Heartstrings

63. Love and War

Dae's POV

Looking at my wedding ring, I continued to look at the diamond that rested on my left finger. Tony was on his way to meet me here. He mentioned that he wanted to share something with me. The way he was smiling, it must have been good news. So, he made reservations for us to have dinner but there was so much on my mind.

Knowing who killed my father, this will probably be the last time that I will see him. I didn't want to believe that she would kill my dad like that. After everything that he has done for her, she decides to murder him in cold blood. When Todd and I decided to catch Meghan, my brothers wanted a piece of the action. However, when I told them who killed our dad, they didn't believe me. When I sent the video, I explained to them that Meghan was there but the shooter was behind her. After several hours of pausing the footage, rewinding and zooming in on images, they had to really take a moment. It was a lot to process and Mama had to know. I knew that my dad never had an affair with another woman and I was right. 

Mama sobbed on the phone when she found out. She couldn't believe that Marie was behind his murder. Without telling her that Todd and I were going after Meghan, she wanted Ye-Jun to visit. Spending the summer with his grandmother would be the only way to make sure that he would be safe. Mama sold the house and moved to her hometown in Ohio a few months ago. It was the only time to go after Meghan but it would have to be at night. 

Remembering Jin's proposal that night, I looked the window. The city lights shined like blue diamonds and I still remember the colorful fireworks that brightened the night sky. Whispering his name to myself, I noticed a limo pulled up outside the building.

Focusing my attention on the driver, he walked to the back of the limo and opened the car door. When Tony steps out, he was dressed up with a silk shirt and slacks. He entered the building after the driver opened the door for him. I started to have second thoughts and thought about leaving. I don't know why I agreed to this but I guess having a talk with Tony wouldn't hurt. Before I slid my chair back from the table to leave, the door creaked open. The moment I stood up, there he was. Those same pointy ears and that tattoo on his neck made me nervous. For the first time, I was speechless when he came to the table and we sat in our chairs in unison.

Sitting across the table from me, he reached in his pocket while giving me a strong look. It was innocent but cute. Exchanging looks, he placed a black envelope on the table. Reaching across the table, he took my hand into his own. At that moment, I couldn't help but notice how strong his hands felt when he laced his fingers with mine. Missing Jin after his death made me feel vulnerable. Afraid of moving on, I wanted to focus on raising Ye-Jun and no matter how hard I cried, I knew that Jin would never come home.

Suddenly, I felt a chill down my back when Tony pulled out my chair and I felt my eyes water. Trying to look away, my hands start to fidget in my lap. The feeling of anxiety and sadness caused my nose to prickle. Taking a deep breath, I tried to focus on what was in the room. Looking around, I started naming random objects in the room in my mind. 

"Are you going to read it?" He asked.

Confused, he takes the black envelope off the table and holds it up saying:

"I wrote you a note when I was recording in the studio."

"Is that why you wanted to tell me?" I asked

Shaking his head, he leans forward and kissed my lips. Short but sweet, he blushed when our eyes met. Looking up at him, he smiled while holding my trembling hands. Breaking eye contact, I finally opened the fancy black envelope. The red writing caught my eye and I started to read Tony's note. Trying to suppress my tears, a lump in my throat started to get sore when I tried to suppress my emotions.