Hyunwoo’s flight back from Korea had been a last-minute decision. He hadn’t been home in a while, but something about the calls with Soobin and the brief, vague conversations with Haein had triggered a deep sense of unease. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off, and his suspicions grew stronger with every passing day.
When he arrived at the house, everything seemed normal on the surface. Soobin was her usual self, detached and preoccupied with her own world, while Haein had greeted him with the same calm, distant smile she always wore. But behind her eyes, Hyunwoo saw something different—an exhaustion, a fragility she couldn’t hide.
One evening, when Haein had gone to bed early, claiming to be tired, Hyunwoo decided to investigate. Something was wrong, and he needed to know what. He searched the study first, looking through paperwork, bills, and anything that might give him a clue. He wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but then he found it: a stack of medical records tucked away in a drawer.
His hands trembled as he flipped through the pages. The words hit him like a wave: "Cloud Cytoma... brain tumor... time slips... hallucinations..." The more he read, the heavier the weight on his chest grew. He sank into the chair, his mind racing. How long had Haein been hiding this? How had she kept this from him—and more importantly, from Soobin?
He spent the rest of the night trying to make sense of it all. Haein had been dealing with this alone, managing her illness while still running the household and keeping up with Soobin’s demands. He remembered the times Soobin had complained about Haein acting “weird” or “zoned out,” and it all began to make sense now.
The next morning, Hyunwoo confronted her.
“Haein,” he said, his voice steady but with an edge of urgency. “I found the medical records.”
Haein, sitting at the kitchen table, froze. She didn’t look up, but her hand tightened around the cup of coffee she was holding. “I didn’t want you to worry,” she said softly, avoiding his gaze.
“You didn’t want me to worry?” Hyunwoo’s voice rose slightly in disbelief. “You’re dealing with a brain tumor and keeping it from us? From Soobin?”
Haein finally looked up, her eyes filled with guilt. “She has enough to deal with,” she whispered. “I didn’t want her to be burdened with this on top of everything else.”
“This isn’t something you can hide forever,” Hyunwoo said, frustration evident in his voice. “She needs to know, Haein. She deserves to know what’s going on. You can’t keep pretending everything is fine when it’s clearly not.”
Haein shook her head, her expression pained. “She won’t understand. She’ll just see it as another excuse, another reason to push me away.”
Hyunwoo sighed, sitting down across from her. “Maybe she will at first, but you can’t hide this from her. Soobin needs to know the truth, and you can’t handle this alone. You shouldn’t have to.”
Haein stared at the table, her mind racing with the weight of his words. She had spent so long trying to keep everything together, trying to protect Soobin from the harsh reality of her illness. But now, with Hyunwoo sitting there, urging her to open up, she realized how fragile that facade had become.
“What if she hates me for not telling her sooner?” Haein whispered, her voice barely audible.
Hyunwoo reached out, gently taking her hand. “She won’t. She might be angry or confused, but she won’t hate you. She loves you, Haein, even if it doesn’t always seem that way.”
Tears welled up in Haein’s eyes, but she quickly blinked them away. She had to be strong, for herself, for Soobin. “I’ll tell her,” she said quietly, her voice filled with resignation. “But not today. I need more time.”
Hyunwoo squeezed her hand, his expression softening. “Just don’t wait too long, Haein. She needs you now, more than ever.”
As Haein nodded, a wave of uncertainty washed over her. She knew the conversation with Soobin wouldn’t be easy, and she feared how her daughter would react. But Hyunwoo was right—she couldn’t keep this hidden forever. The truth had to come out, no matter how painful it might be.
And deep down, she knew that moment was approaching faster than she wanted to admit.
YOU ARE READING
Pieces Of Us
Random"Pieces of Us" follows the tumultuous relationship between Baek Soobin, a sixteen-year-old who lives a life of luxury and rebellion, and her mother, Hong Haein, a powerful CEO known for her cold, distant demeanour. As Soobin continues to push her mo...
