SORROW FLY AWAY
Part 1
Daylight was fading, her heart was beating. She could hear the harsh wind outside getting stronger and stronger, tearing her broken window apart. "This wind…in the summer…" It surprised Ye-Jin….she was expecting a sunny evening. But the wind was blowing fiercely, and the coldness filled up the room. Ye-Jin quickly went over and closed the broken window as best as she could. She didn't want to catch a cold.
Ye-Jin went back to her bed, books lying everywhere. She was studying and doing homework when she noticed the change in weather. So much for going for a walk later…it looks like it'll rain soon. She sighed, and went back to her math problems. But she couldn't find herself to concentrate. She was focusing on the wind outside, the coldness. It felt in her heart, in Ye-Jin's mind. She wanted to go out there, and take a walk. Cold and windy…that makes it even better. Ye-Jin closed her math book, placed it in her book bag, and got ready to go out. "Umma!" Ye-Jin walked across the hall to her mother's room, and poked her head inside. "Can I go out for a walk?" Her mother looked out the window, and shook her head. "Stay inside, it's about to rain Ye-Jin." Ye-Jin sighed. She was having a disappointing day. Studying…rainy day…nothing seems to go her way this evening.
There is one last thing to do to cheer herself up.
Ye-Jin went back to her room, quietly shutting the door. She needed privacy if she wanted to do this without distraction. Ye-Jin, being an only child though, only needs privacy from her parents, which was a good thing for her. It takes a lot for her to open up to her life when it comes to…
Love.
Ye-Jin pulled out a piece of paper out of her math notebook, then tossed her notebook on the floor. She wanted to practice her writing skills for a love letter. Yes, she likes a boy in her class. Ye-Jin had loved him for weeks now ever since she was new in New York, in her new private school. He stood out to her; his gorgeousness was in front of her eyes that very first day. She had loved him ever since, but he never paid any attention to her. He is a few months older, but also thirteen. He's tall, has smooth black hair, and also Korean. He was really smart, and Ye-Jin loves smart guys. If only he would give her some attention…
Ye-Jin practiced on her paper. But no matter what she wrote, it didn't seem right. Too mushy or too dumb. Ye-Jin never had been so in love before, so she never wrote a love letter before. Anyway, this is just practice…she wish she wouldn't push herself to hard. Just write she thought, her fingers clicking on the pen. Ye-Jin wrote down his name already, Pyeong An Hong. She just couldn't figure out how to confront the love to him…maybe…with an introduction of who she is?
"Ye-Jin! Get ready for school please! Wake up!" Ye-Jin woke up slowly, yawning. She looks over at her desk from her bed. Her letter to Pyeong An Hong was still there. She had finished it last night, with a trace of satisfaction when she was done. Ye-Jin got dressed, showers, and then walked to the dining room for breakfast. Ye-Jin lives in a big apartment, so she and her mother were close together alone. Ye-Jin still misses her father very much. He had died two years ago in a car accident with another man, who was the same age as her father. Ye-Jin looked up from the table at her mother across from her. Her mother was looking at her with a sad smile. She seemed to be able to understand what Ye-Jin was thinking about. "Thinking of your father, aren't you? its okay Ye-Jin, I'm sure you'll get over it one day." Her mother stood up. "I got to get ready for work. Please go to school after you're done." Ye-Jin nodded. She walks to school by herself, and often because her mother had no time to drive her to school.
Ye-Jin walked to school silently, her mind was full of memories of her father. Her father was a man who understood her and would be there for her no matter what. Now he is gone, and mother is twice as busy. Ye-Jin remembered how her father would have the best advice for anything, and it broke her heart now to not have him in her life anymore. Ye-Jin looks over at the trees around her, leaves gently starting to fall. Autumn is coming soon, and that is why the air is colder now. Summer was leaving her, and that too seemed painful. "Ye-Jin!" She turned around and saw her friend Jung-Min running towards her. "Good morning Jung-Min." Ye-Jin said softly, waving at her friend. They were friends for a very long time, so they knew each other pretty well. "Ye-Jin, is something wrong? You look so gloomy." Ye-Jin shook her head. "It's nothing…just thinking about my dad." Jung-Min nodded. "When I lost my mother, I felt really bad too. I know how you feel."
Ye-Jin nodded. She and Jung-Min could always relate to each other. That's what made them such good friends. "By the way." Ye-Jin said softly. "What classes do we have today? I want to know if I'm prepared." Jung-Min took out her schedule out of her back pack. "We both have gym together today. Also English class. The rest is separate." Ye-Jin nodded. "Oh." She said, and they were silent on their way to school. Ye-Jin was trying to remember if today she'll see Pyeong An in any classes. She really looked forward to seeing him. "Ye-Jin? What are you thinking about?" Jung-Min asked as they walked in their school building. "Oh…not much…" Ye-Jin never told her friend Jung-Min about Pyeong An. "Well, see you later then." Jung-Min waved at Ye-Jin, and then went off to first period class. Ye-Jin walked to math class alone. When she walked in and saw the class, she gasped. Pyeong An Hong was there! He was sitting at the first row by the window, studying his textbook. There was an empty seat right next to him, and Ye-Jin quickly went over and sat down in that seat. She looked around, and realizes hardly anyone else is at class yet. There were just three boys and two girls in the back, talking about something. Ye-Jin couldn't hear it that well.
"Um…good morning." Ye-Jin said over to Pyeong An shyly. She wasn't a shy girl, which is why she was able to talk to him. But at the same time, they never really spoke to each other. Pyeong An looked up, and saw Ye-Jin smiling at him. "Oh, morning." He said, smiling back. "Prepared for the math test?" Ye-Jin didn't know there was a math test. Maybe that's why Pyeong An was studying his textbook. He was smart, as usual. "Oh…I forgot about it. I forgot to study." Ye-Jin was nervous now. She really never knew about the test. Is this a pop quiz or something? Pyeong An shrugged. "You can study with me." he moved his desk closer to Ye-Jin, and Ye-Jincould feel her heart skipping a beat. Was he actually offering to study with her? Ye-Jin's mind was racing. "Thanks." Ye-Jin said as Pyeong An plopped the textbook on her desk. He pointed at what was needed to study. "Just read over those, and you'll be fine." He said, and Ye-Jin nodded in thanks.
"By the way, can I ask you a question?" Pyeong An said all of a sudden. Ye-Jin nodded. "Sure, what is it?" she replied. "Um…your hair." Pyeong An paused, then continue. "How do you get your hair so…frizzy?" Ye-Jin's mind snapped. Her hair was frizzy? She knew that, but she never wanted it. She always wants straight hair like other girls, but it is naturally frizzy. Ye-Jin put her hands to her black short hair, feeling it. "Um…why?" she asked, realizing this was a strange question. Pyeong An laughed. "No, it's just that my mother has really straight hair, and hates it. Especially in her age, hair falls out. You're lucky you have frizzy black smooth hair. It's pretty." Ye-Jin felt like she would die. Did Pyeong An just compliment on her hair? "Thanks…I just use shampoo…but no conditioner. Conditioner makes my hair frizzier for some reason." Pyeong An shrugged. "Thanks, I mean I don't know much about hair." Ye-Jin nodded. Of course boys don't.
Ye-Jin studied in silence until class started. When taking the math test, Ye-Jin found it easier. It was all thanks to Pyeong An Hong…she wish she could be friends with him. He is really nice after all, and so smooth when he talks. At the end of the class, Ye-Jin went up to Pyeong An before he left for the next period. "Can I see your schedule?" she asked, a little too demanding. Pyeong An smiled, and nodded. That smile of his…it melted Ye-Jin's heart, piece by piece. When the schedule was handed to Ye-Jin, she looked over it with hers. In disappointment, her classes and his classes were never the same. They were all separate periods. Ye-Jin sighed. "What is it?" Pyeong An Hong asked, and Ye-Jin shook her head. "Nothing… I just wish we had class together." Suddenly, Ye-Jin covered her mouth. She said that out loud! Pyeong An laughed. "Yeah, you're pretty cool. Wish I had class with you. Maybe tomorrow?" And with that, Pyeong An turned to another direction and walked away to his next class, leaving Ye-Jin's heart and mind running fast, filled with love and amazement.
Ye-Jin could not stop writing in her diary, every bit of detail of what happened with Pyeong An Hong, her crush today. He was so nice, so smooth, so kind and funny. Everything seems to be perfect about him. If only they could be friends…or are they already? No, Ye-Jin wish she and Pyeong An would be like Jung-Min and her. That would even be okay to her. Ye-Jin believed love takes one step at a time, even if he was nice to her already. After finishing writing, Ye-Jin called Jung-Min and asked if she wanted to come over and do homework with her, and Jung-Min said yes. Soon, Jung-Min was at Ye-Jin's house, and they were eating snacks and having fun. "Do you have math homework?" Ye-Jin asked her friend. Jung-Min nodded. "But I think mine is different with yours." Ye-Jin shrugged. "It's okay, we can help each other. They looked over their notes together, and Ye-Jin realized that her math was harder than Jung-Min's. Were the classes split into classes where they put intelligent and unintelligent people differently? Jung-Min's grades are way lower than Ye-Jin's, maybe that's why they're hardly together. But Ye-Jin's grades are considered one of the highest, why wasn't she with Pyeong An in most of the classes? This was all so confusing how they sort classes. Ye-Jin knew it couldn't have been done randomly if the homework and class work is different. "I wonder how they sort out our schedules?" Ye-Jin wondered out loud. Jung-Min giggled. "Doesn't matter to me, as long as we're together. Tomorrow we have the whole day except for math together! Isn't that great?" Ye-Jin nodded. "That is great!" Ye-Jin looks over at the snack tray, which was now empty. They had eaten all the cookies and crackers Ye-Jin's mom prepared. "I'll be back with more snacks." Ye-Jin said, standing up with the tray. Jung-Min nodded, and Ye-Jin left the room, for Jung-Min alone.
Jung-Min looked around the room. This was her third time at Ye-Jin's house, but Ye-Jin never left her alone in it before. It was really big, with cranes mobiles on the ceiling. It was beautiful the way it was decorated. Jung-Min wished her room was like this. So organized, so neat. Jung-Min stood up, and walked over to the computer desk next to Ye-Jin's bed. Jung-Min smiled as she looked at the pictures that were taped on Ye-Jin's desk. They were memories when she and Ye-Jin went to the park together, and they played by the sprinklers. Jung-Min moved her hand to reach one of the photos, when suddenly she felt something. She looked over by the desk, and saw a journal. Ye-Jin's journal…
"I'm back with more sugar cookies!" Ye-Jin said, feeling happy today. She never got Pyeong An off of her mind. She hope tomorrow would be a great day like this as well. "Oh…sorry…I have to go." Jung-Min said, suddenly packing everything up. "But you said you could stay for dinner!" Ye-Jin said, puzzled. "Yeah…I can't anymore. Sorry about that." And in a few minutes, Jung-Min was gone, leaving Ye-Jin alone and confused.
Jung-Min walked fast, really fast. She wanted to run, to hide, to scream. But she couldn't. her heart was bearing with pain, and her mind was blank with anger and frustration. Ye-Jin! How could she! All this time she liked Pyeong An Hong and wouldn't tell her best friend.
But that wasn't the main reason why Jung-Min was so frustrated with herself. Ye-Jin doesn't know her past with that boy. She doesn't know who he truly is, what he did to her. That boy…how could Ye-Jin like him? What was going on? is this the Ye-Jin she always known? It wasn't like Ye-Jin to like a boy. But then again, she has been acting strange lately…Jung-Min wondered if she could ever calm down. She walked, fast, nonstop home. She needed to reach home and think about this, while calming down. Jung-Min knew that she was only thirteen, but in her life she's been through a lot. A lot with…Pyeong An….
She doesn't talk to him anymore…because of that night…
She almost died.
He had saved her.
She doesn't know her friend….
Jung-Min quickly went home. When she got there, she dropped everything in a sudden and ran upstairs to her room. Tears were coming to her eyes, and she could feel her heart beating fast by the minute. She couldn't believe this. Everything could be a disaster just because Ye-Jin likes Pyeong An. Everything…she could…
Ye-Jin could be hurt.
No, this can't be happening. Were they in class together? Did they talk to each other more than she thought? Jung-Min sighed. "I'm only thirteen, why do these things happen to me?" she said out loud, throwing a pillow across the room. Most people in school would have these dramas, of love, friendship, backstabbing, wannabe, and so much more. But this is something serious out of a simple crush, and it was up to Jung-Min to solve it.
There was only one way…Jung-Min quickly went to her desk drawer, and opened it. She reached in and pulled out a small piece of paper with a note on it. "Tomorrow." She said, the paper crumbles into her hand. She was furious now. "Tomorrow." Jung-Min said again. "I will talk to him."
"Ye-Jin!" Jung-Min said as she sees Ye-Jin running towards her. "Why are you always late? I've been waiting outside your house for ten minutes. You should've been down a while ago." Ye-Jin was breathing hard. "S-sorry." She gasped for air. After all that rushing, Ye-Jin was exhausted. She had overslept, and barely ate breakfast. Jung-Min sighed. "Didn't eat breakfast I guess. Here" She held out a bagel for Ye-Jin to share. "Thank you." Ye-Jin said, ripping the bagel in half and shoved it in her mouth. "So, how was last night with you?" Ye-Jin asked after finishing the bagel. They were walking to school, and Jung-Min was awkwardly silent. It wasn't like her. She looked over at Jung-Min, who was chewing on her short red highlighted hair. Jung-Min's natural hair was black, which made the red on it pretty. At least, Ye-Jin thinks it's pretty.
"Huh? Oh…not much." Jung-Min smiled at Ye-Jin, but Ye-Jin could tell inside that wasn't all. Something was not right with her friend. "You can tell me." Ye-Jin said, winking at Jung-Min. "We're friends, I'm here to help." Jung-Min shook her head, and they went on silently.
"Ye-Jin." Jung-Min said suddenly, and Ye-Jin looked over at her. "Yeah?" she asked, and they both stopped walking. Jung-Min looked down, her hair covering her eyes. Ye-Jin couldn't see Jung-Min's expression. "Well, what is it?" Asked Ye-Jin. But Jung-Min did not reply. Ye-Jin sighed. "Look, something's up with you ever since you left me yesterday. What's going on? I'm here to listen, and I think we still have time before school starts." Ye-Jin walked over to the nearby benches, sat down, and called for Jung-Min to sit. Jung-Min went over and sat next to Ye-Jin, still with her head down and her face blank. "Um…" Jung-Min began. "Ye-Jin, do you like anyone in school?"
Ye-Jin looks at her. "Huh? Why you're asking that? Is that what's bothering you?"
Jung-Min shook her head. "No, not really. Just answer me honestly. We are friends together, right?" Ye-Jin wasn't so sure of telling Jung-Min she likes Pyeong An. She wouldn't be so sure about any boy. "Well….there is one guy, but I won't say his name." Ye-Jin said. She then smiled at Jung-Min, who looked at Ye-Jin with a gloomy face. "Seriously." Jung-Min said softly. "Just tell me."
Ye-Jin stared at Jung-Min. "You look like you're going to cry or something. Is something wrong? Does it have to do with what boy I like?" Jung-Min just looked straight ahead, shaking her head hard at everything Ye-Jin says. "Just tell me!" Jung-Min said. Ye-Jin could see hurt in her face. What was going on? "Um…maybe you can tell me why?" Ye-Jin asked in a whisper, feeling a bit frightened. Jung-Min was acting strange. Her face was all upset now, and her hands were shaking. "Just tell me, please." Jung-Min stood up all of a sudden, turned to Ye-Jin, and glared at her. "Tell me, or else I'll tell him."
"What are you talking about?" Ye-Jin said, feeling puzzled. "Can you explain why are you acting like this?" Jung-Min took a deep breath, and then ran off. She ran towards the other direction from school, leaving Ye-Jin sitting on the bench, shocked. What was up with Jung-Min? What boy she likes…what's the matter with that? Ye-Jin got up and walked to school, trying to forget about what just happened. She concentrated on Pyeong An, how will she talk with him today. Should she ask him for help once more? Ye-Jin blushed as she walked in the school. He was so nice to her yesterday, she wants more of that today. Soon, she pretty much forgot all about Jung-Min.
"Ye-Jin, can you pass me an eraser?" Pyeong An looked down at his written work for class and frowned. "I made a mistake." Ye-Jin quickly reached into her pencil case and pulled out a flower eraser. She gave it to him, and he nodded thanks. They were sitting next to each other again, and Ye-Jin was sure he had sat next to her on purpose. After all, she sat down first. "No problem." She said brightly to Pyeong An, but he made no reply. He was still working, while the rest of the class is done. They had to write an essay on a math problem. Ye-Jin finds essays easy since she loves to write. Writing is her favorite hobby. Ye-Jin wonders what is Pyeong An's favorite hobby. She hopes he likes writing too…maybe they can write something together someday.
Ye-Jin was beginning to worry. For days, Jung-Min had not shown up for school. Whenever she called Jung-Min to see what's up, Jung-Min would hang up on her. Did she do something wrong to her friend? Was there a misunderstanding? But that seems strange. Jung-Min's mother shouldn't not let her go to school just because she was angry with her. Ye-Jin began to grow worry every day about Jung-Min. She remembered the last conversation they had, which still was confusing. Why did Jung-Min get so upset over some dumb boy she likes?
Ye-Jin tried going over to Jung-Min's house and bringing her homework one day, but Jung-Min's mother said that her daughter was not home, and was always out. Ye-Jin couldn't wonder more what Jung-Min would be doing instead of going to school. "Why isn't she going to school?" Ye-Jin asked. "Oh, it's kind of a family thing. She'll go to school soon." Jung-Min's mother replied. And with that, she closed the door on Ye-Jin, leaving her confused than ever.
"Ye-Jin?" the teacher was taking attendance of the whole entire grade today. They had an assembly and all the classes were together. All the eighth grade teachers were there too. "Here." Ye-Jin said, raising her hand to show that she was present. "Good, Jung-Min?" The teachers looked around, and shook their heads; Jung-Min was absent again. "Where could she be?" , who was taking attendance, wondered out loud. "Oh, whatever. Pyeong An Hong?" Pyeong An raised his hand, showing that he was here. He was sitting a row behind Ye-Jin, and Ye-Jin kept her eyes on him all through attendance. She really wish they sat next to each other, not behind. "Hyun Ko Dong?" The teachers shook their heads again. "He's been absent for days, just like Jung-Min." One of the teachers said. shook her head. "People need to know how important school is. Very well, we're done taking attendance. The assembly will start in a few minutes. Please remain silent everyone." The teachers left the room to prepare.
"Psst, Ye-Jin." Ye-Jin felt a tap on her shoulder, and turned around. Pyeong An was looking at her. "Um, yeah?" she asked, realizing she was losing her cool. "Can I talk to you after school?" he asked her, and Ye-Jin could feel her heart pounding. Talk? Was he asking a favor? She would love to help him. "Sure!" Ye-Jin replied, smiling. Pyeong An grinned. "Okay then." He sat back and started to read his book, leaving Ye-Jin having something to look forward after school.
"That was a boring assembly. I don't care about high school that much. That's all they talked about for hours!" Ye-Jin was walking with Pyeong An outside school to go home. They lived pretty far apart but several roads they can take together. Besides, Pyeong An wanted to talk with Ye-Jin. "Yeah, it is boring." Pyeong An sounded serious, unlike his cheerful self. Ye-Jin could sense that something was probably wrong, and that's why he wanted to talk to her about. "So, you said you wanted to talk to me. What's up?" Pyeong An looks over at Ye-Jin, then stopped walking. Ye-Jin stopped too, feeling her heart pounding again. This seems really serious. He seems concerned about something. "Um… Ye-Jin." He started, looking into her eyes. "Jung-Min is your friend, right?" Ye-Jin felt her heart being hit. Was he here to talk about Jung-Min? "Uh, yeah. We're close. At least, I think we are." Pyeong An raised an eyebrow. "And why is that?" he asked. Ye-Jin almost thought he was a counselor. Why is he so concerned about this? "Well, she's been hanging up on my phone calls, ignoring me. I don't know what's going on."
"I know." Pyeong An said quietly, and Ye-Jin heard it. "Huh? You do?" she was surprised. "How you know?" Pyeong An shook his head. "Never mind. Know this though: I am close friends with Hyun." I nodded. "I see you hang with him. Isn't he the one who's absent for days, just like Jung-Min?" Pyeong An looked down, and nodded.
"Ye-Jin, call me crazy, but I think their absence are together in common."
Ye-Jin turned and stared at Pyeong An, who was looking at Ye-Jin in a guilty way. "What did you say?" she asked him, and he repeated again quietly. "Jung-Min and Hyun are absent on the same days, the same time. They're up to something together." Ye-Jin was standing there, dumbfounded. She never really thought of that, because she never cared or knew Hyun much. But it does make sense a bit…her friend and Pyeong An's friend…both absent...same day…same time…could it be a coincidence?
Suddenly, Ye-Jin felt a drop of water fall on her head. She looked up and saw that the sky was really cloudy. "I think it's about to rain." Ye-Jin said. But then the rain got larger before they could even run for home. Before they knew it, the rain was pouring heavily. Ye-Jin looked around, and realizes everyone had already left. They spoke to each other longer than she had thought. Neither of them had an umbrella, and the rain was drenching their cloths. "Let's go!" Pyeong An started to run, but before thinking, Ye-Jin grabbed his arm.
Her heart felt a beat.
A pound that she had never felt before.
Pyeong An stopped, then turn back to look at Ye-Jin. His eyes were wide, as if she just told him his mother died. Inside Ye-Jin's heart, she could feel his confusion. They've only met for a few days, and already she was holding him back from running into the rain…it might seem like a little thing, yet for Ye-Jin it was big. She didn't think, but she knew running would only make him more drenched. They stood together as the rain falls, in silence. Ye-Jin quickly let go after she saw his gaze, and felt herself blush. "Um…running would only make you more wet." She said softly, and she could see Pyeong An smiling. "Thanks, I didn't think of that." Afterwards, they stood there. Neither one of the moved, but both had thoughts.
"Let's walk." Pyeong An began to walk towards the road, with Ye-Jin behind him. "Um, so, where were we?" Ye-Jin asked, trying to break the silence. "Oh…we were just saying how Jung-Min, your friend, might be with my friend." Pyeong An stopped so Ye-Jin could catch up next to him. "It's not a big deal…I was just a bit concerned. Sorry for scaring you if I did." Ye-Jin shook her head. "It's fine. I am worried about Jung-Min though…that's why I got in shock. I don't know where she's been or how she is. She won't respond to me." Pyeong An shook his head also. "That's strange. Hyun is doing the same thing to me." Ye-Jin gazed at him. "Really?" she asked, realizing that this just might connect. "Oh." She said.
The rain got heavier and heavier by the minute. Soon before knew it, her hair was super wet. She looked over at Pyeong An, who was wearing a hood from his sweatshirt. Ye-Jin only wore a t-shirt to school today, so she was freezing. Ye-Jin suddenly stopped, shivering. Pyeong An looked over at her, his face filled with emotion. Suddenly, he went over to her and took off his sweatshirt, then wrapped it around her. "You can catch a cold." He said to her once she looked at him in a confused way. "Thanks." Ye-Jin whispered, feeling much warmer with the sweatshirt. She put the hood on to cover her hair. "What about you?" she asked Pyeong An, who shook his head. "I can handle myself." he said, and Ye-Jin believed him somehow. He seems so strong and kind in the inside…she was sure he'll be okay.
"Here." Ye-Jin gave back the soaked sweatshirt back to Pyeong An, who was also soaked from head to toe. It was still raining, but Ye-Jin was finally home. "Thanks for walking all the way here to drop me off." She added. "No problem, thanks for talking with me." Pyeong An replied, then he turned and left for home, leaving Ye-Jin thinking about the greatest day of her life. Her crush…was protecting her…she couldn't feel more amazed today. Amazed on how much she can learn about him and have him in one day…if only every day was like this…
Ye-Jin walked back inside, expecting her mother to see her and yell. But there was no one home, and Ye-Jin felt alone once more. That beautiful thing that happened juts before…was all gone now. She can't share with anyone, or talk to anyone. She was alone, and that's was how her life would be from now on without Pyeong An by her side.
Ye-Jin quickly ran inside her apartment and ran straight to her room. She concentrated on nothing but writing in her dairy. She wanted to write about how she felt, and what happened today. This was a day she'll never forget. Ye-Jin quickly opened up her dairy, and stared. Suddenly, she gasped.
Quickly as she can, she dialed Jung-Min's number again. but Jung-Min would not pick up. Ye-Jin dialed it again, and again. She had to call Jung-Min six times before Jung-Min finally picks up. "Hello?" Jung-Min asked. "JUNG-MIN!" Ye-Jin yelled angrily. "Is this Ye-Jin? If it is, I can't talk to you now." Ye-Jin clenched her fist. "Before you hang up, I need to ask you something." Jung-Min sighed on the other end. "If you're going to ask me where I've been for these days, I will not answer you." Ye-Jin replied. "That's not it!" she yelled, almost screaming. "I want to ask you this: WHY DID YOU TOUCH MY DAIRY?"
Jung-Min felt her heart suddenly burning with guilt.
"Ye-Jin calm down." Jung-Min said slowly, but Ye-Jin cut her off. "I know it was you! That day, where you had to leave in a sudden? I left you alone in my room, and you…you READ and RIPPED the pages of my diary, my privacy! It can't be my mother, she wouldn't rip my things. It can't be anyone else; you're the only friend Invite into my apartment. Why would you do such a thing? And I'm confused. If you know what boy I like, why did you ask me the next day?" Words just came out of Ye-Jin's mouth, leaving Jung-Min with deep agony in her heart. "Ye-Jin, I never ripped your pages. I promise." Which was true. Jung-Min only read the diary, but she never destroyed it. "I promise Ye-Jin, I never ripped your notebook." Ye-Jin did not believe Jung-Min. "Either way, you still read it! Now you know my secrets, it's so unfair! Nothing makes sense, you owe me an explanation!" Ye-Jin didn't know what she was saying. Whenever she gets angry, she would just say all of how she felt in her heart. All the hurt, confusion, anger.
Jung-Min bear no more of this puzzling conversation. She didn't know who ripped Ye-Jin's dairy, but it wasn't her. Jung-Min quickly pressed hang up on her cell phone, placed it on the table, and started to tear up.
"Well? How are things going?" he asked her. "Not so good…Ye-Jin doesn't trust me anymore…I guess I can't blame her completely though." Ye-Jin wanted to cry, but not in front of Hyun. She wanted to cry alone, in her own bedroom. But she was in Hyun's bedroom, on his bed. She's been visiting him these days instead of going to school. "It's okay Jung-Min." Hyun started to say, but Jung-Min cut him off. "It's not okay!" she said, tears falling from her eyes. She was crying now, her heart bearing so much pain and confusion. Not that she doesn't know what's going on, but the fact that her best friend doesn't know she's protecting her, not destroying their friendship. "I'm..sorry." Hyun replied quietly. Silence followed as Jung-Min cries. She wanted to cry everything out, every pain and memory. Hyun handed her a tissue, and she took it to wipe her face.
"Well, what are you going to do? We can't hide from this forever." Jung-Min nodded. "You're right, we can't…Hyun, what can I do? Ye-Jin really likes Pyeong An Hong…but she doesn't know him…he saved my life, yet hurt me deeply. I don't want to see Ye-Jin go through the same dangerous thing. Pyeong An is not just a regular boy…he can't break your heart better than anyone else, even when it has nothing to do with love….like me…" Jung-Min took a breath, and continued. "This is all so hard. I need to get Ye-Jin away from Pyeong An…." Jung-Min broke out in tears again, not ebing able to continue. Hyun walked up and sat next to her, patting her on the shoulder. "I think you forgot something Jung-Min." Jung-Min suddenly looked up at Hyun. "What?" she asked.
"Pyeong An Hong is not in love with Ye-Jin, he's in love with you.
In love with you.
Those words rang back to memories of when Jung-Min was Pyeong An's friend before…she knows that Pyeong An Hong likes her, but often forgets it. "Oh…that's another problem! I don't want anything to with him, why does he still like me?" Jung-Min shook her head hard, as if she was trying to get a headache to go away. "It's okay Jung-Min, just…leave it to me."
"Leave things to you?" Jung-Min looks up, surprised. Her friend Hyun here, wanted to take care of things for her…"That's really thoughtful, but I don't want to cause you any struggle…" Hyun nodded. He knew that would be what she'll say. Honestly, he didn't know what to do if he was in charge of stopping this love triangle…or….this love square.
He was in love with Jung-Min, without her knowing.
"Hyun….I have an idea." Jung-Min said, and Hyun looks at her once more. "What is it?" Jung-Min looked down at her feet, refusing to look into Hyun's eyes to tell him this. "What...if…you pretended to go out with me? That way Pyeong An would forget about me, and Ye-Jin can have him at peace." Hyun could feel his heart stopping. PRETEND? That was a big word…he wanted to date her for real, not pretend. "I don't know…they'll find out eventually anyway. Lying never lasts." Jung-Min gazed at Hyun. "Please Hyun? This is for Ye-Jin and for me. Please Hyun. We're friends, you must help me with this. I need help…" Hyun quickly nodded, before Jung-Min started to cry again. "Okay, I'll do it." he said softly. Jung-Min wiped her tears and smiled. "But wait until I turn fourteen in two weeks. I feel better knowing I'm the same age as you and we can date…after all, we are young." Hyun nodded. "Yes, but these days, age doesn't matter." He replied. And with that, they both sat in silence, preparing the future of love.
Three weeks later…
Ye-Jin sat on her bed, looking over at her poster board across the room. They show pictures of her and Jung-Min together, having fun at the park in the summer…swimming in the pool…all those lovely memories.
Were somehow gone now.
For weeks, even on Jung-Min's birthday last week, Jung-Min never spoke to Ye-Jin. Ye-Jin still didn't know what she did wrong, but Ye-Jin knew what Jung-Min did wrong: read her dairy. Was she too hard on Jung-Min on the phone? And what's worse is, Ye-Jin didn't understand anything. Ever since last week, Jung-Min started to date Hyun…Pyeong An told her this while panicking. He seems to be really concerned of their date. Ye-Jin was concerned too…this wasn't like Jung-Min at all. Since when were Hyun and Jung-Min even friends? She never saw them talk together in school…this all was puzzled into Ye-Jin's mind. But Ye-Jin felt betrayed. Jung-Min was happy, she was not. True, Pyeong An was her friend now, but she misses her old friend, Jung-Min. Jung-Min just left her like that, after their talk about who Ye-Jin likes. None of that made sense either…why would she ask if she had already read about it?
Ye-Jin's cell phone suddenly started ringing. Ye-Jin picked it up, and saw that Pyeong An had sent her a text message. "Meet me by the school basketball court tonight at eight" Ye-Jin wasn't surprised. After discovering that Jung-Min was dating Hyun the very day they both returned to school, a week after Jung-Min's birthday, shocked both Pyeong An and herself. Maybe he wanted to talk to her about it.
It was cold, and raining softly when it was near eight. Ye-Jin wrapped herself up with an extra sweater, and then went to the bathroom to fix her hair. "Why is my hair so ugly?" Ye-Jin sighed, tying it up into a ponytail. She puts on rain boots and went outside, and started to run to school. As she went halfway, the rain got heavier. Ye-Jin forgot to bring her umbrella, which she regretted after a few minutes. The rain was pouring again, and didn't want to catch another cold. She already caught one a little bit that day when she walking from schools with Pyeong An Hong. Suddenly, Ye-Jin stopped. She looked up at the sky, her face dripping with water. The clouds didn't look cloudy at all. Why was it raining so hard?
Ye-Jin could see the sunset straight ahead. She knew at the school's basketball court, the sunset is beautiful. Many people hang out there just to watch it, from school or not. This time though, Ye-Jin saw no one but Pyeong An where she got there. That's because it was raining. She saw that he has an umbrella, which was a relief. At least he won't get sick, she thought. "Pyeong An!" she shouted, running towards him. He turned around, and Ye-Jin stopped running. His face was red, and he looked as if he had been crying. "What's wrong?" she asked softly and she approached him. Pyeong An quickly shook his head. "Nothing…I'm okay." He said, almost in a whisper. He turned back to the sunset, then back at Ye-Jin again. "Come closer, I'll share the umbrella." Ye-Jin smiled, and then stood next to Pyeong An. "Hey, did you know that Jung-Min is fourteen now, just like Hyun? They're both older than us." Ye-Jin tries to break the silence, but Pyeong An ignored her. He just stared at the sunset, which was almost gone. It was getting dark. Ye-Jin looked over at Pyeong An. "You okay?" she asked softly again.
Pyeong An started to cry again, tears dripping from his eyes. "Sorry." He said, quickly wiping the tears away with a napkin. "I can't hold my emotions that well." Ye-Jin handed him another napkin. "That's okay, I understand." She said, smiling at him. They stood there for a while, ad Pyeong An calms down. "You mind telling me what you're so upset about?" Ye-Jin asked quietly. "Um…it's memories." Pyeong An replied back. The sunset was gone now, and it was getting extremely dark. Pyeong An didn't mind though, or at least he didn't show it. "I'm glad you came." He said, smiling a little at Ye-Jin. Ye-Jin nodded. "You need me for something?" Pyeong An was looking into her eyes now, and she felt so content. She wanted to hold and him and embrace him forever. They've never stood this close with each other before.
"Yeah, I need to talk with you Ye-Jin." Pyeong An looked around, as if he was making sure no one was around to spy on them. "I have a serious question to ask you…. Ye-Jin?" Ye-Jin gazed over at his eyes. He was being really serious. "Yes…?" she asked, scared of what he might say. Pyeong An sighed, then shook his head. "I don't know how to ask you." He said.
"That's okay. Just tell me. Is it a favor?"
Ye-Jin realized she might be pushing him too far. "I'm sorry." She said, trying to consider. "You don't' have to ask now if you want. You can ask me another time." Pyeong An shook his head again. "It has to be soon, like now." He said, and they were quiet.
"I want to ask…if…you can….go out with me."
Rain was pouring down from the sky, washing all the chalk drawings on the ground. There was no more sun, as if the light just shone away. Ye-Jin thought she'll have a heart attack. Is he…asking her…to date him? She could feel her body shaking, and it's not just from the coldness of the weather. Wind was blowing now, and her ponytail was flying. "Say that again?" Ye-Jin asked suddenly, and Pyeong An did. He didn't sat it once more though, he showed it.
He kissed her by the cheek.
Ye-Jin gazed over at his eyes…the eyes is what she needs to see. "Oh my gosh." She whispered, having a feeling she had never felt before. "But why?" she asked him, confused. "Because I like you." He said, smiling. Then he hugged her, and she hugged back. Ye-Jin felt no doubt in her heart anymore, all she felt was love. A new beginning to relationship with the guy she loved most. For once, Ye-Jin was happy.
Hyun opened his eyes, wide in shock. He was hiding behind the school building this whole time, watching Ye-Jin and Pyeong An Hong. He had heard every word, every move they make he saw. What's going on? why is Pyeong An doing this? Questions swirled inside his mind. Ye-Jin didn't deserve to be hurt, that's what Jung-Min is trying to take away. Now this is getting worse and worse…does Ye-Jin know who Pyeong An really is? Hyun shook his head, and sighed. He was still watching them, waiting for them to separate. He wanted to talk with Pyeong An alone, without Ye-Jin knowing that he was watching them.