That was nearly four years ago. Taekwoon and I were fourteen and in our last year of middle school. After returning his photo, I stuck to Taekwoon like glue. I constantly talked to him about our past, but he seemed oblivious to any history we had. After a while, I realized the once smiley Leo I knew was now the expressionless, poker face Taekwoon. One day, when I went to his house for a visit, I found the reason as to why my friend no longer smiled.

Taekwoon was out for a soccer game, and his grandmother was the one who greeted me and invited me in for tea. While talking with her, I learned that Taekwoon moved at the age of eight to Daegu with his parents because of business reasons. The year Taekwoon transferred to my middle school, he and his parents had gotten into a fatal car crash over the summer during a tropical storm. While he got out with wounds that would heal with time, his parents died as they were rushed to the hospital. Semiconscious Taekwoon had watched his parents die right before him as he was rolled into the emergency room. After that day, he never smiled ever again, knowing his parents could never smile with him.

I couldn't even start to imagine what emotional pain he was in. I decided to take on the mission of being the one to make him smile again. I never once brought up his parents to him, though. I didn't think I could handle seeing Taekwoon cry. I never once left Taekwoon's side, even though he was immensely annoyed by my bubbly personality. I went to the same high school as him, and after studying my days away, I eventually got into the same college as him. I was ecstatic when I learned most of my classes were also with him.

As our final class ended, I rushed to keep up with Taekwoon who was obviously trying to avoid me.

"Wait up, Leo!" I shouted, skipping down the stone steps at the front of the school.

I sprinted towards him, grasping his arm. He stopped as I hunched over my knees, gasping for air. He turned and glared at me, holding onto his sidepack's strap. He yanked his other arm out of my hand and dug it into his pocket.

"What?" He snapped.

"Do," I gasped. I held up a finger and signaled him to wait as I caught my breath. After doing so, I straightened myself up and spoke normally again. "Do you want to go to the park later? I miss having fun time with you."

"How many times do I have to tell you?" He retorted. "I don't remember you, and I don't remember being friends with you. Why can't you just leave me alone?"

He began walking away as I grabbed his arm and dragged him back. He faced me with his arms crossed. I placed my hands together and held them up, begging him.

"Please? Just once?" I held up a single finger.

He glowered at me and blew a sharp breath of air, flipping his hair out of his face.

"I'll even bring a soccer ball for you! Please, please, please. If you go, I'll never ask you to go anywhere with me again," I begged, rubbing my hands together.

He stared at me for a while before replying, "If you'll also leave me alone during lunch, then I'll go but only for an hour."

"Deal!" I squealed, letting him walk off. "Meet me in the park by your house in thirty minutes!"

I excitedly ran home and quickly ate my after school lunch. After finishing, I changed into a pair of bright blue shorts and a while t shirt. To top it off, I threw on a white jacket. Before I left, I was sure to brush my hair and grab the soccer ball I promied to Taekwoon. I made haste down the stairs from my room, not even running on them but rather sliding down the rail. As I landed on the ground with a loud thud, my mother poked her head out from the kitchen and scorned me.

"Jae Hee-ah, you shouldn't be jumping off the stairs like that. What'll we do if you twisted your ankle?"

"Sorry, Mommy!" I apologized, bowing at her quickly. I ran towards the door and nearly jumped into my shoes.

My mother made a questioning face at me and asked, "Where are you going in such a rush?"

"Meeting an old friend!" I giggled, rushing out the door. "Bye, Mommy!"

Before she could reply, I slammed the door shut and hopped on my bike parked in the open garage, tossing the ball into my basket. I pedaled at the speed of light, headed towards the park. After a while, I let one hand go and glided down a hill, pass Taekwoon's house. Soon I arrived at the park and made a sharp left turn into the park's entrance. I looked around to see the park nearly deserted. I began wondering where everyone was when I realized how cloudy the skies were. I shrugged at the idea of rain and pedaled on.

A little rain never hurt anyone.

I spotted Taekwoon by the swing sets and stood up on the bike, pedaling heavily with my tongue sticking out in anticipation. As I got close to the swings, I grabbed the ball, swung my leg over my seat, and jumped off, letting the bike fall to the ground. Taekwoon was sitting on a swing, wringing his hands nervously. He turned his head in my direction, noting my presence.

"You're late," he said, not even greeting me.

"Sorry! I took a while to eat," I replied, tossing him the ball.

Taekwoon stood up immediately and let the ball bounce off his chest and onto his foot where he skillfully began kicking it up and down. I watched him in awe, happy to see him enjoy himself. As I continued to stare at him in admiration, I could have sworn I saw him slightly smile and began to jump up and down excitedly, earning his attention. He kicked the ball up high and caught it in his hands.

"What?" He asked, furrowing his eyebrows at my idiotic squealing.

"You smiled!" I pointed out.

Taekwoon immediately grimaced at the word. "No, I didn't. I don't smile."

I pouted at his defensive statement and slowly approached him, sitting on the swing in front of him as he continued kicking the ball.

"Then will you smile? Just once, please? For me?" I asked, making a puppy face at him.

"No," he replied coldly.

Off in the distance, I heard a loud crash of thunder and a spark of lightning streaked across the sky. Taekwoon immediately stopped kicking his ball, letting it fall and bounce off. I looked at him in surprise as his eyes rounded with fear. He began to breathe erratically, his fingers trembling.

"I have to get home before it rains," he announced, beginning to walk away.

"What? No!" I shouted, grabbing his wrist. "You promised me an hour!"

"Maybe some other time. I have to go. Now!" He argued as he tried to twist his hand out of my grip.

"No. I want friend to friend time," I grunted as I tried to hold onto him.

"No! I have to go now!" He shouted angrily, turn around quickly and facing me. He was breathing heavily, with sweat starting to run down his forehead. I could see the veins popping out of his neck and tears begin to form in his eyes.

"Are you okay?" I asked, letting my grip go.

"Yeah, yes, I'm just... I'm fine!" He yelled, rubbing his eyes.

"Don't do that. You'll make it worse," I said, walking up to him and placing a hand on his cheek.

He slapped my hand away and glared at me. As I stared into his eyes, I could see the fear growing and spreading throughout him. As we held our gaze, rain started to fall. First it was a few drops, but in the blink of an eye, it grew to a downpour. Right before my eyes, Taekwoon began to break down into tears, sobbing his heart out. I could feel my heartbreak just watching him cry. He crouched down on his ankle, covering his face. Not knowing what else to do, I fell to my knees and wrapped my arms around Taekwoon, softly rubbing his back for comfort.

"Let it all out, Taekwoon. I'm here for you," I cooed. Though I couldn't feel any tears, I was sure they were streaming from the heat coming from my face.

"Mom. Dad. Why... why did you leave me here? Why didn't you take me with you? I have no reason to be here!" Taekwoon sobbed.

My heart shattered at his last sentence. Unsure of what I felt, I abruptly slapped him across the face, shocking even myself. Taekwoon fell back on his bum and stared at me with his blood shot eyes. At this point, I was also crying my heart out. I was not crying due to sadness or grief but due to anguish that he could say such a thing.

"How could you say that, Leo?" I asked, suddenly reverting back to our younger days. I brushed my wet hair out of my face. As I moved, I could feel water run out of my sleeves and empty into my shirt. "Do you think your parents would be happy if you said that? Do you?"

Taekwoon held his cheek and sniveled to himself, not answering my question.

"Do you want to know why you were left here while your parents departed from this Earth, Leo? I'll tell you why!" I shouted, pointing a finger at him. "You are still here because it is your job to keep smiling, Leo! Don't you know your smile is beautiful? It lights up the world. Your parents are probably watching you right now and feeling guilty of themselves because they're up in Heaven smiling down on you, but all you do is frown back at them! They want you to smile, Leo! They want you to keep being that Leo I knew years ago. They want their smiling Leo back... I want my smiling Leo back. Taekwoon, please, stop pushing yourself by thinking about the accident so much. It was not your fault! You shouldn't be crying. You should be smiling and telling your parents, 'Hey, Mom and Dad! I miss you, but I'll stay strong and smile for you. Whatever I do, I'll smile. Just for you!' You shouldn't be grieving for them, Leo. You should be smiling for them because they no longer can."

I watched as Taekwoon winced, shutting his eyes tight. I could see him muffling his whimpers and gulping down the lump in his throat. He then looked up at me again and for the first time in years, smiled. I smiled back at him and lunged forward, wrapping my arms around his neck. I kneeled between Taekwoon's legs, embracing him gentle like a small child in my arms. He wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me closer, closing off any space between us. Soon the downpour let up, turning into a simple sprinkle.

The two of us finally let go and stared into each other's eyes. I took my hands and wiped his face, attempting to dry it. He smiled up at me as I cupped his face in my hands, I touched our foreheads together. My nose fit right up against his and his lips just barely brushed against mine as we forehead kissed. If it means having to spend days in the rain with Taekwoon just to see him smile, I would do it. His smile wasn't just a light of the world; his smile was the light of my world, and I would never be able to replace it. I finally regained those past smiles Taekwoon always shared with me. Where ever Taekwoon's parents are, I hope they're also smiling down on us. They better expect more to come, because I'll make sure Taekwoon smiles everyday for the rest of his life.

So.. I don't know about you guys... but while I wrote this, I was listening to "1000 Years Alway By Your Side" by SHINee, and I was also pouring my heart out. I am in tears currently. TT_TT