ᑭᖇᗝᒪᗝǤᑌᗴ

In the dark, moonless night, following the tiny light coming from the table lamp that could only make the darkness even deeper, Lee Hwang with a deep breath continued speaking while stroking the hair of his 6 years old pliant daughter.

"Are you asleep, Twinkle?"

"No, Papa. I can't sleep." the cadaverous girl replied with a barely heard voice. "When will Mamma come, Papa?"

He sighed deeply yet in a wary way. How was he supposed to tell his 6 years old little daughter that her mother has left them forever?

The way he felt after seeing the lifeless, pale body of his life partner, how can he tell that to her? How the bloody body felt against his skin giving shivers all over his body, the deep brown eyes in which he could lose his everything, were shut forever, the warmest body that she had, how it felt iced-frozen... no, he could never explain those dreadful feelings to anyone.

Despite everything he had been faced, he still couldn't cry properly, he had to hold himself as if he chained himself, he had to be strong for staying beside her daughter. And so he is doing now.

Lee Hwang carefully controlled the teardrops that were trying to roll down from his eyes. He. can. not. cry.

Leaning more towards the bed Lee Hwang kissed the fiery forehead of her feverish daughter, "Very soon." He tried to smile, "But, for that, you have to recover first, twinkle. When your Mamma comes back, you have to be healthy to play with her. So, let's sleep for now. So that you can be healthy in no time. Understand?"

"Hmm" She nodded under the blanket.

"I am here beside you, so don't be afraid. I'll never leave your side." he stroked her wavy hair with his left hand, "So try to get some sleep now."

Seeing his little twinkle close her glamorous eyes, Lee Hwang leaned her back in the armchair, eyes set on his child.

After a while, she opened her eyes worriedly searching for him in the room. As their eyes met, Lee Hwang responded, "I am here, Twinkle. Do you need anything?"

"Papa, sleep with me. I miss Mamma so much that I can't sleep. I wanna hear Mamma's stories."

After thinking quietly for a while he replied, "Okay, papa will sleep with you today."

He then went to the bed and gently lied beside her. Covering her body with the blanket, he softly said,  "Mamma will be back soon when you get better. Let me tell you stories today. Will you hear me?"

She nodded with excitement in her eyes.

He began,

"Once there was a boy named Lunas. He used to live with his family in a beautiful country surrounded by the sea. He loved the sea very much since his early childhood. Whenever he got any time, he used to sail in the sea with his yacht. He loved to feed fishes. Dolphins were his favorite." He paused for a while as if he was recalling what happened next.

Then suddenly asked the little girl holding him with her tiny arms, "Do you like dolphins, Twinkle?"

She nodded, "Yes, I do. I love them."

"Then should we visit the sea when you get well?"

"Yes! We'll have a lot of fun. We'll feed the dolphins."

"Okay," he agreed and continued the story,

"One day, when Lunas was floating over the sea, he found someone drowning nearby. He saved that girl and brought her home. He came to know that the girl's name was Yura and she was not from here. Lunas let her stay there as she has nowhere to go."

"What happened then, Papa? The fall in love, right?  And then got married and had children?" His little daughter seemed too inquisitive.

"Do you want them to get married?"

"Yes." She replied with sparkling eyes that the darkness couldn't hide from him.

"But, what if they didn't?" he almost whispered.

Her excitement died within the second of hearing his word. His little girl was still unaware of the cruel world, the world where a happy ending is not for everyone.

But his daughter was so young to know these hard words.

"Why wouldn't they get married, Papa?" Her faint words couldn't get through his ear. He was lost far away,

far away in his own PAST!

Unfinished love is the most hurtful love. Though, they had nothing more to do than just get hurt. Cause, THAT'S THE RULE OF THIS CRUEL WORLD.

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