"Love is like a knife, it can stab the heart or

it can carve wonderful images into the soul that will last a lifetime."

C H A P T E R  E I G H T E E N

When I heard her story, I thought we both have the same childhood memories.

But then, never did I know, ours were different. Totally different. Mine was

cozy and full with smiles while hers was heartbreaking, too many pains and I

wonder how she went through it. Today was a special day.

       Because I’ve discovered something priceless.

               Eunmi bit her lips in anticipation in order to hide the fact that her lips were shaking from his acknowledgement, having her eyes fixed on his face— who was currently kneeling before her, with a ring they got from the Trix box which they both had together opened in the morning. It had outgrown on her. Whenever they play together, she would at least take a minute to stare at his face with so much admiration, trace every feature he had as if she’d lose all of them on the next day if she didn’t do that.

               “Park Eunmi, will you be my wife?”

               She nodded, just like what they had planned earlier. They loved acting, or, in the right words, she just forced herself to like it, as it was his favourite thing to do. They had acted a lot of characters already. She used to play as a witch, as a murderer, a nanny, well, most of the time she had had to act as the villains while he always got the angelic ones, the ones that could make him as a hero, for every single time, just because. But this time, it was different. After they watched It Had To Be You, he actually liked the idea of husband and wife, hence the roles they’re about to play now.

               “That’s good,” he said while smiling and slowly, gently, sliding the ring until it finally embraced her finger beautifully.

               “Then, shall we have our wedding ceremony next? Well, it’s just a proposal anyway, not the big one.”

               “Yes, sure,” she answered with a smile on her face.

               And just like that, he stood up and get on his feet, hurried and got into his house, while she traced the plastic ring with the same smile still plastered on her face. After a few seconds, she set her feet on the ground, smoothed her gown and reached for the veil which she had actually stolen from her mom’s closet and put it securely on top of her head, and draped it over her face. When she was all prepared to be the bride, she stood in the altar both of them had built by using wires and dried leaves and flowers. She then saw two figures walking towards her direction, and she knew who they were even though she couldn’t really see their faces. When they’re close enough to be recognized as the infamous brothers, she heard their argument. Nichkhun was pulling his brother, Nichan by the hand towards the altar.

               “What the hell do you want?!” Nichan screamed with a mad look ghosted over his face.

               “Just be our priest!” Nichkhun answered.

               “God, I’m too old for this!”

               “Oh come on!” Nichkhun retorted in anger, and then he went on, “Or I’ll tell mom about your adult movies.”

               She saw his brother’s eyes bulged out in surprise and then his face showed how furious he was. He bit his lips hard before he finally answered,

               “You bastard! Fine!”

               A big smile was formed on Nichkhun’s face before he reached for his tuxedo and put it on, and God, he looked like a prince charming to her. She wondered how he’s able to pull off the cute, handsome and y image all at once at a young age. Even though his brother’s not that bad, but she couldn’t deny Nichkhun’s beauty had defeated his brother’s and it’s probably the main reason why his brother didn’t really like him and they always fought, but she knew that deep inside of his heart, he had always loved his younger brother.

               They stood across each other, he was smiling and she was doing the same thing while holding a bouquet of plastic flowers. Nichan rolled his eyes in annoyance while holding the script Nichkhun had written earlier as he couldn’t believe his brother had actually made him doing this. Before he finally spoke, he cleared his throat for a couple of times and hesitated for a while but then he knew he couldn’t do anything but to grant what his younger brother wanted when he felt that his leg was kicked by Nichkhun.

               “Will you, Nichkhun Buck Horvejkul respect and honour Park Eunmi throughout your years together as a husband and wife?”

               “I will,” he said with a big smile plastered on his face.

               “Will you, Park Eunmi respect and honour Nichkhun Buck Horvejkul throughout your years together as a wife and husband?”

               “I will,” she answered while looking at his face.

               After that, they exchanged rings while giggling, as if something funny had happened.

               “Then, I pronounce you as husband and wife,” a sigh escaped from his mouth and then he crumpled the paper and threw it to Nichkhun’s chest and then he said, “Happy now?”

               “Bro, you missed the last line.”

               Rolled his eyes in annoyance, he bent and reached the paper and smoothed it, and couldn’t help but scoff, and that’s when he finally said,

               “You may kiss the bride.”

               She saw him leaning in and reaching the veil and bringing t it to the back, unveiling her face which had been painted with a couple of dab of compact powder and faint of pink brush on the apple of her cheeks. And then, just like that, they kissed. At that time, she felt like it was real, that they belonged to each other— that she was his, even though she knew it was just an act. But then, she couldn’t toss that feeling away when she found out the ring was secured, embracing his finger on the following day and remained for so many years.

               But then, of course, things changed. Turned absolutely different than the one she had wanted. When they got into high school, they acted like they had never known each other, like they had never played with each other for every single day when they were kids, like they had never vowed to each other not to leave each other on their wedding day. It wasn’t her choice after all. It’s him who’d always avoided from talking to her or even had his eyes fixed on hers, as if she was some kind of a parasite.

               Even though she knew it was like nothing, but deep inside her, her heart was torn and only God knew how much she actually wanted to talk to him, even though it’s just a minute because she missed him. And because she disliked the fact that she had forgotten how his voice sounded like—how tall he had grown now since the last time she had it memorized. He had grown up into a very good looking guy, very tall, the kind of guy that had always been a dream of every single girl in school to make as a boyfriend, including her though, even though she knew it was beyond her reach. It was kind of funny whenever she thought about it. Really. Back then, when they were always together, she had always thought they’re meant to be together. That, finally, she had found the exact answer of why she was born to this world— which was to be his. That proved how naïve she was back then and she hated the fact that her naivety led had the responsibility to the existence of her stupidity.

               But then, one day, she knew she had had to do it.

               She didn’t see it coming, until she’s standing in front of the table which he and his friends always sat on, the table which could only be filled by the popular cliques in school-- the ones everyone had always wanted to be a part of. And truth to be told, she hated that because it was full of fakes.

               “Nichkhun, I want to talk to you.”

               She saw him looked up at her, and that was the moment when she realized, his skin had sunburn, not as fair as it used to be. It was probably because of his participation in the football team. slightly opened, to take a breath but then, she felt like there’s no oxygen for her to in when she saw him jerking his gaze away from her. She couldn’t express how she felt at that time, other than saying, as if she was betrayed— as if her heart had been tossed in the trash.

               “Dude, you know her?”

               The guy who sat across him asked him, Jaehee, the bastard in the school. She never liked him. She hated him. He would always bully the ones who he labeled as weak who were incapable to compare with him and she hated how he thought he was the most powerful guy in the school because she knew he wasn’t. She brushed her bangs to the back even though she didn’t even know why she did that but it was most probably done in order to hide how nervous she was at that time.

               “Honey, who’s she?”

               That voice, those lips, those hands, that body which had always brushed over his. Yoojin— his girlfriend, who was also the captain of the cheer squad. She had no idea why he made her as his girlfriend. Was it because of fame? Or was it because of her big s, like what guys had always gawked at?

               She saw him shrugging and smiling at them, as if the one who’s standing before him was just a statue, lifeless, and then he reached for his drink and took a sip of it. Just like she had never been a part of his life.

               “Is she one of your stupid crushes?” Yoojin asked with so close to his ear that Eunmi was wondering whether she was kissing his ear at the same time, or not.

               “I don’t know.”

               Finally, she heard his voice— the one that she hadn’t heard in so long. The one that she wished she could rely on to confide all of her problems, but she knew, it only could happen in her dream and the past. She closed her eyes, altogether with , trying to tape his voice in her mind, not wanting to lose it.

               “Dude, I pity you having her as your crush. Look at her, gosh, so disturbing.”

               Her eyes were opened, and saw all of them laughing together, and so was he. She gulped, and she knew it was best to turn around and just walk away and leave him alone with his worthless friends. After all, it’s his loss. Soon, he’d realize that he’d made a mistake for ditching her and replacing her with these worthless people. When she was about to turn around and do whatever she had in her mind, her track was stopped when Yoojin suddenly stood up and grabbed her by the arm. They were facing each other, Yoojin’s eyes fixed on hers.

               “Look, forget about your intention to confess or give him your stupid love letter because he wouldn’t give a damn, and he has me, the prettiest girl in school as his girl,” she then stopped and then she looked at Eunmi from head to toe. She let out a mean laugh, and then she went on, “I just don’t understand where you got the guts to actually confess when he’s with me.”

               And just like that, she was drenched and sticky when Yoojin poured her orange juice over Eunmi’s head. Eunmi’s eyes were fixed on the ground, letting the laughter filling her ear and at that time, she felt like smashing her head on the wall for being so stupid to actually confront him. She wasn’t planning to confess or give him a love letter like what Yoojin had mentioned. She was just— trying to have a talk with him. That’s all. Nothing more than that. It’s just simple. It would be enough for her if he just asked her how she was doing. But then, when she realized he was laughing together with the other people, she bit her lips hard, trying to avoid from letting the tears spilling over her eyes, and she quickly turned around and walked out from the scene.

               As a matter of fact, she had ditched the periods after the recess and she knew what was about to come. Detention. She couldn’t care less about that as she was furious, totally not knowing what she was supposed to do in order to let her anger out from her body. She was sitting behind the bushes separating compound of his and her house when she suddenly thought of doing something. She sat there, with her legs brought over to her chest, contemplating.

               When she heard the engine of his car, her face immediately jolted upwards to get a clearer vision. When she saw he had pulled over his car in the porch and went out from his car with his bag slung over his shoulder, she got up and walked towards him with her hands clenched into fists, in anger. Her footsteps were heavy, and they produced a loud sound that could be detected by him even though he had his back facing. He spun around, and was surprised when he saw her with a messy hair and she had a leave stuck in it and it looked sticky at the same time.

               “What the hell are you doing?” he asked while maintaining his natural face to hide his surprise.

               “Ohh, so now you’re talking to me?”

               He had his eyes fixed on her face, and then he spun around.

               “Wait,” she said from behind.

               A sigh escaped from his mouth before he turned around, and met her eyes. He swallowed hard before he said,

               “Look, if you want to tell me you like me, you don’t have to because—”

               “I hate you, .”

               He was interrupted when she suddenly retorted in anger and took the ring off her finger which had been embracing around it for years already and then without a hesitation, she threw the ring at him.

               “Rot in hell.”

               She rolled her eyes in annoyance and spun around, left him behind, speechless with his unfinished sentence. He remained his eyes on her stiff back before she became a small dot on his vision, until she finally vanished when she walked into her house through the front door which he had walked through so many times back then before he bent down and reached for the ring. The ring was placed in between the pads of his fingers, after a moment, he slid it down to his pinky finger and went into his house with the end of his mouth twitching a bit, without having a clue why it happened. 

               On her prom night, when her fellow schoolmates and he were enjoying themselves partying until dawn right after the prom ended or they were probably having with their respective partner, she lied in her bed. She stared blankly at her ceiling and she actually forced herself to admire the scene of the room being illuminated by the light of the moon and the stars which had blanketed the sky on that night. She rolled to her right side, and then sprawled her body over the mattress, burying her face in her pillow and started to picture him having his hands rested on Yoojin’s waist, his neck being enveloped by her hands and him snuggling on her neck. At that time, nothing arose in her except jealousy.

               “Ugh.”

               She groaned in frustration and annoyance and actually felt stupid by thinking about him and felt envious for not being able to be in Yoojin’s place after what he had done to her. She slammed her hands hard on the mattress for a couple of times and her action immediately stopped when she heard noises coming from outside her room, which she assumed it was coming from the staircase. It sounded like someone’s ascending the stairs. She started to feel scared because she knew no one else was at home, except her. Her parents were out of town as they’re on a vacation to Hawaii while her brother’s in his campus. What if it’s a burglar? She had no idea what to do if it was real. She wasn’t prepared. She had never been taught to face this.

               She swallowed hard, forced herself to think fast and started to feel nervous and she started to sweat when she heard the noises coming closer, becoming clear like crystal. She skittered her eyes around her room, trying to get something that could help her to survive and then she saw the window. When she got out from her bed and tried to escape through the window, that’s when she tripped over her feet because of her clumsiness.

               And that’s it. She knew what was coming.

               Her door was swung open and then she saw two men dressed fully in black from head to toe but with holes at their eyes, nose and mouth. It was too dark for her to actually capture how they looked like because the light was turned off, but then, the only thing she could remember was how dark they eyes were, as black as charcoal, furious. When she saw them rushing over her, the first thing she did was scream at the top of her lungs, even though she knew it wasn’t the best thing to do.

               But of course, those two men wouldn’t give up. They first intention was just to break in and get some money or things that could guarantee them a fortune but when they saw their prey right before them, they knew what they needed to do— what they wanted to do. Added with the fact that her bottom was exposed due to the fall, they turned hard almost immediately. The first guy assigned his fellow mate to resume their work, while he was getting ready to enjoy his feast. But it took quite a moment for the second guy to obey the first guy’s order because there was in no way he’s going to miss his chance too. Not forgetting to mention how priceless the treat which was lying right before him right now. Even having the slightest sight of the honey things and smooth round bottoms almost led him to explode out of lust.

               When he was finally gone to look for things that can give them a fortune, the first guy didn’t want to waste his time by rushing over her and slapping her hard across her cheeks for a numerous times until she couldn’t feel anything, not even pain. It stung so much that it took her a moment to finally realize her tears were vigorously streaming down her cheeks, not knowing whether it’s because of she’s feeling scared or hurt. Her cheeks were numb, and her head was heavy by being hit by the man who was physically two times stronger and larger than her. She couldn’t react at all that could help her to escape from the nightmare when she felt her body was pinned on the floor, in her own bedroom. The one that contained good memories throughout her life— was going to be painted with a nightmare that she was so sure it would haunt her for the rest of her life.

               When she felt her shirt was ripped open, she started to weep loudly and when she felt her nightgown was pushed to her waist, she knew what was coming and couldn’t do anything but feel terrified by the thought of it, because she knew, she wasn’t ready and she knew the best she didn’t want to lose her ity to this dirty man. 

               She felt a large hand cupping and massaging her left while a mouth was kissing and leaving marks on her right . She closed her eyes tight, letting her tears to roll down her burning face, feeling hopeless and hated her own self for being too weak to fight back. Her weep had gotten louder when she felt a finger tracing down her stomach and when it touched her , she knew what she was going to do after this ended.

               She’s going to kill herself.

               But the thought of that was tossed away when she felt her body was free, no more heavy breaths brushing over her body, no more dirty sweats dripping on her. Even though she couldn’t see what was actually going on, but she knew the men was pulled away from her and got beaten up. Soon, the other man appeared and some fight occurred, but she knew it’d ended when she heard blood mixed with saliva gurgling in their mouths.

               Her face was draped over to her right side, her eyes were wide opened, and yet, she couldn’t see anything. It was all black, same like how she felt at that time, empty. By feeling the touch of her savior on her skin, she knew her wish wasn’t granted. It was Nichkhun’s elder brother, Nichan, not the person she had in her mind. When she heard the police siren and Nichan asking her something which she couldn’t interpret what he was actually saying, she passed out.

*     *     *     *

               She was lying on the bed, with her mind filled by the scene of him dancing with her date on the dance floor, and for the first time of her life, she’d got to admit the fact that they actually made a perfect couple. Both of them were perfect in so many ways, as if they’re born to be with each other. Her eyes immediately opened when she heard noises coming from the staircase. And she knew what was coming, and she was sure, she wasn’t going to let the same thing happen again. This time, she reacted fast, different from the other time. She quickly reached over her phone which was placed on the counter table, but unfortunately, because of her clumsiness, the phone fell on the floor, and she’s all prepared to be scarred again.

               The door swung open, and the same thing, every single thing happened again. From the moment she was slapped across her cheek till the moment she was lying before the same man on her bedroom’s floor. This time, she thought she could make a change by actually attempting to fight back. But then, she was hopeless, and she couldn’t deny the fact that she couldn’t beat them. She felt the same mouth leaving marks on her , the same finger tracing over her body until it’s placed at the opening of her , her eyes wide opened, breathing heavily and then she realized it was just a dream.

               She brushed her hand over her face, felt her sweat damping her palm, and at that moment, she was terrified because albeit it was just a dream, which she should have called as a nightmare, and yet, those touches and kisses felt so real to her. It seemed like the man was touching and kissing her again, like what he’d done the other day. She buried her face in her hands, and that’s when she realized she wasn’t in her bed when it occurred to her how different the texture of the quilt felt like when it hummed next to her compared to hers felt like.

               Her face immediately jolted upwards, her eyes skittered around the room and within a few seconds, she knew she’s in his room. The paint was still the same, the colour which she had picked for him, dark grey and a softer one, but it now almost looked like white. All of the furniture had changed, except the board that had been hung since the first day this room became his. But the difference was the things that were pinned on it. There were no longer old paintings they had drawn together, pictures of them together and pictures of actors he admired. But instead, this time, it’s full of pictures related to footballs, time tables and pictures of Yoojin and his friends.

               She jumped in surprise when she heard the sound of click and then door of the bathroom suddenly opened, her vision was filled by the sight of his semi- body with a towel wrapped around his waist. His hair was damp and few of droplets of water dribbled down his body and she couldn’t deny the fact that he actually looked amazing. The memory which she still had was different than this because at that time, his body was just like hers. It was straight without muscles giving a defined sculpture of his figure like what he had now.

               “Ohh, you’re awake,” he spoke, still having his hand in his hair as he was brushing it just now.

               She could tell that he wasn’t expecting to be welcomed by her being awake from her sleep. He then continued brushing his hair and closed the door behind him, and walked towards his closet. She had her eyes fixed on him, wherever her went to, and she didn’t realize the fact that she actually hadn’t blinked her eyes, not even once. And that actually bothered him.

               “Are you okay?” he asked, even though he knew it was a stupid question.

               Still standing in front of his closet without attempting to swing the door open, he had his face turned towards her direction, staring straightly into her eyes. They remained staring at each other, didn’t move at all and it seemed like the scene was stopped by someone pressing the pause button on the remote control. But they knew, at the same moment, their hearts were still pumping bloods throughout their bodies, and that could emphasize very well the fact that the time hadn’t stopped. Instead, it’s just two of them. She cleared , and stared into her laps, and then she asked,

               “Why am I here?”

               He blinked his eyes for a couple of times before he swung open the door of his closet and reached for a shirt, and then he finally answered,

               “Your parents are on their way, they’ll get here tomorrow, I think, while your brother, he’s having his exam, so he can’t get here. Just, not yet. So, hrm, you’ll stay here in the meantime. Actually there’s the guest room but, well, there are too many stuffs there and it’s dusty. Got no time to tidy them. That’s why you’re here.”

               “How’d I end up here?” she asked even though she knew it’s his brother who had saved her.

               He put on the shirt with his trousers, and then he closed the door and answered,

               “You’re unconscious and you’re given anesthetic, to, hrm I don’t even know why, because I’m not a doctor, so, basically, you’ve slept like, all day long.”

               She remained looking into her laps, not knowing what to say. She actually didn’t know how she felt at that time. She felt dirty, scarred, relieved and easy at the same time. It felt horrible as she knew there was no such way her heart’s able to divide spaces to fill in these feelings.

               “Hrm, do you want anything?”

               She looked up at him, and met his eyes. Both of them remained staring at each other, like they did earlier, and it seemed like they had never done this before. She swallowed hard and she could even feel her heart was getting heavier every time a second ticked away. 

               “ me,” she said, and both of them were taken aback by her statement. She could feel her tears starting to fill her eyes, her vision starting to get blurred. She felt so embarrassed, scared, scarred, and dirty all at once. She knew she wasn’t in her right state and she really had no idea what actually had caused her to say that to him, when she actually didn’t really mean it.

               “God, I’m so stupid. Why’d I say that?” she chuckled and had her shaking hand pressed hard against her heard, as a way to punish herself for her stupidity.

               And then, it happened so fast that she didn’t even realize she was doing it. She lied in his bed and pulled the cover over her whole entire body, trying to hide her tears from his acknowledgement albeit she knew there’s no use of it. Her body was curled underneath the quilt, her hands were brought over to her face to be buried in, she was weeping so hard and loud at once, didn’t even realize the fact that he— on the other hand had walked towards her, and slowly slid underneath the quilt together with her, and then, it suddenly felt warm to her.

               She didn’t move a nudge as she had no idea of what she’s supposed to be doing in the first place. It just had been so long since the last time they lied in the same bed that she wasn’t even sure of what she’s permitted and forbidden to do. She remained in the same position, still having her tears streaming and damping both of her face and hands, but at the same time, her hair on the back of her neck stood up and butterflies instantly filled her chest, acknowledging the fact that she had the person who she loved so much inches away from her. When she felt his chest was colliding with her back and his arm was carefully draped over her waist, so careful as not wanting to hurt her, she gasped.

               “I’m sorry,” she apologized.

               “Why? Don’t be. It’s not even your fault.”

               “I’m sorry,” she repeated.

               He softly hushed her, tucking her bangs underneath her ear, felt her sweat and tears tickling his fingers, and that was when he slowly turned her small body in order to face him, and slowly uncovered her face. It was red, wet and her face looked horrible, not the one he had memorized of how it looked like every day. He brushed the remaining of her hair over her face to the back, and then slowly, gently— carefully brushed away her tears away from her round face using the pad of his thumb. When he’s done with that, he stared at her with her eyes closed.

               “Why are you sorry?” he asked in a slow tone, so slow which it almost sounded like a whisper. 

               “I’m sorry,” she repeated but this time, she’d started hiccupping in her tears.

               And then, he pulled her into his embrace, held her close enough where he had her face buried in his chest. He could feel her tears damping his shirt. He her back, gently, while at the same time he buried his face in her hair, in the scent of her shampoo he didn’t remember sensing when they used to be close back then. He swore if she tensed the tiniest bit beneath his body, he’d break away. But because she didn’t do that, he remained embracing her.

               When he felt like it’d been minutes they remained in the same position, he drew back and just like that, he pressed her lips on her forehead, a long one with his eyes tightly closed, and trailed it down to her nose and then to her lips, in a way to share the pain she’s suffering, so that he’d be suffering together with her, or even better, to absorb all of them and face it all by his own. But he didn’t get even an inch of them, and he felt frustrated and sorry because he knew he had all of the capabilities to go through the pain to compare with her who was so fragile that could break in any time, with just a slight movement.

               He drew back, and then his eyes started to burn in anger. It was so blur as he was trying to imagine those men he’d seen at the police station earlier this morning, disgusted by the scene of them laying their hands on her without a mercy. At that time, nothing happened but anger quickly rushed over the whole entire of his body. He shut his eyes tight, bit his lips so hard that it almost bled and when his eyes were opened, he felt different, as if he’d been possessed.

               “Where’d they touch you?” he asked firmly but the only thing he heard was her sobbing. Feeling defeated, he tossed the quilt away, exposing both of them to the air which felt ridiculously cold at that time, and then he laid upon her, leaving some spaces between their bodies with his hands rested firm on her both sides.

               “Where’d they touch you?” he repeated. When he didn’t get an answer from her, he pulled her shirt over her body until his vision was packed by the sight of her body, bruised.

               “,” he muttered under his breath, couldn’t believe what he was having before him.

               His vision started to become blurred because tears and guilt quickly rushed over his body. Where was he when she needed him the most? ing danced with his date? He clenched his jaw tightly and that was when he pressed his lips against her sore .

               And at that time, finally, her eyes were opened, surprised.

               “I’m sorry,” he whispered and then he kissed the same spot again, praying to God, to get rid of the pain from her body. He couldn’t bear seeing her getting hurt like this.

               “Nich—”

               She was interrupted when he took with his. His kisses were furious but at the same time, they ridiculously felt warm to her, and she couldn’t understand why her body reacted by deepening the kiss when her brain had ordered to stop his act and push his body away. She felt his teeth meeting hers, his tongue exploring , out of breathes and then he drew back.

               “Where else did they touch you?”

               She stared at his face and trailed her eyes down to his bright red lips, and then she jerked her gaze away from it, let her face draping on her right side. It was like a slow motion to her when she felt her tear rolled down her swollen cheek and when it dropped and being absorbed by the mattress— at the same time, she could feel her legs being apart from each other, and felt the air rushed in, so cold that her body shook.

               And just like that, he slipped into her.

*     *     *     *

               Shinah had parted, not knowing what to say after the last word escaped from Eunmi’s mouth. Both of them remained sitting still on the couch, didn’t say a word and when she saw Eunmi reaching for her mug and taking a sip of her coffee, that’s when she finally said,

               “Woww….I don’t…...I don’t even know what to say.”

               “Me neither,” Eunmi answered and put her mug down on the coffee table.

               “You both sounded like…you’re so crazy about each other.”

               Eunmi scoffed and leaned in the couch with her arms crossed against her chest.

               “So, you meant, you’re married, when it’s actually a fake marriage you guys had when you’re kids?”

               “Yeah,” Eunmi answered and nodded.

               “I used to do that, a lot of times, with Wooyoung but—”

               “It was real to me,” Eunmi interrupted, “He’s like, my true love. But that’s too naïve. I know.”

               Shinah nodded, and actually agreed to what she’d mentioned. But then, she didn’t do the same thing like what Eunmi had done. Probably she wasn’t sure whether she actually had a feeling for Wooyoung at that time. She cleared , not knowing whether it was a right thing to ask Eunmi a question. But then, after a long time of hesitating, she finally asked,

               “But then, after, you know, after you both became one, then, I don’t understand. After I listened to your story, I couldn’t imagine any other reason to actually make sense why you don’t want to marry him and actually dislike him.”

               Eunmi fixed her eyes on Shinah’s face and then a sigh escaped from before she spoke,

               “Actually, it hasn’t finished yet.”

               “Ohh, okay. Then, what happened?”

               Eunmi closed her eyes, and swallowed hard, trying to trace back the memories they used to have together— the moment when they played together, until the moment when they became one on that day, and the things that had encountered in her life after that incident.

               “Wait, don’t tell me you got pregnant!”

               “What?! No, of course not!”

               “Then, what?” Shinah asked while feeling relieved.

               “Well, you know, after that, I trusted him and loved him with all of my heart but then….” she stopped and swallowed hard, to hold in her tears and then she went on, “But then….but then…he…he…”

               She was interrupted by her tears. Her tears started to stream down her cheeks vigorously, even though she’d been very well at holding them for years already. Seeing that, Shinah couldn’t help but feel sorry for her and let herself to feel the pain Eunmi had been bottling up in her heart for a long time already. She rubbed her back gently, and then she said,

               “It’s okay. You don’t have to tell me. It’s okay.”

               “No, I want to. It felt so….awful having to bottle in my heart since forever. I felt, hopeless.”

               Shinah nodded, and still had her hand doing the work to comfort Eunmi by rubbing her back.

               “Two weeks after that, he left,” Eunmi suddenly spoke.

               “What?!” Shinah asked, even though she clearly heard it, but she just had to ask her, to make sure whether what she heard was right or not.

               “He left to New Zealand.”

               “His family moved? How come you weren’t informed about this?”

               After Shinah had ended her question, her question was answered when she saw Eunmi shook her head.

               “He moved with Yoojin, his girlfriend and her family.”

               And then, Eunmi buried her face in her hands, this time, she’s weeping so hard that it touched Shinah’s heart. That was when Shinah pulled her into her embrace, after a long time being the one who needed to be confided on instead of someone who could be confided on.

               And she felt amazing.

- - - - - - - - - -

another update. you love me? aw i love you back. lol okay i'm just kidding but i've decided to update because i

just felt like doing so. in case you want to know, my favourite character in this story is eunmi. expect to have

more of her scenes in the upcoming chapters. and, obviously, my least favourite character is shinah. i'm not

even sure why. i'm not really a fan of her because when it comes to writing about her, i just didn't feel that excited.

and, oh gosh, whenever i wrote about eunmi, i'd cry together with her. and by this, i meant, i literally cried. her

character is too pitiful and strong at the same time to me, considering the fact that she's willing to sacrifice a lot for

her love. okay, i've talked so much. the latter part of this story is by far my favourite. i really can't wait to share it with you

guys. i really hope that you'll find it good too, as much as i do. have a nice day everyone. i hope that you like this chapter. (: