"Ohh well he probably run off to meet those friends of his. I will just leave him some dinner in the microwave. " She said as she picked one of the rice bowls and took her chop sticks. "I hope he carried an umbrella. " She said her eyes glancing at the nearby window.
●●●●●●●●
Jang Ha-ru looked dejected as he walked down the empty street he didn't even notice the small droplets of rain slowly soaking his dry clothes.
He let out a sigh as he fisted his hands and tightened his jaw. He stopped in the middle of the road and closed his eyes.
He had hoped to find anything even a small trace of what could be left but he found nothing.
He felt like collapsing on the floor at that moment. He couldn't believe everything just collapsed after he left.
Tears pricked at his eyes as he felt suffocated. He felt a lump on his throat as he breathed out.
He didn't care as the rain fell on him harder.
He used to love the rain.
He always thought it could wash out his sorrow and pain. When it rained no one saw his tears or questioned why his eyes were red.
He bit his lip as a scream threatened to escape from his lips. Frustration filled his whole body threatening to explode.
He had thought what he read was wrong.
It was the one thing he treasured in the world he treated it like a precious egg.
He remembered all those eyes. Filled with happiness as they laughed.
He wondered where they were now. Were they fine?
He had separated assets to cater specifically to the orphanage but they cut them off. They took his assets and left them nothing.
It was the place he had grown up in.
He had reached such a high position..
He had worked hard and finally he had enough money to take care of them.
But all his efforts were in vain.
He felt his legs go slightly weak as they threatened to buckle under him.
He felt weak. He thought if he saw they were fine that he would feel better about everything.
About waking up in this strange world. Even reading news about his demise didn't invoke such intense feelings. He thought if they were fine that was all that mattered.
But everything was all in vain.
How can something so unfortunate happen, how could everything turn so wrong.
He felt his knees buckle and he fell on the pavement. He felt his warm tears against the cold rain as his heart ached.
After his demise the orphanage caught a fire causing many casualties and many deaths all his projects to expand it were seized and his trust fund towards the orphanage was seized as well.
Everyone he loved wasn't there anymore.
"Isn't this world too cruel to me!" He cried out looking at the sky as the tears flowed down his face. "You already had me why did you have to take them too?" He cried out as his hands fisted tighter causing his nails to dig into his skin.
He wailed as the sorrow felt suffocating.
He had said he would help them. He had promised. He had laughed and ate with them but in the end he couldn't.
He sat in the rain for a while before slowly standing up while he leaned against the wall. He slowly headed towards the familiar gate. He pushed against it and it opened.
He wasn't in the right head space. Everything felt like a daze at that moment.
He thought to himself.
What was the use of waking up there if everyone he cared for wasn't there anymore.
The tv was on as Mrs Kim and Mae-rin chatted and giggled about the main lead as they ate some of the peeled fruit Mrs Kim had prepared.
Just then the door opened and jang Ha-ru walked in. A zombie of himself. His eyes were puffy and lips quivering.
"Ohh my goodness!" Mrs Kim gasped as she quickly stood up. "What happened?" She said grabbing his shoulders gently.
"Mae-rin get a towel!" She pushed his hair back worry evident in her eyes.
Mae-rin quickly headed to the laundry room and got a towel. She handed it to Mrs Kim. She grabbed it and quickly wrapped it on his head.
"What happened did you lose another tournament?" She asked but all that met her worried questions was silence.
Suddenly he kneeled down on the floor.
"Honey? What happened?" She asked once again.
She had thought it was his usual antics after he lost a tournament but she sensed something was amiss. He didn't seem like himself the whole day there was definitely something bothering him.
She knelt in front of him.
"You will catch a cold." She said as she started drying his hair but stopped as soon as she heard a sob escape his lips. She grabbed his cheeks in her hands and made him look up at her.
And sure enough tears were rolling down his eyes. It held so much sorrow her heart stung seeing it.
"Ha-ru?!?" She whispered her voice low as she suddenly pulled him into a hug.
"It's going to be alright." She said hugging him tighter. She didn't care that her clothes were getting wet all she cared about was soothing the pain he held in his heart.
This only made him cry even harder.
Mae-rin stood in silence as she watched everything unfold she had never witnessed her brother like this before. Usually he would come home all mopy when he lost a tournament but he wasn't to this extent. He would sulk but as soon as you offered him his favourite ice cream you could his demeanor brighten up. But at the moment the person she saw in front of her was broken.
She felt her heart ache.
She questioned why she hadn't seen it before.
Did he hide all that pain from her?
Mrs Kim rubbed his back softly while she whispered in his ears that it was going to be okay.
He felt her sincerity as he leaned further into the hug.