Wick | 민윤기

Twenty-Six

1 March 2017

    Victoria inhaled deeply, eyelids drooping as she sat at the iron-wrought table outside the cafe. She blinked numbly, nauseous now for a completely different reason. Of course, she didn't want to fight with Yoongi when he was so worked up and stressed. That's why she left—to give him space and time to calm down. She wasn't absolutely sure that it was the right thing to do, but it was what she thought was best at the moment.

    Part of her wished she hadn't left. She wished she had just thrown her arms around him and told him how much she loved him. She wished she hadn't been so hurt by his comment. Despite her wishing, it had been a few hours and she figured it would be okay to go back. She grabbed her purse and stood before discarding her coffee in a nearby trash can.

Worries filled her head as she made her way back to the hotel. Thoughts of Yoongi doing something stupid or crazy bounced around in her mind. She knew he was reckless and was kicking herself for no thinking of that sooner. She couldn't flag down a taxi fast enough. During the ride she was biting her nails all the way down to the nub, holding back nervous tears.

Once the car pulled up in front of the hotel, she quickly paid the driver and got out, running into the lobby. "Welcome back, Mrs. Min," the receptionist smiled and greeted her. "How was your stroll?"

Victoria's heart clenched as she remembered that Yoongi had told the staff that she was his wife and they were on their honeymoon. She wanted it to be true, but she was too afraid to stop and smile. She only dipped her head and ran past the desk to the elevator area where she pushed open the door to the stairs and sprinted up the three flights to get to their floor.

She didn't stop to catch her breath. Something told her that Yoongi had done something. Once she reached their door, she fumbled with her purse to pull out the room key. After finding it, she opened the door and rushed in.

The scene before her was not something she expected.

The chair by the desk was knocked over. Yoongi's computer was smashed on the ground. The comforter from the bed was tangled up on the ground. The curtains were ripped, fluttering in the wind, almost as torn as she was. The balcony doors were open and one of them was pushed off the track, making it sit there on the carpet like someone had pushed it or fallen into it.

But the worst was the blood.

There was some dripping down the glass of the veranda door that was broken. It was smeared on the white comforter. It was on the carpet by the desk.

Victoria sucked in a breath, not aware of the tears rolling down her face accompanied by shaky breaths. She took a few steps into the room and steadied herself on the wall. Upon scanning the area, she found that Yoongi's things were all still there.

She went around the bed and carefully picked up the comforter to set it back on the bed. It was the only thing she could do. She was just so shocked. Numb. Part of her didn't believe it was true.

As soon as the comforter lifted from the ground, something fell from it and landed on the carpet at Victoria's feet. With a confused look, she realized that it was an envelope with the words 'My love' scrawled on the front. There was a small bit of blood near the writing and her heart dropped. It was clearly addressed to her from Yoongi.

Victoria swallowed hard and opened the paper apprehensively. Luckily, there wasn't enough blood in the room to make her think that Yoongi was dead. Yet, she still considered it. She began to shake as she pulled the letter out.

Victoria,

You know why I have to do this. Go live a happy and full life. I hope you meet someone who can love you better than I did. If I could go back and do everything over again, I wouldn't be such a loser. I would study hard and be successful so I would be able to take care of you. I love you so much. That's why I have to leave you.

I'm sorry

The note cut off like he wasn't finished. Regardless, Victoria broke out into loud sobs and sunk to the floor, clutching what might have been her last words from Yoongi. The one person she loved more than anything had been ripped away from her—again. This defeated mentality brought her down more and more until darker thoughts invaded her mind.

But then she looked inside of the envelope. There was a piece of paper with all of Yoongi's bank account information. He had basically given all his money to her. Victoria stopped crying. She stared blankly at the piece of paper. It felt like a long time of silence and no thoughts.

She folded his note and put it in the envelope before standing. Determination set in and she began to think again. Logically. If Yoongi was kidnapped, it was surely by H.S.S. and he was on his way back to Korea right then. Of course, there were other possibilities but that was her best bet. She left the room and headed straight to the lobby so she could call a taxi to take her to an international bank.

-

The airport was stuffy. Through the windows, she could see that it was a sunny spring day, but she couldn't enjoy it. The plush seat she sat on might as well have not even been there as she waited for her plane to board. Her lips were pursed, phone pressed to her ear as the ringing vibrated through her ears.

Using Yoongi's bank accounts, she managed to buy a plane ticket to take her back to Seoul. She wasn't sure how far behind them she was, but she had to get back in order to figure something out. She didn't know what she was going to do, but she knew someone who might.

"Victoria?" His voice was deep and raspy, making it sound like he had just woken up. She winced, remembering the huge time difference.

Nonetheless, she cleared her throat. "Hi." He said nothing, only the sound of his breathing was audible over the receiver. His heartbeat had clearly quickened. "I know it's late and we haven't spoken in almost ten years," she began shakily. "But something's happened and you're the only person I could think of calling."

"What happened?" he asked quietly, the sound of rustling in the background. Overhead, the loudspeakers revealed a woman announcing that her plane was boarding. "Where are you?"

Victoria smiled slightly. Even after all those years, he still cared about her subtly. "I'm about to get on a plane back to Korea. But that's not important—I need your help."

"With?"

    She stood and got in line, holding her passport and ticket. "I'll tell you when I see you. Meet me at The Dive in the city. I'll text you when my plane lands."

    The other line was silent, but only for a moment. "Okay."

    "Alright, I'll see you in about thirteen hours—"

    "Wait, noona."

    Victoria stopped when she was about to hang up. "Huh?"

    "Thanks for calling," Hoseok mumbled. "I missed you."