She smiled.

She kept smiling.

She’s still smiling, happy to be with her bundle of joy.

She’s no longer smiling.

She put on a fake smile as she saw the engagement ring, knowing what it meant.

Inside, she felt betrayed as she watched the love of her life give a hug to her fiancé.

She felt her world crumble down as she sat away from her friends, away from her coworkers, away from her.

Feeling as if she couldn’t take it anymore, she ran.

Away from the only home she’s ever known, the people she cherished with all her heart.

She ran away from the girl she has come to love. The girl who would always brighten up her mood and day by just being with her. The girl who has stolen her heart, ripped it out of her chest to make sure she won’t love anyone but her.

She ran away from her rock.

She ran away from Mina.

5 years later, Warsaw, Poland

She took in a deep breath, making sure her tailored uniform was clean and pristine.

“Kim Dahyun, out in 3 minutes.” She heard the announcer speak. She flexed her fingers, making sure they weren’t stiff. She exhaled and looked out to the stage. Seeing the day’s last pianist about to finish, she closed her eyes and took in the closing sound of the piano as she felt the piece reach its ending.

“Kim Dahyun, you are out in 3 seconds.” She took in one last breath as she unconsciously ran the piece through her mind, letting the melody she can only hear in her head momentarily overtake her as her fingers played the air as if it were a piano.

“We now present our new piano awards winner! Please give it out for Kim Dahyun!” The announcer said as presented his right hand in her general direction, polite clapping greeting her as she put on a smile and confidently walked on stage to the only home she’s known for the past five years, the piano.

Sitting down, she eloquently arranged the papers for her convenience, not wanting to stop the sound to flip a page. Inhaling the wooden scent of the piano, she calmed herself and brushed the piano’s keys with her fingers, before she played the first note.

To say the audience was captivated was an understatement. From the one note she played, it grabbed her attention as they were on the edges of her seat. But she didn’t notice this, the piano’s deep, rich sound fully engulfing her body, a sense of security and familiarity surrounding her body, feeling as if she was in a forest by herself, playing to her heart’s content. The audience gasped as the piece painted a beautiful forest scenery in front of them, each note representing the serenity and grace the peaceful forest had. Each verse told its own story, but Dahyun somehow made it all fit to tell the tale of a great adventure. The crowd was in a state of awe as they felt the piano’s warm embrace, closing their eyes to lose themselves in the music as they felt content. As the song started to approach its final piece, the melody took a drastic turn, the audience feeling a sense of longing and heartbreak as the tune started to draw out.

Before the audience knew, the piece was over. Some felt great loss represented in the piece, but that was overlooked by the sheer perfection the pianist played at, some people in the audience moved to the point of tears. Before a momentary pause, the crowd roared in amazement, almost all the audience giving out standing ovations.

Dahyun stood, tear tracks staining her cheeks as she let out a small smile and bowed to the audience, which served to make their applause louder as they cheered for her. Looking back up, she gave one last smile, before turning around and exiting the stage. Getting to the back room was a bit cumbersome as many pianists congratulated her and applauded. Reaching her own dressing room, she smiled as she greeted her mentor, who took her in after leaving Kor- her home country.

“Ohoho, my child.” Her mentor said as she extended both her arms open in greeting. Dahyun smiled as she went up to the lady and embraced her.

“How was it Teacher?” Dahyun said as she pulled back from the lady’s embrace, not breaking contact.

“Oh no more of this teacher nonsense. Why, I think you’re better than me now.” The old lady smiled as she embraced her only student once more with tearful eyes.

“Like I said when I met you at that bar Dahyun. You’re a prodigy in the arts. You don’t need to keep asking me if I liked it. Whatever you play will be a treat to the ears.” The old lady said with a somewhat serious tone as she looked at her student, as if she was inspecting her.

“Why are you crying child?” The mentor asked in Korean. Dahyun’ s eyes slightly widened as she switched from Polish to Korean.

“You can speak Korean?” The girl said as she wiped away her tears with her sleeve.

“I’m surprised you didn’t know until know. How do you think I’ve always known what you wanted to eat darling.”

“I-I just thought that you were guessing?” Dahyun sheepishly asked as she looked rubbed the back of her neck.

“Mmh. Anyways, we must head out now for a celebration honey.” Her mentor said as she led them out of the concert hall and to her Dahyun’ s car. Moving to open the door for her teacher, Dahyun quickly walked up to the passenger seat and held it open for the old lady, who nodded her thanks. Dahyun quickly wrapped around the front of the car and got into the driver’s seat.

“Anywhere you would like to go in particular Baba?” Dahyun questioned. Her mentor’s eyes softened as she heard what Dahyun called her, the girl not having called her Baba since she moved out her house 2 years ago. Dahyun turned her head to look at her teacher, feeling her teacher’s gaze on her. Baba smiled even more as they locked eyes.

“What?” Dahyun asked as she tore her gaze away from her mentor to look at the road, her face taking on a red color.

“Nothing. You just haven’t called me Baba in a long time.” Baba sighed as she looked at the road, the various buildings catching her eyes as they drove past them. Dahyun stayed silent at this fact as she kept her thoughts occupied by the drive. After a few seconds, Baba decided to break the silence.

“You’re house.”  Dahyun nodded in understanding as she took the necessary route to the road that led to her house. Turning around the corner to cut to the front of the Warsaw Concert Hall, she saw a group of people who made her eyes widen, her breathing became a bit uneven as her heartrate slightly increased. Baba, noticing this, took one of her hands and gently squeezed it.

“Darling? What’s wrong?” Noticing the old lady’s worry, Dahyun calmed herself and put on a smile.

“Nothing Baba. I’m fine.” I’m not fine.

“If you’re sure honey.” Baba gave her one last worried look before she resumed looking out the window, Dahyun’ s slight mood change still at the front of her mind.

‘What are they doing here?’ Dahyun questioned as she tried to busy herself by paying attention to the road. Her hands trembled, struggling to gain control as she saw her. Mina. Dahyun felt her heartbeat raise at the thought of the girl, hating the fact that the girl made her feel things inside, hating herself for having feelings for her after all this time.

After what should have seemed like a five-minute ride home felt like an hour to Dahyun as she pulled up in to her two-story flat, bringing the car into the garage. Letting out a breath that she didn’t know she was holding, she turned to look at the now sleeping old lady, not knowing how she would always sleep in the shortest amount of time. Shaking her head, she moved a hand to lightly shake the sleeping lady.

“Teacher, we’re here now.” Dahyun said as the lady quickly woke up.

“Oh. It has been a while since I came here that I nearly forgot you lived near Warsaw.” Baba said, trying to stifle a yawn. Dahyun only nodded back as she got out of the car and helped the elder out and into the house.

“Bark!” Baba immediately heard the smile as she heard Ari, Dahyun’ s dog.

“Why hello there Ari. Oh, how I’ve missed you. Have you been a good boy for our Dahyun?” Baba knelt to take the Maltese into her arms and hugged her, Ari also enjoying the new attention she was getting, wagged her tail in response as she repeatedly the lady’s cheek. Dahyun stood at the entrance to the garage inside the house’s hallway as she locked the door behind her.

“What, don’t I get some attention from my own dog.” Dahyun lightly teased them as she put up her blazer on the door rack behind the garage door. Taking off the blazer revealed her perfect body as it matured even more over the years, a body which many polish men and even some women yearned for and dreamt of. She had an hourglass body, her tofu-like skin being accentuated by her blonde hair as she swept it over to one side of her body, her chest gaining more mass over the years.

“Honey, your body is one of the best if not THE best bodies I’ve ever seen.” Baba said with a proud look on her eyes as she put down the now pouting Maltese, as the girl heavily blushed with embarrassment at hearing that statement.

“You’re just exaggerating Baba; my body isn’t that great compared to others.” She murmured, still loud enough for the old lady to hear. Shaking her head and exiting the hallway into the kitchen, she felt both Ari and Baba approach her, Ari going up to her and pawed at her exposed ankle, wanting attention from her owner. Smiling, Dahyun picked up the small dog and held her in her arms like a baby whilst petting her small head.

“You’re blind Dahyun. In all my years of modelling, I have seen many other bodies but yours is by far one of the best ones I’ve seen.” Baba said. Dahyun felt her face get redder with embarrassment as she tightly clenched Ari in her arms. Wanting to change the subject, Dahyun let Ari down, the dog protesting by letting out a small whine before giving up and walking to her dog castle.

“What do you want for dinner Baba?” Dahyun said as she tied her hair up in a loose bun, grabbing a long apron from the pantry and put it over her white dress shirt, bringing the sleeves up to her elbows.

“Oh, don’t mind me dear. I’ve already eaten.” The old lady replied as she made her way to the living room and sat down on one of the various comfy couches the room offered. The room had five couches all in a half-circle shape, a somewhat large table in the middle of the room which the couches surrounded. In one corner of the room held a grand piano that was surrounded by various plants and a large window overlooking the backyard which held a nice view of Warsaw, the house being situated on a hill allowed this view. On the opposing corner of the room was a large flat screen TV as well as a surround speaker system, which had various speakers connect to it throughout the house via Bluetooth. The wall connected by the corners also had a nice fireplace. On the corner opposing the TV was a PC and a Mac.

Sighing in content, the lady laid her head back on the couch and grabbed one of the blankets the couch had. “I don’t know why you have five couches Dear; you rarely have anyone over other than me.” She said as she slowly sunk into the couch and closed her eyes.

Dahyun ignored her as she prepped the ingredients for her dinner. Washing her hands, she fished out the Beef Steak she bought yesterday, along with some carrots, broccoli, and some tofu. She put a pan on the electric stove and the heat to max, needing to warm the pan. While waiting for the pan to heat up, she started to prep the steak, putting on garlic powder along with some salt and pepper. She then got a small pot and steamed the broccoli, putting in the carrots later as she needed to peel them. Deciding to fry the tofu, she waited for the pan to finish heating up before putting in some red wine. She carefully placed the steak into the pan, spooning some wine onto the steak to fully coat it as well as to give it more flavor. Having done this many times, she waited for the right time to flip the meat. She felt it was time and flipped the steak, letting the other side cook for less time compared to the previous side. Taking out the steak onto a plate of steaming rice, she put in the tofu in the still-hot pan, allowing the tofu to soak up the juices of the steak as well as the red wine. Hearing the steamer’s timer go off, she quickly took the lid off the steamer, moving her face away from the hot steam before she dumped the vegetables onto a separate bowl. After doing this, she moved towards the now golden tofu and took them off the pan, placing them next to the steak. She then prepared to slice the meat up in five separate pieces, checking to see if there was still pink in the meat. She picked both plates up and put them on the dining table, sitting adjacent from the stove. She did all this with the graceful movements of a ballerina.

As she turned around to go and hang up her apron, she heard applause behind her. Turning around she saw the older lady sitting down at the table across from her seat.

“You’re beautiful, have a great body, can play the piano, and can even cook delicious food. How you aren’t in a relationship is something that amazes me. Why, if I was around your age, I would have taken you the moment I laid my eyes.” Baba told her, the girl finding herself blushing from the older lady’s words yet again, losing count as they entered the house. However, the room silently felt colder to both due to what the older lady said next.

“Do you still love someone?” Her words caused something to happen inside Dahyun’ s body as she thought back to Korea. She thought about her friends, she thought about all the things she left in order to protect her heart. She thought about the heartbreak she experienced, about Mina.

“Sometimes, sometimes I think about them. But I don’t think I do love them anymore.” She quietly said as she sat down in front of her food. Baba quietly watched her as she waited for her to finish her food. For five minutes they sat like this, an awkward silence filling the room as Baba intently gazed at the girl, the girl not wanting to look at her eyes as she focused on finishing her food. After finishing the steak, she packed the tofu and the vegetables into a small bowl, no longer possessing the will or the hunger to finish her dinner.

“Who are you lying to? Me, or yourself?” She froze as she turned around to face Baba, who was sitting down in the exact same position she was in five minutes earlier.

“Excuse me?” Dahyun asked, fear filling her stomach as she dreaded what was going to come next.

“You heard me Dahyun. Who are you lying to, me or you?” Baba repeated her eyes hardening as she talked with the girl.

“I’m sorry Baba, but I think you’re kind of deaf now that you’re older.” Dahyun said as she, in return, hardened her gaze on her mentor.

“I may be old child, I may also start going deaf, but I know for a fact that you’re lying to yourself.” The teacher said with a cold edge on her voice. They both waited until Dahyun has had enough and exploded on the elder.

“Well, what do you want me to say Baba?! That I still love her? If that’s all you want to hear then yeah, I do. I do love her. I love her voice. I love hearing her laugh because of all the things I would do, hearing her laugh over some of the smallest things would just brighten my day. I loved being able to spend time with her, away from the exhaustion of being an idol. I loved how she was always there for me even when I hurt her. She would always be there for me. I loved the way she danced, stunning the room with her movements. But you know what I loved the most? I loved the fact that I can just be myself, that I can just let go in front of her, how her eyes would always light up at the smallest things. But you wanna know something Baba? She stole my heart. She ripped it out of my chest and kept it locked up in a chest. So yes. I do still love her. But now it’s impossible because she’s married.” Dahyun finished her rant. Her chest felt a bit lighter to let out all her frustration. Her breathing became heavier as her anger turned into sadness and longing, her body shaking as she sobbed. Baba sadly smiled at the girl as she got up and embraced her. This served to make the girl sob even harder as she hugged back and put her head on her teacher’s shoulder.

“I loved her Baba. I still do, even after five years. She was someone I was happy with. I wanted to tell her how I feel, but it was too late.” Dahyun sobbed into her dress.

“Shh. Let it all out Dahyun. Come. Let’s get you to bed.” Dahyun only nodded as Baba wrapped an arm around her and lead her to the stairs, bringing the now silent girl up to the room at the end of the hallway. Helping the girl undress to her underwear to slip on her nightgown, Baba really wished she was younger.

“Come child. I’ll tuck you in.” Dahyun mutely nodded as she climbed up the California King and laid her head down on the puffy pillow.

“I’m sorry Baba. You didn’t deserve that.” Dahyun mumbled.

“Oh, don’t worry dear. I’m sorry too. I feared I overstepped my boundaries.” Baba chuckled as she wrapped the large comforter around the girl. She almost laughed as Dahyun dozed off as soon as she put the comforter around the girl, the girl almost disappearing in the large comforter as she unconsciously grabbed another pillow and hugged it.

Baba smiled at the thought and headed off to find another room to sleep in.

Throughout the night, Dahyun tossed and turned in her bed, her thoughts occupied by one person, and one person only.

“Mina….” Dahyun whispered as she fell further into her slumber, not knowing that tomorrow might change the way she’s lived for the past five years.