Dozens of parks, a couple of crossroads and mall complexes, and a bridge had already been searched thoroughly by Seokjin— but Joobin's traces, he could not succeed in locating.

Everything from a year ago, was repeating itself. The misfortune that was supposedly not satisfied by the way it had wrecked Seokjin's family, was eager to show them its newfound capacities and have them groveling at its feet for looking down on it. A year ago, Seokjin had caved in to his circumstances and committed the blunder that it had ordered him to. But this time, he would not. He would no longer let someone else decide the course of his life.

He would not dare chicken out like he did last time.

With hot tears forming in the corners of his eyes, Seokjin continued to jog and browse through every nook that he came across. Despite trotting hither and thither for about a few hours now, Seokjin did not savvy himself getting closer to the river bridge that marked the end of his neighborhood, so soon. Even though his reasoning did not allow him to go beyond it, for if Joobin's condition was taken into account, it would not have been a cakewalk for her to cross the boundary of her area so soon. Seokjin was not away from her for much long anyway, nor would she have sprinted with all her might to get rid of the man for one more time.

If that recurred too, Seokjin would literally die this time.

Waggling his head to dismiss the dark thoughts before they got the best of him, Seokjin leapt to land on the other side of the bridge. He could not refrain from bowing before and thanking the Heavens for causing a whirlwind in his brain, because that was what had stirred him into deliberating past the logic, with him ending up right across a sobbing Joobin— knees stuck close to her chest.

Acceding to the urge of charging in her direction, Seokjin had grabbed Joobin's hands in his by the next moment, startling her to the core at first. However, when she took her time squinting at Seokjin's face and recognizing the warmth that exuded from his hands, she wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I—I was so scared, thank you for looking for me." Joobin murmured as she bitterly cried.