The luxurious hotel room was shrouded in a dim, velvety darkness, the only sound being the soft hum of the air conditioner, a gentle whisper that seemed to lull the world outside into a peaceful slumber. Min Ho stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, his gaze lost in the breathtaking panorama below. The city skyline twinkled like a canvas of diamonds scattered across the velvet expanse, a sight that usually filled him with wonder and awe. But tonight, his mind was a thousand miles away, ensnared in the labyrinthine corridors of his past.
As he stared out the window, memories of his childhood came flooding back, like a tidal wave crashing against the shores of his consciousness. He remembered the countless times his mother had lashed out at him, her anger and frustration palpable, like a living, breathing entity that seemed to pulse with a life of its own. He recalled the fights between his parents, the yelling and the tears, the way his heart had ached as he watched his family disintegrate before his very eyes.
The pain of those memories still lingered, a dull ache that seemed to throb in time with the beating of his heart. Min Ho's thoughts drifted to the day his parents finally divorced, a day that had left him feeling lost and alone, like a small boat adrift in a stormy sea.
The sudden ring of the bedside phone shattered the spell of his reverie, like a stone cast into the stillness of a quiet lake. Min Ho hesitated for a moment before answering, his voice a little shaky, like a leaf rustled by the gentle breeze. "Hello?"
"Hey, kiddo. It's Grandpa. I need you to come home tomorrow. It's important." Min Ho's heart skipped a beat as he wondered what could be so urgent. His grandfather's voice was low and gravelly, like the rustle of dry leaves, and it seemed to carry a weight of importance that made Min Ho's curiosity pique.
"Okay, Grandpa. I'll be there." He hesitated for a moment before adding, "Is everything okay?"
There was a pause on the other end of the line, and for a moment, Min Ho wondered if his grandfather had hung up. But then, he spoke, his voice a little softer, like the gentle lapping of waves against the shore. "Everything will be okay, kiddo. Just come home tomorrow."
As Min Ho hung up the phone, his gaze drifted to the wallpaper on his phone – a photo of his crush, the girl from school. Her smile seemed to light up the screen, like a ray of sunshine bursting through the clouds on a stormy day. He couldn't help but smile as memories of their time together flooded his mind. He remembered the way she laughed, the way her eyes sparkled in the sunlight, like diamonds scattered across the velvet expanse of the sky.
With a newfound determination, Min Ho decided to propose to her the next day. He quickly typed out a text message, his heart racing with excitement, like a wild mustang galloping across the open plains. "Hey, want to meet up tomorrow? I need to tell you something important." He hesitated for a moment before hitting send, his heart pounding in his chest like a drumbeat in the stillness of the night.
As he waited for her response, Min Ho couldn't shake off the feeling that his life was about to change forever, like a leaf blown away by the winds of change. Little did he know, the mysterious forces that had been at work in his family for years were about to reveal themselves, turning his world upside down, like a hurricane sweeping across the landscape of his life.