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Minhee doesn't cry.

She doesn't cry when her mother falls to the ground with Jeongguk's arms around her and starts hitting him. For a moment or two, Minhee just stares at the hospital floors. The yellow stain from rusted machines is still there.

She walks towards the elevator without saying a word. Dahyun, who is in tears herself, doesn't try to approach her either. Jeongguk calls his secretary, tells Dahyun to look over at Mrs Yoon before he follows Minhee.

She sits in the garden, staring at the flowers. They are fake, she knows it from the way they even shine in a place like a hospital.

She doesn't cry when Mr and Mrs Jeon come an hour later and engulf her in a hug. They cry too, say something about her dad being a good person and Minhee agrees.

Her dad is a good person.

Mr Jeon says something about Daejun leaving them alone too early and Minhee doesn't agree.

He said he won't go anywhere.

The funeral takes place the next morning. Jeongguk steps forward in arranging everything and the whole country grieves the loss of a revolutionary businessman in the cosmetic industry.

People who Minhee doesn't know or recall come and hug her, repeating the same thing over and over again. Stay strong. They said, For what? She asked.

In the afternoon, she stands with her mother and Jeongguk in the reception room as people come to pay their respects.

Mrs Yoon cries and cries until she's exhausted and sitting down. Her friends come to soothe her, Jeongguk forces down a few gulps of water down her throat and gets her seated outside at one of the tables.

Minhee, however, seems to have not processed the news yet. Jeongguk is hesitant to approach her, knowing that inside she's dying to scream but also still can't believe it.

She softly smiles at anyone who approaches, it's almost cynical because her eyes are dead.

Ryu comes in sometime later too, pays her respects and gives a nod to the couple. Minhee by then has found that there's a pink flower in the bunch of orange flowers kept on the table. Jeongguk bows, sighing.

By the time, the room is left empty with Mrs Yoon and Jeongguk's mother at her home and guests are gone, Minhee is nowhere to be seen.

Jeongguk looks for her around, sees her sitting in the corner, staring at her father's picture. Jeongguk, in all honesty, hasn't looked at the picture more than twice (unwillingly even).

The picture looks as if Mr Yoon would speak the next moment, calling him a champ like he used to when he was younger. Like he would smile and talk about Minhee like he always does.

He feels like he's lost an important part of his childhood and he can't look at the picture.

He has a bottle of Soju and two tiny glasses in his hands. He walks towards her and settles down beside her to keep her company. Minhee doesn't move, doesn't acknowledge him.

It is when Jeongguk removes a watch from his pocket, the old-gold type with its time setter broken and brings it in front of Minhee, "Here. It was in his pocket." — that Minhee actually looks somewhere at her own will and attention.

It was as if she had switched off her brain for a few hours because it was all dawning upon her at the moment. With shaky hands, she tries to take the watch but her vision turns blurry and the next moment, she is crying in Jeongguk's chest as he wraps his arms around her. Her hands fisted the fabric of his shirt.

Jeongguk's breath shudders with the picture right in front of him and he closes his eyes. Minhee's body shakes as she keeps murmuring, "How could he do that? What am I supposed to do?"

And Jeongguk says nothing to it.

He rubs a hand on her back and he hears her sobs die down, her body becoming still and he thinks she's fallen asleep out of exhaustion. But then she sniffs, letting go of him and wiping her tears, he pushes a glass towards her.

"Dad didn't like drinking Soju... naturally I didn't either..." She whispers, her voice rough after crying.

"Is that so?" Jeongguk smiles sadly. "But he taught me all the drinking etiquettes..." Jeongguk whispers back.

Minhee sighs and uncaps the bottle, pouring the drink in both of the glasses. "What else did he teach you?"

"A lot..." Jeongguk exhales, resting his head on the wall behind. "He is the one who encouraged me to do anything I wanted to do, and said I didn't have to worry about anything but my future. I wouldn't be here if not for him...my dad wouldn't be either."

Silence.

"Did he... ever talk about me?" Minhee clears her throat. The Soju glasses still remain untouched.

"Always."

Minhee's eyes water again.

"He really loved you, Minhee."

And a sob wretched its way out from Minhee's throat again. She had so much to tell him, so much to show him, so much to do.

Jeongguk closes his eyes once again. It's unfair, he thinks, death is.

"Can you tell me more?" Minhee says, looking up at him. Jeongguk looks flustered and shakes his head, "Minhee, I don't think—"

"Please?"

Jeongguk gulps. "I am not sure...what you want me to tell you..."

"Anything."

Jeongguk hesitates, his mind goes blank. Where does he start? What does he say? How can he make it less painful for her?

"Tell me about the time he took you to the factory."

Jeongguk shakes his head, "I wanna hear you, Minhee. I think it's time you tell me...what was your dad like?" 

And she does, talks until she can't handle it anymore. Exhaustion takes over her and she rests her head against Jeongguk, falls asleep like that and Jeongguk doesn't hesitate to carry her to the car. He takes her to his parents' house, gets her to eat something and Bam is enough to distract her for the time being.

Maybe even Bam knows of Minhee's pain because he doesn't leave her for even a second, barks when Minhee closes the washroom's door on him. Jeongguk sits with his dad who is grieving the loss of his old friend too.

When Mrs Jeon asks Minhee to rest in Jeongguk's room, Bam follows her again, getting on Jeongguk's bed with her. Jeongguk would have scolded him for doing so but when he sees him snuggled against Minhee's sleeping figure, he doesn't. He just switches off the lights and extends his sofa into a smaller bed in the corner.

Sleep doesn't come to him for a while, he hears Minhee rustling too after some time but no words are exchanged— knowing that if they do, they won't be able to keep their emotions at bay.

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