The next morning I went to the Cube Office to speak with the staff manager. I was thinking about this matter the whole night and finally came to the conclusion, that it would be better for me and everyone else.

“Come in.”, the staff manager said, when I knocked on the door.

I slowly entered his office. “Good morning.”

“Good morning, Ms. Vuong. Take a seat, please.”, he said.

I nodded and sat down.

“So what do you want to talk about, Ms. Vuong?”

I took a deep breath. “I want to resign.”

He arched an eye brow. “And what's the reason?”

“It's just that I have to return to Germany soon. That's why I have to quit. And there are also....personal reasons.”

“I see. I have to say that it's really a pity that you are leaving us. You were an excellent employee.”

“Thank you.”

“If you really want to resign, then please hand in a letter of resignation and sign this paper.”

“When do I have to leave?”

“As soon as we receive the letter of resignation.”

“May I leave tomorrow? I already brought the letter of resignation with me.”

“Oh, I see. Of course, just give me the letter and sign this paper please.”

I quickly signed the paper and gave the staff manager the letter.

“So, we're done. From tomorrow on, you are not a Cube Employee anymore. It's really a pity. I hope you won't regret it.”

“I hope so, too.”, I said and stood up.

The manager stood up, too. “Well then, thank you for being such an excellent employee and I would like to wish you all the very best for the future.”

“Thank you.”

“Goodbye, Ms. Vuong.”

“Goodbye.”, I said and left the office.

When I closed the door, I leaned against the wall. I did it. I really did it. But there was no other solution. It was better to leave now before I got too attached to this job and the people around me. I didn't have much time left. There were only a couple weeks left before I had to return to Germany. I would soon leave this country and return to my family and friends.

The next morning I woke up really early to prepare breakfast. After that I put the food on the dining table. On the middle of the table, I put the letter for the boys. I wrote the whole night on this letter because I didn't know how I could explain the reason for my resignation.

After that I packed my luggage and went to the door. I turned around for the last time and look around. This apartment was tied with so many memories...good ones as well as bad ones. I would really miss being here. And I would miss the boys.

I took a deep breath and left the apartment. I grabbed a cab and drove to a pension near Halmeoni's café. There I rent a room, put my luggage into it and drove to Halmeoni's house.

“Omo, Vinni! I haven't seen for such a long time! Come in, come in, you need to tell me everything you've experienced so far.”, she said when she opened the door.

I chatted with Halmeoni for several hours. I told her about my time at Cube with the boys, about the travels, the job offer, Nana and Jenny and also about the crazy girls and Junhyung and me.

“Oh dear, you had to endure so much during your short time in this country. Are you okay?”, she asked and put a hand on my shoulder.

“I'm still hurt but I kinda accepted it already. I wasn't the one he loved. There's nothing I can do about it.”

“It's better to live on. You'll find someone who loves you as much as you love him. A celebrity’s life is always tied with scandals and intrigues. You wouldn't have been happy with him.”

“I know...thank you, Halmeoni.”

“You're welcome, dear. Now tell me, how long will you be staying in Korea?”

“I'll be staying for two more weeks and then I'll go back to Germany.”

“Then how about coming back to my house and working in the café? You were so happy back then, I want to see you smiling again.”

“Thank you, Halmeoni. I really would like to work in the café again.”

“Great! Let's put your luggage in your room and then we -”

“Halmeoni, I'm sorry but I want to stay in a pension.”, I interrupted her.

“Why? Don't you want to stay with us?”

“No, no, no! That's not the reason! I just don't want to be a burden to you. I'm very grateful that I was able to live here before but now I want to stay in the pension. And I already rent a room. But thank you for the offer.”

“It's okay, dear. I don't want to force you to anything.”

“Thank you, Halmeoni. I'll start working immediately!”

I said goodbye to Halmeoni and went to the café. Mihri was really happy to see me and she was even more happy when I told her that I would be working with her again. I was finally back at the café, where everything began.

One day I got a call from an unknown number.

“'Yeoboseyo?”

“Good morning, am I talking to Ms. Vuong?”

“Yes. To whom am I talking right now?”

“I'm Park Jinho, the CEO of the Fashion Agency for young Stylists and Designers. Minho-ssi showed me your sketchbook and I have to say that I'm really impressed. I want to make you an offer.”

I tried hard to hide my excitement. “And what kind of offer would that be?”

“I would like to offer you an internship at our Agency. But there's a condition tied to that offer.”

Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh.

“What condition?”

“Minho-ssi told me that you're from Germany and that you have to leave Korea soon, is that right? Well, I want to offer you this internship but you have to finish your Fashion Design studies in Germany first. If you can hand in your Bachelor Certificate, then I'll gladly welcome you to our Agency. Do you accept my offer?”

I didn't hesitate. “Of course! I will gladly accept your offer!”

“Good. Please come to my office to sign some papers tomorrow. I'll send you the address.”

“Okay, thank you. Goodbye.”

I was still shocked when I hung up. I got an offer for a Fashion Agency. It was like a dream coming true.

The next morning I went to the office and signed the papers. When I left the office, I couldn't wait to return to the café to tell Mihri and Haeri about the offer. Just when I wanted to cross the street, I saw Hara walking towards me. My good mood vanished immediately.

She smiled when she saw me. “Oh, look who's here. Junhyung Oppa's little plaything.”

“Back off.”, I snapped.

“Aaaww, are we sad? I told you that you're a nobody and that he would come back to me but you didn't want to listen.”

“Which part of 'Back off' didn't you understand?”

“Well, I heard that you have to leave this country soon, so I'll be nice and share with you a secret of mine.”

“What the heck are you talking about?”

“Well, I was really upset when I heard that Junhyung Oppa wanted to leave me for a nobody like you...that's why I told him a tall tale.”

“What kind of tall tale?”

“Well, something like 'Oh, Oppa. Please hold me, I need you right now. I just went to the doctor and he told me that I have Leukemia! What do I do now? I'm so scared, Oppa! Please stay with me, I can't go through this without you. If you leave me, my heart wouldn't take this and I would be too weak to fight this sickness.' and then some false tears here and there and poof! He was mine forever. He even stayed with me the whole night because I felt weak all of a sudden and I needed him to hold my hand, so that I could sleep.”, she said and smiled.

“You rotten piece of crap.”

“Oh, oh, oh, no vulgar language please. That's so mediocre. But hey, because I'm so good-natured, I'm gonna give you an advice: Go back to your country immediately, forget Junhyung Oppa and live your mediocre live.”

“I don't need your filthy advice.”

“Aww so pathetic, I really pity you.”, she said with a smile and walked away. I had to fight the urge to run after her and punch her plastic face.

I leaned against a tree and tried to re-arrange my thoughts. Hara was such a scheming hag but because of her bragging, I finally got to know the truth. So he didn't left me because he didn't love, no, he did it because he couldn't leave Hara when she was 'oh-so-sick'. I did know the truth now but would Junhyung believe me? Hara was a very good friend of him and I was just a jealous little girl.

No, he wouldn't believe me. Not after our last dispute back in the apartment. And it was pointless anyway. I had to leave soon, we both wouldn't have a future. It was better this way.

When I went back to the café, I told Mihri and Haeri about my encounter with Hara.

“Woah, such a hag! If I were you I would have punched her already!”, Mihri exclaimed.

“To be honest, I really had to fight the urge to punch her.”, I said and laughed.

“The next time we see her, I will hold her and you can punch her as much as you want!”

I just laughed. Haeri was listening to our conversation but she didn't say anything. When we talked about punching Hara, she just rolled her eyes.

“I know something better than punching each other like Neanderthals. How about writing him a letter?”, she suggested.

“Oh yeah, sure. And as soon as he reads the letter, he will leave Hara and come back to Vinni. You watch way too my dramas, Haeri.”, Mihri said.

“I don't watch any of this childish TV crap. What I wanted to say was that Vinni should write a letter where she tells him the truth and what she's feeling right now. If he believes you, then he'll come back to you and if he doesn't, then he's not worth it anyway.”

I took her by surprise and hugged her. “Thank you, Haeri!”

She pushed me away. “Do that again and you'll regret it.”

Mihri and I just laughed. After that I sat down and wrote a letter. I told him everything Hara told me and how I felt right now. The next day I gave the letter to Minho.

“Minho Oppa, I know that you'll have an Event with BEAST today. Could you do me a favor and give this letter to Junhyung Oppa, please? It's okay if you don't want to do this, I don't want to -”

“Hey, it's okay, I'll do it for you.”, he said and took the letter.

“Thank you, Minho Oppa.”, I said and smiled.

He smiled back at me. “You're welcome.”

The next day Minho told me that he gave Junhyung the letter. I thank him again for doing this for me.

So he received my letter. The only thing I had to do now was to wait. Let's see if he believed me more than Hara.

I never knew that waiting for something would be so agonizing.

Days passed and still no answer from Junhyung. The day after tomorrow I would have to go back to Germany and I wanted to talk to him before leaving but it seemed like he didn't believe. That was why I gave up on him. Like Haeri said. He wasn't worth it. I shouldn't waste my remaining days in Korea chasing after a guy who didn't deserve it. No, this time I had to think about myself.

Halmeoni gave us a day off, so that Mihri and Haeri could spend the day with me. We went on a sightseeing tour, we went shopping, we ate in several restaurants....we did everything I wanted to do when I first came to Korea. After that we ate dinner at Halmeoni's house. We talked the whole night and also took several pictures. Around midnight, I said goodbye to them to return to the pension. I couldn't stop my tears when it was time to go. Who knew when I would see them again? I hugged everyone, Haeri too, even though she was protesting, and then I went back to the pension. There, I packed my luggage and went to bed.

The next morning I took a cab to the airport. It felt like it was only yesterday when I was at this airport, arriving in Korea for the first time. During this short time, I experienced so many things. I saw many places and I met many people. I would really miss this country. But I could comfort myself with the thought that I would return soon. After my studies, I would come back.

I sat on a chair and waited for the plane to arrive. I kept looking at all the pictures I took while being in this country. So many memories.

My flight was announced and I stood up. I sighed and went to the queue. Time to say goodbye, I guess.

“Vinni!”, someone called.

Startled, I froze. I knew this voice too well. Could it really be...?

I turned around and saw him standing several feet away from me, being totally out of breath. Without thinking I walked towards him.

“Junhyung Oppa...what are you doing here?”, I asked.

He smirked. “You didn't want to leave without saying goodbye, did you?”

“You didn't answer, I thought that you didn't believe me.”

He sighed. “To be honest, I really didn't believe you at first. Hara is a very good friend of mine, you know. I knew her since childhood. I just couldn't believe that she would be able to do something like that. But then I heard her talking to her friend about the intrigues and that's when it finally dawned on me. You were right. All the time you were telling me the truth and I didn't believe you. I was such a fool. Can you forgive me, please?”

I just looked at him. Could I really forgive him? Could I forget the pain I had to endure because of him?

Yes, I could. Because I never stopped loving him.

I took a step forward and pulled him into an embrace. He put his arms around my wait and pulled me closer. I've missed his warmth and his intoxicating scent. Being in his arms again brought back all the memories about the wonderful days we spent together. And it also dawned on me that I wouldn't be able to be in his arms again. I had to go.

Tears trailed down my cheeks and I let go. He saw my tears and wiped them away. I looked into his eyes.

“What will become of us? Me in Germany and you in Korea? Do we even have a future together?”, I asked quietly.

“We will work this out.”

“But how? I would only be a burden to you.”

“You were never a burden to me. You are the one who gives me strength. Whenever I was tired or exhausted, seeing your smile was enough to let me forget my exhaustion. I would always anticipate coming back to the apartment to see you again. Vinni, what did you do to me?”

I put a hand on his cheek. “I should be the one asking this question. But there's something else I need to tell you.”

“What is it?”

“I love you.”, I whispered and kissed him. When our lips parted, I put my arms around his neck and embraced him. I would miss being in his arms.

“I love you, too.”, he whispered into my ear.

We stayed like this for a while. Then my flight was announced once again.

I had to go.

Sighing, I let go. “I don't want to go.”

He smiled. “I don't want you to go either. But you have to.”

“I know. And I'll miss you.”

“I'll miss you, too. But don't worry, we will never really be apart.”

“What do you mean?”

He reached out to his ears and took off his black earrings. “Take these with you, so that a part of me will always be with you.”

“But those are your favorite earrings.”

“And now they are yours.”

”Thank you.”, I said. Then I took off my favorite ring and gave it to him. “And with this ring, a part of me will always be with you.”

“I will always carry it with me.” He my cheek. “You should go now or you'll miss your flight.”

I smiled. “Hmmmm, tempting.” Then I sighed. “I'll come back.”

“I'll be waiting.”

I gave him another kiss before turning around and going through the door. I didn't turn around again, afraid that I wouldn't be able to continue walking towards the plane. I went onto the plane while tears where trailing down my cheeks.

Goodbye, Korea.