I Believe - Shin Seung Hun

Donghae's POV

"Yoboseyo?" she repeated after a few seconds of silence. I've wasted almost a minute of her precious time just calling her and not saying anything. I just wanted to hear Min Yu's voice so badly, but I'm afraid if I say anything, she'll hang up.

"Hello? Who is this please?" she asked, sounding a little irritated this time. Phone calls from Bangkok to Seoul were never cheap, but since she wasted thousands of won when she used to leave me voicemails I never answered, I'm just going to do the same.

I wanted to say: Hey, it's me, Donghae, remember? I'm the guy who took advantage of your drunkenness and slept with you that night when you and your boyfriend just got back together, while me and my girlfriend were getting along well.

Then I was the stupid guy who let you go when you told me you thought you were pregnant, and now everyone in South Korea knows you as your face appeared a thousand times on television and internet during your captive in the North.

My name doesn't ring a bell? Well, I was the guy who broke up with my girlfriend when you told me you thought you were pregnant. Yeah, I broke up with a celebrity slash model slash actress  just to be with you.

Still don't remember me? I was the guy who rejected your offer two years ago, when you told me you'd break up with Chunji just so you could be with me. Yeah, I was that big of an idiot to say no. So...will you come here, forget all about your engagement with your boyfriend, so you could give me another chance?

But of course, those words wouldn't slip out of my mouth without tears flowing out of my eyes and me sounding like a complete coward. I pressed the phone in between my ear and shoulder, as both my hands were too preoccupied tying my shoelaces.

"Can you please get me some coffee? Thanks," Min Yu muttered in the background. "Hello? Who is this? Hello?" she called out again, and I knew better than to waste her precious time.

Chunji's POV

"Where are you going?" Min Yu asked as I started to put my shoes on. "Uhh, home?" I replied, pointing to the door awkwardly. "Just stay here, please?" she pouted cutely, and I could only sigh in defeat. She clapped her hands in victory before nodding to herself and going back to the kitchen to finish washing the dishes. She always gets what she wants, anyway.

The ticket burned in my pocket, reminding me of how much time I was losing. "Are you doing something important tomorrow?" I asked. "Not really. The article I needed had already been sent and is up for editing. Why?" she replied. "Let's go somewhere," I suggested, pulling the ticket out of my pocket and examining the rectangular piece of paper. "Where?" she demanded.

"Thailand," I shouted over the loud volume of the television. The sound of plates clattering on the sink erupted from where she was. She must've been surprised. "Really? Overseas?" she asked, trying to cover up the shock in her voice. I slumped my head back on the sofa and closed my eyes. She can't hide anything from me. Oh how I knew her so well...

"You don't want to? But I already have the ticket for you," I flailed the paper high up in the air. She wiped her hands dry and snatched it away from me. "But the flight's tomorrow?" she raised an eyebrow questioningly.

"How long will we be there? What about school? What abo--" "Relax," I ordered her and motioned for her to take a seat. "I booked us a round trip flight, so you shouldn't have to worry about us getting back home," I explained.

"How long will we be there?" she repeated, still eyeing the ticket's fine print. "A week." We both sat in silence for a long moment, with her still absorbing my announcement and me still convincing myself it was time.

"What time is it?" she asked. "A little after nine," I glanced at my wrist watch. "And the flight is at six in the morning tomorrow," she replied weakly.

"Need help packing?" I offered, to which she nodded. "What about you?" she asked as we both stood up and headed to her room. "I'm going to spend a week in Thailand ," I joked and laughed at my own statement.

She could only glare at me with daggers in her eyes. "Of course I already packed," I threw her closet doors open and began tossing random clothes towards her bed.

Min Yu was silent as she sat on her bed, eyeing her passport and watching me from behind. I could tell she wasn't expecting this to happen out of nowhere, and I myself didn't expect her to be so calm about it.

Quiet, peaceful atmosphere took over the entire apartment for the next hour, and I wondered how she could go on a whole 60 minutes without asking me questions or complaining about my sudden offer.

Contented with what I had prepared, I closed the closet doors shut and turned around, only to see Min Yu already sleeping. "She said she needed help packing, but all she wanted was for me to pack for her," I grumbled, shoving her clothes inside her bag hastily. After which, I settled in right beside her sleeping figure, pulling the blanket to cover us both.

I brushed the hair away from her face, and wondered if anything could go wrong at this moment. There could be missiles launched beside me, or earthquakes below us.

The sky could turn green, and sea water could turn sweet, but nothing could ever distract me from watching Min Yu sleep, the way her lips purse and her fingers twitch at any sudden sound.

I tucked her hair behind her ear and brushed the strands away from her face. Could I cancel the flight, make her stay, and remain in my own selfishness? Could I have three more days, five more weeks, eight more months, and a thousand more years with her? I cupped her cheek and caressed her skin gently with my fingers, spoiling myself for the last remaining moments.

She stirred in her sleep and her eyes fluttered open. "Sssh. Go back to sleep," I whispered, as she clutched a fistful of my shirt and clung to me tightly. Her hot breath evened against my skin while she drifted back to dreamland. I lifted her left hand to my face, and kissed the ring on her finger. "Chunji?" she mumbled with her eyes closed.

"Hmm?" I asked, intertwining our fingers together.

"I love you," she muttered, snuggling closer to me. It never failed to send tingles throughout my body whenever she utters those three words. I chuckled and kissed her forehead, not bothering to say anything. She might probably hate my guts tomorrow morning, but it wouldn't last long. She would realize I was right, and that I had known better.

If everything would go smoothly as planned tomorrow, Min Yu would be forever grateful to me. I closed my eyes and uttered a short prayer to any god who's free to listen.

I was, am, and forever will be thankful for the past eight years Min Yu had spared for me. But now as I look back, those eight years can be summed up in just one minute. Every second had been like the thrill you feel when you spot a thousand won on the ground.

You bend down and pick it up, maybe even feel happy for having that kind of money, even if the amount is not that life-changing. You feel happy for being able to spend it without having to work hard to earn it.

With money, you could buy almost anything, but not everything. Then in the end, you still feel guilty, knowing it was never yours, but it was there on the ground for some other person, maybe the very same owner.

In my life, Min Yu was the money and I had been the lucky one to find her. After going through every nook and cranny of everyday life, I could never rewrite fate and make me as her owner.

She could even claim me to be the original handler of the money, but what's the use of lying when the both of you know the truth? Min Yu knows her owner. Even her owner knows himself. Even I know who the owner is. But Min Yu was too scared to admit it and I was too scared to lose her.

A tear fell from her eyes, as if she could read my thoughts. I kissed her tear away, together with the fears and secrets behind those eyes. The last time she would cry is when she's with me.

After tomorrow, she may still cry, but not because of sadness. After tomorrow, everything would be happiness. I may not be the cause, but I will smile for her. If she's happy, then so am I.