I continued to visit Ms. Haewon throughout the next week. She was a lot of help. She helped me set up a small shop in the city where I could sell herbs and medicines. She even recommended people to me to get me a few customers.

It was nerve-wracking starting my own business, but she was with me for every step. And it started off successful once I got the hang of it. It turns out that there really wasn’t a lot of herbal shops that sold on hand medicine, which attributed to it starting successfully. I enjoyed it, interacting with new people every day, and it was nice to be working again.

I frequently stopped by Changmin’s house for an or so after work, before Yunho came back from his duties.

I knocked on the door one early hot afternoon. The door opened quicker than I expected. I was surprised to see that it was Changmin.

“She’s not here.” He said before I could speak.

I furrowed my brow somewhat concerned. She was here every day. She hadn’t said anything about being gone today, “Is she okay?”

He looked at me in surprised. “No.” He answered anyway.

I looked at him, waiting for him to go on.

“She’s on vacation for the Summer Solstice.”

The furrow in my brow deepened. “Summer Solstice?”

“Yeah. It’s an important family holiday. Where you spend time with your family, have a picnic or whatever at the fairy grounds.” He explained as if it were obvious, his tone lacking energy.

I slowly nodded. It was the first time I was hearing about it. Yunho never mentioned it t o me. Maybe it’s only a family-oriented thing.

“Are you celebrating?” I asked curiously, taking the chance to learn a little more about him. He lived alone, except for when Ms. Haewon or the other servants came to perform their duties, but they had lives outside their jobs. He might have other family members he spent the holidays with.

But the look of shock on his face gave me a clue to the answer to my question. It was only a short flash of shock before his face returned to its usual bored expression. “No. I don’t celebrate these stupid holidays.”

A laugh involuntarily escaped my lips at the familiarity of his words. They brought back memories that came back to me as amusing. I forced myself to stop when I met his stunned eyes. “I’m sorry.” I apologized without explanation. It’d only offend him if I explained why I laughed. However, I was glad that it at least took him out of his usual angry state. Now he looked at me with curiosity and some sort of strangeness.

“How about we go together?” I offered.

He paused, registering my words. “We?”

“Yeah. It’ll be a first for both of us. It’ll be fun.” I grew more excited by the idea of a mid-afternoon picnic. I was more enthralled by the idea of taking him out. He was always alone. Despite having Ms. Haewon there all the time, he separated himself. He would leave without telling anyone where he was going, and no one ever asked.

Though I only knew little of his story I couldn’t help but feel bad for him. He was 19 living like a lonely man. Carrying a demeanor as if the whole world was against him, too afraid to ask the questions he really wanted to ask, to afraid to show any emotion other than anger. Yet, he was easy to read. I don’t think he realized that.

He was on the verge of declining, but I urged him with pleading eyes.

His shoulders dropped in defeat. “Fine.” He gave in.

A smile returned to my lips. “Great! We’ll have to pack some food. I think I have some things at my house.” I knew exactly what I wanted to bring.

“Your house?”

I nodded, confirming the unspoken invitation.

He was hesitant, but unwillingly put on his shoes anyway. I waited for him before leading the way to my house.

He was silent when we entered, openly observing the interior as he walked further inside. I led him to the kitchen where I immediately went through my cabinets and started grabbing for food.

He watched from the opposite side of the kitchen as I packed and prepared the food I took out. A small reluctant smile appeared on his lips when I wrapped up guava bread that I made earlier this week.

In the end I managed to pack a couple of sandwiches, half a loaf of bread and several different cuts of fruit. I was disappointed that I didn’t have any pastries to bring. It was too late to bake anything, and we wouldn’t have time to buy anything before it got too late. It wasn’t a big deal; it just would’ve been nice to have a small dessert. The bread was at least a little sweet, so we’ll be fine.