Etude of Memories

Chapter 19

Daegu High School, Present Day

Tiffany stood in front of her highschool that she had left over ten years ago. She had never imagined that one day she would come to that school again. Tiffany sighed and walked in.

She had decided to meet Sooyoung. That woman was a teacher at Daegu Highschool now. They had lost contact since the day Tiffany left Daegu for California. She had left Daegu so abruptly, she didn't have a chance to say goodbye to her friends. She didn't even have a chance to see Taehyung again. After she got out of the hospital, Tiffany flew to California without packing her bags or taking her personal belongings. Her father had confiscated her cellphone and deleted all numbers she had stored. Her father said he did it so that Tiffany could rest without any distraction.

And after Taehyung died, Tiffany didn't want to reconnect with her past anymore as it was too painful for her to remember it all.

"Sooyoung-ah." Tiffany smiled as she greeted her old friend.

"Fany?" Sooyoung put down her cup of tea on her desk when she saw Tiffany standing by the the teacher's lounge door. She looked so surprised to see her there.

The other teachers were also surprised. They had never dreamt they would see a famous Hallyu star in that small room. They stood up. Some of Daegu Highschool's students who had seen that actress in their school swarmed up around her.

Sooyoung managed to 'save' Tiffany from her colleagues and students who wished to take pictures together and have her autograph.

"I came to your house this afternoon, but your mother told me that you were teaching here." Tiffany looked around the school cafeteria. It had changed a lot. They had changed the paint and the interior.

Sooyoung still didn't believe that Tiffany was there. "It's been ten years. You've grown so much." She smiled. "My students never believe me when I tell them that the famous Tiffany Hwang whom they idolize used to be my bestfriend and that we used to sit next to each other."

"I'm sorry, Sooyoungie." Tiffany looked at her old friend. "You might think I'm really arrogant for forgetting my friends here. But...," Tiffany stared at the table before her, "it's really painful for me to look back at my teenage years. So many painful memories."

"It's alright. I understand. Everything must be really hard for you... Especially after what happened to Taehyung. I understand that you decided to move to America."

Tiffany flickered. "Taehyung...," she gasped, that man was her reason to come to Daegu and meet her old friend, "can you tell me what happened to Taehyung? I mean..., how did he get in an accident and... And...." Tiffany was reluctant, "...and died."

Sooyoung jerked upright. Her eyes goggled out. "Wh-what did you say? When did Taehyung die? How? What accident?"

Tiffany felt her heart just stopped beating. "Didn't Taehyung die in an accident ten years ago?"

"Accident? Ten years ago?" Sooyoung raised her eyebrow. She slowly sat on her chair. "No, I don't understand. He didn't die. Who told you that? He..."

Tiffany grabbed Sooyoung's hand. "But I've been to his grave. What does it mean? Tell me, Sooyoung ah. What happened to Taehyung ten years ago?"

Sooyoung tried to calm herself. She looked at Tiffany confusedly. "You really didn't know? Ten years ago, Taehyung killed Hong Hwayoung and went to jail for it."

It was a very nice evening, no clouds in Daegu sky, but somehow, Tiffany felt as if a hundred of lightning bolts had just struck her.

"T-T-Taehyung... what?" Tiffany wished someone could slap her on the face. She really needed to get up from this nightmare. "No, that's impossible. Taehyung couldn't kill Hwayoung. He couldn't kill anyone!!!"

Sooyoung took a deep breath. "Taehyung and Hwayoung got into fight... And I don't how, but Taehyung killed Hwayoung. He was found guilty and sentenced ten years in prison."

Tiffany shook her head. "Ten years? No, that can't be... Taehyung wouldn't kill anyone. It must be a mistake."

"Fany ah," Sooyoung held her friend's hand to calm her nerve. That woman must be really really shocked. Sooyoung understood what her friend must have been feeling that time, even though she also didn't understand how Tiffany had not known about that incident. "Taehyung has been serving his time in prison...." She tried to remember, "or maybe he's got out of the prison now."

"B-B-But..." Tiffany gulped. "When.. When did Taehyung kill Hwayoung? How could I not know about it?"

"I received the news a day after you ran from school with Taehyung. I tried to call you, but your phone wasn't active. I came to your house but it was empty. And the next thing I knew, you had moved to America." Sooyoung showed a sad smile.

A day after she ran from school with Taehyung? She was at the hospital that day. Tiffany didn't return to her house again. The next day, her father bought two plane tickets and they left for America. Tiffany wouldn't see Daegu sky again until one year later when she visited Taehyung's grave.

"But I've seen Taehyung's grave! I've been to his grave." Suddenly, Tiffany felt like the world had deceived her. "Why did Taehyung's mother lie to me and said that Taehyung had died in an accident?"

Sooyoung sighed. How could Tiffany expect her to give her an answer when she didn't have one? But Sooyoung had been a teacher for years. She knew just what to say.

"Maybe Taehyung asked his mother to lie to you...."

Tiffany looked at the young teacher. Was Sooyoung telling the truth? How could she know that Sooyoung wasn't lying to her?

Sooyoung looked outside the cafeteria window. It was almost dinner time. "Maybe Taehyung realized it would only make you sad if you knew he had killed Hwayoung...." She glanced at her old friend. "I tried to tell you about what happened to Taehyung, but when I found out that you had moved to USA and changed your phone number, I thought you wanted to forget about your past here. What happened to Taehyung was a tragedy. It would've been so painful for you... It was even so painful for me. For our friends."

Tiffany felt out of her breath. She still couldn't believe that Taehyung killed Hwayoung and lied to her. Even his mother lied to her too.

"But... I saw Taehyung's grave....."

Sooyoung looked down and stared at her own nails. "Grave? Isn't it ironic? Taehyung had to pretend to be dead to you.... He killed Hwayoung, but one year later, his mother was killed by Hwayoung's brother."

Tiffany goggled out. "What did you say?" Tiffany thought she would not be surprised anymore. Her ex boyfriend had made her live in a world of lies for ten years, what more could shake her to her core? "Hwayoung's brother killed Taehyung's mother?" That poor Hallyu star shook her head in disbelief. "T-that..."

Sooyoung was really wondering what other things that Tiffany didn't know.

"I know Taehyung's mother died. She was robbed and stabbed. B-but I never knew it was Hwayoung's brother who did it."

Sooyoung understood, Tiffany was in California when Taehyung's mother was murdered, she must not have received a full information about the incident. And that girl would have not returned to live in South Korea again until three years later. And at that time, almost everyone had already forgotten about Taehyung and his mother.

"The robber who stabbed Taehyung's mother was Hwayoung's older brother." Sooyoung sighed. "Only God knows why he chose to rob and stab that woman."[]

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