The night had fully darkened.

Patients were probably all sleeping by the time you left the hospital.

The nurses said your wounds are just scabs now, especially the thorn wounds.

Even though it was dark, you had enough light from the moon to see your way.

The snow had stopped before nightfall luckily, but the snow was inches high.

A stranger walked passed you, and when he saw you, he sped away even faster. You looked up at the sky gloomily. Was there something wrong now? Perhaps, a young girl walking on the streets with nothing in her hands was someone to speed away from? 

You dressed pretty normal, a jacket, skinny jeans and boots. 

"YAH! What are you doing out there?" You heard a mother cry out from her window. Thinking she was talking to you, you turned your head to the direction of her voice.

It wasn't you, but instead a child who had ran outside. The child, in fact, was running towards you.

"Miss.. are you okay?" The young voiced boy asked while lightly tugging on your sleeve. You squatted down to his height, a smile on your face. "Neh. I'm fine. Why, do I look scary?" You asked before lightly laughing.

The boy; however, did not seem to smile or laugh back. 

"Ani.. You look lonely and lost..." He said, a tiny glint of pity in his eyes. You backed away a little and blinked in disbelief. "Jinja? Is that how I really look...?" You asked. The tiny boy nodded, and the voice of his mother cried out again. "Hey.. you should go back inside now..." You said softly as you shooed him away gently. The boy handed you a shoebox that he had been keeping behind his back. "Here.. I think you'll like it..." He said quietly. You gently took the box, only to find it really heavy. "Oh! Uhm... Gomawow..." You said as you stood up. 

"I hope you get home to your mother safely..." You heard the tiny voce say as he faded away into the shadows of his porch.

"Oh... neh..." You said quietly, knowing he wouldn't hear you. 

As you slowly walked, a tint yelp came from your box, and you suddenly realized what he had given you.

You quickly set the box down onto the snow and slid the lid off, revealing a tiny puppy.

 

It reminded you of him.

Actually, it probably reminded him of you.

 

The puppy whimpered and ran toward your feet, running in circles. You quickly picked it up into your arms and with your free hand, discarded the box into a trashcan. 

The puppy instantly grew silent and cuddled in your arms. 

 

As you walked, you felt a weird need for sweets. Even at night, you were sure there was some sort of shop open. While still firmly holding the puppy, you ran to a bakery you knew. As you reached the bakery, the lights were shining brightly, and you were happy to enter the cheerful place.

"Annyeong! We haven't seen you in ages!" Your friend said as she ran toward you from the stairs.

 

Shiko was one of your best friends, which you had suddenly forgot about until now. Not to mention her whole family was Japanese. You never found it odd, though, because as long as you both could communicate, there was nothing wrong. Her parents had owned this bakery for years, and very often after school, students would come here, especially because of the discount. All the things were freshly baked and decorated cutely. The whole bakery was a kawaii paradise. Multiple awards hung on the walls. Even though this was Korea, this little Japanese bakery was a huge success.

 

"So whatcha want?" She asked, giving you her eyesmile.

Your friend was very pretty, often you told her she could be a model for Sanrio© (company for Hello Kitty) but your friend would always refuse.

"Home was where the heart is." She had once said as you both walked home from school. This event, however; was long before Leo came into your life. 

 

Suddenly, you started to remember things. Your life before Leo seemed so perfect.

You were average and normal things happened to you.

You had a happy life.

 

"Ellooo?" You heard her say while you were blanked out. "O-Oh mianhae!" You said, giving her an embarrassed look. Shiko giggled and grabbed your hand, dragging you to the counter. "Psst, we made Rilakkuma cookies!" She whispered, knowing that if her parents came downstairs, they'd bombard you with hugs and kisses. "Omo! I want someee!" You asked cutely. She ran behind the counter and grabbed a few, then returned and gestured you toward a table. As you sat down, letting the puppy lie on the table, Eunhee propped her elbow up and leaned her chin on her palm. 

"Okay, tell me where you disappeared to!" She said before sipping her chocolate milk from her cup. You sighed deeply before explaining the whole story.

From the very beginning.

 

By the time you finished, Shiko had already drunken 7 cups of chocolate milk and she was still dazed.

"Shiko....?" You said nervously as she slurped the last drop of her milk, slamming it on the table and wiping her lips.

"Your father is crazy." Was all she managed to say at first.

"But I believe he is good inside and someday you should visit him in jail." She finished. Slowly, Shiko pushed all the empty cups to the side and faced you.

"Well what about Leo..." You said slowly, playing with your fingers nervously. Shiko tilted her head and stared up at the ceiling. This was one of her thinking modes.

"He's going to come back." She said, still thinking. "And...?" You asked, raising your eyebrows and leaning in to hear her next words.

"ANDDD! You need to go hide somewhere! Then he'll go and try to find you. He'll search for all the clues and within weeks he'll find you in this bakery! We'll make it all romantic and you both can make out here!" She said esthetically, flailing her arms and often making gestures for every word. 

"Great. What movie is this from?" You asked before slapping your face with your palm. Even the puppy seemed to think the same, for it glumly rested its head on its paws, as if sighing.

"It's yours." She replied with a warm eyesmile. You smiled and shook your head while looking down. "Shiko you're so crazy." You said while lightly laughing. Shiko leaned back on her seat and sighed happily. She stretched her arms and then fixed her black bangs back into its place. "I know, hehehe." She said before daydreaming of how to make it more romantic. "Anyway... Can I stay with you for the week?" You asked, a smirk on your face. Shiko looked at you and winked. "Definitely." She said before going to the counter and piling all the sweets onto the tray. Shiko returned and placed it before you. "First... we gotta eat all this." She said, looking down at all the cookies. Fortunately there was nothing left except the cookies, which meant good sales. 

"But I just ate those Rilakkuma cookies..." You said before pouting.

"Oh well." You heard her mumble. You laughed as you watched your friend stuff her face. Taking a deep breath, you also stuffed your face. 

"Oh. You seem to be having fun." You heard a voice say before he lightly chuckled.

You froze in place, dropping the cookie you were about to eat. Instead of acting cool, Shiko instantly banged her head on the table. "No no no you were supposed to come next week!" She said, although her voice was muffled.

Leo looked down, a small smile on his face. "I'm sorry Shiko, I'm afraid I'm going to have to steal her now." He said humorously. Shiko sat up and crossed her arms. "Hmmph." She said as she looked away. 

"Aww Shiko..." You said as you pouted. Shiko looked down, her cheerfulness died. "You know... Chohee and I have been missing you..." She said, playing with her fingers under the table. "I know.. I'm sorry!" You said, feeling really guilty. "You do know... winter break is done next month...?" She asked, her spirits still down. "Neh.. I promise we'll get together and do something!" You said before standing up and joining Leo. "Bye Shiko! Text me okay?" You said, a cheerful smile on your face. Shiko eyesmiled back and watched you two leave the bakery. As soon as you both disappeared into the cold snowy night, Shiko's smile disappeared.

She turned her head and looked at the puppy, whimpering and whinging as it stared out the door. Shiko petted the dog softly, calming it down. 

"She forgot about you too, huh?"