Kai shuffled around the dirty shack, rummaging through dirt-covered cargo boxes and baskets laced with spider webs. The warm spring sunshine drenched the rickety shed in a pool of yellow light, lighting up the dewy morning webs like christmas lights. The smell of fresh air and growth hung damply in the lazy afternoon air.

"Where the heck is it?" He coughed and waved away the dust as he pushed a pile of boards out of his way. 

"Kai, did you find it yet?" he heard his mother's voice from the field across the way.

"Not yet!" He called back, then kicked a bucket out of frustration, "Where are those seeds??"

He picked up the bucket and brought it under him to sit on. He wore a loose tank top over his sunkissed skin. He whiped the sweat that dripped off his brow with his gloved hand, and fanned himself. In Seoul the springtime had come slowly, barely tickling the air with warmth. Here in the south it came all at once, like a faucet on full blast, it pumped out cherry blossom petals and sunshine. 

A small black kitten crawled through a crack in the shed wall and opened it's tiny pink mouth in a yawn.

"It's a lazy day, isn't it?"

The cat blinked large green eyes.

"If only I could be a cat and sleep all the time," he groaned.

"Kim Jong in!" his mother screeched, scaring him so badly he nearly tumbled off his bucket. He stood quickly and peeked out the shed door, his mother rarely used his real name, and when she did it meant trouble. 

"Y-yes, Omma?" He squinted in the sunlight and could see his mother's short and stout figure a ways down the dirt path. Someone taller and leaner stood beside her.

"You have company!" 

Huh? Company? He stumbled out of the shed, slapping his gloves on his sweat pants to get the dust off. His workboots collected mud from the damp soil as he made his way along the dirt path. The weather was dry and hot, but the sprinklers had turned the path between the fields to soggy mush. However Kai didn't mind when the sprinklers jetted water over his head, dousing him in fresh cool mist. He relished the feel of it on his sweaty skin. 

"Yah! Kim Kai!" the voice boomed from up the road, and Kai stopped dead in his tracks. He'd recognize that voice anywhere. He looked up and there she was. Dressed in a pair of his mother's floral work pants two sizes too big, her long jet black hair tied into a ponytail, as if it hadn't been a day since she lived in the same house as him. 

He ran at Miyoung, dropping the towel that was around his neck to the mud below. In one movement he scopped her up, beaming, and twirled her around.

"Y-yah! Kai! Put me do--" she screamed as he lifted her in the air.

He set her down carefully, smiling brightly as if he'd completely forgotten the last time he saw her. 

"You came to visit! I knew you'd come eventually. God am I happy to see you!"

Miyoung ruffled his hair brightly, like a proud older sister, "Of course I came. I wanted to see you again."

Kai was practically bouncing with excitement, he brushed his hair out of his face and laughed, "It's been forever since you were last here! Remember that old cat we used to play with as kids? Just a second ago I saw her kitten's kitten, already going on three generations, it's crazy, right?"

"Kai," Miyoung smiled bittersweetly. Slowly the joy seeped from Kai's face, replacing itself with bitter realization.

"Oh," he mumbled, "right. You don't remember."

Miyoung patted his shoulder, going back to her light-hearted self, "C'mon, your mom made lunch."

"Oh Miyoung you've grown up so much! Look at you, a right fine lady!" Mrs. Kim boomed, rushing food in and out of the old rickety traditional house, out to the table where Miyoung and Kai sat. "Isn't she absolutely lovely, Kai?"

Kai nodded shyly, and took another bite of the bright green apple in his hands.

"So I lived here?" Miyoung swiveled her head around at the time-worn house. A black kat pounced onto the low stone fence surrounding the house. A shabby satelite antenna swung back in forth in the breeze from atop the crumbling roof. Bees darted lazily from flower to flower in the dewy air.

"Your room was that one right there with the big window," Mrs. Kim pointed to a large opened window all the way at the end of the house's left side. Thin, white curtains veiled the room inside. 

"Mine is right next to yours," Kai added, "but your's was bigger."

Kai choked as his mother slapped him over the head, "and she deserved it! That girl studied and worked harder than you ever did!"

"I know she did! Leave me alone!" he barked, then went back to tearing the meat off a chicken leg. 

"Mind if I go in for a minute?" she stood, raising her arms to fix her ponytail.

"'Course! Go right ahead, if you think it'll help."

Miyoung slipped off her workboots and stepped into the house. A wave of smells rushed over her. It smelled hot and wet, like the air hung there damply and clung to the old walls, the only circulation came from the decrepit fan in the corner. The smell of dirt and dust tingled her senses, laced with the smell of cooked vegetables and spices. The kitchen and the living room were melded intoa  tiny space that could fit no more than three people. An ancient TV buzzed in and out of signal, talking about it being the hottest spring in years. The kitchen was nothing but a sink and a pantry, with a portable stove set on the floor surrounded by vegetables wrapped in newspaper. Miyoung crept down the narrow hallway, running her fingers along the rigid walls. She came at last to the door at the end, the door to her room. She could hear something faintly inside. She turned the door handle, and the sound poured into her ears. It was a famous old trot song playing on a small, dusty, portable radio. It sat on a small table on the far side of the room, the light from the window forming a perfect square on the floor beside it. Abov eht radio on the table was a lamp, and several old notebooks. Miyoung came into the room, heading towards the table she now recognized served it's purpose as a desk. The old notebooks were faded from color, pages wrinkled from many damp and dewy summers, but the name on the top right corner of each was the same. Jin Miyoung. 

Miyoung sat at the desk, breathing in the smell of Mrs. Kim's flowers right outside the window, hearing the gentle ruffle of the white curtains. It all felt familiar, like home. Miyoung stood up to look around, and a loud clatter echoed as something fell from the desk. 

"!" Miyoung cursed under her breath and turned to see what it was. She stooped down to pick up a fallen picture frame, and turned it over in her hands. A girl no older than twelve smiled up at Miyoung, alon with a beautiful woman, and a gently smiling man. 

"They're your parents."

Miyoung jumped at the voice and turned to see Kai with his arms on the base of the window, looking in. 

"They are?" she looked back at the picture, and saw it. The girl was herself, a small and rounder version from the years of childhood. She noticed now the similarities between the girl she saw in the mirror every morning and the older woman in the photo. The shape of their eyes, the curve in their smile, it was the same.

"You look your mom," Kai said, though Miyoung already knew just by looking, "Mom says that all the time."

"Yeah?" Miyoung asked, setting the photo carefully back on the desk.

"Yeah..." Kai paused, "So what do you think?"

"I hate to say this, but your house is kind of shabby," Miyoung laughed.

"Kind of is an understatement."

"This really does feel like it's my room," Miyoung explained, looking around, "It feels so familiar."

"That's because it is familiar, it is your room."

"I know, I know that...but..It's hard to explain."

"KIM JONG IN!" Mrs. Kim's voice practically shook the house, "Get out here and clean this up!"

"Ouch," Kai rubbed his ears, then smiled sheepishly, "Sorry, gotta go."

He let go of the window and dropped to the dirt below before Miyoung could say goodbye. She stood up once more, thankful for once that she was short enough to avoid the low cielings. In the corner of the room she noticed a small wooden box, elegantly carved and twinkling in the afternoon sunlight. She dropped beside it and slowly lifted the lid.

"What is this...?" 

The box was contained several letters, the handwriting was too messy and scrambled for her to read it with her limited reading skill, so she brushed them aside. Underneath them something shrilled like a bell. SHe pushed them farther aside to reveal a small pink charm. 

"What? This is.." 

She pulled it out, and it rang in protest. The warm pink color was scratched away in several places to reveal the silver metal beneath. It was in the shape of a cherry blossom flower. 

"Wait! I know this!" Miyoung reached into her purse with her other hand, and rummage through it. She pulled out what she had found and held it next to the charm.

"It's exactly the same," she whispered, the two charms shimmered beside each other. The only difference was the one from the box had been scratched and dented. 

"Where did your charm go?"

Miyoung nearly shrieked at the sudden return of the voice. His voice.

"Is it gone??" 

"I don't see it."

"I must have dropped it!"

"You lost it again!?"

"I'm sure it's around here somewhere. Let's go look on the path!"

"We're going to miss your family if you backtrack now," his voice was wise and comforting, "we came all this way to see them, and you haven't seen them in four years.."

"I told you I don't think they're home. They usually head up to Daegu this time of year.."

"It's worth a try isn't it?"

"Well...Fine. Give me yours then!"

"Why mine!?"

"Because it can be my good luck charm to find mine!"

"Jin Miyoung, you--"

"Pleaaase?"

A groan. "Fine."

Miyoung blinked her eyes open and tried to remember where she was. She clutched the charms in her hands with a gasp and stood up. Miyoung sprinted out of the house will all her might, across the courtyard and onto the dirt road.

"Where are you going?" Kai called over his shoulder.

"The food was good, wasn't it?" Hyunjoo asked quietly. Baekhyun nodded. He had promised his mother he would go on a date with Hyunjoo in return for the promise of Miyoung staying. He did like Hyunjoo, she was a nice girl, smart, and pretty. She was kind and gentle, admirable in many aspects, but she wasn't Miyoung. 

"How is Miyoung unnie? I she okay?" Hyunjoo stuttered, "I heard she went to visit family in the countryside?"

Baekhyun nodded again. THis morning he had sent her off with a smile as she got onto the city bus to ride it to Kai's hometown. She had high hopes that returning to her home would jumpstart her memories, and his stomach flipped each time he thought what if they do come back?

"I wish there was something I could do to help.."

Baekhyun shook his head with a smile, it's okay.

"Oh that's right!" Hyunjoo nodded, "I heard you used to be a singer?"

He shook his head fervently, embarassed.

"So you were! Judging by your reaction you must be!"

Sure, Baekhyun loved to sing when he was younger, but what was it worth now that he couldn't even speak?

"I wish I could hear you sing," Hyunjoo mumbled, "I bet it's lovely."

Baekhyun shrugged and rubbed the back of his neck. Hyunjoo noticed a long, faded scar down the right side of his face. It was almost imperceptible now, but when the light caught his face it glowed a pale pink in a jagged line. 

"Where did you get that?" she gasped, "You didn't have that before!"

His eyes widened in shock and he quickly touched his face. That's right, his scar. He had nearly forgotten all about it. He could feel the soft scar tissue under his fingers, irregular and thin. 

Baekhyun glanced up when he realized where they had come. The familiar intersection, that same traffic light. There was the nightclub on the street, beside it the coffee shop on the corner. It was the place he had first met Miyoung.

Hyunjoo noticed his expression, "Have you been here before? Do you like it?"

A half smile formed on his face. He had been there many times. Often he just went into the nightclub, drank himself to death, and then wandered home. It was an exaggeration to say he liked it, but since that day with Miyoung, it had rather become a place of significance. 

 With a simple smile, he shrugged. The music from the night club pounded in his ears, shaking the road beneath their feet. Hyunjoo pressed herself closer to Baekhyun to avoid being trampled by the crowd of girls in tall heels and tight dresses, who were making their way into the club. 

"S-sorry.. " she mumbled. He shook his head politely with a smile. 

Miyoung fidgeted on the bus and checked her watch. 9am. She should make it back around eleven, when Baekhyun had his date. Jealousy twinged in her stomach, and she picked at her finger nails. In her other hand she held the two charms, so tightly that she could feel her nails breaking the skin of her palm, drawing scarlet drops of blood. Her head burned, so much that she had to bite her lip from gasping in pain. One after another, voices collided in her head. Years and years of conversations blasted through her mind in waves, so much that she could barely distinguish them.

"Miyoung-ah are you going to the--"

"--How is your mother feel--"

"--Do you really want it that badl--"

"-Aish you're giving me--!"

"--Hold my hand or som--"

"--Oppa buy me this!"

"Stop, stop, stop," Miyoung pulled her knees to her chest and rocked herself back and forth in the bus seat, holding her hands to her head. She pressed her eyes together and gasped when the image of Baekhyun appeared again. The only memory she had of the accident; Baekhyun's face wild with fear, blood streaming down his face from a gash in his forehead concealed by his matted hair. Ash was smeared on his face, and on his right cheek a long jagged cut from an inch below his eye to the bottom of his cheek. He shook Miyoung, screaming something at her but she couldn't hear. She couldn't hear. She couldn't---

The sun filtered through the green overhanging trees above the wooden park bench. Miyoung breathed in deeply and sighed. She was herself, but a form of herself even she had never seen before. Her dark hair was messy and short, she wore a black hoodie that was too big for her small frame, and jeans that were torn in multiple places. Her round face was bare of makeup, and tired. "School was supposed to make it easier," she groaned, leaning back in the bench. Her year at Seoul University had just started, it was her path to freedom from living with her poverty stricken neighbours, from living in that dusty countryside town where there was no future for her. But why was it so hard? 

A tall, clean cut boy sat next to her, no doubt a Seoul native. He was well trimmed and shiny from head to toe. She growled under her breath, who does he think he is? Sitting without even asking? He held his head low, shoulders hunched. His breathing was quiet and shallow, almost nervous. He tapped his feet and fiddled with his thumbs, she watched his eyes dart back and forth across the scenery.

"Uh..you okay?" she asked half-heartedly.

He laughed nervously and nodded, "S-sure, I'm okay."

Miyoung looked him up and down, "...You don't look okay."

"I'm nervous," he confessed, taking a deep breath, "that's all."

Miyoung pursed her lips and nodded, "huh."

He checked his watch, "He should be here by now..." He drummed his fingers against the seat, once again glancing around.

Miyoung groaned inwardly, rolling her eyes, and leaned forward, "Well can you be nervous somewhere else?"

His eyes widened in shock, "You're not even going to ask me why I'm nervous?"

Miyoung's voice was flat, "Why would I?"

He chuckled, understanding, "Right, why would you?"

"So, like I said, you gonna leave or what?"

"No," he shook his head, "I'm going to stay."

"Whatever," Miyoung growled, and stood up, "then I'll leave."

She turned to walk away, and stopped when she heard his voice,  "Hey wait!"

She looked over her shoulder with folded arms, biting her lip in frustration, "What."

He scratched his head shyly, then motioned at her, "Um, what's your name?"

"You don't need to know that," she turned to leave.

"No wait!" he caught her arm, his voice smooth as velvet, "C'mon, I'm just curious."

She shuffled her feet, "I'm Miyoung. Jin Miyoung."

"Miyoung," he smiled, "I'm---"

Miyoung sprinted down the busy street, barely having time to wipe the sweat off her face at the cross walk. She got on her toes in an effort to see over the crowd, but trying to pick out one person from the masses was like finding a needle in a haystack. She fumbled with her pockets for her phone, then cursed under her breath, realizing she'd left it on the bus. 

"Damn it," she groaned, "He has to be here somewhere. He said they were in this area!" 

Once again she scanned the crowd on the busy city street, searching for any sign of the boy with black hair and a slight limp from his broken leg so many months ago, and a small fairy-like girl. Baekhyun was no where to be seen. Miyoung rushed to the top of the street, the busy intersection created a blaring crescendo of horns and engines and people talking. It added onto the hurricane of voices already stirring inside her head. The vision she saw when she closed her eyes had vanished just before she could hear the man's name, and his face was blurry, like a camera out of focus. She needed answers.

Then she saw him. Across the cross walk, baring a polite smile towards a small, delicate girl. Baekhyun was waiting on the other side, quietly listening to Hyunjoo tell some story about her time in highschool, or what food she liked to eat, or whatever it was. Miyoung shoved her way through the crowd, pushing and kicking her way to the edge of the sidewalk. 

"Baekhyun," Hyunjoo suddenly stopped talking, looking curiously across the street, "isn't that Miyoung?"

He lifted his eyes and saw her, standing like a ghost. Her skin was pale with fear, tied back hair sticking to her sweaty skin. When she saw him she lept blindly into the road, without regard to the people around her that tried to catch her and pull her back to safety. She sprinted full speed across the busy street, cars honking and skidding to a stop inches before hitting her. Baekhyun heard a roar down the street, and swiveled his head. Down the road a sleek car barrelled forward, directly towards Miyoung.

Baekhyun pushed off Hyunjoo, taking off into the street towards Miyoung. The car grew closer and closer, showing no signs of stopping. 

He reached out his arms for her, the roar of the car's engine screaming in his ears. He heard shouts from the crowds on either side of the road, screaming for someone to help them, to get out of the way. 

The world went in slow motion, and Baekhyun couldn't breath. The car teared down the street, growing closer, closer, until it was only a few feet away from the girl. He couldn't reach, she was too far, too far, too far. Do something! DO SOMETHING! His thoughts screamed desperately, and with wild eyes he in a deep breath.

"Miyoung!!"

It's time guys. Can you believe it? Baekhyun spoke!

Are you ready to find out all the secrets? I'm not even sure if I'm ready yet...

Don't worry! There are still several more chapters to come.

I've been waiting for this for a long time, and I'm also excited to see the end. 

I made this a double update because I may not be able to write another chapter for a while, so I hope you'll be patient!

Thank you so much for all the support! Please subscribe and comment!

I love you guys!

~Violet