Two glorious months passed. Minhyuk and Moonstar finally regained a bit of fat and muscle, thanks to Jinri's cooking. They helped out around the haven to earn their keep. The older patrons pitched in to give the two lessons (they couldn't go to public school without a legal guardian) and they blossomed in everything they did. 

One day, a woman named Han Lifen came to the haven with her six-year-old daughter, Han Daiyu. Lifen had escaped an abusive husband in China with then 5-month-old Daiyu and came to Korea, hoping to learn the language and start a new life. She'd moved in with her Korean boyfriend, who became addicted to prescription drugs and started abusing her and Daiyu. She'd escaped once again, with just Daiyu, $20, and some poor Korean skills. Moonstar had found them begging on a street corner and led them to the haven. Since that day, Daiyu practically worshipped Moonstar and followed her everywhere (this gave Lifen a nice break to recover from her emotional and physical wounds). 

Moonstar mostly hung around her new friend, Wheein, with Daiyu shadowing them. The girl was adorable- her eyes were big and round and very dark, matching her name, which meant black pearl. Her hair was cut short, hanging near her jawline, and she always wore an oversized gray coat with a high collar. She still hadn't said a word, and while Wheein suspected she was mute, Moonstar thought she was just shy. She wanted to ask Lifen, but the mother almost never came out of her room and even ate inside there. Mrs. Seon aid she was dealing with a lot of emotional stress and had to rest.

Only having to work 4 days a week and having lessons for half the day, 5 days a week, Minhyuk, Moonstar, and Wheein had plenty of free time. Minhyuk often went to the hobby shop with Sanghyuk to play cards with some local boys. Wheein and Moonstar preferred to stay at the haven or go to the library or music store. Wheein took a liking to the piano and even taught herself a few short songs. Moonstar preferred to chat with Nam Jihyun, the girl that worked there. Daiyu, always with them, could stand still and stare in awe at the shiny saxophones and trumpets for hours. She was also enchanted by Jihyun when she played the guitar. 

One day, while the three were walking home from the music store, Wheein heard music coming from a few blocks ahead. She nudged Moonstar. "You hear that? The guitar?"

"Oh, yeah. Where is it coming from? It sounds good."

As they continued to walk, the music got louder, and when they turned a corner Moonstar saw that it was a man sitting on a corner, strumming the somber tune. His case was open in front of him and some donations had accumulated in there. As they walked past him, they stopped to watch for a little bit. Moonstar felt her pockets but she didn't have any change to give him. She wished she did; he really sounded good. Instead, she gave him a small smile, which he returned (despite solemnity of the song), and continued on her way with Wheein.

They only walked a few steps before realizing Daiyu was still listening and staring at the man. "Daiyu, come on!" Moonstar called out. The girl didn't move. She looked totally awestruck by the sounds. While Jihyun played her fun, cute songs with funny lyrics that made her giggle, this tune was a tear-jerker. It was a complete turnaround. 

Moonstar called out again, and then again in unison with Wheein. The six-year-old now seemed to be deaf as well as mute. Moonstar walked up to her and tugged on her coat. "Daiyu-ah, we have to go." She still wouldn't move. She looked at Wheein for help, who shrugged. Moonstar finally slid her hands under Daiyu's arms and hoisted her up to tow her away. The whole time, Daiyu's eyes never wavered from the guitarist. 

That evening while eating dinner in the dining hall, Jinri tapped Moonstar and handed her a tray with food. "It's your turn to deliver this to Han Lifen."

As Moonstar walked down the hall, she remembered the last time she had delivered the lady dinner. She had been sitting in bed and hadn't even looked at Moonstar when she came in and set the tray across her knees, only mumbling a weak "Thank you," at her squeezed fists. She seemed a total wreck.

Moonstar reached Lifen's door and knocked softly. There was no answer, so she slowly opened it and peaked inside. Lifen wasn't in her bed. There seemed to be nobody in the room. 

"Lifen?" Moonstar said quietly. There was no answer. 

A little louder, she spoke again. "Han Lifen! I have your dinner. Lifen?"

Silence.

Maybe she had gone to the restroom? 

Moonstar looked around the room, empty except for the bed, desk, and closet built into the wall, and noticed something strange. All of Lifen's clothes and closet hangers had been thrown on the ground. On top of the pile was a piece of paper. Moonstar crouched down to look at it, but it was all in Chinese, so she couldn't read it. The handwriting was shaky and there were a few splotches of water smudging the purple ink. An sense of foreboding slowly came over Moonstar as she looked at the closed closet doors and noticed how utterly silent it was. Slowly, she rose to her feet and opened the door. 

●●●

Minhyuk and Sanghyuk guffawed at Jinri's joke. The dining hall was brightly lit and the vibe was cheerier than usual, even the most reserved, stonefaced patrons acting at ease. Choi Jinri, who was Sanghyuk's age, had quickly befriended the two boys and proved to be not only an excellent cook, but also quite the comedian. 

Sanghyuk started a "So a guy walks into a bar..." joke. Jinri was listening intently, but Minhyuk got a very sudden odd feeling. His heart rate sped up and his throat felt dry. His back stiffened. He was sure his twintuition was trying to tell him something; there was no other feeling quite like this. Sanghyuk finished the joke and Jinri laughed, and Minhyuk quickly joined in with a fake chuckle. Jinri started another one, but everything sounded blurry to Minhyuk as he looked over and saw Wheein and Daiyu sitting and eating, Moonstar's chair between them empty. He clenched his clammy hands and tried to control his breathing. Why hadn't she returned yet? 

As he continued eating with everyone else, the feeling slowly faded away until the meaningless blur of sound he heard was broken by a high-pitched, bloodcurdling scream. His blood went cold and he dropped his fork. That scream belonged to his sister- there was no doubt about it. Without even thinking, Minhyuk was sprinting out of the dining hall. He had heard that scream from Moonstar only once before, when he had walked in on a scene he never wanted to remember. 

He ended up at Lifen's door in a matter of seconds and burst in, his fists balled and ready to fight. Moonstar was standing in front of the closet, screaming and sobbing. The look on her face was distorted and almost unhuman. She fell over backwards, and when Minhyuk rushed to her side, he saw what had happened in the closet and almost fainted.

Sanghyuk and Ms. Seon rushed into the room, and upon looking in the closet, Mrs. Seon actually did faint while Sanghyuk released a long string of vulgar extremities. Jinri and Wheein were at the door a bit later, other various patrons right on their heels. Sanghyuk blocked the door and shouted out orders.

"Jinri, take Mrs. Seon and get her to bed. She's fainted. Give her a wet cloth and fan her. Wheein, go get Daiyu and make sure that under no circumstances whatsoever she comes into this room. She can't see this."

The growing crowd of people shouted, almost in unison, "Sanghyuk, what the hell happened!?"

Sanghyuk tried to swallow, but his throat was too dry. In a low voice fighting to stay in control, he said, "Han Lifen has hung herself."