When my parents told me, I cried.

Irene was going to live with her grandmother, who was very sick, until she died. (The grandma, not Irene. Duh.) Her grandmother didn't want to be alone. It was a noble thing to do, but this meant Irene couldn't be my babysitter anymore!

'Does Irene have to go?' I asked my mom.

'I'm sorry, honey, but she does. She'll come back though. For now, you're going to have a different babysitter.'

'I don't want a different babysitter.'

'I'm sorry, sweetheart. I know you'll miss Irene.'

'I really like her, mom,' I sobbed.

'I can tell. We can all tell. Even Irene herself can probably tell. But you're too young, darling.'

I stopped crying, embarrassed at the childsh tantrum I'd thrown. I sat up and dried my eyes. 'I need to calm down. I know Irene is doing the right thing.'

'That's the right way to think, honey. Now let's get some supper.'

I followed her to the kitchen.

The next day was the last day Irene looked after me before going away.

'It's not forever, you know, Seulgi,' she tried to comfort me.

'I know, but I'm still going to miss you.'

'I'll miss you too. I might be back in about two or three months.'

'That isn't too long,' I said in surprise.

Irene laughed. 'Not at all.'

I very, very shyly kissed her on the cheek- just a friends kiss, kind of. She smiled and gave me a hug. 'See you when I get back. Have fun with your new babysitter!'

'I'll try,' I smiled.

'Don't have too much fun without me,' she warned.

'I can't promise...' 

She laughed, and I felt better.

My new babysitter wasn't so bad.

Her name was Wendy, and she was nice. She was older than Irene, and I personally found Irene much prettier, although Wendy was pretty too.

She sang for me, and her voice was good too, but I still missed Irene.

Wendy could see i was bored. She did everything she could to cheer me up, but when it didn't work, she gave up and went back to singing for me.

I counted down the days until Irene might come back.