I held my breath and crouched closer to the floor when I heard the footsteps approaching.

                Don’t come over here.  Don’t—

                “I found you!” giggled the little girl as she ran over and tackled me from behind.

                Shoot.

                “Aha, you caught me again,” I said, patting her on the back as she unlatched herself from me and went to go look for her next victims. 

                I stood from my hiding spot and walked over to the designated “jail” area – a row of bean bags being watched carefully by a couple of stuffed animals.  I was the first one there, as always.  I slumped down in a seat and hugged a nearby pillow to my chest. 

                After a few minutes, there was another squeal and Soonyoung, a boy my age who also worked at the daycare, came to the jail.

                He grinned when he saw me.  “Ah, reunited with my jail buddy.”

                “It’s because we’re bigger,” I said with a dramatic sigh. 

                “I think you’re just bad at hiding.”

                I scoffed in mock offense and smacked him in the arm.  “I am not!”

                “I bet if I were the seeker I could find you in an instant,” he teased. 

                I rolled my eyes.  A couple of the younger children came to the jail after being caught and gathered around Soonyoung.  It was like he had a magical power over them – he never failed to make them smile and laugh with his silly expressions and weird dances.  I, on the other hand, sat at the sidelines, cleaning up or making snacks. 

                The same little girl who had been the seeker that afternoon walked up to me as I arranged a stack of building blocks by myself.  She cupped her tiny hands around my ear.

                “I have a secret,” she whispered.

                “What is it?”

                She looked cautiously over to where Soonyoung was having a tickling war with the others.  “I want to marry Soonyoung.”

                She stared at me with a serious look on her face and I tried my best not to burst into laughter.

                “Really?  That’s nice.  You’ll have to wait until you’re a little more grown up, though.”

                “Grown up like you?” she asked, crestfallen.

                “Yeah, but don’t worry, you’ll be a big girl in no time and then you can ask Soonyoung to marry you.”

                She furrowed her eyebrows.  “Do you like Soonyoung?”

                I was caught off guard by that question.  Over the past two months I had been working with him, I supposed I did develop a small crush.  After all, he was friendly, funny, hard-working, and good with kids.  What wasn’t to like?

                “I guess I do,” I told the little girl.  I put a finger to my lips.  “This has to be a secret, okay?”

                She nodded.  “But I won’t lose.  Soonyoung is mine!”

                Soonyoung looked over, hearing his name being called. 

                “What’s going on?” he called.

                The little girl and I exchanged glances and started giggling as if we were co-conspirators.

                A few days later, we were playing hide and seek again.  Why the kids never got tired of it, I never understood.  Determined not to be the first one out again, I hid in a small closet in a section of the daycare that was poorly lit, thinking that the kids would be too scared to search there.  I listened to the distant countdown.

                “…eight, seven, six, five…”

                I could hear the sound of someone running towards my area.

                “…four, three…”

                Suddenly, the door to the closet swung open.  I stared wide-eyed at Soonyoung. 

                “…two, one!  Ready or not, here I come!”

                Before I could open my mouth to protest, Soonyoung stepped into the closet and shut the door behind him. 

                Our bodies were pressed together in the tight space and I could hear the sound of his breathing near my ear.

                “Why did you come in here?” I hissed.

                “I didn’t think anyone would be here,” he whispered back.

                “But you could’ve run somewhere else.  It’s so stuffy!” 

                “Just bear with it,” he chastised. 

                Several minutes passed.  We were safe for now.  “So…” Soonyoung began, his voice cutting through the silence.  “What were you talking about the other day?  I thought I heard my name.”

                The blush that rose to my cheeks added to the heat I was feeling.  “Nothing.”

                A pause.  “Well if I tell you my secret, will you tell me yours?”

                “What’s your secret?”

                He leaned close to my ear.  “I like you,” he murmured. 

                My eyes widened and my heart started beating faster.  “I—”

                Suddenly, the closet door swung open, letting in a burst of cool air.  The boy who had been chosen as the seeker stared up at us. 

                Soonyoung was the first to react.  “Whoa, you found us!  Good job!  Now go find the others,” he said.

                The boy gave us another strange look before running off.  I got out of the closet and Soonyoung followed, closing the door.

                “I guess we’re always going to be caught as a pair, huh?” he joked.  He looked at me – still blushing and unable to meet his eye – and held out his palm.  “To the jail, my lady?”

                He smiled warmly and I couldn’t help but smile back.  I took his hand. 

                I found out a week afterwards that my family was relocating to another city.  I went to the daycare to say goodbye to the kids and to Soonyoung, but that day he was sick.  I realized that in the two months I’d known him, I never got his phone number.

                “You could leave a message,” suggested the day care owner, slipping a piece of paper and a pen to me. 

                I pressed my lips together and began to write my last words to him. 

                Let’s play hide and seek.

Two years later

                I tapped my foot and hummed absentmindedly as I waited for the crosswalk light to turn green.  The street was crowded, just as I remembered it.  Nothing much had changed in my hometown after I’d left.  

                From the moment I arrived and saw the familiar buildings, I had been a bit jumpy.  I kept looking from side to side.

                Maybe, just maybe…

                The light changed and people began to move forward.  I had barely taken a step when I heard someone call my name. 

                I turned around to see Soonyoung standing before me.  I froze in shock and tears suddenly came to my eyes as he approached. 

                “I finally found you,” he said with a grin. 

                My knees felt weak.  He took a few hesitant steps towards me before closing the gap between us and hugging me, our bodies as close as they had been that day in the closet.

                I laughed shakily and gripped him tightly.  “Took you long enough.”