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Where it all began.

It was the early beginning of spring on the fateful morning of February 8th, 2014.
 Jeongin's birthday.

He was turning 12 today. Seungmin, Minji and their parents had decided to celebrate his birthday on a beach. They'd barbecue meat, cook a meal on the portable stove, take a swim and probably play in the sand.

"How fun would it be" they thought.

Of course, they dint know how the day would end.

They slept over at Jeongin's the night before, they wanted to wish him exactly at 12am. They always did. They'd always stay overnight so they'd be together when it struck 12 on each other's birthday. They sung him a happy birthday song, to which Jeongin plugged his ears and said, "You guys' suck at singing" as they all laughed together at the remark on their singing.

"Wait until my voice hits puberty" Seungmin said, and they all laughed at him.

They watched Penguins of Madagascar before Jeongin fell asleep, and then Seungmin and Minji did too.

They were all so happy, as if nothing in the world could take the happiness away from them.

At least they spent the few hours that they had, happily while they were together.

The next morning, they were excited, as any other kids their age would be. It was around 2p.m when they finally got into Seungmin's car, since it was bigger, as Jeongin claimed. Which wasn't exactly true, it's was just that the other cars were cramped with all the things they were taking with them to the beach.

Jeongin's mom picked up the cake in the middle of the journey, and they continued again.

The three blasted whatever music they wanted, terribly singing along with the singer, but no one cared. They were having whatever fun they possibly could.

They got to the beach in an hour and a half, running out with the picnic mats and whatever their  parents handed them.

They stood there waiting for someone to tell them where they were going to sit. Once they were told where to put the things, they threw everything from their hands on the ground where they'd sit and rushed to grab the bag of beach toys.

Seungmin said, "We'll play with the toys later, how about we go in the water now?"

They immediately agreed, and all of them got rid of their clothes, because their parents made them wear the swimsuits inside of their normal clothes.

They informed that they were going in the water, and their parents said,

"Be careful in the water, don't go too far to the deep end."

                        "Yeah, yeah we know, we won't." They said, confidently.

Only if they knew what was going to happen, they'd never move from there. They'd never run from the place they were standing. They'd choose to play with the beach toys over going for a swim.

Jeongin's mom and dad pulled him towards them, and said,

"Happy birthday, son" and they both kissed his cheek.

He smiled at his mom and dad, and said,
"Thanks, Love you mom and dad."

"We know, we love you too. Okay, go now, quickly."

"Bye, see you later."

Jeongin ran with the others two towards the water, they splashed it on each other, ran behind each other. Just did what kids did on the beach.

If only Jeongin knew that his "see you later" would never come true, He'd never leave.

If his parents knew that it would be the last "I love you mom and dad" they heard from him, the last time they'd kiss him happily, they'd never let him leave their arms.

The three were now in the water, swimming, having fun.
But what they dint realize was they were floating farther and farther.

Not exactly floating away. But the water, which was once low tide, unexpectedly became high tide. They'd checked the weather, and it was okay to go for a swim.
How could this happen?

Jeongin said, a little fear in his voice "I can't touch the ground anymore"

Minji replied, "Hey it's okay, let just swim a little towards the shore, alright?"
Jeongin wasn't wrong, none of them could touch the ground with their feet anymore.

Waves started to form, and it kept hitting the three of them, but they stayed together as they slowly swam towards the shore.

Jeongin panicked, "I can't float, I can't swim"

Seungmin held him tightly and said, "Don't panic, I'm holding you. I won't let go."

But the waves got stronger and stronger. Before they knew, they were struggling to stay afloat.

Seungmin couldn't handle himself, and holding on to Jeongin just made it harder.

But, as he promised, he dint let go of him.

Another wave hits them, taking all three of them underwater.
Now people have gathered at shore, panicking that there are three kids in the water.
That caught their parent's attention as well.

Jeongin's dad, the best built out of all the dad's jumped into the water without a single thought.

Minji gasped and yelled their names once she came back to the surface,
 "J-Jeongin! Seungmin?"

She swam where she saw a hand and head, struggling to come to the surface, it was risky but she dint think much. She grabbed the hand cautiously, pulling out Seungmin, who gasped for a breath as soon as he was out.

"You're fine. You're okay. Jeongin? Where's Jeongin"

"He was just here; I was holding him"
He replied panicking

Jeongin's dad reached them, but something else caught his eye, Jeongin, floating a little far off. They saw that, they saw Jeongin was just there. His Father pulled him out, putting him on his back. He swam towards Seungmin and Minji,

"Hold my arm, whatever happens, do not let go."
Jeongin's father instructed them.

They nodded as his father started swimming back to the shore.

"Jeongin? Jeongin stay with us." Seungmin yelped.

"He's not opening his eyes, why's he not opening his eyes?"
Minji asked, scared.

We made it to the shore, Jeongin's dad acted quick in getting off Jeongin from his back.

He did whatever he knew about CPR, but it probably wasn't enough. We sat gasping next to him, with our parents rushing to us.

"Where's the lifeguard? Get help! SOMEONE GET HELP" Jeongin's dad yelled.

He hovered his finger's to Jeongin's nose and sobbed as he said
"He's not breathing."

He put his fingers to Jeongin's neck,

"Too slow... his heart.... is too slow"
He struggled to speak without sobbing now.

It'd been almost 20 minutes since they got out of the water, and help was just arriving.

The medics made haste towards Jeongin while the police cleared the crowd on the beach, leaving only the family of the three to stay.

They pulled Jeongin onto a stretcher, one of them pulled out a stethoscope, placing on his chest.

"There's water in his lungs" they said.

Immediately trying mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, accompanied by CPR. But it dint work. The water came out, but Jeongin dint get up, gasping for breath or anything.

He just stayed still. Not a single movement in him.

One of the first responder said in their walkie-talkie,

"Water in lungs, mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and CPR provided. No response."

"Check again."  A person over the system said.

They put a stethoscope back on his chest
"No heartbeat."

"Use the defibrillator" The person replied

They applied the two pad over his chest, charging him twice. He put the stethoscope to his chest again, waiting for a few minutes.

"No response."

"Call it." The same person replied.

"Victim Time Of Death, 4: 45p.m"

"We're sorry. It was already too late. He got water in his lungs."
The first responder spoke to Jeongin's father, who crumbled to the ground as soon as he heard it. Jeongin's mom ran towards Jeongin, pleading him to open his eyes. But he wouldn't.

He was gone.
It was too late.

Seungmin and Minji just stared, it was too much to process.

"Jeongin, get up. We're safe now. Why won't you wake up?"

Minji said, getting off the sand, shaking Jeongin.

"Minji, stop it."
Seungmin told her.

"Why? He'll wake up if we call his name. you know he's a deep sleeper"
Minji said, with tears that threatened to spill from her eyes.

Seungmin got up from the sand and pulled her in a hug.

"He's not waking up. He's gone. I couldn't keep him safe."

"No, no, no. It can't be."

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I put you in danger and couldn't keep him safe either."

Seungmin dropped to the ground saying that, the guilt settling in his heart, that would probably never leave.

"It's all my fault, I told him I'd keep him safe, but I couldn't."

Jeongin's dad crawled over to him, pulling him in a hug,

"It wasn't your fault Seungmin."

"No, it is. I-"
He cried in his uncle's chest.

"I'm sorry I dint realize what was happening sooner. I should've gotten there sooner."
He tried soothing Seungmin.

Jeongin's mother engulfed a crying Minji in her arms, trying to soothe her too.

Few minutes later, the police walked over to us. As soon as they did, Jeongin's dad got up, almost furious, and he yelled at them in frustration, sorrow and guilt.

"WHERE WAS THE LIFEGUARD WHEN WE NEEDED THEM?"
"WHY WAS THE WEATHER FORECAST WRONG?"

Yes, it wasn't exactly logical yelling at them about the weather forecast changing, since weather, nature itself, has a mind of its own which is controlled by its creator.

But the fact that there was no lifeguard at the beach, was weird.
They should've been there.
They could've saved all three of them then.

"We're inquiring sir, please calm down."

"CALM DOWN? I JUST... I JUST LOST MY SON."
He yelled as he choked on a sob.

Another, much younger police officer, came running.

"The lifeguard who was supposed to be on duty, wasn't at the station, he went to meet someone, during his duty hours."

Jeongin's dad scoffed at what he heard.

"I will sue. I will sue every one of you. Why was it not ensured that someone was at the station or not?"

Jeongin's mother approached him gently, crying but trying to stay strong.

"We can deal with that later. Please."

He turned around to the sound of her voice, hugging her and crying.

"Our son is gone. I'm so sorry."

They all cried for a little while longer, until the first responders came and covered Jeongin's body to take it to the morgue.

The other workers helped load all the things that they'd taken out for the picnic, but the three families couldn't care more about all of that anymore.

Jeongin's parents sat in the ambulance to the morgue, while the others drove to the hospital.

Seungmin and Minji claimed it was happening too fast. Before they even realized, it was the next day, after spending the whole night at the funeral home as the adults comforted each other while his parents arranged a funeral for Jeongin, they were now at the funeral. They don't even remember if they fell asleep through the night. It was the same anyway. All they could feel was emptiness, all they did was stare blankly.

People came, placed white flowers and paid their respects, ate funeral food and moved on.

But the two children- Jeongin's Best friends, and his parents; How were they supposed to move on?

They buried Jeongin the very same evening, the burial surrounded by their closest ones.

Seungmin and Minji, they were too young to process all this.
All they were able to do was pat his hair, caress his cheek, which was now colorless and cold.
They couldn't get themselves to speak.
They weren't ready to bid farewell to their friend.

Everyone said their goodbyes, kissed his forehead, said how much they loved him, and then his coffin was shut and lowered down.

Jeongin's parents cried, Seungmin and Minji cried  cried in the arms of their parents as they lowered him down.
 They couldn't believe it was happening.

He was getting covered.
Buried.

He was leaving them.

His life, his part of the story.
It was over.

He left behind people who loved him dearly, the same people he laughed and cried with.
Now they would cry alone, without him being around.

His parents did sue the lifeguard, only because it should never happen to anyone else.
 No one should lose their child like this.
They knew how much it hurts.

They were compensated, which they all thought was stupid.
Because no amount of money could compensate for him, nothing would bring him back. Nothing would heal the broken hearts.

They believed it would heal with time. Maybe. Maybe it would.

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