"Aeri & Hyunjin"
We blinked at each other a few times before I took the envelope and opened it. There was a paper inside, which was obviously the letter.
The headline said
"From Hana & Donghyun"
Before I could start reading, Hyunjin opened the second drawer from the desk.
"There's another one" he said. I turned to look at him with yet another letter in his hands.
"What does it say?"
"It has our names too."
"Let's read this one first." I raised my hand with the first letter. Hyunjin nodded, as I started to read out loud.
"Our dearest Aeri and Hyunjin.
I am writing this, not knowing if you will ever read it. It has just been a few days since you both left, and we can tell it worked. We are certain you managed to return the Jewels back successfully, and I have no doubt you are enjoying your lives without worrying.
For us, it stopped. The dreams, the changings. We felt different too, and so we are grateful for it, for you two. Maybe at first we did not understand why would someone take the Jewels, and to this day, we do not know the purpose, but as I told you, and clearly, it had to happen.
Anyways, I will not write a lot, since it is almost impossible for us to reach you with this, but if somehow this letter gets to you, we just wanted to say thank you, for making our lives better.
Sincerely,
Hana & DongHyun"
"What are the odds for us to find this letter?" Hyunjin chuckled.
"I don't know, but, I'm happy we did. This only confirms to me that absolutely everything happens for a reason, just a she said. It makes me happy that they felt happy." I smiled while looking at their names, Hyunjin nodded.
"Should we read the other one?"
"Sure."
Hyunjin handed me the next letter for me to read it, the only difference was the ink color.
"Dear Aeri and Hyunjin" I started to read.
"It has been long since I wrote you the first letter, and probably it will be the last one.
Today is 15 years since Dong Hyun and I met you two. As I told you before, we were always grateful for your doings. We got to spend an easy and calm life afterwards.
With my heart broken, I am letting you know that today, my dear DongHyun-"
I stopped reading, as my heart stopped. An awful pain pierced through my body, immediately forming tears in my eyes.
"W-What?" Hyunjin's voice trembled. I sniffed and continued reading.
"My dear DongHyun has passed to a better life. Sometimes, we do not understand life's purposes, but as much as it hurts, I still believe everything has a reason, wether we like it or not.
I understand now your worries, Aeri. At the time, I thought you were too young to be frightened, I even encouraged you. However, now that I lost my two loves, my reasons of living, I lost everything, and truthfully, I have nothing else to do here.
I know leaving the shop is something Dong Hyun would not want, but I cannot bear the pain of being here without the laughs of my family around.
I am returning to my homeland with my mother, I am just taking a few things from here.
Also, there is one thing I will do, as a thank you for you two, for helping us have a normal life. Before passing, my husband left the shop under my name, and now, I am leaving the shop to yours.
It may sound crazy to you, if you ever get to read this letter, but I have spoken with the landlord and arranged with the mayoralty to keep this little shop closed and intact untill the day you two come, because I am certain you will come and visit, as Hyunjin promised to DongHyun.
If for some reason, when you two come visit, this shop is gone, please know that our final wish was for you to have it. We were able to see what our beloved city looked like a hundred years later, even for a short time, so if that was possible, then everything else is.
Finally, I pray for you two to be happy forever, and that you do not get to experience the pain I am feeling, after loosing my husband and my son.
Thank you for everything, see you someday.
Jung Hana"
"A son?..." I started sobbing, Hyunjin was tearing too. I wanted them to be happy forever, and they were so in love with each other. As she mentioned, I was frightened of this happening to me too.
"Aeri" Hyunjin held my cheeks, making me look at him.
"Why did she say you were scared?"
"I don't think we've talked about this before, but I'm always really scared to loose my loved ones and everything around me, everything that attaches me to this world. Hana knew, somehow, and gave me some encouraging words before leaving. I never thought this would be the ending for her, and now I'm afraid the story is meant to repeat."
I started sobbing again, hugging Hyunjin tightly. I didn't want to loose him, to loose everything.
"Hey, hey, listen" he consoled me. "Let's take care of each other properly, so it doesn't happen to us, okay?" He kissed my forehead.
"Aeri, I told you I love you, several times now, but I don't think I've told you how important you are in my life, what you mean to me. You're the one I treasure and cherish the most, and I promise I will take care of you"
"You are everything to me too, And I will take care of you too." I looked at him with my puffy eyes, and he gave me a sweet gentle kiss.
After a while of just being silently hugged, we decided to go to the records building. Keeping Hana's letters, we stepped out of the shop carefully, Hyunjin covered the windows well and we left.
At the counter, we asked for their names, and they handed us old books, handwritten. We sat down at the library table and started to look for their info.
"I found Dong Hyun" I told Hyunjin. We checked the very few details there were about him.
Kim Dong Hyun: 1895-1945
Born: 1895
Spouse: Jung Hana
Children: 1/ Kim Byung-ho
Deceased: July 14th, 1945
Cause of death: pneumonia
Buried: Yanghwajin missionary cemetery
"That's horrible, pneumonia" I said.
"I know. Do you think their son died from that too?" Hyunjin turned pages.
"I don't know, maybe. I'll look for the kid's record, you keep looking for Hana."
After a few minutes, we found both records almost at the same time. Reading their child's records, we confirmed he died from pneumonia too. He was only 9 years old. It was awfully sad actually, to know they passed from that horrible desease. Both Dong Hyun and his son passed away the same week, no wonder Hana was devastated.
"Read Hana's" I asked Hyunjin.
Jung Hana: 1894-1954
Born: 1894
Spouse: Kim Dong Hyun
Children: 1/ Kim Byung-ho
Deceased: October 3rd, 1954
Buried: Pyeongchang /unknown
"It doesn't say where?" I looked at the info carefully.
"Nope, just the province."
"Wasn't it Pyeongchang our school trip location?"
"What school trip?" He frowned.
"How can you not remember?" I asked dramatically offended. "The one where we kissed."
Hyunjin giggled and looked all proud.
"What are You laughing at?"
"I do remember. I just wanted to know how did you remeber it."
"What do you mean "how"?"
"You remember it because we kissed."
"I also remember it when we fought but I chose to let that go."
"Oh, so you remember that too."
"Of course I do." I playfully hit his shoulder, pouting.
"But the kiss was way more memora-" I stopped talking, as a thought came into mind. I remembered what happened that night vividly.
"Oh my god." I told Hyunjin.
"What? What is it?"
"The kiss."
"What's wrong with it?"
"Do you remeber I told you I wasn't moving by myself?"
"I remember you made that up, yes."
"I didn't make that up! I told you!" I said frustrated. He just laughed again, clearly enjoying the teasing.
"Okay, okay, what about it?"
"I wasn't really moving by myself. I mean I was, but as soon as I saw you, my body froze and I couldn't take control of it. I remeber feeling a horrible piercing cold through it, and the next thing I knew I was kissing you."
"I still don't get it."
"Hyunjin, You can't be that stupid."
"Even if I am, that's attractive to you." He smirked.
I rolled my eyes. "I think it was Hana."
"Huh?"
"Think about it. Maybe her family buried her there, instead of an official cemetery, and years later they just built that resort, not knowing of course."
"So?"
"So that night...maybe she was there somehow, maybe it was a desperate attempt to be with Dong Hyun or feel him again as soon as she saw you, since you look exactly like him."
"And that's why you threw yourself to kiss me"
"Exactly. There's not other explanation."
"Oh so you didn't want to kiss me by yourself?" He raised a brow.
"I wasn't that into you in that moment."
"Right, okay" he chuckled, clearly not believing me. And of course, it was a lie.