Pay With Your Heart

Dan-Han sighed when he noticed how quiet Eun-sun had been in the last hour. They have been at the hospital all morning, and he was currently taking her back to his place to freshen up and rest. She had had a terrible day yesterday, and now she has been at the hospital with him taking care of his mother.

"What is it?" He asked with a concerned voice as he drove towards his place.

"It's nothing," Eun-sun casually replied without looking at him. She had her gaze fixed on the road, but the truth was her mind was preoccupied with series of thoughts. Thoughts she couldn't share with him.

Dan-Han glanced at her; he could tell something was up with her.

"Don't lie to me. Tell me what's wrong. Is it about your parents or my mom?" He asked. He was sure it had to be either of them or maybe both. Considering how close she was to his mother, he was sure she was also worried for her. That was a given.

He didn't like seeing her like this. She wasn't the playful type, but he liked seeing that relaxed look on her face. Those warm smiles that brightened up his face have been missing for days. He really wanted his woman back already, not the sad one sitting by his side.

He grabbed her hand, making Eun-sun look at him. "Mother will be fine, and I'll help you find your parents." He assured her.

Find her parents? Finding her parents wasn't her problem right now. The truth was she was feeling sad because of Mrs Lee. The conversation they had earlier was still playing in her head, and it made her unhappy.

~~~~Flashback~~~

"Mother, I think we should tell Dan-Han the truth. Please give him a chance to be with you and take care of you at this time." She pleaded with her, but the woman flashed her a gentle smile while she stubbornly shook her head.

"No, dear, I don't want to be a burden to him."

"But you're not."

"I will be." She stated, but Eun-sun disagreed with her.

"Parents are never burdened to their children. As a matter of fact, we take care pride in being able to provide and take care of parents." At least she was, till she was taken for granted and her heart was violently broken by those she called parents. But she was telling the truth.

"Eun-sun, you don't understand."

"No, mother, it's you who is not understanding this. No child would want to be in the dark about their parents' ordeal. He'd be sad if something happens to you, but at least he'll know he tried his best, that he fought for you. And also he'd be angry when he finds out that I've known all this while and I didn't tell him. Mother, please tell him the truth okay," She tried to reason with her, but the stubborn woman shook her head again.

Flashing Eun-sun a sad smile, she held her hand, "You don't understand. I've broken Dan-Han's heart before. My foolishness almost had him killed and completely damaged. Eun-sun, I can't bear to see my son struggle again. I'd rather shoulder it and shield him from having any more pain."

"But-"

"No, Eun-sun. You know, to be honest, I don't really want to die, at least for Dan-Han's sake. I struggled to have him, and when he came, he brought me so much joy and happiness. I've missed sharing a few years of his life with him, and I miss cooking and serving him. I missed having teas with him or forcing him to read me a book." She paused and chuckled drily.

"I miss having him in the house and having to see him leave for work. And I'm still going to miss more years of his life," Her voice broke at this point, and tears began to slip out of her eyes. "I'm going to miss his wedding, my grandchildren christening, miss seeing you with him." She sniffed as she tried to hold in her tears, but she broke down even more, making tears pool in Eun-sun's eyes.

"I'm going to miss a lot of things, but I don't want to miss spending my last few days on earth with my family, seeing them happy and smiling. I know Jun-Su might be acting unreasonably now, but he'll come around. He loves us very much, most especially Dan-Han. I want to leave here seeing happy smiles on their faces and yours too." She raised her hand to Eun-sun's cheek and gently wiped her tears away.

"Don't cry for me, Eun-sun. Though my life is short, I can say I've lived a fulfilled one. I've been blessed with wonderful people, you included," She chuckled lightly.

"Auntie." Eun-sun couldn't help but sob more; she placed her hand on Mrs Lee's hand, cupping her cheek.

"Silly girl, it's mother and not Auntie," She playfully chided to lighten up the mood, but that only worsened Eun-sun's mood. Mrs Lee pulled Eun-sun closer and hugged her. Her hand gently patting on the girl's back comfortingly.

"Don't cry, my dear. I'll be fine." She said, but Eun-sun knew that was a lie. A big fat lie!

~~~~

Eun-sun felt her eyes well up as she once again thought about this. She turned towards the window, preventing Dan-Han from seeing her face. She blinked a few times to stop her tears from falling before turning back to Dan-Han.

"Honey, are you alright?" Dan-Han asked when he noticed her red eyes, but Eun-sun nodded.

"Dan-Han, can I ask you for a favour?" She asked.

"You don't have to ask me that. Tell me what you want, and I'll do it for you." He firmly told her. He didn't like how she looked. He'd do anything to wipe that look off her face.

"You promise?"

"Yes, love, I promise." He assured her as he raised her hand to his lips, dropping a kiss on the back of her hand. "So tell me what you want," he urged her.

"Can you move back to your parents' house?"