Chapter Seventeen: Ilsoon's Story

Meanwhile, back on the beach...

“I’m thinking it’s time for you to tell me what happened to you. From the beginning.”

Ilsoon looked up with tear-filled eyes, bit her lip uncertainly, then nodded.

“Alright.”

-.-.-.-.-.-.-

—flashback—

“I like you, Minjun-ssi. Please accept this, along with my feelings.”

A 14-year-old Ilsoon stood shyly in her middle school uniform, her hair long and straight down her back. In her hands was a homemade Japanese bento because she knew this boy Minjun likes Japan. He stood in front of her, almost a foot taller and he was athletic-looking. He had long hair with side swept bangs, and small but bright eyes.

Minjun rubbed the back of his neck. He looked rather uncertain and awkward.

“Uhm, look here, Ilsoon-ssi… I mean, thank you and everything, but I find it really… uhm, really weird when girls confess first. And to be honest, you’re not really my type. I have someone else I like, and things with this girl are going really well. I’d appreciate it if, you know, you backed off a bit. Sorry.”

Minjun awkwardly backed off and went back inside the building, leaving Ilsoon standing by herself on the school field, the bento shaking along with her hands. She bit back tears and ran off, straight home.

The next week, right after the end of that school year, Ilsoon went off to study in Paris, not to be seen by her parents or brother for 4 years.

—end of flashback—

-.-.-.-.-.-.-

“You left the country without explaining to me, your best friend, because of a friggin’ heartbreak?”

Ilsoon wiped her tears and glared pointedly at Ilhoon. “You idiot. You idiot! You wouldn’t understand, would you? It’s never happened to you. You wouldn’t give a damn about girls and dating and whatever even if they dump you and humiliate you in public!”

“Basically why I don’t give a damn about that,” muttered Ilhoon.

“You’re hopeless,” she said with a deep scowl.

Ilhoon made a face, but shrugged and said, “But why did you come back here?”

Ilsoon’s face fell. “Well, it happened again, see? And to think I should have known better…”

-.-.-.-.-.-

—flashback—

“I’m getting tired of this, Ilsoon. You’re always too busy to hang out with me.”

“If you mean ‘hang out’ as in go to bars and to hell with what happens next, you can forget about me ever ‘hanging out’ with you.”

The guy was blonde this time, American, and transfer student in Ilsoon’s Parisian high school. At that time he was already Ilsoon’s three-week boyfriend. His name is Robert and he had blue eyes and the same athletic build Minjun had. And he looked disappointed.

“This isn’t working out, Ilsoon,” said Robert.

“Robby, if that’s the kind of ‘fun’ you’re looking for, get yourself a hoe, not a girlfriend!”

In his anger, Robert slapped Ilsoon so hard she fell on the ground.

“How dare you—”

“I thought you were better than this, Robby.”

“Don’t you ‘Robby’ me. We’re done. You’re no fun at all.”

As he walked away, Ilsoon clutched her red cheek while hot, angry tears fell from her eyes. And like what happened in middle school, she let the school year finish and came right back to Korea.

—end of flashback—

“But he was a jerk! How could you be hurt after a break up like that?” said Ilhoon, aghast.

Ilsoon scowled again. “I’m really wondering now if I should have told you this. You’re not helping.”

Ilhoon rolled his eyes. “Fine. But explain to me why—”

“Because I loved him too, you dolt.”

Ilhoon stopped. True, there may have been a side of him that Ilsoon liked. He might have changed over time, or met a few new friends that influenced him, but whatever the case, if he were always a jerk like that, Ilsoon would never have liked him in the first place. Ilhoon sighed and shrugged.

“Okay, fine. But what happened today?”

With a glum tone, Ilsoon said, “It’s happening again.”

Ilhoon was puzzled for a moment, and when realization dawned on him, he smacked his forehead.

“You like one of the boys, don’t you?”

Ilsoon didn’t have to reply. The look she gave Ilhoon was enough. The older twin blew at his bangs exasperatedly and asked,

“Who is it?”

With the same glum tone, Ilsoon said, “What’s happy and sunny and almost always funny?”

Ilhoon almost laughed aloud, but being in the ‘considerate brother’ mode he’s in, he didn’t. After all, Eunkwang is kind of that type of guy, the one girls tend to like. In the eldest band member’s defense, he was one of the top three in their group with the highest piles of chocolates and gifts every Valentine’s Day.

“He’s… I can’t believe I’m saying this… Eunkwang is crushable and all that,” said Ilhoon, muttering.

“I guess this is the part where you say, ‘I told you so’,” said Ilsoon glumly. “Well, don’t hold it back. Say it.”

Ilhoon blew a raspberry and kicked the sand. “That’s right. I didn’t want to introduce to you my friends because I have this weird 6^th sense that something like this might happen. But you were right too: you meeting them was inevitable. There’s nothing we can do about this now.”

Ilsoon looked at her twin. “Where’s the part where you yell and scold me for being an idiot and being so pushy?”

“It was omitted from the script, I guess.”

Ilsoon smirked despite her tear-stained face. “I’d hug you if it weren’t so awkward.”

Ilhoon chuckled. “I wouldn’t mind a few seconds of awkwardness.” He pulled Ilsoon in for a tight embrace, and Ilsoon wrapped her arms around his waist.

“You’re not so bad of a brother,” she said.

“What are you talking about? I’m not bad at all,” said Ilhoon. “Race you back?”

“Oh you’re so on.”

-.-.-.-.-.-.-