“What did you just say?”

“I said I’m sorry …for everything – including yesterday’s incident and, well, the majority of your life. I didn’t realize you were so passionate about music and it was wrong of me to disprove of music so harshly when I know your mother lived and breathed it through her veins. But please, before you hate me any further, understand my reasoning. You don’t HAVE to become a doctor, especially if your heart is not into it. The only reason I said I wanted a doctor in the family was because you had such a big heart and excelled in school – I thought that was the best option for you. Sure, it takes a lot of work to become one, but I know you would be able to do it and then live out a great life for yourself. Doctors make a lot of money while musicians are lucky if they manage to pull out a song that brings in enough money to sustain them. Your mother was a clear example of this.”

“Mom struggled with money?”

“Of course she did. She loved music, no doubt. However, that passion did not show through the sales. Your mother had the sweetest voice out of anyone I’d heard before, and that’s one of the reasons I fell in love with her. At that time, I was unemployed – still working on becoming an engineer. Your mother was barely scraping enough money to survive, but she still invited me to stay in her apartment for free. She had a large heart, but she died without achieving many of her hopes and dreams. She wanted you to live well, Hyun Ae. She worked hard to inspire you with music while working day and night on her own songs. By the time I became an engineer, things turned around for the better. However, your mom always regretted never being able to hold up her end of the deal for you financially. I don’t want you to die with regrets either, which is why I tried so hard to separate you from your musical roots.”

Hyun Ae started tearing up at the image of her mother suffering. She had never seen that side of her mother; she didn’t think it existed.

“But then why did you always yell at me for getting low A’s? They’re not even bad grades and I suffered for years because of the worry of disappointing you over and over.”

“Well, I am just a competitive person who doesn’t like being one-upped. So back then, hearing all the parents brag about Bobby, just to get under my skin, riled me up, and I guess all my anger rubbed off on you. However, medical school is very competitive – so I wanted you to have the most advantage possible in terms of grades; but looking at you now, I see that I have gone too far. For that, I apologize. I didn’t realize how much harm I was causing you over the years and I truly regret ever laying a hand on your face. You didn’t deserve it.”

Hyun Ae nodded, soaking in her father’s words. Her father’s eyes were downcast, drooping in misery and regret. She slowly reached out for his hand, lightly touching the tips of his fingers.

“So, from now on, if I manage to prove myself in composing, can I pursue that field?”

Her father sighed.

“You’ll have to give me some time. Even though you mentioned loving music, I still think that going into the medical field is a better option for you financially. Let’s see how you do on college entrance exams first and we’ll decide on the best course for you after. There may be a way to get the best of both worlds.”

Hyun Ae nodded and smiled. Even if it wasn’t a direct “yes”, it was a “maybe”, and Hyun Ae would take that chance and work even harder from now on to prove herself.

“You know, this is one of the few times that we actually get to talk and bond…I used to do this with Mom a lot…”

Her father gave her a sad grin as he patted her hand.

“I know…and I know I’m not the most approachable person in the world. Your mother was always the more expressive one in the relationship. She showered me with love while I was too uncomfortable to even kiss her in public. I never realized how much I appreciated her hugs and warm words until she was gone. That’s another thing I don’t want you to regret either – if you like someone, express it to them. Don’t keep it all in because they might not be there for you one day.”

Hyun Ae noticed her father’s eyes were glistening, and as he said his sweet words, another request popped into her head.

“Speaking about appreciation…can I make another request?”

“Is this tied to music as well?”

“Sort of. It’s about Bobby…”

“Oh? What about him? Don’t tell me you want to date him; I may be getting a bit lax on the music loving thing, but you are still not allowed to date until you get into medical school.”

“DADDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD. Not like that. But, I want you to see him the way I see him. He’s lived a hard life away from his family, and he’s a very warm hearted guy. He’s a very busy person, yet he still maintains his grades. I even saw him in the library this morning, when no one else was around. He’s very admirable, and I don’t want you to think of him so badly anymore.”

“Well…, from the way he talked about you before you came to, it seems like he appreciates you a lot as well. His words had an effect on me, and he was diligently working on your song when I came in. So, I’ll make an effort not to judge him too harshly. But, I will have to warn him if I see him getting too close to you.”

“DAAADDDDDDDD.”

“Haha, alright, alright. I’ll ease up on him.”

“But, what exactly did he say about me?”

“You should ask him that yourself.”

Hyun Ae smiled as she took notice of Bobby walking near the door. Hyun Ae’s father turned to where her eyes were focused and stood up.

“Well, now that I’ve had my time with you, I’ll let him have a chance. I have to get back to work anyway.”

Hyun Ae nodded as she started becoming intrigued with the stack of music papers around the table.

As Hyun Ae’s father went outside, Bobby deeply bowed once more.

“Treat my daughter well, alright? I’m sorry for the rude things I’ve mentioned to my daughter about you, but seeing how much she respects you, I’ll start doing the same. But, don’t get too close to her or we’re going to have to talk.”

“Haha, yes sir. I would never try to purposefully sadden her. So, I’m assuming you got to chat with your daughter about some of her dreams?”

“Ah, yes. We’ll see where this musical path takes her after college entrance exams. That goes for you too, Kim Ji Won.”

“Yes sir. But on the topic of music, may I ask for something?”

“Depends on what it is.”

“I would like to show her the places where I get inspiration. I’ve noticed she’s missed a lot in her life due to her rigorous academic schedule, so I would like for her to explore what life really has to offer outside of school.”

“Alright, I would be okay with that. But, you must make sure that her studies don’t fall behind and that she still gets home early enough for her to do her schoolwork.”

“I understand. Thank you so much.”

Bobby bowed once again as Hyun Ae’s father reached out to pat his back.

“No, thank you.”

With that, Hyun Ae’s father left and Bobby quickly ran in to talk to Hyun Ae.

“Hey,” Bobby said with a big smile.

“Hey yourself,” Hyun Ae said with a smirk.

“So…how’d it go? With your dad and everything.”

“He’s considering letting me study music, haha. It all depends on how well I do on my college entrance exams, but the fact that I have a chance is enough. And, we actually got to have a really nice conversation…I understand the reasons behind his actions now, and I got to learn a lot more about my mom on top of that. So, it was pretty interesting.”

Hyun Ae softly smiled while recounting the talk with her father.

“That’s great to hear. I actually was working on the composition while you were still out and I wanted to ask what you thought of it so far.”

Bobby started playing the current track on his laptop as the room became filled with song.

“So, what do you think? Can you perform this?”

“I think so. I’m not a really good singer though haha…”

“That’s okay! I’m not either, but that’ll make it even more fun to perform.”

As they continued to work on the song, time flew by. Before they knew it, the end of the school day was approaching. However, the two top students had thrown away their worries for the day as they completed their perfect song piece. The more time they spent together, the less their worries were. Even though she had basically missed the whole day of school, Hyun Ae finally had a day where she could say she was truly happy. This day was the start of a whole new path for her, thanks to Bobby.

“So, the last thing we need to do is give this song a name,” Bobby said while biting his pencil.

“Mmm…well, I’ve always had the name as ‘Miss You’”.

“That’s not bad, but I think we could do better in order to express what the lyrics are about. It’s the feeling of missing someone so much that all you can think about when reuniting with them is not ever leaving again. It’s got to have heart, and it should be a name both our moms would be proud to hear.”

They both sat in silence for a while, trying to come up with a good name. Hyun Ae snapped her fingers.

“Long Time No See?” (Click to hear the song)

“That’s perfect!”

They both smiled and laughed as Bobby suddenly reached forward to tuck some of Hyun Ae’s hair behind her ear.

“I’m glad to see you as well after such a long time,” Bobby said with a sweet smile.

“How long was I knocked out? Haha.”

“No, I don’t mean it that way. I mean, it’s been a while since I’ve gotten to see the real Hyun Ae. She’s finally starting to come out again. I’m glad she’s here again.”

Hyun Ae smiled as she internally squealed about the light contact that had just taken place.

“Me too.”

“And hey, your dad is letting me take you out to some places. Wanna go today?”

“Really? Wow, sounds awesome! But, I’ll have to take a rain check. I want to spend some time at home today. How about tomorrow, same time as always?”

Bobby smiled.

“Sounds great.”

He handed her the meal that had gotten cold over the course of the day. Nonetheless, Hyun Ae ate it heartily as they both talked until the bells signaling the end of the school day rung.

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Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you enjoy this chapter and thanks to my subscribers once again. Enjoy the holidays~

The last chapter should hopefully be finished by tomorrow :)