A Foolish Wish
A Foolish Wish
"What's going on?" she exclaimed. "Are you alright?"
"I'm...not," he confessed. "I don't know why but Heajong's heart felt a strange pain. As if something stabbed it. I think...I think he's getting weaker!"
Mina bit her lip and touched his chest, trying to feel any irregularity.
"The heart beat feels a little faster than usual," she muttered. Taking the pulse, she manually tried to count the rate.
"I think he is getting weaker," she murmured. "He won't have much time left if this possession goes on for too long…"
They looked at each other, feeling torn. Haejong's body was already beginning to weaken and if Kanji kept on occupying it, it would only endanger him.
"Just an hour more and then I'll be gone," Kanji said. "I'll try not to…"
He trailed off. Kanji did not want to be the cause of Haejong's death. The man had allowed him to take over his body so that he could spend time with Mina. It was not out of any selfless deed but rather out of debt to his grandfather. Yet, Haejong's actions made Kanji feel only more guilty for intruding on his life like this.
Mina held his hand and said, "We'll get through this. We'll get your body out of there and defeat that demon. Don't worry at all."
She fought back her tears, knowing very well that their time together was limited. Kanji hugged her, feeling a strange sense of peace even in the midst of the hellish forest. He did not care whether there were souls watching them nor did he give a damn about anyone else.
The woman in his arms was more important to him than life or death. He did not know when and how he fell in love with her. But he did. He fell crazily in love with her and the pain of separation was tearing him apart.
"Kanji...talk to me please," she moaned. "I can't tolerate this silence anymore. I want to know everything."
"Know what?"
"What do you love about me?" she whispered, her head leaning against his chest. "What did you feel all this time? Everything. Say anything. I don't care how stupid or mundane it is. I just want to listen to you."
She closed her eyes, her tears continuing to fall but she did not let go. The body was different but his warmth was still the same. Whenever he was with her, she felt happy and safe. This was her home and she wanted to stay there for a little bit more. For a few moments, she just wanted to forget about everything else and listen to him.
"I…" he began. "I like your persistence. You'll haggle to death with the shopkeepers but in the end, you'll get what you want. People think you're greedy for shopping a lot-"
She pinched his arm, feeling slightly annoyed. "Say good things!" she demanded.
"I am saying good things!" he claimed. "I'm getting there."
Mina pouted a little but Kanji wrapped his arms around her and went on.
"But the excitement on your face whenever you buy something new is precious," he whispered. "And you'll never waste the things you buy. You'll finish every bit of them, reusing the items until they're over. You're harsh with people but that's only when you're trying to understand their true feelings. When someone hurts the people you care about, you'll put that person down for their deeds. Yet, you'll accept good people with an open heart…"
Mina listened to him, not saying anything at all. Her heart was wrenched in agony but his true feelings were ebbing the pain she felt.
"And even if you love money, you love your patients more," Kanji said, reminiscing the times Mina had saved the lives of her patients. "You'll keep on trying to save them and won't give up no matter what. And when you lose a patient to death, you'll keep on remembering them every year. I know about the small shrine you have in your room for your deceased patients…"
Mina was surprised. "How did you know about that?" She asked softly. "I've hidden it away even from my family!"
It was true. She had made a makeshift shrine for her deceased patients and every year on their death anniversaries, she prayed for their souls. It was a secret she kept from everyone but this man...he knew. He always knew everything about her.
"I...I was once hiding from Minho," he admitted in a sheepish tone. "You see, I had tried to set him up on a date with one of the rich heiresses and he was so annoyed by the woman that as soon as he was done with the date, he chased me across the house. So I hid in your cupboard and found the shrine."
In spite of her grief, Mina let out a laugh. Kanji pouted when she did not stop laughing and pointed at him.
"Stupid Kanji!" she laughed. "You really think my brother would have ever fallen for those lazy women? Get a grip! He's got the best girl now!"
"Aish!" Kanji scowled. "The guy was so hard to set up on dates with. All the girls who went on blind dates with him, came to curse me! They claimed that it was like their bank statements were talking back to them. I don't know how the guy will survive without me! After all, it was my magazine which helped him win Gayoon! Otherwise, the guy probably didn't even know which hole to put it in-"
Mian smacked his head.
"OW!" he whined like a child.
"Stop slandering my brother!" she scolded him.
"He's my best friend!" Kanji protested. "It's my job to slander him! After all, only I can do that. I know all his dirty secrets!"
He was beaming with pride while Mina shook her head in dismay. She smiled a little, both of their moods lightening up as they reminisced the past.
"My brother is an idiot at times," she said. "But he loves all of us."
She paused before adding, "He loves you too. Maybe he doesn't show it but he really does. He never told me the whole story, but once he mentioned that you had saved him. I've never seen him look so ashamed of himself but he was glad that you were there with him."
Kanji realized that Minho was probably talking about the time when he had stopped the latter from taking up arms against his enemies. He would hate to see his friend taint his soul with other people's blood. Kanji had seen enough bloodshed and even participated in it but it was to protect the people he loved. Which is why he would never let Minho take up a weapon to kill someone.
"He said that whenever he'll do something stupid, Knji will be there to stop him," Mina went on. "Which is why he was always kept in line. Weird, huh?"
"Very," Kanji agreed.
"He's not going to do well without you," Mina said. "He's trying to be strong but I know he'll be lost without his best friend."
"I'll always watch over him," Kanji mused. "Whether in life or death. I don't think anything can stop that guy from ripping apart my wallet."
He laughed at his joke. Mina smiled at him, trying to picture his face. In her eyes, even if he was in another body, she always kept seeing his face in front of her. All this time, she did not feel awkward around his borrowed body because it was Kanji's soul in there.
What would happen once he was gone? Could they survive without him?
"I can't survive either…" she confessed. All this time, she was still in his arms, buried in his chest as they talked. "I tried to smile around you but I can't anymore. None of us can survive without you."
Kanji blinked back his own tears but was determined to keep on making Mina smile.
"You know," he began. "The reason why I covered your face whenever you cried is because you look ugly when you cry."
To his surprise, Mina did not react. "Liar," she muttered. "You covered my face because you hated to see me cry. I know you too well, Jang Kanji. You might consider yourself a killer but you can't hide your gentle heart from me."
Kanji held her even more tightly, etching this moment into his soul. This was probably their last hug and he would not let this memory be wiped off. He did not know if he would be sent off to the Afterlife or elsewhere but wherever he would go, this was the memory he would cherish the most.
"I'm in love with you, Jang Kanji," Mina whispered. "I don't want you to go. Can't you stay here with me? Can't we run away?"
Kanji wanted to say yes. He wanted to be selfish and run away with her. It was his wish too.
A foolish wish.
"Where I'll go, I can't take you," he said in a soft tone, patting her head. "But wherever I'll be, I know that your love will reach me. So it's okay. We don't have to run away. Our moments together were short but we've lived a thousand lives within these moments. That's enough for us in this lifetime."
Mina did not say anything else but kept on hugging him, not letting him go. The red moon above them shone its scarlet hue on them, the hellish forest becoming their safe haven for a shirt while. For a brief second, she thought she heard the souls of hell, crying for them as they watched the couple with great sadness.
So this is the real Hell, huh? She wondered.