Kidnap

chapter 9

My father is dead.

I stare at my phone, the message glaring back at me like it's mocking me. My fingers tremble slightly, but I don't respond. What am I supposed to say?

"Oh no, I'm so sad"?

Because I'm not.

I take a deep breath, leaning back against the couch as I close my eyes. My heart doesn't ache. There's no overwhelming grief, no regret-only a strange emptiness, like I should feel something, but I don't.

I remember my father's cold eyes, his sharp voice when he called me a disappointment, the way he and my mother treated me like an asset to be used. And when I needed them the most, when I was lost, broken, and carrying their grandchild-where were they?

Now he's gone. And I'm supposed to care?

I scoff and toss my phone onto the coffee table. No. He doesn't deserve my tears.

The next day, I pick up Jungin from school. As soon as he sees me, he runs toward me with that bright, innocent smile that never fails to melt my heart.

"Mommy! Can we go to the playground?" he asks, eyes twinkling with excitement.

I ruffle his soft hair. "Of course, baby."

We walk to the park near his school. He runs off, immediately joining a group of kids playing on the slides. I sit on a bench, watching him with a soft smile.

For a moment, everything feels peaceful.

Then I notice a family nearby-a father, mother, and their little daughter. The dad lifts the girl onto his shoulders, making her giggle, and the mother smiles at them with so much love in her eyes. They look so... complete.

A familiar ache creeps into my chest.

I glance at Jungin, my baby boy, my whole world. He has everything he needs, doesn't he? He has me. I've done everything to raise him well, to give him love, warmth, and protection.

But is that enough?

I shake my head, pushing the thought away. I won't let myself go down that road.

A few minutes later, Jungin runs toward me, sweaty and panting but grinning widely.

"Mommy," he huffs, giggling and wiping his forehead.

"Do you wanna eat ice cream before we go home?"

"Yes, I want!" He cheerfully says, making me to smiled wide.

We take our time there, talking about his school day and how he enjoy playing with the stranger kids. It was such a good for us both, having time talking at this place, where we usually go whenever he wanted to play. But then out of nowhere he ask something that made me stop thinking about the happy times.

"Mommy, Why don't I have a dad?"

At the same time my heart stops.

"What?" My voice comes out weaker than I want it to.

Jungin looks at the family I was just staring at. "That boy has a daddy. The other kids have daddies too. But I don't. Where is my daddy?"

I swallow hard, my hands clenching into fists. I should've expected this day to come, but I didn't think it would be so soon.

My lips part, but no words come out. What do I tell him? The truth? That his father is out there somewhere, never knowing that he exists? That I've spent five years trying to forget him, yet I still can't erase him from my mind?

I force a smile. "Baby, families come in different kinds. Some kids have daddies, some don't. But you know what? You have me. And I love you more than anything in this world."

Jungin nods slowly, as if thinking hard. "But... if I had a dad, would he love me too?"

That question breaks me.

I wrap my arms around him, holding him close. "Of course, baby," I whisper, even though I don't know if it's true.

Because I don't know if his father would love him.

That night, the question still lingers in my mind. Would he love Jungin?

I shake my head, sighing as I pour myself a glass of wine. It doesn't matter. It never will.

Just as I take a sip, my phone rings. I glance at the screen. Jennie.

I answer immediately. "Hey."

"Lisa." Her voice is quiet, careful. "I assume you already heard?"

I close my eyes. "Yeah."

"The burial is in three days."

I stiffen. "So?"

Jennie got serious. "Lisa... don't you think you should come?"

I let out a bitter laugh. "Why? To pretend that I care? To stand there and listen to people say what a great man he was?"

"I'm not saying you have to forgive him," she says softly. "But he was still your father."

Silence.

I grip my glass tightly, staring at the floor.

My father was never a good man. But he was still my father. And no matter how much I try to deny it, a small part of me knows that if I don't go, I might regret it someday.

I take a deep breath. "Fine," I whisper. "But after the funeral, I'm going straight back to New York."

Jennie sighs in relief. "Okay. I'll see you soon."

Two days later, I step foot in South Korea again.

I don't bring Jungin with me. I keep to let the world know about him but I wont refuse that I have a son. It is just a private life for me that I want to live.

As I walk into my parents' house, a familiar coldness washes over me. It's clean, elegant, but empty. Just like my childhood.

Then I see her.

My mother.

She stands in the living room, looking as distant and composed as ever. When our eyes meet, she simply says, "You came."

Not hello, not how have you been? Just those two words.

I clench my jaw. "I'm only here for the funeral. Don't expect anything else."

She nods like she expected that answer. "Your room is still the same."

I scoff. "I don't need it."

I don't plan to stay here longer than necessary.

We sit in silence for a moment before I speak again. "Tell me the truth," I say, my voice cold. "What happened to the company?"

My mother takes a deep breath. "Someone helped us when we were struggling. An investor...I-I don't know who it was, only your Dad who did negotiate with him, but in the end, that same person backed out, causing everything to collapse."

A strange chill runs down my spine.

I already know the answer because I was right.

It was him.

Jungkook.

Cjayxz