The first week of October had already arrived and Ri Ah had just come out of the bathroom, freshly showered after her morning jog. She went to her desk and her laptop, wrapping her towel around her wet hair as she waited for it to load. Once on, she checked her school e-mail, scrolling through her Inbox with her pointer finger lazily until one particular message made her hand freeze. It was from the university's Study Abroad Office, and the subject read "King's College London, England Application".

As she stared at the bolded letters of the unopened message, Ri Ah felt her heart pound loudly against her chest. With shaky fingers, she hovered her mouse above the e-mail and slowly pressed down on the mouse. Only after taking a deep breath as mental preparation, did she depress the mouse to open the e-mail, but as soon as the page started to load, she scrunched her eyes close, afraid to read its contents.

This nervous feeling just before finding out if she was accepted into the program or not, it was reminiscent of the day she received her letter from S University during her senior year of high school. She remembered opening the letter but not actually looking at it for a good while. And just as she had done for her college acceptance, Ri Ah slowly opened one eye to catch glimpse of the first few letters of the e-mail: "Cong". She quickly opened her second eye and fell open as she continued to read the message. She had been accepted. Her hand went to as she tried to contain a squeal of joy. Instead, she jumped up and down, causing her wrapped towel to fall off her head.

She forced herself to calm down as she picked up her towel and finished getting ready for school. It was too soon to be celebrating, because while the condition of being accepted had been met, there was still the 'if' of finding a host family, and the reminder quickly put a damper on her spirits. So until she was positive that she would be going, Ri Ah decided to keep news of her acceptance to herself.

After classes one weekday, Ri Ah left school with Hye Ri to spend time at her house doing homework together. As soon as Ri Ah stepped into the house, she saw Kang San sitting in the living room watching TV. "It's been a while, Kang San," she amicably greeted him.

Kang San looked up and his eyes widened in surprise to see Ri Ah. He quickly stood up. "N-N-Noona, you're here."

Ri Ah looked him up and down in shock. "Wah, you've grown even taller since I last saw you." She gave him a sly smile as her eyes landed on his face. "And, even more handsome."

Kang San's cheeks turned a noticeable shade of pink and he nervously looked away. "U-um, I-I have to go…do homework," he quietly muttered before slipping past Ri Ah and running up the stairs. Ri Ah stared after him in confusion at his distant behavior. Was it something she said?

"Where'd Kang San go?" Hye Ri asked as she entered the living room with a tray of drinks.

Ri Ah was still trying to comprehend Kang San's odd behavior. "He said he had homework to do."

Hye Ri scoffed at her brother's excuse. "That liar. His school is on break right now, and he always does his homework last minute." She shook her head to herself. "I'll never understand that boy."

The two headed upstairs to Hye Ri's room, where Hye Ri occupied her bed and Ri Ah took over her desk.

"Your room is clean today," Ri Ah commented as she glanced around to notice no clothes on the floor, the desk clear, and her bed made.

Hye Ri let out a sigh. "Yeah, it's all Kyung Soo Oppa's doing. He's rubbing off on me…or rather, he keeps pestering me about keeping my room clean every time he comes over. My mom is ecstatic about it, but I'm just…tired."

The image of D.O. with an apron on, acting like Hye Ri's mother and badgering her about her messy room appeared in Ri Ah's head and she snorted to herself at the hilarity of it.

While Hye Ri was met with a brick wall on her paper for one of her Humanities classes, she fell back on her bed and stared at Ri Ah, who was biting her lip and tapping her pencil against her book as she struggled with a problem for her Genetics class. "When do you find out?" Hye Ri suddenly asked.

Ri Ah looked up from her work at her. "Find out about what?"

"About your study abroad program," Hye Ri clarified. "I mean, it's been weeks since you applied, wouldn't you have found out by now?"

Ri Ah bit her lip in contemplation at whether she should tell Hye Ri that she had been accepted, but was waiting to hear about a host family. She decided that she would come clean to her. "Actually, I already found out…that I was accepted."

Hye Ri quickly sat up in her bed with wide eyes. "You were?! Why didn't you tell me earlier?!" she demanded. Ri Ah explained her reasons for keeping the news to herself. "Hmm, I don't know why, but I have this weird feeling that you should check your e-mail," Hye Ri said after hearing Ri Ah's predicament.

Ri Ah raised a brow at her request but brought out her laptop anyways to check her school e-mail. And sure enough, there was another message from the Study Abroad Office, this time with the subject, "London, England Host Family Status". She looked over at Hye Ri with wide eyes. "I got an e-mail."

Hye Ri quickly got off her bed and joined Ri Ah at her desk. "What does it say?" she asked as she stared at the screen from behind. But the page was still on the list of e-mails in her Inbox.

Ri Ah quickly got out of her seat. "I can't look. You tell me what it says," she said to Hye Ri before turning her back to the computer.

Hye Ri took a seat and clicked on the message, her eyes scanning over the message. "Ri Ah," she quietly called to her.

Ri Ah gulped. "Yeah?"

"Mr. James Stott and Mrs. Clara Stott."

Ri Ah furrowed her brows. "What?"

Hye Ri jumped up from her seat and gave Ri Ah a back hug. "Mr. James Stott and Mrs. Clara Stott," she repeated. "That's the name of the couple you're staying with."

Ri Ah's jaw dropped and a grin started forming on her face. She turned around in Hye Ri's embrace before the two hugged each other tightly as they jumped up and down, squealing in joy.

"You're going to England!" Hye Ri exclaimed with a big grin. Her grin disappeared and was replaced with a frown. "You're going to be gone for a whole semester." Ri Ah's own smile started to diminish at the reminder of what she would be leaving behind by taking this opportunity.

Unable to go back to doing homework, the two lay together on Hye Ri's bed, staring at the ceiling. "I can't believe it. I'm not going to see you for four months," Hye Ri quietly said. She softly smiled and turned to look at Ri Ah. "You know, it's weird, but between the two of us, I thought I would be the one to leave the country before you ever thought of doing so."

Ri Ah returned a small smile of her own. "I never thought I would ever be leaving the country any time soon either, or at all for that matter. If someone told me on the first day of college that I would be going to England in a year and a half, I would have thought they were crazy. But," she resumed looking at Hye Ri's white ceiling. "I'm excited about going on this adventure. I really think this is right for me."

Hye Ri gazed at Ri Ah's profile with a proud smile. She was happy for her and really hoped that going to England would give her a valuable life experience. Her smile turned into a frown of worry as her eyes drifted down her side to her hand where the silver band still hugged her left ring finger. She reached for the hand and intertwined her fingers with Ri Ah's, causing Ri Ah to look down at their interlocked hands before she looked at Hye Ri questioningly.

"You're right, this is an adventure you're going on," Hye Ri said with a serious look on her face. "But, I think that before you leave, you should tie up any loose ends you have." She held up their locked hands and turned them so Ri A's ring was visible. "Or maybe, untie some others."

Ri Ah stared at the ring with glistening eyes, knowing fully well what Hye Ri was referring to. She remembered their conversation from the day they had gone to the mall to find a baby shower gift. Hye Ri's words just then struck a chord with her as resonantly as they had back then. You shouldn't keep reminder strings on too long. They can cut off circulation to the finger.

Ri Ah cleared and sat up on the bed. "I-I need to use the bathroom, I'll be back," she mumbled before pulling her hand back and leaving Hye Ri's room. Hye Ri stared after her with a troubled look. She sighed and sat up to try to resume working on her paper.

In the bathroom, Ri Ah looked down at her ring, twirling it with her thumb as she did. She thought about Hye Ri's words and slowly, reached for the band with her other hand to pull it off. Holding the ring between her fingers, she stared at the engraving on the inside. The memory of Doo Joon giving her the ring more than two years ago came rushing back; the promises they had made to each other, the futures they had laid out for themselves…and together. But it was an empty promise now. Even if she did become a doctor and open up a free clinic, his promise would never be fulfilled. So why was she still hanging onto his ring like it would be?

Because he had loved her so much that he had promised to give himself to her. And if she let go of him so easily, it would be disregarding his love for her. With that weighing down on her heart, she replaced the ring back on her finger. She sighed heavily and the sink to splash cool water on her face and calm herself down. After drying her face, she took a deep breath to clear her mind and finally exited the bathroom.

As she left, she ran into Kang San in the hallway. He stumbled backwards in surprise. "Oh, Ri Ah Noona, sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going."

Ri Ah shook her head and tried to muster a smile. "No, it's probably my fault. I have a lot on my mind."

Kang San nervously smiled in recognition. He awkwardly rubbed the back of his head as he tried to think of something to say in the midst of the silence that had settled between them and Ri Ah noticed that he seemed conflicted. "Uh, well, I guess I'll get going then." His words came out with short pauses which only furthered Ri Ah's speculations that something was bothering him.

While he tried to move past Ri Ah, she grabbed hold of his arm. His eyes widened at her grasp, and a nervous feeling settled in his heart. He turned back to look at her with guilt in his yes. "Is something wrong?" she asked. "Did I do something to upset you?"

Kang San immediately shook his head. "No!" he quickly asserted. "You didn't do anything wrong."

"Then why have you been acting so strangely around me today?" Kang San gulped and nervously bit his lip. Ri Ah stepped closer to him. "Kang San? You can tell me what's wrong."

"I cheated!" he finally blurted. Ri Ah stared at him in confusion. "I cheated on you, Noona," he cried. "I said I would stay loyal to you, but I didn't."

Ri Ah was still at a loss as to what he was referring to. "Kang San, what are you talking about?"

Kang San crouched down and rested his forehead in the palm of his hands. "At school, this girl in my class confessed to me. And I told her that I already had someone I like, but she kept pestering me. Then one day…she kissed me. But…I didn't push her away. Instead, I just stood there, letting her kiss me." He lifted his head up to look at her with clear confliction written on his face. "And the worst part of it was that I didn't dislike it…I actually…sort of…kind of…liked it."

Ri Ah stared agape at his confession; she wasn't sure how to react. Though she knew that she didn't really feel betrayed, she didn't want to brush off his problem off so easily since it had clearly been eating at him. After a few seconds of thought, she knelt down in front of Kang San, staring at him with a small frown on her face. "I'm hurt," she said with a pout. "You said you would stay loyal to me on White Day when you confessed to me." Kang San's brows scrunched deeper in misery. "But I guess, it's my fault for rejecting you." She put on a regretful smile. "I was arrogant to think a funny, friendly, cute guy like you would stay single for long. So if there's anyone to blame, it's myself."

Kang San returned a small smile. "Thanks, Noona."

Ri Ah ruffled his hair with a grin before the two stood back up. "But, I just hope that even though you've found someone new to like, you won't forget about me."

With a weight lifted off his shoulders, Kang San boldly pulled Ri Ah into a hug, surprising her by the sudden action. "Don’t worry Noona. You were my first crush, and my first kiss. You'll always have a special place in my heart," he assured before pulling away and grinning at her.

Ri Ah laughed and nodded in content. "And you'll always have a special place in mine as my favorite Dongsaeng."

As Ri Ah watched Kang San head back to his room with a lighter step in his gait, she couldn't help but smile. She was happy knowing that he wouldn't be hung up on her anymore, because honestly, he deserved someone more appropriate for him than herself. She returned to Hye Ri's room and resumed her seat at her desk to continue doing homework.

"Is everything okay?" Hye Ri asked from her bed. Ri Ah looked up and met eyes with her. "Between us, I mean," she clarified.

"Of course, why wouldn't it be?" Ri Ah answered.

Hye Ri shook her head with a smile. "No reason." She turned back to working on her paper. But after a few moments of silence, she spoke again. "Okay, I can't do this. You just found out that you're going to England and all we're doing is lamely sitting in my room doing homework. How about we skip on school stuff for right now and go get some ice cream?" she suggested with an excited grin.

Ri Ah laughed and nodded before the two left their books to go out, even inviting Kang San along to celebrate.

Ri Ah returned home later that evening and found Chan Yeol sitting in the living room, intently flipping through a book. "What are you doing?" she asked as she sat next to him.

Chan Yeol let out a big exhale of breath before answering. "Registration for next semester is coming up soon, and I'm trying to figure out what classes I should take." He closed the book in his hands to reveal that it was the university's course listings he was looking at. "It's kind of hard when I still don't know what I want to major in." He turned his attention to her. "What about you? Do you know what classes you're going to take next semester?"

Ri Ah bit her lip as she smiled. "Well, I'm not exactly sure what classes are offered."

Chan Yeol handed his book to her. "Here, you can look at this."

Ri Ah took the book from his hands but didn't look at it. "This won't help, because I'm not going to S University next semester." Chan Yeol knitted his brows in confusion until he realized what she was referring to and his eyes widened slightly. Ri Ah didn't hold back a grin as she explained. "I got accepted to King's College London and I even found a host family."

Chan Yeol swallowed hard at the news. He tried to force a smile as he congratulated her. "That's great. I'm happy for you."

"Thanks. I'm really happy too."

Though Chan Yeol wasn't surprised to hear that Ri Ah had been accepted, he wasn't prepared for the heavy feeling that started to settle in his heart as he realized that she seemed to have finalized her decision on leaving. "It looks like you have everything figured out. You know what you want to do, you know what you have to do get there, and you've managed to do everything you need to do so far."

Ri Ah's smile receded as she stared at Chan Yeol staring sullenly at the floor. She felt terrible for ignoring his worries about his future by flaunting her own success in front of him. "Maybe you should talk to an advisor about choosing a major. It really helped me to talk to Professor Kim," she suggested.

Chan Yeol sighed and shrugged his shoulders, "Maybe," he answered without much emotion.

Ri Ah wasn't satisfied by his lackluster response. "Or, you could try taking random classes next semester, and maybe one of them will strike a chord with you." Chan Yeol looked up at her with interest. She opened the course book still in her hands and started flipping through the pages. As she did, she thought about Chan Yeol and what she knew of him. From tutoring him in Biology the previous year, she learned that he was a visual learner. And he loved music, but it wasn’t something he wanted to make a whole career out of. Taking those into account, she found herself in the film studies section of the course book. She pointed at the first one she saw, Introduction to Film. "This one, I think you should try taking this class next semester, and maybe a few others from different departments."

Chan Yeol took the book from her to read the course description and found the class interesting. It was something he never would have thought to take on his own, but Ri Ah's suggestion to take random classes did seem like a good way to figure out what he might want to do. He turned to her with a grin. "I like it."

Ri Ah smiled happily in return. Her phone rang with a call from her mother and she left to answer it in her room as she broke the good news about her acceptance to her.

Chan Yeol returned to looking at the course book, flipping open to random pages to find more classes to take. But among the ones he ended up choosing, Ri Ah's choice seemed the most promising, and it gave him a light of hope for the otherwise bleak-looking next semester without Ri Ah.

Author's Note

I miscalculated how long Ri Ah would be abroad. It's four months, and I fixed that in the previous chapter.

Also, probably an odd time to be introducing myself after 76 chapters into the story, but my name is Rani. So if you ever need to address me, feel free to call me by name. I'm kind of a casual person, so I feel awkward when people call me 'author-nim'. Or I guess more than feeling awkward, I think that title is reserved for experienced and skilled writers. So yeah, that's my late introduction to all who are reading this =)

January 15, 2013, 9:25 PM