De Blue

Mother Nature (H₂O)

I become you and you become me
We have affection with each other
Even if your appearance is just shown
I hope it doesn't change like this
When oxygen and hydrogen meet, they explode
Even if your heart comes into my heart
When your heart meets this heart, it comes to mind
Where would you like to fly?
Let's fly over the clouds full of moonlight, kinda scary
I can see the path we've chosen
Will you hold my hand till the end?

- Mother Nature (H₂O) by IU & Kang Seung Won -

Hwal has never had a good night's sleep for as long as he could remember. But for the very first time, he slept like a baby when she held him in her arms on their first night together.

Time flies.

It's a saying he often read in poems and in books, that expressed how quickly time can pass when you've found the joy in living. To which he thought could best describe the sense of contentment that awash him having taken his relationship with Sang-un to the next level.

The lawyer they hired was great. She was able to convince the police investigators to clear their names out completely from the suspects list. He thought she was too expensive at first. But having everything settled without much effort on their part, it was all worth it. They can finally get on with their lives without having to constantly look over their shoulders.

Furthermore, as if fate could not be any more generous, during the day that Detective Kwon, Si-ho and Do-yun were supposed to come back to the old house, the transport ministry sent out alerts of black ice on all roads leading to Gyeonggi-do. The expressway that they were supposed to pass by was declared as ice-vulnerable-zone. Since Detective Kwon didn't want to risk them getting into an accident, it was decided among the three of them to forgo traveling until it was completely safe.

So Hwal and Sang-un made the most out of the weeks where they had the whole house all to themselves. Late breakfasts watching the snow fall down from the window, lazy afternoons cuddling on the couch watching shows on Netflix, playing conversation games over dinner, and night after night spent consumed in pleasure.

But before he could get used to her sleeping and waking up in his bed, their time alone together was soon over. She eventually had to move back to her room with her sister when all of them were reunited at the old house, just in time for when Ms. Lee's body was released by the police.

The next few days were then spent by them contacting all of the people that Ms. Lee knew; from the orphanage, the factory she once worked at, to the wet market as well as all of the customers she served at the Happy Butcher Shop, and even her ex-husband. By the end of the week, they were finally able to give her a proper funeral, with Hwal as the chief mourner.

After Ms. Lee was laid to rest, soon came another, when Mr. Gu was able to locate where Doyun's brother was buried. It was Do-yun's wish for his brother's remains to be laid next to Ms. Lee, so he had to go through the legal hurdles, such as undergoing DNA testing to determine common parentage, all of that on top of the extra processes since he was still a minor. Then when all was settled, they gave him a proper funeral too, just like the one they afforded Ms. Lee. Then came the busy preparations for the arrival of Si-ho's daughter.

Sang-un stood in as her sister's sole caregiver like she promised during the difficult pregnancy. Which meant that everything and everyone else took the back seat on her list of priorities, including him. But although Hwal slept alone every night since then, it hardly mattered. Because right before dawn, she would always find a way to tiptoe into his bedroom where they would make up for lost times in the throes of passion.