Jo Kwangmin has been my neighbour for more than a decade. He moved in when I was 6 and he was 7. I used to like him alot though, when he first moved in. I called him my "Prince Oppa" and only had my eyes on him. Without even taking a second look at his twin. Was his name Youngmin or something? I guess so. 

We always played together. But sometimes we would get into arguments about the game to play. I, being the more active one rather play catching while Kwangmin prefers hide-and-seek. And at times, the argument got so bad that we ignored each other.  But the cold treatment doesn't last for more than an hour. Kwangmin was always the first to apologize. And I would forgive him immediately. 

He was my best friend, and we kept nothing from each other. I listened to his confession about him liking this girl in school, while he silently accompanied me as I complained about the girl is school that was always mean. We told each other everything. We were that close.  Well, except for the fact that I love him. I never told him, for the sake of our friendship.

I was afraid he would if I did so. 

However, as we grew up, things started to change. I remember the changes took place when I was around 12 or 13.  Kwangmin and I would argue for no apparent reason.  And there was a point in which I hated him. To the core. But occasionally, we would still have a chat in the tree house at the back of his yard. 

And as we grew up, I grew more and more certain that the "love" I had for him was an infatuation. And that it was a "childhood love", also known as "puppy love"

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It was somewhere in the middle of summer that we stopped talking. 

He had his own circle of friends while I had mine. He is an introvert, while I am an extrovert. That changed. He had girls watching him wherever he went, admiring him and flirting with him.  When it happened, I didn't really care. Cause he didn't matter that much to me anymore. He wasn't the Jo Kwangmin I knew before. He had changed.  And the next spring, Kwangmin moved out. To live with his distant aunt. And having Youngmin as the only neighbor was weird, for he was not Kwangmin. 

I didn't really bother about all the goodbyes and about him leaving. We did not really talk as much anymore. It did not really mattered.  However, after a few weeks after Kwangmin left, I felt empty. I felt lonely.There wasn't someone to tease, to fight with, and to argue with anymore. 

Jo Kwangmin, he was gone. 

I didn't understand why I felt that way. I should feel happy right?

Happy that someone so annoying is finally out of my life.

But no. I miss him. I missed the times we spent together, just randomly chatting and hanging out in the backyard on the swings. I miss his laughter and how he chases me in the school playground. I never thought this could happen. Were my childhood feelings coming back again? Those feelings that I've long forgotten.

It's probably back. 

One day, I walked home with Youngmin, for the first time in months. And it took me by surprise when he asked me to. "Hye Ri, I've got something to tell you. Kwangmin told me not to tell you, but I hope you'll listen."

"Yeah, I'm listening." I flashed him a smile. 

"I think, you should talk to Kwangmin. You guys used to be so close weren't you?" 

"W...Why?" He paused. 

"Well, Kwangmin is diagnosed with Leukemia. He really wants to see you though."

He wants to see me? "Leukemia?" my eyes widened in shock.  "Wae, why are you telling me all these? How... how is he?" I asked a little awkwardly as I kicked a pebble on the road. 

"Because you are Kwangmin's best friend. So I figured you should know about this."

I still am?

"And... You might actually be able to do something for him. Unlike me. I've always wanted to do something for him, but the thing is I can't. My bone marrow isn't a match. What should I do? My brother is in a coma while I'm here, alive and all healthy! I fail. As a brother!" He broke down.

The Youngmin that I knew could control his emotions fairly well, but he showed a different side of him to me today. 

"Then, why is he staying at your aunt's place? Should he be resting at home?"

"Well, you see, the thing is that my aunt's place is nearer to the hospital. And since he needs to go there often, it's more convenient.."

No wonder. 

"Tell you what, I'll go to the hospital and check if I'm a match. There's a chance, right? Don't lose hope." I needed to help Kwangmin. I need to.

-----------------

And so I did.

"It's confirmed miss. It's a match. We can get the bone marrow transplant operation scheduled if you agree."

Thus, I agreed.

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"The operation is a success. Whether the patient wakes up depends on his willpower. However, I must inform you that the chances of the patient waking up are extremely slim. You must be prepared." 

"Hye Ri-ah, gomawo. Does it hurt?" Youngmin asked me the moment I woke up from the anesthetic. Concern flashed in his eyes.

"I'm fine, but how about Kwangmin?" I asked back as he propped me up with pillows.

Kwangmin... He would pull through this, wouldn't he? 

When I got well enough to be discharged, Kwangmin was still in a coma. I visited him everyday, and prayed that a miracle would happen. And he would wake up.  Kwangmin. I'm sure he would most definitely pull through this.

He promised he wouldn't ever let me down, didn't he?

A miracle. That was what caused it to happen.  When Kwangmin fluttered open his eyes, a wave of relief ran over me.  He made it.  "I'm sorry," he whispered as he tightened his grip on my hand. We were swinging in the playground that was on the hospital grounds. Kwangmin was recovering. 

"Wae?" I grabbed his hand, holding on.

"Mianhe. For making you worry." He lowered his voice.

"Nah, it's nothing. I'm still the tough girl you knew from before. Remember?"

I first showed Kwangmin how tough I was when we were 8 and 9. That time, we played a harsh and violent game of tag. A game that I had been warned of that would have dire consequences should I be caught playing it. My parents were that strict. They believed that girls should never be that rough, and were determined to bring me up as a well- behaved lady. But I didn't care. I was whipped, but I never allowed myself to cry.

He paused, as if he was recalling the incident, then nodded. I smiled. "See this girl here? Remember how tough she was? Well, she still is."

"I remember." I could feel myself tearing up. Looking at my childhood friend in front of me, I could not help smiling. 

Kwangmin. He always apologised even if it was not his fault.  "

"Hye Ri ah, I... I love you, not as a friend, but as a girl. Will... will you be my girlfriend?" Tears accumulated in my eyes as I nodded, burying my face in his warm arms. "Here you go, why are you crying? Remember how I always told you that opposites attract? See, opposites do attract after all." Kwangmin said, before pulling my away from his arms and enveloping me in a hug. I could only smile. 

"Yes, I believe you now."

Hey guys! So yeah, it's finaly up! Sorry for the wait! I was busy with school again and everything ><

Hope you enjoyed nonetherless! And please feedback! :) Love you <3456789