“Hi.”

“Hi. Lunch?”

“Done.”

“Good. Let’s go.”

It was a fine Saturday afternoon when Dong Wook and Ha In took off for the library. During the whole drive there, Ha In chattered away like usual. Sometimes there were banters between them, but most of the time it was just Ha In talking about this and that while Dong Wook listened with interest.

“I asked Yeong Ji if she wanted to come along, but she didn’t feel like it.” Dong Wook nodded in acknowledgement.

Often time, these names like Yeong Ji, Sunny, Jin Hyuk and Haley came up beside her mom and dad. By now he practically knew who was who already. She talked about them so naturally and so fondly that he could easily see that they were the people she held dear.

Dong Wook would smile whenever something triggered her old memories that she would start talking about them. The silly things she did with those people. It made him think of his own friends. Sometimes he would join her in revisiting memory lanes, boasting about the impossible things they did with their own friends when they were young.

Surprisingly, the lonely moments he had had those many years ago didn’t bother him when they talked about the past. It felt just like Go Ha In had this power to dispel those bad memories away. It was as if she chose to only remember the good things, and anyone who listened to her couldn’t help but do the same.

“Are these the ones?” When they got to the library, Dong Wook helped her sit down at one of the tables and went to fetch books of different fields for her. She sure reads all kinds of stuffs.

“They definitely are. Thank you.” She received the book with great excitement. Her eyes were basically sparkling with happiness. She had told him close a million times this morning that she had been looking for these books for several years now. Dong Wook chuckled, so if it’s not food, it’s books.

He decided to stay and look for some reference materials for his next project. Sitting opposite of him was Go Ha In who was already lost in her book with her earphones on.

Pfft!

Dong Wook looked up at Ha In with an eyebrow raised.

“What’s so funny about political science?”

“Nah, I was listening to my favorite boy band singing Trot. They’re so silly. How cute.”

“You listen to idols?”

“Duh, who doesn’t listen to idols?”

“Didn’t peg you to be one of them girls.”

“Oh, I’m one of them, alright.” She stuck out her tongue before going back to her book.

It was 3 hours in, when Ha In finished her first book. She reached for her next favorite, but it wasn’t there. It seemed Dong Wook had missed that one. She looked up at him but he was nowhere to be found.

Bathroom perhaps, she thought as she stood up and walked slowly to find the book herself.

“Must be here.” As she got to the right shelf, she started looking for the book but found that it was placed way too high for her to reach. “Great!”

She took out her phone to call Dong Wook, but he didn’t answer. She figured he left it behind.

“Can’t be helped then.” And so she dragged a ladder nearby and started climbing.

Dong Wook got back from the bathroom to find Ha In’s empty seat.

CRASH!!

Before he even finished wondering where she disappeared to, he heard a crashing sound three aisles away. He immediately dashed in that direction. There was no doubting who caused it.

“Go Ha In, you!” There, right under the wooden ladder was Go Ha In. He quickly took the ladder away and carefully examine her ankle that seemed to be swollen up again and looked bluer than ever. “I’m here for a reason, you know.”

“I did call you, but you didn’t pick up the phone.” Ha In mumbled, barely holding back her tears. She fell hard on the injured ankle, and now it was excruciatingly painful.

“You’re just too impatient. Now look. It’s swollen again.” He pointed out in a reproaching tone. But then he took a deep breath and tried to calm down upon seeing that she was already close to tears.

“Let’s get you to the hospital.”

“What? Now? No!” She exclaimed in horror.

“Don’t be stubborn. Look, you’re hurting. Let’s get it checked first.”

“It’s not easy to find these books. I have to read them.” Ha In tried to reason with him.

“You can borrow and read them at home.”

“Rare books can’t be checked out if you’re not a registered for a membership card. It takes weeks for the card to be done.”