It was supposed to be forever. High school sweethearts, inseparable for four years, Nari and Hyunjin had promised each other a future-until the day Hyunjin's dream called him away. Selected as a trainee for JYP, he left without a word, a simple note...
The days that followed were a blur of emotion and regret for Hyunjin. The weight of the past pressed on him relentlessly, the guilt never fully leaving his chest. Yet, amidst the pain and confusion, there was one thing he knew for certain—he wasn’t going to give up on Nari. He couldn’t. Not after everything.
It was as though a switch had flipped within him, a shift he hadn’t expected. The man who had once been so caught up in his dreams of fame, who had been so certain of his path, now found himself completely consumed by the need to prove himself to the one person who had always mattered.
The days were long and restless, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave her alone. He would wake up early, his mind racing with thoughts of how he could make things right. His heart ached every time he thought about the pain he had caused her—the sleepless nights she must have spent, waiting for a message that never came, hoping for his return that never arrived.
He was determined to do whatever it took, even if it meant showing up unannounced, like a love-stricken fool, desperately trying to make up for lost time.
One evening, he stood outside her apartment, rain pouring down, his heart pounding in his chest. He had left a dozen messages, all of which she hadn’t responded to. But he wasn’t going to stop. He couldn’t stop. He knocked on her door, the sound of the rain masking his anxious breaths.
Nari opened the door slowly, her face unreadable. She looked at him, her eyes distant, guarded—like a part of her still couldn’t believe he was really here. “Hyunjin,” she said quietly, not giving him the warmth she had once shown him. “What do you want now?”
He couldn’t breathe. He had never felt so small in his life, standing there in front of her, completely at her mercy. But he swallowed his pride, his heart in his throat, and spoke the only words that felt right.
“I want to make things right, Nari,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “I know I’ve hurt you, and I don’t deserve your forgiveness. But I’m here. And I’ll keep showing up every day, every minute, until you believe that I’ll do whatever it takes to earn your love back.”
Nari’s gaze flickered with something—was it doubt? Was it anger? It was hard to tell, but she didn’t step back. She didn’t slam the door in his face. And that, to him, was enough to keep going.
“Hyunjin, you’ve hurt me more than you know,” she said, her voice quiet but firm. “I don’t know if I can ever trust you again. I don’t know if I can forgive you for the way you left me, for how you made me feel worthless all those years.”
The words stung, but he didn’t flinch. He couldn’t. He was the one who had made her feel that way, and now it was his responsibility to undo it.
“I know,” he whispered. “I don’t expect forgiveness today. I don’t expect anything from you right now. But just give me a chance to show you that I’m not the same person I was. Let me show you that I’ve changed. Let me prove that I will never hurt you again.”
For a moment, they just stood there in silence, the rain tapping against the ground like a rhythmic echo of his heartbeat. Hyunjin held his breath, waiting, hoping for some sign that she was willing to let him in.
Finally, Nari sighed and stepped back, pulling the door open just enough for him to slip through. It was the smallest gesture, but to him, it felt like the world. “Come in,” she said quietly, though there was still an edge to her voice.
He walked inside, unsure of what to say next. The apartment was quiet, save for the soft hum of the city outside. Nari walked into the kitchen, not offering him a seat, but not shutting him out completely either. He watched her, his eyes soft with regret, his heart aching for every moment he had taken from her.
“I’m not asking for anything right now,” he said after a long silence. “Not your love, not your forgiveness. I just need you to know that I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere. I will do whatever it takes to make things right. I’ll take it slow. I’ll give you space. But I’ll keep showing up. Every day. No matter how long it takes.”
Nari didn’t respond immediately, but there was a flicker of something in her eyes, something he hadn’t seen in years. It wasn’t forgiveness, not yet. But it was a glimmer of hope—hope that maybe, just maybe, he could earn back her trust.
Hyunjin spent the next few days doing everything he could to prove himself. He brought her coffee in the morning, made her favorite meal at night, and sent her messages just to check in, each one filled with nothing but sincerity. Every gesture was small, but it was a reflection of how far he was willing to go to show her how much he cared.
Still, Nari remained distant, her walls up high. But Hyunjin never gave up. He followed her to the park, watched her from afar, never pushing her for more than she was willing to give. He treated her like a fragile thing, something precious that he had once taken for granted and now was desperate to hold onto.
It wasn’t easy. There were moments when the pain of her indifference cut deep, when he wanted to just walk away, to give up and save himself the heartbreak. But he knew he couldn’t. Not when he had already lost her once.
One evening, after a long day of him following her around and running into her, trying to win back her trust with every ounce of his being, she finally spoke.
“Why do you keep doing this?” she asked, her voice soft but full of emotion.
He turned to her, eyes filled with determination. “Because I can’t live with myself if I don’t. You’ve been the only one who ever truly mattered to me, Nari. And I won’t stop trying to prove that to you, even if it takes forever.”
She looked at him, her face unreadable, her eyes still guarded. But for the first time in a long while, she didn’t look away. She met his gaze, searching for something, anything.
Hyunjin stood there, breathless, waiting. If it took a lifetime, he would spend every day trying to make it up to her. Because he realized now, more than ever, that she was worth every bit of his effort.
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