Chae Won paid the hospital bills while Shinhye decided to went ahead to pay their rent for their apartment.

“Where did you get the money to pay for the bills, Chae Won?” her mother asked.

“Someone helped us, mom”, Chae Won replied smiling as she was folding her mother’s things and stuffing them at the worn out bag.

“Chae Won”, their mother called to her.

“Yes, mom”, Chae Won replied turning to look at her mother.

“I love you so much…I love you and Shinhye so much and whatever happens always remember that I only want what’s best for you”, her mother said as tears fell from her eyes and her face graced with a sad smile.

Chae Won went to embrace her mother. “Thank you, mom, thank you for loving me and Shinhye”, Chae Won said as her eyes also misted.

“Not nearly enough, my dear daughter, I haven’t love the two of you enough and I’m gonna make things right…I swear”, her mother said.

“I know you will, mom. I know you will”, Chae Won agreed as she went back to stuffing her mother’s clothes to the bag.

Shinhye on the other hand was already at the house of Mrs. Han. She handed her the check for the payment of the rent.

“Here’s the check…we’ve already paid the rent so stop coming to harass my mother”, Shinhye sarcastically said.

“This is good…if you’d just pay me up like this every month I won’t be bothering you anymore”, Mrs. Han said as she was almost drooling at the amount of payment she received.

“Disgusting creature”, Shinhye muttered when she was already far away from Mrs. Han.

She walked to their apartment and opened the door. She tried her best to clean and stuff some of the small grocery items she purchased like coffee, cream, sugar and rice on the small creaking cabinet.

“I better dust everything to make mom comfortable when she arrived”, Shinhye told herself as she started sweeping the floor and dusting the meager furniture that they have.

At the hospital, Chae Won and her mother were all set to leave when her mother requested something.

“Chae Won, you go ahead outside I just need to use the phone”, her mother said.

“Phone? Who are you going to call?” Chae Won asked surprised.

“I just need to call someone please go ahead”, her mother said with finality that Chae Won could not do anything but follow.

Seeing Chae Won already outside the hospital door, her mother dialed a familiar number. After a series of ringing, someone answered the call.

“Hello”, the woman answered in a cool and cultured voice.

“Hello, is this Moon Bank…Seoul Branch?”

“Yes, may I know who is this?” the woman asked back.

“It’s Han Ae Sook…I wish to speak with Chairman Moon Bae”.

“Does he know that you’d call him, madam?” the woman asked.

“No…but I know that he’ll speak with me once you tell him my name”, she replied.

“Okay, I’ll connect you to him”, the woman said.

After 5 minutes, the woman informed her that she was already connected to the private phone at the office of Moon Bae.

“Hello, Ae Sook, it’s been a while”, Moon Bae said in his gentle baritone.

“Yes, it’s been a while”, Ae Sook replied.

“Is it about my daughter, Chae Won?” Moon Bae asked.

“Yes…it’s about her”, Ae Sook replied.

“Did something bad happen to her? I told you from the start that you should have given my daughter to me…but no you kept her to yourself and allow her to suffer like a commoner…a poor person who works for that diner like a slave”, Moon Bae launched into his tirade.

“I’ll give her to you…I’ll give Chae Won back to you”, Ae Sook said in a low and sad voice.

“You…what? Are you serious?” Moon Bae suddenly felt a smile spreading on his face. He was already a widower without a child to continue the legacy of Moon Bank…one of the most prestigious and stable bank in South Korea.

“Yes, come to my apartment tomorrow and see your daughter”, Ae Sook said as she gave the address of the apartment at Incheon.

“Okay…I’ll be there around 6:00 in the evening”, Moon Bae immediately agreed.

Ae Sook hung up. She met Moon Bae when she was working as a bank clerk at Moon Bank in Seoul. She was only 22 years old…lively, trusting, innocent and beautiful. She was charmed by Moon Bae and they became lovers only to find out in the end that he was destined to marry an heiress. He left her to follow his parents but time and time again he asked her to give her daughter to him. He became more persistent when his own wife and only son died in an accident last year. She denied him but she knew that it was about time for Chae Won to reclaim her position as an heiress…a bank heiress.

Ae Sook dialed another number and after a few rings someone answered.

“Hello, Park Shipping Company”, the formal voice of a woman answered.

“Hello, may I speak to Chairman Park Chin Ho?” Ae Sook requested.

“May I know who is calling?” the woman asked.

“It’s Han Ae Sook. Tell him my name and he’ll surely agree to speak to me”, Ae Sook replied.

“Okay…wait for a few minutes and I’ll put you on the private line”, the woman said.

After a few minutes, she heard a familiar soothing voice.

“Ae Sook, it’s been a while”, Park Chin Ho started.

“Yes…I called because of your daughter”, Ae Sook said.

“Did something bad happen to Shinhye? I told you before to allow me to bring my daughter here at Seoul but you refused to give her to me”, Park Chin Ho just like Moon Bae launched into a tirade.

Ae Sook shook her head before she replied. “I’ll give your daughter to you, Chin Ho”.

“When?” Park Chin Ho asked impatiently.

“Come at my apartment tomorrow and see your daughter”, Ae Sook said as she told him the apartment’s address at Incheon.

“Why? Why are you suddenly doing this?”Park Chin Ho asked.

“Just because it’s about time”, Ae Sook vaguely replied and she did not elaborate anymore as she saw Chae Won entered the hospital door and walked towards her direction.

“Mom, you’re taking too long. Shinhye must already be at the apartment waiting for us. Let’s go”Chae Won said as she assisted Ae Sook towards the door of the hospital and they hailed a cab where they ride going to their apartment.

Ae Sook met Park Chin Ho almost a year after she broke up her relationship with Chae Won’s father. Park Chin Ho promised her marriage but after she found herself pregnant with Shinhye, he told her that his parents arranged a marriage for him to an heiress but he was willing to get his daughter when she was born. Ae Sook refused to give Shinhye to his father even after the heiress that Park Chin Ho married died of cancer two years ago and he never remarried. Her feelings of betrayal and hatred towards the men who fathered her daughters prevented her from giving them better lives.

“We’re here”, Chae Won interrupted her thoughts.

After handing the payment to the cab driver, they went out and saw Shinhye smiling to them. She was smudged from the dirt and was wearing Chae Won’s worn out gray apron.

“Hi!” Shinhye greeted her elder sister and bowed to her mother.

“You cleaned the house”, Ae Sook commented.

“Yes, mom, I also cooked some porridge”, Shinhye said.

“Wow! You also bought some roast pork”, Chae Won commented.

“Yeah…let’s go eat. I’m so tired from cleaning and cooking”, Shinhye said as she helped their mother sat while Chae Won grabbed bowls and eating utensils from the cupboard.

“You’re going to school tomorrow?” Ae Sook asked.

“Yes, mom”, the girls answered in unison.

“You go home early”, Ae Sook said.

“How about my job at the grocery?”Shinhye asked surprised.

“Never mind that…both of you have to be here tomorrow. We’ll have important visitors”, Ae Sook replied.

“Who are they, mom?” Chae Won curiously asked.

“You’ll find out tomorrow”, Ae Sook replied.

That night, as the sisters were lying on their blankets on the floor, they were talking about their mother.

“She was acting strange even at the hospital”, Chae Won commented.

“How strange?”Shinhye asked.

“She asked me to go outside the hospital door while she made a call and she took so long with those calls”, Chae Won replied.

“Who do you think are visitors will be?” Shinhye asked.

“I don’t know as far as I know we don’t have that much relatives”, Chae Won replied.

“Could it be a hidden rich relative?” Shinhye asked jokingly.

“Aish…let’s go to sleep already; tomorrow we’ll find out”, Chae Won said with a smile as she tucked the blankets to her and Shinhye.

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Around 6:00 in the evening the next day, the sisters were already dressed in their faded frocks. Those frocks although faded were sturdy and were their best so they opted to wear them for their visitors.

“Good evening”, a man around six or seven years older than their mother entered their apartment.

“Good evening, sir”, the girls bowed.

“I’m Moon Bae and you must be Moon Chae Won?” Moon Bae said as he approached Chae Won.

Chae Won looked at the old man and she was surprised to see eyes the same like hers and black hair the same as hers.

“Chae Won, this is Chairman Moon Bae your father”, Ae Sook introduced the two.

“Mom”, Chae Won called to her mother.

Her mother just nodded and looked at her with tears in her eyes.

Moon Bae embraced Chae Won tightly although Chae Won could not help but cry. Shinhye also felt herself crying when their attention was captured by another man almost the same age as Moon Bae.

“Good evening, I’m Park Chin Ho”, he introduced himself.

“Shinhye, he is your father”, Ae Sook introduced.

“Shinhye, daughter, my dear, dear, daughter”, Park Chin Ho approached Shinhye and embraced her tightly.

They were all crying and filled with unexplainable feelings of happiness and sadness.

“We better settle down and eat”, Ae Sook said as she wiped her tears.

Chae Won and Shinhye also wiped their tears using their fathers’ handkerchiefs. They settled on the table where the servants of Moon Bae and Park Chin Ho laid the most exquisitely delicious foods that the girls had not yet eaten in their lives.

“Heavens!” Chae Won exclaimed happily.

“This is delicious”, Shinhye said as she closed her eyes when she tasted an peach-apple pastry.

Their fathers and mother smiled at the expression they saw at the girls. They continued to eat. After an hour, they were drinking tea when the two older men opened a topic.

“Chae Won, you’ll come with me next week to Seoul. You withdraw from your school here because you’ll resume your studies in Seoul”, Moon Bae said.

“The same with you, Shinhye, you’ll come with me to Seoul to study there”, Park Chin Ho said.

“Dad, where am I going to live?” Chae Won asked as she felt her heart raced.

“You’ll live at the Moon Mansion…it’s my house at Seoul”, Moon Bae replied.

“How about me, dad?”Shinhye asked her father.

“You’ll live at Park Mansion with me”, Park Chin Ho replied.

“How about mom?” Chae Won asked suddenly worried that there was no one mentioning where their mother would stay.

“Yeah…how about mom?” Shinhye seconded.

“I’ll live here”, Ae Sook replied.

“But…that couldn’t be”, Chae Won said and Shinhye agreed with her elder sister.

“It could be and that’s how it should be”, Ae Sook declared.

“But, mom…” Shinhye said.

“No buts you two will be living with your fathers”, Ae Sook said determinedly.

“I guess…you need to discuss first with them, Ae Sook, I and Park Chin Ho we’ll just wait for your signal”, Moon Bae diplomatically said as he stood embraced Chae Won who also stood to bow to her father and he bowed to everyone before he went out of the door.

“Just like Moon Bae, I’ll just wait for your final decision”, Park Chin Ho said as he also embraced Shinhye who stood to bow to her father before he too bowed to everyone and went out of the door.

“How could you do this to us, mom?” Chae Won accused her mother pain written in her eyes.

“I thought that we’ll be together…you promised us that you’ll not leave us”, Shinhye said as tears fell from her eyes.

“I’m doing what’s best for you. I deprived you of good lives all those years and now I’m trying to pay back for everything. Don’t you understand anything? You’re not fitted to be in this slum because you are heiresses…princesses…the daughters sired to me by kings like them who swim in money”, Ae Sook emotionally said trying to make her daughters understand.

“Yet…money isn’t anything in this world”, Chae Won said.

“It is you, idiot girl, if you didn’t have money would you be able to pay the hospital bills? The apartment? Or even buy foods or clothes?” Ae Sook shouted.

“Mom, we love you…please stay with us”, Shinhye begged their mother.

“No…I won’t taint you with my presence besides I hate your fathers so much that living with them will be a burden to me”, Ae Sook replied sharply.

“We won’t go with them then”, Chae Won declared.

“You will, Moon Chae Won, even if I have to drag you and gag you towards your father’s car”, Ae Sook declared back.

“Mom, don’t do this to us”, Shinhye pleaded.

“I’ll do it and there’s nothing you can do about it not now and not ever”, Ae Sook declared as he went to her room leaving the sisters crying while embracing each other tightly.

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Three days after they met their fathers, the sisters still felt uneasy…they tried to convince their mother to let them stay or come with them but she never relented and declared that  she would not come with them to Seoul.

“Chae Won, are we going to see each other again after we live with our fathers?” Shinhye asked all of a sudden.

“Yes, we’ll both be in Seoul so most probably would see each other everyday”, Chae Won encouragingly said.

“Please promise me that you won’t forget me”, Shinhye said her voice sad.

“I promise, little sister, whatever happens we’ll always stick together…we’ll always have each other’s backs”, Chae Won said.

They each held their pinkies and swore their sisterly oath to always have each other whatever happens.They went to their classes happy and contented with their promise.

While they were at school, Ae Sook decided to write her daughters a letter.

Dearest Chae Won and Shinhye,

            I’m sorry for being a selfish mother…for depriving you of good lives while you are growing up. I’m such a big burden to you. I hope you will find it in your heart to forgive me. I love you so much. Take care of each other whatever happens. Forgive me what I’m going to do…I have given you back to your fathers so it’s time for me to step back…I’m sorry please forgive me.

Mother

 Ae Sook left the letter on the bed before she took a step on a stool and put a study rope around her neck. The rope was tied at the ceiling of the apartment. She then kicked the stool and she felt the rope tightened around her neck…constricting her breath…as everything around her turned black and she finally stilled.

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Chae Won and Shinhye happily rode their white and pink bike. Chae Won was happily pedaling while Shinhye was happily singing a tune while she was sitting at the back of the bike.

“I feel so happy, Chae Won”, Shinhye said before she continued to sing.

“Me too, Shinhye, I hope tonight we can convince mom to come with us at Seoul”, Chae Won said smiling happily.

When they stopped in front of their apartment, Chae Won parked the bike at the side of their apartment.

“Mom, mom”, Shinhye called as she opened the door.

“Mom, mom”, Chae Won called as she followed Shinhye behind.

The apartment was so eerie as if something was terribly wrong. The sisters suddenly felt their heartbeat racing fast…fast…

“Mom…mom…” Shinhye called as she opened the door of their mother’s room…Chae Won followed Shinhye and they were horrified at what they saw.

“My God! Mom, mom!” Shinhye shouted as she fell on her knees.

“Heavens! Mom, mom!” Chae Won cried hard as she fell on her knees embracing Shinhye.

They felt devastated as if the world had ended at that moment. At the noise they made, some of their neighbors went to their apartment and they were also horrified at what they saw. One of their elderly neighbors, called a medical team while one of their male neighbors came to help their mother down.

“Mom, mom”, Shinhye ran to embrace their mother.

“Mom, mom”, Chae Won also embraced their mother.

They shook their mother trying to wake her…until the medical team came.

“I’m sorry…your mother’s already dead…she’s been dead for some time”, one of the staff of the medical team declared.

“No! No!” the sisters cried as they embraced each other and cried in each other’s arms.   

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