You meet thousands of people and none of them really touch you. And then you meet one person and your life will change forever.

23^rd August 2015

“Halmoni?”

Sehun looked at the old lady who was beaming happily before him and the couple instinctively let go of each other’s hands. However it was too late.

The old lady walked towards the couple and went forward to look at the girl closely. She was indeed pretty and kind looking, no wonder her Sehun had fallen for her. When she nodded her head approval, Sehun knew his grandmother had mistunderstood them.

“Halmoni, don’t misunderstand. We are not..” Sehun attempted to explain himself but was interrupted by his grandmother instead.

“Not what? You two were holding hands! I saw it with my own eyes.” His grandmother scolded him but her smile was still visible. “I am not that old fashioned that I don’t allow you to have a girlfriend.”

“During my time, your grandfather and I were already together when we were your age!”

Unable to believe his ears, Sehun blinked his eyes blankly at his grandmother. This was the last reaction he had ever imagined he would receive. Aleyah, on the other hand, broke out laughing at his grandmother’s words. When they turned to look at the girl, they were both taken back by her beautiful smile especially Sehun. He sees her everyday in class and had even met her privately twice but he had never seen such a smile coming from her.

“I’m sorry.” Aleyah apologized for her inappropriate action and kept her smile away. That moment when her smile disappeared, Sehun wished that he could keep it on her all the time. Her beautiful face only suit that beautiful smile.

“Why do you apologize when you show your feelings?” The old lady asked the girl. Aleyah looked back at her, confused by what she meant. Instead, she held the girl’s hands in hers. “Don’t ever have an emotion in your life that are ashame of.”

“It’s okay if you feel differently from others.”

Her words sent the youngsters deep into thoughts. They have feelings, they are human. All they wanted is to be loved, for themselves and for their talent but life had thrown bricks at them differently making them feel ashamed of their own feelings as though it was wrong to feel such a way. Sehun felt wrong to be sad about his circumstance, Aleyah was ashamed that she was still crying over Chanyeol. No one had ever told them it was alright to laugh or cry.

“You two must be hungry.” Sehun’s grandmother let go of their hands and flagged a cab. “Let’s go home. I will cook.”

“Halmoni but Aleyah is busy.” Sehun tried to stop the misunderstanding but the old lady did not give in. Instead she insisted that Aleyah would have to eat no matter how busy she was and dragged the two of them into the cab. Sehun and Aleyah could not argue with her so they just let her hold their hands back home.

“Al.. “The old lady could not pronounce Aleyah’s name. “Do you have a Korean name?”

“Halmoni, you can call me Jae Hee. Lee Jae Hee.” Aleyah replied the old lady as she stepped into the small and narrow house.  She could see everything in the house at a glance. The size of the living room, kitchen and the only room in the house was not even half of the size of her bedroom. She wondered how did the two of them live in such a small place like this. As much as she was aware of the poorer people in South Korea but she hadn’t expect Sehun to be one of them, especially he was in such a prestigious school.

“Jae Hee? What a pretty name.” The old lady smiled at her kindly. “You wait for me in the living room, I will cook something for the both of you to eat okay? My beanpaste soup is really good!”

“I’m sorry that our place is so small. It’s just the two of us so I hope you don’t mind.”

Aleyah picked up the last sentence and she smiled kindly in return. She did not mind the small space but she did not quite understand what the old lady meant.

Sehun watched his grandmother disappear into the tiny living room before muttering softly to Aleyah. He knew Aleyah was from a rich family. She probably would never want to step into a shabby place like this. Let alone eating such food when everyone in that school has a personal chef at home to cook for them. “I’m sorry.”

Aleyah was not sure what exactly was he aplogizing for. Was it his grandmother? Or was it for the small house? Either way it was not his fault so she tilted her head, pretending to be unsure of what he was referring to. Then she walked passed him and headed to the kitchen.

“Halmoni, let me help you.” Aleyah offered.

“No no no. It’s alright. You just accompany Sehun outside.”

“But…” Aleyah looked at the old lady with a pleading gaze. She had always wanted to learn how to cook but her parents never allowed her to step into the kitchen. She was not allowed to hold a knife because according to them, her hand is precious and its meant to play the piano only. Now that her parents were not around, she really wanted to give it a try. She did not have much chance to interact with elderlies and especially elderlies who can cook so well. “I really want to learn. Please Halmoni?”

“Pretty please?”

Her adorable expression caused the old lady to give in right away. Aleyah rolled up her branded cardigan sleeve and began to slice the food as per instructed. Sehun watched the both of them for a long time. He liked the scene too much that he could not look away. He realized that Aleyah had lots of questions. Sometimes she would be curious about the name of the ingredients, sometimes she would have issues with the seasoning she added to the pot of soup. At times he wondered if she was simply entertaining his grandmother but no matter what, she meant no harm. He was more surprised that a girl from a rich family like her was willing to step into their shabby kitchen to make a meal and eat with them while sharing a pot of soup together.

She really was different from the other rich kids in his school.

“Your grandmother is so kind.” Aleyah told Sehun as they walked down the quiet alley towards her driver. She smiled when she saw the box of Kimchi that he was carrying in his hand, the one that his grandmother insisted that she should bring home.

Sehun gave no response and she continued. “I really enjoyed myself.”

Aleyah meant every word she had said. The cooking experience and the heartfelt dinner could not be compared to the double date they had. She was just glad that Sehun and his grandmother had ended her day on such a good note. When they reached the spot where her chauffer was waiting, Sehun passed the kimchi to her without saying a word.

“Thank you so much for your help Sehun-ssi.” Aleyah thanked him again. Then, she remembered something. “I promise, I won’t tell people about your club.”

“You believe the rumours?” Sehun asked lightly.

“You appeared.”

With that, she boarded the car and wounded the window down right after, giving him a smile and a wave as the car drove passed him.  

“Help me tell your grandmothter that I will eat the Kimchi well. Byebye!”

Sehun stared at the car till it disappeared down the main road, putting his hand that was had been raised unknowingly. What was holding him here when everything tells him he should leave? Was it the way she looked at him earlier or perhaps, the ferocity of her gaze, the rapt intensity in her eyes when she listened to him talk? A feeling that she was entirely present when they were together, that he was the only person who exists for her on the face of the earth. Staring at his own hands in disbelief, he mumbled with a soft smile.

“Byebye.”

Sorry for the delay. I'm kinda losing the mood to write recently. I will try to press on though!