CHAPTER 1

SAIA'S POV (the day before):

"Sister, do you have to go? Can't we go to the park today instead?"

I smile at my 5-year-old brother, JeongMin, and ruffle his hair.

"I wish we could baby, but I have to go to work and you have to go to school."

"I wish you could dance instead of work, Saia. It isn't fair. I liked watching you dance." His twin sister grumbles as she pulls on her coat. It breaks my heart to see how thread-bare it is. I'll have to get her something warmer as soon as I can afford it.

"I do too, SuMin. But I need to make money so that we can eat and have a roof over our heads. You know that dad won't help us."

Our tiny apartment is barely big enough for the four of us. Our dead-beat father gambles and drinks away what little money he earns. If he works at all. His bad temper has left us with scars on our bodies and an acute fear of what will set him off next. He blames my mother for leaving him and the twin's mother for taking her own life, so of course it's our fault his life sucks. At least that's what he believes anyway.

I love my siblings more than anything and even though I am old enough to move out on my own, I am not going to leave without them. But our father won't be parted from his punching bags so easily and I do not have a legal right to take the twins from him.

There was a time when I was an up and coming ballet dancer. I even got a scholarship to Korea National University of Arts but when the twin's mother had killed herself last year, I had to drop out to take care of them. I was so angry at her for giving up. It was so damn selfish. I understand that being with our father had taken its toll, but I hate that she left us all alone with that monster.

Since her death, things have gotten much worse. He used to just push me around or yell at me. Now though, he beats me every time he gets angry. I can take it as long as he stays away from JeongMin and SuMin. All I want to do is protect them, so I never fight back because if I do, he turns his rage towards them instead.

Even with my chaotic life, I manage to find some solace in the ballet class I take at a small private studio after work. I pay for it by teaching a ballet class on the weekends for children. It is so fun watching their bright faces as they dance but I still miss my classes at the university. I had been in my last year when I dropped out. I always dreamed of dancing at the Suam Art Center with the Seoul Ballet Company. Being a prima ballerina had never been that important to me. I just love to dance. I would have been content just being there in the ensemble. But that dream is gone.

Shaking myself out of my thoughts, I focus back on the present and the two most important people in my life. I feel their tiny hands in each of mine as we walk to their school. I have no regrets. I can't have regrets. Not when JeongMin and SuMin need me. Giving them the best life I can and keeping them safe makes up for anything I have lost.

We stop in front of their elementary school and I kneel to hug them good-bye.

"Both of you be good toady, okay?"

"Yes, sister!" "We will!"

I wave good-bye and start my walk to work as I imprint their beaming faces in my mind. Somehow their smiles always manage to make my heavy heart a bit lighter.

(^_^)

JIHOO POV:

Today seems just like every other day. I finish my work at the Art Center and leave for my long night shift at the hospital. My mind wanders a lot during the drive to the hospital these days. I miss seeing my old F4 friends. Woo Bin is busy with work and has proposed to Jae Kyung of all people. Who knew? Yi-Jung and Ga Eul are married and busy with the Woo-Song museum. Jun Pyo has Shinhwa and Jan Di….

It has been 2 years since JanDi and JunPyo were married and I still miss her.

Our relationship changed after she was married, as expected. I don't see her as much as I did in medical school. When she finally graduated from University as a doctor, I was so proud of her. She fulfilled her dream, one she was afraid would never happen.

We are both doctors now, but she took over my grandfather's clinic at my insistence. It fits her better than being in a big, impersonal hospital. Her patients adore her just like they did my grandfather, just like I still do.

The pain isn't as bad as it used to be, a dull ache really. I treasure every precious memory, every laugh, and every smile that she gave me. I don't believe I will get a second chance at love and I don't want it. JanDi was it for me. I had come to realize that my childhood love SeoHyun had been gratitude and adoration. She was my Noona. (My older sister.) But my love for JanDi had been the real thing. By the time I realized it, she didn't feel that way about me anymore. I was too late.

So, I live on as JanDi's best friend though we rarely have time for each other. I immerse myself in the Suam Art Center (the Foundation) and my work at the hospital. I want to focus on continuing my family's dream of healing the heart and the body through the arts and medicine.

I guess we are all adults now.

"Good Afternoon, Dr. Yoon!"The head nurse Choi anxiously greets me. I nod politely to her, ignoring her unusual exuberance at my presence.

It's when I'm walking by an examining room that I notice a patient is raising their voice and the nurse's reaction to me now makes sense.

"I ALREADY TOLD YOU THAT THIS ISN'T NECESSARY! You can't keep me here against my will! I want to leave right now!"

The woman sitting on the examining table has her back to me but for some reason, I freeze when I see her. My throat suddenly feels dry and my heart is pounding.

What is wrong with me?

"Miss, please calm down. We have no intention of keeping you here against your will, but you have a very bad sprain and we need to take x-rays to see the extent of the damage." Nurse Hwasa seems frustrated with the patient but is keeping her cool for the moment. I watch the scene quietly from the doorway for several minutes, still unusually frozen in place. I would have been a strange sight to see if I hadn't noticed the rising panic in the woman on the table.

Finally regaining my composure, I clear my throat to get their attention and walk towards the pair. The look of relief on the nurse's face is laughable but when the woman on the examining table finally turns towards me and I see her face for the first time, the only thing I can focus on is her.

Authors note: If you've read this before, you will notice some name changes for minor character's such as YoungSaeng is now JeongMin and HyeSun is now SuMin. It was important to me now that I know more about South Korea to make sure the twins names reflect their relation to their father. Also Saia's Uni name changes to a real University.