She was sitting beside the plane window. After 10 years, she is coming back to her hometown. Memories flashed on her mind both good and bad. She then remembers the girl that she hurt so badly. She wonders how she was. She smiles and stares out the window.

Few more minutes and the plane will finally land, she then notice a girl whose hand was trembling while drinking. As a doctor, her profession kicks in.

“Uhm, have you visited the doctor and have you checked?”

“Don’t flirt, I know you’ve been looking at me”

“I’m sorry, I’m just concerned”

“Why are you a doctor?”

“Yes”

“Don’t worry about me”

The girl then stand-up and loses consciousness. The plane crew hurried to assist the passenger. She look at the passenger and saw that she was trembling.

“Can you give me a cushion?” the stewardess handed her one.

“Are you a doctor?”

“Yes, I’m Kim Minkyung. Licensed neurosurgeon”

Minkyung started to ask for a first aid kit and advise the stewardess for an emergency call to the nearest hospital. She didn’t expect that treating a patient inside the airplane will be her homecoming.

Minkyung is now a well-known doctor. She went to Europe to study and pursued her dreams. It is true that she followed her first love to have closure. What she didn’t know is she also has an unfinished business left in her homeland.

-0-

Nayoung took some days off from work to spend time with Siyeon. In a few weeks, Siyeon will be starting school and Nayoung wants to make sure that Siyeon will feel comfortable before school starts. They’ve been visiting places and today they are in an amusement park.

Though the US does have a lot of amusement park to offer, Siyeon’s joy of going to one with her mother is incomparable when she does it alone. She excitedly dragged Nayoung to various rides which Nayoung would gladly take.

Yuha, Kyulkyung, and Yewon joined them. Yewon will not leave Siyeon’s side and will tour the girl around. Siyeon is happy that Yewon is with her. She can ask things that are within their generation.

“Nayoung, we will just go to the nearby restaurant that we reserve to check,” Yuha said.

Nayoung nodded and she is left with her daughter. Siyeon dragged Nayoung to a shooting game. Nayoung is not good with such games but she doesn’t want to disappoint her daughter.

“I will win you that big stuffed toy, Mom!”

Nayoung smiled and patted Siyeon’s head who is giving her the warmest smile. Incredibly, Siyeon’s marksmanship is unbelievable. Nayoung couldn’t believe how Siyeon hit the bull’s eye in a swift manner. She knows that her daughter is so into sports but she doesn’t that she is unbelievably good. Then again she knows whom Siyeon takes this after.

She told Siyeon that she will just go ahead and buy some drinks and snacks. She bought some slushy and corndog. She then saw a girl who was crying. She walks towards her and didn’t notice someone from the side. They bumped each other and Nayoung almost fell. Luckily, the one she bumps in caught her.

The girl caught Nayoung and their eyes met. Nayoung’s world stops for a moment. She couldn’t believe her eyes. Why above all places here? And why when she is with Siyeon?

“Nayoung?”

“Hey, thank you.”

“I’m sorry for the drinks, can I buy you another one?”

“No, that’s okay Kim Minkyung.”

“Minkyung. Just call me by my first name. How are you?”

Minkyung can see that Nayoung is so tense, she keeps on glancing to the side as if she doesn’t want someone to see her. True enough, Nayoung does not want Minkyung and Siyeon to meet. Her greatest fear could happen. She suddenly panicked when Siyeon started to walk toward her.

“I….I…have to go”

She then rushed to meet Siyeon who was carrying a big sloth stuffed toy. Minkyung is baffled as to why Nayoung all of a sudden acted like that. She sighed in defeat and just let it go. She knows that she has done Nayoung wrong and she thought she deserves Nayoung’s treatment.

Siyeon happily wave the stuffed toy to Nayoung. She smiled at her mother who looks dazed. She noticed that her mother was glancing to the side.

“What’s wrong Mom?”

“Huh? Nothing, let’s go, baby”

Nayoung hurriedly grabs Siyeon away, making sure that Minkyung is not following them. She then received a message from Yuha. She meets them in the restaurant that they reserved.

Yuha and Kyulkyung noticed how tense Nayoung was. They asked Yewon and Siyeon to go outside first and get something. Nayoung is just staring at the empty table. Yuha had to snap her fingers in order to take Nayoung’s attention.

“What’s wrong with you?” Yuha also noticed that Nayoung keeps on drinking water.

“You look like you saw a ghost, unnie” Kyulkyung remarks.

“I saw her” Nayoung responded.

“Who?” the couple co-ed.

 “Minkyun, she’s back”

Kyulkyung covers her mouth in shock. Yuha understood why Nayoung was all of a sudden acted this way. Nayoung’s greatest fear almost happened. Yuha and Kyulkyung are aware that Nayoung does not want Minkyung and Siyeon to meet. They know that Nayoung does not want Siyeon to know that she was a fruit of her parents’ vulnerability. They know that Nayoung does not want to let Siyeon feel that she is unloved by her other parent.

“Did she see Siyeon?” Yuha asked. Nayoung shook her head. Yuha sighed in thankfulness.

Kyulkyung sits beside Nayoung and comforts her. They couldn’t believe that Minkyung and Siyeon’s meeting almost happened.

-0-

Siyeon is sitting outside a room. She was asked to wait for her mom. She is busy playing with her phone but notices the people who will stop by and look at her. She enjoys the attention but she does not like it when it is too much.

Meanwhile, Nayoung is inside Kyulkyung’s office. She is the head director of the school where Siyeon will enroll. Despite being a friend, Nayoung wants Siyeon’s acceptance like any other student.

Siyeon’s grade is nothing Nayoung should fear. The girl is almost perfect. She knows about Siyeon being good at school. She is just surprised that Siyeon is so good at everything.

“Siyeon’s grade is exceptional. All she needed to do is pass the test”

“I know she can pass it.”

“Unnie…when are you planning to tell Siyeon?”

“I don’t know and I don’t want to”

“Now that Minkyung is here, there’s a high chance that their path will cross”

“I don’t know, I’m not ready”

Siyeon then barges in. Fortunately, she didn’t hear what her mom and Kyulkyung were talking about. Kyulkyung asks her to sit and the girl gladly takes it.

“How was the exam?”

“It was good, I’m confident that I will pass Aunt Kyulkyung”

“Wow, what a cocky girl we have here.” They then laugh. Nayoung is really thankful that Siyeon will not be a headache.

“We will just wait for the result. I hope you can meet a lot of new friends here”

“I have Yewon, I know I can depend on her.”

“That’s right honey but Mommy will be happy too if you can widen your network”

“Don’t worry Mom! Just now, people keep on looking at me. Kind of creepy but I know I can work my magic” Siyeon said in full-blown English. Kyulkyung and Nayoung laugh at the young girl’s confidence.

“I don’t know where you got that confidence, I am 100% sure that’s not from your mom”

“Of course, she took that from me, what are you talking about Kyulkyung”

“Nah, probably from my father. Just joking Mom!”

They laugh but that made Kyulkyung and Nayoung look at each other. They know that Siyeon was joking but this is what Nayoung fear. She doesn’t want Siyeon to look for her other parent.

What Siyeon knows is that her father left Nayoung even before she was born. Nayoung made her believe that her father was evil and ruthless and have to take her away from her father. Siyeon hates her father for that. She blames him for what she had done to Nayoung, but her father is not a “he”. How did that happen, only the miracle of life can answer.

When Siyeon was younger, she will ask about her father but will not really press about it. She believes whatever Nayoung will tell her. She is just happy with Nayoung being both her mother and father. She does want to see her father but if that will cause her mom pain then she would rather not.