Part IV

Jessica had been sitting in her car for three hours straight, not knowing what to do next. Her eyes were scruffy, and her face had lost it's usual healthy glow. Her life was crashing before her and there was nothing she could do but watch it all crumble.

She made an important phone call to make people aware her grandmother had passed. She looked through her contact list for a number she hadn't called for years, and she prayed he'd pick.

"Hello?" Her voice quavered as she spoke once he answered her call.

"Mr Ahn, it's jessica."The man yelled over the phone, "Yes? Who is this and how do you have my number?"

She didn't know if his reaction should surprise her, but as far as she knew, it wasn't having a good toll on her emotions.

"It's me, Jessica... your... your daughter."

"Oh," His voice lowered, then he asked, "What do you want?"

"It's Nana. She's dead" She spoke in a slow measured voice as she grabbed a napkin to wipe her nose and the tears from her face.

"Okay. And how did that happen?"

"I don't know. I just found her on the floor. I think she fell from the stairs…"

"Look, I don't have time for this. I have nothing to do with your mother's family. Your grandma just died, right? You should tell her, not me. I have a new family I'm worrying about. I told you that already."

A tightening of her throat and a brief intake of breath made way for a blast of emotions which to date, she had kept buried deep inside her "YOU KNOW WHAT? I MESSED UP BY CALLING YOU! YOU'RE A HORRIBLE HUMAN BEING AND I WISH...I WISH YOU COULD LOSE EVERYTHING. I HATE YOU!"

She hung up after yelling, knowing he wouldn't give a damn and probably wasn't listening to anything she said. It was the last straw. She was done with him.Her drive home was filled with silent tears.

The vision she had swam in front of her as tears welled from deep inside and coursed down her cheeks. She'd wipe them away with her sleeves to see the road properly from time to time, and she grew eager to get home as soon as possible.

Once the door closed, she went straight to her room, fell onto the bed face first, then curled on her side. Her chest heaved with a quiet sob, and tears welled up behind her eyelids, slipping down her cheeks without resistance.

Small crystal beads soaked into the sheets leaving damp evidence, but the proof was written on her face; crying was hard to hide, and she didn't know how long the pain she felt would last. 

She was alone. It was about time she accepted that.

***A week later...***

"She still hasn't contacted you since?" Wu asked as he placed a kiss on Lijuan's forehead. The woman kept staring at her phone, waiting for a single reply from Jessica, no matter how short it would be.

"I've gone to her house so many times, but I doubt she's at home. Not even her grandma answered. It's so not like the two of them, and it's making me really worried. Jessica hasn't been active on chatify for a long time now."

"What to do now?" Wu was only bothered because his girlfriend was. He'd do anything to make her happy, even sympathizing with someone he didn't like. Lijuan sighed "I don't know what to do.

I don't even know if it's a kind of matter that needs police involvement. I just want my best friend to be okay. "She snuggled into Wu's embrace and he caressed her back "I feel like it's all my fault."

"Don't blame yourself. It hurts me whenever you do because I'm also involved in this." "I'm sorry."

"And don't apologize for it either. Just be calm. Jumping into conclusions won't help the situation."

"You're right" Lijuan's phone buzzed, and she sat up the moment Jessica's name showed on the notification bar

"She replied!" She exclaimed, happiness overwhelming her extremely.

Jess: Lijuan, I know you're probably worried about me, but you shouldn't. I'm not in a right state of mind, and for now, I want to figure things out by myself. It's not about your relationship, it's because my grandma passed away and I'm still learning to cope without her around. I didn't want to tell you about it because you're happy, and I don't want my problems to affect you. I've sent a message to your father, apologizing for my absence at work, but I won't be surprised if I've already been replaced because of my nonchalant behavior towards my work. You shouldn't be worried about me self harming either, I promised you I'd never do it again, and I'm still sticking to that promise. You don't have to reply this message. I'm sorry, but if you do, I won't read it. You should focus on your life more, you've found someone you love, and you shouldn't let your worries over someone that's less important meddle in your relationship. I'm glad that you're happy, precious. We'll see each other some other time. Goodbye. PS...don't bother coming to my house. I've moved, and I won't share my new location because you'd still come over. I hope you have a pleasant week. Ttyl :heart emoji:

After Jessica noticed the message had been read, she turned her phone off, then slowly got out of bed. She moved to her bathroom, tripped over the doormat and fell forward, catching herself on the porcelain sink.

She raised her head to see the mirror, and her red, sunken eyes stared back at her. "I haven't eaten for a week now" Her stomach growled as she turned her face side to side, examining the hollows in her cheek.

She smoothed her now chaotic hair and wiped the watery streaks falling down her cheeks, which were now blotchy and mottled.

"Nana and I planned to buy groceries last weekend, there's barely anything in this new house" She said. She moved, hoping her past would stay back in her condo, but things became worse than before. Her memories were ghosts that haunted her and gave her sleepless nights in her gloomy room.

She changed clothes, then headed for her car. luckily blopshop was a few minutes drive away from her new estate, so she barely had to worry about being out in the sun for too long. She got out of her car, then moved to the entrance of the store wedged between two taller buildings.

Soon, everything about her felt heavy, from her arms to her feet as she drifted into consciousness and then back out. She was aware she was walking, but she couldn't concentrate. The world was a blur, and random images seemed to float aimlessly around her thoughts, and she heard sounds she couldn't understand.

"Ma'am" A tap on her shoulder momentarily brought her back to the outside world, but after a second she was lost again. She could feel someone...no...many people staring at her, wondering what had gotten into her, but Jessica couldn't keep focus. She was confused, and she had a feeling her body was about to give up soon.

Her eyes became glacier blue under the sheen of water in her lids that couldn't stay open any longer. She felt her legs leave the surface of the ground and a feeling of a soft mattress underneath her back.

The warmth of the surrounding sheets made her snuggle into it, and a smile was left on her face.Xin looked at the woman that was blissfully unaware of what was going on. He caught her right in time, and now that he had her unconscious in his arms, he didn't know what to do with her.

"I probably should throw your body in a trash can and act like I never saw you. Don't you agree?" He asked her, but he didn't get a response. "Oh well, I'll take that as a yes."