“Yes please.”

“Are you visiting those three crosses on the right side of the highway?”

“Yeah, kind of.”

The taxi driver nodded amiably as he drove along the road. “I don’t really know what happened- it was quite a few years ago,  before I came to Mokpo. But I heard it was a horrible accident between a bus and an eighteen-wheeler. There were apparently four passengers…but I’ve heard that the bus driver was the only one who survived. Why there aren’t four of them buried out there…I guess heaven only knows.”

The boy glanced at the taxi driver, a pensive, wistful look on his face. “I suppose so.”

A few minutes later, they approached the fork in the road and in the horizon, three crosses stood erect, casting long shadows onto the yellowing grass.

The taxi pulled up to the side of the road. The little girl shifted impatiently in the boy’s arms and as soon as the vehicle pulled to a stop, she hastily opened the door and slid off the boy’s lap, taking in a deep breath of air. The boy took out his wallet and paid the taxi driver the proper amount owed for the ride.

“Are you sure you don’t need me to take you into the city? It’s dangerous out here for youngsters like you- I could stay here if you would like,” the driver offered.

“I think we’ll be fine from here,” the boy said in semi-broken Korean. “There is a bus stop not too far away from here and we’ll manage. Thank you very much for your services though.”The friendly taxi driver gave them a smile and waved to them as he got into his taxi. The boy and the little girl kept their gaze on the taxi, watching as it shrank smaller and smaller until it disappeared in the distance completely. Then, they turned their attention to the foreboding crosses that loomed before them.

The thick, tar-black wheels of a tour bus ran right over a bump. It wasn’t a very large bump, but the jarring effect it had on the bus and all of its occupants was enough to cause Youngsoo to jolt awake in his seat. His head swimming with dizziness and disorientation, Youngsoo struggled to open his large, heavy-lidded eyes. He looked out the window and groaned; the scenery rushing past them in a green blur had not changed since the bus had left the station.

Wiping a little smear of drool from the corner of his mouth, Youngsoo glanced at the little girl dozing peacefully in the seat by the window and chuckled. He brushed her cheek with his finger and she just barely stirred, smiling in her sleep like the little angel she was.

“Arriving at South Mokpo station, please gather all your belongings as we near our destination,” the bus driver announced into the speaker. Youngsoo just barely caught everything that  the driver had said. Even though his face and skin matched those around him, here in South Korea, he was an oegugin; a foreigner. He and Yunhee were strangers in this country and the people they interacted with- from the employees at the airport, to the taxi drivers to the cashiers- all sensed it.

Youngsoo nudged the little girl and said, “Yunhee-ah…ileona…” Yunhee blinked open her wide, lovely doe eyes. opened into one large “O” as she let out a big yawn, then she gave her brother an adorably impish smile.

“Youngsoo…your Korean stinks…why do you keep trying to speak it with me?” she said in perfect English.

“Yah! When did you get so impertinent?” he scolded his sister, abruptly tickling her side. The little girl squealed, her laughter startling other dozing passengers on the bus. “Yunhee, make sure you have everything. We’re almost there.”

“Okay.”

At last, the bus eased next to the stop and Youngsoo immediately got up and stretched out his cramped limbs. Hurriedly, he grabbed his pack and, clasping Yunhee’s hand, got off the bus quickly. The view of the glittering sea as well as the salty breeze that blew through felt incredibly refreshing to the siblings, who had been stuck on the bus for the last two hours.

Youngsoo and Yunhee approached the taxi stands. Youngsoo turned to his sister and asked, “…Are you okay, Yunhee?”

The little girl looked up at him, wide eyes blinking innocently. “I’m okay. Why are you asking?”

“I don’t know- it’s just that…we’re really close to it now, you know? I just wanna know if you’re feeling sad, confused, mixed up…if you don’t want to go, I can take you back to Grandma’s place right now…” The seven-year-old girl thought it over for a bit, her face scrunched slightly together. Then she turned to her brother.

“…Nah. I mean…I guess I’m kind of sad. But…it also makes me happy that I’m going to see Eomma and Appa for the first time. I want to let them see that I’m happy living with the family I have in America  so they don’t have to worry about me.” Youngsoo smiled and ruffled her hair. Childish as she sometimes could be, Yunhee had, for the most part, a surprisingly mature disposition in comparison to kids her age. 

Youngsoo caught sight of a taxi driving by and he raised his hand up. The taxi pulled over to the curb next to them and, after giving the driver instructions, Youngsoo and Yunhee slid into the taxi, Yunhee settling on her brother’s lap.

As the taxi drove off, Youngsoo became immersed in his thoughts and memories:

“What a picture they must have made,” his uncle would often tell him. “A local laborer, a teacher, a hooker and a preacher; all of them traveling to the same place- Mokpo.” Youngsoo would nod at him absentmindedly; he had already heard the story a couple times before.

“The laborer and the teacher were coming back from a vacation and had their sights set on big hopes and dreams. The hooker and the preacher were looking for lost souls. In that moment, when all those hopes, dreams and regrets of the past, present and future came together…BAM!” Here, his uncle would make a big show of a collision by smacking his hands together dramatically. “An enormous truck crashed into the side of the bus. It was just those four on the bus that night…but three of them are now buried under those crosses on the right side of the highway leading to Mokpo.”

His uncle’s tone would then become deadly serious. “Remember this, Youngsoo- always value what you have. Because in that moment when your life ends, it’s not what you take when you leave this world behind you. It’s what you leave behind you that matters most.”

“Do you know anything else about them?” Youngsoo would ask, even though he already knew the answer.

His uncle would shrug and say, “That’s all I can say. Your mother will tell you more when you’re older.”

Youngsoo recalled his uncle’s words as he stood in front of the three wooden crosses that stood on the right side of the highway. They served as a reminder to those who drove by;  life is short and you never know when it can abruptly end.

He and Yunhee glanced at each other, unsure of what exactly they should do. Youngsoo broke the silence by saying, “Yunhee… you wanna go first? I’ll give you some space.” His little sister looked up at him and gave him an uncertain look. He smiled encouragingly at her and took a few steps back. Yunhee drew in a deep breath and then put on a cheery smile.

“A-Annyeong, Eomma and Appa,” she said. “It’s me- Yunhee! I hope you’re both okay up in heaven. Mommy tells me that you two were the cutest, loving-est couple she had ever seen. That makes me happy- that my parents loved me, even though I don’t really know them. Were you guys worried about me? It’s all right now…I have a happy life in America, with Mommy and Youngsoo and Uncle Kwangmin. Even though they’re not really related to me…they’re my family too. And I love them all.” Youngsoo’s heart swelled with a mix of overwhelming emotions and he struggled to keep it together.

“I’m still sad that you had to leave me and go up to heaven to be with God. But at the same time, I’m glad I got to have a family- and I still think of you guys all the time.” Yunhee shrugged off her bag and took out a small, somewhat squished bouquet of flowers. “I was really excited when Mommy told us that we were going to Korea. Mommy said it was really important that I visit you so that I can remember you forever- she also told me to get these purple roses. Eomma, these are your favorites.”

She gently laid the flowers on the grass in front of the crosses. “So Eomma, Appa…don’t worry about me. I’ll be okay. I have Mommy to tell me about what great people you were. And when I grow up, get married and have kids, I’ll tell them what Mommy told me. And someday…God will bring me up there to join you. Eomma…Appa…saranghaeyo.”

Youngsoo watched silently as Yunhee stood there for a few more moments. Then, she turned around and headed towards her brother. Little droplets had made their way down her cheeks and he embraced her tightly.

“I’m proud of you, kiddo,” said Youngsoo. Yunhee sniffled and smiled up at her brother. He finally let go and, turning towards the crosses, he swallowed.

“Yunhee...this is going to take a while, so…just kind of hang out here, okay?” The little girl nodded.

Youngsoo went over and kneeled down in front of the wooden structures. He noticed that, while unseen before, the crosses had been laden with flowers and attached to them were both pictures of the deceased and messages.

Mom probably put them there last time she went to Korea… he guessed.

The leftmost cross held the picture of a handsome young man in his twenties. With his charismatic smile and sparkling eyes, Youngsoo imagined that he had probably been quite popular when he was still alive. Next to it was the message with the words written in Hangul:

“Lee Donghae. Age 28. Loving husband and father. Hopeful entrepreneur.  Much loved, gone too soon.”

“He was such a charmer. Yet, he loved his wife so much and couldn’t wait to get his new family off to a start. He was the most loyal and hardworking laborer.”

On the middle cross was a photo of a beautiful young woman whose doe eyes perfectly matched Yunhee’s. The message read:

“Im Yoona. Age 24. Loving wife and mother. Aspiring teacher. Much loved, gone too soon.”

“I’ve never met anyone more determined to achieve her dream.  She wanted to bring knowledge to the minds of lots of children, while at the same time raising a family with the man she loved most.”

Finally, on the rightmost cross, the cross with the most flowers, was a picture of a serious-looking man who was strikingly attractive. His jet black hair was cut in a neat, proper style and he was dressed in a business suit. His message was the longest:

“Choi Siwon. Age 28. Gracious preacher who wished to spread the news of God’s grace. Loved and forever remembered in Miyoung’s heart.”

“I will never forget him. He changed my life in a way that no one else ever had or ever will. It is because of him that I have this Bible here. It is because of him that you, Yunhee and I are here today. I am forever in his debt.”

Youngsoo opened his backpack and took out two small, similarly squished bouquets of orchids. He arranged the flowers and then just sat around for a while, feeling more hesitant and irresolute than ever before.

“So, uh…here I am. At this place,” Youngsoo started off lamely. “You know…to be honest, I can’t really describe how I feel. It’s hard and it’s…really weird. Just being at the place where my mom just escaped death and where you all lost your lives gives me the chills. It’s especially weird to be at your grave.” He nodded toward the outer right cross. “Since I lived the first half of my life believing that I had been completely abandoned and that I would never find faith in anything.”

Youngsoo dug through his bag once more and took out a small, bloodstained Bible, placing it in front of the cross. “But…I was never abandoned. Neither was my mom. She had just been misguided. And you led her back onto the path. So for that, we owe you…Choi Siwon.”

 He winced as if the name had a bitter taste. “Agh…it just feels so off saying your name. You’re dead. You’ve been dead and buried in the ground for nine years. I never even knew you and you never knew me. I still haven’t even gotten used to the fact that…that you’re…you’re my blood father.”

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A/N: Hi all! This here is probably the longest oneshot i have ever written in a while. i wanted to use this oneshot to start writing much more serious stories. to be honest, i'm not that thrilled at how it turned out- i had been planning it to be much more angsty/meaningful but the way my schedule worked out, i would probably end up never finishing if i really agonized over writing this. so yeah...i'd like to apologize for the numerous plot holes/grammatical errors you guys find in this. this isn't entirely my own work- i shall provide a detailed explanation in part 2. hope you guys like it!