His hands were trembling. He was inches away from passing out just by trying to fight back the tears while wrapping around inside his head everything that has happened in the past couple of hours. He paced back and forth inside that small white office feeling uneasy, with only the ticking sound of the clock and his own heartbeat were visibly heard.
"It's okay, Haneul. Everything will be okay". he whispered to himself with his fist clenched and heavy sighs each time he paces.
The door in that room opened and a man, maybe nearing his forties, stepped in holding what seemed like a pile of folders. He saw him place all of it in his desk and calmly looked at him unsurprised by this sudden visit.
"Good Morning Mr. Lee.. I am inspector Jeong". the man held his hand to shake while formally introducing himself. "I am the person assigned to find your missing person".
"S-she's not just MY missing person". he emphasized, trying to conceal all his emotions. "She's my wife-..."
"Nonetheless, she is still a missing person. And under these circumstances, don't you think it would be best if we look for her after all this?". the inspector calmly advised which made him even more angrier by the minute.
"What do you mean after!?. Am I supposed to wait here while my wife is out there in that flashflood, not knowing if she survived or what!?". he began to loose his temper that he so hardly tried to control as his voice rose an octave higher. "We are talking about my wife here-..."
"And we are all trying our best to save survives-...". inspector Jeong also raised his voice in an authoritative way, to show he was still in control of the heated conversation forming between them. "Whatever is left of them".
And that was the last straw of his patience, when he quickly grabbed the inspector by his collar with his jaw clenched and nostrils flaring from anger.
"My wife is still alive!". he shouted angrily. "She is still out there. S-she is still there!".
Lee Haneul should have stayed calm and knew better thank to assault an officer, but he just couldn't. It was his wife's life on the line, the only person he has ever loved his whole entire life. And hearing from someone else that she might not have survived this disaster hurts even more than knowing she is out there fighting for her life. Aera is all he has, she is all he had ever lived for. And if anything happens to her, Haneul knew he would blame himself for not doing anything else than this.
"Mr.. Lee p-please...I-i can't breath!". the inspector pleaded with a trembling voice.
He looked at inspector Jeong and saw the fear from the latter's eyes. And so Haneul took one heavy breath and slowly released the man from his grip.
"L-look, I will try my best to look for your wife". inspector Jeong said while fixing the collar his crumpled suit. "But for now I suggest for you to take it easy. We might have a long week, or months ahead of us".
"J-just do whatever it takes to find her".
And with that he left the police station empty handed and with the heavy heart he looked outside the dark gray sky where flashing thunders appear while the coldness of the wind cuts through the numbness of his now tired body, he whispered "Hang in there, Area.. I promise I will find you, whatever it takes".