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Summary: Four years and continents apart. What keeps Yi Jeong and Ga Eul's hope alive are the letters that they write to each other from time to time…

LOVE LETTER

III

Ga Eul was wiping the table when she happened to glance up. "Oh no, it's Yun Hyung sunbae!" she gasped and ducked into the kitchen before Jan Di could even react. "Remember, I'm not here!"

Peeping from around the kitchen doors, Ga Eul watched as the tall lanky boy entered the porridge shop and asked for her. This was the third time this week! Wasn't it bad enough that he insisted on walking her to and from classes even though she had tried her best to avoid him? Now everyone thought they were a couple.

Sighing with exasperation, Ga Eul waited until Jan Di came in to tell her the coast was clear. "I don't want to talk about it," Ga Eul said and Jan Di wisely held her peace. "Thanks for helping me out. Again."

The two friends smiled and continued to attend to the remaining customers. Both of them didn't see the bright yellow Lotus sports car disappear around the corner of the road.

…………………………..

Yi Jeong's phone buzzed; someone had sent him a message. It could wait though. He had just started writing his letter to her.

It was a few hours past midnight when he had suddenly woken up. After a short period of tossing and turning, he decided that he would reply to her. Maybe then he would be able to get back to sleep.

Ga Eul yang,

Firstly, if you want something from someone, you don't blame them for your misbehaving in class. Luckily though, since I'm a cool guy, I'm going to forget that you did that.

He could envision her rolling her eyes at that statement. Well, it was true.

I'm glad you're pursuing your pottery in spite of university. Your teacher is quite a well known potter you know? Make sure you learn as much as possible from him. If you want to work in private, just use my studio. Or if you need a quiet place to go to should you need to think things through…

And speaking of studios, I'm enclosing a photograph of the one in this house. As you would have noticed, it is similar to the one at my home. I guess absence does make the heart grow fonder and this is my way of trying to bring some of what I've left behind with me.

There were some things he was glad to have left behind though. At least here in Sweden, his mother couldn't force him to track down his useless father and traumatise him in the process. That had been an enormous weight off his shoulders and he had felt free of her, of his parents for once. Some day, he might be ready to talk to Ga Eul yang about this aspect of his past. She would understand.

Since you asked for a picture of the competition, here's a photo of Sadie sitting on the table as well. Isn't she gorgeous? She insisted on posing alone though, so I'm stuck taking the photo instead of being in it too. That's Sadie for you. And that's carrot cake on the plate, just in case you are wondering. It does taste as good as it looks. You noticed the cake first, didn't you?

She had an appetite as big as her best friend's. Sometimes, Yi Jeong wondered where all that food went to. In New Caledonia the one thing that had pleased Ga Eul exceedingly, apart from taking shots of the place, was the cuisine. She had looked so pleased with the spread that Jun Pyo had prepared that he couldn't help but to tease her a little. That, and the fact that he had been curious to know if his suspicions about her having a crush on the latter were right. It had been nice to find out that he was wrong.

And last of all, here's a photo of me. That house in the background is my mentor's.

He had finally swallowed his pride, knowing that what Ga Eul wanted most was a picture with him in it. "This is so embarrassing," he had muttered, looking around furtively to ensure that he was alone before raising the camera and pointing it at himself. Quickly, he pressed the button and took the shot. There, he had done the dirty deed.

Unfortunately, I wasn't alone. See that foot in the top right hand corner? That's my mentor. He has a very nasty habit of sneaking up on people, especially me.

Yi Jeong could still hear the man's sharp laughter ringing in his ears. That had been the ultimate humiliation. And then he had to contend with the inevitable questions. How did the old geezer know the photos were for a girl? Was he that obvious?

So there, Ga Eul yang. We're even now, especially since I have to endure remarks about how I'd better put in more effort or my girlfriend will leave me. I told him to mind his own business, not that it actually worked.

It felt odd writing that word down. He'd never called anyone his girlfriend before. Publicly, he and Woo Bin scoffed at the word. Privately though, there had never been anyone he had felt enough affection for to address like that. Still, he hadn't exactly rushed to clear up his teacher's misconception.

I'm due for another session tomorrow at the hospital. I think in a few more months, I should be able to make pottery the way I used to.

When I come back, maybe we can go to my studio. If I remember rightly, I've got an extra potter's wheel stashed somewhere there. You can use that.

Yi Jeong

Had he just asked her to go on a date three and a half years from now? His face felt warm and Yi Jeong knew he was blushing. Thank God no one was around to witness this.

Before he could change his mind, he folded the sheet of paper and stuffed it into the envelope, sealing it hastily, along with the photographs. He would mail it out tomorrow on the way to school.

It was almost five in the morning now. Stifling a yawn, he was about to get back into bed when his phone started buzzing continuously. Someone was calling.

…………………………………

"Yi Jeong ah, don't you read your messages?" Woo Bin demanded.

"Have you any idea what time it is?"

"Erm, morning?"

"It's early morning, five to be precise."

"Oops." He'd done it again. "Sorry bro. But you sound like you're wide awake though."

"Well I couldn't sleep."

"Thinking of Ga Eul yang were you?" Woo Bin teased. He could feel Yi Jeong's annoyance through the phone. "Anyway, I'm calling because of her."

"Is she alright?" came the immediate question. Yi Jeong could say and do whatever he liked but truth be told, the rest of F4 knew that something was going on between him and Geum Jan Di's best friend. Somehow or other, Chu Ga Eul had managed to snag Casanova and from the looks of it, was reeling him in. Yi Jeong wasn't putting up much of a fight, come to think of it.

"Well, she's okay. Except that there's this senior of hers at school…"

There was a tense silence before Yi Jeong finally spoke. His voice was carefully neutral. "Is she in a relationship?"

"Whoa, no! As far as I can tell, she's been avoiding the guy like the plague. She can't seem to shake him off though. I was wondering if you wanted me to step in." Woo Bin was pretty sure that Ga Eul wouldn't fall for anyone else but hey, if Jun Pyo could pester Geum Jan Di until she fell in love with him, anything was possible.

Woo Bin was a good friend for looking out for him that way. "Just make sure she's not in any danger. Does he look like the type to get nasty if she keeps saying no?"

"I don't think so."

Good. Because if that happened, Yi Jeong was going to fly back and deal with the jerk himself. That was, if there was anything left after Woo Bin and Jan Di were done with him. "Then Ga Eul yang will have to deal with him."

Woo Bin didn't quite know what to make of this. Either Yi Jeong had grown up a little or he was withdrawing into himself again. "Alright, whatever you say. Take care, man."

"Thanks Woo Bin. I'll call you sometime, yah?" Yi Jeong switched off his phone. His eyes went to the letter that was sitting atop his table.

It was a long time before he managed to fall asleep.

……………………………………………………………….

Ga Eul opened her locker and was taking out her textbooks when it happened again.

"Ga Eul-ssi."

Oh no, she'd been too slow. Either that or he had been lying in wait. "Yun Hyung sunbae," she greeted, reluctantly turning around. No way was she going to address him as just 'sunbae'. That was special; it was reserved for Yi Jeong.

"So, are you going to work again after class? Or can we finally go on a date?"

"Ah, I don't think so."

"Why not?"

Apparently there was no nice way to turn this guy down. She hadn't wanted to resort to this but she was getting desperate. Even Jan Di had reluctantly concluded that there was only one way to make Yun Hyung back off. "Err…I can't go out with you because… She could feel her face turning red. "That is…" He was in Sweden after all. He wouldn't be back until more than three years later. So, it would always be a secret. He would never find out. "…I have a boyfriend. He's in Sweden."

He didn't quite believe her; it was plain from the sceptical expression on his face. Ga Eul was wondering how she could convince him when a chorus of shrieks filled the hallway.

"It's Prince Song!"

And Prince Song was headed her way, Ga Eul noticed. Where on earth had he popped up from? "Woo Bin sunbae."

"Hey Ga Eul yang, Yi Jeong asked me to give you this personally." Okay, so that was a lie but Yi Jeong wasn't going to mind much. Woo Bin smiled at her as he took her hand and placed the envelope in it. "He's put some photos inside, as requested." Giving her a big wink, Woo Bin sailed off, leaving a trail of drooling females in his wake.

Ga Eul was staring at him, flabbergasted when she heard Yun Hyung clearing his throat. "You could've just told me you know." He stared at her accusingly.

"I..er..umm..Yi Jeong sunbae prefers to keep our relationship a secret." Lying wasn't supposed to be this easy. But her brain had hijacked her mouth and she couldn't stop. "It's more for my sake than his. I could do without the publicity."

Ga Eul didn't notice the girls nearby who were listening to every word. Some of them had already whipped out their mobile phones and were texting.

"Well, you should have told me. I don't want to be accused of stealing anyone's girl." Actually, he had been quite horrified to find out it was So Yi Jeong's girl he had been hitting on but he wasn't about to say that. "You really need to be more honest." And with that, he walked off.

"Yes, yes I do need to be more honest," Ga Eul groaned quietly. She was going to go home and scrub her mouth with soap for telling such a presumptuous lie. She could just imagine Yi Jeong smirking at her. She hoped he never found out.

…………………….

"Woo Bin?"

"Yi Jeong, I was about to call you. She got the letter, right in front of that guy. I was going to put it in her locker but hey, she was standing there. It was a coincidence, I swear."

Right. There were never coincidences with Woo Bin. "How was she?"

"She looked a little red in the face. I think she told the guy that you were her boyfriend and that she was waiting for you to come back from Sweden. At least that's what the rumours on campus are saying."

"What?"

"It's all over the school, man. My girls are asking if you really are dating Ga Eul yang."

If his smile got any bigger his face was going to hurt. "Tell them to mind their own business and leave her alone."

"That sounds like a 'yes' Yi Jeong. It's certainly not a 'no'."

"They can read whatever they want into it. That's not my problem."

"Alright then. Anyway, Jun Pyo called the other day…."

As Yi Jeong listened to Woo Bin's update, he realised that for the first time in more than a week, he felt truly relaxed. If Ga Eul yang had started that rumour for the sake of fending off a persistent suitor, he wasn't going to get in the way.

After all, cool guys could be nice guys too.