The Beginning and The End

"Heheh I got him his favorite flavour." A 6 years old Haneul smiled at the both Ice-creams in her small hands, while hopping to the playground, where her dear friend was waiting for her. Just thinking about him made her heart flutter. She knew that he was way different than other kids, but exactly that was the thing she liked the most about him.

He was different.

Just when she reached the traffic lights, she looked at some young couple, who just pressed the button and smiled happily at each other. Then to her surprise the Guy, pressed his lips on the lips of the girl . Haneul tilted her head while watching them. What were they doing ? She asked herself and pouted her lips out, just like how they did it. Just then, the traffic lights turned green and how her mom told her, she walked with the ice-creams still in her hands to the other side of the road. Because of the sun, the Ice suddenly started to melt. "AHHHH! NO  NO NO! NOT MELT!" Haneul shouted out and started to run to the playground. She wanted to give it to her friend as fast as she could, so he could enjoy it. Just at the thought of it, her heart began to beat and she smiled at herself. She wanted to make him smile,because  he usually didn't smile, but she wanted to make him smile so bad.

"Just look at him, not speaking to us."

Haneul stopped and looked at a crowd of kids in front of her. They were laughing and throwing stones at something. Would they want to play with her and her friend, she thought and stared at them with a smile on her lips.

"My Mom told me he has a sickness, because of that he can't communicate with others." One said.

"Oh, really? I hope he won't infect us." A small boy said and looked down at something, while smirking at it, Haneul tried to see it, but she could see nothing.

"He just wants to get attention." The boy said again and began to kick at something, a small yelp was heard. Haneul looked at the crowd in alarm, this didn't seem like playing or having fun to her.

"He acts weird and he doesn't even speak. In fact he is weird." The boy reached for something and grabbed it. Now, Haneul could see it......or him. It was her friend with big scars all over his body. In shock, Haneul stared at them, she didn't even notice that the two Ice-creams fell out of her hand and landed on the  ground . She just couldn't  move. It was her friend and it didn't help her that the others made fun of him. Just when the boy slapped her best friend in the face she ran up to him and kicked the boy in his stomach.

"H-Haneul?" The boy fell backwards and got a hold of his stomach. Immediatly, the other kids went to him and helped him up.

"DON'T MAKE FUN OF MY FRIEND!" Haneul yelled at them and pointed with her small finger on her friend, who looked with big brown eyes at the girl. Haneul placed herself protectively in front of him and stretched out her arms.

"If you want to hurt someone, you can hurt me or beat me up until I die, but don't you dare lay a single finger on my friends." She glared at them and slowly, the kids ran away. Except one.

"Why are you protecting this monster?" He asked and Haneul's blood boiled.

"He is not a Monster! He is just a Human like us! A boy!" Haneul protectively said.

"He is a monster! He sleeps under our beds and then attacks us, when we let our guards down!" The boy said and threw his arms into the air.

Haneul inhaled.

"Just  because he is differnet from us?" She asked and the boy said nothing.

What's with him? Haneul asked herself. partened.

"Monster don't sleep under your bed, they sleep inside of your head." Haneul threw another glare at him and then turned around to her friend, not catching the last words the boy said, behind her back.

"This is not over." He ran away.

When Haneul bend down, to look at the scars of her friend she noticed that he had many bruises on his legs and his arms. On his face were light cuts, from probably the stones and a small red imprint of a small hand on his left cheek. Haneul began to cry.

"Why did they do this to you?" She asked and looked into his face, meeting his brown eyes. Like always, Jungkook just tilted his head and looked at her confused, but then turned his eyes away from her, as if nothing ever happened. He never could hold eye-contact for too long.  Haneul shook her head.

"I wanted to make you smile, but....." She began to cry louder and lowered her head, Jungkook just stared at his toy in his hands. He always did the same, with his play car, rolling it to the right side and then back to the left side, ignoring the fact that Haneul was crying in front of him. Haneul just cried on and then suddenly wrapped her small hands around his waist  and hugged him.

"I'll always protect you."

10 Years Later.

Her knees pressed against her chest, Haneul looked closely at the snowglobe that her mother gave her as a present to her 10th birthday. She liked the way the fake snow flew through the whole glass when she shook it. Whenever she missed her parents she looked at  this snowglobe, in the hope that this feeling would get smaller and smaller until it fully disappeared. It wasn't like that her parents were dead, no no they were alive, still in this cruel world. They were just overseas on a  business trip.

"One month. my ." Haneul cursed under her breath and placed the snowglobe on the dining table, standing up she made her way to the living room. She hated how everything was so quiet. Laying herself down on the fancy black sofa, Haneul looked at the white ceiling.

Her parents weren't dead.....but the same couldn't she say for Jungkook's. Just at the thought of him, Haneul's heart clenched and her breath got uneven. That day....She wanted to forget this day......she wanted that this cruel memorie disappeared from her mind. She just wanted to hide herself in a corner and cry her soul out.

"Hello." A young beautiful woman stood behind the big door and looked with a bright smile at the small Haneul.

This wasn't the chicken man, Haneul thought and froze.

"Nice to meet you, sweetie." She bend herself down to look closely at Haneul. Just when her mother arrived at the door, Haneul hid herself behind her mother's leg.

"She is a bit shy." Her mother said and pulled Haneul -who gladly refused to be in the sight of this woman- next to her.

"Oh that's okay. My little boy is shy, too, you know." The woman looked at Haneul again.

"Want to meet him?" The first thing Haneul did was looking at her mother. When she arrived an approval nod and a smile from her mother, Haneul got excited and jumped into the arms of the woman.

"But you have to wait here okay, little girl? I'll get him." The woman said and placed Haneul to the ground, squezzing her cheeks lightly with her hands.

Haneul hummed a yes and looked with hopefull eyes to the woman.

"Then I'll be on my way." The woman said and walked off. Still smiling, Haneul turned to her Mother.

"New friend!" She shouted out and hugged the leg of her mother, who the head of her daughter.

"Haneul." Her mother bend down to her level.

"Be nice to him, okay? He is....um different from other kids you know? So just be normal to him, he won't hurt you." Haneul's mother said and then walked off to make something to drink for everyone. Haneul just waited at the door and looked with big eyes at the big white door. Hoping, that in any minute the bell would ring. She didn't really get what her mother was trying to say to her, but she was really excited to meet her new friend.

Haneul laughed and shifted on the sofa. She remembered the first meeting of Jungkook, like  it was yesterday.

Her mother opened the door and discovered was the same woman as before, but this time with a boy in her arms. Haneul couldn't see his face, because his back faced her. Because of that she ran behind the woman and tried to see his face, but the only thing she could see was his black hair. He hid his face in the crook of his mother's neck.

"He is shy, very shy." The woman stated and walked in with the boy still in her arms. Haneul followed them and didn't get her eyes off of the boy. She waited for him to show his face.

"Do you want some green tea?" Her mother asked the woman.

"Yeah, sure." She answered and sat down on the black sofa in the living room, whereupon Haneul placed herself next to her, still looking at the boy in her arms. The woman noticed that and whispered something into the ear of the boy. The boy didn't move, tho, he remained in this position and didn't say a single thing. When Haneul's mother brought the tea, the woman had to tear the boy from her arms and placed him right next to Haneul. Immediately, Haneul looked at him from head to toe, then her eyes remained on his face, His handsome face. Haneul felt how her blood rushed to her face. Hanuel, ran to her mother and hid her face in her tummy.

"Aigoo, she blushed." Her mother and her head.

"Jungkook, I Think you found a friend." The woman nudged the side of the boy and smiled at him, but the boy remained silent and didn't move. It was like he didn't even know that he was called by his name. His eyes were glued on his lap, as it would be the most beautfiul thing in this world. "Kookie?" Haneul raised her head and looked with wide eyes at the woman, who laughed out.
"Yeah, kookie." She said and pointed her forefinger at Jungkook. Haneul went to Jungkook and placed herself in front of him, smiling brightly at him.

"I have cookies in my room and tea.....and Mr. teddy, if you want we can play with him." She said and tilted her head to have a better look at his face. He didn't move. Hanuel tried to talk to him again and again, but to no success. Just when his mother wanted to help her, Haneul got his attention.

"Ummm if you want we can play the piano." Haneul said and finally she got a reaction. Jungkook lifted slowly his head and his big brown eyes met hers. Haneul felt as if her heart was going to explode at this rate. She blushed again and her mother began to smile at this situation.

"Jungkook, if you like you can play the piano. We have one in the playroom of Haneul." Her mother said and sipped at the green tea, before placing the cup of tea on the small table in front of her.

"You have a piano? That's great Jungkook loves playing the piano!He's really a genius at it." His mother clapped her hands in excitement, shifting with her eyes from her son to haneul.

"I show you th--Oh the door!" Haneul's mother shouted out and stood up.

"Who is it?" The mother of Jungkook said and stood up as well. "THE CHICKEN MAN!" Haneul shouted out in excitement and  noticed that Jungkook flinched from her shouting. She had to smile at his cuteness and Jungkook looked with big eyes at Haneul.

"I'll get the door. Haneul show Jungkook your playroom okay?" Haneul's mother grabbed her wallet and ran to the door, whereupon Jungkook's mother followed her. Now, the both of them were left alone. Haneul shifted with her weight from her right leg to her left leg. "Umm let's go." She said and grabbed the hand of a blankly staring Jungkook. 

No one touched him before, only his Mother and his Father, he thought. His heart beat increased, while he was looking at the back of his new friend. Haneul. He liked her name, he liked even her face. He never saw a beautiful girl like her. Suddenly, Haneul stopped in her tracks and Jungkook bumped into her. Afraid, that he hurted her or did something wrong he jumped back. Haneul turned around with a big smile on her face and pointed with her other forefinger on a door.

"This is my playroom." She said proudly, letting go of jungkook's hand, Haneul ran around the corner and then back with a small chair in her hands. Placing the small chair under the doorbell, Haneul stood on it and opened the door, not even bothering about placing the small chair back at its place, Haneul grabbed Jungkook's hand again and ran into the room. Shocked, Jungkook looked with his head around the room. Everywhere, were toys. Everywhere, he could see happy things. This room was happiness for him. Once again, letting go of Jungkook's hand Haneul ran to the children piano of her and placed herself on the chair, patting the space next to her. "Kookie, let's play something." She said and laughed.

Jungkook just stood there frozen, thinking about if he really should approach her. Actually, the other kids in his kindergarten, never spoke to him. He never knew why and he didn't even ask why or He just couldn't. Whenever he tried to speak to someone, he just couldn't. He couldn't show his emotions and he couldn't built up a relationship with other kids. It was like his mind didn't know how to form a relationship with someone. The other kids always made fun of him, saying mean things to him and didn't share they're toys with him. He always had to bring his own toys and play with them himself in a corner. Whenever he looked up, he always saw happiness in the faces of the kids when they played with their toys or with each other, so why didn't he feel happiness? Didn't he play with his toys too? He didn't know this feeling inside of him, but he felt empty. Very empty.

But.

This girl.

Jungkook took some steps towards the smiling Haneul.

Maybe she was different from them, he thought and placed himself next to her. Slowly, he placed each finger on a key and then began to play a random melody. He just thought about Haneul and then thousand of melodies,notes,sounds and other things came into his Mind. Yes, he finally found a friend.

After he stopped playing, silence filled the whole room, Jungkook turned his head to Haneul only to see that she had lowered her head and small water drops were falling down on the ground. Jungkook didn't know how to feel about this so he just blankly stared at his new made friend. Actually, he was afraid that he did something wrong and lost his new friend already. He nudged with his forefinger the head of Haneul and made her look up at him. He didn't know why but his heart began to hurt at the sight of her. He didn't like it to see her crying, he liked her smile. Then out of nowhere, hanuel began to speak.

"---- Beautif---yo---play---" She couldn't stop crying and Jungkook gave her a questioning look, he didn't know what she wanted from him. After some minutes, Haneul calmed down, she cupped the face of Jungkook and began to speak.

"I've never heard such a lovely melodie, kookie." She said and new tears began to fill her already wet eyes.

Please Subscribe to read the full chapter