The next day Jonghwa got back to his apartment and looked around.  He had really made a mess.  He was cleaning up, one room at a time.  There was a lot that needed fixing or replacing but it was okay.  He didn’t feel as completely lost and empty inside anymore.  At one point Sangbae called and invited himself over.  The two of them finished cleaning up the apartment and sat down on the couch.

“So… Why does Hoejun have a key to your apartment?”  Sangbae asked suddenly.  

“Huh?  Oh, I gave him keys back in college.”  Jonghwa replied casually.

“Oh, okay.”  Sangbae seemed unsatisfied with that answer but let the topic go.  “This place looks a lot better now.”

“Yeah, thanks for helping.”  Jonghwa looked around with a sort of sadness in his eyes.  

“Oh, right!  I found this while we were cleaning.”  Sangbae pulled a slightly torn picture out of his pocket and handed it to Jonghwa.  It was a picture of the two of them after Jaeho’s graduation.  Jaeho stood in the middle of the two of them in a cap and gown, the biggest smiles on all of their faces.  Jonghwa smiled, but it was a melancholy smile.  When everything was happier.  He thought to himself.  

“.  I have to go, Daewon just texted and said Kyungtak got locked out of the apartment.  This idiot never remembers to bring his keys.”  Sangbae frowned at his phone and shook his head.  

“Okay.  I have to go back to work tomorrow so call before if you’re stopping by.”  Jonghwa walked Sangbae to the door and waved goodbye to his friend.  Work.  How am I going to go back there now without Jaeyoung?  He had taken a week off from both his jobs.  He taught judo at the elementary school that Jaeyoung worked at during the afternoons in addition to teaching it at his gym on the weekends.  He let out a shaky breath and went to get a small dinner prepared.  

It felt good to get out of the apartment for once.  Jonghwa hadn’t really left his apartment since the funeral but once he got out it felt good.  He decided to take the subway to the school instead of driving.  He had to get back into the world after isolating himself for so long.  Jonghwa got to the school thirty minutes before the first bell rang and set his gym bag down in the locker room.  He changed into athletic clothes and put some mats out on the gym floor.  Soon the bell rang to signal the start of homeroom and then first period.  Jonghwa checked the schedule he had in his small office and sighed when he saw he didn’t have a class until third period.  

By the time the bell rang for third period to start Jonghwa had checked his phone and emails about a thousand times.  He put his phone away and got a clipboard to take attendance.  The students took a few minutes to change but soon the gym was filled with chatter.  Jonghwa blew a whistle and all attention turned to him.

“Lee-seonsaengnim!  We made you a card!”  The class president announced after raising her hand.

“Oh, that’s really nice.  Why don’t you give it to me after class though?”  He smiled politely and thanked his students.  They nodded back and class started.  After some stretches, they paired up and Jonghwa ran them through some drills.  Soon the period had ended and the class went back into the locker rooms to get changed.  The class president came running out of the locker room to give Jonghwa the card the class had made and then went running back to get to the next class before the late bell.  Jonghwa flipped the card open before the next class came in and read through it.

“Seonsaengnim!  Why are you crying?”  A student asked.  They had gotten to class earlier than everyone else and walked into the gym to see Jonghwa tearing up.

“Huh?  Oh, Hanbyul-ah.  Nothing, the last class just made me a card and it made me emotional.  Don’t tell anyone else though, okay?  Gotta keep my image.”  Jonghwa put the card away and tried to smile for the next class.  It was touching to see how the students really cared about Jaeyoung and Jonghwa.  

After school ended Jonghwa went home, had something to eat and got in his car.  He had a small collection of cards that he wanted to take to Jaeyoung’s grave.  When he got to the hill, there was another car parked and he saw a figure standing up at the top.  It was Jaeho.

“What are you doing here?  Don’t you have college classes or something?”  Jonghwa asked quietly as he approached.  

“Hm?  Oh, they ended earlier today.  What are those?”  Jaeho asked, pointed at the cards.  

“Some of her students are in my judo class and they made cards.  I thought she would want to see them.”  There was a small pocket next to the grave stone for flowers.  Jonghwa set the cards in the small space with the flowers that Jaeho had brought and the two stood next to each other in silence for a while.  The sun slowly descended from the sky and the air got a little colder.  Jonghwa pulled a ring out of his pocket and watched the sun reflect off the small stone in the middle.

“I was going to propose to her.  Before the accident.”  Jonghwa said softly.  Jaeho looked over slightly shocked and stared at the ring.  Jonghwa set it down with the cards and flowers and sat back on his ankles for a moment.

“I love you Jaeyoung.”  He whispered as the sun slowly dipped behind the hill. Jaeho looked down and smiled, glad that he was able to meet Jonghwa. He took a few steps back before turning around and walking to his car, leaving Jonghwa alone on the hill.

"Jonghwa... Don't cry anymore... I'm still with you..."  A voice whispered out of nowhere. Jonghwa looked up and blinked, trying to make sense of what he saw. Jaeyoung stood in front of him in a flowing skirt and top, the wind blowing back her hair. He got up and stared back, amazed. This can't be real. I'm seeing things.  He thought. He reached out a hand but the image evaporated under his touch.

"I'll always love you."