The End
On that cold, gray afternoon in New York, the city was bustling, as it always was. The sky was a pale, washed-out blue, heavy with the weight of an impending storm, yet the streets remained alive with the rush of people. Jessica had come to the city for a rare moment of solace, a break from the whirlwind of her life, both personal and professional. She wandered through the narrow streets of Manhattan, taking in the hustle, the noise, and the pace, her thoughts seemingly distant.
She had always been a lover of cities like New York, where she could disappear among the crowd, a fleeting ghost passing unnoticed. But on this day, she wasn’t her usual, composed self. There was something different in her steps, something heavier in her heart. Perhaps it was the loneliness she couldn’t outrun, or the weight of the years that had distanced her from everything she had once known. A life that seemed so far removed from her now, a life she once felt so deeply entwined in.
Jessica had no idea that she was walking toward the end. The wind began to pick up, blowing her hair in disarray, but she didn’t care. The cold that swept through her was more than physical—it was like something cold had wrapped itself around her heart, tightening with each passing moment. Her lungs began to feel heavy, almost as if each breath required more effort than the last. She paused at a street corner, a twinge of discomfort rising in her chest.
And then it happened.
A sharp pain, so sudden, so severe, that she doubled over, clutching at her chest. The feeling was overwhelming—her breath coming in shallow, desperate gasps as she stumbled forward, her knees threatening to give way beneath her. The world around her seemed to blur, the sound of honking taxis and pedestrians' chatter growing muffled. Her vision dimmed, and the cold that had settled into her chest turned icy, seizing her in place.
In that moment, all she could think of was how much she had left behind—how many words had been left unsaid, how many apologies never spoken. Her body felt heavy, like it was being pulled down into the earth, and the familiar sensation of panic spread through her veins. She stumbled once more, her legs giving out as she collapsed near the side of the road, unable to rise.
A passerby noticed her crumpled form on the ground and rushed to her side, frantically calling for help. The world around her was a blur of voices, people kneeling beside her, trying to revive her with CPR, their hands shaking as they pressed against her chest in an attempt to restart her heart. But Jessica felt nothing. No warmth. No pain. Just an endless, cold abyss pulling her away.
The paramedics arrived moments later, but by then, it was already too late. They worked feverishly, using a defibrillator in desperate attempts to jolt her heart back into rhythm, but there was no response. Her body was motionless, lifeless, the air around her growing colder as the pulse of life slowly faded away.
As they prepared to place her body in the ambulance, her limp form was gently lifted from the pavement, her eyes closed, her mouth slightly ajar in an expression of quiet, unfathomable peace. The streets that had once seemed so alive now felt eerily silent, as though the city itself had taken a collective breath, holding it in until she was gone.
As Jessica’s body lay still on the cold pavement in New York, the last remnants of her breath hanging in the frigid air, the city continued to move around her unaware of the life that had just left this world. Her hand, limp and lifeless, was left lying in the frozen street, her pale skin, now losing the warmth it once held, was stark against the dull gray of the city’s concrete.
In her final moments, Jessica’s thoughts weren’t of the pain that gripped her body or the circumstances that had led her here. No, her heart, heavy with the weight of lost time, was filled with the faces of her members—the women she had once laughed and cried with, the ones she had fought beside on stage, the ones who had been a part of her for so long, even after everything had crumbled.
And then, beyond the stage, beyond the superficial smiles and the headlines, her mind drifted back to her family—her parents, Mama Jung and Papa Jung—and to her younger sister, Soojung.
Jessica had always been close to Soojung, even when life pulled them in different directions. The sisters had shared a bond of quiet understanding. They had been through so much together—Jessica’s journey with Girls' Generation, Soojung’s own rise in the entertainment world, the complexities of growing up in the shadow of stardom. But in the quiet moments, when the world had no eyes upon them, Soojung had always been Jessica’s anchor. They had their share of disagreements, of course, but the love between them had always been unspoken but present, always steady.
The memory of her parents' faces came next. Mama Jung had always been supportive, fiercely protective of her daughters. Jessica could feel the warmth of her mother’s embrace in her memories, the way she had always tried to shield Jessica from the harshness of the world, even when Jessica had pushed everyone away. Papa Jung, though quieter, had been equally devoted, always present in his own way, and Jessica remembered how he had watched over her with care, even when his love was more reserved than her mother’s.
Would they have been proud of me? Jessica wondered, her body growing colder as the minutes stretched into eternity. She had been a daughter, a sister, a friend, and yet in her final moments, all that seemed to matter was whether they would ever know just how much they had meant to her. Her heart clenched with the thought of never being able to tell them, never being able to make amends for all the time she had spent apart from them.
And her girls—her former members. Jessica couldn’t help but wonder what they would think when they heard the news, how each of them would react.
She imagined Taeyeon, always the leader, always the first to take on the weight of responsibility. She had always been the one Jessica could turn to when the world became too overwhelming, the one who would offer comfort even when she herself was breaking. Would she blame herself for the years of silence between us? Would she wish she could have done more? Jessica thought with a soft ache in her chest.
She remembered Yoona, with her bright, innocent eyes and easy smile. Yoona, who had always been so pure-hearted, and yet so incredibly strong. The thought of her made Jessica smile faintly, even in the face of death. She thought of how they had shared so many good times, how Yoona always seemed to know how to make her laugh, how they had been close, and how that closeness had slipped away in the end.
Seohyun... The youngest, yet the most mature of them all. Jessica thought of Seohyun’s steady hand, always the one who would stand beside her, even when times were difficult. She thought of how Seohyun had looked up to her, how she had wanted to protect her even when she was the one who needed protection. Jessica’s heart swelled with love for her, the girl who had always been there, even if they had drifted apart.
And then, there was Hyoyeon, her partner in crime. The one who had always understood her in ways others couldn’t, the one who had shared her joy and her pain in silence. The thought of their late-night talks, their secret smiles, the bond they had shared, made her chest tighten. How could they have let all of that slip away, how could she have let her go without saying goodbye?
Sunny, the cheerful ball of energy, who had always known how to make Jessica laugh, how to lift her spirits when she felt like the world was closing in on her. How would she take it? How would they all take it?
Her thoughts turned to Sooyoung. Always full of life, full of jokes. Sooyoung had been the one who always made her feel grounded, even when the world felt like it was spinning too fast. She had always envied Sooyoung’s confidence, her ability to light up any room with her presence.
Tiffany, her best friend, her American counterpart, would be the hardest to leave. Tiffany had always been her rock, the one who understood her in ways no one else could. Jessica could hear Tiffany’s laughter in her mind, but also the way she had always taken care of her, always tried to pull her out of the darker moments. Would she be angry with me for not saying goodbye? Jessica thought with a pang in her chest.
Jessica clung to the thought of Yuri. She could almost hear her now, her voice calling out to her. But it was too late. The distance had grown too far. Jessica’s world became more and more distant, but she still held onto the memories, the laughter, and the love they had shared. And somewhere, deep inside, she could almost feel Yuri's presence, watching over her, even as the coldness of death surrounded her. In her final thoughts, Jessica found some small comfort, knowing that Yuri, in all her fiery spirit, would be the one to remember her.
As her consciousness started to fade, the thought of her family and her girls brought a wave of regret, but also a deep sense of peace. She wished she could go back, fix everything, but it was too late now. All she could do was hope that one day, they would understand that she had loved them all until the very end.
And with that final thought, Jessica’s breath slowed, her body growing colder, her mind slipping into the darkness. But in that darkness, she could still hear them—the voices of the girls who had once been her world, the faces of her family, and the warmth of her memories. She was leaving them behind, but they would never leave her.
Jessica’s soul was free, finally at peace. But her love for them, would remain forever, echoing in the corners of her heart and in the silence that would follow her departure.
Jessica was gone. Her time had come to an end in the most unremarkable way—a sudden, unexpected death on a bustling street in New York. It was a tragic irony, really, how everything around her had always been loud, always moving, but in that final moment, there was only silence.
The rest of her journey, the journey that would take her body back home to Korea, would be filled with grief and mourning. Her family, her friends, and those who had loved her would never fully understand why she had to go, but they would have to learn to live with the void she had left behind. A void too large to fill, no matter how many years passed.