always waitiing by brianjoos1004

8/18/2019 Always Waitiing by BrianJooS1004

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Always Waitiing by BrianJooS1004Prologue"Kwon Boa! If you doze off one more time, I will seriously have to punish you!he #$%year%old girl stared angrily at her tea&her and demanded, '(r) Kim, I wasn*t dozing off) I was thin+ing)(r) Kim sni&+ered and said, 'h, really- And tell us all, Boa, of what you were thin+ing about)Boa was stu&+) What &ould she do- If they +new, they would all laugh at her) n&e again, she*ll be the ob.e&t of torment at lun&h) /he bit her lip and replied, 'I wasthin+ing about what I &ould do to ma+e my life easier) It was partly true) It had something to do with that)If (r) Kim was surprised, he didn*t +now it) 0is fa&e remained e1pressionless) 0e nodded slightly, as if saying, 'I don*t &are what you did) 2ust shut up and listento my le&ture)Boa san+ ba&+ into her seat) /he &losed her eyes as she tried to hold ba&+ the tears) It was so painful to be a fourteen year old with so many responsibilities) But she+new she &ouldn*t tell anyone) If she told or anything slipped, she would have to go into a worse state of living than now) /he silently &heered for herself and wentthrough the rest of the s&hool day)

3hapter ne"Kwon Boa- Boa-! What +ind of name is that- All the older boys in the nearby high s&hool teased her) hey pulled on her pigtails and blo&+ed her path) Boa hadlearned to +eep her fa&e blan+) /he simply said, '41&use me) I have to go home)But the boys wouldn*t move) hey made fun of her even more) hey said, 'Boa-! 0ah! Boa! Boa! What a funny name! Were your parents drun+ when they namedyou-hat was the last straw) Boa slammed her boo+s down on the ground and too+ her bag off) 'What did you say- 5on*t bring my parents into this! 6ou didn*t even+now my parents! /he pushed down the boys that had made the &omment about her parents) /he started to pun&h him, and the other boys stood there, staring inamazement) /he &ould have gone on to give him a bro+en nose if a strong hand didn*t stop her)/he straightened out her uniform and her hair) /he pi&+ed up her bag and boo+s and said, '5on*t ever ma+e fun of me again) I*ve had enough of your teasing)/he turned to go when a hand stopped her) he owner of the hand said, '41&use me) I*d li+e a word)Boa thought, 7h) his must be the same person that stopped me from fighting)* /he turned around and said, 'I8m sorry) I8m rather busy) /he loo+ed up at the

person and &ouldn*t help herself from staring) 0e wasn*t tall, but he was tall enough to ma+e Boa lift her head) 0e had blondish%brown hair &overing his eyes anda round fa&e) 0is eyes were a deep brown and Boa fell deeply into them) It seemed as if she &ouldn*t ever &ome out)0e as+ed, '0ey, how old are you-Boa blan+ly replied, '9ourteen)0is eyes got really big and said, '9ourteen- :osh, that*s awfully young) What s&hool do you go to-Boa replied, '(in/ung 0igh /&hool) By now, there was no way Boa &ould get out of his eyes unless he pulled her out)

0e said, '0ow &ome I*ve never seen you around- What*s your name-Boa was afraid that he would ma+e fun of her name, too) But she too+ the &han&e) 0e didn*t loo+ li+e that +ind of person) 'Kwon Boa)0e smiled and said, 'Kwon Boa) All right) /ee you around)0e pulled away first) Boa was for&ed to leave his eyes) 0e was already too far when she realized that she didn*t +now his name) /he hit herself on the head with the

boo+s and said to herself, 'Kwon Boa! 6ou*re so stupid! 6ou have more important things to worry about! 6ou have to get a .ob soon or you &an*t pay the rent!And if you &an*t pay the rent, then you &an*t +eep the house! And if you &an*t +eep the house;/he didn*t want to admit it to herself) 0er parents had left her with too big of a responsibility) 0ow was she going to support herself- hat dreadful night four yearsago;< < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < <"5ad- (om- I8m thirsty) 3an I have a drin+ of water- A sleepy Boa had gotten up in the middle of night, loo+ing for her parents) /he went into their room, butthere was no answer) /he &limbed in between them and said, '5ad- (om- /he opened her eyes and ad.usted her eyes to the dar+ness) /he &ouldn*t see anything)/he turned on the lights and gasped) hey were gone! 0ow &ould they have .ust disappeared- Boa sear&hed for a note or anything that left a sign of where they hadgone) /he found a note underneath her mom*s pillow) It read=Boa, honey) We*re sorry to leave you at su&h a young age, all alone) We have no &hoi&e) here*s leftover food in the refrigerator, and we left some money for you)It*s not mu&h, but I hope it will help you to survive until you*re old enough to get a .ob) We both +now you are a responsible young lady, and you will ta+e good&are of yourself) We*ll be ba&+ soon, Boa) Keep going to s&hool and don*t tell anyone about your situation) I8m sure you*ve wat&hed your father long enough to

+now how to pay the bills) I love you, Boa)6our mother < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < <ears &ame up to Boa*s eyes again as she &ame up to her house) 9or three years, she had been paying the rent, buying food, and paying all the bills) 0er parents hadleft #>,>>>,>>> won ?@,>>> dollars, but that had disappeared a long time ago) 9rom the age of twelve, she had been baby%sitting, staying at the houses alone byta+ing advantage of her older appearan&e) /he had done random .obs here and there, and it was wor+ing out fine) ately, she had been wor+ing for a restaurant,

passing for a #C%year%old) But the owner found out she was only fourteen and fired her) /he had to loo+ for another .ob now) /he entered the +ey into the hole andturned the +nob) /he put her bag down and slid onto her +nees) ears were streaming down her fa&e by now, and she whispered, '(om) 5ad) Where are you- I missyou) /he wiped her tears and turned on the lights) he sight that she fa&ed was a mess) he one &ou&h she had was ripped, the tables were overturned, and drawersin the +it&hen were all ta+en out and dumped) Who would do this to her- /he hadn*t done anything wrong) /he had minded her own business all her life) hat waswhen she saw the note pinned up to a &abinet door by a +nife) It &ontained only one line)"Kwon Boa, do not worry) I will &ome ba&+ for you)3hapter wohe note sent a &hill down Boa*s spine) /he &ame to the &on&lusion that this was a .o+e) /he had no &lue what this person was tal+ing about) What was there tofind- here was nothing of value in her house) Dnless her parents had left something that she didn*t +now about) But that would not be a possibility) 0er parentshad nothing, too) Boa loo+ed at the mess before her and sighed) It was going to ta+e eternity to &lean all this up) /he started by turning the tables up) /he started tothin+) What would there be to steal- Why would someone do this- 0ow did this person get it- here were no windows bro+en, so did it mean that this person had the

+ey- 0er mind was full of Euestions, and she as+ed them to herself one by one) 9inally, she &ame to the &on&lusion that it was nothing important and that it was .ust amisunderstanding) After what seemed li+e hours, she had finished &leaning up, and everything loo+ed normal, e1&ept for the rip in the &ou&h and the pier&ing in the&abinet door) Boa de&ided to forget about everything) It wasn*t as if she stayed at home all the time anyway) In fa&t, she was even thin+ing about getting a small

pla&e to stay during the night, .ust to sleep) /he was out all day, either at s&hool or wor+ing) hat reminded her) /he had to get a .ob) /he desperately wanted to +eepthe house) hat house had been the only happiness in her mom*s life) /he had wor+ed so hard to ma+e the outside bloom with flowers, and Boa realized now thatshe hadn*t even tried to +eep them blooming) Boa needed to leave this pla&e) It held too many memories of her past) And in addition, this ransa&+ing was the laststraw) /he would have to loo+ for a pla&e that would shelter and feed her for a reasonable pri&e while she loo+ed for that .ob tonight) /he Eui&+ly ran up to her roomand finished her homewor+ in less than an hour) he s&hool year was ending, and they were less hard on everyone) /he too+ out her big suit&ase and started pa&+ingas mu&h as things she &ould) /he tried her best to pa&+ only the important things) here was no room for .un+) All the .un+ would have to be sold at a yard sale,whi&h would also get her money) /he smiled to herself and thought, 7his is a&tually going to wor+ out) his isn*t so bad after all)* After she was done pa&+ing toan e1tent, she left the house and made sure that all the windows and doors were lo&+ed se&urely) /he went out into the streets, loo+ing for '0elp Wanted signsstu&+ to the windows) /he finally &ame a&ross one and loo+ed up at the sign to see what the wor+ was) It was a restaurant) '0m, that*s one I*ve never tried before)


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:ive it a shot, Boa) It &an*t be that bad, she said to herself) /he opened the door and the sweet s&ent of food greeted her) It smelled so deli&ious! A woman as+ed,'ne person-Boa replied, 'h, my name is Kwon Boa) I saw the 70elp Wanted* sign) I &ame for that)he woman said, 'h) Well, my dear, you*ve pi&+ed the worst time to &ome) 3ould you maybe sit down for a while- (y mother, the owner that is, isn*t here) /hedoes the pi&+ing) (aybe you*d li+e to eat something while you wait-Boa shoo+ her head and said, 'Fo than+ you) I*ll .ust wait) he woman nodded and went ba&+ to wor+) he restaurant was filled) It too+ forever for Boa to find aseat, and soon after she did, more &ustomers &ame, for&ing her to stand up again) /he was about to tell the woman that she was leaving when an elderly woman &amein with an umbrella)he woman who had spo+en to Boa before e1&laimed, '(other! Is it raining outside-he elder nodded and said, 'It is indeed odd weather) Bright sunshine one dayG raining the ne1t) he woman was listening to her, but she seemed to be loo+ing forsomething else) he elder added, '6our son, dear, is running an errand for me) I fell while wal+ing, and no one would help me) But by some mira&le, your sonappeared) But I8m afraid it left me with a nasty reminder) 0e went to get some medi&ine)

Boa saw that the elderly woman was holding onto her leg) /omething red seeped in through the &loth of her pants) Boa gasped and said, '41&use me, but how longago did this happen-he elder loo+ed surprised, but replied, 'About twenty minutes ago) And who are you-Boa ignored her Euestion and e1&laimed, 'h no) 6ou must wash it out) he rainwater isn*t good for that &ut) If it*s still bleeding, you have to use something to&ompress onto it) he bleeding is going to get out of &ontrol) Boa loo+ed at the younger woman and as+ed, '5o you have a &loth of some +ind-he woman said, 'h yes! /he ran into the +it&hen and got a warm towel) Boa made the elder sit down, and she rolled up her pants) /he applied the towel onto thewound and said, '6ou should lie down) I*ll ta+e you to your home if you want) ying down will be best) 6ou need to +eep your legs elevated to stop the bleeding)he elder said, 'his is my home, &hild) And who might you be-Boa loo+ed up and turned red at the realization of her mista+e) 'I8m sorry for being so rude) I8m Kwon Boa, and I was here in regards to the 70elp Wanted* sign) I&ouldn*t answer due to your wound;2ust then, the door opened and a shadow stood at the entran&e) ':randma! I got your medi&ine!he grandmother replied, 'h, (inWoo! his young lady here helped most of it, but bring it here, &hild)his (inWoo%person stepped into the light, and it seemed as if time had frozen) It was the boy with the eyes;3hapter hree(inWoo frowned and said, 'What young lady got here before me- 0e saw who it was and said, 'Well, well, Kwon Boa) We meet again) It is fate, then)(inWoo*s grandmother said, 'Well, if you +now ea&h other, no need for introdu&tions) (inWoo, ta+e me into my room) his lady wants to elevate my legs to stop

the bleeding) Boa, wasn*t it- a+e the medi&ine and follow (inWoo)Boa obediently too+ the medi&ine and followed (inWoo) (inWoo had put his grandmother on his ba&+ and was wal+ing towards the +it&hen) 0e went all the way tothe ba&+ of the +it&hen and opened a door) It led to a small house in the ba&+) 7Wow, this must be a big plot of land she has,* Boa thought)(inWoo too+ his grandmother into her room, and Boa handed him the medi&ine) 0e swiftly wor+ed and applied the bandages on her legs) Boa whispered, '6ouneed to elevate her legs to help stop the bleeding) (inWoo nodded and got out pillows from the &loset) 0e gently lifted his grandmother*s legs onto the pillowsand motioned Boa to leave the room)(inWoo as+ed, '/o, why are you here- It didn*t seem li+e you &ame here to eat) Boa e1plained why she was here, and (inWoo laughed) 'I8m sure she*ll giveyou the .ob) But you*re only fourteen, aren*t you- 0ow about your parents-Boa replied, 'I don*t +now where my parents are) I need to support myself)(inWoo said, 'h) I8m sure she*ll give you the .ob)Boa smiled wea+ly and said, 'I hope so) I got +i&+ed out of my last .ob be&ause I was only fourteen; (inWoo loo+ed at her for a long time before saying, 'Ihaven*t properly introdu&ed myself) I8m ee (inWoo) (y grandmother owns this restaurant) We used to live pretty far from here, but she got tired of wal+ing ba&+and forth) /o she .ust added a house to the ba&+ of the restaurant) 3onvenient, isn*t it- 0e smiled and Boa smiled ba&+) (inWoo &ontinued) '/o, what brings youhere- 5on*t your parents support you- Why do you have to get a .ob-Boa loo+ed down at her shoes and said, 'h) Well, things .ust happened that way) I need a pla&e to stay too) But I &ould live in a hotel for now) I &ould find a pla&elater) Dm, maybe it*ll be better to return at a later time) :oodbye) ell your mother I said goodbye)

(inWoo seemed hesitant to let her leave) 0e said, 'Wait! I*ll wal+ you home) It*s not good for a young girl li+e you to be wal+ing alone)Boa said, 'Heally- And how old are you- Is it old enough that you &ould a&tually &all me a little girl-(inWoo smiled and said, 'I8m eighteen) 9our years older than you) I8m a&tually your oppa)Boa blushed slightly and said, '6ou don*t have to wal+ me home) Bye) /he Eui&+ly left the shop and heard her stoma&h growl) /he &lut&hed her stoma&h andswallowed) here was nothing to eat at home) /he had to get something to eat) /he loo+ed ba&+ at the restaurant and too+ a deep breath) /he headed towards homewhen she heard footsteps behind her) 'Boa! Wait! Boa!Boa turned slowly, and (inWoo &ame running after her) 0e Eui&+ly put something into her hands and said, 'I +now you didn*t have dinner) 0ere, go buysomething) Bye)0e ran ba&+ to the restaurant and Boa opened up her hand and stared inside) It was >,>>> won ?about #J dollars) /he smiled slightly and said, '(inWoo) ee(inWoo) I*ll remember) /he wal+ed off, smiling widely) /he stopped by a nearby mar+et and bought something to eat) /he even had e1tra money for an appleand bit into it) /he savored the sweet taste) /he hadn*t gotten a treat in a long time) But this was going to be a new beginning)he ne1t day was a /aturday, so Boa visited the restaurant first thing in the morning) When she &ame in, (inWoo*s grandmother .umped up and said, '3hild! I waswondering when you would be ba&+! I heard all about it from (inWoo) f &ourse you &an wor+ here) 6ou &an sleep here as well) I*ll pay you generously) Fo needto loo+) 6ou &an move in right away) 6ou will stay in the spare room) Is that fine with you, dear-Boa &ouldn*t stop the tears from &oming) 'h than+ you! han+ you!(inWoo*s grandmother smiled and said, '2ust &all me grandmother) And you may &all (inWoo*s mother (rs) ee or mother) Anything you li+e) (a+e yourselfat home, dear) Fow, run along with (inWoo and get your things)

As if on &ue, (inWoo appeared and said, ':ood morning, Boa) et*s go)Boa and (inWoo left the restaurant, and Boa said, 'han+s, (inWoo) han+s for everything) But I don*t even +now you) Why are you so good to me-(inWoo smiled and said, '6ou +now, I really &an*t tell you that myself) Be&ause I don*t +now why I8m good to you either) But something about you .ust &at&hesme) /omething about you ma+es me pay spe&ial attention) (aybe I li+e you, who +nows-(inWoo wal+ed past Boa, as she stared at his ba&+) Boa bit her lip and said, '(inWoo! Wait for me!3hapter 9our5espite the fa&t that she was fourteen, (inWoo*s grandmother a&&epted her as a wor+er at her restaurant) It had been a month now) /he moved in the first day, andthe ne1t day, they had a yard sale with all her old .un+) hey made about #>>,>>> won ?@> dollars) Boa had given it to (inWoo*s grandmother) It was the least she&ould do for the food, shelter, and love she re&eived) his was the first time that Boa felt what family was)It was a bright hursday morning) Boa yelled, '(inWoo! :et up! We*re going to be late to s&hool!(inWoo opened his door as he put on his so&+s) '0ey! I8m your oppa remember- Why &an*t you &all me oppa-Boa grinned and said, 'I8m sorry) I wasn*t programmed to say that to people) (inWoo glared at her and Boa said, '0urry up! I don*t want to be late on the last


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day of s&hool!(inWoo and Boa said goodbye to (inWoo*s mother and grandmother and left) hey wal+ed, and (inWoo bro+e the silen&e) 'Boa, I have something to tell you)Boa +i&+ed a pebble and blan+ly replied, '0m-(inWoo stopped and &upped Boa*s &hin in his hands) Boa stared up at him, wondering if something was wrong) (inWoo said, 'Boa, I8m leaving tomorrow) I*mleaving to study in Paris) I .ust wanted to say; that I8m going to miss you, Boa) I loved every minute with you) (eet me at o*&lo&+ tonight in front of therestaurant) I*ll see you) With that, he let go of Boa*s fa&e and ran to go to his s&hool)Boa blin+ed and thought, 75id something .ust happen-* It &ouldn*t be true, &ould it- /he didn*t +now what love was) /he had never e1perien&ed it before) Butif this was love, then it wasn*t so bad) /he sighed as she &ontinued +i&+ing pebbles and wal+ed to s&hool) When she got there, she whispered, '3ome on) ne moreday left) After this day is over, you*re free, Boa) All day, Boa wat&hed the &lo&+ ti&+ by) he hands seemed to ta+e longer than ever today) hen, at L, the bellrang) /tudents pushed and shoved to be the first to get out of the dreaded .unior high s&hool) hey were high s&hool students now) hey were all so e1&ited, but whywasn*t Boa- /he had five hours to +ill) /he +new that (inWoo would probably have a party with his friends and had tutor after) All his plans ended at J=L>) Boawent to the restaurant and went into her room) /he sighed as she put all her boo+s into bo1es and stored them into the &orner of her &loset) /he too+ off her uniform

and &hanged into &omfortable &lothing) /he loo+ed at the mirror and said to herself, 'Boa, you should be happy to be alive) 6ou don*t even +now if your parentsare dead or not) 6ou should be happy that at least you*re alive) /he laid on the floor and slowly fell asleep into a dream with dan&ing &lo&+s that read o*&lo&+)< < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < <Boa awo+e with a start) It was dar+) /he loo+ed at her &lo&+ and gasped) It was =#M! /he Eui&+ly put on her shoes and straightened her hair) /he ran out to the frontof the restaurant) /he saw (inWoo waiting at the &orner, with hands in his po&+ets) Boa said, '(inWoo)(inWoo turned and said, '0ey) Boa wal+ed and stood ne1t to (inWoo) (inWoo sighed and said, 'Boa) Promise me that you*ll wait for me) (eet other guys,have relationships, I don*t &are) 2ust wait for me to &ome ba&+ before you de&ide to do anything serious) 6ou promise- Boa nodded as tears filled her eyes)(inWoo shoo+ his head and said, '0ey! 6ou*re su&h a &rybaby! Why do you &ry all the time- 5on*t &ry!Boa hugged (inWoo and said, '(inWoo) Before you, I didn*t +now that I &ould ever feel this way) All my life, I*ve been living li+e a deprived &hild) I didn*tmeet any new people, espe&ially guys) And now that I*ve met you, I don*t +now if I &ould ever feel this way ever again)

(inWoo tightly held his hold on Boa) 'Boa, why &ouldn*t we meet before- It would have been perfe&t) 9our years) 6ou &an wait, &an*t you- Boa &ould donothing but nod and hold on tightly to (inWoo) h, how she longed to +eep on holding on!3hapter 9ive


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wearing dangling diamond earrings) Boa wanted to rip them out of her ears) /he was blin+ing inno&ently at (inWoo with her humongous eyes) Boa wanted to po+ethem with a +nife) /he turned to Boa and opened her mouth to say something) Boa wanted to shove a sti&+ down her throat)/aHang Euietly said, OBoa, isnNt it- (inWoo told me all about you) And it pained him, be&ause he thought you had forgotten) /o I de&ided to give him all my loveand all my heart to alleviate the pain that he was getting from you)QBoa tried to hold in the anger as she glared at /aHang) Who did she thin+ she was- If (inWoo was getting pain from her, that was their business, not hers! 0er handa&hed to rea&h out and slap her) But she &ouldnNt do that) /he loo+ed at (inWoo and smiled) /he said as &almly as she &ould, OINm glad) I8m glad that you metsomeone who you &ould happy with) I8m glad that you bro+e your promise) I8m glad that I have waited for four years for you to return) I8m glad that I .ust turned outan offer to be someoneNs girlfriend be&ause all that I saw was you) I8m glad that this all happened, arenNt you-Q(inWoo sighed and said, Ooo+, Boa) INm sorry) I would li+e to get married with your blessing)QBoa stared at him in disgust and said, OWhat- (y blessing- h, (inWoo) I &an guarantee you something) 6ou will F4R4H get my blessing)Q With that, she wal+edout the door, forgetting about everything) At this moment, she did not &are if she got the .ob or not)But meanwhile, the interviewers at the business she applied for were tal+ing about Boa) he older man said, O0ere, have this)Q 0e thrust a pie&e of paper at the

younger man) 0e stared at it and as+ed, OWhatNs this-Qhe older man smiled and said, OItNs the girlNs number) 3ell phone)Qhe younger man smiled and said, Ohan+s)Q 0e wat&hed the other man leave and said to himself, O0eNs a good guy)Q 0e flipped open his &ell phone and dialed hernumber)he ringing stopped, but some time passed before there was a voi&e) O0ello-Q 0er voi&e shoo+)O0ello- his is Kwon BoaNs &ell phone, right-QBoa answered, O6es, who is this-Qhe man hesitated before spea+ing) Ohis was the person that interviewed you for your .ob today)QBoa e1&laimed, Oh! 5id I get the .ob-Q0e said, Oh) hat) Well, I8m pretty sure you did) But thatNs not why I was &alling) et me introdu&e myself) (y name is Ahn 3hil0yun, but my friends &all meKanga) 5o you thin+ we &an meet right now-QBoa sounded surprised) OHight now- Why-Qhere was a sudden silen&e) It was a while before Kanga spo+e again) OBe&ause I want to see you again)QBoa replied, Oh) I see)Q hey agreed on a pla&e and ten minutes later, Boa was seated a&ross from Kanga, sipping a &up of &offee) Boa studied KangaNs fa&e alittle more &arefully) 0e had ni&e hair, pretty eyes with deep double eyelids, a straight nose, and +issable lips) But overall, he wasnNt her type) 0er type was a guy li+e(inWoo) Boa silently s&olded herself) /he was thin+ing of a person that was engaged!Boa for&ed herself to &on&entrate on what Kanga was saying) O6eah and I started wor+ing there two years ago) He&ently, I got moved to the &ommittee that

tea&hes the new wor+ers how to a&t and behave and things li+e that) I thin+ itNll be pretty interestingQBoa nodded as she too+ another sip of her &offee) his was getting out of hand) /he had never seen a guy tal+ so mu&h before) /he &leared her throat and said, ODm,e1&use me) I thin+ I have to use the restroom)Q /he got up as Kanga smiled and loo+ed up at her) /he went into the restroom and shut her eyes tightly) /he openedthem and pin&hed herself) nly if this was a dream! hen she would be able to be in (inWooNs arms, listening to what he had to say about her trip) /he loo+ed at herwat&h) It was #>=$M P() (other must be worried si&+) 4ither that or she wouldnNt even &are due to the fa&t that her son was ba&+) Boa too+ a deep breath andde&ided to ma+e the best out of this Kanga person) 0e was all she had now)/he went ba&+ to the table and said, O3ome on) etNs go)QKanga loo+ed up and as+ed, O:o where-QBoa grabbed his arm and said, OetNs go out) /omewhere else) /omewhere fun) 3ome on! hereNs still about an hour until midnight) etNs have some fun) o&elebrate our meeting)QKanga smiled and said, O/ure) Where to-Q 0e put his arm out in front of her) Boa laughed and too+ it) /he didnNt li+e him) 0e wasnNt her type) But every singlething he did reminded her of (inWoo) /o, with that little fa&t, she de&ided to bear with him)3hapter /evenBoa s&anned the par+ing lot and said, O/o, whereNs your &ar-QKanga led her to a ni&e shiny bla&+ &ar and said, O0ere)Q 0e opened the door for her and Boa smiled) (aybe he wasnNt so bad) Kanga ran to the driverNs side andturned on his engine) he &ar started and musi& filled the &ar) Boa loo+ed at Kanga for an e1planation) /he had never heard of this singer before) Kanga smiled and

said, OItNs me)QBoa stared at him harder) (aybe there was something that she had overloo+ed before) his Kanga person was getting more interesting every se&ond) 5id he haveany more se&rets that he had hidden- r were they .ust things that she had ignorantly loo+ed over, too busy in her own dreams with (inWoo-Kanga bro+e the silen&e) O/o, where would you li+e to go-QBoa sighed and said, OI8m sorry) INd li+e to go home, please) INm sorry INll &onta&t you tomorrow) INll see you tomorrow)QKanga nodded and said, O2ust tell me the dire&tions)Q Boa dire&ted him to her house) When they arrived, they were greeted with a big party in front of the restaurant)Kanga as+ed, OIs today a spe&ial day- Why arenNt you there with your family-QBoa swallowed, but it was so diffi&ult) OhatNs not my family) 6ou see, when I was young, my parents left me) I loo+ed for .obs and I found one here) I also found ahome) hey adopted me) hey also had a son and well, we were in love) But he went to Paris and in four years, heNs &hanged) 0eNs engaged now) 0e has no timefor me) han+s, Kanga) 3all me tomorrow)QBoa opened the door and stopped in front of the party as Kanga wat&hed) Kanga stared as a person with light brown hair with a girl at his arms stopped Boa) Boaloo+ed away as the person tal+ed to her) Kanga said to himself, Ohis must be the person that Boa was in love with) 2ust wat&h, Kwon Boa) INm going to prove thatI8m better than him)Q 0e drove away and wat&hed the guy and the girl tal+ to Boa through his rearview mirror)Boa was trying hard not to &ry) /he +ept on loo+ing down at the ground and &on&entrating on the ants) (inWoo was demanding to +now where she had been) /aHangwas loo+ing at her as if she a&tually &ared) Boa still wanted to +ill her) Boa too+ a deep breath and de&ided not to brea+ down in front of /aHang) /he loo+ed(inWoo in the eye and said, OWho &ares where I had been- I donNt thin+ anyone here really &ares) 6ou havenNt &ared for the last four years) Why all of the sudden doyou e1press &on&ern-Q

(inWoo and /aHang stared blan+ly as Boa wal+ed into the house, brushing the OWel&ome Ba&+ (inWooQ banner with the top of her head) /he wal+ed into herroom and lo&+ed the door) /he loo+ed around and thought, SI have to leave soon) If (inWoo marries /aHang, then INll have to move out)N As tears fell from her eyes,she whispered, OWhat do I do if I thin+ I still love you, (inWoo- 0ow &an I bear to go to your wedding- 0ow &an I bear to wat&h you and this other girl be&omeone-Q A +no&+ &aused Boa to hastily wipe the tears from her fa&e) OWho is it-Qhe voi&e that she had longing to hear for four years answered ba&+) OItNs me (inWoo)QBoa tried to steady her voi&e as she said, OI really donNt feel li+e tal+ing) INll tal+ to you tomorrow)Q(inWoo sighed and said, OBoa, this is important) pen the door)QBoa relu&tantly opened the door, and (inWooNs eyes pier&ed her heart on&e again) (inWoo as+ed, O3an I &ome in-Q Boa moved to ma+e way, and (inWoo sat onher bed) 0e sighed and said slowly, O:randmother doesnNt approve of her)Q It too+ a while for the news to sin+ into BoaNs mind) /he stared at (inWoo as he&ontinued) O/he says that INve +ept you waiting for too long, and I should be sorry) /o sheNs not going to approve) And all I want to do is ma+e her happy)Q Boa hadnothing to say) What was going to happen now- Boa stared at (inWoo as he loo+ed li+e he was going to &ry) OBoa, what do I do- I I love /aHang very mu&h) IdonNt want to let go of her)Q Boa &ouldnNt believe what she was hearing) (inWoo still loved her! After all this! /he bit her lip and her natural rea&tion too+ over) /he


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slapped (inWoo and ran out of the house again, leaving (inWoo staring after her)3hapter 4ightBoa ran as fast as her legs would let her) /he didnNt +now where she was, nor did she &are) /he .ust wanted to get away from (inWoo) 0e was an animal) 0e wasnNtworth it) 0e didnNt deserve her! But why was it that she loved him so- Boa ran faster and faster, and soon, she was where she had dreaded to see) /he hadnNt beenthere for four years) /o many memories flooded ba&+ to her) his was where happy lives had bro+en apart) 9our years, there was where a horrible thing happened) Itwas a mystery left untou&hed, unsolved) hat one night when she had &ome home and everything was a mess) hat note that read OKwon Boa, do not worry) I will&ome ba&+ for you)Q Dntil now, she hadnNt realized how mu&h that note had s&ared her) What did that person mean- If he said he was going to &ome ba&+, why didnNthe- Was he going to .ust appear when her life was going fine- i+e now- /he stared at the house) It seemed to be o&&upied by a family) 9rom outside, she heard thelaughter of the family ringing over their television) /he wal+ed up to the front door and loo+ed at her wat&h) It was ## P)() hey might thin+ of her to be someintruder) But it was her home! 5id she dare to ring the doorbell- /he sat on the steps and wondered) Before long, she was fast asleep dreaming about her parents)When she opened her eyes, she fa&ed the big eyes of a &urious little boy around the age of @) Boa awo+e with a start and said, Oh no! I fell asleep) INm so sorry!Qhe little boy yelled, O(om! 5ad! hereNs a lady sleeping in front of our house!Q

/omeone in an apron &ame out as she wiped her hands) Oh dear! A lady- What is a lady doing in front of our house-QBoa stood up and started bowing) OI8m so sorry, maNam) I fell asleep here) INm so sorry) 6ou see, this used to be my homeQ /he loo+ed up and froze) heir eyeslo&+ed) Boa shoo+ her head and said, OI8m sorry) I thought you were someone I +new) :oodbye)Q/he turned to leave when a voi&e made her freeze in her tra&+s) OBoa- 6ouNre Boa, right-QBoa turned and said, OFo) INm not) I8m sorry) I8ll be leaving now)Q /he turned to wal+ into the sidewal+, but the woman hugged her from behind) Boa tried not to &ryas she said, O41&use me) I believe youNre seeing things) I8m not Boa or whatever you said) INll be going)QBut the woman didnNt let go) OBoa) Please) 3ome in and eat something before you leave) Please) I8m going to feel bad about being your mother if I let you go againso Eui&+ly)QBoa whipped around and said, O6ouNre not my mother) A mother does not leave her &hild when she is #> years old) A mother does not leave her &hild ever!Dnderstand-Q/he stormed out, but someone tugged at her shirt) O41&use me, lady, but why do you &all my mommy mother-QBoa loo+ed to her mother for e1planation) 0er mother sighed and said, OBoa, please) 3ome in and eat something) etNs tal+)Q Boa relu&tantly wal+ed up the steps thatled to the door) /he too+ a deep breath as the little boy opened the door for her) It was e1a&tly the same) 4ven the furniture was in the same pla&e) Fothing at all had&hanged) /he &ould tell that her mom had done the de&orating, li+e she always did) But if her mom was her, then her dad2ust then someone &ame running down the stairs, saying, O0oney- What lady was in front of our house-QBoa gasped and said, O5ad-Q When she saw his fa&e, her fa&e fell) /o, her mother had gotten married again) he man stopped and said, OFo 0oney- Who is this-QBoaNs mom loo+ed ready to &ry) /he sat everyone around the dining table and started e1plaining) Ohis is Boa) /heNs my daughter from my first marriage) Boa, this is

my husband) I guess you &an &all him (r) Ahn) his is my son, Ahn 6oon2ae, who is eight years old) Boa, when you were ten, I left you, be&ause I was pregnant with6oon2ae) 6our father found out, and I guess he was miserable, be&ause he left when I did) I divor&ed your father and married 6oon2aeNs father) 4ver sin&e, weNve

been living in the other side of the &ountry, but two years ago, we de&ided to move ba&+ where I grew up) I found out that this house was abandoned, and we put it ba&+ into shape) WeNve been living here ever sin&e) INve tried to find you, but you seemed to have &hanged your name) I &ouldnNt find a Kwon Boa around town)QBoa loo+ed from her mother to (r) Ahn) OBut you didnNt have to 4AR4 me) 6ou &ould have ta+en me with you) I wouldnNt have ob.e&ted!Q0er mother shoo+ her head and said, OI &ouldnNt) I &ouldnNt for&e myself to a&&ept you and 5ong(in as &hildren) And plus, there was another &hildQBoa e1&laimed, OAnother one-Q As if on &ue, feet pounded down the stairs again) O(om! 5ad! WhatNs for brea+fast- And whatNs all this ru&+us-Q(r) Ahn hastily e1plained, OItNs my son from my first marriage)Q Boa nodded slowly as if it would help her to soa+ all this in) /he turned to loo+ at the son) /hegasped)OKanga-Q3hapter Fine'0ey, Boa) What are you doing here- 6ou li+e me so mu&h that you stal+ed me and &ame to say hello to my parents- 0e grinned and Boa frowned)Boa slowly replied, 'Fot e1a&tly) (om- What*s going on-Kanga stared and said, 'Wow) 6ou must li+e me a lot) 6ou*re already &alling her mom- 6ou*re really interested in me-Boa gave him a long glare and he shut up) Boa loo+ed at her mom for an e1planation) 4veryone loo+ed &onfused, e1&ept for 6oon2ae, who went to go wat&htelevision) All this adult tal+ &onfused him anyway)

hey all e1plained their own stories) Boa told her mom about how she and Kanga had met and how she had been living this whole time) 0er mom told Kangaabout how she had abandoned Boa years ago) Kanga*s father told them that Kanga was his son from his first marriage) After all the stories were e1plained, theysat there, wondering how things had turned out this way)Kanga smiled and said, 'Well, I8m hungry) et*s have brea+fast, (om)Boa felt weird in this house) his house was the house where that mysterious note had turned up) his house was the house where all their lives had turned upsidedown, e1&ept maybe for her mom*s) his was the pla&e that Boa had dreaded to see all her life, and now, it was ba&+, whether she li+ed it or not)0er mom, who had gone to the +it&hen at Kanga*s reEuest, returned with five plates of s&rambled eggs, toast, ba&on, and sausages) /he &alled 6oon2ae to &omeand he happily s+ipped to the table) hey all sat to eat brea+fast, e1&ept Boa) Boa didn*t feel li+e she belonged here) It felt as if she was tearing this family apart)0er mother*s past &ouldn*t affe&t them) he only part of her mother*s past that was left was Boa) /he Eui&+ly said, '(om- I*ll be going) I*ll visit some time)/he wal+ed to the front door and let herself out, feeling the eyes of everyone pier&ing her ba&+) /he left the house and started wal+ing ba&+ to her house; or was it(inWoo*s house- Where was her home, anyway- /he sighed when she spotted a &ar from the &orner of her eye) he &ar hon+ed at her and she turned to seeKanga waving at her) /he too+ a deep breath and as+ed, 'What do you want-Kanga replied, 'I8m going to wor+) 6ou got the .ob) 6ou want to &ome with me-Boa nodded slowly and said, 'But I have to go &hange) 3an you wait for me- Kanga nodded and Boa hastily ran to (inWoo*s house) /he Euietly slipped in and&hanged into ni&e &lothes) /he would pa&+ later) /he had to move out of this pla&e) /he got into Kanga*s &ar outside and smiled at him) 'han+s) I don*t +nowwhat I would have done without you)Kanga grinned and said, '/ee- It*s fate) We*re meant for ea&h other) 6ou would be nothing without me)

Boa*s .aws dropped open and said, 'Kanga! hat*s gross! 6ou*re pra&ti&ally my brother!Kanga glan&ed at her and loo+ed ba&+ at the road) 0e tightly gripped the steering wheel and said, 'Fo) I8m not your brother) ur parents are totally different) Allthat happened was that my dad got married to your mom) We*re not related at all) his .ust happened be&ause our parents .ust happened to fall in love and getmarried before us) If this wouldn*t have happened, we would have been first) 5on*t you understand- We*re not related!Boa stared at him in disbelief) But the more she thought about it, the more he made sense) hey weren*t related at all) But they &ouldn*t fall in love) Boa didn*tlove him) /he loved (inWoo; he rest of the ride &ontinued in silen&e) When they got to the building, Boa got out and said, 'han+s for the ride) /he Eui&+lywal+ed in, but realized that she didn*t +now where to go)A voi&e whispered into her ear, 'Boa, Boa) 6ou don*t even +now what to do) 6ou need me and you +now it) 9ollow me) Boa had no &hoi&e) /he followedKanga into the elevator) Kanga grinned and said, '5id you +now that I want to have my first +iss in an elevator- Boa stared at him as the door opened) Kangawal+ed out and Boa followed) 0e wal+ed into a small offi&e and said, '/tay here)(urmured voi&es &ame through the doors and a few minutes later, Kanga &ame out and said, '6ou &ould go in) I*ll be waiting) I am your boss, you +now) 0ewin+ed at her and Boa stared at him in disgust)


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/he went into the room and the elderly man from the audition smiled at her) 'Well, Kwon Boa, you did a very ni&e .ob at the auditions) r should I .ust say thatsomeone was Euite impressed with your; um, talent) here will be one more new person &oming in with you) I8m sure that you two girls will be on your best

behavior) /he*s in Kanga*s offi&e right now) :o along) a+e a left when you e1it and it will be the first door you &ome to)Boa said, 'han+ you) /he wal+ed to Kanga*s offi&e and too+ a deep breath) /he hoped that he wouldn*t say anything to her in front of the other new person)/he didn*t want to be embarrassed on the first day of wor+) /he +no&+ed on the door and Kanga*s voi&e answered, '3ome in)/he slowly turned the door+nob and entered) /he slightly smiled at Kanga, but he didn*t smile ba&+) /he thought, 7Wow, maybe he de&ided to be &areful, too)*/he turned to loo+ at the other new person and bowed) '(y name is Kwon Boa) I hope that we &ould wor+ together and wor+ ourselves to the top)/he loo+ed up and smiled, but her wide smile Eui&+ly faded away) /he fa&ed her worse nightmare) /aHang)3hapter enBoaNs .aw dropped) O/a /aHang-Q/aHang stared at Boa and wea+ly smiled) O0i, Boa) I didnNt +now you wor+ed here)QBoa shoo+ her head and said, OI didnNt +now you wor+ed here either)Q

Kanga &leared his throat and said, OWell, yes, no one +new they were going to wor+ here, be&ause you guys are both new) Anyway, I +now Boa, but you areQ/aHang e1tended her hand and &heerfully said, OI8m ee /aHang) I8m glad to meet you, (anager Ahn)QKanga frowned and said, O0ow did you +now my last name was Ahn-Q/aHang giggled li+e a little girl and pointed to his nametag around his ne&+) Kanga blushed and simply stared at her hand) /he loo+ed so familiar) Where had heseen her before- hen it &li&+ed) It also e1plained why Boa was staring at her with hatred) /he was that person ne1t to the guy who had tal+ed to Boa) /he was thefian&Te of the guy that bro+e BoaNs heart)Kanga &leared his throat and said, OBoa, you will &ome with me) /aHang, you &ould get to wor+ on filing those folders) In alphabeti&al order, please)Q 0e nodded toBoa and she followed him) /aHang stared after them, frowning) Why did she have to do the hard labor- Where was he ta+ing her-Boa was wondering the same thing) Kanga wal+ed business%li+e, but when he turned the &orner, he e1ploded) OWhat is that girl doing there- /aHang! What +ind ofname is that- Who does she thin+ she is to &ome in here li+e that-QBoa grabbed onto KangaNs waving arms and said, OKanga) 3alm down) ItNs o+ay with me, if thatNs what youNre worried about) (inWoo loves her) hat alone will+eep me from hating her) If (inWoo loves her, I guess I have to learn to love her too)QKanga stared Boa and shoo+ his head) O6ouNre su&h an amazing girl) (aybe thatNs why I8m starting to li+e you more and more)QBoa frowned and said, OBut youNre my brotherQKanga shoo+ his finger and said, OAh! 5onNt go there, Boa) 6ou +now weNre not related)QBoa said, OBut what &an we do about it- ur parents are married! hatNs si&+! (y mother%in%law will be my own mother! hatNs not right! 4ven in this generationQKanga shrugged and said, OIf we get far enough that we want to get married, weNll tal+ to our parents about it) (aybe we &ould .ust not get married) WeNll live

together anyway) 6ou WI move in, wonNt you-Q Boa hesitated) /he was being as+ed to move into a house that haunted her in her dreams) /he still wondered aboutthat mysterious note four years ago) /he debated whether she should mention it to Kanga or not) But Kanga sensed it) /he hesitated too long) OWhatNs wrong-5oes the house bring you ba&+ bad memories- Are you o+ay-QBoa nodded, but said, O9our years ago, there was a note) It said, SKwon Boa, do not worry) I will &ome ba&+ for you)N It s&ared me, and thatNs half the reason why Imoved out)QKangaNs fa&e turned red) Oh thatQBoaNs eyes snapped up at him) O5o you +now anything about it- 5id my mom tell you anything about it- 5id she +now about it-QKanga relu&tantly said, ODh, yeah I guess you &ould say that)QBoa as+ed, OWho- Who did it- Who would do su&h a thing-QKanga s&rat&hed his head and Euietly said, Ohat that was me)Q3hapter 4levenBoa nodded and said, O6up, I understand you) Hight, Kanga) his is nothing to .o+e about)QKanga sighed and said, OI really did it) I swear)QBoa loo+ed in his eyes and saw that he was telling the truth) Boa stammered, OBut why- Why did you- 6ou didnNt even What-QKanga sighed and said, OetNs go sit somewhere)Q 0e too+ her to the &afT in the &ompany building) hey sat down and Kanga started his story) O6ou see, I +newthat (om had a daughter from her first marriage) ne day, she went &ompletely &razy over you) /he started missing you and wanting to see you again) /he &ried out

during the night, loo+ing for her baby) (y dad bro+e apart too) 0e thought that (om had &ome to him with love) 0e thought that she had forgotten about her past)But you were a part of her, and she never forgot that) It was tearing our family apart) 4very night, I was afraid that (om would run away to you and never &ome ba&+) /he &ried out your name every night) I found out where you lived, and de&ided to s&are you) I +new that she was &oming to loo+ for you soon, so I de&ided toma+e you move somewhere else) /o I did that whole thing) hat note I donNt +now what made me do it) I thought it would ma+e it more interesting)Q0e smiled at Boa and she stared at him in disgust) OInteresting- 6ou have no idea how s&ary it was for a fourteen%year%old girl! I lived alone in that house, Kanga!hat was the s&ariest moment in my life! And you thin+ it was IF4H4/IF:- /ometimes, boys disgust me) 4spe&ially when they donNt +eep their promises) Andwhat you .ust told me went onto the list that disgusts me the most) I hate you! he only reason why I ever bothered to be with you was be&ause you reminded me of(inWoo! I hate you! :et away from me!Q Boa ran out of the building into a nearby par+) /he found a ben&h and buried her fa&e in her hands) /he started to &ry,when she felt a person sit ne1t to her) /he loo+ed up and saw a blurred shape of /aHang) /he hastily dried her tears and said, OWhat do you want-Q/aHang &leared her throat and said, OI &ouldnNt help overhearing) 6ou guys were +ind of yelling) 6ou really love (inWoo, donNt you-QBoa glared at her and said, OWhat do you &are- 6ouNre the one he loves anyway)Q/aHang too+ a deep breath and said, OBoa) oo+ at me)Q Boa turned to loo+ at her) OWhat if I told you that I donNt really love (inWoo-QBoa rolled her eyes and said, O:et off it, /aHang) I donNt &are anymore) I gave up) INm .ust going to move away and forget that he ever e1isted) 6ou donNt have to beall sweet and give (inWoo to me) 0eNs not a toy and I donNt want him to be hurt)Q/aHang shoo+ her head and said, O6ou donNt understand) 0e doesnNt love me either)QBoa &arefully loo+ed at her and said, O41plain)Q/aHang too+ a deep breath and said, OIn Paris, my father saved (inWoo from totally failing in his studies) 0e gave him money and shelter) (inWoo told my father

that he would do anything to repay his +indness) 0e told him to marry me) (inWoo +ept on telling him that he had someone waiting, but my father wouldnNt listen) Iguess I was getting old, and it was hard to find a de&ent Korean in Paris) /o (inWoo had no &hoi&e but to a&&ept) WeNve grown &lose, but not &lose enough to getmarried) o ma+e it worse, I left someone ba&+ in Paris) 0eNs 9ren&h, and my father wouldnNt a&&ept him be&ause of that) 0e told me that (inWoo was my only&han&e) If I donNt get married to (inWoo, then he might .ust give up on me and let me marry the man I truly love) Please, Boa) If you love (inWoo, donNt let go ofhim) I +now he still loves you) 0e whispers your name at night in his sleep) Please-QBoa was sho&+ed) (inWoo still loved her- his wasnNt possible) 0e was so affirmative about loving /aHang) 0e had hurt her so mu&h! 2ust then, her &ell phonerang) /he answered, O0ello-Q(aybe it was fate that he had &alled right at this moment) OBoa! Where are you- (omNs worried si&+ about you! Boa! INll go there) Where are you-QBoa answered, OWhere are you, (inWoo-Q0e sounded franti&) O0ome! 3ome home, now!QBoa too+ a deep breath as a single tear fell from her eyes) OWait there) (inWoo, wait there) And this time, donNt go anywhere)Q /he hung up, stood up, and loo+ed at/aHang with tears in her eyes) Ohan+ you, /aHang) INll never forget this)Q /he ran to grab a ta1i, going to (inWoo) 9inally) 0er love) i+e it was supposed to be)


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3hapter welveBoa grabbed a ta1i and bit her lip as she waited to arrive at (inWoo*s home) /he saw (inWoo waiting for her and ran into his arms) /he started to &ry as shemanaged to say, '(inWoo) 6ou stupid dor+) Why didn*t you tell me- I still love you) /he loo+ed up at his fa&e and pulled away) '(inWoo-(inWoo stared &arefully at Boa and said, 'Are you drun+- What happened- Why are you a&ting li+e this-Boa frowned and said, '/aHang said that you still loved me) /he told me about everything) /he told me that you two were for&ed to get engaged) /he also told methat she had someone that she loved in Paris) (inWoo, I +now everything) 6ou don*t have to a&t anymore)(inWoo slowly said, 'I don*t +now what /aHang said to you, but don*t believe in anything she says) I; I love her)/omething told Boa not to be fooled by this a&t) /he said, '9ine) oo+ at me in the eye and say it) oo+ at me straight in the eye, ee (inWoo)(inWoo stared into Boa*s eyes, and she felt her heart melt, .ust li+e it did the first time they met) But she had to wait for him to say it) hen she would believe it)0is voi&e was loud and &lear li+e a +nife pier&ing her heart) 'I; love; 0e stopped)Boa &leared her throat and said, '/ay it) Fow)(inWoo*s beautiful eyes started to fill up with tears) 'I love you) Boa hugged (inWoo) /he never wanted to let go) /he loo+ed up at (inWoo and whispered,

'What too+ you so long-hey held ea&h other for a long time before they went in the house and sat down in Boa*s room) hey both sat on the bed, leaning against the wall) Boa loo+ed up tosee (inWoo smiling at her) (inWoo said, 'I*m so sorry, Boa) /aHang*s father saved my life) I had to repay it) But I had no idea that it would ma+e me somiserable) But /aHang; she never loved anyone else) Well, she never told me about it anyway) And I +now she never loved anyone else, or she would have told me)Boa frowned and said, '(aybe she was .ust saying that to get us ba&+ together)(inWoo nodded and said, '/he still +new that I loved you) I do feel sorry for her, Boa) I wish I &ould do something for her) I need to repay the +indness that herfather has given me) 5o you have any guy friends that you +now-Boa shoo+ her head and said, 'I8m sorry) I really don*t +now any guys, e1&ept; 0er eyes grew round) /he loo+ed at (inWoo and said, 'I .ust got the most

brilliant idea in the world! /he dragged (inWoo and &alled for a ta1i) (inWoo loo+ed &onfused as ever) Boa e1plained hastily) 'I have to go ba&+ to wor+anyway) And I +now who &an be an e1a&t mat&h for /aHang! I +now the e1a&t person! his is so e1&iting, (inWoo! h, (inWoo! 6ou don*t +now how mu&h I*vemissed you)(inWoo smiled and said, 'I missed you too, Boa) I*m so sorry) I really;Boa whispered, '/h, and put her finger to his lips) /he leaned ba&+ in her seat as the ta1i made its way ba&+ to the &ompany) hey got off and Boa too+(inWoo*s hand) /he smiled as they wal+ed up to Kanga*s offi&e) 2ust as she thought, /aHang was at her table, filing the folders) Kanga was loo+ing from hiswat&h to the phone) When they heard (inWoo and Boa &ome in, they Eui&+ly loo+ed up)Kanga stood up Eui&+ly and started yelling) 'Boa! Where were you- 6ou .ust disappeared! /aHang told me that she had tal+ed to you for a while before you .ust

ran off! Where have you been-Boa smiled and said, 'I*ve been with (inWoo) /he turned to /aHang and smiled at her) '/aHang, I +now what you did) I +now that there was no other personwaiting for you in Paris)/aHang turned red and whispered, 'I really didn*t love (inWoo) And I +new that he still loved you, so what was the use-Boa widely smiled and said, '/aHang, I owe you one) hat*s why I*m going to introdu&e you to a ni&e, sweet, good%loo+ing, &aring person in the whole world)(inWoo*s ta+en, so you*ll have to ta+e the first)(inWoo sni&+ered and nudged Boa) /aHang*s fa&e brightened, and Kanga was .ust standing there, still trying to soa+ in the fa&t that (inWoo and Boa weretogether again) /aHang Euietly as+ed, 'Who is it-Boa smiled and wal+ed to Kanga) /he grabbed his hand and dragged him to /aHang) Boa too+ a deep breath and said, 'Ahn 3hil0yun, this is ee /aHang) ee/aHang, this is Ahn 3hil0yun, but everyone &alls him Kanga)Kanga frowned and said, 'What*s your point, Boa- We already +now ea&h other)Boa grinned and said, 'I +now) 6ou guys +now ea&h other as &o%wor+ers) But I want you to get to +now ea&h other as lovers! Boa*s smile slowly disappeared asKanga, /aHang, and (inWoo turned to loo+ at her as if she was &razy)3hapter hirteenBoa loo+ed around at the fa&es staring at her) 'What- she as+ed) 'his is a perfe&t plan! (inWoo and I are together, and that leaves Kanga and /aHang to bealone) hen you guys &ould get together!

Kanga &leared his throat and said, 'Fo offense to /aHang, but you have to remember that we don*t li+e ea&h other) Fo, we don*t even KFW ea&h other!Boa smiled and said, 'I +now) hat*s why I .ust introdu&ed you) 6ou guys have to figure out the rest for yourselves)Boa lin+ed her arm into (inWoo*s and said, '3ome on, (inWoo) et*s &at&h up on old times) han+s, /aHang)/aHang smiled at her and (inWoo laughed as they wal+ed out the door) Kanga and /aHang stared aw+wardly at ea&h other) /aHang spo+e first) 'Dm, hello;(anager Ahn)Kanga sighed and stared at /aHang) /he had big eyes and a de&ent, straight nose) /he was &ute) Kanga said, '3all me Kanga) We*re going to be wor+ingtogether for who +nows how long- Why don*t we grab something to eat) Are you hungry-/aHang smiled uneasily and said, 'Well, I guess I &ould get a bite)Kanga said, ':reat! 3ome on) 0e wal+ed out of the offi&e with /aHang trailing behind him) 4veryone bowed as Kanga went by) ne person stopped him andsaid, 'Where do you thin+ you*re going-Kanga loo+ed ba&+ at /aHang and said, 'I*m going on a date) Fow if you will e1&use me;0e gently slipped from the man*s grasp and motioned to /aHang to follow him) /aHang bowed as she passed the surprised man) hey wal+ed outside and Kangaopened his &ar door for /aHang) /aHang smiled and said, 'han+ you) As he wal+ed to the other side, he thought, 7his might not be so bad) After all, Boa issomewhat li+e my sister;* 0e started driving and turned on the musi&) 0is voi&e filled the &ar, and /aHang said, 'Is this you- Kanga nodded) /aHang was surprised) /he loo+ed at the

profile of his fa&e and de&ided that this wasn*t going to be so bad) 0e was good loo+ing, and he sure &ould sing! /he &losed her eyes and let the musi& embra&e her)In a few minutes, she +new she &ouldn*t brea+ out of this spell) 0is voi&e was drawing her in)

Kanga loo+ed at the pea&efully resting /aHang) 0e +new e1a&tly where to go) hey had been driving for a long time, when /aHang opened her eyes and said,'Dm, Kanga- Where are you ta+ing me- Why is it so far-Kanga gripped the steering wheel tighter and said, '2ust wait) /orry, /aHang) 2ust wait for twenty minutes) I*m sorry if you*re hungry)wenty minutes steadily passed and they arrived at a restaurant) /aHang got out of the &ar and loo+ed around her) 'Kanga, this is the o&ean)Kanga only smiled and said, 'I +now) Isn*t it a beautiful restaurant- I helped design it) /aHang loo+ed at him as if he was &razy) 0ow &ould he have helpeddesign this beautiful thing- 0ow &ould he have possibly; Kanga said, '3ome on! 0e grabbed her arm and too+ her inside) Inside, it was even more beautiful)he light that shined through the windows set an en&hanting feeling in the restaurant) Kanga yelled, '5ad!/aHang stared at him with big eyes) /he whispered, 'If I +new your dad would be here, I would have dressed a little bit more ni&ely)Kanga smiled and said, 'What- 6ou already want to formally greet your father%in%law- All that /aHang &ould do was frown) 0e laughed as his dad &ame out ofthe +it&hen)/aHang bowed and Kanga introdu&ed her) '/aHang, this is my dad) 5ad, this is ee /aHang) /he*s a friend of mine) Boa introdu&ed us)0is dad said, 'Ah; I see) 0e smiled at /aHang and said, '3all me (r) Ahn) I guess you*ll be having the usual-


8/11

Kanga whispered into his ear, '/omething a little more spe&ial) A little bit more romanti&) If you +now what I mean; 0e win+ed and his father win+ed right ba&+at him) ':ot ya, he said) 0e slipped ba&+ into the +it&hen and Kanga showed /aHang to a booth in the RIP se&tion)/aHang loo+ed around and said, 'Wow, this is very ni&e) 0e nodded and smiled) 0e loo+ed very proud of himself) /oon, his dad made a spe&ial appearan&e by

bringing them the food himself) It was a deep red lobster) (r) Ahn*s swift hands moved a&ross the lobster, revealing the glowing white meat inside) Kanga gavehis dad a loo+, telling him silently to leave them alone)(r) Ahn stepped away and /aHang loo+ed longingly at the food) Kanga &leared his throat and said, '/aHang, I +now that you don*t +now me that well) But Boadidn*t introdu&e us for .ust any reason) /he wanted us to be together) I was hoping that we &ould get to +now ea&h other well before as+ing you, but something tellsme that I might lose you to someone else if I wait too long) /aHang, will you be my girlfriend-/aHang loo+ed sho&+ed) /he hadn*t e1pe&ted this right now at this moment) It was so soon! /he slowly formed her mouth so the words would &ome out &orre&tly)'I don*t +now what to say)Kanga said, '9ine) hin+ about it) If you a&&ept, then eat some of that lobster)/he thought about it) After all, Boa 0A5 introdu&ed them for a reason) 0er arm rea&hed for the lobster meat as Kanga smiled) /he laughed as she stuffed it in her

mouth and said, '4at some, Kanga) It*s really good)Kanga began to stuff himself and soon, they were both laughing and stuffing themselves with lobster meat) If anyone saw them, they would have thought that theyhad been &ouples for years, when in fa&t, their love had .ust begun to blossom into an never%dying flower)3hapter 9ourteenWhile Kanga and /aHang were having a wonderful time, (inWoo and Boa were &at&hing up on old times) Boa sighed and said, O(inWoo, itNs so ni&e to have you

ba&+ again)Q(inWoo blan+ly nodded) hey were seated in front of (inWooNs home) 0e stared off into spa&e) Boa frowned) /he didnNt +now what &ould be wrong) hey hadgotten ba&+ together with /aHangNs help and she was happy) But why was (inWoo so Euiet- Boa said, O(inWoo, donNt you li+e it that weNre ba&+ together-Q(inWoo nodded) OIsnNt it also ni&e that we &ould tal+ again-Q (inWoo nodded) OIsnNt it ni&e that you &ould a&tually loo+ into my eyes-Q (inWoo nodded) OIsnNt itni&e that we hate ea&h other-Q (inWoo nodded)Boa &ouldnNt ta+e this) /he stood up and said, O(inWoo! What is wrong with you-Q(inWoo stood up and said, O6ou want to go in-QBoa &ouldnNt believe her ears) 0e wasnNt listening! O(inWoo! WhatNs wrong- ell me whatNs wrong)Q(inWoo smiled and shoo+ his head) OFothing) I8m happy to be ba&+ with you, Boa) INve missed you so mu&h)QBoa +new that he didnNt mean it) O(inWoo, tell me whatNs wrong) I +now that you donNt mean what you .ust said)Q(inWoo sighed and loo+ed up at her) O6ou +now what- 6ouNre right) /omething is wrong with me, and I donNt +now what it is) I .ust have a feeling that something isvery wrong)Q

Boa frowned, be&ause something had been bugging her too) OWhat is it-Q(inWoo shrugged and said, OhatNs what INve been trying to figure out during the time you were tal+ing)Q/o they sat in silen&e, wondering what &ould possibly be wrong when they were ba&+ together) 2ust then, a siren pier&ed the still night) (inWoo stood up as thesound got &loser and &loser) Boa stood ne1t to him and whispered, OI wonder who it is-Q But the ambulan&e stopped in front of (inWoo and Boa) hey loo+ed atea&h other and ran into the house) hey ran into (inWooNs grandmotherNs room, and saw (inWooNs mother hun&hed over his grandmotherNs body) (inWooNs mothersaw them and said, Oh, (inWoo! 6our grandmother wonNt wa+e up! I &alled the ambulan&e be&ause I didnNt +now what to do!Q (inWoo held her in his arms)Boa wat&hed as the nurses pi&+ed up (inWooNs grandmother and put her on a stret&her) (inWoo, his mother, and Boa piled into the ba&+ of the ambulan&e with her)(inWooNs eyes teared as he loo+ed at Boa and said, OI +new something was wrong)Q Boa &ould do nothing but nod) /he prayed silently that (inWooNs grandmotherwould be o+ay) It loo+ed as if (inWooNs mother was doing the same) (inWoo .ust loo+ed at his grandmother, regretting the four years that he had been away)< < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < <Boa suddenly awo+e from her position) /he had fallen asleep in the &hair in the room) /he twisted her ne&+ and heard it &ra&+) (inWoo was sitting beside hisgrandmotherNs bed) (inWooNs mother had gone out to as+ the do&tor what was wrong)(inWoo motioned Boa to drag her &hair and sit ne1t to him) hey had been in that position for several minutes when (inWooNs grandmotherNs eyes slowly opened)/he blin+ed a &ouple times and whispered, O(inWoo-Q(inWoo nodded and grabbed her hand) O6es :randmother) Are you alright-Q/he nodded and saw Boa) OBoa, my &hild) han+ you for &oming)Q

Boa shoo+ her head and said, OFo, :randmother) I was there with (inWoo when the ambulan&e &ame) Are you &omfortable- 5o you want anything-Q(inWooNs grandmother started to sha+e her head, but &hanged her mind) O6es) I do want something)Q(inWoo and Boa nodded and said, OWhat is it-Q/he loo+ed up at the young &ouple and said, OBefore I die, I want to see something happen)QBoa said, OWhat is it- ell us) I will do anything for you! 6ouNve been so +ind to me!Q(inWooNs grandmother &oughed and said, OI8m getting old) Before I die, I want to see you two get married) If I8m lu&+y, maybe INll be able to see my grand&hildren)hat is my only wish)Q(inWoo and Boa loo+ed at ea&h other un&omfortably) :etting married had never &rossed their thoughts before) (inWoo &leared his throat and said, O5onNt worry,:randmother) WeNll do it)Q3hapter 9ifteenwo wee+s had passed sin&e (inWooNs grandmother had reEuested their marriage) hat was why Boa was fa&ing (inWoo a&ross the aisle in the &hur&h de&orated inwhite and light blue) Boa &ould barely spea+) /he &ouldnNt believe that this was happening) /he was finally getting married to the love of her life) he only personthat she had learned to love) 0er mom, 6oon2ae, and Kanga were sitting ne1t to (inWooNs mother and grandmother) 0owever, (inWooNs grandmother was not ingood &ondition) /he loo+ed so frail and that she would brea+ if anyone tou&hed her) Boa started wal+ing down the aisle, with her step dad by her side) /uddenly, thethought of her real father &ame to her, but she pushed it aside) /he didnNt want any bad thoughts ruining her wedding) (inWoo too+ her hand and smiled at her) Boa&ouldnNt help feeling that it was not a smile of love, but a for&ed smile) hey stood there, together, through the sermon, the wedding vows, and the e1&hange of rings)hey finally stood fa&ing ea&h other, ready to +iss) (inWoo and Boa tou&hed ea&h otherNs warm lips Boa felt a warm sensation going through her body) It felt so

good to be with (inWoo! As BoaNs mother wat&hed with teary eyes, Boa and (inWoo wal+ed down the aisle with &onfetti being thrown on them) Boa threw her bouEuet and a wide%eyed /aHang &aught it) At the re&eption, Boa made a toast to /aHang, who had blushed furiously with Kanga hugging her)In a blin+ of an eye, Boa and (inWoo were waving, going to their honeymoon to Paris) n the plane, Boa noti&ed that (inWoo had hardly spo+en more than threewords in a senten&e) O(inWoo- WhatNs wrong-Q(inWoo smiled and said, OBoa) What &ould possibly be wrong on our wedding day-QBoa +new something was wrong) /he felt it) OI donNt +now) 6ou tell me)Q (inWooNs e1pression &hanged and said, OetNs .ust en.oy Paris, o+ay-QBoa wrin+led her nose at the thought of Paris) OI really donNt +now why you wanted to go to Paris) 6ouNve already been there, and I want to go to a pla&e where bothof us had never been before!Q(inWoo grinned and said, OI promised that when I got married, I would show my friends my new wife)QBoa snapped, OWell, I8m sure theyNll be surprised when they see me and not /aHang)Q /he turned away from him, mad at (inWoo and herself) Why wasnNt(inWoo happy- 0e seemed so blunt about them getting married, li+e had +nown it would happen all along) What was happening to her- Why was she suspe&ting(inWoo of everything-


9/11

When the plane finally landed, they found (inWooNs friend, who loo+ed surprised when he saw Boa) OWow, whereNs /aHang-Q(inWoo sighed and said, Oong story)Q0is friend nodded and said, OI thin+ your wife is prettier than her anyway) I8m 5ongWan) And you areQBoa smiled and said, OBoa) ee Boa)Q5ongWan grinned and said, OFi&e to meet you, Boa) (inWoo, letNs go) he &ab is waiting ouside)Q hey all rushed with their luggage to the &ab) 5ongWan led themto the hotel they were supposed to stay in) hey &he&+ed in, and 5ongWan said, O(inWoo, &all me if you need me) 6our real honeymoon starts tomorrow) 9or now,do your stuff)Q 0e win+ed at Boa and she turned &rimson) (inWoo sma&+ed him on the ba&+ and said, O:et out of here!QBoa &arried her luggage up to the room as (inWoo followed her) hey opened the door and Boa gasped) O(inWoo! ItNs so pretty! oo+ at those flowers! Are thosereal roses-Q(inWoo smiled at the e1&ited Boa, but his slight smile Eui&+ly faded) Boa flopped onto the bed and said, O(inWoo) 3ome on! his is so e1&iting!Q(inWoo stared at her and sighed) SI8m so sorry, Boa,N he thought) 0e &leared his throat and said, ODm, you +now what- I thin+ I8m going to go outside for some freshair)Q

OINll go with you!Q(inWooNs eyes turned wide and said, OFo! I mean you should stay here and get some rest) INll go buy some food to eat) INll be ba&+ in an hour)QBoa nodded and said, OAlright! Be ba&+ soon!Q(inWoo left and the door &li&+ed shut) Boa sighed and de&ided to follow (inWooNs advi&e) /he fell asleep Eui&+ly, falling into a dream of (inWoo and her) o bee1a&t, it was more of a nightmare) (inWoo was drifting apart from her, and Boa was yelling to him) In a flash, (inWooNs fa&e disappeared and was repla&ed byKangaNs) hen his fa&e disappeared and was repla&ed by /aHangNs) hen her fa&e disappeared and everything was dar+) Boa awo+e with a start and breathedheavily) /he got up and washed her fa&e) /he lay on the bed again and loo+ed at the &lo&+) It was #=>> midnight) hey had arrived here at J P() Where was(inWoo- /uddenly, hunger &ame to her li+e a bolt of lightning) /he hadnNt eaten anything! And (inWoo said that he was going to buy something) /he de&ided tosleep to get rid of it) (aybe (inWoo will wa+e her up when he gets ba&+) 0e probably got lost) When she awo+e, it was @ A( in the morning) /he loo+ed to the

pla&e ne1t to her on the bed) here was no (inWoo)3hapter /i1teenBoa Eui&+ly &hanged into something she &ould go out in and yelled, O(inWoo! (inWoo! Where are you-Q What if something had happened to him- What if he gotlost- What if someone had stolen his money- What if someone had +idnapped him- As she ran through all the possibilities, she ruled out every one of them) Butwhere &ould (inWoo be-By now, she was far away from the hotel) /he started loo+ing around franti&ally and realized she was lost) Oh, (inWooQ /he started sobbing and sat on a ben&hnear her) O(inWoo, where are you- Why are you not here- I really donNt thin+ you love me anymore) 5o you love /aHang- Is that it- What happened to the deeplove we used to share-Q

Boa stood up from the ben&h and sighed) /he wal+ed ba&+ to the hotel room and lay on the bed again) /he &losed her eyes and hoped that when she opened them, thiswould all be a dream) When she opened them, there still wasnNt any (inWoo) /he loo+ed at the nightstand and frowned) here was a folded note) /he slowly openedit and stared at the &ontent) he note read=5ear Boa,his is our se&ond day of being married) I love you, Boa) But something is holding me ba&+ on this honeymoon) here is something terribly wrong) I &ould .ust feelit in my bones) I went to the airport to get ti&+ets ba&+ home) INll be waiting there until L P)() 6ou should pa&+ your things and &ome if you want to) If you donNt, Iunderstand, Boa) Bye, Boa) 5onNt forget that I love you)Boa frowned) What was the meaning of this- hen, it &li&+ed) his wasnNt .ust about going to the airport to go ba&+ home) his was about our love) (inWoo wantsto +now if our love had lasted for four years) 0e wants to +now if I8m strong enough to ma+e it last that long) Boa didnNt +now if (inWoo had really bought ti&+etsor not, but she +new that she loved him and didnNt want to lose him) he &lo&+ read # P)() 4ven though she was awfully hungry, she Eui&+ly pa&+ed her things andran to the lobby) /he &he&+ed them out and &alled for a &ab) When she arrived at the airport, it was one)OBoa!Q /he turned around and saw (inWoo) /he dropped her bags and ran to him) /he put her arms around him and said, O(inWoo! 6ou stupid! I was so worriedabout you! f &ourse I love you, (inWoo) I love you so mu&h)Q hey held ea&h other for a long time, not &aring about anything else All that mattered was thatthey had ea&h other)< < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < <O(inWoo, honestly, I8m glad you two de&ided to &ome ba&+) :randmother is so ill, and I really donNt +now what to do)Q Boa and (inWoo fa&ed his mother at his

home)(inWoo as+ed, O0ow about the hospital- 0ave you gone there-Q(inWooNs mother shoo+ her head and said, OFo) 6our grandmother wouldnNt let me) /he told me that those do&tors were no mat&h for the &ure that her own bodywill ma+e) But I highly doubt that anything will happen if she doesnNt see a do&tor soon) We must get her to a do&tor)QBoa said, OINll get her to go)Q(inWooNs mother smiled gratefully at her and said, O6es) /heNs always listened to you) I &anNt help thin+ing that she loves you more than she loves us) :o, and&onvin&e her, Boa)QBoa went into her grandmotherNs room and said, O:randmother, itNs me, Boa)Q (inWooNs grandmother strained to sit up, but Boa stopped her) Boa said, OWe went toour honeymoon, but (inWoo had a feeling that something was wrong ba&+ home) 0e was right) :randmother, you need to go to a hospital) Please-Q0is grandmother shoo+ her head and said, OFothing is more powerful than oneNs body) If that body wants to go, it will go, no matter what tries to stop it)QBoa sighed and too+ :randmotherNs hand in hers) OPlease) 5o it for me) I donNt want to see you si&+ li+e this) Please, .ust go to the hospital on&e with (inWoo andme) Please-Q Boa loo+ed down at :randmother):randmother sighed and said, OBoa, please) 6ou have to leave me alone) I want you two to be happy) Fow, leave, so I may go to sleep)QBoa gave up and went to (inWooNs room) O(inWoo, I8m afraid sheNs too stubborn) /he wonNt even listen to me)Q(inWooNs mother said, OWell, itNs alright, dear) 6ou two get some rest) 6ou must be e1hausted!Q (inWoo nodded and drifted off to sleep) Boa lay beside him and&losed her eyes) (inWooNs mother smiled at the young &ouple and turned off the lights)< < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < <

(inWoo awo+e to BoaNs warm hand sha+ing him) O(inWoo) (inWooQ(inWoo opened his eyes and saw that Boa had tears in her eyes) OWhatNs wrong- What happened-QBoa hugged (inWoo and whispered, O/heNs gone, (inWoo)Q3hapter /eventeenBoa stood ne1t to (inWoo, wearing a white, traditional Korean dress) It had been a wee+ after she had died) /he stood there, silently &rying, as (inWoo spread hisgrandmotherNs ashes into the deep, blue sea) (inWoo &ouldn*t help &rying as he thought about how it was his grandmother that made him so happy and sad) 0appythat he was married to Boa, but sad that she had to leave him so soon)After they were finished, (inWoo and his mom got into their &ar to go home) Boa said, 'I*ll go home with my parents) I*ll go soon, with Kanga and /aHang) Wehave to help them plan their wedding)(inWoo nodded) It was still hard to believe that /aHang and Kanga*s love was as deep as his and Boa*s) Boa got into Kanga*s &ar as she wat&hed (inWoodrive off)Boa went home, as she &alled it now, and plopped down on the &ou&h) 6oon2ae stood behind her as he massaged her ba&+)


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'Were you tired, noona-Boa nodded and said, ':osh, 6oon2ae) 6ou*re a pro!6oon2ae grinned and said, 'Kanga hyung always as+s me to do it for him)Boa frowned at her stepbrother and said, '0ey! 5on*t ma+e 6oon2ae do things for you!Kanga said, '/hut up) 0e*s (6 brother) 3ome on, /aHang) et*s go pi&+ out your wedding dress)Boa .umped up and said, 'I want to go too!Kanga sighed and said, ':et in)hey went to the wedding dress shop, and /aHang tried on ten before she finally found the perfe&t one) Boa rolled her eyes and said, 'hat too+ 9H4R4H)/aHang frowned at her and said, '/hut up! 6ou +now that you too+ longer) Plus, I want to loo+ perfe&t for my sweetie)Boa pretended to throw up as Kanga +issed her lightly on the &hee+) hey finally left the shop after what seemed li+e eternity for Boa) Kanga drove toward(inWoo*s house, and he said, '/o, Boa) When am I going to be an un&le-Boa blushed but said, '/hut up! (aybe you and /aHang &ould get married and get a baby before us!

/aHang laughed and said, '6eah, let*s do that, Kanga!Kanga turned to fa&e Boa in the ba&+seat and said, 'Are you sure you don*t mind- 6ou guys got married first)Boa said, 'f &ourse I;2ust then, /aHang let out a ear%pier&ing s&ream) 'Kanga shi! Wat&h out! he tires s&ree&hed and all three of them sat there, mesmerized) What had .usthappened- /aHang sha+ily said, 'Kanga; I thin+ you hit someone) /omeone was there, but he isn*t there anymore) 0e was running;Boa whispered, 'h gawd; as she got Eui&+ly out of the &ar and ran to the front) /he stood there, frozen with fear) /he really hoped that it wasn*t the person shethought it was) Kanga and /aHang had run to her side by then and they both whispered, 'h gawd;Boa loo+ed to Kanga with tears in her eyes and said, '0urry) We*ve got to get (inWoo to a hospital) I want the baby inside of me to have a father)3hapter 4ighteenBoa &ouldn*t sit still) Why wasn*t (inWoo &oming out of the emergen&y room- It didn*t ta+e 0I/ long to get stit&hes, did it- And to ta+e 1%rays; /he +ept ontou&hing her stoma&h) /he hadn*t gone to the hospital for a &he&+%up, but she .ust +new that there was a human growing inside of her)9inally, after what seemed li+e forever, the do&tor &ame out, loo+ing into a folder) 'Is Kwon Boa here-Boa Eui+ly stood up and said, '6es, I8m here) What happened- Is (inWoo o+ay-he do&tor smiled wea+ly and motioned to her to step into his offi&e) hey both too+ a seat and the do&tor put up an 1%ray onto the lighted s&reen) 'his is(inWoo*s brain) 6ou see, this part; this part was damaged when he was hit his head on the ground) I*m afraid; that he will be deaf when he wa+es up)Boa sat there, blan+ly staring at the do&tor) 'What- 41&use me- I thin+ you got the wrong person) hese things only happen in dramas; And this is F a drama)he do&tor &leared his throat and said, 'I*m sure this is a sho&+ to you) I +now this is not a drama, and I*m really sorry, ma*am)

Boa &ouldn*t believe this) (aybe it was from the sho&+ that (inWoo &ouldn*t hear anymore) r maybe it was something else, but it made Boa faint) u&+ily, shewas in a hospital;< < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < < <'(a*am- 0ave you awa+en- Are you all right- 5id you +now that you were pregnant- (a*am- 6ou*re a month pregnant)Boa shot up straight in bed) 'What- A month- 0ow did that happen- I was married for two days!he nurse smiled and said, '6ou*ve been in a &oma) he baby inside of you hasn*t been &ooperating, but after &he&+ing, the do&tor says you*ll be fine)Boa smiled, but Eui&+ly remembered (inWoo) '5o you +now about my husband, (inWoo- 5o you +now what happened to him-he nurse nodded and said, 'h, he*s trying to adapt to his; new &ir&umstan&es) I8m very sorry) (y mother was deaf, and; Well, I shouldn*t be piling more stresson you) If you want to see (inWoo, he should be in room #C) If you need anything, &all for Furse 3hoi)Boa whispered, 'han+ you) /he lifted her feet and wal+ed to see what room number she was) #M) As she started at the two doors beside her, she &hose the rightone) It was room #$) /he sighed and with every step, she thought of what she would say to (inWoo) hen she realized that he wouldn*t hear it anyway) /he liftedher hand to +no&+ and remembered that he &ouldn*t hear it) /he bit her lips as she Euietly opened the door) /he saw (inWoo standing ne1t to the window, loo+ingout)Boa whispered, 'h, (inWoo; /he wal+ed to stand ne1t to him and started &rying) /he turned to see (inWoo staring at her) 0e was &rying too) Boa hugged(inWoo and (inWoo whispered, 'I*m so sorry; I8m so sorry that everything had to turn out this way) he do&tor said you had something to tell me) I8m so sorrythat I &an*t hear it)

Boa shoo+ her head, but &ouldn*t spea+) (inWoo &ouldn*t hear it anyway) /he bit her lip and put her hand over her mouth) hrough her tears, she saw (inWooloo+ing away from her) /he lifted her fa&e to ma+e him loo+ at her) /he patted her stoma&h and made a motion of &radling a baby)(inWoo*s tears turned into tears of .oy and e1&laimed, 'Boa! Heally- Are you sure- Boa nodded and (inWoo held her in his arms) 'I8m so sorry, Boa) I &an*thear your beautiful voi&e ever again) I &an*t hear you &alling my name) I &an*t hear you) I &an*t hear my &hild*s first &ry) I &an*t hear my &hild*s first words) I&an*t hear my &hild) I &an*t hear anything; 0is voi&e trailed off as his tears flew again) Boa shoo+ her head and wiped his tears) /he pointed to herself, to him,then to her ears) /he lin+ed her inde1 fingers together) (inWoo whispered, '6ou*ll be my ears for me- Boa nodded and hugged him again) /he pointed to herselfagain an made a writing motion in the air) (inWoo nodded and said, '6eah, I guess I &an read) Boa, I now +now why I met you) 6ou*re destined to be mine) 6ou*redestined to be my love) I love you) At that e1a&t moment, Boa +new that what was going to pain her the most was the fa&t that (inWoo &ouldn*t hear her saying'I love you) /he simply nodded and mouthed, '(e too) (inWoo nodded ba&+ to indi&ate that he understood) hey stood there together, ne1t to the window fora long time) Boa fell asleep and leaned on his shoulder) (inWoo stared at her for a long time as more tears fell) hey fell on Boa*s &hee+s and fell as if they wereher own)4pilogue(inWoo waited, fiddling with his thumbs, for Boa to &ome out of the delivery room) It had been nine months sin&e he had learned to get used to the la&+ of a sense)Boa &ommuni&ated by writing things on paper, ma+ing hand motions, and mouthing some words) It was hard, but it was a good thing that they &ould a&tually&ommuni&ate in some way) hey were all planning to learn sign language as soon as their new baby was old enough)he nurse &ame out and loo+ed for him) /he patted his shoulder and smiled to show that everything was o+ay) (inWoo sighed in relief and said, 'han+ you) When

&an I see her- Is it a son-he nurse shoo+ her head and mouthed, '5aughter) (inWoo nodded and smiled) he nurse grabbed (inWoo*s hand and he followed) 9rom the window, heloo+ed for his baby in the room filled with newborn babies) hen he saw it) It read= Baby born to ee (inWoo and Kwon Boa)


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sleep) (inWoo and Boa got into bed, but Boa &ouldn*t fall asleep)(inWoo spo+e first) 'Boa- Are you sleeping- Boa shoo+ her head and turned on the light to see his fa&e better) (inWoo sighed and said, 'I &an*t believe this)When I first met you in high s&hool, I didn*t +now what to do) I had never felt that way for a girl before) When it finally &ame to our wedding day, I &ouldn*t

believe this was happening) I .ust feel so blessed to have you in my life) I .ust wanted you to +now that) :ood night) Boa started at (inWoo*s turned ba&+ andtapped his shoulder) 0e turned and murmured, 'I said good night; Boa, you +now that I get embarrassed when I show my affe&tion for you) What is it-Boa stared at him for a long and (inWoo blan+ly stared ba&+) /he Euietly whispered, barely audible, 'I love you) Fow, it was (inWoo*s turn to stare at Boa) 0eran his finger around her lips, and then gently +issed them) 0e stared at her longer, and Boa &ould do nothing e1&ept lightly whisper again, 'I love you)(inWoo repeated his a&tions) 0e tou&hed her lips and gently +issed them) 0e stared at her for a while longer, and Boa thought he didn*t understand what she hadsaid) /he turned away and tapped his arm twi&e, whi&h was the signal for 'good night)9ive minutes had passed and Boa was still awa+e) /he &ouldn*t* help &rying, disappointed at the fa&t that (inWoo didn*t understand 'I love you)hen, suddenly, from the dar+, (inWoo*s voi&e rung loud and &lear) '(e too, Boa)he 4nd!!!!

always waitiing by brianjoos1004

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