If Tae-wan tried talking to others afterwards, she would get nervous, but fortunately, that didn’t happen. Even after he got her autograph, he was the same as before. However, ever occasionally during class, when she turned her head, their eyes would meet.

One day, she felt a gaze while playing dodgeball in PE class, when she returned the look, Tae-wan was staring at her. While it was nice to make eye contact, Tae-wan looked at her and then smiled, as if he was glad she knew what he was looking at. At some point, Ha-yeon also became conscious of Tae-wan. She started to wonder if she had begun ogling him too. He was staring at her eight out of ten times, but she was the one staring first in the remaining two.

When she first started staring at him, she became embarrassed and quickly tried to turn her head back. Tae-wan, who seemed to have ESP, turned his head suddenly. After he made a subtle smirk as if he caught her peeping, from then on, Tae-Wan started smiling a little differently from how he used to at the beginning. The smile was similar to an expression of relief. Their moments of looking at each other coincided with Tae-wan’s smiles. She had a strange feeling that no one else knew, as if there was a separate, invisible bubble that had enveloped and insulated both of them which only they were a part of and knew about. Ha-yeon turned away from Tae-wan’s gaze.

Cherry trees lined up under the clear blue sky. White flower buds were sticking out their faces between the branches. The cherry blossoms were going to bloom shortly, and soon they did. Ha-yeon blamed the cherry blossoms for the sound of the buds blooming in her heart.

* * *

Oh, was today that day? Ha-yeon stopped while listening to the loud noise at the front door.

“Happy Birthday. Happy Birthday.” (Woo-hyun)

“Wow, Woo-hyun is also good at talking. Congratulating your mother on her birthday.”

“Oh, look at the kid. So cute! Woo-hyun!” A loving voice overflowed from beyond the door.

They were the stepmother and the stepmother’s sisters. She was at a party to celebrate her stepmom’s birthday. Now, her stepmother’s sisters had become her aunts, but they were still awkward with her. They said they didn’t know what to do when they met Ha-yeon. It was the same with Ha-yeon. She couldn’t come around to calling her stepmother ‘mother’, so unsurprisingly, she couldn’t call her stepmother’s sisters ‘aunt’.

“Thanks. I am really happy, thanks to you.”

Over the cheerful voice of her stepmother, she heard the bold voice of her father saying, ‘Happy birthday.’

She even heard the babbling of Woo-hyun, her younger brother, who soon will turn 2 years old. Her stepmother was moved to see that her husband had given her a gift, and she heard the sounds of envy from her step-aunts through the door. As they chatted in the bright light, she stood in the dark. Ha-yeon’s hands drooped down from the handle of the front door.

“Are you coming home after self-study tonight?” Was this the reason why her stepmother asked her again before going to school this morning?

When Ha-yeon replied, ‘Yes, yes’, it must have been the same reason that her stepmom shed a smile of relief by answering, “You must be busy.”

Ha-yeon looked at the light flowing through the front door and turned back. The only birthday gift she could give her stepmom was not to attend that birthday party. The school ceiling was leaking, so she couldn’t do self-study that night. It seemed she also couldn’t even eat dinner as well.

Her stepmother loved her father and Woo-hyun who was born after they were married, but she was raising Ha-yeon out of a sense of obligation. Ha-yeon’s father also didn’t know how to treat his ex-wife’s grown-up daughter.

His conservative and strict parenting style was more authoritative than nurturing, “You have to go to medical school.” “A woman should be modest. That way, you can find a good husband.” The only things her father ever said to her sounded like that.

Ha-yeon, who got out of the house, stood alone like a lost person. Loneliness landed. It felt like she was freshly ejected and pushed out of any part of their world. There was no place to go, so she stopped by a convenience store and bought a triangle kimbap and headed to the playground.

She sent a message to Ji-yoon and Yul-hee, but neither one of them answered. They had said they were going to karaoke; it looked like they had placed their phones face down. How many hours should she spend her time in the playground like this? Sitting on the swing, Ha-yeon raised her head and looked at the sky.

The Cherry blossoms had a whitish glow under the dark night sky. Cherry blossoms are spectacular when they bloom, but their lush display only lasts fleetingly. Even so, the only other thing that cherry blossoms are good for happens after dark, perhaps because the petals are radiant.

Ha-yeon closed her eyes and inhaled. She tried to imagine the cherry blossom leaves falling off after the rain in a few days. However, no matter how hard she tried, the beautiful sight did not come to mind. She could only recall the words she had overheard by chance a few days ago.

“Ha-yeon, will she become emancipated when she graduates from high school?” came the voice of her stepmother who couldn’t wait to wash her hands of the burdensome obligation as soon as Ha-yeon graduated.

“Should be” replied Ha-yeon’s father who affirmed her stepmother’s question while Woo-hyun, laughed innocently without knowing anything. They were a perfect family, and she alone was a stranger. Even though she had forgotten that fact, on a day like this, her heart broke.

She heard footsteps approaching over the sound of the wind. Ha-yeon opened her eyes and looked ahead. The man who had come towards the swing was staring at her.

[That’s right – you.] Kang Tae-wan was looking at her with such an expression.

When she met his eyes, her eyes that had earlier tightened to crescent slits, opened wider. Ha-yeon blinked her eyes, and then, without even realizing it herself, her tears fell. She hurriedly wiped her eyes with the back of her hand as if ashamed although he wasn’t a stranger.

“What are you doing here?” Ha-yeon asked with her head bent.

“I was on my way home, and I thought I recognized you.”

“… … .” Ha-yeon didn’t say anything because she couldn’t think of anything to answer back.

Tae-wan sat down next to her. He stretched out his long legs to check if the swing was narrow and uncomfortable. Squeak, squeak, the swings shook.

Tae-wan looked ahead and asked abruptly. “Have you eaten yet?”

“… … .”

“Let me hear your answer.”

Ha-yeon shook her head.

“I’m glad. I’m hungry.”

“… … .”

“I’m really hungry, and I don’t have anyone to eat with, so can you buy me some rice?”

Ha-yeon raised her head at the unexpected words. Tae-wan’s gaze was locked on the triangle kimbap she was holding. Immediately after Ha-yeon covered the triangular kimbap with her hand, he turned his gaze toward her face.

“You, for keeping your modeling work a secret, I’m asking you to buy me some rice.”

“… … .”

“Not willing?”

She didn’t hate the suggestion. However, it was strange that Kang Tae-wan, who had been partnered with her for a month but with whom she otherwise had no special relationship with, was asking her to eat with him.

As Ha-yeon hesitated, he said while shoving his hands into his uniform pants, “Even if you don’t like it, suck it up. Just go.” He seemed to have no intention of relenting.

“Let’s go. Don’t just keep pondering over it.”

Ha-yeon got up from her seat only after he urged one more time. She thought it would be better to follow Tae-wan than to be alone.

“Okay. Let’s go.” She was hungry, and she didn’t want to remain alone in the dark. That’s why she followed Kang Tae-wan, Ha-yeon thought to herself.