Ding. The elevator stopped and the doors opened on the third floor, so Jong Hyun walked out and made his way to the trainee practice room. Since he gives Jun Hee private lessons, the rest of the trainees must practice in another room, along with other rookies, making it crowded and inconvenient.  

     As the trainees filed out of the room, most of them gave him nasty stares. What's their problem? he thought.

     A trainee walked by and crashed his shoulder into Jong Hyun's arm. 

     "Watch where you're going," he sniggered. "It's already unfair that you're giving Jun Hee special lessons. The least you can is let us watch."

     "It's not my place to authorize you to do so," he grunted.

     Jong Hyun didn't want to go pick a fight with this person, so he brushed himself off and opened the door to the practice room. He saw some damage from the fire, but the room was still intact and, according to Sung Ho, will not collapse. He saw Jun Hee sitting down not too far away, so he grabbed a chair and set it in front of her. 

     Usually, she would be strumming her guitar, but Jong Hyun noticed that she wasn't even using the practice guitars. As he sat down, Jun Hee did not greet him; she peered uncomfortably at the ground while he stared her down.

     "I only agreed to continue teaching you out of a sense of duty," he said. "If you're going to be giving me attitude, I'll give you consequences. For not meeting my eyes and greeting me, do ten squats in the corner."

     "What?" Jun Hee argued, looking up at him. "That's not fair. You only told me this now. How was I supposed to know that you were going to give me a punishment?"

     "It should be a natural reaction when I enter," Jong Hyun challenged. "And you don't even bother to greet me after I tell you to do the squats? Do twenty squats instead."

     "Annyeonghaseyo, Seong saeng-nim," she mumbled, slightly bowing.

     "Annyeonghaseyo," he said. "I still want those squats."

    "Wow, really?! Can't we just skip to the lesson?" Jun Hee yelled.

     "No," Jong Hyun said with a tone of finality.

     "I wish you never saved me from that fire," she murmured while walking to the corner of the room.

     "I couldn't have just let you die," he retorted. "To be honest, I couldn't believe someone as highly educated as you would frolic straight into that fire. Let's say you did go in, and you saved Bbanini. How would you have looked afterwards?" 

     Jun Hee didn't reply and continued her squats.

     "Your body would have been charred and your face would be black," he continued. "Sung Ho would absolutely not allow anyone who looked like that to debut. Sorry, but that's just the truth."

     She only performed her squats, but she could feel the tears forming in her eyes. He's right, she thought, but why do I hate him?

     "I want those squats lower," Jong Hyun demanded.

     Jun Hee obeyed and made her squats lower, but she couldn't stop the tears from streaming down her face.

     "Seong saeng-nim," she said, her voice cracking, "I hate myself."

     Jong Hyun's lips curled up slightly. Finally she realizes, he thought.

     "Why do you hate yourself?" he asked her. 

     "Because I'm so frustrated at myself for being angry at you. I know you did the right thing, and I was stupid for trying to run back in, but I feel like punching you as hard as I can until you get down on your knees and plead for mercy," she said as tears cascaded down her cheeks. "I hate you, I hate myself, I hate Sung Ho. I just want to let my emotions out through violence."

     "Will punching me make your feel better?" Jong Hyun asked. 

     "I'm sure it will," she replied, finishing up her last squat. She stood up and turned around to face him. 

     "Alright then." Jong Hyun rolled up his sleeves and walked over to Jun Hee's corner. "Do you want to punch my arms or my face?"

     "I-um," she stuttered.

     "Wait, being punched in the face hurts more, right?" he said. "Go for it. Get me right in the nose."

     Jun Hee balled her hand up in a fist and prepared her body for the recoil after her fist makes contact. She chewed some flesh on the inside of her cheek until it bled and held her fist up, but she couldn't.

     "No. I can't," she grunted. "That'll make be hate myself even more."

     Just as I predicted, he thought with a tiny smirk.

     "Okay, but how can I make you feel better?" Jong Hyun inquired.

     I just wanna beat myself up, but I know I'm too timid to do that to myself, Jun Hee thought. He looks like he's gotten into many fights.

     "I think I'd feel better if you slap me hard across my face," she responded. She nodded her heard several times. "I'm ready. Do it now."

     "What? I'm not going to punch your face," he proclaimed.

     Is she crazy? I'm not going to hit her, he thought.

     "It'll make me feel better, just do it," she said, looking at Jong Hyun straight in the eye.

     "No one has ever said, 'Wah, I'm having such a bad day. Just slap me.' I'm not hitting you," he declared.

     "Then do something to make me feel better," she whined. "Punch my face then. Slap it, pinch it, fly kick it, I don't care. Just make--"

     Jong Hyun stepped in closer to Jun Hee and gave her a warm embrace to make her stop talking. Jun Hee's heart began to slow down, and she felt safe and comfortable as her teacher hugged her. She closed her eyes and enjoyed the calmness of the embrace, trying her best to forget all of her troubles and feelings from the past couple of days.

     This man should charge money for these hugs, she thought. 

     Jong Hyun stepped back and lightly pinched Jun Hee's cheek.

     "Don't you feel better already? Better than me fly kicking your face, am I right?" he laughed.

     She slowly nodded and gave a slight smile, much to Jong Hyun's satisfaction.

     "Then let's begin with our lesson, shall we?" he said. 

      "Umma! I'm gonna go crazy," Ji Soo complained. "Everyone is busy today too! Yong Hwa Oppa only called me yesterday because Appa gave him a break. I doubt anyone is going to call today."

     "What do you want me to do about it?" Ji Min asked. She stopped stirring her broth and stared at her daughter. "When was the last time we went to the mall together, just the two of us?"

     "Umma, I've never been to the mall with you at all," Ji Soo pointed out. 

     "Let's go," Ji Min said. "I finished the broth, so let's go do that bonding stuff."

     Ji Soo was surprised that her mother wanted to go to the mall with her. She always scolded me for asking her to drive me to the mall before. This should be fun, she thought.

     Ji Min changed out of her house clothes and threw on a pair of jeans and a sweater. Since she was shorter than Ji Soo, Ji Min decided to wear her high heels while she brushed her short hair with a comb. I'm glad I don't have to worry about tangles, she thought, remembering Ji Soo's muddled hair.

     Daughter and mother finished up getting ready at the same time, so Ji Min grabbed the car keys and drove to the mall near their home.

     "Umma, how do you drive so well? When I drove to the coffee shop yesterday, I couldn't even drive the maximum speed limit," Ji Soo admitted.

     "That's because you're too frail," Ji Min replied. "Your personality can show in your driving, you know."

     "So, what's that supposed to mean? That I'm weak?" she asked. 

     "Not necessarily," Ji Min replied. "If you didn't bother to accelerate even though cars behind you honked their horns, I think it means that you're stubborn."

     "But I'm not stubborn, right?" Ji Soo said unbelievably. "That just means that I simply don't want to drive faster."

     "It could also mean that you're afraid of something," Ji Min continued. "I think that if you're too scared to drive the maximum limit, then you're either cautious or just chicken."

     "Well, which one do you think I am?" 

     Ji Min glanced at her daughter and smirked. "You're just chicken."

     "Hey!" Ji Soo exclaimed.

     Ji Min chuckled and turned the wheel to pull into an empty parking spot. Her surprised face cracks me up everytime, she thought. They both got out of the car and walked into the mall together for the first time. 

     Why am I feeling anxious? Ji Soo wondered.

     "Okay, do you have any idea of what you wanna buy?" Ji Min asked. "I think I'm going to look around for a gift." 

     "Oh, I should look for a gift too!" Ji Soo said. "Yong Hwa Oppa bought me those shoes and paid for the meal yesterday. I should get him something...amazing."

     "Alright, that store has a sale right now. Let's take a look," Ji Min said.

     They walked into the clothing store together, both looking for something to give to their friends. As Ji Soo searched the store, she began to lose hope that the perfect gift for Yong Hwa was not at that store. It's okay! I'll go to another store, she thought.

     Suddenly, something caught Ji Soo's attention from her peripheral vision, so she turned to face the same star sweater that she wore on the day of the fire. Oppa really liked this sweater, she thought. We could wear it together like twins!!

     The thought of being twins with Yong Hwa exctited Ji Soo, so she took the sweater off the rack and checked its price. Twenty thousand won isn't a lot. That's probably the same price as the shoes he bought me. I just need to find something worth twelve thousand won or over to pay for the meal yesterday.

     Ji Soo found her mother sifting through a rack of clothes for something decent.

    "Umma, have you found anything yet?" 

     "No, have you? I don't think I'll find the right gift in here," Ji Min replied. "You wanna go?"

     "Alright, then. I'm gonna pay for this," Ji Soo said. She walked over to the cashier and purchased the sweater with her debit card.

     "Kaja," Ji Min said. They both walked out and into another clothing store to search for more gifts. "Ji Soo, you should look at some clothes for yourself since you donated the ones you bought to impress Yu Han."

     "No, I'll buy clothes for myself on another day. I wanna focus on getting something for Yong Hwa Oppa right now," Ji Soo replied. 

     She's taking this gift thing too seriously, Ji Min thought with an eyebrow raised. 

     After about two hours looking for a gift around the mall, Ji Soo and her mother decided to sit and eat lunch. Ji Min had already bought a gift for her friend's birthday, a brand name bag and a matching coin purse, but Ji Soo had yet to find a second gift for Yong Hwa.

     "I don't know where to go anymore," Ji Soo said despairingly. She took a bite out of her pizza slice and spoke once she swallowed. "We searched all of the clothing stores, bookstores, furniture, jewelry, department, shoes, and electronics stores, but I couldn't even find another gift for Yong Hwa Oppa."

     "We never looked in a gift shop," Ji Min realized. "Let's finish this pizza and take a look."

     They continued eating their pizza in silence, but Ji Soo decided to break it.

     "What kind of friend is that bag for?" Ji Soo asked. "You've never introduced me to your friends before."

     "Oh, my friend really likes this bag, and she has tons of them in her room," Ji Min explained. "She told me before that she collects this specific bag just in case it becomes discontinued in the future, so she can sell some a make profit."

     "Wow, she seems...odd," Ji Soo said. "How come you've never introduced me to any of your friends?"

     "Just like you said--they're odd," Ji Min responded. "They're good people, though. We've shared so many laughs together. Nobody can replace them."

     "Then what about me?" she asked.

     "Ji Soo, you're my daughter. That automatically makes you irreplaceable," Ji Min laughed. "You are my wonderful, beloved, and beautiful daughter, so why are you even asking me that kind of question?"

     "Because you left me alone when I was sick with appendicitis and peritonitis," she mumbled.

     Ji Min looked at her daughter in utter shock and bewilderment. How can...my own daughter...think that I did that on purpose? she thought.

     "I'm sorry. I've never told you that haven't I?" she said. "I knew that you were miserable. I knew that you hated both me and your father, but I had to work in order for us to survive. Do you think I wanted to leave you alone so that you can cry and loathe the very people who gave you life? Knowing all that, I was miserable as well, but I had no choice."

     "Umma, lower your voice. People are staring," Ji Soo hissed, even though she knew her mother's voice only came with one volume--high. 

     "Miane, Ji Soo," Ji Min said. "I did the best I could, but even so, it wasn't enough."

     "It's okay," Ji Soo said. "I understood a long time ago, and I don't hate you guys anymore."

     "Now, I just want to spend time with you like I should have when you were a teenager. Let's do that everyday until you get married and have kids of your own."

     "Umma, I think it's too early to talk about that kind of stuff," she said, her face turning bright pink. "We should go to the gift shop now."

     They got up and threw their trash into the bin and made their way to the gift shop not too far away. Ji Min and Ji Soo marched inside and immediately walked over to the plushies. 

     "This is our last stop," Ji Soo said seriously. "Yong Hwa Oppa's future gift is in here. I can sense it." 

     "Ji Soo, over here!" Ji Min called out. "These plushies are giant, and they're on sale for exactly twelve thousand won. You should get him one of these."

     Ji Soo scanned the stuffed animals that were on display, and her eyes fell on the most dazzling stuffed cow she has ever seen.

     "It's perfect, " she whispered.