‘Oppa, I want you to have this.’

She placed the necklace gently around his neck. The rays of the setting sun reflected off the large, mirror-like lake and the crystal teardrop-shaped pendant, which glistened in all tinges of the rainbow.

He caressed the pendant in his hand, observing it in close detail.

‘Thanks, Eunmi,’ his smile was bright and raised his cheeks, creasing his eyes into cheerful crescent-moons.

‘Oppa, you still haven’t told me your name,’ said Eunmi, looking up into his charming eyes.

He let out a light chuckle at the statement; he had always liked to remain mysterious. ‘One day… soon… I will tell you. I promise.’

Eunmi giggled as he wrapped his arms around her. The two swayed playfully on the spot, resembling a wind-up dance couple toy. Their bare feet swept against the soft grass, dampening with the melted kisses of evening dew remaining on the lush strands of green. The air was filled with the tinkling sound of their joyful laughter.

It came as a sudden interruption – an uninvited intruder. The stone successfully caught Eunmi’s toe, causing her to topple to the ground. Although the outcome did not quite meet the standards of “painful”, the petite eleven-year-old girl was unable to defy the gravity, which seemingly flared up at the prospect of pulling her down the sloping edge and into the heart of the lake.

‘Oppa!’

He was alarmed, but his fast reactions allowed him to dive forward and enclose his hand over her small one. The panic he felt sweltering in his mind could not be relieved, and the resulting perspiration made his attempts at heaving her up the steep edge of the lake border all the more difficult.

It came as no surprise when the two lost the battle. The water was icy cold and seemed to char away at their delicate skin, but it failed to separate their tightly linked hands.

She could feel him struggling; he clearly could not swim. Although she could, with her frail body and feeble health, there was no way she was going to be able to haul him out of the waters.

It took quick thinking and fast reactions to make the decision. She her hand violently in an effort to make him let go. His clasp was firm, and he was insistent as he held tightly – he was not going to allow her to leave, for he would not be able to save himself. She saw the helplessness stamped on his facial expression as he thrashed about, eyes squeezed tightly shut.

She was aware of the fact that she possibly seemed like a traitor who craved her own chances of survival while leaving behind the latter to suffer. But that wasn’t the truth; she knew that she had to seek help.

The force of the water rammed her hard against the stony edge. She was unable to scream, but writhed around in agony as she felt the sharp object – whether it be stone or glass – stab into her backside, piercing open her thin summer blouse and leaving a gaping scar along her spine.

She felt the surge of terror invade her heart as her legs disobeyed her brain’s orders. She could only just manage to heave herself out of the waters, and with only the thought of saving Oppa in her mind, she dragged her seemingly useless legs while her rigid body forced her to crawl forward in the direction where help would possibly lie. Her drenched hair plastered itself stubbornly to her mud-streaked face as she continued to crawl.

‘Oppa…’ she panted, ‘I haven’t abandoned you… I’m getting help… hang in there a little longer…’

Feebly, she attempted to clamber onto her feet, but only ended up collapsing hopelessly as her legs protested against her will to stand.

And that was always where she left off replaying the dreadful reminiscence of the day in her mind. The rest consisted only of shock and panic amongst loved ones and the doctor’s announcement that she would spend her life on a wheelchair due to her severe spinal injury.

‘Eunmi! How many times have I told you about going near that lake? What if you roll in?’

He bounded towards her, panic and worry written all over his chubby face as he wrapped his hands around the wheelchair handles and hauled her further away from the lake until he was satisfied that she was able to admire it safely.

‘I’m sorry, Onew oppa…’ said Eunmi submissively. She looked up at the dim night sky, lightened only by the stars and the pale moon hanging above. There seemed to be something quite gloomy about that night as the grey clouds drifted eerily back and forth; it was as though the stars had lessened in number and the moon had ceased to smile. There had also been a violent storm a few hours ago. Eunmi had always had a vivid imagination, and, as a child, she often associated storms with naughty angels being punished in the sky.

Onew perched himself down and leaned against the large wheel. As he turned his head to look up at her in the face, he caught sight of the tears rolling steadily down her fair cheek. His heart softened at this point; he could never remain angry at her.

‘No… it’s okay…’ he sighed. ‘Eunmi…you were thinking about that day again, weren’t you?’ When she did not respond, he sighed once more. ‘Eunmi, I don’t want you to keep thinking about it –’

‘No, no, no… it’s not because of the accident,’ she wiped her tears with the back of her sleeve and faked a strong smile on her beautiful face, ‘I’m not hating the reality of not being able to walk –’

‘Eunmi, you know that I know you’re not thinking about that.’ There was a silent break where the only sounds heard were the crickets chirping in the nearby bushes. ‘Let it go… it’s been seven years… he’s gone, Eunmi, and he’s not going to come back.’

‘He left me before even telling me what his name was! And I always wonder,’ Eunmi’s voice trembled slightly as she turned to look down at the patch of brown which was Onew’s hair, ‘if only I had been a little faster – just that little bit – I could have saved him! No… if I hadn’t permanently injured myself in there, I could have run… I could have run to get help… if only I –’

‘Shhhh.’ Onew had gotten to his feet and bent down to press his finger lightly against her quivering pink lips. ‘Let it go,’ he repeated. ‘It’s not worth it; it’s not worth spending the remainder of your youth dwelling on some boy you met that long ago, whose name you never even knew!’

‘But he promised to tell me! He did!’ wept Eunmi, seeing Onew’s doubtful expression.

‘You only ever referred to him as Oppa, and Mr. Oppa when with me. I don’t call that any form of closeness or intimacy to have such an impact on you.’

Eunmi turned away from Onew stubbornly. ‘You never met him, Onew oppa. You never even knew him, or you would understand. You don’t know what he was like…’

‘I met him once, when he was carted, lifeless, into the hospital room adjacent to yours, shortly after the doctor announced that you were to spend the rest of your life unable to walk,’ stated Onew flatly, fidgeting with his fingers slightly at the painful memory he usually refused to bring up. ‘It’s nothing more than puppy love. You two were eleven and twelve years old.’

‘Onew oppa!’ Eunmi’s face was flushed with the slightest tinge of anger – the customary symptom whenever Onew showed signs of scepticism to her and Mr. Oppa’s ambiguous, almost-more-than-friendship bond.

Onew was never in a position to enrage Eunmi. He felt the familiar sense of resignation as he sighed yet again. But today, he wasn’t going to let the topic drift to an end without asking – for once and for all. He took on a gentle approach, squatting down so that he was at eye level with her.

‘Eunmi, it’s been seven years… isn’t it time for Mr. Oppa to move homes?’ he raised both eyebrows and looked sincerely into the confused girl’s eyes.

‘But he’s gone… what are you talking about?’

‘No,’ Onew placed a finger gently on her left chest, ‘from here.’

Eunmi did not respond, but turned her head away from Onew’s face. Onew waited patiently as she pondered over her possibilities.

‘It was so long ago… I can’t stay like this forever…’ she finally murmured.

‘Exactly. And I’m sure Mr. Oppa wouldn’t want you to be like this either,’ replied Onew.

Eunmi sighed miserably. ‘No, he probably does. I’m sure he’s angry at me. He most likely thinks I abandoned him that day and left him to drown to death because I wanted to live…’

‘But we know that wasn’t the truth,’ assured Onew. ‘You did the right thing. It’s just that time and luck were not treating you well during the incident… I’m sure all will be forgiven if he finds out.’

‘But he won’t,’ Eunmi stated sadly, ‘and he never will. I allowed him to die twisted in a cruel misunderstanding of me. And the point is that he will never be back for me to have a chance to explain…’ she trailed off.

‘That is the point; it’s all over. He’s moved on. And now is the time for you to move on, too.’ Onew placed his hands on her thin shoulders and smiled encouragingly at her. ‘What do you think?’

‘I guess it really is time for me to move on…’ Eunmi made her decision in a quiet voice; however, her voiced seemed to ring with an air of evident uncertainty.

But Onew had not finished.

‘And is it also time for me to move on, too?’ he asked.

‘You? What do you mean?’

‘I want to move on from being simply your friend. Ever since we were children, you only treated me as your oppa… an oppa who is only your friend. When can I finally graduate from this title? Will I be the one who lives in your heart once you finally allow Mr. Oppa to move out?’

‘Onew oppa, we’ve been through this…’ Eunmi looked away, avoiding the touchy subject, but Onew reached out his hand and gently turned her head to face his again.

‘Please,’ he begged in almost a whisper, ‘let me be the one. Let me be the one to take care of you, the one who is there for you whenever you need, the one who can carry your sadness as his own and sacrifice for you…’

‘But oppa, you already do all of that and I can’t thank you enough for it…’ said Eunmi.

‘And will you give me a chance? Give me a chance to show you that I can do even more,’ he pleaded.

Onew did not rush Eunmi as she seemingly lost herself in thinking, but stood patiently, awaiting her verdict.

It was true that she had, indeed, wasted seven years dwelling over a deceased boy whose name she never even knew… a boy who people merely called “a childhood playmate”. Onew was right, but she was not sure if she was ready or able to accept his devotion.

‘I’ll think about it, Onew oppa,’ she finally said softly. ‘Perhaps I can give it a try after a while…’

Onew’s face lit up as the brightest smile made it’s way up to the edge of his face. He leapt, cheering and punching the air, before hurrying back to the wheelchair and embracing the uncertain-looking girl.

‘Thank you! I’ll wait for you until then,’ he breathed, ‘I promise I won’t disappoint you.’

He was unable to see her face, and so failed to notice the expression of insecurity as Eunmi contemplated the possibilities and prospects they had together. He finally let go and looked at her in the eyes.

‘Should I take you for a loop around the lake before going home?’ he offered merrily. ‘It’s a rare opportunity; I only ever allow it when I’m with you to make sure you’re safe.’

Eunmi nodded. It took approximately twenty minutes to circle the large lake – she knew this from past experiences where she orbited it, unaccompanied, without Onew’s notice or permission, thinking about him and reflecting over the short-lived time they had spent together.

And now she felt she really needed those twenty minutes to reflect, once more, over the past she had been clinging onto for so long before perhaps finally allowing Mr. Oppa to move out of her heart.