It was night of 21 Feb 2015, the sky was dark as black. clouds had swallowed the entirety of stars and moon, the cold breeze was flowing indicating the coming of rain.
Just then lightning flash, illuminating the roads and the cars, for a flick of seconds to end up in a loud rumbling sound.
Nail biting, trembling legs shooking the floor of the car, a woman was sitting on the driver's seat, waiting. Her expressions were of discomposure. Some line arches on her forehead with the changing weather.
With each passing seconds, she was reaching to her phone only to be left with black surface and disappointment.
A child around seven sitting on the back seat looked at his mother's face, they were all off to celebrate his only beloved sister's birthday but suddenly a call made his father leave first to other locations and they were told to wait inside the car.
His eyes were closing due to the exhaustion.he looked outside at the rumbling sound. they were sitting in the same position for past one hour. Where his father suddenly left them, saying he would come back in a few minutes.
The child looks at his wrist watch, it shows 11:30 pm. his eyes widen.
''OH NO!" He exclaimed loudly. "Eomma we are going to be late, can't we go first?," he asked not wanting to end up here till 12:am.
"Gyu never likes me being late," he continued, shrugging his shoulder."
"Tell appa to come fast! Or.. let's go without him!" He said folding his hand in front of his chest showing his annoyance on his father's disappearance.
"Just some more seconds Garam" her mother said gazing at her phone.
This was the third time she says the same words.
"Gyu will be mad! Our birthday cake will also taste bad!" Garam exclaimed. "I want to cut them together. last time I missed it...and she cried for a dozen" his face squeezes with the memory.
"Even though I had to share my chocolates with her for 2 months, I can't make her upset again, there's only 30 minutes left eomma," he whines keeping his both hand on the upper edge of his mother seat shooking her, "We will be late." He said rubbing his sleepy eyes to keep himself awake.
His mother looked at him, schooling her worried expression She gave him a small smile, "wouldn't it be better, to go with all of us, just some more minutes Garam...and we will be there" she said. Though her heart was still not clicking with her words.
Garam pouts, and looked outside. The cold breeze brush through his hair giving them a wave, his eyes were again feeling heavy.
With an increasingly rumbling sound she closed the mirrors and just then her phone screen brightened.
She hurriedly picked up "How much long honey, where you left?, Is it really important to leave, more important than gyu's birthday! She exclaimed.
"H-hana" he whispers, just by his voice she can predict something is not right.
Something happened.
''Where are you?" She asks curiously, praying nothing comes heartbreaking from her husband's mouth.
"F-fire, was a big A-ambush," his voice was trembling. "W- we lost them" he said stuttering.
"W- what is the meaning of this?" she muffled her voice which was about to burst because of her shock.
She looked back, Garam head was resting on the side mirror, he was dozed off.
"I-I was of nothing to help" he said in a muffled voice as if something stuck in his throat,and in just the next second he coughed.
"Breathe... Breathe.. i can't understand you, your voice is not clear" she made excuses, denying the words she just heard. How can it happen when they were going to be together in just 1 hr. Right? Is it some kind of thriller? No!.
"T-they were t-together, the b-breaks failed and in the blink of a second it was b-blown away wi.."
"Where are you, I'm coming!" She asked, cutting him in the middle.
"Just sent me the location," she said starting the car engine.
"T-they.."
"No more words yujin, i won't believe this nonsense unless I see them myself!" Her voice was resolute.
****
[Xis-Co Hospital]
The people standing in the hallway and the white long coat wearing doctors were talking among themselves.
-"The body was so blackened, I can't even recognise who she was."
-"Only a wallet was of help contacting them."
-"My god!, it must have been a horrendous sight, may the lord bless the souls."
-"Was there more than one body?"
-"Ah..a child corpse was founded on the seat hanging outside of the door."
Hana who was running through the hallway of the hospital, her legs stumble at the mention of a burnt child.
"You ok?" A white coat person approached her helping her to stand.
"Where, where is the child?" She asked.
"Child? Are you here for the newborn, it's there" he pointed to left.
Hana shakes her head. Her eyes were welling up, "Where is the B-burn..N-no," she shook her head.
"where is the patient whose car got into fire?" She couldn't muster up the courage to say the burnt, in her heart she is still hoping, maybe just maybe by a fine chance she heard wrong, yujin got the wrong person, maybe she's still alive. Right?
The person understands her plea and takes her towards a different direction.
"Where are you taking me". She asked, finding the direction apart from the hospital regular part.
"Mam please follow me" he calmly said.
And in just a minute she stood in front of the isolated cremation room.
Her all hopes and prayers for the child to be alive crumbled in front of her.
Keeping her heart stone she gazes again towards the door.
The person moves back understanding she needs to face it head on.
Hana took the steps and slightly pushed the door, inside was her husband sitting on the floor clutching a pink ribbon clip, its edges were blackened due to smoke, the very clip Garam made for Gyu after breaking her favourite bear clips. All she could remember was more than Gyu,Garam was the one who shed lot of tears for breaking it.
She muffled her sobs by her hands. And with slow steps she reaches to her husband.
And sits beside him, keeping her hand on his fold, she looks at the two bodies.
She raised her hand, removing the white cloth from the face of the body.
She immediately squinted her eyes watching such a heart rendering scene.
Gyu was nowhere recognisable, her pink skin was nowhere colorful but dark brownish and shrinked. The hair was shriveled, nose dislocated, the squishy face she loved to see every morning was now a charred corpse!.
She cried, hugging her husband who was now silent and not speaking anything.
After some minutes passed, she gazes towards the second covered figure.
"Was it her?" She asked pointing towards the other corpse. He nodded. She couldn't find the next words to say in herself.
"Is that what karma,they say?" He looked at her, in her eyes he looked so pitiful.
She shook her head, "I loved her the same as you did, she was my daughter too, I loved her too" she rest her head on his shoulder.
"Garam!..where is Garam?" He asked when something hit him. Garam shouldn't know about gyu, he will be distraught, they can't lose him again.
"We can't let him know" they both said together in panic.
In hurrying she had completely forget about the baby she left in the car, only to be watched over by guards. She exhale, calming a bit.
"He was asleep in the car, guards said they would watch him for me". She said.
He sighed in relief.
Suddenly the door burst open with that crying Garam emerges.
"Eomma i again failed in our promise, she will leave me, i broke her trust again" he runs to her, wailing.
"Garam?" Their eyes widen.
"Mam, he was crying after waking up, i couldn't stop him so I brought him inside but he ran on his own here" the gaurd who came running after garam,was panting, said.
Garam, who never visited a cremation room before, unaware of his surroundings and mournful environment, he cried.
"Appa eomma please let's go! She might still be waiting."
Just then his eyes drop at the half uncovered body, their eyes widen 'No! It can't be', the only thought ran in their head. they both leap towards the body. But it was already late. Garam gaze was already fixated on the body.
Garam couldn't figure out why he's feeling as if he has seen this somewhere before, his eyes drop at the hair. a burning sensation erupted in his heart. this hair..this vary black hair... though it seems burnt at the end, but shiny on the top, it reminded him of someone, his hand raised a little, he don't want to think this but the only beautiful face flickered in his mind "G-gyu?" He muttered. His tear traced cheeks clenched a little, but before he could realise something he was pulled back by his parents.
He turned towards his eomma and appa not understanding anything,and opens his mouth just then his face brightens and a cheerful smile replace on his face and breaking their clutches he runs towards the gate engulfing a small body who was standing in front of the door.
"Garam is sorry, is so sorry.. please don't hate me, i was late for our birthday" he hurriedly said engulfing the body.
But he didn't felt the body hugging him back instead he was pushed to the hard floor, and the frail body looked at him in disgust.
"D-DON'T HUG me" the kid shouted, wrapping it's hands around his loose tshirt, as if securing himself, while dipping his head down letting his mid length hair covering his face, and through the locks, sharp big black eyes was only seen.
He was staring sharply towards garam.
"G-gyu?" The three of them whispered, having different emotions, Hana and Yujin with bewildered emotions and Garam with shock.
'GYU' no matter how much she was mad.. Always melted away whenever he hugged!.