Healing Sunshine

Chapter 8.1 - Shape of My Heart

She had thought that when he was telling her about Mount Victoria, he really had wanted to bring her there for a look. The result, though, was not what she had expected.

The next day, Jungkook left and went to the United States.

He likely was bidding a perfect final farewell to that period in his life as a doctoral student.

Prior to her own departure from New Zealand, her schoolmates were talking on and on when they were buying souvenirs about how they would soon be leaving this country that was the first to see the sunrise every day, and how they really didn't want to leave. Lalisa recalled how, that night in the stairwell, as Jungkook idly conversed with her while holding her in his arms, they had talked as well about this same notion, and he had even jokingly said, "It seems there are many places where the people there like to say that they are the first place to see sunrise every day."

Their plane arrived at the Beijing Capital International Airport some time past ten o'clock at night. The teacher leading their group began doing a headcount while also stating the strict requirement that every person absolutely had to go back to the school first on the bus the school had provided before they all disbanded.

"No one is allowed to leave the group before that, understand?" their teacher reiterated for the last time.

"Teacher, we understand," the students cried out in singsong voices one after the other.

Catching sight of Hoseok waving goodbye to her from afar, Lalisa gave a polite wave as well.

Nearby, some people from Hong Kong were talking about something. It seemed they had come across a huge, terrifying incident.

She nonchalantly pricked up her ears.

However, immediately, she began listening with seriousness. In summary, Phoenix TV had just made the news broadcast that some building in New York had been struck by an airplane... Hearing "New York," Lalisa abruptly grew tense, but when she wanted to listen carefully to more, those people had already walked far away.

Her heart was pounding wildly. In that instant, she could only think of the two words, "Jeon Jungkook."

"Teacher, I'll be right back." She stuffed her suitcase into a schoolmate's hands and then straightaway sprinted toward the exit that Hoseok had left through. As she ran, she prayed with all her might, Please don't be gone. Only you have Jungkook's U.S. contact details. I don't know at all how to contact him there.

Dashing through the automatic glass doors, in the streams of people who were coming and going, she followed her intuition and went searching where the taxis were. Luckily, she really did see Hoseok and his friends standing off to the side, seeming as if they were waiting for a vehicle to come pick them up.

She rushed over and grabbed Hoseok's arm. "Do you have Jungkook's U.S. phone number? Can you call it for me?"

Hoseok was startled. "What's wrong? What happened?"

"I don't know." There was a tremor in her voice.
"I just heard that a plane crashed into a building in the U.S...."

"A plane crashed into a building? In the U.S.?" Hoseok felt these words were really too inconceivable. "That can't be, can it?"

However, seeing that Lalisa's eyes were reddened, he knew she was genuinely distraught. "Where was this crash?"

"New York." Her voice truly did begin trembling.

"Lili, don't worry. He's not in New York. He's in Philadelphia."

Hoseok began searching for Jungkook's American telephone number.