The Way I Loved You

3 Months To Live

"I don't have time to come down to the hospital. Can you just email it to me?"

"Um... unfortunately, I think it's best that you receive the report in person. It might be too much to hear on the phone."

His nervousness made her pause immediately. It wasn't good news whenever doctors said that. It was always because you had some life threatening ailment or because they wanted to leech off your money by proposing unnecessary treatments. She hoped it was the latter.

She didn't want to go to the hospital alone, especially with impending bad news. It was as if she was walking herself to her doom. Who else was there to ask other than her husband? His presence would comfort her. At least he was the smart one in this relationship so he would probably understand what the doctor had to say better than she did. It wasn't as if she could ask her family to go with her, they would have a field day if they found out that there was something wrong.

Yes, it would feel better to have Hyunwoo there. Even if it was just for emotional support, she needed him. He was the one who always grounded her, the one who could make her smile just by making eye contact. It was scary going there alone.

"We need to go somewhere. You're free today, aren't you? The car is waiting downstairs." She said to him when she finally caught him at the elevator.

"I'm not going."

She raised her eyebrows in surprise. He'd never been one to outright reject her requests. She'd even checked his schedule, what else could he have to do today?

"I didn't even tell you where we're going."

"It doesn't matter. I refuse to go anywhere with you."

That hurt. Her forehead creased slightly in confusion. What was up with him today? Why was he choosing to be difficult today of all days? It was almost as if he knew that she needed him and chose that moment to pull the rug out from beneath her feet.

"Where are you going right now?"

"I don't know. I have no idea where I'm headed."

The steel in his tone was as clear as day. He was doing it out of spite. But she was too tired to be angry at him today. Instead, she let him go, standing alone in the lobby as the elevator took him away.

Standing alone in the elevator, tears welled up in her eyes but she blinked them away as quickly as they appeared. No, she wouldn't cry. Hong Haein would hold her head high and go to her appointment on her own like the independent person she was.

"Fine. Tell me. When will I die?"

"Judging by the spreading of the tumour cells, I believe you have about three months."

Three months.

Her grip on the chair tightened.

She couldn't believe it. What audacity to tell her that she had a mere three months to live when she had been living healthily all her life! She had never once done something wrong when it came to her health, how could this be possible?

Three months wasn't enough. There was her One Trillion Club which she was so close to entering! Her grandfather promised that he would hand everything over to her, bypassing her father if she was able to hit one trillion in sales. She was just a hair away from proving to her family that she was someone to be respected, and showing her mother that she'd chosen the wrong child to be her favourite.

And there was Hyunwoo. Would he be sad if she died? Honestly, she wasn't sure which was a jarring realisation. Would anyone even care that she died? Other than her employees and the stockholders who were worried about their livelihoods. Would anyone shed a tear at her funeral? Or would they all be busy clamouring over her assets?

What would Hyunwoo do after she died? Would he be happy that he was finally free from this family and leave to live a happier life? Would he jump for joy behind her back and pray on her downfall? Would he remarry someone? Someone who wasn't so cold and treated him properly. Someone who would give him the children he always wanted.

...

"I love you, Hong Haein."

Her lips parted in shock. That was the last thing she expected him to say when she told him the news.

She'd debated for a while if she should even tell him, especially since she had no intention to tell her other family members. But in terms of practicality, she had to tell him. It would be impossible for him not to find out eventually when they lived under the same roof, and he should have some time to figure out the legal proceedings. It would be useful to have someone well versed in law to advise her.

And lastly, a tiny part of her simply wanted to feel less alone. At least if he knew, she wouldn't be bearing the full weight of her predicament on her shoulders, and it felt better sharing her secret with someone. Because at the end of the day, Hyunwoo was the only one she truly trusted. Even if they no longer got along, he had too good of a heart to stab her in the back unlike her family.

When he hugged her tightly, a rush of warmth filled her chest and she was instantly reminded of the time when they'd first started dating. He used to hug her like this all the time then, always reluctant to let her go at the end of a date. She didn't realise how much she'd missed it until this moment.

"How can I live without you? How is that possible? I'm so dumbfounded that I don't know what to say."

His expression was a little strange. Maybe he was just shocked. He always acted funny when he was caught off guard and didn't know how to react.

Or maybe he wasn't. Maybe he only felt guilty because she was going to die. Like how you would feel sorry for a dying animal. Perhaps he was trying to get on her good side in the hopes that she would pass some of her assets to him after she died. He was definitely smart enough for that. She must be on her guard. Just in case, she needed to protect herself.

"Do you want to die together?"

"What?" He paled instantly.

She laughed internally. He was always so gullible, it made her think that he wasn't capable of scheming against her. It was hard to tell with him, one moment he was being a genius and saving the company from another crisis, while another, he was believing her made up story about a raccoon living in the office rest area. How could someone be so smart yet gullible? It was one of his adorable charms.

Maybe, just maybe, she would regret leaving him behind when she left this world. A precious soul like his was hard to come by, yet she'd managed to make him her husband. Rather than her collection of limited edition clothes and priceless paintings, he was her most valuable asset after all.

A part of her hoped that something would change between them in these three months. If there was even enough time...

AN: I'm mostly going to be writing from Haein's POV especially at the start since they largely showed Hyunwoo's POV