Author's POV
The midday sun beat down on Seoul as Melody hummed along to Seventeen's latest hit, a mischievous glint in her eyes. Her "business trip" to Busan had been a clever ruse. In reality, she'd snagged a last-minute flight back, eager to surprise Wonwoo on their second anniversary. Slipping into their shared apartment, the key silent in the lock, she was greeted by the scent of unfamiliar perfume and the unmistakable sounds of laughter - coming from their living room.
Melody's heart lurched. It couldn't be. Her smile faltered as she tiptoed closer, the picture of their first date clutched protectively in her hand. Peeking through the doorway, her breath hitched. There, sprawled on their plush couch, was Wonwoo. But he wasn't alone. A woman, her back to Melody, sat nestled comfortably in his arms, their laughter echoing off the walls.
Fury, hot and primal, coursed through Melody. Wonwoo, her Wonwoo, the charismatic lead rapper and sub-vocalist of Seventeen, the man who swore his devotion on every stolen kiss, was cheating on her. The woman's hand, adorned with glittering rings, rested possessively on his thigh. Melody could practically feel the betrayal sear her skin.
Memories flooded back - late-night texts he claimed were from "work," the lingering fragrance on his clothes that wasn't hers, the subtle shift in his affections. Now, it all made a sickening kind of sense.
The playful surprise she'd planned evaporated. With a deep breath, Melody pushed open the door, the sound shattering the laughter-filled bubble. The woman shrieked, scrambling away from Wonwoo, who froze like a deer in headlights. Time seemed to slow down.
"Melody?" Wonwoo stammered, his voice laced with a mixture of shock and disbelief. But his gaze didn't hold the warmth she craved, just a frantic desperation. The woman, now revealed to be a young model Melody recognized from a recent magazine cover, gaped at her, her perfectly painted face a mask of guilt and fear.
Melody stood frozen, the framed picture slipping from her numb fingers. The happy memory it held mocked her. In the deafening silence, the only sound was the frantic thumping of her heart, a rhythm far out of sync with the cheerful melody playing faintly from the television. The once-familiar living room felt alien, a stage for a scene ripped straight from a nightmare.
The silence stretched on, a suffocating weight pressing down on Melody. The woman, regaining her composure with practiced ease, grabbed her purse and scurried towards the doorway. "I... I had no idea," she mumbled, her voice laced with a saccharine apology that did nothing to ease the burning betrayal in Melody's chest.
Melody didn't respond. The words wouldn't come. The picture frame lay shattered on the floor, a bittersweet symbol of their broken relationship. Tears welled up, blurring the scene before her. Finally, a choked sob escaped her lips, and with a strangled cry, she turned and fled.
Wonwoo snapped out of his paralysis. "Melody!" he roared, the sound laced with a desperation that mirrored her own. He lunged after her, ignoring the startled yelp of the model who disappeared out the door in a flurry of high heels and expensive perfume.
Melody sprinted down the hallway, tears streaming down her face, a storm of emotions tearing her apart. The world became a blur of movement and sound – the slam of the apartment door, the frantic thud of Wonwoo's footsteps echoing behind her. She didn't care where she was going, only that she needed to get away.
Reaching the end of the hallway, she burst out the front door and stumbled down the stairs, the world tilting on its axis. She barely registered the surprised shouts of neighbors or the blaring horns in the street below. All she could think about was the searing pain of betrayal, the hollow echo of their broken promises.
Blinded by tears, she darted across the street, oblivious to the approaching traffic. Wonwoo, who had just burst out of the apartment building, screamed her name in a voice raw with terror. The screech of brakes filled the air, a horrifying symphony that drowned out everything else.
The world exploded into a kaleidoscope of pain and darkness. A sickening impact threw Melody through the air before a crushing weight slammed into her. The last thing she registered before the darkness swallowed her whole was Wonwoo's anguished cry, his name a desperate plea lost in the chaos.
The world lurched and spun, a sickening waltz of asphalt and screeching metal. Wonwoo's scream, raw and primal, echoed in his ears even after the sounds of the accident faded. He had reached the bottom step just in time to see Melody, a blur of blonde hair, disappear into the crosswalk. A desperate lunge, a choked cry, then the sickening thud that stole his breath.
He scrambled across the street, pushing past a horrified crowd gathering around the crumpled figure at the intersection. Melody. His Melody. Laying there, unnaturally still, a crimson stain blooming on the pavement beside her. Time warped around him. Every movement felt heavy, sluggish, as if he were wading through thick mud.
The wail of approaching sirens sliced through the air, a jarring counterpoint to the chilling silence emanating from Melody's form. As paramedics swarmed around her, Wonwoo felt a cold dread grip his heart. The picture of their first date, forgotten on the apartment floor, flashed through his mind – a cruel reminder of the happiness they'd thrown away.
He knelt beside Melody, his hand hovering just above her pale cheek. "Melody, please..." he choked out, his voice barely a whisper. But there was no response, no flicker of recognition on her beautiful face. Panic clawed at him, squeezing the air from his lungs. Had he lost her?
A paramedic, his face grim, gently pushed him back. "Sir, we need to get her to the hospital."
The ambulance ride was a blur of flashing lights and a constant, agonizing worry. Wonwoo sat numb beside Melody, her still form a stark contrast to the frantic energy of the paramedics working around them. Every bump in the road sent a fresh jolt of terror through him.
The sterile white walls of the hospital offered no solace. He paced the waiting room, his phone clutched in his hand, a thousand apologies and pleas churning in his stomach. But there was no one to call, no easy answers. This was his fault. All of it.
Hours bled into what felt like an eternity. Finally, a doctor emerged, his expression etched with concern. "The surgery went well," he began, "but there's significant head trauma. We won't know the full extent of the damage for some time."
Wonwoo felt his knees buckle. Head trauma. The words hung in the air, a chilling reminder of the fragility of life, of the consequences of his actions. He sank onto a chair, burying his face in his hands. All he could see was Melody's lifeless form, the future they'd planned now a shattered dream.
As dawn painted the sky a pale pink, exhaustion finally caught up with him. Sleep, a restless and fitful affair, brought no comfort. The sterile beeps of the hospital monitor became his new soundtrack, a constant reminder of the life hanging in the balance.
He woke to a choked sob, the sound tearing him from his uneasy slumber. Looking up, he saw his bandmates, their faces etched with worry, huddled beside him. Dino, the youngest, sniffled uncontrollably, while S.Coups, the leader, placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"We're here for you, Wonu," he said softly. But none of their words could erase the guilt that gnawed at Wonwoo's heart.
Now, all he could do was wait, praying for a miracle, for a second chance to make things right. But even if Melody woke up, would anything ever be the same? The accident had shattered more than just her body; it had shattered their love, leaving behind a melody of regret that echoed in the sterile silence of the hospital room.
