MATURE RATING: Warning: This section of Ringing the Belle is a complete departure from anything I’ve written before. It deals with much more serious topics. I would definitely give this a very serious mature rating since it explores extremely sensitive topics. Please proceed with caution. To my faithful readers: if you find this story too disturbing to finish, I will not be offended. It was very difficult for me to write it. And its ending is very different from the ones I usually write. However, the last book in the series will not make as much sense without this story.
Chapter 9: Twice Saved – July 22 – August 1, 2022
She didn’t have much time left. She could feel it. So could he. Spring had bled into summer, and summer was approaching its climax already.
“Eunho,” she whispered one day while she lay in his arms, their legs tangled together between the sheets of their bed.
“Hmm.” His eyes met hers.
“I forgive you.”
Something in him became utterly still at the sounding of those words.
She felt him tense. “I forgive you for what you did to those girls. I know it might not be my place. But I can’t help but think that I might not have been raped if you had made different choices with those girls. If you had influenced your friends differently. If…oh, so many ifs! I feel as if it’s all connected, don’t you?”
He did. He had blamed himself for her trauma every day since it had happened.
“So…I forgive you. For what you did to them. And what you did to me. Whether or not you meant to. Whether or not you’re contrite. I’m not saying it wasn’t wrong. Because it was. Every single time. Every choice you made to violate another’s will was horribly wrong. What I’m saying is that I don’t wish to see you punished, Eunho. I’m letting you go free.”
As he lay in their bed, his arms wrapped tightly around her, he began to weep bitter tears. For he knew he didn’t deserve her words. He didn’t deserve anyone’s forgiveness. He deserved to rot for what he’d done to countless girls. And for what he had set in motion around Haewon. It was unforgivable. What he’d done to her. What his lifestyle had brought upon her. His precious Haewon.
—
Her appa had decided not to pursue her tormentors. After speaking to the district attorney, Mr. Mae had discovered that Haewon would be required to testify before a judge. Given her delicate state, her father wasn’t willing to take that risk. And the chances of her surviving until her offenders had been prosecuted was, at best, slim.
It didn’t sit well with Eunho. He was concerned that Gyeoul would hurt someone else. But Eunho set such worries aside for the moment. He concentrated on caring for his precious wife. She was slipping away. They had only a few days left together. He could feel it. And it was devastating his heart. How would he live without her?
She had brought him into the sunlight. Would he return to the darkness when she slipped from his life?
––
Eunho heard the knock on the front door. He crossed the foyer to answer it himself. He was horrified to see Gyeoul standing outside with two men he didn’t recognize.
“Eunho,” Haewon called weakly from the couch in the living room.
She was resting. It seemed that every day now she was growing weaker. They both knew she didn’t have much time left. They were going to have to say goodbye. Soon.
“Darling, who’s at the door?”
“No one important,” Eunho responded in an odd tone. “I’ll deal with them.”
He slipped outside and shut the door firmly behind him.
“Long time, no see, Eunho,” sneered Gyeoul. “What? You’ve lost your taste for sharing your girlfriends with us?”
Eunho stared at him as he tried to figure out what his game was.
“Why are you here?”
“Well, word gets around, you know? And a little birdie told me that you married Haewon. Is that true?”
“That’s none of your business.”
“That’s where you’re wrong, Eunho. Your business has been my business for two years now.”
“What are you talking about?” But before Gyeoul could answer, Eunho asked the questions that had been burning in his heart for several months now. “I don’t understand, Gyeoul. You knew who she was. You raped Haewon. Specifically. You chose her on purpose, didn’t you? Why?”
Gyeoul sneered at him. “You really don’t know, do you?”
Eunho shook his head. “No. I don’t. Would you please enlighten me?” he asked sarcastically.
His lip curling in disgust, Gyeoul spat the words at him. “Do you remember a girl named Seonmi?”
Eunho wrinkled his brow.
“Let me remind you. It was two years ago. You were drinking on the beach late one night. Seonmi was returning from fishing. You stopped her. And invited her to drink with you under the moon.
“‘It’ll be romantic,’” you said.
“She put you off, but you must have really wanted a taste of her because you were waiting for her the next evening when she came down to the beach. You were sober that night. And you’d brought a picnic dinner. You invited her to join you. What she didn’t know was that you’d drugged the champagne you fed her. She woke up on that beach the next morning with no memory of the previous night. Except for your picnic dinner. But she’d clearly been used. She was a virgin too. See?”
Eunho stared at him. “Not really.” But an awful feeling was creeping along his veins and making his gut quake.
“She’s my cousin! You raped my cousin! And you were stupid enough to leave your driver’s license behind.”
Eunho’s eyes widened. That’s what had happened to his ID?! He remembered looking everywhere for it for a whole week before he finally got around to getting a new one. But he needed to focus on the problem at hand. His gut was screaming at him right now. This man was dangerous. Possibly lethal. His main concern was protecting Haewon from him. Gyeoul would not hurt her again! Not even if Eunho had to lay down his life for her to keep her safe from this monster.
“So, befriending me was an elaborate ruse to punish me?”
“Oh, yes. It worked so well too. You’re just as lucid as all those girls when you’ve had too much to drink. One night about a year ago, I encouraged you to drink far beyond what you normally down, and then I asked you who you loved the most in all the world.
“‘A beautiful, little china doll named Haewon,’ you replied.
“Eventually, I got her last name out of you. I was so disappointed to learn she’d moved to Seoul. Not that I would have let a little thing like distance separate me from your precious Haewon. But, as it turned out, fortune smiled on me. I didn’t have to take a vacation to the big city. For she was coming to me. I put out some feelers and learned she and her parents were returning to Busan. So I bided my time, then I learned her daily routine once she returned. And when the time was right, I visited her at her favorite coffee shop.
“She was so easy. So starved for affection. Just a few kind words from a handsome guy, and she was putty in my hands. Especially once I mentioned you. She was so eager to see you.”
Eunho’s stomach flipped upside down. Haewon had suffered an attack because of him. Completely as a result of his evil choices. She was the victim of someone’s horrid revenge against him. His sins had come not just to his door but to hers also. Had it not been for him, she would have remained untouched. He felt a bubble of grief swelling inside of him.
Gyeoul tilted his head to the side. “Did you know that she’s always been in love with you? I could see it in her face as she talked about you. So, when I told her I was attending a party with you that night, and I offered to take her, she came with me willingly.”
Eunho suddenly recalled how Gyeoul had texted him a couple of hours before he’d arrived at the party. Gyeoul had wanted to know when he was coming. Eunho had informed him that he would be late. Now his remembrance of the man’s final text response chilled him.
“I’ll have a little something special waiting for you.”
Gyeoul sighed. “Well, I guess you know the rest.” His eyes fenced with Eunho’s. “So, what do you think? Are we even now? Tit for tat.” He snickered. “Or should I say, tit for tit. She was a nice little piece, your Haewon. Did you enjoy her? I wonder if she was as good for you as she was for me—”
Eunho had heard enough. His fist shot out and caught Gyeoul under his chin. The man’s head flew back. But before Eunho could punch him again, his arms were grabbed from behind, each arm locked in the grip of another man. As Gyeoul’s friends held Eunho’s arms behind his back, Gyeoul punched him in the face. Twice.
Eunho fought hard and finally shook the two men off of him. Then all three men backed away from the house as the front door suddenly opened. Eunho’s heart flew into his mouth. He glanced back at Haewon.
“Shut the door and lock it,” he bit out through clenched teeth.
But she appeared to be frozen. And Gyeoul was just a few feet in front of her.
“Well, hello there, Haewon. How I’ve missed you.” His eyes raked her from her head to her toes. They traveled slowly back up towards her face but lingered somewhere below her chin. “Would you like to spend a little time with me this evening while your husband watches?”
She could feel bile rising into her throat. She was terrified. For both herself and Eunho. She glanced at him. So she missed what he saw.
A unholy glint lit up Gyeoul’s eye. It matched the gleam that suddenly glittered off the wicked blade in his hand. The knife had materialized from out of nowhere.
“You can kiss your precious Haewon goodbye, Eunho. It’s time you pay for your sins.”
Gyeoul pulled his arm back before releasing it as he flew forward towards Haewon. But, at the last moment, Eunho stepped between them and the blade plunged into his own gut. Instead of into his beloved Haewon.
The three men fled, but not before Gyeoul threw a few words in Eunho’s face. “Your time’s up! That’s what you get for raping my cousin, Eunho.”
Eunho fell back against Haewon.
“Eunho! No! Eunho!” her voice left her mouth as a terrified sob.
He crumpled to the ground before her. His hand came up to cradle the wound that seemed to be gushing blood. He was numb to any pain. He was just thanking God that his precious Haewon was safe and sound. He had done it. When push came to shove, he had protected her above himself.
“Call an ambulance, my love,” he whispered as his other hand came up to cover his abdomen.
She bent over him, but her eyes grew wide as she saw the crimson stain blossoming on his shirt. Forgetting her own weakness, she embraced him and tried to haul him into the house.
“Don’t. Don’t wear yourself out, love. I’m fine here. Call the ambulance,” he panted. “Use my phone. It’s in my pocket,” he breathed out.
Her fingers fished it out, and she called the paramedics. She sat on the threshold of the house and cradled his head in her lap as his life force flowed out onto the ground beneath him.
“I don’t understand. Why did he stab you?”
Gasping, he responded, “Apparently, I raped his cousin on a beach two years ago. I am truly paying for my sins today. But I protected you, Haewon. You’re all right.” He smiled up at her.
She glanced down at the stain that continued to grow at an alarming rate. Was it possible that a man could bleed that much and still survive? Her fear loosened her tongue.
“Eunho. I love you. I have always loved you,” she stifled the sob rising in her throat as her eyes earnestly delved into the depths of his own mesmerizing orbs. “I never regretted marrying you. Not for one single moment. Thank you for making me your wife. And for being absolutely wonderful to me.”
He chuckled breathlessly. “Haewon, you act like I’m going to die. You’re the one whose life has always been in peril.”
She burst into tears. “Eunho, don’t die. You can’t leave me.”
“I will always be with you, Haewon. I promise I won’t leave you. How could I? I love you so.”
She would never forget the expression in his eyes as he said that last.
“Come now, give your husband a kiss.”
Cradling his head in her hand, she slid down to lie alongside him across the threshold of the house. She drew near to him and planted her mouth against his. She could feel his lips curving into a smile. They applied a slight pressure to her own. Then those marvelous lips began to speak against hers. She drew back to gaze into the most beautiful eyes she’d ever seen.
“I’ve loved you since the first moment your voice touched my ears,” he murmured before he closed his eyes.
A few moments later, the paramedics loaded him into the ambulance. They let her ride up front with the driver. But she didn’t hear the conversation taking place in the back of the vehicle.
—
An hour after they arrived at the hospital, Haewon was wearing a hole in the floor and possibly another in her heart when a doctor suddenly emerged.
“Are you Wang Haewon?”
She nodded.
“You need a new heart, right?”
She simply stared at the doctor. Why was he asking about her heart? Wasn’t he here to tell her how Eunho was doing?
“You need a new heart, correct?”
She nodded dumbly.
“One has come available. But we need to rush you into surgery right now.”
“Wh-what?” She blinked. “What about Eunho?”
“I know no Eunho. I was just informed that we found a heart that matches yours. But we have only a few hours to perform this surgery before we can no longer use the heart. Do you have anyone you wish to call before we do the surgery? If so, call them now. Tell them to come to the fourth floor surgical prep unit. I’ll take you back right now to get ready.”
“But, doctor, my husband was brought in with a stab wound an hour ago. Have you no news of him?”
“I do not. Let his doctors take care of him. Let me take care of you. All right?” He smiled down at her. “Today is a good day. This is good news. You’ve waited for a donor for a long time, haven’t you?”
“Yes, but I thought I didn’t qualify for a transplant?”
“You didn’t when you were younger. But something changed. The last report I read made you out to be a viable candidate. As long as we could find a match. And today we did.”
She felt a sudden crushing sadness. Because she realized what he wasn’t saying. Someone had kissed their loved one goodbye today to give her his heart.
—
She awoke several hours later in some pain. She moaned, alerting them. Someone merciful gave her another shot of pain medication, and its blissful embrace pulled her under again. Many more hours passed before she surfaced enough to remember. The pain seemed to be less noticeable now.
She opened her eyes, and they focused on a nurse.
Haewon cleared her throat. The nurse glanced at her and smiled. “You’re awake!”
One thought was burning itself into Haewon’s consciousness. “Where’s Eunho? Is he all right?”
The nurse frowned. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. You’re not allowed to have visitors while you’re in the intensive care unit. In a few days, you’ll be moved to a regular room. Then your friends can come visit you.”
“He’s not my friend. He’s my husband.”
“Oh, well, still. No husbands are allowed either.”
—
A team of doctors came to speak with her and told her that her family had been informed of the success of her procedure and would be allowed to visit her in a few days, but when she attempted to find out news of Eunho, they all seemed clueless. They had spoken with her parents after her surgery. Her husband had not been present for that conversation.
—
As she floated in and out of consciousness over the next few days, snippets of conversations she’d had returned to her. Along with glimpses of those with whom she’d been conversing.
“Mrs. Wang, you will spend several days in the intensive care unit after your surgery. You won’t be allowed any visitors, but your family will be updated on your status. You can expect to spend a lot of time sleeping. It’s hard work to recover from a transplant.”
Then, her own panicked voice greeted her eomma as she entered the surgical prep area.
“Eomma, Eunho was stabbed! There was so much blood! I don’t know if he’s still alive!”
Again, her beseeching voice raised in alarm as her father joined her at the side of her hospital bed. “Appa! Please! Find out if he’s okay!”
Haewon remembered grabbing his hand and tugging him close. Then she saw both of her parents trying to calm her.
“I’m sure the doctors are doing their best to save him. Calm down. You’re about to have surgery. You need to calm down.” That had been her eomma’s comforting voice.
Then her appa’s had joined the chorus. “Haewon, today is a good day. One we have all waited for so long. A day we never thought would come! We must rejoice. I do rejoice. I thought we were going to lose you soon. But you are being saved today!!”
Almost as an afterthought, he had spoken the only words she’d been looking for. “As soon as you head into surgery, I’ll go find Eunho.”
Finally, those words had soothed her somewhat. Soon the medication had finished the job.
—
More memories surfaced. These were all of Eunho.
“Marry me, Haewon.”
“You are the one woman on the planet I do love.”
“I can give you the freedom you desire.”
Did he realize that he had kept his word? She had never been as free as she was when she was with Eunho.
“Haewon, you may not realize it, but you are stunningly beautiful.”
How many times had those words echoed in her soul? She’d waited years to hear him say them. Only to discover he’d always believed them.
His lips had quirked into a sweet smile as he’d spoken the next words. Even now she could see that endearing expression on his face.
“I just wanted to give you a more romantic proposal than that which you received in a hospital room.”
“I know it’s not a diamond. I felt that you needed something out of the ordinary. You have always been in a class by yourself. And I know you crave life. You have such a passion for living that the fiery ruby seemed the right choice. It’s a heart because, well, it just seemed appropriate. I, I’m giving you my heart, Haewon. Do with it what you will.”
Then, the most precious words of all.
“I do love you. I always have.”
He hadn’t understood their mysterious connection either. She could still see the haunted expression in his eyes as he’d spoken the words echoing in her head right now.
“Why am I so drawn to you?”
She smiled as she remembered how gentle he had been with her. Almost afraid to reach out and run his finger down her skin.
“I won’t touch you. Unless I’m invited. “Every step of the way.”
“I simply enjoy your company, Haewon. I always have. You’re so…peaceful.”
“Hello, beautiful.”
His voice was so clear on the inside of her. Why did it sound as if he were lying in this hospital bed with her?
“My love for you is like that. Like that ocean, it is endless. Constantly crashing towards you, my love will pursue you, chasing you down, overwhelming you for the rest of your life. It’s steady, like the beat of my heart pounding in your chest, reminding you that my love courses through your veins. And I am but a breath away from you.”
“I wish I could give it to you, Haewon.”
He’d been speaking of his heart then.
Why did it now feel like he was here with her, occupying her heart fully? Filling her with himself? With all the love one heart could hold?
—
Several days after her surgery, she was finally moved to a regular room. She called her parents to tell them. As she spoke with her mother on the phone, she asked her where Eunho was.
Her eomma’s only response was, “We’re all on our way. We’ll see you soon.”
Haewon smiled. Eunho must be all right. He was coming with her parents. But when they walked through the doorway a half an hour later, it wasn’t Eunho who walked in with them. It was Heejin.
“Where’s Eunho?” Haewon asked frantically as her new heart began to beat hard in her chest.
She’d had this sinking feeling for days. They hadn’t allowed her to use her phone in the intensive care unit. They hadn’t brought her any news of her husband either. Now she watched as pain rippled across the three faces in front of her.
“Haewon,” Heejin breathed, “my brother died.”
“No!” Haewon screamed. “No! He can’t be dead! I’m finally alive! Eunho can’t be dead!”
“You’re alive because he died.”
“What?” she sobbed as tears flooded her eyes before coursing down her cheeks.
Heejin smiled at her tremulously. “Haewon, Eunho is with you. He gave you his heart.”
“What?” Her hand flew to her chest. “I have Eunho’s heart?”
She glanced down at the spot on her finger where her ruby usually rested. She’d given it to her mother before her surgery. Haewon looked up at them all.
“Eunho gave me his heart?”
Those three precious heads nodded at her. Then her father told her a story…
—
After the paramedics loaded Eunho into the ambulance and worked on him for a moment, he revived and spoke to them.
“My wife, Wang Haewon, needs a new heart. If you can, give her mine.”
The two paramedics had looked at each other. They had been certain he was going to die.
“Do I need to sign something?” Eunho mumbled.
One of the paramedics found the paperwork and filled it out. Eunho made sure it specified that his wife was to receive any of his organs that she needed. As long as they were a match. The last thing he did before he left his body was to sign that piece of paper. Making his own wish come true. Giving his beloved his own heart.
—
She had spent a glorious season in the sun with Eunho. But it had been so terribly short. She would spend years reliving those moments with him. Maui. She’d loved it so much, they had stayed. For three blissful months. She hadn’t wanted to visit any other place.
Hawaii had been a taste of Heaven. The weather had been sublime. The butterflies captivating. The sand warm but never burning beneath her feet. The air filled with the salty tang of the ocean surrounding them. The sunshine gentle on her skin.
But, mostly, what she recalled of Hawaii was Eunho. His warm breath sliding over her skin. His soft kisses gentle on her lips. His strong arms cradling her tenderly. His smooth fingertips caressing her skin, teasing delight out of it. His murmured words of love and pleasure in her presence.
How could she face tomorrow without him? He had loved her. Truly loved her. He had supported her and strengthened her. He had believed in her. He had been prepared to give her wings with which to fly.
She recalled something he’d said to her the day before he died.
“Promise me something.”
“Hmm?”
“If you ever get the opportunity to do so, chase your dreams.”
At the time, she’d thought it strange that Eunho had told a dying girl to chase her dreams. Had he known something she hadn’t?
As it had turned out, he had given her wings to soar upon. He had taken the butterfly with the broken wing and made it whole again. He had given her his very own heart. The thing she had always desired. But not quite in the way that life had handed it to her. She had his heart, but if felt as though it had been crushed with his passing. She didn’t think she’d ever be able to dream again. How could she when her fondest dream had been so cruelly obliterated by the man who had raped her?
But as the days following Eunho’s death – and her surgery – passed her by, and her strength grew – as that strong heart of his imparted his own strength into her weak body – she did begin to dream again. And she realized the best way to honor his memory – to honor the tender way he had loved her and the tender heart he had given her – was to pursue her life’s dream.
It was ironic, really. She had wanted to give him her tender heart for people. But in the end, Eunho had given her his.
