- - - - - - - - - - -Chapter Twenty-Four: "I Found You"

'Children never hesitate to go after what they want… It's because they know that if they lost it, they would be sad and they would cry…' Ga Eul's voice reverberated inside Yi Jung's mind as he thought. But what exactly did he want? He couldn't help but wonder. Finally, after some deep thinking, Yi Jung stood up and decided to meet Eun Jae. This time, he'd bravely confront her and not hide anything.

It only took a few minutes for Yi Jung to drive to the studio where Eun Jae taught pottery. He decided to wait for her outside in order to surprise her. But when she was finally out of the studio, it was Yi Jung's turned to be surprised. He overheard Eun Jae talking to someone over the phone. She looked quite happy and cheerful… So unlike how she looked when he first came to meet her. Somehow, Yi Jung could not help but feel jealous of the person she talked with over the phone.

Finally, unable to stifle his curiosity, Yi Jung decided to follow Eun Jae. He ended up driving to his brother's coffee shop. What was even more heartbreaking was the fact that Eun Jae and Il Hyun seemed to have gotten together. It was then that Yi Jung felt tears fall down his cheeks in pure agony. Unlike him, Il Hyun didn't hesitate to go after what he wanted. Il Hyun didn't hesitate to go after Eun Jae… He didn't hesitate though he perfectly knew that he was up against Yi Jung, Jae Joong and even their Father… He didn't hesitate even though he knew of the untold secret between his Father and Eun Jae… Il Hyun was brave enough to chase his love… And he wasn't…

'Ga Eul was right…' Yi Jung thought. 'I am a big coward…' More tears fell down his eyes as he cried inside his orange car. Although he had almost every female at his disposal, Cha Eun Jae remained far from his grasp. With an aching heart and a tear-stricken face, Yi Jung revved up the engine of his car and drove off to only God knows where. He opened his phone as he was driving and dialed Eun Jae's number.

"Chae Eun Jae… I'm hiding… Find me." He spoke with an empty voice and ended the call.

-oOo-

"Ga Eul… It's Yi Jung…" Woo Bin and Ji Hoo suddenly came to the porridge shop with serious expression on their faces.

"What happened?" Ga Eul asked.

"We've been trying to reach him all night… Up until now. He's not answering his phone and we learned that he hasn't come home since last night." Worry was clearly etched on Woo Bin's features as he recounted the puzzling events that occured. Ji Hoo and Woo Bin wanted to contact Yi Jung to inform him that Goo Jun Pyo's mother had arranged Jun Pyo's wedding to be held as soon as possible at Jeju Island, however, when they tried calling him, he never answered. "We were wondering if you had any idea where he might be…"

"Aniyo… I mean… I don't know his whereabouts right now… I haven't seen him since a few days ago…" Ga Eul replied.

"This is bad…" Woo Bin bit his lower lip. "That guy… He's not in his right mind right now… I'm getting worried." He said. After which, he flicked his celphone open and called his assistant. "Yobosaeyo? Prepare the men. Yi Jung is missing. I need everyone to help find him. Search all clubs, bars, pubs, hotels, motels and every place he's likely to go. I want every men dispatched as soon as possible. Search all of Seoul if you have to." Woo Bin ordered in a strict and authoritative tone, one that Ga Eul wasn't used to hear from him.

"I'll help find him…" Ga Eul volunteered.

"Me too…" Jan Di volunteered.

"Araso… Jan Di, you and Ji Hoo go together. Ga Eul and I will pair up and drive around. Hmm… How about you guys check out Shinhwa and look for him there? Ga Eul and I will go look for him at other places…" Woo Bin instructed and the others soon nodded in agreement.

Jan Di rode with Ji Hoo on his white motorcycle while Ga Eul rode on Woo Bin's yellow sports car. While Jan Di and Ji Hoo went to look for him at Shinhwa College, Woo Bin unexpectedly drove towards the café in front of Soeul Sweets Bakeshop. This unutterly puzzled Ga Eul.

"Sunbae… Why did we drive here?" She asked.

"Well, that's because…" Woo Bin was about to say that he had his men follow Yi Jung for a few days and they found him watching Ga Eul from this particular café, however, he caught himself in time and stopped in mid-sentence. "Uhm… I decided to buy some coffee first… I haven't had a wink since last night because I've been looking all over for him." He lied. But it sounded valid so Ga Eul nodded.

After Woo Bin bought his coffee and pretended to drink it, he and Ga Eul both sat inside his car and thought of possible places where Yi Jung could be. "Hmm… Sunbae, do you think clubs are open by this time? It's still afternoon… Clubs don't open until later." Ga Eul asked as worry creased on her beautiful face.

"We don't have to go looking for him in clubs. My subordinates will cover those areas." Woo Bin nonchalantly replied.

"Subordinates?" Ga Eul repeated sounding a bit puzzled.

"Ah… I mean, my workers… My men, of course. I've asked all of them to help look for Yi Jung." Woo Bin smiled uncomfortably. "Uhm… Ga Eul, don't you know any place where Yi Jung could be? I mean, hasn't he brought you to places he liked? Like maybe… to a park or to a… motel? Well, what I meant was… any place he told you that he frequented…" He asked, trying to squeeze out any clue regarding Yi Jung's whereabouts.

Suddenly, an idea lit up inside Ga Eul's mind as he remembered where Yi Jung had brought her after their unpleasant encounter his Yi Jung's Father by his work shop. "The theater house…" Ga Eul said softly. "Sunbae, can you drive me to the theater house?" She asked with a sense of urgency evident on her voice.

"Ehh? Why?"

"I want to try looking for him there…" She said.

"Well… Okay…"

And so, Woo Bin drove towards the theater house which Ga Eul told him. Once they were in front of the theater house, Ga Eul immediately rushed out of the car and into the theater house. Once inside, she saw a lot of people rehearsing on the stage. Most of them paid no attention on her, thinking that she might be just one of gofers for the production. Ga Eul freely walked around the theater house. Of course, she was followed shortly by Woo Bin who began to look for Yi Jung as well.

After what seemed like a long time of searching, Ga Eul finally saw a familiar figure sitting on the best seat inside the theater house. She slowly approached him with clandestine steps. Her heart thumping with so much gladness inside her chest as a smile finally painted itself on her lips. She saw Yi Jung asleep, his eyes closed and his chest, rising steadily in the rhythmic cycle of breathing. Slowly, she reached out to him and grazed a tender hand on his handsome face which was currently evaded by serenity as he slept.

Almost automatically, upon the contact of her warm hand on his cheek, his eyes fluttered open. The first thing Yi Jung saw Ga Eul's beautiful face smiling down on him with relief written all over her features. For a moment, Yi Jung found himself mesmerized by her kind and sweet smile. He was positive that his thoughts were running freely and that he was dreaming, but realized that he wasn't, when she suddenly spoke.

"I found you…" She said and Yi Jung found his heart momentarily stopping.

Woo Bin saw Ga Eul approach the sleeping Yi Jung. He saw how she tenderly placed a hand on his friend's face and how she smiled warmly upon seeing her. He was about to take another step forward when he stopped dead in his tracks and smiled instead. With a sigh of relief, he turned back from where he came from and decided to let the two of them alone for a while. 'Tsk… Tsk…' He thought. 'And here I thought I knew Yi Jung well enough…'

Yi Jung straightened up when he saw Ga Eul. There was an uncomfortable silence between them as Ga Eul slowly sat beside Yi Jung. Both of them didn't know how to start speaking. Yi Jung was mostly taken aback because he didn't expect Ga Eul to be the person to find him.

"Ga Eul…"

"Yi Jung…"

Both of them spoke in unison and they both turned away awkwardly.

"You speak first…" Yi Jung spoke.

Drawing a very deep breath first, Ga Eul readied herself to speak, only to start with an angry tone. "Yah! So Yi Jung! Do you really enjoy making the people around you worry?! Do you know how long Woo Bin-Sunbae has been looking for you?! Even Ji Hoo-Sunbae and Jan Di are out looking for you! You don't even answer calls and just disappeared without warning! Do you know how worried we were?!" She began scolding him.

"Yah! Chu Ga Eul, I didn't ask you to look for me!" Yi Jung replied with an equal intensity as he looked at her.

"Well, unfortunately, I, too, have a So Yi Jung GPS tracker!" She reasoned out.

Yi Jung found himself smiling at her answer. His smile gradually became a chuckle until he was laughing uncontrollably on his seat. Ga Eul looked pissed as he was laughing. They were all worried for his whereabouts and now that she has found him, he was laughing his head off. How utterly irritating.

Yi Jung's laugh finally died down. He looked at Ga Eul and genuinely smiled. "You found me…" He said and leaned back on his seat. "Yah… Ga Eul, will you be surprised if I told you that I once loved truly?" He began with a bittersweet smile on his face.

Ga Eul found herself arbitrarily looking at him. She knew the story between them, between him and Eun Jae. Eun Jae had been honest enough to tell her everything that had transpired between her and her first love. It was how Ga Eul came to understand everything. She just didn't think that Yi Jung would be open enough to tell her about it. He had always been a person who chose to hide things than to reveal them.

"I guess it's possible that you have…" She replied.

"I have… She was my childhood friend. We both enjoyed pottery. I grew up admiring her because she was honest and beautiful… And whenever I hid and secretly cried, she would always find me." Yi Jung took a pause and smiled bitterly. "I guess Eun Jae couldn't find me anymore…" He took another pause and sighed. "I knew that she liked me too… And I was glad that she did… But I kept on taking her for granted. People always compared me to my philandering Father. When I was young, I always saw my mother crying because of my Father… I was afraid that I might make Eun Jae cry too… So I kept everything I felt and ignored her… Another reason was because Jae Joong and Il Hyun came to like her too… What made matters worse was that, even my Father seemed to have taken a liking to her… My mother found out about my Father's fascination with one of his charming students. She came charging at Eun Jae and drove her away… Ever since then, I've regretted everything I've done to her…" Yi Jung narrated with a melancholic tone.

Ga Eul was about to ask a question when Yi Jung suddenly took her hand on her lap and stood up. He smiled at her and pulled her up. "I think we should get back… I don't want to worry the others further…" He said and began leading out of the theater house with his hands securely holding hers.

Ga Eul came to smile as she stared at their entwined hands. She felt pure bliss evading her chest as she realized that finally, the little boy that was So Yi Jung, came to open up himself to her. For her, it was a significantly big achievement to get Yi Jung to talk about his family and even his past.

"Komaowoyo…" She said as they were walking out of the theater house.

"Ehh?"

"Komaowo for telling me a lot about yourself…" She said.

Yi Jung smiled. "I have to thank you too… For finding me and bringing me back…"

To Be Continued…

-oOo-

- - - - - - - - - - -Preview for Chapter Twenty-Five: "Between Men"

"Ga Eul… I have a confession to make." Seung Hyun's voice sounded grave as he sat across Ga Eul inside Soeul Sweet Bakery. He had been debating whether to tell her everything about himself since he wasn't so sure if she'd be able to handle everything that was involved in his life. He fidgeted with his hands as he nervously looked at her. Ga Eul continued to look at him, waiting for him to proceed. "You remember when you asked me why a lot of people called me TOP?" He looked into her eyes and bit his lips before proceeding. "Well, it was true that I was called TOP because I was the top fighter… I was the top fighter in underground fist fights…"

"Fist… fights?" Ga Eul repeated, sounding a lot confused.

"Yeah… Underground fist fights… I'm involved with kkangpaes, Ga Eul… The truth is, I used to fight in underground matches hosted by shadowy kkangpae groups…" Seung Hyun finally confessed. He looked at Ga Eul, searching her face for any hint of rejection and despise, but was surprised to have found none.

-oOo-