Chapter 29: Author’s POV

Ga Eul had gotten up an hour earlier than usual and had gotten ready for school. For the first time in her life, she’s never been so excited to go to school. She even did her hair, put on makeup, and fixed her uniform neatly as well. She’s never checked herself before going to school until now and she had wished she did because she actually liked the way the mirror was portraying her. She thought herself as someone who was actually kind of pretty.

She went over to her backpack and checked to see if everything she needed was there. After she was done, she grabbed her skateboard, that she hasn’t touched in awhile, and took it downstairs to the kitchen where her father was waiting for her; he made her breakfast knowing that she had gotten up an hour earlier. She walked over happily and sat across from him while he watched patiently.

“Good morning, Appa.” Ga Eul smiled.

“How are you feeling?” He asked as they started to dig in.

“Sad.” She said with a smile on her face. “But I’ll be alright.”

“Are you sure you really want to spend your last fourteen hours going to school and then just coming home?”

She nodded her head. “It might be my last time going to school.”

“Don’t say things like that, Ga Eul.”

“Appa, we never know what’s going to happen.” She sighed. “I had thought about it a lot and I know my mind changed so suddenly, but like everyone said, there’s a chance and if that’s the only time I’ll ever get it, I’m going for it.”

Her father’s heart was heavy.

“Appa, please don’t look so down, okay? If I’m happy, I want you to be happy too.”

“How can I?”

“Because I’m your daughter.” She smiled. “And you’re my father.”

He laughed with his heart; he loved how his daughter was being so positive when things seemed to be getting the best of her. He was more than thankful to have her in his life.

On Ga Eul’s way to school, she enjoyed the breeze that was flowing by her. She had closed her eyes a few times to remember the last sense Seoul’s air; she felt like she wasn’t going to get to breathe this in anymore and she wanted to take it all in as much as possible. She was glad that she had decided to take her skateboard and not the bus. As soon as she got to school, she stood in front of the gates and looked at her school carefully.

“Has it always looked this big?” She asked herself as she watched people pass her by.

“Choi Ga Eul!”

Ga Eul turned around and right as she did, Ji Min and Jae Kyung both wrapped their arms around her neck and pulled her down with them playfully. She laughed as she tried to get out of his grip, but they wouldn’t let her go.

“Yah. You two need to let go of me!” She told them. “I’m going ot kill the both of you.”

“Try us!” Ji Min said as he let go of. “Come on Jae Kyung.”

“Bye!” Jae Kyung and Ji Min both ran off before Ga Eul could even start running after them.

“YOU BRATS!” Ga Eul laughed as she started to chase after them.

When she got into the school, she lost her two best friends. She took a deep breath and ran a hand through her hair as she looked from side to side, hoping that she could seek them out in the crowd that was started to increase in the hallways of the building. She gave up after awhile – she had to get to class anyway. She walked towards her class with her head up high. For once, she saw faces that she never looked at before and this made her wonder if these people had been going to school with them this whole year or if they were transfers.

“Why do you look like a new student who is lost?”

Ga Eul was getting used to this kind of situation where people would talk to her before even saying a hi or a hello. She turned around and saw Seung Ho smiling at her. He chuckled upon seeing the way she had looked at him – it looked like she was confused and annoyed at the same time.

“What? Is something wrong?” He asked as he ruffled her hair.

“No.” She shook her head.

“How is everything?”

“Good.” She replied.

“Ji Min mentioned to me that you’re going to get your heart surgery.”

She nodded her head. “I leave tonight around midnight.”

“Will you do one more last thing with me before you leave?”

“And what is that?”

“Have dinner with me and my parents.”

Her eyes widened. “W-what?”

“They want to apologize for last time.”

She chuckled. “Why? It’s fine.”

“No, they were being rude.” He shook his head. “And if I knew about your heart, I wouldn’t have let them say those things to you – I still apologize on behalf of them.”

“You can’t expect everyone to treat you like you’re some kind of heir.” She shook her head with a smile. “I’ll forgive them – parents are meant to torment their children’s boyfriends and girlfriends, right?”

“So we dated then?” He chuckled at the thought since they never really claimed each other in those titles. “I kind of like that.”

“No.” She shook her head as she crossed her arms. “I was your friend who was a girl so that makes me your girl friend.”

“Oh shut up.” Seung Ho nudged her shoulder as he laughed. “You should get going to class, huh?”

“I should.” She said as she looked at the hallways that were now becoming empty.

“Let me walk you there.” Seung Ho said as he held on of her shoulders. “Come on.”

“Thanks, Seung Ho.”

“But still, Ga Eul, you’re going to dinner with me tonight, okay? I don’t care what you say because I’m going to pick you up and we’re going for an hour.”

“Yah! You can’t make decisions for me on my last day!” She retorted playfully.

“And does it look like you even have plans?”

She rolled her eyes.

“Exactly.” He said as they got to her classroom. “I shall see you then.”

“Okay.” She laughed. “Go to class before you’re late!”

Ga Eul watched as he ran backwards, still facing her, while waving at her. She, somehow, was really happy to know that they had become good friends rather than be in a relationship with each other – she liked having Seung Ho as her friend who was always there to make her laugh or joke with her casually.

When school was out, Ga Eul stayed until everyone was almost out of the building. She walked up to her teacher and bowed, thanking her for everything she’s done to help her. The teacher was confused, but she decided not to question her anyway. After Ga Eul thanked her, she walked out of the classroom and out the entrance of the building where her best friends were waiting. She was kind of disappointed that Chen was at school today – she knew he was probably training.

“Where are we off to?” Ji Min asked as he wrapped his arm around Ga Eul’s neck casually. “I say we go get some ice cream.”

“I’m kind of craving some coffee.” Jae Kyung said as she took a whiff of the air. “I can just smell it!”

“I have a dated to prepare for.” Ga Eul smirked at her friends.

“A date?” They both said at the same time. “With who?”

“Yoo Seung Ho.” She chuckled.

“You’re such a player, Choi Ga Eul. You’re dating everyone.” Ji Min rolled his eyes. “I didn’t raise you to be that kind of person.

“Life happens, Ji Min.” She shrugged.

Jae Kyung chuckled. “But hey, what can we say, Ji Min? She grew up really prettily so that’s why people want to date her.”

“You guys.” Ga Eul took a deep breath. “I’ve only talked to two guys and that was Seung Ho and C-Chen.”

Ji Min bit his lip knowing why she stuttered Chen’s name. But Ji Min, who probably saw Chen more often than the girls, knew that Chen was avoiding Ga Eul by pretending that he was training but really wasn’t. Chen hasn’t been heard of since the day of the hospital and it kind of angered him that when Ga Eul needed him the most, he wasn’t even there for her. Ga Eul was there for Chen when he was at his hardest, even when she wasn’t wanted, and this made him confused. He didn’t understand Chen at all.

“Hey, let’s go get you ready for you date, eh?” Jae Kyung could feel the atmosphere falling. “Come on!

“Do I really wear this?”Ga Eul asked looking at herself in the mirror as she turned a few times to check her back as well. “Don’t you think this is too… How do I say this?”

“Pretty?”Jae Kyung asked.

“No, that’s not pretty.” Ji Min shook his head. “She looks like… She looks like a woman.”

“Yah.” Jae Kyung glared over at him.

“What? We’re broken up so I can say whatever’s on my mind now.”

“You’re a brat.” She hissed at him.

He shrugged with a laugh. “Not my fault you wanted to break up.

“YAH YAH!” Ga Eul grabbed her pillow on her bed and hit the two of them with it. “Talk about your damn break up again and I’ll throw you both out of the window.”

“She started it.” Ji Min said and this caused Ga Eul to hit him again. “Stop that!”

“Then be quiet.” Ga Eul put the pillow down and stared at herself again.

Ga Eul was wearing dark colored skinny jeans, red heels, and a white button up blouse under a black blazer. Jae Kyung and had picked the outfit out for her, but she kind of felt out of place – this wasn’t her usual everyday outfit so she wasn’t used to it. She looked over at her friends and smiled, knowing that they were probably more than happy to see her go off on one more date before it was time for her to leave the country.

“What am I going to do without you guys?” Ga Eul knew she was going to cry, but all the makeup effort done by Jae Kyung was the only thing stopping her.

“What are we going to do without you?” Ji Min asked as he stood up from her bed and walked over to hug her. “You do look really pretty even if it’s not much.”

“Shut up, Ji Min.” Jae Kyung said as she walked over and hugged the both of them. “What are we going to do without each other?”

“We’ll be together forever.” Ji Min whispered as Jae Kyung started crying.

“Don’t get her white blouse full of your tears.” Ji Min tried to loosen up the atmosphere, but she was still crying. “Don’t’ forget, Jae Kyung. She has a date to go to.”

“You’re right.” Jae Kyung managed to laugh even when she was crying. “But she’ll be okay with a few stains.”

Ga Eul hugged her friends tighter. She didn’t want to let go.

Seung Ho looked down at the piece of paper that Ji Min had given to him earlier at school. He had been standing outside of an unknown building for the past ten minutes, debating whether or not he wanted to go in or if this was even the right building that was written down. He took a deep breath as he finally made the decision of going in. Once he got inside, he heard music being played down one hallway, which caught him by surprise. He looked in the rooms and saw a few people dancing while some others were singing.

He remembered clearly what Ji Min had said once he was going to get there. He walked down the hallway until he got to the end and looked into the last room, only to find Chen walking back and forth, singing into a microphone while looking at a piece of paper that he was holding onto. Seung Ho had always envied Chen for being so talented and having a dream that he couldn’t even think of. Without taking a second chance of waiting, he opened the door and this caused Chen to stop singing and look over at him.

Chen looked shocked to see Seung Ho.

“Hi friend.” Seung Ho waved awkwardly.

“What are you doing here?” Chen asked as he stopped the music from playing.

“Haven’t seen you in awhile…” Seung Ho shrugged. “I-I thought I’d come and talk to you.”

“Talk to me?” Chen has never really carried a conversation with Seung Ho.

“Becoming an idol must be taking a toll on you.” Seung Ho walked over and sat down on an open couch that was in the practice room.  “Are you tired?”

Chen sighed as he decided to compel with him. “Yeah. It’s very tiring.”

“When is your debut date?”

“I don’t know.” Chen shrugged.

“Can I ask you something?”

“It seems like it doesn’t matter what my answer is.”

“You’re right.” Seung Ho chuckled. “Tell me how you’re feeling.”

“Feeling?”

“Yeah. Feeling…”

“I’m feeling…”

“Suffocated? Sad?” Seung Ho suggested the emotions. “Or hurt?”

Chen looked over at Seung Ho – he knew where he was going with this. “Just ask me what you really want to ask me.”

“I am.” Seung Ho said. “How are you feeling?”

“I don't know. I can't even explain what a wreck I am.” He answered.

“Then how is Ga Eul feeling without you if you’re feeling like that?” Seung Ho asked.

Chen’s heart became heavy.

“It’s weird how upbeat and positive she is suddenly thrown off by the news of her not living any longer or the fact that if she gets the surgery, she’ll only have a 25% chance of living.” Seung Ho stood up and walked over to Chen. “And she doesn’t even need anyone by her side to feel this way.”

“She’s fine without me…” Chen whispered.

Seung Ho quickly punched Chen across the face. “She chose you over me.”

“I didn’t tell her to.”

“She’s suffering.” Seung Ho said.

“You said she was doing fine.”

“She’s not ing doing fine, Kim Jong Dae! That’s how Ga Eul is, if you didn’t know. She’s the type of girl to make people happy and forget her own worries!” Seung Ho started raising his voice out of anger. “Do you realize how suffocated or hurt she is without having someone there by her side?”

“She has you guys!” Chen said but this only caused Seung Ho to punch him across the face. “Why do I have to do something?!”

“Because you ing love her!”

Chen looked away from Seung Ho.

“Why are you suddenly like this?”

“I hate having someone leave me…” Chen was starting to break down. “How can I look at her knowing that she’s going to be gone soon?”

“She left me for you. It still makes me upset.” Seung Ho chuckles as he brought up the same topic. “But she chose you over me because you made her happy without even trying.”

Chen felt his heart break a little.

Seung Ho finally lowered his voice. “All that matters right now is how much she needs you, but you’re not there.”

Chen stayed quiet.

“You say you’re afraid of having someone leave you, but I think it’s you who left.”

Again, Chen said nothing.

“You said you’re afraid she’s going to be gone? The least you could do is spend those last few hours with her before she leaves… Because… It might just be your last time.”

Chen started crying.

“You’re going to regret it, Chen. You’re going to regret not being there for her when she needed you the most and you’re going to regret that you didn’t get to spend the last few hours with her.”

Chen shook his head and bent down as he cried.

“She leaves midnight tonight.” Seung Ho said. “We’re having a last minute hang out at the beach, where the two of you supposedly go often. You should come.”

Chen was lost for words.

“Because like you said, this could be your last time…” Seung Ho sighed. “Think of it this way; you can only blame yourself for feeling the way you feel.”

“I’m sorry…”

“Apologize to her…”

“I don’t deserve to see her.”

“But she deserves to see you.”

With that, Seung Ho walked out of the practice room, leaving Chen crying on his own.

The dinner was better than the first time Ga Eul had gone to. This time, Seung Ho’s parents were asking her heart and how things were going to go for her in America. Even though the questions seemed almost the same, Ga Eul was more than happy to talk to them because according to his parents, they knew of someone who had a heart surgery and it was successful. They supported her in every way and told her to stay positive – Seung Ho was more than happy to see that his parents were so aggressive anymore.

After the dinner, Ga Eul thought Seung Ho was going to take her home, but they seem to be heading the opposite direction of her house. She looked at him and was about to question him about it, but Seung Ho pressed a finger to his lips, telling her that she shouldn’t speak until they had gotten to their next destination – it was the beach that she and Chen often went to together. She felt her heart sink – this only made her want to see Chen more and more, but she didn’t know if he was even going to be there.

“What are we doing here?” Ga Eul asked as she saw the sun was starting to set.

“Come on.” Seung Ho said as he pulled her out of the car.

They walked towards the beach and just as they got onto the sand, Ga Eul spotted Ji Min, Jae Kyung, Lu Han, Xiu Min, and Lay waving at her.

“What is this?” Ga Eul felt like crying.

“I know we’re all not that close, but it’s always good to see acquaintances, right?” Seung Ho pulled her towards them.

“SURPRISE!” They all yelled.

But she wasn’t surprised… Chen wasn’t there… Again.

*A/N: It always makes me sad when I have to end  a story soon. But still. I want to thank you all who have been with me through every freaking slow update. *bows. BTW, did you guys read my update on My Gangster? Hehe! Go check it out! Please read and comment. I'd love to hear about your opinions, so please don't be a silent reader. Thank you and read with lots of love! Keke~! Muah