WARM HUGS [SOOLIA]

Chapter 025

[This photo is not mine; credits to the owner🥺]

>>>Hollow<<<

"Jung Cammy, please." Jisu panted for air, looking at the receptionist with desperation filling her eyes as Soobin caught up to her, also out of air. The receptionist quickly told Jisu to go to the emergency room before the duo started to run again.

Jisu's mind had gone blank the moment the call had ended. Luckily, Soobin could make out what Jisu was mumbling about and quickly offered to drive her over. With the help of Soobin, Jisu could make it in time.

"Mom!" Jisu cried out seeing her mother unconscious with an oxygen mask placed over her mouth. Yuna held her back while crying as well, trying her best to stop Jisu from interfering with the doctors performing CPR.

Quickly grasping the situation, Soobin managed to wrap his arms around both girls, sympathizing with them as they cried for their mother or caretaker who was going through a life-or-death situation.

Soobin struggled to hold them back as they watched the first electric shock delivered to their mother as her body reacted with a jump. Soobin had sunk to the floor with the girls seeing shock after shock sent to their mother but to no avail of raising her pulse to the normal speed.

"We are so sorry..." The nurse managed to whisper as all the doctors in the room made a 90-degree bow in respect for the lost life. Soobin felt tears threatening to spill out of his eyes hearing Jisu's yells of protest.

A sob left his lips feeling Jisu resist Soobin's grip to hold onto her mother as the doctors were already preparing to cover the corpse in respect. Because of that, his grip slackened and Jisu managed to escape.

"Mama, your Lia is here...Don't give up on me, please..." Jisu mumbled desperately as she grabbed her mother's hand which had already grown cold. Her salty tears dripped down onto the hand that was losing its color.

Yuna quickly ran to them, crying her eyes out as well as she got on her knees, pressing her forehead on the bed as she begged for mercy. The people in the room could only watch the heartbreaking scene, each one of them nearly bursting into tears.

"Mama..." Jisu's lip wavered as she slowly let go of her mother, her hopes of getting a response dampening. She turned back to Soobin, sobbing in his embrace as she grieved the loss of her mother.

Cammy was probably one of the purest humans left on the planet. She believed in forgiving and forgetting and she was a gift herself. Sure, she had her flaws but who doesn't? Cammy was probably the greatest person alive or dead to Jisu.

Soobin whispered sweet nothings into Jisu's ear, watching Yuna who still sat at the foot of the bed, sobbing uncontrollably. He nodded softly to Yuna who turned to lock eyes with him, her lip trembling.

She slowly walked toward them, trying to silence her cries but to no avail. Sensing her presence, Jisu pulled her into a reassuring hug while she herself was crying endlessly. The three shared a group hug as the nurses and doctors took the opportunity to drape the white cloth over Cammy and wheel her out.

The rest of the night was spent at the hospital, Soobin there for moral support too. Jisu decided to call her friends tomorrow instead to help plan the funeral and she decided that this night would be spent with family, which now only consisted of Yuna and...Soobin.

The hospital was generous as well after knowing how young they were when they lost their mother. They offered a ward to sleep at night and process their feelings and even offered free food.

But no one had the appetite to eat. One of the greatest women alive was now dead. Jisu was so lost, so confused. Her mother that raised her to be the woman she was today is now gone.

Yuna was visibly upset. Her true mother figure was gone just like that. She learned that so many things could happen in a blink of an eye. Someone could lose a life.

Soobin was down too. He had hoped to get to know Jisu's family more before more things could spark between the two, and Cammy would have been a fun in-law. Despite her paralyzed state, she was so energetic and happy, just like how her daughter turned out to be.

Soobin spent the whole night beside the two, watching them exchange comforting words with each other, not falling asleep until he felt Jisu's head lay on his shoulder and Yuna in Jisu's arms.

If it was any other situation, Soobin could have fallen asleep with a smile on his face.

>>>

"Thank you for coming," Jisu whispered as Min Jeong got up after paying her respects. Min Jeong hushed the older before pulling her into a comforting hug, assuring them all would be fine.

"I explained to the manager, that he'll give you a few days off with pay provided to grieve." Jisu smiled weakly as a thank you to her best friend who took the initiative. LeeMin sadly could not make it since he was out of town for his studies. He could only express his solemn respects through the phone when Jisu rang him up.

"I have to go say a few words," Jisu whispered before Min Jeong nodded her head, patting her friend's back with an encouraging smile before taking her seat.

Jisu, as a chief mourner, was invited to say a few words of respect before the funeral would come to an end after all guests had paid their respects and expressed their apologies to one another.

Jisu got up to the stage, able to have a bird's eye view of everyone who had attended. Seeing the number of people that turned up made Jisu's heart warm and eyes tear up.

All her mother's close relatives from California who immigrated from Canada had made the effort to book a flight. They had gone through a briefing on Korean's expectations in funerals just so they could say their last goodbye to their close ones.

Her mother's friends and her ex-colleagues all had come to pay their respect to the remarkable woman, even her boss came to pay respects to a great employee that had lost their life. But only one face made her choke up while saying her speech.

Jisu averted her eyes from her father's, ashamed that this was their first time in a long time properly meeting again after the incident about the will. All decked out in black, he sat stoic-faced in his black suit, offering Jisu a sad smile.

Next to him sat Jimin with her baby bump, tears dripping down her face. Though she was the woman that replaced her mother, she had a golden heart and Jisu never really had a deep hatred toward her. Just a tiny grudge for breaking her family apart.

Glancing at Soobin for assurance, she continued with the speech in the most composed manner she could after receiving a small nod and an encouraging smile from the said boy.

Jisu quickly got off the stage, obviously shaken up at the unexpected guest who had actually accepted her invitation. Soobin ran after to comfort her, and everyone could only watch as the duo went out of their sight.

It was saddening for everyone, but they knew the hardest hit was delivered to Jisu. 

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~Viky
🎶☕🌸