“Leaving?!”

She could hardly fathom the word in her thoughts. Hot tears streaked her face, staining her pink cheeks like tiny dew drops on a fragile flower. She shook with the sobs, feeling the pain of betrayal.

How could they take her away from everything she knew?

A new home in an unfamiliar town will not do her any good; Seoul was and will be her only home. A different school with different teachers and classmates will only make things harder; she was doing well with her studies there. They expected her to make new friends when she did not want any; here, she was contented with having just one true best friend.

They expected her to accept the idea as if there were no consequences.

To make it all worse, they expected that in a matter of weeks, she should be ready.

At the moment, all she could feel was hate for her parents. They did not deserve any of it, they were only doing what was best for the family.  

But a 9 year old’s childish perception could not yet comprehend that.

The grass beneath her feet sunk with the heaviness of her steps. The only thing that made her feel a little better was that she neared her destination. Amidst so much desolation, she could think only of one place to allow her some comfort.

She stood in front of the door, hesitant to show herself in such a state. Her fingers fiddled with the suspenders of her jumper shorts, clinging onto the glimmer of hope of that once he was there she would be happy again. She wiped away the tears, yet they could not be hidden.

Lifting her hand, she knocked. After the count of 5, the knob turned.

Rather than obtain a calmer expression, the tears flowed even harder as she caught sight of him.

“Hyun Hee, what’s wrong?” he said, putting both hands on her shoulders.

“Kyuhyun.”

She could only say his name as she trapped herself into the circle of his arms. She cried, unable to control the raptures of emotion.

How could she even think of leaving her best friend?

How could they take her away from everything she loved?

“It’s okay,” he said, her hair. "I'm here."

He did not know and yet he did well in consoling her. He pulled away and stooped down to her height. He was 9 as well, yet he was already taller than her.

She looked back at him, trusting his words. Slowly, she fe