Chapter 15: A Noble Sacrifice

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((Hey guys! Just a little heads up, the picture above is a redraw of Amy that I did just recently. It went much better than the other two I did and I'm very happy with it. I hope you all like it!))

Amy's heart ached sharply over and over again as she stared blankly at the ceiling above while replaying the events of the night over and over in her head. With each cycle of the memories, the gnawing guilt she felt grew more and more prominent till it had consumed three quarters of her stomach, leaving an emptiness that could not be filled in its wake. Her cheeks were raw from vainly attempting to wipe away the continuous downpour of her tears, stinging painfully as more of the salty droplets trickled down the sensitive flesh, and her bloodshot eyes burned but she refused to close them. Her lungs felt like they had shrunk in her chest, leaving her feeling breathless and tired, but sleep seemed to be keeping its distant from her for the night. This was probably for the better for if she was allowed to dream she would likely only suffer more pain as her mind concocted some horrible nightmare to remind her of her treachery. Sniffling as she wallowed in her helplessness, she sluggish rolled over onto her side and wrapped her arms around her pillow, burying her face into its plush surface in hopes that it would relieve so of the distress she felt or at least muffle her sobs so she didn't wake Zen.

"Echo Girl...that little brat! I'm sure Dad would've decided to marry Emma off to Jumin eventually but she didn't need to speed up the process! I wish I should've punched her in her smug little face when I had the chance, regardless of what other people thought. Why can't I just be happy for once in my life?!" she mentally screamed as squeezed the pillow a little tighter and hiccuped like a child. "I just want to be happy, that's all. I want to marry a guy who loves me and sees value in me; I want to marry Zen! But now because of me, Emma is being forced to take my place. I can't do that to her. She deserves to be happy and meet her Prince Charming too."

Suddenly, a thought occurred to Amy that made her skin crawl.

"If I went home, perhaps it wouldn't be too late for me to trade spots with her again. Maybe there's still hope for her....But what about Zen?"

Biting her lip, Amy quietly rose to her feet and tiptoed out of her room, making her way down the hall towards Zen's bedroom. Thankfully, the door was already open so she could peek in no problem. Creeping over to the actor's bed, Amy gazed down at his face with a hint of sadness. He looked rather peaceful while he slumbered, but the slight pinching together of his eyebrows told her that he hadn't completely escaped his worries just yet.

"Zen, I'm so sorry. You deserve so much better than this." she whispered quietly, knowing full well that he couldn't hear her. Leaning down, she placed the gentlest of kisses on his cheek, not wanting to wake him, before rising and retreating back to her room. There, she began to gather her things only to suddenly pause.

"Dad will probably confiscate most of this stuff and throw it out, so what's the point of even bringing it along?"

Sighing heavily, Amy returned her clothes to the closet, frowning as her eyes trailed over the outfits she hadn't even gotten to wear yet.

"What a waste. I'm so sorry, Zen."

Grabbing her phone, Amy flopped down onto her bed and slowly began dialing the one number she never thought she would call ever again. As the line connected, she drew in a sharp breath as her heart raced in her chest.

"Hello?" her father's voice echoed, sounding rather annoyed.

"Dad, it's me. We need to talk."

The line grew silent for a moment.

"I have nothing to say to you. You're lucky Chairman Han was willing to let Jumin marry your sister."

"Dad, please!"

"Do not call me again. Goodbye, Amethyst-"

"I'll marry Jumin!"

Again, silence from the other end of the line.

"What did you just say?"

"I said I'll marry Jumin, but in return, you have to let Emerald continue going to college and let her move out if she wants."

"...Fine. Very well. I'm glad you changed your mind. I assume you will be returning home as well?"

Amy nodded mutely before remembering that her father couldn't see her. "Yes, that is correct. Could you send a car to pick me up?"

"Yes. You are staying with that good for nothing actor aren't you?"

"Zen. His name is Zen, Dad." Amy whimpered as more tears flooded her eyes and she struggled to hold them back.

"I don't care what his name is. I'll have a car there soon. I shall see you at home. Goodbye."

With that, the call ended, leaving a trembling Amethyst sitting alone in the dark. Taking a shaky breath, she set the phone on her bed and made her way to the living room. As she passed her laptop sitting on the couch, she paused momentarily and stared down at it.

"Should I email the college and tell them I'm dropping out?" she pondered. After a moment of thought, she shook her head. "Jumin will probably let me continue my studies while he works. That's a plus for me since I won't have to worry about getting another job while I work on my writing career."

That thought, however, did little to comfort Amy as she leaned against the wall and stared gloomily out the window, watching the street with a blank look on her face. Nothing seemed capable of filling the hole in her heart, the hole that could only be filled by the one thing she couldn't have.

"No, Amy. You can't be selfish any longer. You're the big sister; it's your job to look out for Emma."

Before long, a familiar black car came to a screeching halt in front of the house, snapping Amy out of her daze. Taking a shaky breath, she slunk down the hall, her shoulders drooping in defeat as the immense weight she had thrown off returned to its perch and made itself cozy. As she reached out and grabbed the door handle, Amy paused one last time and glanced down the hall towards Zen's room. Part of her hoped that he had somehow woken and would come rushing down the hall to her, wrapping his arms around her and begging her not to leave. However, she knew that such a fantasy was unrealistic; such an occurrence only happened on the pages of a book and nowhere else. This was reality and nothing could save her from it. This was the role she was assigned and she would be forced to play it to the t. Slowly, she turned the doorknob and opened the door, and as she stepped out into the night and shut the door behind her, Amy could practically feel the invisible chains that had confined her her whole life snapping back shut with a loud clank. Blinking away the few tears she had left, she made her way down the steps of the porch and nodded politely at the driver as he opened the car door for her. Slipping wordlessly into the backseat, she bit her lip as the door closed shut behind her, signaling the sealing of her fate. As the car started up and began driving away, the sorrowful woman shot one last look at Zen's home as it shrank and shrank till it was no more than a dot on the horizon.

"I'm sorry, Zen, but if only one of us can be happy in the end, I want it to be Emma. Thank you for being my White Knight, even if it was for a vain and fleeting time. My person may be sold to Jumin Han, but my heart will forever be only yours. Please find happiness; find it for me. Goodbye, my knight...no, my prince."

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"Where am I? What's going on?"

Zen frowned in confusion as he scanned his surroundings. He was in a large white room surrounded by people in rather formal attire. Everyone was seated in rows of chairs, their eyes fixed in front of them as someone at the front of the crowd spoke, though Zen could not understand his words. Biting the inside of his cheek, he stretched to try and see over the people in front of him, only catching the slightest glimpse of the scene at the front of the room. However, it was enough to make his brows scrunch together in confusion.

"Am I...at a wedding?"

Glancing behind him, Zen noticed that no one seemed to be paying any attention to him, their eyes all glued to the ceremony at the front of the room, so he slowly stood up so he could see. His jaw quickly dropped when he realized that standing at the front of the room was Amy's sister and Jumin, their hands joined together as they awkwardly smiled and tried to look excited.

"So this is Trust Fund Kid's wedding." he thought to himself. Suddenly, something occurred to him that for some reason made him very worried. "Wait a second, where's Amy?"

Zen immediately started scanning the crowd with frantic eyes, but no matter where he looked, his beloved was nowhere to be found.

"Zen, you alright?" a familiar voice asked from beside him.

Looking down, Zen noticed that the person sitting beside him had transformed into Saeyoung, who looked oddly somber and sympathetic.

"Seven..."

"Here, take these. It's okay to cry, you know; you don't have to try and be tough. I won't tell anyone, I promise." Saeyoung said, holding a box of tissues out for the actor and only deepening his confusion.

"What?"

Suddenly, Zen noticed that his cheeks were in fact damp with fresh tears and that his nose was starting to drip as well.

"I...I'm crying? Why am I crying? What reason do I have to cry-?"

"And do you, Amethyst Hall, take Jumin Han to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold in good times and bad times, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"

"I do."

Zen's heart stopped beating in his chest and his blood froze solid as he whipped around to face the front of the room once more. Emerald had vanished and standing in her place, adorned in a wedding dress and a fake smile, was Amethyst.

"No..." he breathed.

"Then by the power vested in me, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Time seemed to slow down as Jumin and Amy leaned in towards each other, their eyes fluttering closed as their lips drew closer and closer towards each other.

"NO!!!!!"

----------------------

"NO!!!!!"

Zen started awake with a violent jolt, cold sweat pouring down his body like water droplets after a long shower. For a few moments, the actor just sat there trembling in his bed and staring incomprehensibly at his blanket, his heavy breathing echoing in his ears.

"It was just a dream?"

Zen's stomach churned uneasily in his stomach as he thought over what he had scene. It wasn't one of those dreams, was it? As an intense fear shot through his body, Zen leaped out of bed and barreled down the hallway towards Amy's room, his heart thundering so loudly he swore everyone within a mile radius could hear it. However, as he neared the door, he skidded to a halt and just stood there for a moment, attempting to collect himself. Amy could very well be still be sleeping peacefully on the other side of the wall, safe and close by, and he didn't want to rudely awaken her if his fears were all for nothing. Taking a deep breath, he slowly raised his fist and gently knocked on the door. To his surprise, the door shifted slightly, having been left ajar.

"Amy?" Zen called softly as he slowly pushed the door open. However, his eyes widened in horror as he drank in the sight before him; laying on the bed where Amy should have been was the phone he had given her while she was nowhere to be seen.

"Amy? Amy?! Amy?!"

Zen took off in a blind state of panic, running around the house and frantically calling for his princess. When she did not answer or turn up, the actor snatched his phone off of his nightstand along with his leather jacket and a pair of shoes. As he slipped the jacket on over his pajamas and the shoes onto his feet, he hastily dialed the first number he could think of before bringing the phone to his ear. After a couple rings, there was a click on the other end of the line followed by the groggy groaning of a very tired MC.

"Hello?"

"MC, is Amy with you?!"

"Huh? Zen? Why are you calling me at eight in the morning on a Saturday?"

"MC, is she with you?!"

"No. Why? Is something wrong?"

"She isn't here and she left her phone."

"She could have just go out to get something, Zen."

"I don't think that's the case. I had another one of my dreams last night and she was in it."

"What?! What happened in the dream, Zen?!"

"I was at Jumin's wedding and he was standing at the altar with Emerald. However, when I looked at them again, Amy was standing in Emerald's place exchanging vows with Jumin and...and..."

"Zen, breathe! It's going to be alright, I promise. Have you called anyone else?"

"No, you're the first one. I was going to call Jaehee or Yoosung after you before I headed out to look for her on my bike."

"Good. You do that. I'll have Seven check the security cameras and traffic cams for anything."

"Thank you."

"We'll find her, Zen, I promise."

"I hope so. Bye MC." Zen stated before hastily hanging up and dialing Jaehee's number.

"Hello?"

"Jaehee, it's Zen! Have you had any contact with Amy in the last twenty-four hours? She's not here and she left her phone."

"Are you sure she didn't just go out for something-"

"Yes!!! Something bad is going to happen, Jaehee! I know it!"

"Did you have another one of your dreams?"

"Yes and it wasn't good. Please, if you hear or see anything, let me know."

"Of course!"

"I'm going to try Yoosung next. He probably hasn't seen anything either but I'm still going to ask. Bye, Jaehee."

"Bye, Zen. Good luck."

As he practically flew out the front door, Zen called Yoosung next only for the call to go straight to voicemail. Cursing, he left a brief message demanding that the college student tear himself away from his video game for five seconds and call him back then tucked his phone into the pocket of his jacket before leaping onto his motorcycle and revving the engine. There was only one person left for him to ask, and he wanted that conversation to occur face to face.

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"Mr. Han, Zen is here to see you-"

"Where is she, Jumin?!"

Jumin glanced up to see Zen storming into his office, steam practically pouring from his ears as his eyes blazed like an out of control wildfire. The corporate heir raised an eyebrow when he noticed the actor's attire.

"You're here in your pajamas?"

Gritting his teeth, Zen raised his fist and socked Jumin square in the jaw, knocking him clear out of his chair. Jaehee shrieked loudly and ran to Zen's side, grabbing his arm before he could throw another punch.

"Where is she, you bastard?! Tell me now!" Zen growled, glaring murderously at Jumin as he steadily rose to his feet.

"Why do you think I would know?" he grunted in reply as he tenderly massaged his aching jaw. "Assistant Kang, please go get me some ice."

"But sir-"

"It's alright, Jaehee. Go."

Biting her lip, Jaehee hurried from the room, leaving Jumin and Zen alone in the office. As Zen stood seething with rage, Jumin straightened his jacket before grabbing the remote for his office's tv.

"I'm assuming you haven't turned on the news yet today, have you?" he stated flatly as he fiddled with the device.

"What the heck are you talking about?!"

Sighing, Jumin raised the remote and turned on the tv. Immediately, a far too perky broadcaster appeared on the screen along with pictures of Amy, Jumin, Emerald, and himself.

"Well folks, this has been quite the week! Only twenty-four hours after announcing the engagement of his daughter Emerald Hall to C&R's Jumin Han, businessman Chul Hall has confirmed the circling rumor that his daughter Amethyst Hall has agreed to marry the corporate heir in her sister's place." the woman babbled excitedly, practically vibrating in her seat as she clutched the papers she was holding so tightly that her knuckles were turning white.

Meanwhile, Zen's heart dropped into the pit of his stomach. "Amy..."

"Amethyst has since returned home and, according to her father, is busily preparing for the wedding occurring in just a few days so she was unable to answer any questions for us." the newscaster continued, her extremely oversized smile making Jumin cringe.

"Liar." Zen snarled, clenching his fists angrily.

"However, many people are curious as to how actor Zen must be feeling about all this. Here to talk with us about that is the heartthrob's current co-star, the one and only Echo Girl!" the newswoman squealed before the camera panned out to reveal the starlet seated a few feet next to her. "It's an honor to have you here, Echo Girl. Tell us, after working side by side with Zen for a while, what do you think he's feeling right now?"

"Oh, I'm sure he's devastated, the poor thing! I didn't like that Amethyst girl from the start! I tried to get Zen away from her before he got hurt but by then it was already too late." Echo Girl lamented, dramatically wiping away invisible tears with a lacy handkerchief.

"What do you mean?" the newswoman asked, obviously intrigued and eagerly devouring the star's every word.

"Well, it was obvious right away to me that Zen was completely head over heels for her while she could've cared less about him. She was just stringing him along, pretending to need him and care about him just to secure her hold over him so she could break his heart in two. Honestly, while I feel bad for Zen, I'm glad he's free from her hold now. I also pity her poor fiance, Jumin Han; I have a feeling she's going to have quite a few affairs behind his back."

"I see..." the newscaster said, looking rather uncomfortable, before quickly changing the subject. "As Zen's co-star, I assume you're going to try and support him during this hard time?"

"But of course! What happened to Zen wasn't fair in the slightest. I'm willing to do whatever it takes to console him during his time, and I beg his true fans to give him as much love and support as they can as well. I also implore them not to let Miss Hall get away with what she has done and to call her out on what she has done. No one hurts our Zen and gets away with it!"

"Shut up! Just shut up, you filthy little liar!" Zen screeched, slamming his hands down on Jumin's desk before shakily sinking to his knees and burying his face in his arms. Jumin quietly turned off to the tv and approached the actor, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Zen. If I could do anything, I would. I can tell Amy has been good for you, and I'll admit that I feel some guilt about being the reason why she is being taken from you." Jumin confessed softly, patting Zen's back as he loomed over him.

"You...You better treat her like the freaking princess she is, you hear me? Give her only the best of everything and make sure you give her lots of love and attention every single day. Also, don't show her off like some toy; she hates that. Let her finish to her degree too, and don't you dare ever break her heart or make her do something she doesn't want to. I swear I'll break your neck if you do, got it?" Zen stated as he lifted his head and wiped his eyes on his sleeve.

"Yes, of course. I'll do whatever I can to try and make her happy, but I can't help but think that it will all be in vain."

"Still, just try. Make her as happy as you can and give her the love and respect she deserves. Also, I'm assuming I won't get to see her again before the wedding and I won't get an invite either, so please, when you see her, tell her I love her more than anything the world."

"I will, I promise."

Chewing on his bottom lip, Zen got up and made his way towards the door. "I better go. Sorry for punching you in the face."

"It's alright. Make sure you calm down before you drive again. The last thing Amy needs right now is to learn you died in a motorcycle accident."

"I will. Congratulations, Jumin; you've scored big."

Jumin's usually stone cold face turned soft and rather sad as he watched Zen leave.

"Indeed I have. I have scored a stolen prize that was never meant to be mine in the first place. Lucky me." he said flatly just as the door clicked shut behind Zen.

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