"Chaerin! Honey, come here, please!" I sat up, groaning as I pushed myself out of bed. 

 

"I'm coming, Mom!" With heavy feet, I trudged down the stairs and into the kitchen where my mother stood, baking something. Oh, no.

 

"Mom? What happened? Is gran in the hospital again?" She turned around.

 

"No, of course not, why would you think that?" I hesitantly replied to her question.

 

"Because you never bake unless you have bad news. Ever." She frowned.

 

"It's not bad news, per say.... I'm just.... Not sure how you're going to take it....." I sat down heavily on one of the bar stools. 

 

"Just tell me." She hesitated.

 

 She pulled the simmering chocolate off the heat and poured it into a bowl.

 

"Sweetheart, there's something I need to explain to you. You know how I said your father left us when you were a baby? How I said he wanted nothing to do with you?" I nodded slowly, not likening the direction of this conversation, "I lied, Chaerin. I lied. I've been lying to you for a long time. I  was only twenty two when we married, I never thought it through. When I was his second wife, he was already well into his thirties then, with a son as well. Honey, he loved you, loves you. It's my fault he was never there... The night I left him, I took you and left the divorce papers on his desk."

 

I sat there for a moment, "What else?" 

 

She looked up from her hands with tear filled eyes, "I haven't told you this... Chaerin, you were supposed to remain in his custody. By all rights of the law, I kidnapped you.... He found us and approached me. He handed me a court order, I have a week to give you over into his care before he presses charges. Here, it's his phone number.

 

I felt tears flood my eyes as I stood, "I'm going to start packing. I don't want your help."

 

My vision was blurry with angry tears as I packed everything I couldn't part with into bags. I laid down on my bed and sobbed as soon as I'd finished, forty minutes later. It took me a few hours to completely calm down before I picked up my phone and dialed.

 

"Hello, this is Kim Hyunjae, who is this?" I choked back a sob at the deep voice.

 

"It's Kim Chaerin.... Your daughter."