Youngjae had promised his uncle that he would attempt to assimilate Hei-Ryung into society, and he intended to keep his promise, but as he stared down at the white sheet of paper in front of him he found that his mind, too, was completely blank. Beyond writing down a title in the top margin, then violently scratching it out, Youngjae hadn't made a single mark on the paper. Sighing, he leaned back in his seat and stared up at the ceiling, as though ideas would suddenly paint themselves onto the white-washed surface. After a few minutes had passed and there was no such miraculous luck, Youngjae closed his eyes and tried to clear his mind- not all that hard to do at the present moment- to leave it open for ideas to come rushing in.

     When he nearly dozed off while waiting for this miracle to occur, Youngjae gave up and turned to a more reliable source: the internet. Turning on the monitor, he waited patiently for it to warm up and then double clicked on the Mozilla Firefox icon in the corner. But nothing appeared after two seconds, so he clicked again... and again... and was about to test the theory of 'third time's the charm' when three browsers suddenly all appeared on the screen at the same time. Startled, Youngjae hurriedly closed all but one, then clicked on the Google search bar. Frowning, he wondered how to word his inquiry to get the best results. No clever statements seemed ready to flow through his fingers, though, so he went with the most blunt way he could think of putting things.

     Scariest things for shy people to do

     Frowning at what he had just typed on the screen, Youngjae doubted if what he was doing was really the right thing. "Youngjae, you need to stop thinking of Hei-Ryung... as a person," his uncle's words echoed through his brain, painfully bouncing off the walls of his cranium as they tried to find a way out. It was impossible to forget what Ji Suk had said, though. Not because his statement had been so shockingly inhumane, but because... well, in a way, it was true. Hei-Ryung was a means to an end, and Youngjae's job was to make sure that end was reached. He wasn't doing this to become friends with her.

     And while thinking this way made it easier for Youngjae to begin scanning through the search results, it did nothing to quell the internal dispute his brain was having with his heart on the matter. A superficial and temporary answer was better than none at all, though.

     Sort of.

     Sighing, Youngjae muttered each result under his breath, trying to clear his brain of any thoughts that didn't pertain directly to the subject at hand. This made searching a little easier, and after clicking on a few links and scribbling down their suggestions, Youngjae had a decent list in his hand. Leaning back in the desk chair he was sitting in, Youngjae held the paper up and read down the list. Nothing seemed cruel or unusual,  in fact the list was pretty much just a bunch of things normal people did on a daily basis, but that Hei-Ryung found difficult. Like walking through crowds, or ordering food at a restaurant. Basic day-to-day functions that, somehow, she had either never learned or had forgotten how to perform. It was a rather sad life she was living, when Youngjae stopped to think about it. She never left her apartment unless she absolutely needed to, and instead immersed herself in the fictional lives of her characters. They all functioned in society like normal females, something that Hei-Ryung seemed incapable of doing no matter how hard she tried.

     "So if they are capable of functioning, she must have learned, at some point, how to be a normal human. What made her forget, then?" Youngjae thought aloud, slowly spinning the chair around on its axis. Something must have happened to Hei-Ryung to make her so reclusive, but as he didn't know a single thing about Psychology, Youngjae had no way of knowing what that something was. So he gave up on trying to pick apart Hei-Ryung's existence- and on spinning the chair, as this was beginning to make his stomach churn unpleasantly. Standing up, Youngjae straightened out Himchan's desk- the man had been kind enough to allow Youngjae to borrow his computer, as well as standing guard at the door in case any irate Seulkis attempted to barge in- and then crossed the room to the door. After a quick look over his shoulder to make sure he had left everything in order, Youngjae lightly knocked on the door and then slowly pushed it open.

     "Find everything you need?" Himchan asked, his arms folded over his chest as he watched Youngjae exit the office, a piece of notebook paper tightly clasped in his hand.

     "Yes. Thank you for allowing me to use your office, Mr. Kim," Youngjae responded, smiling politely at Himchan and bobbing a quick bow. Chuckling, Himchan waved off these formalities and slipped into his office before the door could click shut.

     He had been expecting Himchan to keep him around for a lengthy discussion during which he would have to tactfully avoid mentioning exactly why he had required the use of Himchan's office, so Youngjae was pleasantly surprised with this quick exchange. Smiling just a little, Youngjae hurried down the hallway to try and catch the elevator a group of employees were waiting patiently- in most cases- for. As he jogged, Youngjae pulled out his cell phone and flipped through his contacts until he came across Hei-Ryung's number. He supposed giving her a heads-up call would be appropriate, rather than just barging into her apartment on short notice. After all, that plan had thus far resulted in destruction of property and him nearly dying of a heart attack. At two for two when it came to disaster, Youngjae didn't plan on trying to alter those odds any time soon.

     Unfortunately, even after riding the elevator all the way down to the first floor and redialing twice, Youngjae was unable to get ahold of the elusive misanthrope. Frustrated with Hei-Ryung for being so insufferably reclusive, Youngjae resisted the urge to throw his phone across the lobby and watch it explode into a thousand pieces. Instead, he sentenced the device to solitary confinement in his pocket. Not nearly as satisfying as subjecting it to capital punishment, but Youngjae believed in governing his electronics with a firm but just hand. Wantonly killing them was neither of those qualities.

     His sour mood must have been reflected on Youngjae's face as he strode across the shiny black marble floor, heading for the outside world so he could hail a taxi, because roughly halfway through his journey he was intercepted by a small group of well-dressed men. Shoes squeaking against the polished floor as he came to an abrupt halt, Youngjae looked up into the faces of some of the company's most recognizable men: the board members. These were the men who filled the coffers of Nalgae when it came into trouble, pumping life-giving blood through the arteries and veins that kept the business running. All of them held considerable shares in the company, and were often the ones to decide the fate of the company. Even Youngjae's uncle, the CEO of the Nalgae Publishing Firm, had to listen to these men. When they said jump, every employee under this roof rushed to comply. You didn't even stop to ask how high, you just listened.

     With this in mind, Youngjae bowed deeply to all four men. They didn't just hold the company's present in their hands. They held Youngjae's future. "Hello," he greeted, settling for such a terse statement when he realized he didn't have anything better to say.

      "Hello. You're Mr. Yoo, am I correct?" One of the men asked, and Youngjae was surprised to realize that he recognized that voice. Straightening up, he avoided making direct eye contact with the one who had addressed him, instead focusing on the bridge of the man's nose. Even his nose was recognizable, though. "How oddly similar our names are," the man chuckled, and the other three joined in a lifeless chorus of chortles and snickers. It hadn't been all that funny a joke, in fact Youngjae was sure it shouldn't even be classified as a 'joke', but even so he found himself tightly smiling in response to it.

     "A strange coincidence indeed, Mr. Goo," Youngjae agreed, trying not to speak through clenched teeth. This was the man who had ripped into both Ms. Lee and Hei-Ryung after the incident at the book store. This was the man who had refused to acknowledge even the slightest of efforts Hei-Ryung put into making that particular event run smoothly. This was the pompous jerk who Youngjae had hoped never to deal with again.

     He should have known that it would be inevitable the two ran into each other once again.

     "You're the one in charge of reforming Ms. Cha, am I correct? And the one who hopes to ascertain his place as the next CEO of this company," apparently Youngjae's reputation preceded him, though he couldn't say he was surprised. These were the men who were directly involved with his uncle's plans to make Youngjae, his nephew, the next CEO. Youngjae would be more anxious if they hadn't heard of him at this point. "Your uncle seems quite excited about having his nephew take control of the company after his retirement, but I don't think that we've ever actually heard your opinion on the matter, Mr. Yoo. Tell me, is this really what you want? Or have you been pushed into this by your uncle?" The sudden question caught Youngjae off guard and left him speechless. He had never expected the board to question his dedication to the company, or his choice of becoming its next CEO. It had been rather naive of him to think that something like this would never come up, though. After all, Youngjae had only just recently met his uncle, and it was a bit sudden for him to be declaring that he wanted to be in charge of the company after the man's retirement. When he thought about it, things did seem rather fishy.

     "I-"

     "If you are being forced into this by your uncle, then all you have to do is say so. As the ones with the final decision in the matter, we can easily help you negotiate your way out of such a sticky situation. It would be a shame to see such a bright young man throw away his future for the whims of a worried relative, after all," Mr. Goo assured him, smiling openly at Youngjae. That had been a mistake, because it let Youngjae see straight through the sincere words to their core. The offer was genuine, of that Youngjae was sure, but it was not being made because of any sympathy or pity on Mr. Goo's part. The man simply didn't like Youngjae, and was trying to find a way to discourage him from continuing down the path he had chosen.

     "I thought hard on this matter for a long time before coming to Seoul, and there isn't a doubt in my mind that I wish to continue my family's legacy. Thank you for the offer, though, Mr. Goo. It is assuring to know that the board thinks so highly of me," Youngjae articulated, returning Mr. Goo's smile with one of his own, though Youngjae's was far more tight-lipped and closed off than his older counterparts had been. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a meeting with Ms. Cha soon. It was a pleasure to meet you, sir," Youngjae added, bobbing another bow before quickly making his escape. Hurrying out the doors and onto the pavement, Youngjae tried to decide whether the fact that Mr. Goo was trying to kick him out of the running was a positive or negative sign.

     It wasn't a very well disguised fact that Mr. Goo did not think highly of Hei-Ryung, or anyone who associated with her, and so would naturally not wish for someone like Youngjae to be in charge of the company. If the majority of the board was beginning to support Youngjae, though, then it would be inevitable for this undesirable outcome to occur. Unless, of course, Mr. Goo convinced Youngjae to leave of his own accord. It wasn't as though the board could force an unwilling candidate to become the next CEO, especially since Youngjae was an outsider to the company. In this way, the fact that Mr. Goo was discouraging Youngjae from moving forward was a good thing. However, on the other hand, the majority of the board could be against Youngjae, and Mr. Goo was simply taking initiative and knocking Youngjae out early. With the board members behind him, it would be simple for Mr. Goo to fight against Youngjae even being runner-up for the position after his uncle's retirement.

     With all this running through his mind, Youngjae hailed a passing available taxi and climbed into the backseat. After giving the driver the address he wished to arrive at, Youngjae sat back in his seat and stared out the window at the passing scenery as it flashed by. As this was the middle of the day the streets of Seoul were clear of congestion, leaving him a straight and speedy path to Hei-Ryung's front doorstep. For once, it seemed that Youngjae's luck was beginning to make an appearance, because the sooner he arrived at Hei-Ryung's the sooner he could forget this whole nonsense with the board members.

     "Come on brain, this really isn't all that hard. All you have to do is focus on one task long enough for me to type something up. You can do that, right?" Hei-Ryung tried reasoning as she stared in growing horror at the blank screen before her.

     "Nope," her brain replied smugly.

     "I hate you... or should it be 'I hate me'?" Hei-Ryung groaned, her head sinking slowly down to the inviting surface of her desk. Before this little conversation, she had been attempting to read one of the many novels she had yet to start. Even further before that she had been trying to watch television. No matter how she tried to occupy her time, though, it always seemed that Hei-Ryung ended up back at this accursed computer, staring in frustration at the evidence of her incompetence.

     That was the thing about writing, though. When you were actually prepared to sit down and do something, everything from the way the sunlight was coming through your curtains and making pretty patterns on the floor to the grains in the wood of the desk was fascinating, and you were more easily distracted than a small, excitable puppy. When you didn't particularly feel like writing, you ended up getting the most brilliant ideas that would ever grace this planet- especially when you had no way of recording these ideas before they vanished from your mind. And then there was the third scenario, where no matter how long you waited and how hard you worked, nothing you wrote was good enough. All of those brilliant ideas simply didn't exist and, in fact, felt like they never had existed. You were trapped in some sort of limbo between indifference and inspiration, and that was perhaps the worst place a writer could ever find herself.

     So it figured that this was where Hei-Ryung had been dwelling ever since she sat down to start writing the first draft of this new book.

     Sitting around be her lot in life wasn't even the slightest bit productive, though, so Hei-Ryung switched gears and made her way into the cozy, or as some would call it, small kitchen. Although she had yet to experience the gnawing discomfort of hunger, Hei-Ryung could feel the beast lurking at the back of her stomach just waiting to come out. Combating it before it got the opportunity to make its move sounded like a good idea, especially considering the alternative ways she had found to fill her time. So Hei-Ryung began rummaging through the cupboards and the refrigerator, searching for something besides junk food that looked appetizing. She did not want to end up in a black hole of potato chips and chocolate muffins, despite how tempting such a place was. Especially with the mood she was in.

     Fortunately for Hei-Ryung, this black hole of unhealthy eating was successfully avoided. As was lunch. Back to her desk, Hei-Ryung rested her fingers against the keyboard. It really did seem that no matter how hard she tried to occupy herself and take her mind away from writing, she always ended up back at this dumb computer. It was like the thing was calling out to her, pleading fot Hei-Ryung to put it to good use. It was a request Hei-Ryung was more than willing to fill, but the choice wasn't necessarily hers. It was her brains, and contrary to popular belief, Hei-Ryung was not in charge of her own thinking. Or at least not the part that controlled what went onto paper or, in this case, computer screen and became what was widely known as 'writing'.

      Just as Hei-Ryung was beginning to completely lose her sanity, the door unlocked behind her. Frightened by this unexpected occurrence, Hei-Ryung jumped to her feet and launched her desk chair a good three feet away, where it flipped over backwards and landed pitifully on the floor.

     "Something always seems to go wrong when I come and pay you a visit," Youngjae sighed, poking his head around the door to make sure Hei-Ryung wasn't preparing to throw anything at the "intruder" that had invaded her apartment. In fact, she had been, but after hearing his familiar voice Hei-Ryung hastily hid the piña colada chapstick behind her back. It was a futile effort, though, because the apologetic look on her face told Youngjae plenty about what Hei-Ryung's plot to discourage burglars had been. Sighing for the second time now, he pushed the door open all the way and stepped inside. "So, do you still feel like you're dying?" he inquired, gently closing the door behind him.

     Hei-Ryung nodded a tad sheepishly. "Yes, though I recognize now that the way I worded my predicament may have been a tad on the melodramatic side of things," she admitted, nervously clasping her hands together behind her back as she rose and fell on her toes. It was this kind of behavior that gave Youngjae hope in an otherwise desperate-looking situation, because at least Hei-Ryung was capable of recognizing that she had a bit of a problem when it came to socialization. Then again, it was easy to address that you had a problem. Many chain smokers know of their unhealthy habit, for example, and openly recognize that they have an issue with the addictive cigarettes. Only a small percentage of them ended up actually quitting, however. Granted, Hei-Ryung's issues weren't quite as dramatic as chain smoking, and didn't stem from a physically addictive substance. She was just awkward.

     "That's alright, Ms. Cha. I know how important writing is to you, and how frustrating it must be when you are unable to produce what you wish," Youngjae assured her, bending down on one knee to tighten the laces of his shoes. Although he had dressed up for his visit to the office in case of the possibility of running into someone important, as was the case today, he had worn a pair of sneakers rather than dress shoes. Considering his main task today was literally walking Hei-Ryung through the steps of becoming more sociable, he had decided that dressing his feet down would be appropriate. He just hoped that Mr. Goo and his trio of cohorts weren't shoe snobs. "And on that note, I was wondering if you would like to take another walk. A change of scenery will be good for you," he suggested, jumping right to the point of his visit. He didn't plan on sticking around for very long, after all.

     "No thank you."

     Youngjae straightened up abruptly when Hei-Ryung turned him down unexpectedly, wondering if perhaps she was exhibiting a bit of a sense of humor. Her expression showed no signs of lighthearted fun, though, only apologetic regret and stubborn refusal. Such a combination was absolutely lethal to Youngjae's plans for the day, and he quickly went on the defensive to try and protect them. "I thought you enjoyed our last outing, though," his voice bordered on a whimper as he attempted to reason with Hei-Ryung. It wasn't as though he could force her to leave her apartment, not unless Youngjae wanted to turn Hei-Ryung against him for the rest of eternity, but he could try and coerce her into coming with him. He hoped.

     "I did," she agreed, moving over to her fallen chair and straightening it back up. "I'd rather not go outside today, though," her voice trembled slightly in what Youngjae assumed to be fear, an emotion that caught him off guard. He knew that Hei-Ryung was a bit of a hermit and that she wasn't a particularly large fan of the outside world, but he hadn't thought that she was genuinely scared of being a part of society. Her personality could be a tad unpredictable, though, so for all Youngjae knew she was just going through one of many mood swings.

     "You're a very unpredictable woman, you know," Youngjae chuckled lifelessly, leaning his back against the door and buckling down for a long debate that would, hopefully, end in victory for him.

     "I know," she shrugged her shoulders and turned the chair around to straddle it, wrapping her arms tightly around the back rest. "Most people learn who they are during their adolescent years. They behave in certain ways and examine how their peers react to that particular behavior. If it is a positive reaction, they repeat the behavior, but if it is a negative one they will cease it. I never really had anyone who I could gauge my behavior by, so I never got the chance to learn. I'm making up for it now, though," as she finished her unexpected explanation, Hei-Ryung frowned slightly and rested her chin on the top of the back rest. "Then again, that could just be me trying to rationalize my irrational behavior. It isn't as though I'm some sort of expert on myself, after all," she added, looking a little put out. Maybe she had been trying to open up about herself right then, to invite Youngjae to question her about why her past was different from a normal woman, and he had missed it.

     If he had, it was no accident that he chose to forgo pressing Hei-Ryung for details. Right now, he just wanted her out of the apartment and on the streets, where she would learn all about being a normal person regardless of her past. "So, where do you want to go today?" Youngjae asked, already turning to open the door.

     "I don't want to go anywhere," Hei-Ryung sighed, though it sounded like she was softening up to the idea. With triumph just a few centimeters away from his fingers, Youngjae repeated his question and looked expectantly at her over his shoulder. After a long moment's hesitation, Hei-Ryung's shoulders slumped and she began seriously mulling over his question. "Well, it seems as though you have plans. Why don't we just head to wherever you were thinking of?" she suggested hopefully, pushing the responsibility of making a decision onto Youngjae.

     He shook his head. "I decided last time. Now it's your turn," he insisted, cracking open the door to try and hurry her along. Sensing his impatience, Hei-Ryung ran a hand through her hair and tried thinking as hard as she could about the options she had.

     "There is a book store down the street that I've been wanting to check out..."

     And that was how they ended up in a musty corner store, looking at used books whose previous owners must have been a century old. Although he did enjoy a good book every now and then, Youngjae didn't believe that he had ever been as avid a fan of literature as the girl standing before him now. In fact, until he saw Hei-Ryung now, he didn't believe he had ever even known someone like this existed. Amused at how excited she was, Youngjae hovered by the front of the store and watched as Hei-Ryung slowly trailed through aisle after aisle of books piled onto shelves that looked ready to snap under the weight of their burden at any moment. Lovingly, she trailed her fingers over each spine, carefully making sure to leave the decaying bindings undisturbed, and mumbled the titles under her breath. Though not a lip reader, Youngjae could pick out bits and pieces of what Hei-Ryung was saying, especially when she came across a particularly interesting find. Most of these books he had never heard of, and he was sure Hei-Ryung was the same, but that didn't stop her from lighting up every time she came across one that sparked her interest.

     "Are you planning on buying any?" He asked, having to raise his voice so Hei-Ryung, who by now was on the opposite side of the store, could hear him. Youngjae soon regretted this, though, because the moment his voice leapt from his throat it began going on the war path, shattering every inch of atmosphere it came into contact with. The reverence that Hei-Ryung had been filling the four walls with lay in pieces on the floor now, and whatever spell had been put over the place vanished. Blinking, Hei-Ryung pulled out of the reverie she had been previously enjoying and turned to face Youngjae with a half-hearted smile.

     "Just a few for now. I'll probably come back later and see if there are any other titles that interest me," she explained, holding up the four books she had been cradling in her arms. Even the newest of them looked like it might fall apart if you were to turn the page faster than a snail's pace. Swallowing nervously, Youngjae watched as Hei-Ryung hurried back to the front of the store with her catch balanced in her arms. Not only was she endangering the chosen books she held, but her quick pace threatened to knock over the stacks of books that littered the store's floor. One wrong move and she would send the merchandise flying, which would likely ruin most of the novels. That would be an extremely costly mistake.

     Fortunately for both their sakes, though, Hei-Ryung made it to the counter uneventfully. Passing over the books to the cashier, she leaned against the oak wood counter and watched as each cover was opened and the bar code scanned. Youngjae, too, found himself watching each of the books as they were scanned in, and it quickly became apparent that there was an unsurprising trend in their genres.

     Redeeming Love. Love Comes Softly. For Better or Worse. Only You. All of them were romance novels. Frowning thoughtfully, Youngjae waited for Hei-Ryung to pay the cashier- he was surprised, and pleased, to see that her love for books triumphed over even her paralyzing fear of social interaction- before addressing the phenomenon.

     "I would think that a romance novelist would want to read something other than romance, considering it's what you work with all day. Aren't you sick of it?" Youngjae asked curiously as they stepped out of the book store, the bell tied to its door announcing their departure. "Or are they for research?" He suggested, realizing that this could be the case. It would make more sense than her buying the books for pleasure, after all.

     "Yes and no. If you want to write well then you must immerse yourself in good writing, especially if you are going for a particular niche. If I want to be able to write about the tender feelings of the human heart, then I need to discover how those before me have been able to tap into the most delicate of emotions," the way she worded things, it wasn't difficult to tell that Hei-Ryung was a novelist. "However, I also buy romance books because I love to read them. They help me become an expert on the subject I love writing about most so that not only can I articulate myself well, but I can recognize love when it comes my way," after realizing what she had just said, Hei-Ryung covered her face with one hand to try and hide the blush that was creeping onto her cheeks. Apparently, she hadn't meant to give away how much of a sappy romantic she was at heart, though Youngjae had known that from the very beginning. After all, the girl's career revolved around writing about 'happily-ever-after' and 'true love'. It would be more surprising if she turned out to be a realist.

     Still, hearing it from her own mouth did nothing to help how incredibly cheesy it all was. "So you really believe in happily-ever-after, huh?" He asked, attempting to keep himself from laughing at how innocent Hei-Ryung's concept of love was. Though certainly not an expert on the subject himself, he at least understood that things were a bit more complicated than simply finding your soul mate.

     "No, actually." Yet another statement that caught Youngjae off guard. Unable to keep the surprise off his face, Youngjae looked down at Hei-Ryung and caught the longing expression on her face. When she realized he was watching her, Hei-Ryung quickly wiped it off with a bright, but shallow, smile and tilted her head back to look up at the sky. "I don't write about real life. After all, it's no fun to read about misery, disappointment, and pain," she kept her tone of voice light, but the words that tone made were anything but light and happy. They were, in four simple nouns, what Hei-Ryung's view of the world had to offer.

     "That makes sense, I suppose. You are a writer of fiction," Youngjae agreed, not sure what else to say about the matter. It was becoming abundantly clear that there was more to Hei-Ryung's issue than just a socially awkward girl who was a bit shy, but Youngjae didn't necessarily want to find out what that was. Even though Hei-Ryung seemed prepared to open up to him, he wasn't. Rather, Youngjae would prefer to keep their relationship, and her issues, as simplistic as possible, because that meant he could apply equally simple solutions. He didn't want to make this any harder than it had to be, even though he did feel guilty for ignoring Hei-Ryung's attempts to open up to him.

     His guilt was quickly wiped away, though, when he spotted an opportunity to complete the second item on his list of challenges. The first- force her to make decisions- had already been scratched out with a pen Youngjae borrowed from the book store's clerk. Although the matter of how he would physically cross this second item- be in a crowd of people- was still unknown, this minor dilemma was not going to keep him from taking advantage of the opportunity. "Let's cross the street here," he suggested, pointing to the busy opposite side of the street and, before Hei-Ryung had the chance to argue, grabbed the reluctant misanthropes shoulder and steered her to the other side.

     Once they were across the street Hei-Ryung tried opening to suggest they head back, but quickly had to close it when her stomach began practicing its tumbling skills. She didn't want to hurl all over these people whose ignorance to her situation made them innocent of being the cause of it. Tightly clenching the handle of the paper bag she was using to carry her newly purchased books, Hei-Ryung tried to keep herself relatively calm as she kept a close eye on Youngjae's back and followed him through the jostling crowd. Her nails had begun biting into the skin of her palm, but Hei-Ryung barely noticed the pain as she doggedly pressed her way forward. It was like she was the only person in the throng that didn't know how a crowd operated, as she continuously ran into passersby. Muttering an apology every two seconds, Hei-Ryung bent her head low to avoid meeting the irate gazes of those she bumped into, and tried to ignore the passing comments they made about her obviously strange behavior.

     It wasn't until what felt like an eternity later that Hei-Ryung realized the mistake of this. Panic rising rapidly in , she jerked her head up and quickly scanned the flood of people that milled around her, trying to pick out where Youngjae had vanished to. In just a few minutes, though, she had completely lost sight of him. She was surrounded by people, but felt completely alone. Fearful tears springing to her eyes, Hei-Ryung forced herself to remain calm and continued pushing through the crowd. Feeling like a salmon trying to swim upstream, she pressed against the general direction the crowd was taking while trying to get her bearings. Youngjae couldn't have gotten too far, so if she just kept moving forward, she was guaranteed to find him.

     Within the next few life times.

     "Everything is fine, Hei-Ryung. Stop being so stupid and just deal with the problem! You are a grown woman!" She muttered, scolding herself for behaving so irresponsibly. Somehow she had ended up out of the crowd, a fortunate and much-appreciated accident, but now had no idea where she was. Sighing heavily, Hei-Ryung wiped away the tears from her eyes and tried to appear as brave as she could. Although much emptier than the streets had been, the park Hei-Ryung had come across still contained a good amount of people. Most of them were ignoring Hei-Ryung, but the few that were nearby had turned to see who was talking. Blushing profusely out of embarrassment for talking to herself in public, Hei-Ryung avoided making eye contact with the snickering- she couldn't hear them, but she knew they were laughing at her in their heads- people and made a bee line for the emptiest part of the park- a fountain nestled in a fenced corner.

     By the time she reached the fountain, Hei-Ryung was convinced that half the park was fixated on her strange behavior. "They aren't, though," she sighed, risking a quick glance around the area. Nobody was watching her, nobody cared about her, and yet she still couldn't shake the prickling feeling of being watched at the back of her neck. She could feel it diminishing, though, and that sent a wave of cool relief throughout Hei-Ryung's burning, distraught body. Feeling drained from all the stress she had just put herself under, Hei-Ryung sat down on the edge of the fountain and began taking inventory of herself.

     Not surprisingly, she had familiar curved, red indents on the palms of her hands where her nails had been digging into them. One had even split open a bit, but whatever damage had been done was repaired by a tiny scab by now. Her face no longer felt like it was on fire, though the coals of self-consciousness were still glowing underneath her cheeks. Reaching up, she hovered her fingers over her skin and felt the heat that was radiating off it. Not exactly the most pleasant feeling now that the weather was warming up, though fortunately March weather was unpredictable and today was one of Spring's cooler days. Pressing two fingers against revealed that her heart was still skipping a few beats here and there. She didn't feel dizzy, though, so Hei-Ryung decided not to worry too much about that.

     With the situation properly assessed, Hei-Ryung turned to her next issue; trying to figure out how to get in contact with Youngjae. She hadn't been expecting to leave the house today, so Hei-Ryung had not come prepared for the outside world. She didn't have her cell phone on her, so she couldn't call him, and she hadn't even brought a wallet for using a pay phone. Her next best bet was starting a signal fire, but Hei-Ryung imagined the city would frown on that kind of desperate behavior in the middle of a park. So she went with her third option, which was to sit and wait for Youngjae to eventually find her. In order to take her mind off the 'what ifs' and flaws that this plan presented, Hei-Ryung pulled out her newly owned copy of Redeeming Love, which was on top of the stack of books, and flipped it open to the first page.

     Ten minutes later, she was still on that first page. Unable to focus on anything but her impending doom, Hei-Ryung was struggling to read through even just the first line without her thoughts drifting away. Although this was the umpteenth time she had read these same words, she had yet to comprehend exactly what they meant. So she gave up. Letting out a low hiss of frustration through her teeth, Hei-Ryung snapped the book shut and, not wanting to risk further damage at the hands of her negativity, carefully allowed it to rejoin its brethren inside her paper bag.

     "Wasn't it interesting?"

     Hei-Ryung felt a scream clawing its way out of , and had to clamp her hands over tightly to prevent its escape. Her eyes about to pop out of her head from surprise, she stumbled to her feet and wildly looked around for the person who had addressed her. It wasn't hard to find him.

     He had perched himself on the fountain's edge as well, legs folded 'Indian Style', and was leaning back on his hands. His eyes were covered by aviator sunglasses, obscuring whatever emotion was in them, and he hadn't moved to stop her from running away, but Hei-Ryung could still tell that he felt bad about having startled her. Which made her feel even guiltier for having reacted the way she had. She didn't know how to apologize for her behavior, though, and so could only wring her hands nervously and avoid looking him in the face.

     "Would you like to sit back down?" He offered, unfolding his legs and swinging them over the side to make room for Hei-Ryung to sit beside him. The mere thought of being that close- perhaps a few inches- made Hei-Ryung want to jump in a hole and die, but she did at least reclaim her previous seat. With a good foot between the two of them, she felt reasonably safe, and was able to turn to face him, if not actually look at him. She could see him smile in her peripheral vision, though. Hei-Ryung assumed that was a good sign.

     "So, wasn't your book interesting?" He pressed, gesturing with one hand to the paper bag Hei-Ryung had at her side. She was positive she could detect some sort of an accent in his voice, but she wasn't entirely sure what it was. It wasn't foreign, so he was definitely from in the country, but not a native of Seoul. Not entirely surprising, considering Spring was here and plenty of young adults had started taking trips up to the capitol to go sight-seeing. "That first page must have really been something. You couldn't stop reading it," he chuckled, making Hei-Ryung realize that she had become so engrossed in dissecting his voice that she had entirely forgotten to answer his question. She also realized that he was teasing her.

     "I couldn't focus," she mumbled, cautiously taking a peek at her conversation partner. He had taken his sunglasses off by this point, revealing more of his face. Specifically, his eyes. They didn't look annoyed with her, and, in fact, were curved upwards into a smile that matched the one on his lips. It was a virulent smile, and Hei-Ryung quickly found that she had caught it. Even though she was just meeting him, Hei-Ryung couldn't help but feel herself warming up to him. Still, she kept shut, which usually led to a long pause in conversation.

     He didn't seem fazed by it at all, though. "Is there something on your mind?" He asked, brushing caramel-colored hair out of his face.

     "You could say that," Hei-Ryung responded guardedly, unsure if she wanted to relate to this stranger her entire adventure.

     "Care to elaborate?" Busan. His accent placed him as a resident of Busan. Of course no matter how satisfied Hei-Ryung was for having realized this, it didn't really pertain to the question she had just been asked. "You don't have to if you don't want to, though," he added as the pause began to lengthen.

     "I lost my... boss?" Hei-Ryung had never actually sat down and thought about what the relationship between her and Youngjae was. Boss seemed like the proper way to address him, though, considering he was trying to be the Nalgae company's next CEO. That made her situation sound a whole lot more weird than it actually was, though, and as she watched the stranger fight back a bout of laughter Hei-Ryung felt herself begin to blush.

     "Your boss, huh? No wonder you can't think straight," he chuckled, barely able to keep himself contained. Hunching her shoulders, Hei-Ryung swung her feet and watched them with fixated interest. Maybe she should excuse herself and go find some other corner of the park to wait for Youngjae or, better yet, simply try and find her way home without him. "So I guess you're here waiting for them to find their way back to you," the stranger suggested, all his earlier giggles gone. Hei-Ryung nodded. "Interesting. Any idea where they might be..." he let his voice trail off, and it took Hei-Ryung a moment to realize that this was when she was supposed to introduce herself.

     She didn't want to introduce herself. "Kang Kae-" but if she gave him her pen name, he might recognize her. Not that she thought many boys were interested enough in her work to recognize who the author was, but Hei-Ryung didn't want to risk it. "Cha Hei-Ryung," she corrected.

     "It's nice to meet you, Ms. Kang Kae Cha Hei-Ryung," he chuckled, smiling over at her. Frowning, Hei-Ryung was about to explain in better detail what her name really was when he held a hand up. "I know, I know. Sorry, I didn't mean to tease you, Ms. Cha," he assured her, his smile turning a little apologetic. "My name's Jung Daehyun."

     "You don't have to apologize," Hei-Ryung hurriedly told him, realizing that it had been rather silly of her to assume that he actually thought her name was Kang Kae Cha Hei-Ryung. Blushing, she quickly focused her attention on the rippling water of the fountain, trying to take her mind off her stubborn awkwardness.

     "So what were you and your boss doing out here before he got lost?"

     "Teaching me to be less shy," the words came blurting out of before Hei-Ryung even realized they existed. "More sociable! I meant that he was teaching me to be more sociable... I think," she quickly corrected, looking up at the stranger- no, now she needed to call him Daehyun- in panic. Youngjae had never explicitly told her what the purpose of this outing had been, but she had gotten the gist of it after spotting the list he was carrying around titled Make Hei-Ryung Sociable. Although he had crossed it out rather violently, Hei-Ryung had still been able to read it. That's the kind of talent you pick up after years of reading through the scribbles of editors on the only draft you have, trying to pick out your original writing so you can make the changes necessary.

     And there she went again, running off on unnecessary tangents and neglecting the conversation at hand. Biting down on the corner of her bottom lip, Hei-Ryung carefully snuck a look at Daehyun's face. He looked confused. "Teaching you to be less shy?" Daehyun echoed, rolling the concept thoughtfully around his brain. "That's a strange idea. I never thought there was anything wrong with being shy," he was blunt, and completely unabashed about it. Blinking, Hei-Ryung tried not to look too surprised by how clearly he had stated his opinion on the matter.

     "A little shy, yes, but I tend to take things a bit... well, a lot too far. It's even begun interfering with my work," she admitted, leaning forward to rest her arms on her knees.

     "I suppose that would be a problem," Daehyun agreed half-heartedly, his words completely contradicting his tone of voice. This was certainly a man who had difficulty hiding how he really felt. "Though you don't seem to be struggling all that much right now," he pointed out, gesturing between the two of them to signify the conversation they were having. Not sure how to respond to this, Hei-Ryung resorted to the default shrug.

     It was then that silence descended upon the two of them, and not the good kind of silence. This was the expectant silence, the kind that was just waiting to be filled with conversation and grew increasingly impatient as it was stretched over a larger and larger amount of time. This was the kind of silence that Hei-Ryung hated, because she always felt like it was her fault that the conversation died. Daehyun, though, didn't seem to feel uncomfortable with the quiet. Rather, he had stretched his arms out to both sides and was balancing on the edge of the fountain, enjoying the cool Spring breeze that had just begun blowing.

     "Would you like to come to my concert?" he suddenly asked, melting away the peace that had begun to replace the expectant silence.

     "Your... concert?" Hei-Ryung repeated, making sure she had heard him correctly. It was a strange offer from someone she had just met, so she couldn't possibly have-

     "Well, it's more like just a little performance. And, to be honest, it isn't entirely mine. A bunch of musicians from around the area will be playing, and I happen to be one of them- or, one of two. I'm performing with another artist. It's next week, if you're interested," he began rummaging around in the pocket of his jeans. "You can even bring your boss along, if you'd like. It can be one of your 'less shy' lessons," Daehyun suggested, producing two worn tickets from within his pocket. There were little tears on the edges, showing that they had been living inside that lint-filled cavern for quite a while now.

     A million questions ran through Hei-Ryung's head as the two pieces of paper were pressed into her hand by Daehyun, who seemed quite eager to get rid of them. "It's free, so all you'll have to do is show up. The tickets are just for crowd control," he continued hopefully, unaware of Hei-Ryung's utter confusion. "The address of the place is on the back of the ticket, and it isn't all that hard to find. They'll have someone outside of the venue with a sign, too. I promise it will be worth your while."

     "Alright." She folded her fingers over the tickets. "I-I guess I can come. And I'll see if Youn- if my boss can make it, as well," Hei-Ryung agreed, nodding hesitantly. Normally she would have completely dissolved by now and gone running off, paper bag clutched tightly in one hand, but something was holding her together. Glancing down at the tickets in her hand, she read the date: March 23. That was next Saturday. She didn't have any plans on Saturday- of course, she didn't have any plans for any day of the week- so it should be alright. And if Youngjae were there, and stayed there, unlike today, then it shouldn't be too bad. Hei-Ryung did like music, after all.

     "Great!" Daehyun exclaimed, his eyes lighting up as he jumped to his feet. He was obviously excited about the prospect of Hei-Ryung attending his concert. "And don't think I'm doing this just because I'm trying to give away tickets. I mean, that is part of the reason, but I really would appreciate it if you would come," he told her, reaching over to pick something up off the ground. As he swung it over his shoulder, Hei-Ryung realized that it was a guitar case. She hadn't even noticed it when they had been talking earlier, she was so determined to avoid looking in his direction.

      "And before I forget, would you like any help tracking down your boss? I don't want to leave you stranded here," he offered, smiling down at Hei-Ryung.

     "No, I should be fine. And thank you for the invitation," she told him, holding up the tickets. Just then, the breeze began to pick up and the two tickets tugged at her grip, trying to break free so they could flutter away on the wind. Worried that she might lose them, Hei-Ryung quickly tucked them away between the pages of Redeeming Love for safe-keeping. It would be horrible if she let them blow away right in front of Daehyun, who had worked so hard to give them to her in the first place.

     "Well, if you're sure you'll be fine," he hesitated, giving Hei-Ryung one last opportunity to accept his offer, but she made no move to do so. "Alright. I guess I'll see you next Saturday, then," he turned to leave, but paused mid-step as a thought hit him. "I hope I didn't make a bad impression on you. I don't mean to be weird, it's just that... well, I don't know," his eyebrows knit together in puzzlement as he turned to look at Hei-Ryung over his shoulder.

     "Don't worry, I don't think that you're strange. I actually really appreciate you keeping me company, and I look forward to attending the concert," Hei-Ryung assured him, standing up to leave as well. Sitting around here was not going to be very useful, so she figured going out and looking for Youngjae herself would be the next best thing.

     "I'm glad," Daehyun breathed out a sigh of sincere relief, then waved goodbye to Hei-Ryung. She, in turn, managed a small, suddenly nervous wave back and then turned to head in the opposite direction. It had been nice having that minor distraction from her predicament, but now reality was coming back full force. Her situation was not one of chatting away with strangers in the park, it was being completely and utterly lost with no means of communication. Swallowing hard, Hei-Ryung fought back the fear that was trying to slink its way through her veins and strode forward to search for Youngjae.

     She never found him.

     Ok, to put it in a less dramatic way, she never found him that day. Instead, she explored a good portion of the city before happening across a familiar area and making her way back to her apartment. Rather than going back out to continue searching for Youngjae, Hei-Ryung stayed in and settled for calling him. He picked up on the second ring, sounding just as frazzled as Hei-Ryung had been. Once he had stopped inquiring about where she was and if she was alright, Hei-Ryung calmly explained the gist of what had happened and that she was now safely back in her apartment, where she intended to remain for the rest of the day. Youngjae agreed that this would probably be for the best, and apologized for having lost her. Hei-Ryung, in return, apologized for worrying him like she had.

     Both sides forgave the other, and the call was ended. The crisis successfully solved, Hei-Ryung settled down for a long, warm afternoon... of forcing out chunky rows of words in an attempt to piece together something, anything, for her next book.

Author's Note

I've been thinking of renaming this story, since the current title doesn't really make sense  and the general direction of the plot has completely been changed. "Dreams Don't Turn to Dust" just isn't going to cut it anymore, so I was wondering: Does anyone have suggestions for a new title?

Oh, and sorry for wandering off forever and ever. Every time I came back to finish up this chapter I ended up giving up before I could even start. Now that summer is here and I have some more time on my hands I plan on trying to get back into the swing of things, though.

Updated: And that is the last of the revising! ^-^ With the story refreshed in my brain (and quite a few things cleaned up) I will hopefully be continuing the story, now! I still have to organize my notes (a lot of the old stuff is mixed up with the new) and find time to write out a chapter- which is a lot harder than just rereading old ones- but I'm at least excited about getting to work! Hopefully if I solidify a timeline and stick all my various ideas onto it, I'll be able to get the chapters out in a timely manner. Christmas Break is almost over, though, and with school I'm not sure how much writing I'll be able to get done. I'm definitely making this a priority, though!