The next Sunday we shared lunch in the same place and he placed his head against my shoulder. I felt proud now, now that he was no longer shy with me. I felt as if I had earned a special part of him, and yet he still remained greatly mysterious to me. He never told me too much about his outside life, making only occasional vague references to friends and relatives. If he mentioned a friend, it was only ever as "my friend", never by a name. Sometimes I felt tempted to press him for more information, but at the same I realised that there was a whole different life he lived every other day of the week, which I was not meant to be a part of.

I, on the other hand, felt the need to tell him everything. The desire to know him was balanced by the desire I felt to be known by him, and so I offered my soul up on a plate. I told him more about my home, my family and my friend, the Reverend, who was my mentor in all things. He listened kindly, as always, with full attention.

"I told the Reverend about you," I said to him one Sunday.

Ryeo-wook responded with eyes narrowed. "What did he say?"

"Well, nothing in particular. Only that it was good that I had a new friend, and that I should try to maintain our friendship when I go back to school."

"Oh." Ryeo-wook smiled. I wondered whether he had been expecting to hear something else. "Yes, let's stay friends."

* * *

I continued to go to Mt. Gyeyang every Sunday without fail. One day my aunt took notice of this. We were on our way to church in the morning, and she asked:

"Are you going to the mountain again?"

I replied that I was, a little sheepishly, since I wasn't expecting to be asked.

"When I advised that you should visit the park, I didn't expect that you would go back there every week. I thought you might want to see some other part of the city."

"Well, I quite like the park, but it's not only that. I have a friend that I want to meet there."

Auntie looked straight ahead, a serious expression on her face. "I suspected as much. Is it a girl?"

"No, not a girl."

"Ah, but I thought it must be. The way you are always so go eager to go over there by a certain time, and when you come back you are always light and happy. There is no shame in seeing a girl, you know. Especially at your age..."

I was somewhat amused by the thought that my aunt suspected me of lying. I didn't know what to say to her. I only repeated that my friend was not a girl, and she nodded solemnly.

* * *

Summer continued to roll on and as it did so I thought that it went both quickly and slowly. The days of the week seemed to last forever, but before I was even ready, it was time for me to go back home.

On the last Sunday before my leaving, we were sitting together under the Judas tree, the same one as always. He was sitting with his back to me, leaning back so that his head was pressed against my shoulder. I could smell the shampoo in his hair and it mixed with the sweet summer smell of grass and flowers, and it gave me a rather heady sensation.

"I am going back to Seoul next week," I said to him.

He didn't reply. He was staring off into the distance, as if in a trance, and it was as if he hadn't heard me at all. I was a little annoyed by this so I said:

"Ryeo-wook, listen to me! You can't ignore your elder!" I was about to poke him in the side, but I couldn't bring myself to hurt him in any way, so instead I kissed the top of his head. This made him snap out of his trance, and he turned to look up at me.

"I'm sorry. I'm not very well today," he said, smiling apologetically.

"What's the matter, are you sick?"

"No, it's more of an emotional matter," he said, somewhat shyly. I wanted him to say more.

"Tell me about it."

He rubbed his chest awkwardly for a few moments. "It was a break up," he said. "That's all."

I was a little taken aback by this admission. He had never told me that he had a girlfriend. Sure, he never mentioned his outside life in any great detail but I thought he would have at least mentioned a girlfriend. I had thought that we were closer than that.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I said, trying hard to keep my voice level, hoping I wouldn't reveal the betrayal I felt.

"Not really." He laughed lightly. "It wasn't a serious thing, and you know it's probably for the best. I guess it's just my injured pride. You just said that you were going back to Seoul next week. I was listening, actually. I'm sorry I drifted off. I will miss you when you go. We've been good friends these past few weeks."

I was touched by these words, so I immediately forgot the small pain I had felt just a minute earlier. With one arm, I pulled him closer to me.

"Come with me." I said without thinking.

He took a deep breath. "What do you mean?"

"Come to Seoul with me, just for a few days. You have a holiday now, don't you? I want you to come see where I live, you can meet my family."

"Oh... where do you live?"

"Over there!" I pointed into the distant blur. "It's somewhere over there."

Ryeo-wook laughed. "Yeah, I know where Seoul is. Which part do you live in?"

"Gangnam-gu."

He drew another deep breath. "Really now."

"Please, come." I repeated, pulling him in even closer, so that his back was pressed against me. He was so small, it felt so easy to hold him like this.

"Okay then," he said at last. "Let me know when you are leaving and we can catch the train together."