We huddled into the car like we did at the beginning of every summer. Every June the first since I could remember, the four of us piled into the car: Mom, Dad, Aron and I, plus the dog, Tosunnie, so there really wasn’t much room. The sleeping bags always blocked the rear view, so I suspected that we’d packed more than enough. We’d had to have; we’d stay there for months at a time. The small cabin we stayed in wasn’t bad, but it didn’t always smell the best, either. It usually smelled fine after we’d been living in it for a couple days, but that first whiff was always the most rancid. It wasn’t bad, the island. I actually liked it a lot. I really missed my friends most of the time, but it wasn’t the worst place in the world; I’d just rather have been somewhere else.

            I expected this time to be a little different, though. Mom had told us that the family that owned the cabin close to ours (and by close, I mean a good two mile walk away) were coming to spend the summer. They hadn’t done that in years. I never really cared to know why. I was happy that I’d have someone to talk to now, at least. They had a big family: a daughter, two sons and a dog whose name I had forgotten. I vaguely remember playing with their children those many years ago. I was sure they were different now than they were then; it’d been a good ten years since I had seen them. At least I’d have something to do other than laying in my creaky bed, staring at my cell phone and hoping and praying to catch a signal.

            I didn’t even have to glance over my shoulder to know that Aron was asleep already. It was like him to sleep wherever we went. I was surprised he wasn’t diagnosed with a sleeping disorder by then. It would be another three hours before we reached the port and boarded the boat that we tugged along behind the tiny car. I really liked Jeju. It was never too hot or too cold, and I loved the breeze that would pour off of the ocean surrounding us.

            Tosunnie was asleep in my lap when we arrived at the port. I couldn’t be forced to wake him even if my life depended on it, he was so cute. The slamming of the doors of the car woke him, though. Before I could count to ten, the car was unpacked and everything was in the decent sized speedboat. I stood on the pier with Tosunnie until they were done backing it into the water.

            When we arrived at the island, I felt more at home there than I had in a long time. The breeze was just how I remembered it, and the smell was just how I’d expected it to be. I carried my stuff into the cabin in one trip. I always packed light. Aron had to bring everything he ever had owned; we were different that way, I guess. When his friends were over, I was in my room playing Starcraft until the wee hours of the morning. When he was out, I was in the living room, lounging on what I could call my second bed. It was needless to say that he was the more social of the both of us. Not that I minded. I did enjoy my time alone. I didn’t expect to get much of that this summer, though. As Mom said, they were coming, and I was happy about that.

---

            It was our second day there that they arrived. I had hardly left the cabin, as per usual. Mom nearly demanded that I leave my room to meet with the others, though. I didn’t argue, as I was rather excited about getting to know them.

            I’d left my room and turned the corner for the kitchen where I knew they were when a tall, dark haired boy looked up to me from my dog.

            “She’s cute.” he said. “What’s her name?”
            “Tosunnie.” I said casually.

His jaw dropped a little at my word. “Tosunnie? My dog’s name is Rensunnie. That’s a coincidence.” He boy lent down to the floor to set her down, and her furry feet kicked until they reached the wooden planks beneath them. “I’m Minhyun, from the cabin about 800 kilometers down the dirt path to nowhere.”

            I knew his name already, despite having not seen him in over 10 years. His shallow eyes and lanky figure were unforgettable, even as a child. Would he have joined a KPop group, I’d presume they’d make him the visual, I was sure of it. I could tell he couldn’t remember my name, though.

            “JR.” was that I answered. My name sounded much better in my head in that situation then I guessed it ever could have out loud. “Rensunnie’s a cute name. What breed is she?”

“He.” he corrected me. His voice was so calm that I could have cared less what he said. You’d think that growing up with a sister, a brother and a set of parents that almost never left the house, he would have learned to be more rowdy, but I didn’t argue it. “He’s a golden retriever. The best dog I’ve ever had.”

            I had no idea what breed Tosunnie belonged to, but I should have known he would ask. I supposed he looked something like a chocolate lab, and so that’s what I told him. I hoped he couldn’t tell the difference. I was about to reach for Tosunnie when none other than Minhyun’s dog wobbled on his short legs into the room. I instantly fell to the floor on my knees to pet him; he was just as admirable as he had said, if not more so. Tosunnie yipped at the other small canine.

---

            Dinner was all right. I had missed roasting hot dogs over a fire this past school year; it was one of my favourite things to do here. The dogs continued their yipping match as the families conversed, exchanging stories about the past year. I didn’t participate. I only watched as the only girl my age nearly fell asleep on her older brother’s shoulder. It wouldn’t be at all to my surprise if she was trying to avoid the glances that Aron had thrown at her every few seconds. It wasn’t a question in my mind that he would have a difficult summer if she could help it.

            “Baekho, take Kaeun to bed.” the father asked of the older brother. He nodded as he stood, lifting his sister and carrying her to the car. I smiled to myself, wishing on any one of the stars that I could see in the sky that night that I could have someone to carry back to her bed, even if it was just a sister. I admired the way that Baekho cared for her, even after only the few hours I’d known them. It made me almost wish that I was the older brother. Although, knowing the hardships that I’d put Aron through in our day-to-day lives, I was kind of glad that I wasn’t.

            The engine clicked on and I turned my head towards it. The headlights burnt my eyes, but they soon recovered as the large SUV turned and rolled off into the distance.

            “I’m going to bed, too.” I heard Minhyun yawn. Aron didn’t say a word, but only stood and made way for the cabin. Our parents continued to speak, catching up for old time’s sake when curiosity had gotten the best of me. I wondered if the bone that Tosunnie had buried in the sand close to the creek was still there. I knew it had to be, but being left out of the conversation had bored me enough to rise from my seat on the wooden bench and creep into the woodlands. I knew that the creek was a straight shot from there and that I’d only have to walk a good five minutes to get there. It hadn’t been too dark by then, so I‘d figured I’d be back at a decent time.

            Twigs popped and cracked beneath my heels, and I smiled again. It had been so long since I could truly appreciate sounds that weren’t SNSD’s newest album. I reached the edge of the water just a bit later then I supposed I would have. I had a seat on a log close to where Tosunnie had buried that bone and took off my shoes, setting them to the side. I dug with my hand in the sand until I felt something smooth and hard. I pulled it up, only to see that it was a piece of driftwood; not the bone I was expecting.

            I looked across the water and into the horizon. The way the trees split so the sun could be seen setting perfectly between them must have been a work of some supernatural force. The oranges and reds mixed into the trickling water for the longest time as I stared at it. I closed my eyes for just a second as I decided that I should be getting back. I opened them to watch as the sun ducked just under the water and I sighed. My noise was followed by the splash of water, and I twitched to the side out of utter fright. A blonde boy rose from his spot in the sand across the creek. The longer I watched as he tiptoed through the water atop the flat rocks, the closer he became, and the less sunlight showed, but I could tell that his looks were comparable to that of the setting sun.

            “It’s getting kind of late.” he spoke in a subtle tone.
            “Yeah.” was all I could say in response. I stared at him longer before his lips broke into a smile, one that I could have counted the rings on the log I was sitting on by it’s brightness.
            “You wouldn’t want anyone worrying about you, would you now?”

            I was still at a loss for words.

            “Come on. Walk with me.”

            I stood on command, slipping my shoes on without an order from him. I followed him into the trees. He ly once to speak to me again, and my ears were even mesmerized by what he had to say, no matter how common it was.

            “I’m Ren.” he told me.

I wanted to tell him my name as well, but I couldn’t be bothered. Any and every word I knew was stuck so far deep in my throat that I couldn’t have choked out  the two letters that everyone called me until I gathered enough courage to do so. “JR.”

“Well JR,” He tried to pronounce it in the most American accent he could, but my brother was much better at it after having spent enough time in the States on visits. “I’m glad to have seen someone else down there. I was beginning to think that I’d be spending my summer alone for the most part.”

“Oh, no.” I said quickly. “I usually spend a lot of time there.” I half lied. I could spend much more time there then, though, with someone to talk to.

“Great.” He smiled that bright, toothy smile again. I couldn’t help but smile back at him. “Tomorrow, then? We can skip rocks or something.”

“Right.”

            How casual of him. It was almost as if he hadn’t known his own beauty. But I would be down there at the creek the next day. If I had ever been so sure of anything in all of my life, it’d have been that I would be down there at the creek the next day.