Four

Eternal Love

 

The week passes by with Won Sik and the guys working. They notice that Won Sik seems a little distracted, but they didn’t say anything. When Saturday comes, they all meet each other at the campsite. They help each other set up the tent, set up the tables and food, and gather wood for fire.

“I brought fishing poles just in case we wanted to do some fishing,” Dae Hyun says. “So who wants to go fishing?”

“Let’s go,” everyone except Won Sik chimes.

“You guys head on down first,” Won Sik says. “I need to make a call.”

“Okay,” Dae Hyun says.

They head down to the river while Won Sik takes out his phone. He dials one and puts the phone up to his ear.

“We're sorry. The number you are calling right now isn't available. Please leave a message after the beep,” the phone operator says.

Won Sik sighs and puts his phone in his pocket. He follows the guys down to the river. They are sitting at the bank of the river talking and laughing.

“Look who's finally here,” Dong Jun shouts.

“Here's your rod,” Dae Hyun says handing the rod over to Won Sik.

“Thanks,” Won Sik says accepting the rod. He puts the bait on the hook and throws the line into the river.

“You look down,” Dong Jun says sitting next to Won Sik. “Is something wrong?”

“Yeah,” Jin Young agrees. “You've been down all week.”

“Is it because of your mom,” Sung Yeol asks.

Won Sik sighs. “What am I supposed to do guys? It doesn't seem like she's proud of me at all. She's always neglecting me. She tells me to call often, so I do, but she says she's busy and hangs up on me. Then she asks me to visit her. I say I'll visit when I have the time, but she tells me not to. She says to not consider her as my mom anymore.” Won Sik’s voice cracks. “Does she even love me?”

“All parents love their child,” Dong Jun says.

“I think it's best if you go visit her,” Jin Young says. “Sit down with her and talk to her. Communication is best.”

“I'm so scared,” Won Sik says. “What if she raises her hand at me again? She won’t even answer her phone anymore.”

“We know what you've been through,” Dae Hyun says. “But running away isn’t going to fix anything.”

“I'm afraid. What if I face this problem, and I make it worse? What if they take her away? I don't want them to take her away,” Won Sik says.

“No one wants their parent to be taken away from them, but perhaps that is the right thing to do.”

“We know you're scared,” Dong Jun says, “and upset. We’ll help you overcome this. If you need anything, you know we’ll be here for you.”

Won Sik hangs his head.

“Let’s get rid of this negative mood,” Sung Yeol says. He takes a seat next to Won Sik and puts his arm around Won Sik’s shoulder. “We came here to have fun. Let go of all your stress and enjoy being out in nature. We can worry about those stress later.”

“You’re right,” Won Sik says. “Sorry I’m bringing the mood down.”

“It’s fine. We’re your friends,” Dong Jun says. “We’re supposed to be here for you when you feel down.”

“Hey,” Dae Hyun shouts. “I think I got one!” He takes his fishing pole and starts reeling in the line. “I caught one!” He grabs the fish.

Everyone runs over to him and crowd the fish, but Won Sik is still sitting behind his rod.

“Sweet,” Jin Young sings. “We’ll have fish for dinner tonight!”

Dae Hyun takes the hook out of the fishes mouth, and puts the fish in a bucket they brought with them.

Everyone goes back to their rod and wait for the fishes to bite, but Won Sik’s head is elsewhere. He can’t concentrate.

“You guys go ahead and fish,” Won Sik says. “I’m going for a walk. I need to clear my mind.”

“Okay,” Sung Yeol says.

“Be careful,” Dae Hyun adds.

“Don’t come back too late,” Jin Young chimes in.

“If anything just give us a call,” Dong Jun says.

“Don’t worry. I’ll be back soon,” Won Sik says. He stands up and starts walking on the hiking trail. As he is walking, his head is hung low. He looks at his footsteps and starts to count them. Then, he is distracted by the sound of birds chirping. Won Sik lifts his head and looks at the wavering trees. The leaves are slowly changing color, and the air is slightly getting colder. Just when he thinks his mind is clearing up, he hears a child crying. Won Sik stops in his track and looks the way where the child is. He sees a baby boy crying. There is no one there to comfort the child. He takes a step towards the crying child, but the mother quickly runs to his side. She wipes his tears and pulls him into her embrace.

That triggers an emotion inside Won Sik. His eyes water up, and a tear falls down his eye. He shocks himself and quickly wipes the tear away. Won Sik turns around and starts walking away, but he bumps into another person. The person falls making him gasp.

“Are you okay,” he asks. He bends down to her level to help her up.

“Yeah,” she replies. “Sorry.” She moves her hair away from her face. “I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

She looks up, and her eyes widen. “It’s you,” she says shockingly.

“It’s you,” he says shockingly as well, but still sad.

“Are you okay,” she asks looking at him warily.

“Yeah,” he replies as he tries to put on his stern face.

“Are you sure? It looks like you’ve been crying.”

“Huh?” He wipes his eyes. “No. Something just went into my eyes when I bumped into you.”

“Are you sure?” She looks at him concerned

“Yes. I’m sure.”

He helps her up.

“I’m sorry,” he says. “Have a good day.” He walks away.

“Bye,” she says quietly.

Won Sik slowly walks on the trial with tears quickly falling out of his eyes. He stops and sighs, but his breath hitches. Won Sik calms himself down and wipes his tear. He then looks around and sees a huge tall tree on the side of the trail, so he walks behind the tree and sits underneath the branches. Won Sik pulls his knees together and hugs them. Tears start streaming down his eyes again. He tries to calm himself down.

He hears a twig breaking beside him, so his head raises, and he sees Ra Eun squatting in front of him.

“I’m sorry,” she says calmly. “You looked like you were upset about something, so I followed you.” She pauses. “Don’t get me wrong. I’m not a stalker,” she says waving both her hands. “I just thought maybe I can help.” Ra Eun tucks her hands between her knees and chest.

He looks at her like she’s a weirdo.

“I don’t know what’s wrong,” she continues, “but whatever it is, it seems like it’s very painful.”

He swallows the lump in his throat and tries to stop his tears from flowing.

“You know, holding in the pain isn't good for you. It's better to let it out,” she informs him. “So don't hold it in. I may not know the problem, but I'll be here with you, so cry the pain away.”

His lips start to tremble.

“You don't have to tell me anything. I'll give you my shoulder to cry on,” she continues.

He looks away and buries his head in his knee. His shoulders tremble, and he starts crying.

Ra Eun sits next to him. She listens as his breath hitches and cries his pain away. She puts her hand on his back and softly pats his back.

 

“It's been awhile,” Sung Yeol says.

They're all back at their campsite.

“Do you think Won Sik is okay,” Sung Yeol asks.

“I'll go look for him,” Dae Hyun offers. He stands up from his seat and starts heading the way that Won Sik went earlier. “Where did he go,” he asks himself. Dae Hyun looks into the distance and finds two people sitting under a tree. He walks closer to them and realizes that the man is Won Sik, and the woman is Ra Eun. Won Sik is still crying, and Ra Eun is still comforting him. Dae Hyun backs away and walks back to the campsite.

“Did you find him,” Dong Jun asks.

“Yeah. I did,” Dae Hyun replies. “He's with Ra Eun.”

“Ra Eun,” Jin Young asks.

“Was Jin Hee with her,” Dong Jun asks.

“No,” Dae Hyun replies. “Won Sik is crying. Ra Eun is comforting him.”

“It's about time,” Sung Yeol says. “He's been holding in so much he's bound to burst. I guess today is the day.”

“Should we go check up on him,” Jin Young asks.

“No,” Dae Hyun says. “Let him cry. If we go, he might stop. He's never liked to look weak in front of us.”

“Instead,” Sung Yeol suggests, “Let's make him feel better when he comes. Let's cook, and get the drinks ready. Dong Jun, start the fire. Dae Hyun, prepare your fish. Jin Young, help me set the table.”

“Yes, sir,” they all say.

 

Won Sik takes a deep breath to call down.

Ra Eun reaches into her pocket and pulls out a pink handkerchief. She hands it over to him.

He takes it and wipes his eyes and blows his nose.

“Feel better,” she asks him.

He nods his head.

“That's a relief,” she smiles.

“I'm sorry,” he says in his nasally voice. “You probably didn't want to hear me cry for ten minutes.”

“It's okay,” she says. “I'm glad I could help.”

“Thank you for your handkerchief. I'll wash it and return it to you.”

“It's okay. You can keep it.”

Won Sik’s phone dings. He takes it out of his pocket.

“Take your time,” Sung Yeol texts. “But dinner is almost ready.”

“I'll be right there,” he texts back. He puts his phone away. “Thank you,” he tells Ra Eun. “But I have to go now. The guys are waiting for me.”

“You mean your workers,” she asks.

“Yes. They're waiting for me to go back.”

“So everyone came then?”

“Yes. They wanted to come camping.”

“That sounds nice. You can have a break from all your stress, and just hang out with your friends.”

He stands up, and so does she.

“Would you like to join us,” he asks her. “It's the least I can do after what you've done for me.”

“Thank you, but I should get going. My parents are waiting for me to go back home.”

“Oh. I'm sorry. I probably kept you too long.”

“It's okay. It was nice to be sitting here with you. I'll see you around?”

“Yeah.”

She smiles and walks away.

“Wait,” he calls. “Your sweater.”

She turns around.

“I have your sweater in my car. If you come with me, I can give you your sweater back.”

“Give it to me when we meet again.”

She smiles again and walks away.

Won Sik walks back to camp to see the guys already grilling.

“Look who's finally back,” Jin Young yells. He runs over to Won Sik and wraps his arm around his shoulder. Jin Young pulls Won Sik toward the campfire and sits Won Sik down. They see that his eyes are red and puffy, but they don't say anything. Instead, they're going to try to comfort him.

“Mr. Kim,” Dong Jun says approaching Won Sik. “For you.” He kneels in front of Won Sik and gives him a can of beer. “Thank you for being such a great boss and friend. Without you, we wouldn't be here today.”

“And this,” Dae Hyun says giving him a plate of the fish and some pork belly. “Let's eat and drink until our stomach bursts.”

“Alright,” Won Sik agrees. “Let's do that.”

Everyone cheers and start to eat.

After eating and cleaning, they go to their tents. There are two tents. Sung Yeol and Jin Young sleeps in one while the rest sleeps in the other one. Everyone is asleep, but Won Sik is still awake. He can't seem to fall asleep. Won Sik is thinking about Ra Eun. The way she comforted him. He can still feel her delicate hand gently patting his back. Won Sik can see her smile. He pulls out his phone and looks up her blog. Won Sik scrolls down until he sees her critique on Classy Clicks.

“Classy Clicks. A successful day for five handsome men! They launched their new product, and many people came to support them. Their little store was filled, and even the line was trailing outside. If you haven’t already, go and support them! You’re missing out on fantastic heels and handsome men!”

Won Sik scrolls down to see she had put up a picture of the heel she bought. He scrolls down some more to read the comments.

“The heel is beautiful! I went there the other day, and they were all so helpful!”

“I’m glad I went! I got to see so many handsome man in one place! I would definitely go again!”

He continues to read positive comments, and as he scrolls down even more, he reads some negative comments.

“What’s the point of going to that trashy place when I can go somewhere else with better heels?”

“The heels are so cheap! Are you sure they’re not a blackmarket?”

“Cheap taste!!”

“They’re not even that handsome! Even my dog is more handsome than them!”

Won Sik turns off his phone and sets it down. He closes his eyes and drifts to sleep.

The next morning, as they’re cleaning and packing up, Won Sik receives a call.

“Hello,” he asks into the phone. Won Sik walks away, so he can hear better.

“Is Mr. Kim Won Sik there,” the speaker asks.

“This is him.”

Everyone finishes packing up. They load everything into the car, and Won Sik walks back.

“Who was that,” Sung Yeol asks.

“A modeling agency CEO just called me. He wants to buy 150 pair of our latest product for his models,” Won Sik informs them.

“Really,” Jin Young asks. “That’s great!”

“I never guessed that a modeling agency will reach their hand out to us,” Dae Hyun says happy.

“I haven’t given him an answer yet,” Won Sik says. “I’m going to go and do a little research about them, and then have a meeting with them.”

“Of course,” Dong Jun agrees. “What if they’re not a real agency?”

Won Sik nods his head.

“Okay. Before we go, let’s all do something,” Sung Yeol says with a smile.

“What,” Dae Hyun asks.

“Let’s go for a swim!”

“Are you crazy,” Jin Young says. “It’s cold.”

“Let’s go,” Dong Jun says. He drags Sung Yeol to the car.

“No! I want to swim,” Sung Yeol shouts.

“Bye,” everyone waves to Won Sik except Sung Yeol because he’s in a headlock.

Won Sik waves to them and climbs into his car before he drives off. When Won Sik reaches home, the first thing he does is look up the agency, and the agency is actually a big one. Many famous models work for the agency. Won Sik calls them and sets an appointment to meet them.

Won Sik finally starts to unpack his car. He puts the tents away and puts anything else he brought with him to the camping trip away. Won Sik even takes out the sweater Ra Eun gave him and pulls out the handkerchief from his pocket. He goes change into a gray t-shirt and black sweatpants before he goes do his laundry. He puts the sweater and handkerchief in with his clothes and washes them. When the laundry is done, he neatly folds the pink sweater and handkerchief. He puts them in his car and leaves them on the backseat.

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PuffTedEBear
#1
Chapter 15: I am happy with the happy ending. It was quite realistic that it took so long for that happy ending to arrive. Being in therapy for depression can take years so it makes since that it took 3 years for Won Sik to feel more control in his life. Good job!
PuffTedEBear
#2
Chapter 10: Good for Won Sik seeing someone to talk to about his depression. I know that it is a very touchy subject to deal with and society does not like to talk about it. It needs to be addressed to get help though. Love that his friends all care about him so much.
Aidemstarz
#3
Chapter 9: This is really sad but really good as well. Poor Won Sik. I look forward to the next chapter.
PuffTedEBear
#4
Chapter 8: Depression effects people in many ways. I was severely depressed as a child into my teen years and I "coped" by eating. Still do even now. You did well in your research. I like that you have Wonsik starting to look Rae Eun differently. Having a strong presence in a depressed person's life can be just what they need to overcome the pain they are going through.
PuffTedEBear
#5
Chapter 7: I see signs of severe depression. Before you did a fine job of building up to and now it has become very obvious that Won Sik needs help. I have a feeling that things will get much worse for him.
PuffTedEBear
#6
Chapter 6: Won Sik had a sad childhood and it's effects are still in force. I have a theory that will keep bringing me back to see if I am correct.
PuffTedEBear
#7
Chapter 4: I can tell by the description you are using that Won Sik gas been abused and traumatized as a youngster. His meltdown over watching the simple act of a mother hugging her child was very effective. You are doing very well with this story.
PuffTedEBear
#8
Chapter 3: Mom sounds a bit crazy. Poor Won Sik, its not easy dealing with someone like that. Story is progressing nicely.
PuffTedEBear
#9
Chapter 1: Building up a good story.