My parents have agreed, she wrote. They will let you stay here if you wish.

Hangeng pondered those words, and he remembered.

He was glad, one day, when she wrote, in a letter that she had found solace. She had found a friend that quietly helped her trust again, but he knew, deep in his heart, that even if she was to heal, she would never heal completely. There would always be a scar, and it would mar any and all relationships she would have, friends or otherwise.

Along with gaining a new friend, she told him that she had found her dream.

Never again would I be confident in my speech nor in my actions. They'd never know why, but it's all because of them.

They'd never know what hit them. But I know that living without having a dream is a lonely existence because you would see people going forward, chasing something they want and you'd be left behind, all alone. So, I have decided.

Big brother, I wish to be a writer. I wish to bring solace to those in pain through a medium that touched me when Iwas in pain.

I cannot be a singer like you, unfortunately, though it is a wonderful prospect. I'm sure you know why. People will judge me, people will say I am not fit to do this and that, and I will believe them. I know I will believe them, even if I don't want to, because I have lost before and I have lost something precious, something I can never regain.

Stories have reminded me of love, of friendship, of trust. And, most importantly I believe, they have reminded me of family.

They may not know and they may never know the pain they have made me go through, but they are still my family. My mother and my father. No, I cannot be a bad child, I must be filial, like you.

Big brother, I hope you can cheer me on in your heart...

He'd nearly leapt for joy when he read those words.

She has decided to be a good child to her parents though they'd hurt her.

Parents make mistakes, he once wrote to her. Parents are people, just like you and me. They're older and wiser, but they still make mistakes. I think, the reason why they keep asking us of our best is because they've failed, and they hope that we, as their children, do not need to feel the hurt of failure and the loss of our dreams. They simply do not wish for us to suffer.

"I've decided," he said. "I will take you up on your offer, Meimei* (*little sister). If I am to break free of this, I have to leave first."

Hangeng left as soon as he could. He could not say anything to any of the members, not even Heechul, his best friend.

When I leave, I ask the Heavens to take care of you, Hangeng thought. He wistfully looked back at the terminals of the airport, wishing the faces of the members would pop out of nowhere and ask him to stay. Maybe if that really happened, I would not have to leave. Perhaps they would reconsider...

However, nothing of that sort happened. None of the members appeared, none of them even dropped him a call.

"I shouldn't have expected more from them," he muttered. "They might have cared for me as a brother, but even they can't piece together the things in my heart. They wouldn't know, and they would never know the truth. It can't be helped."

Despite those words of resignation, Hangeng held on to a sliver of hope in his heart. But that sliver of hope was a double edged sword. It gave him hope, but it also gave him hurt.